1523 I'm The Exception
It was a world where time remained frozen.
The sun wouldn't set, seasons wouldn't change and flowers didn't wither.
As if it was a picture that couldn't be changed after the snap, the world continued to exist without any change.
On the first day, Varian and Isadora didn't feel the burden.
After a big session of meditating and trying to find a way to exit this world, he toured the place with the princess.
"I have an idea." Varian said and picked up a grain of sand.
He poured his power into it and placed it on a mat.
"We're going to live here for a while anyway. Perhaps for a long time." He looked at her. "To get a sense of how long, we'll add a sand grain each everyday."
"…" Isadora sighed and added her sand grain.
The two were placed next to each other.
Time passed…or rather, it didn't.
Varian and Isadora experienced the worst prison sentence ever. A prison where there's no hope of escape, even by death.
The sandgrains kept piling up. One by one after every 86,400 counts.
"Arghh! Why is it taking so long?"
Be it frustration.
"I might be able to do it today."
Hope.
"Why am I so unlucky every single time?! Fuck!"
And annoyance.
"I hate this damn place."
Or anger.
"Isadora, I'm so fucking mad! Let's fight!"
Boredom.
"Huff, huff, huff! Why? Why is there no way out? Is it really impossible?"
And Exhaustion.
"I don't want to do anything now."
Varian added his sand grain to the tiny sand plate.
With it, there were now nearly 8,000 sandgrains. With 2 added every day, it's 4000 days or nearly 11 years.
"We can have a stroll. Or play a game." Isadora grasped his hand and gave a bright, encouraging smile.
"Thanks a lot…" Varian smiled in relief. Without her, he'd have gone crazy.
The tiny sandplate continued to grow.
Compared to Varian, Isadora was relatively more stable.
She noticed his deterioating mental health and decided to help him out. Whenever he tasted despair and wanted to give up, she'd fill him with hope and joy.
"Varian! Look what I made today!"
She would greet him with a bright smile on her usually indifferent face.
"Fight without powers?"
She'd throw a wooden sword and give him a deliberately provocative gaze.
"Your shirt? Grab it if you can!"
She'd run barefoot in the sea of flowers, waving his shirt like it's some war trophy, her beautiful laughter filling the air.
"This is the special, special garland for our very special emperor! Thank you for your hardwork!"
She'd give gifts, small but thoughtful every once in a while.
"Lord Emperor, do you want flower tea today or coffee? No, don't ask. I can only make tea."
And she'd give him some awfully tasting tea. Somehow, she never improved despite making it countless times.
"Ah, another day of attemp…huh?"
As he put the sandgrain for today, Varian noticed the tiny sandplate now looked a lot bigger.
80,000 grains or 40,000 days. Nearly 110 years.
"No wonder…" Varian rubbed his forehead.
"Hey, do you want to try designing a new outfit today?" Isadora called him from afar.
"Coming!"
Varian ran with a smile but it was weary.
Eventually, Isadora too started to feel the pressure.
One day, Varian finished his meditation session early and wanted to surprise Isadora.
And he heard her sobbing softly.
"…"
It felt like someone had driven a knife in his heart and twisted it violently.
She had encouraged and kept him sane for so long. Since she needed help now, he'd have to step up.
Clearing his throat, Varian shouted.
"Princess, the Knight will carry you in the clouds today!"
By the time he reached her, Isadora wiped off her tears and appeared normal.
With a haughty smile befitting a princess and her usual self, she gave him her hand. "Knight, it's your honor."
"Tsk."
Instead of taking her on charriot like he usually did, he stepped forward in her confused gaze and hugged her narrow waist.
"Eh? Wait, what are you do—"
"Ready, Set, Go!"
Varian pulled her into a princess carry and jumped into the clouds.
Instinctively, Isadora wrapped her arms around his neck and glared at him. "What are you doing? Which Knight would treat a princess like this?"
Varian leaned down dangerously close to the point they could feel each other's breath.
Isadora blushed like a ripe tomato and turned her head away. "W-What are you doing? I-Idiot!"
"Did I ever say this?" Varian spun her around at his fastest speed.
"W-Wh-Whaat?" Isadora couldn't speak properly as the world spun at a ridiculous speed, the only constant in the chaos was his face.
"You have a good chance of getting a promotion."
"Ah? Huh?"
"From a princess to a queen."
"You bastard!" She punched his chest and flew away into the distance, like she was fleeing an enemy.
From then on, the flirting increased.
Isadora's mental health improved even though time continued to pass. Varian too felt slightly better.
As the sandplate kept growing, so did their bond.
Isadora was suspicious at first if he was just trying to cheer her up. But the synergy link between them told her otherwise.
Even though they weren't able to improve each other through synergy, they were still able to guage the other party's feelings to some extent.
And all readings told her that he was genuine.
That scared her even more as she didn't know how to respond.
The scars in her heart were healed once she learned the truth about her 'betrayal' and especially when her mother sacrificed her life for her.
Yet, she couldn't forget the pain she experienced.
She still believed her theory was right.
No relationship would stand the test of time. The only reason they remained firm was the people died before it could break.
"It won't work…." So, she told him one day. "Even though you are saying these things, one day, the feelings will fade away. They can't stand the test of time."
Varian gently caressed her hair as she rested her head on his lap. "I'd like to prove you wrong. We have all the time in the world here, don't we? This bond will not only stand the test of time, it'll grow stronger with it."
Isadora rolled a bit and looked up at his face. "Are you kidding? That's not how it works."
He pinched her cheek gently. "I'm not the rule, lady. I'm the exception."
