Everlasting
Everlasting is a one-of-a-kind Kaizer family ring passed through the male line. Its wearer can prevent conception or deliberately remove it when seeking a child, while its longer-term binding effect limits whom a partner can conceive with after activation.
History
From Alexander to Lux
Vera places the purple-gemmed heirloom on Lux after the tournament, continuing a male-line family tradition. Alexander had worn it before him, making Lux its next inheritor rather than merely a temporary borrower. When the ring first activates with Iris, its glow marks the beginning of a three-year effect that can be renewed through later intimacy with the same partner. (Chapters 270–271)
Deliberate choices about parenthood
Lux later treats Everlasting as a practical contraceptive whose presence or removal records a conscious decision. He removes it when he and Valerie seek conception, plans to wear it with Aurelia before she asks otherwise, and retains it with Aina while war makes pregnancy dangerous. Near the final conflict, Iris and Cai forcibly remove the ring after deciding they also want to conceive, confirming that it remains in Lux's custody and operational late in the story. (Chapters 995–996, 1090, 1200)
Abilities and properties
- While worn, functions as a contraceptive ring and prevents the wearer from causing pregnancy; removal suspends that protection. (Chapters 995–996, 1089–1090)
- Once activated with a woman, its additional effect lasts three years: during that period, she can give birth only to the wearer's child. Renewed intimacy extends the effect for another three years. (Chapters 270–271)
- Its function is controlled by whether Lux wears it, so it does not replace judgment or consent; several scenes center on partners asking him to remove it or accepting his decision to keep it on. (Chapters 996, 1090, 1098, 1200)
- The artifact is explicitly unique and a Kaizer family heirloom rather than a generally available contraceptive ring. (Chapter 270)