A murmur rippled through the crowd:
— "What happened?"
— "Why did the oath stop?"
— "Is this… a bad omen?"
Koharu lifted her head.
Her eyes were fixed on the darkness within the spear.
She spoke with steady resolve:
> "I can't do this.
I won't become like you!
I refuse to brand my heart with this black mark."
For a heartbeat, the entire courtyard froze.
Then the king's face turned scarlet.
Guards surged forward; her siblings broke into laughter.
The murmur of the crowd intensified—
prayers, whispers, and fear tangled together.
The king stepped forward—slow, deliberate.
There was no rage on his face—only icy disdain.
> "The power of angelic blood is sealed by Mikail's light.
It has been so for a thousand years, and it remains so today.
You… could not bear that seal."
The crowd growled.
A few people shouted, "Omen! Useless!"
The king raised his voice, each word sharp as a blade:
> "Then you are not of angel blood.
There is a stain in your veins.
There is no place for tainted blood in our holy land!"
One of her brothers laughed aloud:
> "She was nothing but a disgrace to the palace anyway!"
Another added:
> "Now you're going where you belong—outside the gates."
Her sister narrowed her eyes, whispering triumphantly:
> "All the trouble I went through to see this…
was worth every step."
The king lifted his hand.
His voice struck the courtyard like thunder:
> "Koharu!
I banish you from the Angel Kingdom.
Your name and your blood will no longer be spoken as ours!"
The crowd erupted.
Some cheered; others shouted, "Tainted blood!"
As the guards approached Koharu, the princess raised her head.
A fierce determination burned in her eyes.
> "Exile me if you wish.
There is something twisted inside that spear—
I will not be part of that evil."
Her words echoed through the courtyard.
For a moment, everything was silent.
Then laughter, jeers, and applause collided in chaos.
The soldiers bound Koharu's wrists with chains.
Cold metal bit into her skin.
The king commanded, voice cutting like ice:
> "Take her to the Void.
She will never return!"
The crowd erupted into a frenzy.
Some shouted, "Omen!"
Others cried, "Demon!"
Koharu lifted her head high.
There was no regret in her eyes.
She would rather die
than surrender herself to that curse.