The Dragon King's Heart

"The curse does not only affect one party," she explained, "It usually affects both."

"What do you mean?"

"You are also inflicted with the same curse, Crown Princess Laina."

Laina gasped in shock, "But I don't have the black veins or any of the symptoms."

The Goddess shook her head as she explained, "The curse has not activated for you. But when you do profess your love for him, it will.

The effects of the curse for you are different too."

It was at that moment that it dawned on  Laina. She recalled the intimate moments she shared with Dante. Each time she was about to say those three words, he stopped her. He was trying to protect her.

"Although I am not quite certain if this is true, as a child of the sun the effects of the curse is quite the opposite. It will burn you from within. Your body would not be able to subdue the effects of the curse like King Dante can."

Laina bit her lip. She was afraid of what she might reveal next. But she had to know.

"So what would it be like for me?"

With a heavy heart, the Moon Goddess revealed, "It is likely that you will burn from inside out. The flames will consume you and you will be reduced to ashes."

Laina could not forget what the Moon Goddess had told her. Her words kept repeating in her mind. Even while she was having her meal with Queen Victoria, her mind was still back at the Temple of the Moon.

"Laina," Queen Victoria called out to her when she noticed she looked a little dazed.

"Princess Laina," she called out again shortly after while waving her hand in Laina's face.

"Sorry, did you say something?" Laina asked as she turned to Queen Victoria.

The werewolf queen furrowed her eyebrows, "Is everything alright, Laina? Ever since your visit to the Temple of the Moon, you seemed dazed."

"Do I?" Laina asked as she instinctively touched the side of her face.

"Yes, and I think even your two bodyguards noticed it too," Queen Victoria turned to ask Kol and Florin, "Isn't that right?"

Kol and Florin nodded in agreement.

"My sincerest apologies, I've just been thinking about what the Moon Goddess told me, that's all."

Queen Victoria frowned, "Was it bad news?"

She knew about what Laina had wanted to ask, but she did not know the outcome of her conversation with the Moon Goddess. Though the werewolf queen was curious, she did not want to pry.

"I just… have a lot to think about," Laina replied with a smile.

She did not want to burden someone else with her troubles. Queen Victoria placed her hands on Laina's.

"Laina, you've helped me at my lowest," the queen said earnestly, "I would be honored if you would allow me to share your burden. If it's within my power, I would do anything to assist, just as you have once done for me."

Seeing how genuine the werewolf queen was, Laina felt a little bad. It was not that she did not wish to share, but perhaps she did not know where to begin. After much consideration, Laina turned to Kol and Florin.

She had the two of them step forward.

"What you're about to hear next, you are to never speak of this to anyone. That includes Margaret, do you two understand?" she asked them sternly.

Kol and Florin did not hesitate. They placed their hands over their hearts and bowed respectfully to Laina, "Understood, Your Highness."

With their assurance, Laina turned back to face Victoria and asked that she do the same.

"My lips are sealed," the werewolf queen said in response.

Laina explained what the Moon Goddess had told her.

Kol and Florin were surprised. While Laina was still recovering, they found out about the curse King Dante was inflicted with through Lady Margaret. She had sworn them to secrecy, never to reveal this information to the Crown Princess.

But as luck would have it, she found out about it on her own.

Queen Victoria sat in silence as she reviewed the information Laina had relayed to her. For every curse created, had to have a countermeasure, that was a well-known fact. But if even the Moon Goddess could not find one, was all hope truly lost?

At that moment, something dawned on the werewolf queen. While there was no known cure in the Moon Kingdom, perhaps there was a cure somewhere else?

"There must be a correlation somewhere," Victoria declared as she attempted to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, "You said that as a child of the sun, you have the ability to delay the effects of the curse that was inflicted upon him, right?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Then who is to say you're not the key to the cure itself?"

Queen Victoria's words lit a flame in Laina's mind. The werewolf queen might be onto something. If the Sun and Moon were two halves of a complete whole, just as she believed, perhaps she was in a unique position to find the cure.

Victoria got up from her seat and walked over to the bookshelf. She swiftly returned with a book which she handed over to Laina. Most people did not know, since it has been forgotten in history.

While the werewolves of Wolfenheim had their Temples of the Moon, serving as a direct communication point with the Moon Goddess, there also exists Temples of the Sun. However, the temples were mostly in ruins due to unknown circumstances.

"But the element of fire, in which the affinity to the sun is closely linked to, is a well-loved element to master. As such, the Altar of the Sun was formed," Queen Victoria explained.

Some say the Altar had a much stronger connection to the Sun compared to the temples that came before it. Underneath the altar, was a well-kept library, filled with documents and ancient texts.

Rumor has it that the library even contained documents that were from beyond Gaeia.

"That sounds like a place that would have the answers I need," Laina professed with a smile.

She thanked Queen Victoria for her help. If she had not shared this information, Laina would still have been at a loss on where to begin her search.

But before she did anything else, there was one thing Laina needed to do first.