By the time you read this, I'll already be gone so please, don't try to find me. You were curious about my identity, right? You remember I once told you that the Banes are not subjects of the Empire. We were an independent power, equal in standing to the Emperor, led by Eldris El Thunderbane—the final leader of the Bane family—who perished fifteen years ago in the Ultimate War.

The sudden obliteration of the Thunderbanes left the Bane family without a leader or heir, which led to internal conflict. After countless bickerings and feuds, the Bane family fractured: the Flamebanes declared independence, the Earthbanes submitted to the Emperor's rule, and the remaining factions agreed that their next leader would be decided by a duel between the heads of the remaining Banes.

As a result, the Snowbanes emerged victorious, and Albus El Snowbane—head of the Snowbanes and my father—became the leader of the Bane family, which led me to bear the title of Snow Princess.

I didn't mean to hide this from you. I just didn't want to talk about my background because I really hated it for certain reasons.

Now do you understand why I told you not to reveal your identity? You are the last Thunderbane and the only heir to the throne of the Bane family. This mustn't be leaked until you are strong enough to bear the weight that comes with this title.

I have already returned home due to an emergency, so you need not worry about me.

Reach the Transcendent Realm within two years and come find me on the mainland, or else I will never be able to meet you again. I know it's a near-impossible task since it takes ten to fifteen years to break through to the Mid-Tier Realm. Yet, I'm being selfish to ask for something so unattainable because I don't want to be separated from you.

Please forgive me for leaving like this without fulfilling what I had offered. And don't focus on the last paragraph too much, because when I wrote this, I had already accepted that I could never see you again.

Goodbye, Raj.

As soon as I read the letter, I bolted outside and burst into Nymeria's room.

"Kyaa! Who the hell are you?" an unknown lady shouted from inside.

"Where is the lady who was staying here?" I demanded.

"I-I don't know. I just got this room a few minutes ago."

I ran out and aggressively knocked on Ume's door. The moment she opened it, I grabbed her by the shoulders and asked, breathing heavily, "Have you seen Nymeria?"

"Are you alright, Raj?" she asked, worried. "You're pouring sweat—"

"Please tell me, have you seen Nymeria?" I demanded.

She looked at me, saw me trembling, and explained, "Sister Nym met me about half an hour ago and said she had to return home for some emergency. But what worries me is her last statement. She said I don't have to call her sister anymore."

My hands trembled. I turned and ran down the stairs toward the street.

"Nymeria!!"

"NYMERIA!!!!!"

.

.

.

"NYMERIAAAAA!!!!" I shouted again and again, standing at the center of the road.

I called her name until my voice turned from screams to bare whispers as I slowly fell to my knees.

"It's enough, Raj," Ume whispered, resting my head on her chest. "She's already gone."

"Ume..." I murmured. "Why didn't she meet me before leaving? How can she just disappear like that?"

"Why are you worrying so much?" Ume replied. "It's not like she left us forever."

"You're wrong, Ume. Here, read this," I said, handing her the letter.

"I shall read it, but first, come inside the inn. People are looking."

There were many people gathered in the street, whispering and murmuring while looking at me. At that time, I couldn't care less about what anyone thought of me, but Ume was also sitting beside me on the road, so I pulled myself together and went inside the inn.

The moment we entered, the innkeeper mocked in his usual composed tone, "That was quite a show you performed, sir."

"Don't talk to me, snake. I might vent my frustration on you," I muttered, glaring at him.

"Forgive me, sir. I didn't intend to disrespect you," he replied with his annoying bow before speaking further, "Please take these cards, sir."

He had two gold-plated cards in his extended hands. The cards had my name imprinted on them.

"What are these?" I asked.

"These are the exclusive identification cards given to customers who have bought a room in our inn," he explained. "They also come with unlimited expensive food per head for a whole year."

"What's the meaning of this?" I asked. "Why are you offering this to us?"

"Oh, sir, I'm not offering them. I'm just giving them to their rightful owner. The lady whose name you were shouting in the streets bought these rooms for you. But strangely, she bought both of them under your name."

I took the cards from his hand and returned to the room along with Ume.

We sat on the chairs where Ume spent nearly ten minutes reading the letter repeatedly.

"She left just like this!?" Ume exclaimed. "Did she inform you about what exactly happened in the Ultimate War fifteen years ago?"

"She didn't say anything beyond that letter."

"B-but why? Why would she choose to remain silent, knowing it would result in perpetual separation?" Ume stammered.

"You know something, Ume, don't you?"

"Forgive me, Raj. It's not my place to say anything. It's between you and Sister Nym. Moreover, Sister Nym made me swear an oath to never reveal anything about it."

"So you're also gonna keep secrets from me," I murmured.

"Raj, it's not like that—"

"Here, take this. It belongs to you," I said, cutting her off and handing the card to her.

"Sister Nym must have bought them under your name because she didn't want to reveal mine," Ume said, looking at the card.

"She had prepared everything, huh?" I scoffed in a mocking tone. "Isn't she very thoughtful?"

"Raj, you shouldn't let your anger cloud your judgment. Think about how hard it must've been for her to depart like this," Ume reasoned, returning the letter to me.

I gazed at the letter, and it was only then that I realized how true Ume's words really were.

The letter was stained in numerous places by Nymeria's tears, and at the end, before writing goodbye, she had tried to say something else but had cut it off midway.

"Vivi, can you decipher what was written here?" I said inwardly, touching the letter.

"Analyzing the letter..."

"Beginning the decryption..."

"Decryption successful!!"

"I missed you so much, Tar— "

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