The Flower Of Eternity
Chapter 26: The Gift

After the meeting, Anna returns to her study to finish the work she left behind. But shortly after she began reading through the reports, Eliza, a former concubine of King Vlad who now works as her assistant due to her good administrative abilities, came into her room.

"What's up, Lady Eliza?" Anna asked without distracting from the report she was reading.

Eliza lowered her head, "Your Majesty, General Tyros Engelberg wants to see you."

"Please come in."

Eliza opened the door for Tyros and allowed the General to enter. Eliza immediately left the two of them in the study.

After the door closed again, Anna closed the report she was reading and began to turn her attention to Tyros.

Tyros bowed, "Greet me to the Tsarina."

"What is the need, General?" Ask Anna directly.

"I'd like to leave something to you." Answer Tyros.

"What's that?"

To answer that question, Tyros stepped forward towards Anna's desk and took out something from the pocket in her coat. It was a small journal book with brown skin. Anna recognized the journal book because she had seen it many times since she became Xavier's personal bodyguard. It's Xavier's journal.

Tyros watched as the Tsarina seemed to hold back her tears as she looked at her late husband's journal. He slowly said, "When there was a bombing in Montreux, the late King and I went there for a few days. He left me his journal and asked me to hand it over to you. To be precise, he said, 'If my wife sets out to fight Orient one day, hand this over to her'. At that time I did not understand why he said that or why he did not just give it directly. Now I understand the reason."

Anna received the journal from Tyros and opened it. It really belongs to Xavier. Handwriting that was very familiar to him filled the sheet by sheet of the book. The handwriting brought back memories of the time they had to separate and send letters to each other. Anna still keeps the letters until now.

"I never opened it. So I don't know at all what it is. But I hope that my decision to present this journal to His Majesty in accordance with what was ordered to me, will not make His Majesty become sad for recalling the late King."

Anna held back her tears, making sure that her voice did not tremble and said, "Thank you, General. You can go."

"Okay, Your Majesty."

***

After Tyros left her alone in her study, Anna did not open the journal. His heart was not ready to read whatever was written in there.

Although earlier during the meeting he was able to present himself as best he could in the presence of the entire nobility, displaying the figure of a strong and courageous ruler and leader, but now that she is alone in the room with Xavier's journal in front of her, she is back to being the wife her husband left behind. A woman who lost a man she loved. Someone with a broken heart.

Anna wiped away the tears on her cheeks and regulated her breathing.

I don't want to cry anymore. Had enough. His inner.

But when he turned his eyes from the journal to his side, it was just then that he saw Xavier's painting in the workspace that used to be Xavier's workspace.

Youre right. I should have moved to a new palace. Or I'd rather just go back to Schiereiland Palace.

Unlike usual, Xavier's voice was no longer heard. Xavier's voice always appears without his request. These days, that voice is rarely heard.

Maybe this is better. If there is no sound in my head, I will recover faster from this grief. Think Anna. But his gaze could not escape from the painting Xavier was staring at him. How long he hasn't seen that face. How long had he not touched her, felt the warmth of her skin, talked to her directly while looking into her glittering eyes, kissed her and heard her heartbeat. How long has it been since they were together. Anna didn't count it at all, but it felt like it had been years.

Damnit. Who I lied to. I really miss you. I'm not okay. Talk to me again.

But no voice answered.

Long Anna simply stared blankly at the journal book while waiting for Xavier's voice to reappear. Eventually, he decided to open the journal.

There was something tucked between the sheets of the journal book. Something glittered. Anna pulled it and found that it was a hairpin with a jewel ornament. And he recognized the hairpin.

Why did you give the hairpin you gave your ex-wife? You think I won't be jealous and upset? Anna asked, not to anyone. He half expected Xavier to answer.

But he was finally able to hear Xavier's laughter in his head. The voice he missed so much.

I knew you'd say that. You look beautiful even when you're jealous, baby.

Anna could not hold back her tears when she finally heard her voice again. But his lips curved into a smile.

The hairpin has a long history. And I think you're gonna love that hairpin more than you think.

But still, it's not a good reason to give this hairpin to your wife while you've given it to another woman let alone that other woman is your ex-wife.

