MORANA: The Feared Villainess

Chapter 7

When the morning arrived, I excitedly went to the castle's hall to receive King Estel's body. Ilene was already there when I arrived. I hid the excitement in my eyes when I stood beside her; minutes later, the King's body arrived. It is escorted by hundreds of elven guards and warriors; their faces show grief. It must be so hard to lose your kingdom's father. 

When the King's body is in front of us, Ilene puts on her brave face; she must be putting a facade in front of everyone. She's the next ruler, after all, and a kingdom's ruler must be firm no matter what. On the other hand, I also tried to put on a grieving face to convince everyone that I was also sad about the death of my vessel's father. 

After the formalities and ceremonies, the council and the guards left the hall. I was left with Ilene, Dhrystan, and Harry. Dhrystan and Harry also expressed their condolences, and that's when Ilene burst out crying. Harry immediately went to her side and comforted her, he was still tapping her back when I signaled him to bring Ilene out of the room. Ka agad namang dinala ni Harry and dalaga pa alis ng silid, samantalang ang lalakeng katabi ko ngayon ang balak kong palabasin. 

"I want to be alone for a while, Dhrystan. You can go now and rest," I stated. Dhrystan looked hesitant at first but still nodded and left. When he's finally gone, I double-check if people are still lurking around. I immediately opened the coffin when I confirmed that I was the only one left. Since the King's body will be buried tomorrow in the Misty forest, I must finish my investigation quickly. I checked for bruises or signs that a spell was cast against the King, and my hunch was right. Elves can regenerate, which means you cannot kill an elf easily. Nonetheless, you could still skill an elf physically using weapons made from cold stones and mentally-by grief. 

I haven't seen any bruises or signs of physical attack on the King's body; for sure, he's killed by grief. If my intuition is correct, he must have been told about Irene's accident. I do not know what the perpetrator had said to make the King die in grief immediately, but I am sure Irene is involved. The weariness on the King's face is also evident. And if I am right, the person who attacked and killed Irene—I wouldn't be transmigrated into her body if she's not dead or dying—is also behind the killing. 

After checking the body, I left the hall and headed to Irene's room. I took the shell that Harbin gave me and called for his name; the man instantly answered the call and asked, "What happened? I heard the King is dead, and the body just arrived earlier."

"Yes, and I already checked his body. It seems like the King wasn't killed physically but mentally. I did not see any bruises because if he's killed by a cold stone, his body won't be intact right now," I said and waited for Harbin's response. 

"He must have been killed by grief..." Harbin trailed off. 

"Yes, and if my guess is right, he must have been told about what happened to Irene. I bet you already know I wouldn't be living in this body right now if she wasn't dead or dying. I'm guessing that the murderer of King Estel and Irene is the same, but who could it be? Is he or she the one who's pretending to be me right now?" I asked. I know Harbin is also thinking and asking the same question, who is this impostor, and why is he or she using my name instead of creating his or her own?

"That's what we're going to find out. Just practice that princess' magic first, and we'll think of ways to find that impostor," Harbin said. I nodded as if he could see me and bid goodbye. 

I was silent for a minute before I started practicing magic. I put both of my hands in front of me and tried releasing some magic; when a small amount of magic was released, I concentrated it into a ball of energy right away. I successfully created one, but it also vanished seconds after. I did not stop doing the same thing after and after before I thought of creating a weapon using the energy that I released. I thought of creating a bow, and I was sweating the whole time while trying to create it. At first, I failed; I thought that maybe Irene's magic couldn't craft tools. But the second time I tried, I made a firm and strong bow. 

I tried a lot of spells using the book I got from the library; it contains information about elven magic. Based on what I have read, Elves have different types of abilities; some can craft tools, some can manipulate elements, absorb powers, manipulate things using their minds, and a lot more. I tried using all of them, and this girl's body can do all of them. This must be the reason why the King and the queen did not allow their daughter to open her meridians because she might die once she unleashed her power—her weak body might not be able to take it. But since I am now living in this body, it also strengthened Irene physically. It means she can now release magic bit by bit. 

The book says that an elf can only have one ability, nakapagtatakang nagagawa ng katawang ito ang halos lahat ng abilidad na mayroon ang isang elf. Sinubukan ko ri'ng sugatan at pagalingin ang sarili and nakamamangha ang aking nasaksihan. I successfully healed myself. I was out of words for hours, I wasn't expecting that destiny would put me into a powerful elven body that is capable of being the next enchantress of Arcania. 

It has been hundreds of years since Thelea and Arcania had a powerful enchantress; I wasn't also expecting her to be my mother, the one who cursed my uncle.