The Conquerors Path
chapter-718

Austin POV:

'Phew, now that is almost done with,' I mused as I looked at the scene of Carmel's mind slowly healing. The flame spirit is something I got specially to heal the mended wounds in Carmel's and Carmelia's minds, with the greatest shock to her heart. With the healing words of her mother from the past, the effects of this flame will be exceptionally powerful, making sure to heal her traumas slowly.

The current Carmel or Carmelia doesn't fight with their full strength due to the trauma she received from her mother. Certain parts of her bloodline ability are locked, her mind itself having locked it away, unwilling to use the powers that had destroyed the safe reality she lives in, thus making it so that these girls are not at 100% at all times.

'Thankfully, I was able to pull off the storyline nicely.'

In the game, if you aren't careful, you will indeed be put in the friendzone, and to understand why we would have to traverse through her past, trying to uncover the hidden secrets of the Empire. It's within this that we will get the cue to break the relationship between Carmel and her so-called best friends.

The two guys, Nix and Melvin, are another obstacle that we would have to overcome to get Carmel and Carmelia's love. For this, by traveling the path, we would have to figure out the truth of the lost memories in the girls' minds and bring it into reality, which would cause a huge break in her mind, which would be healed during the journey to get the antidote.

In the game, it happens, and it's where the final decisive move we make causes her to fall in love. The true history in the game is that while she was sent into the maze for a betrayal, she would encounter a traveling old adventurer, an old man who would save her in the maze, and who, during the travel, would come to be more of a father figure to the girls.

In the game, it follows naturally, with the girls gaining their spirit of adventure and good food from the old man, who showed an unconditionally gentle nature, treating her like a little girl, which led to a quick growth. Of course, the two did go through the very trials I and Carmel did but in a different manner that bonded the feeling of paternal love Carmel needed.

The old man, being gentle in nature, treats her as such, making sure to keep her safe and guide her. The rest of the story follows as such, with the girls forming a strong bond between the two, until the man risks his life activating the same gift and dies by throwing her out of the maze, saving her life while the old man dies a sad death.

And the two boys would take advantage of that. That's the truth we would have to recover in our search and use it perfectly in the game world. In that case, the amount of guilt and sadness both the girls went through would be beyond words, because that one paternal man whom she came to see as family gave his life for her, and they, the wretches, couldn't even remember what he had done for them.

If the situation at that time isn't handled well, it would lead to a certain bad ending, where Carmel would turn into a tyrant. She would kill the two that had dared taint that memory and turn into a full-blown tyrant that would kill and rule with the law of the word, and we would either die under her anger or be turned into puppets.

Of course, that only happens in the worst case of truly newbie players who don't handle Carmel delicately. Once you get the hang of it, it would be easy to get a good ending using the flame and our support and certain further actions affirming a certain love between the two. Even then, there would always have been the risk of getting 'family' zoned.

Which would require us to find some more secrets hidden and help Carmel with it. But I got rid of most of those steps and have already planted a certain clue in her mind for her to unravel the truth. Even above that, I have set up the perfect system of healing. All in all, everything is going well, especially with the notifications flashing around.

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

+80,000 affection!

The markings kept coming on without stopping, making me smile as I watched the final embers of the healing take place. My gaze on the place focused on the two guys waking up from the nighttime activities, their hips no doubt in pain, with some of their own natural energy being taken away.

'No hard feelings, guys, I gotta do what I gotta do.'

With that, the final play will soon start to take place, the negative boosters I kept already now washed out of their system, with their minds clearer than ever.

'Which is not going to help them at all.'

.....

Third Person POV:

The healing got over, the light of fire receding as Carmel, in control, opened her eyes, a certain peace that had never existed in her eyes being seen now. It's as if what was haunting her in the past has now taken a small rest. With her heart still filled with pain and guilt, she looked towards the flame floating in front of her, its figure blurry as always.

"Thank you, for letting me see the truth."

Carmel spoke, Carmelia echoing the same sentiment as Carmel bowed her head. Before she could react, the fire gathered in front of her as a vial with a certain purple liquid inside it could be seen. The flame, still burning bright, seemed to speak.

"It was your own will that made it happen. While you did break, you didn't fall completely into your own delusions. Though I have to say, you have a lot of making up to do."

As the flame spoke, the body of Austin fell lightly to the ground, his appearance making Carmel's eyes shine, even Carmelia, hidden within her mind, had the same glow, a glow of love so deep and unending that even the abyss would fall under its might. It wasn't the silver light of the beautiful moon but the corrupted light of a fallen star.

The desires raging in the two girls' hearts were completely different from what they expected, the emotions flashing through their minds being so deep that for a moment the desire to just keep fully attached to him, so that he would be safe forever, passed through Carmel and Carmelia's mind. Mind you, that desire was extremely potent too.

But the two of them knew better than that. He had given up so much for them. They aren't stupid to do what they want now, and even above that, the two of them haven't forgotten his status as a 'hero'. As crown princes, they have access to information that the general public doesn't have, and the fates of heroes haven't always been glorious.

The two of them, perhaps, would be the only ones knowing the deepest problems and loneliness that Austin had to go through in his life to be the perfect hero, to bear the burden of a disaster only he can know and stop, and the thought that he might perish in that disaster being more than enough to feel like her heart is being squeezed to death.

She had already lost and forgotten once; she wasn't going to let that happen again. The minds of the two women flashed with power, the power coursing through their bloodline making a spark, the powers the two of them had pushed down, not accepting them as their own, now shining forth. If they have the strength, what could stop them from being free?

Even now, the desire and dreams are burning, to just forget everything about themselves and to just fade away. It would be just the two of them traveling the world, a happy family, with Austin being the cook and the girls making their clumsy attempts at trying to adapt to the life. Just his presence and his warmth being enough for them to live.

The two of them would see the world, and take part in legendary adventures, and once a little life would grow from their love, the two of them would settle down far away to build up the bud that had grown from their love. The body of Carmel trembled, while Carmelia had to control herself not to take control and just make a life now itself.

'We have fallen too deep, haven't we?' Carmel asked.

'Sadly, that's the truth, but I don't hate it...' Carmelia replied. The irony of the situation was not lost on them, as Carmel, bending down, touched the soft hair on Austin's head. The dream she has right now is not being forgotten; they might perhaps not be able to do it now, but the two women will sure as hell make sure to work to build the future they want—a beautiful one.

One with the two of them being happy, and one with the two women living their lives to make up for everything Austin had done for them.

A beautiful life indeed...