The Enemy's Gate
The journey to the Eastern Border was swift, driven by Consort Neshuda's relentless focus. He led his small, elite contingent, which included Captain Torvin, toward the three seized trading ports now controlled by the Galthor Empire.
Neshuda rode as a diplomat, not a warrior, but Hayate felt the profound tension emanating from him through their bond—a low, constant vibration of readiness.
Hayate, back in the Aurekawa Citadel, monitored the situation constantly. He worked tirelessly, but his mind was tethered to Neshuda. Every shift in Neshuda's mood—a flicker of impatience, a wave of cold focus—was Hayate's only intelligence from the volatile border.
Neshuda's destination was the main Galthor command post, set up right inside the walls of the largest seized port. General Vorlag, the Galthor commander, was a notorious hardliner, known for his pride and contempt for the weakened Aurekawa Citadel.
As Neshuda and his small group approached the Galthor barricades, the King felt a wave of crushing, reflected contempt wash over him, immediately followed by Neshuda's intense, focused determination to ignore the insult.
They hate me already, Neshuda silently projected through the bond. They see me as a street dog trying to wear a noble's coat.
Hold fast, my Anchor, Hayate projected back, closing his eyes in the Citadel. You are the Consort. You carry my word. Their contempt is just noise. Focus on the objective.
The General's Trap
General Vorlag was a huge man, clad in gleaming black armor, and he sat at the head of a long, oak table, flanked by stern-faced officers. He didn't stand when Neshuda entered.
"The King sends a commoner to negotiate a major border violation," Vorlag sneered, his voice booming across the room. "Is this an insult, 'Consort' Neshuda?"
Neshuda walked to the table, perfectly composed. Hayate felt the cold, hard resolve of his Consort—a shield against Vorlag's arrogance.
"I carry the King's absolute authority, General," Neshuda replied, his voice calm and steady. "I am here to resolve two issues: the immediate return of the seized ports and the release of our spy, Henudra, who holds vital intelligence regarding the Hidden Clan Leader."
Vorlag laughed, a harsh, dismissive sound. "The ports are required to maintain regional 'stability.' And the traitor Henudra? He is a criminal who broke the law on Galthor soil. He is our prisoner."
Hayate felt Neshuda's profound frustration—the negotiation was immediately deadlocked.
Vorlag then leaned forward, his voice dropping in a conspiratorial tone. "However, the Galthor Empire is practical. We have no interest in your King's unusual choice of partner. If you step aside, Consort, and allow the Galthor Empire to bring true stability to your eastern border—say, by handing us Henudra and granting us control of these ports permanently—we will consider recognizing your status as a noble."
The offer was poison, an attempt to sow internal discord. Hayate felt Neshuda's cold, burning anger at the insult to their bond.
He's trying to bribe me, Hayate. Trying to break my loyalty.
Tell him the truth, my love, Hayate urged through the bond. Show him that our bond is not negotiable.
Neshuda straightened, his dark eyes radiating pure devotion. "I did not come here seeking validation for my rank, General. I wear the King's shadow because I choose to. I am his Life Anchor. Any agreement that is not supported by the King is a lie, and any threat against the King's sovereignty, or against me, is an attack on the very stability of the Seal itself. If you keep those ports, you risk war with a King who knows no fear."
The Bond as a Weapon
Vorlag paused, impressed despite himself. He shifted his tactic, moving to a calculated cruelty.
"War is costly, Consort. Why risk it for a traitor?" Vorlag ordered his guards to bring in Henudra.
Henudra was pale, but his cynical eyes still held their gleam. He was bound, and a Galthor guard held a blade to his throat.
"Tell your Consort, traitor," Vorlag commanded, "that the fate of the ports rests on his loyalty. He can walk away now, let us execute the spy, and avoid war. Or he can risk the lives of his Guards for a wretch."
Hayate felt a sudden, sharp, reflected pity from Neshuda, mixed with tactical urgency. Neshuda knew Henudra's intelligence was critical, but he couldn't sacrifice his men.
The pressure is immense, King. He's asking me to choose, Neshuda projected desperately.
Don't choose, Anchor. Force his hand, Hayate commanded. Tell him the price of the spy is non-negotiable, and then show him what happens when he threatens my Consort.
Neshuda took a deep breath, focusing his entire being on the bond. He lifted his hand, casually flexing his fingers, a movement Hayate immediately recognized as a physical manifestation of high anxiety and resolve.
Hayate, hundreds of miles away in the Citadel, immediately channeled his own healing aura into the reflected pain, but focused it not on healing, but on amplifying the subtle discomfort in Neshuda's hand—a physical signal only Neshuda would understand.
Neshuda winced slightly, the subtle, physical ache in his hand signaling the King's readiness to act.
