Chapter 95: A SHARED BOND

Alda's POV

I gasped in pure shock as the cold blade cut through my flesh, my eyes shooting instantly to Siofra, who staggered backward. Panic and confusion flared in my chest.

But before I could even drag my gaze away from her down to my bleeding hand, a strange, warm sensation washed over me, and the agonizing sting began to fade.

The cut was gone. The only thing left behind was the streak of fresh blood tickling down my skin from the moment Siofra had sliced me.

I gasped again, completely paralyzed by shock, as my gaze traveled quietly to Siofra’s face. I couldn't read her. I couldn't read a single emotion behind those wide green eyes. They were completely blank.

“Siofra, this is madness. There's no way I bonded with the gems. I am not even an elf!” I said, my voice trembling. I didn't understand a single thing that was happening, but she didn't say a word. She just kept staring at me with a hollow expression.

Distressed, my gaze traveled to Elba, who was also unusually quiet. Why wasn't she saying anything? Why was everybody suddenly frozen?

“Why isn't anybody talking to me?” I asked, my voice rising as a wave of vulnerability hit me. “You both don't possibly think that I bonded with the stone just so I could live?”

I voiced the disturbing thoughts forming at the back of my mind, desperate for a denial. But all I got in return was more suffocating silence—until Siofra let out a heavy, weary sigh.

“Of course we don't think that, Alda. We are two souls in one body, so I'm guessing that the gems are meant to bond with one of us,” Siofra said, her voice heavy with a profound sadness.

But my mind was spinning; I still wasn't getting it.

“Then that should be you, not me!” I argued, a sudden flare of defensive anger radiating in my voice. “I never wanted any of this, remember? I don't want the gems, nor do I want to bond with their powers. So there better be a way to get these powers back to you!”

“Alda, I need you to calm down,” Elba interjected, her tone firm yet exhausting as she got off the bed and approached us. “I don't want either of you sounding like you two saving each other was some kind of mistake.”

I was running entirely out of patience. I was just so tired. Too exhausted to fight the reality crashing down on us. Running a shaky hand through my hair, I let out a heavy sigh and turned my back on the two elves, unable to look at them anymore.

“I thought having you two wait upon the portal was the safest way to keep both our worlds out of chaos,” Elba continued, her tone shifting into something deeply serious. “But I think this wild portal has nothing to do with the birth of you two. Something started that portal—a very powerful, unrecognizable force. Now, about the stones seeming to bond with you, Alda... it's no coincidence. First, this is your body. Siofra might have given you life, but she is still just a host in your body.”

Elba's gaze left mine, turning to rest sharply on Siofra.

“Then you, on the other hand, are your own problem. I don't understand you at all,” Elba pushed, her words dripping with frustration. “Why can't you accept the fact that you are the next queen of Álfheimr? You were picked by three gems, Siofra. This is something that has been incredibly rare. We, the outcasted princesses who couldn't get even one stone to bond with us, went far beyond our limits just to prove ourselves. So why can't you? Maybe the stones didn't unbond with you. Maybe you just need to be able to communicate with the spirit goddesses, even if it is just one of them. But first, you need to accept the fact that it's you. Accept that you are the future of Álfheimr.”

Siofra, who had kept her gaze glued to the ground the entire time, looking completely defeated, finally looked up. Her eyes rested on me, filled with remorse.

“I'm sorry, Alda... about my harsh words yesterday,” she admitted softly, her voice cracking as she swallowed her pride. “I really didn't mean it that way. I was just... just tired.”

A tear slipped from the corner of her eye, and she quickly wiped it away.

Seeing her vulnerability, the anger melted out of me. “You don't have to apologize to me,” I said, giving her a reassuring smile. “I know I myself have done and said worse, but you didn't abandon me, so I'm not angry at you. As a matter of fact, I'm learning how to let go, even if it is the most difficult thing I have to do.”

Siofra managed a small, grateful smile back.

“Good. I'm glad that you both made up quickly, because now we need to go back to that wild portal from yesterday,” Elba stated bluntly.

Siofra's gaze and mine shot to her instantly. Elba had already made her way back to her bed, her movements rigid. She was still very weak from her injury—at least her body showed it, even if her stubborn expression tried not to. It was like she could wear any emotional mask she wanted.

“I don't understand,” Siofra questioned Elba, her voice radiating with that familiar irritation I had come to accept between them. “That thing nearly pulled Xender's entire house into smaller pieces into our realm, and you want us to summon it all over again?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Elba replied with the exact same sarcastic, biting energy, a dark frown settling on her face.

“Why on earth would we even do that?!” Siofra barked, folding her arms tightly over her chest as she glared. “You saw what happened yesterday. I couldn't even heal your injury! Even if we summon that portal, how do we close it afterwards?”

“Okay, the both of you should stop bickering and focus,” I groaned, looking from one to the other as they both childishly threw their faces away. “Elba, why do we need to go back to that scary portal? Is that our only way to Álfheimr?”

She didn't answer right away. Instead, she let out a massive, troubled sigh, biting down on her lower lip as if hesitating to speak.

“No,” Elba replied quietly. “We have something very important we need to retrieve. Something the portal didn't vomit alongside me.”

“And what exactly are we talking about?” Siofra urged, her voice growing deeply suspicious.

“Well... it's...” Elba began, pausing again.

I knew from that look that I was going to absolutely hate whatever was about to come out of her mouth.

“Her body,” Elba finally said, pointing a finger directly at Siofra.

I closed my eyes in total, crushing frustration, a heavy sigh tearing from my lips.

“You lost my body in the wild portal?!” Siofra's voice rang out in pure, unbridled anger.

“Oh, please do not raise your voice at me!” Elba fired back, her own temper exploding. “I would rather have whatever that tornado storm was hold onto that body than have it fall into the hands of your insane sister!”

Before I could even open my mouth to try and keep the peace, another hot, furious argument broke out between them. This time around, I didn't even bother to stop them. Exhausted by the endless drama, I just found a nearby chair, sank into it, and made myself comfortable, waiting for the two of them to finally calm their nerves.

Xender's POV

“Don't bother asking me any questions, because I don't have a single answer for them,” I told Mike, leading him firmly out of the room so the ladies could have their space.

“Right. I am going to try my absolute best not to ask a thing,” Mike said, running a hand through his hair, looking thoroughly overwhelmed.

“Thank you so much, buddy,” I said, gently tapping a hand on his shoulder. He nodded in response, roughly rubbing the back of his neck.

A small, breathless laugh escaped my lips as the absurdity of everything caught up to me.

“Thank you so much for losing your sanity together with me. I could hug you right now, but I'm already taken,” I teased, trying to hold back my laughter to cut the heavy tension.

“You are a psycho. You seriously need a therapist,” he replied, a smirk breaking through his exhaustion.

“I guess we will be seeing the therapist together in every season of our journey,” I joked, turning toward the front door. My expression softened into something more serious. “Look after Alda for me until I come back. I also have something important I need to discuss with you when I return.”

Mike nodded in understanding. With that, I made my way out to my car. As soon as I slid into the driver's seat, I dialed Rosa’s line, instructing her to prepare the cupcakes and ice cream immediately.

If I was going to have any hope of convincing Emily to let Elara do a family photoshoot for the company, I might as well start by bribing my little niece.

I just hoped Emily wasn't going to completely freak out when she found out who our main model was going to be. But even as the thought crossed my mind, I knew better. There was absolutely no way she wasn't going to explode.