god asking her for the heart rather than just taking it? Surely he could use his magic to seize it.
Maybe it actually had to be given, like in the Ceremony of Two Hundred Hearts or how Prince Gin had offered up Tsarina Austine’s heart. Whatever the reason was, though, Sora wasn’t going to lose this opportunity.
She cradled the heart to her body. An idea was forming, but it required defying Zomuri—again—and she had to brace herself before she spoke. “I—I’m not giving up the heart yet.”
“What do you mean?” The god’s voice echoed throughout the whole castle.
She stood tall, shoulders proud, trying to channel the confidence she’d seen in Empress Aki. “I mean, you have to agree to my terms first,” Sora said.
“You impudent child! The deal has been struck. Gin owed me a royal heart, so it’s supposed to be mine.” The torrent of ryuu magic had lessened to barely a trickle. The heart was almost done collecting stolen magic from the taigas and ryuu, and the pulse had visibly weakened, barely thumping anymore. “Give it to me now,” Zomuri said, “while the heart still beats! It loses flavor with every pulse.”
Sora smiled smugly. She definitely had leverage now. “I agree that you and Prince Gin had a deal, but that doesn’t involve me. Now I have the heart, and if you want it before it dies, you’ll agree not to punish me or my friends for breaking into your vault and stealing the soul pearl. It will be as if that never happened.”
“But it did!”
“I know. But you’ll agree to treat it like it didn’t. My friends and I are completely innocent.” She pointed a dagger at the heart. She could stop the beating with a single plunge.
Zomuri’s eyes narrowed, but he held out his hand. “All right, all right. You’re innocent and free to go. Just give me the heart before you ruin it!”
Sora dropped the knife and tossed Prince Gin’s heart into the air. Zomuri snatched it, stuffed it into his mouth, and disappeared in a puff of green smoke.
Holy heavens.
The Dragon Prince was dead. Empress Aki was the ruler of the kingdom again. And Zomuri would no longer be the patron god of Kichona.
Sora wouldn’t allow herself to exhale yet, though. There was still a battle raging outside, and she didn’t know if Fairy and Broomstick were alive.
But then the explosions outside came to an abrupt halt. A minute later, a cheer erupted.
Daemon rushed out to the balcony. Sora and Hana followed on his heels.
Liga flew toward them, with Fairy and Broomstick on his back. Their faces were smudged with ash and their clothes torn and bloody, but they smiled and waved. When Liga landed on the balcony, they jumped off and ran to hug Sora and Daemon.
“You did it!” Liga said. “With the Dragon Prince’s spell gone, the taigas became themselves again!”
“And they’re rounding up those who were loyal to the prince,” Broomstick said. “Their Sight is gone, and with it, the ability to cast ryuu spells.”
“Tsarina Austine is also safe, under the protection of Queen Meredith,” Fairy said. “So tell us everything. What happened? How did you kill Prince Gin? How did Wolf convince the gods to carry out the purification ritual? Was that Zomuri we saw up here?”
Sora glanced over her shoulder. Empress Aki had gone to Prince Gin’s body, where she cried softly. Even though he’d never repented for what he did, he was still her brother.
This ending had been less celebratory than Sora had envisioned, yet that was life—unpredictable. But she and her friends had done what was right, and time would hopefully heal their wounds.
“I think we all have a lot to tell each other,” Sora said. “Let’s not do it here, though. Her Majesty needs some privacy.”
They went outside to the far end of the balcony. Sora took in the smoke and destruction below. But rising from them was a happy sound: the chattering of their taiga classmates and teachers, fully in control of their minds again. And they were no longer damned.
“Where to?” Daemon asked, bending down so Sora and Hana could climb onto his back. Fairy and Broomstick got onto Liga.
“To the best place I can imagine being with friends,” Sora said. “On the dormitory rooftop under the open sky. With lots and lots of cake.”
Epilogue
A week later, Sora, Daemon, and Broomstick stood backstage in the Citadel’s amphitheater.
“I can’t believe we’re being promoted to full-fledged warriors,” Sora said.
The week since the fall of the Dragon Prince