Neshuda looked straight at Vorlag. "The price of Henudra's release is the immediate return of the three seized ports. He is King Hayate's property. Any harm to him is damage to the King's assets. And any threat to my life is an attack on the Angelic bloodline itself."
He then did the unthinkable. He walked forward, stepping directly into the space between the Galthor guard and Henudra. He stood less than a foot from the blade pointed at the spy's throat.
Hayate felt a sickening lurch of mortal danger from Neshuda—a reflected, heart-stopping spike of sheer recklessness.
Neshuda! Stop! Hayate screamed mentally.
Neshuda held fast, his voice unwavering. "General Vorlag, your guard is threatening my Consort. You know the cost of the Curse of Reflection is gone, but the bond is not. If your guard cuts me, even by accident, my King will feel it. He will feel the pain, the shock, and the murderous rage. You will have war instantly, triggered by the pain of a single scratch."
He leaned in, his eyes hard. "You claim I am a commoner, General. But I am the King's Life Anchor. My pain is the King's pain. Are you truly prepared to risk an international war on the chance that your guard is steady?"
The Retreat
General Vorlag stared at Neshuda, sweat beading on his brow. The threat was terrifyingly simple. Neshuda wasn't bluffing; he was using the sweet, intimate reality of his bond as the most potent political weapon imaginable. An injury to the Consort meant a declaration of war based on the King's immediate, reflected pain, with no time for diplomacy or retreat.
Vorlag signaled the guard to lower the blade.
"You play a dangerous game, Consort," Vorlag hissed, his face red with impotent rage.
"It is a game of honesty, General," Neshuda countered, stepping back, retrieving Henudra with a firm, professional grip. "The King is honest about his alliances, and he is honest about his love. Do not mistake his compassion for weakness."
Neshuda secured the spy. Vorlag, unwilling to risk instant war, offered a compromise: he would return the three ports if Neshuda signed a treaty agreeing to shared defense against the Clan Leader and acknowledged Galthor's dominance in the Eastern trade routes.
Neshuda, guided by a wave of cold political clarity reflected from Hayate, accepted the terms, knowing the trade concession was a small price for avoiding war and gaining the intelligence.
The retreat was successful. Neshuda retrieved Henudra and secured the return of the ports, completing the mission with a tactical victory.
The Return Home
The relief that washed over Hayate when Neshuda crossed back into the Aurekawa Citadel's territory was immense—a pure, sweet surge of peace and joy that almost overwhelmed him.
Hayate met Neshuda in the courtyard, immediately pulling him into a fierce embrace, ignoring the waiting Guardsmen and diplomats.
"You were reckless!" Hayate murmured into Neshuda's shoulder, half-furious, half-relieved. "You put your life in the path of a blade! I felt the danger, Neshuda, the sheer mortal terror!"
Neshuda held him tight, savoring the King's warmth. "I had to show him the ultimate cost of the threat, Hayate. I had to prove that the bond is real. The only way to win a cold war is with absolute, undeniable truth."
He pulled back, smiling softly. "We won the political battle, my love. We have Henudra and the ports are safe. And General Vorlag will think twice before threatening your Consort again."
The Truth of the Clan Leader
Later that night, after tending to Neshuda's fatigue (Hayate felt the deep physical exhaustion of the journey and the tense confrontation), they reviewed Henudra's intelligence.
Henudra, pale but free, sat opposite the King and Consort, now stripped of his cynical bravado, replaced by grudging professionalism.
"The Hidden Clan Leader is operating out of the unclaimed island chain far north of Pheurika Island," Henudra reported. "They are called the Sunken Isles. The Clan Leader is gathering ancient artifacts—items imbued with massive, negative spiritual energy—to fuel the Counter-Ritual."
"What kind of artifacts?" Neshuda pressed, his voice sharp.
"Relics of despair," Henudra answered, rubbing his wrists. "Specifically, they are hunting for the Sorrow Stones—three relics created during the first Ghoul War, capable of amplifying spiritual darkness a thousandfold. If the Clan Leader uses those stones at the Final Shrine, the Seal will shatter instantly."
Hayate and Neshuda exchanged a horrified glance. The immediate attack had been averted, but the true threat was more dangerous than they imagined. They had bought time, but the Clan Leader was still steps ahead.
"We have to stop them before they find all three Sorrow Stones," Hayate commanded, his resolve hardening. "The first one is rumored to be located in the ruins of the first capital—the submerged city of Aethelgard."
Neshuda stood, placing a reassuring hand on Hayate's shoulder—a familiar, silent promise. "Then we return to the coast, my King. We take Winter and Queen Leona's fastest ship. We retrieve that stone before the Clan Leader can touch it."