Both Eciel and I thought we’d spend time with our families since it was a holiday, but we actually reunited with our family around noon.

Eciel and I fell asleep while getting massages and ended up sleeping through the morning, skipping breakfast altogether.

When I woke up and received a message from Dad to come to the garden, I went there only to find everyone else had already gathered, except for me.

Mom greeted me warmly.

“Claire.”

I’m not sure how long Eciel had been there. She was asleep, nestled on Mom’s lap, covered by Mom’s shawl.

Her eyes, once puffy from crying, had settled down. My sister, who was close to Mom, looked remarkably similar to her.

Though currently hidden beneath pretty eyelids, their vivid green eyes sparkled with rich emotion.

Their vibrant laughter scattered like summer sunlight.

Mom would shake her head, saying we don’t look alike, but my sister had Mom’s straightforward nature.

‘When it was just the three of us, I wanted to be just like Mom.’

I’d even thought about dyeing my hair platinum blonde like Mom and Eciel.

Both of them cherished me deeply, but I felt so strange and different on my own, which was agonizing.

But now I knew who I resembled.

I paused at the beginning of the path, squinting against the spring sun, when Dad who had been watching me came over.

With broad shoulders that shielded sunlight and a strong grip that reached me naturally.

“Claire.”

“Dad.”

It hadn’t been long since we met, but the time when I didn’t know Dad felt like a distant memory.

Our first encounters, when I was wary about him and when I was uncertain about calling him Dad.

All those memories were fading in a steady and gentle wave of affection.

This put Astariol’s extraordinary memory, not forgetting before I was born, to shame.

Silvery hair that caught the sunlight, deep and cool purple eyes, and pale skin that remained white even under the sun.

The man who gave me all of this took my hand.

To gently lead me ahead, despite our short distance.

His hand felt warm and soft.

“Why did you call me to the garden?”

Looking up at him, I asked. His cool eyes slightly curved.

“I have something to show you. I thought I’d show you right away, but it turns out to be quite far away.”

As I tilted my head in confusion, Dad’s face brightened with a clearer smile.

Mom gave a playful look.

“Don’t get your hopes up too much, Claire. I’ve come to realize while living with this person that he never understands what ordinary people want.”

“Surely you never thought you were ordinary, did you, Your Highness?”

Dad responded casually.

Mom’s expression became momentarily speechless. … as Mom knew well, she was anything but ordinary.

Soon after, Mom gave Dad an annoyed look.

Dad continued speaking unperturbed even after seeing her expression.

“And all Your Highness wanted was nothing short of divorce, separation, or estrangement back then, right? When I said that I would do everything except for those three, you even threatened to file a lawsuit for annulment. I don’t think you’re in any position to say that.”

Mom’s face paled, then blushed, then paled again. Unable to bear it, I looked up at the sky.

The last time I heard about their wedding was from the emperor; it was equally bizarre.

Yet now, other stories similar to it surfaced one after another. It was scary to think there might be more.

But logically, who would have thought that snubbing the groom by returning the  ring was more outrageous than telling the bride to marry him?

Well… divorce and separation were similar, but didn’t estrangement mean that one should go out and die?

‘… wait, is she saying she’d rather die?’

Mom. What did you and Dad do before we were born?

“No… why do you even remember that? You’re truly long-winded. Why waste such a good memory?”

“Even if I’m not Astariol, wouldn’t you remember being asked to choose between divorce, separation, or estrangement right after submitting the marriage certificate?”

Oh, it was a few minutes after the wedding…

I couldn’t even look towards Mom, and as I continued staring at the sky, something gradually approached.

I narrowed my eyes.

What was that?

“If someone hears, they’ll think we really did it when it wasn’t even done properly …”

“We’ve already been separated for a decade.”

“… alright, I’ve made a mistake. I’ve done everything wrong. Please… Claire is listening.”

Usually, I’d listen even if I didn’t want to, but this time, my parents’ voices passed through one ear and out the other.

I breathed in awe.

“Whoa.”

