Episode 2

In another dimension

A woman with a haggard appearance was fleeing.

Behind her, the branches and leaves on the ground crunched, a clear indication that those pursuing her were close.

With the scant strength she had left, that woman tried to escape her fate, but no matter how fast she ran, that fate was drawing nearer.

She was running with all the breath remaining in her, aiming to save her life, but unfortunately for her, a dry branch crossed her path, causing her to fall. The fall injured her even more.

Soon her pursuers caught up, and with the little fire magic she had left, she tried to defend herself.

But her blazing flames were of no use, as they captured her regardless.

—"Just give up, villain!"— shouted one of her pursuers. He was the captain of the imperial guard, whose job was supposed to be to protect the innocent.

—"Captain, I am not guilty of what you accuse me of; I did not kill the emperor's son,"— the woman cried as she spoke, the captain slapped her, making her bleed from her lips.

—"Not my problem; I just follow orders,"— he said with malice, while his companion violently grabbed the woman, who felt weak and pained from the fall.

The other guards accompanying the captain approached, and together they took the woman to the imperial palace, where the emperor, his concubines, and the nobles of the imperial court awaited them; among those present, a woman wept for her son.

When they brought her before the emperor, he stepped forward and took her from the hands of those holding her.

With aggression, he grabbed her by the hair and dragged her to the center of the hall.

—"Today, Empress Yadira Lombardi will be tried for the crime of killing a member of the imperial family; her punishment is to die by my sword,"— declared the emperor, and everyone gasped, while the concubine, the mother of the slain prince, cried even louder.

The accused tried to defend herself.

—"Husband, I am not guilty of killing the young prince; please investigate properly,"— pleaded the woman everyone called empress.

The furious emperor drew his sword and pointed it at her neck.

—"You cannot deny it; your favorite brooch was found at the crime scene as evidence, which means you were the one who killed my son. Now, it is your turn to pay with your life,"— the emperor said, filled with rage.

With that, he thrust his sword through the thin body of the empress, and at the moment of being pierced, she felt as if her body was burning from the inside.

After seeing that, the emperor stepped back from her and withdrew his sword.

The empress fell to the ground, writhing in pain, blood pouring from her mouth.

The wound freshly inflicted on her body hurt less than that of her heart, which, although invisible to anyone, was wounded.

Tears of sorrow flowed from her dimmed eyes, and without being able to prevent it, that woman died, and a dark mist escaped from her body, marking the instant everything ended for her.

Upon witnessing the empress’s end, the emperor ordered his men to throw her body into the forest, for the gargoyles to devour, and that was exactly what the guards did.

With nothing more to do there, everyone went on with their business, satisfied that at last, that wicked woman had died. Today, the villain had met her deserved end; finally, that woman had received what she deserved.

But who is that woman?

That woman was none other than Yadira Lombardi, empress by right of the empire of Lumia.

She received her title of empress at the age of 13, when her parents were killed in an attack orchestrated by mercenaries while they were spending time as a family.

The only survivor of that attack was Yadira, and she survived because her parents hid her in a secret compartment of the carriage.

The deaths of those people brought pain to the small heart of Yadira, who was very attached to her loving parents.

The empire also suffered the terrible loss of its monarchs, and soon a struggle for power erupted within the empire, where the nobles sought to take the emperor's place, resulting in a chaotic situation.

Due to the political turmoil facing the empire of Lumia, Yadira, at such a young age, had to take charge of the empire. She also had to undergo training in magic and combat.

The young girl would wake with the sun and go to bed later than everyone else in the palace.

With tremendous effort, Yadira managed to restore the empire and raised it to the highest heights among all.

The ambitious nobles could not tolerate being ruled by a girl, and therefore, they collectively demanded that Yadira marry one of their sons.

When the girl was informed about the ministers' intentions, she was given no chance to refuse, and in a desperate measure, she chose Aurelio Marques, the son of the health minister, who was already of age.

After choosing the health minister's son, the man felt pleased by this fact and instructed his son to win Yadira's heart, intending to strip her of the political power she had earned through her good deeds.

Cunningly, Aurelio slowly began to draw close to Yadira, and in no time, he managed to charm her.

At just 14 years old, Yadira became engaged to the young man, and about two years later, they married, with Aurelio being appointed by Yadira as a governor of Lumia.

But something else happened that day; on their wedding night, Aurelio spent the night with his lover, leaving his newlywed wife alone. His lover was none other than Martina, Yadira's cousin.

The day after the wedding, Aurelio named Martina as his first concubine, which filled Yadira with sadness.

But that man, indifferent to her feelings, made it clear that he was only with her for power and had never loved her.

That revelation was a humiliation for Yadira, especially when Aurelio brought two more concubines to the palace a few months later.

Soon, both inside and outside the palace, rumors spread about how the emperor despised the empress.

Little by little, Yadira became the object of ridicule in society, and people started to claim that she possessed some defect that caused the emperor not to love her.

This led Yadira into a depression, momentarily forgetting her duties as empress.

Cunningly, that man began to gain allies within the court, and the power Yadira had worked so hard to achieve slowly began to fade away.

Before long, Yadira started losing influence within the palace, while her cousin gained ground, especially after she became pregnant by the emperor.

Everyone treated her as a treasure, while they viewed Yadira as worthless.

With the emperor's help, Yadira's cousin began to portray the empress as a despicable villain.

As punishment for her actions, the emperor stripped her of her royal seal.

In front of many people, that wicked woman caused herself harm, and Yadira was blamed and branded as the villain, tarnishing the image of the poor girl. To avoid problems, Yadira stopped appearing at meetings with the nobles, while her cousin attended and spread tales of how wicked Yadira was to her.

When the emperor’s son was born, everyone was delighted, and the celebration lasted a month.

After that month, something occurred in the concubine's palace.

Out of nowhere, a fire broke out in the room of the young emperor's son, taking the child's life.

Everyone blamed Yadira, as her favorite brooch— a gift from her deceased mother— was found at the scene, and to her misfortune, her power over fire was well-known.

Immediately, the emperor threw Yadira into the dungeon, fully aware of her innocence, for both he and his concubine Martina were the ones who had committed the crime of burning that innocent child alive.

The cruelty of those wretches reached another extreme when they made Yadira's life a hell in the dungeon. They weakened her body, as well as her fierce fire magic.

One of the guards felt pity for her, and when he had the chance, he allowed Yadira to escape from the dungeon, but she could not get far due to her weakened state.

In the end, she was caught and killed in front of everyone, and her body was tossed into the forest, where it was devoured by the gargoyles.

***This work has been signed with NovelToon, and piracy such as reprinting without permission is strictly prohibited.***

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***