But just then, Anna realized there was something strange about the jewel in the hairpin she was holding. Something's ticking in there. There was a Wind Dragon heart core there. Anna could feel her pulsation running all over her skin. It felt like something was tickling, like a sweep of the wind. Something familiar, as if the Heart of the Wind Dragon was part of him as he grasped the hairpin. It was as if it was an extension of his hand.

When she realized that, Anna turned to her surroundings and found a strong wind flying some sheets of report paper on her desk even though the window of the room was tightly closed.

Anna looked out the window and found the sky still bright and the day still bright. But when he thought of the gray clouds and lightning and the stormy winds, the sky began to darken. The storm answered his call. Anna hurriedly removed the hairpin from her hand before the storm completely raged and messed up the entire Noord. After he let go, the sky brightened again.

What do you mean, Xavier? After making me able to shake the earth and burn everything, now you want me to be able to summon a storm?

Anna looked back at the journal book and found a letter tucked in with the hairpin. He opened the letter. The letter that Anna believes was written by Xavier, because Xavier's exquisite handwriting was impossible for anyone to copy. Anna read the date on it. Xavier wrote the letter on his birthday. On the day of their wedding.

Anna, honey...

If you're reading this, it means I've managed to protect you and our daughter. And I'm so grateful you're still alive.

How's it going? I hope you're better now. I hope my departure doesn't make you grieve for too long. I hope your tears have dried up and you have started to open a new leaf without me.

And if not, it's okay. Maybe it's not time yet. I believe you'll get through it well.

How's our daughter doing? When reading this letter, how many days or how many weeks is he? Do you know what? As I write this, I am thinking of you and our daughter. I imagine your happy lives. Hopefully what I imagined was not just wishful thinking. I really hope you can live happily without me.

And I know what you were thinking while reading this letter.

I missed you too. Hugely.

Anna, honey...

All the living will die in the end though no one knows exactly when. I am not writing this letter because I know when I will die without telling you. I'm not writing this letter because I've given up on surviving for you and our daughter, because no matter how hard, no matter how painful it feels when the poison strikes, if I close my eyes and remember that I have a very dear family that might be sad if I choose to give up, I can survive. You and our daughter are the reason I've survived this long.

I really hope you will never read this letter and wish we both had such a long life so that we could age together. But I really have to prepare for this. I am writing this letter just in case, if someday I go first from you for whatever reason.

My wife who I love more than anything in the world...

Did you get that hairpin? Please don't get mad right away because I gave it to Elle. You know you're all I love. I gave it to you because Kaze put her heart core in there. Please don't tell me you've been able to summon a storm in the first try. It took me days to control my fire. But I think you are much more familiar with the power of the Wind Dragon since in a past life.

I originally wanted to give you this hairpin as your birthday present today. But the situation and the timing are not right. So after I think about it, you'll need it a lot more right now, when you read this letter, when you finally decide to fight Orient.

Orient has bombed Schere and Montreux. The situation is very chaotic right now in Montreux, when I wrote this letter. There are a lot of lives lost today. There are many people who have lost their family members. You know best what it's like to lose a family member.

My love... My heart's poem...

Love and forgiveness are good, I'm grateful you have both, but sometimes, there are times when you have to rise up and fight back. Not to hurt or revenge, more to prevent no one being hurt again.

A few hours ago, Kaze secretly came to me without your knowledge. She cried and begged me to bring her heart to you. He gave me this hairpin that used to belong to Yeon-Hwa and previously belonged to Princess Seo-Hwa. Kaze had inserted the heart core of the Wind Dragon into the gem that was in this hairpin. She knew that Reina would use the power of the Wind Dragon, but she could not fight back to protect you from Reina. And now you hold the power of the Wind Dragon in your hands.

Later Reina will look for the hairpin where Kaze put the core of her heart after my death which will also affect the death of other dragons. But Kaze says that she will outwit Reina and make her think that she put her heart core in her other hairpin, the Wind Dragon hairpin. So that Reina would never gain the power of the Wind Dragon to fly her Steel Dragon. Only you can do it, baby.

You know what you have to do with this thing.

Use it well and wisely. The power of the Wind Dragon is so powerful and very difficult to control if you use it when you are emotional. Do not use when you are angry or your emotions are unstable because it will endanger the people you care about and want to protect. I believe you can do well.

One more thing...

I gave you permission to read my journal. Most of it is about you, but there may be some notes you need.

Ilove you. Forever.

X

***