“Claire? What are you looking at…”

Mom’s voice abruptly stopped.

Because what Dad wanted to show us swiftly glided down from the sky above, landing by Dad.

A dazzling golden tail flickered. Wings adorned with blue, yellow, and red flames.

Eyes of eternal wisdom, clear and straight, glinted elegantly amidst flashes and flames.

The phoenix of eternal life, Fermata, landed gracefully on Dad’s shoulder.

A bird made of flame and  light.

Fermata, neither dying nor living, having substance but weightless, burning yet not hot.

That was what the ancient texts and epics said. They were words that no one could verify anymore.

‘But… isn’t that…?’

The Fermata, with eyes fixed on me, appeared to have found its owner.

Dad chuckled softly and patted my shoulder. The Fermata moved from Dad’s shoulder to his fingers, wrist, and forearm, like a trained bird.

I asked without even being able to breathe.

“I… can I touch it?”

Before Dad could respond, Fermata gazed towards Mom and softly cried.

A melodious, clear, and mesmerizing cry.

It sounded like a soft bird chirping, a conversation between a whale and a mermaid, or the trumpet of an angel in a dream.

Eciel, suddenly awakened on Mom’s lap.

“What does this mean …”

Eciel met Fermata’s golden eyes and stared in astonishment, mouth agape.

Dad spoke with a voice filled with laughter.

“Eciel, did you sleep well?”

“… Dad, is this a dream?”

“No. It’s real.”

His words had a greater effect on Mom than Eciel.

Mom, who had been frozen, suddenly gasped for air, her breath ragged and uneven.

Then she muttered, lost in thought.

“This… this is insane. It’s real. It’s real, right? You really swore. Isn’t this insane?”

The last sentence, full of astonishment, was so low and muffled that even Eciel nearby probably couldn’t hear it.

However, from this distance, unfortunately, Astariol’s hearing was good enough.

Dad said calmly.

“I succeeded, so it’s okay, isn’t it?”

“This is insane. Who can live with someone like you… I’m losing it… if you’re going to die, go die alone. Don’t drag others.”

Mom’s trembling voice seemed fed up.

Dad, who was already called insane and reduced to <someone like you>, remained composed despite Mom’s emotional turmoil.

“Charlotte. As I always said, I didn’t marry you to kill you. I married you to live.”

Those words finally shut Mom up.

Eciel finally reacted properly around this time.

She jumped off Mom’s lap with an exclamation somewhere between admiration and astonishment.

“Um… can I touch it?”

Dad chuckled. It seemed he found our identical reactions amusing.

Fermata began to groom itself, elegantly and gently, on Dad’s forearm, looking back at us as if engraving our family in its mind.

It was a fascinating movement that instantly stole Eciel and I’s attention.

Eciel held my hand tightly.

I also held hers.

“Whoa, whoa, Claire. Pinch my cheek.”

“No, it will hurt.”

“Is it a real phoenix? Real Fermata?”

“It’s real.”

“It’s my first time seeing a phoenix.”

“It’s my first time too.”

As we exchanged excited whispers, Fermata, having tidied its feathers, looked at us again with its golden eyes gleaming softly.

From its settled perch, its golden feathers faintly fluttered and fell away.

And where they fell, new flames quickly burst forth, filling the void.

‘Oh… it’s not just feathers.’

Fermata’s entire body, composed of flames, continued to sway and regenerate.

As my gaze followed the gentle flutter of fire, I saw within Fermata’s serpentine form countless intertwining flames and embers.

“Ah.”

An exclamation escaped my lips, filled with wonder.

That was Fermata’s heart, the absolute unchanging oath. The oath by Ashel Constantine Disandos that Charlotte Yerlim was Tara.

An opalescent, iridescent glow.

Its deep and intricate luminescence shimmered in a myriad of colors, even beyond the flames.

While pieces of Fermata’s body continually disintegrated and regenerated, its core remained unchanged in its circular form.

“It’s so beautiful…”

Eciel, who had been watching the same thing as me, marveled in fascination.