Opal is a naturally occurring gemstone of extraordinarily vivid color, but the kind commonly found in the border markets is actually quite cheap.
Just like Opal himself.
*
The iron-fisted chancellor, renowned for his beauty and sharp tongue, has secrets that always fetch the best prices in the underground taverns.
"Whore." The black-market dealer cursed through gritted teeth. "Slut. If it weren't for him, I could've made three points more on this deal."
"Damn him, that gutter-born piece of trash."
"He dares to come after us. He's forgotten where he came from."
The bartender hushed them. "Don't speak carelessly of that lord."
Displeased voices rose around the room. The bartender set down a glass of liquor and smiled. "Listen closely. Around here, we usually call him..."
"...the emperors' mistress."
Laughter thundered through the room, followed by several gunshots. The secret police stormed in, and the lights went out.
A report was delivered to the capital. The first rays of dawn pierced the mist and fell upon Opal's sleep-deprived eyes.
He rose, his supple waist bending, his silk morning robe fastened to the very top to conceal his swan-white neck and the several red marks blooming there from the night before.
"That's all?" In the council chamber, he leaned lazily against his high seat, his smile bright. His amethyst eyes were hidden beneath thick lashes, their depths impossible to read.
*
Eight years old, eighteen, twenty-eight. Opal had long grown used to hearing such things.
At first it was "worthless bastard" and "good-for-nothing brat." Then came "man-trap" and "the disgrace of the Royal Military Academy." After that, they called him "jester," "succubus," "vile traitor," and "mistress shared by the emperors."
At best, they spoke of him in hushed tones, calling him the "poisonous chancellor" or the "black widow."
Yet thousands of years later, the planetary monument recorded just one title for him.
The guardian of civilization's flame, the empire's last regent.
-
Opal sometimes thought that life was too long. Those who hated him had died, and those who loved him had died too. Only the frost and snow remained to keep him company.
"What about me, Father?" Amid the swirling snow, the red-haired boy hooked his little finger around Opal's and tilted up his innocent face. "I'll stay by your side. Forever."
I will fight for you until death, seize the light of the entire galaxy, and place the crown upon your head with my own hands.
You are my faith, my banner, and the only reason I live or die.
When we are alone, please let me call you "my empress."
Dark, venomous beauty of a bottom x younger, outwardly gentle but secretly ruthless mad-dog top
Bottom: little shadow dweller -> black widow -> queen spider
Top 1: the regent's only son. Top 2: heir to the Mage Tower. Top 3: commoner knight awarded a title.
The true top: Top 1's biological descendant, the last surviving bloodline of the imperial family.
"Through this bitter journey, we reach the stars."
Theme: Born human, we should hold on to kindness and the belief that we can surpass ourselves.
