Iris opened her eyes. Shimmering starlight poured through the glass ceiling, flowed into her grand bed, and ignited the scented candles around her bedroom. Her mind, brightened by the rosy fragrances, became aware of the antique decoration of this well-maintained castle.

She sat up on the bed, cloaked comfortably in a layer of thick blanket. Another presence arrived beside her bed and met her gaze. A maiden of golden haze, a living mist of golden light, excitedly beamed at Iris.

“You’re finally awake,” she said. “You should rest more; the pastille burner has yet to run out.”

That calming scent diffused into Iris’s spirit, rejuvenating her. She admired the Light Fairy before receiving a cup of warm tea. She asked not what the herbs sprinkled within were. She merely had what she should and thanked her caretaker for her effort.

“I can bring you dessert, if the tea has a bad aftertaste.”

“You’ve done too much for me, Miss. And I’ve yet to learn of your name.”

“My name is Lucinda. My surname is of no importance.” Lucinda snapped her fingers. Sparks flew around her, coiling around her electric hair. “They used to call me Priestess of Luminous Flares, although those who remembered such a title no longer existed.”

“A befitting title, Miss Lucinda.” Iris placed back the teacup. “The tea is delicious. Would you not drink with me?”

“How could I steal what’s yours?” Lucinda chuckled. “The youthful me might be reckless, but this jaded me have mellowed down.”

“Please indulge this request of mine.” Iris held the teapot and poured a cup for her new friend.

Lucinda reluctantly drank with her patient, who stared at her unblinking. That pair of deep-ocean eyes gave her a feeling of a vast, tranquil hall, full of unknown history and ancient feats.

While Iris and Lucinda enjoyed each other’s company, the bedroom door finally shook. It creaked open, and a group of Monster Girls tumbled in. They shamefully looked around until they found Iris’s and Lucinda’s gazes upon them.

“Greetings, everyone. Forgive me for not standing up to receive you.” Iris chuckled. “Your worries are well-received, although slightly overwhelming.”

“Lucinda forbade us from crowding the room,” a Rose Girl said. “But we still wanted to look after you.”

The Rose Girl peeped at Lucinda, who donned a soft smile that chilled the room yet exposed no disapproval. Although Lucinda had never reproached anyone, the Rose Girl knew better than to push her luck. No one wished to test the limit.

“Our Iris has just woken up in an unfamiliar place. Your enthusiasm could’ve startled her.”

“Have I become so timid in your eyes?”

“You who confronted Nupian are braver than most.” The mention of her wife gave rise to a quiver in Lucinda’s bright tone.

“If she wished so, she would’ve taken my soul into her collection.”

“She’d then lose your heart forever.”

“The obsession with love is our defining characteristic, isn’t it?”

“Love is an expression of freedom, and freedom is the foundation of our existence.”

Iris sank into an awkward silence, which everyone noticed. The question in her profound eyes danced at the tip of her tongue, though she refused to let it escape. And though everyone else understood her, they too refused to answer.

“We cannot run away forever. The truth will face us in the end.”

Iris turned to the door. The Monster Girls gave way for Aconite. She hugged Lucinda, kissed her cheek, and held Iris’s hands. Her movement left traces of her perfume throughout the bedroom, blanketing the earlier unease.

“Forcing an answer won’t help anyone,” Iris said.

“We have all the time in the world to mull over the question.” Aconite turned to the rest of her friends. They shyly nodded. “We simply lack the courage to voice our answer.”

“Maybe . . . it’s better not to.”

“If you weren’t here, Iris, we might never get to say it.” Aconite placed a piece of candy in Iris’s palm. “We were hopeless, but not anymore.”

“But we are still selfish,” Lucinda said. “Will you forgive us, Iris?”

The rest of the Monster Girls had no excuse. They pleaded with their expectant eyes toward Iris, whose air was so fleeting that she could vanish at any moment, whose spirit was so fragile that she could fall asleep in the next instant. Was it appropriate for them to push their wish onto such a lady, even if she were their only chance?

Iris held the candy while keeping her gaze on Aconite. She was about to speak when Aconite shook her head, winked, and looked toward the door.

Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

Sparkling particles rained from the ceiling and rose from the ground. They assembled into an angelic silhouette, a familiar figure that charmed all who looked upon her. Nupian stepped out from emptiness, holding a visiting bouquet by her chest.

“Forgive my late arrival,” Nupian said. “Certain matters require my immediate attention.”

“You always appear at the most misfortunate of time.” Iris covered her nose. “You should’ve washed up before coming here.”

Nupian frowned. She turned to a group of her wives. They gave her a disapproving pout. Although subdued by the flowers, the faintest metallic stench failed to escape the most perceptive.

“Does the smell bother you that much?” Nupian waved at a Plant Girl, who reluctantly spread her flowers to cover the unpleasantness. “These spiritual curses are tedious to cleanse; I didn’t want to leave your side for long.”

“I could understand your wives tending to me. They’re all wonderful souls.”

“Their affection must’ve spilt over.”

“Are you not going to take this chance, when I’m so feeble and defenceless?”

“Our game is between us, Iris. I won’t allow anyone to interfere. Not even . . . her.”

Nupian shivered. She came to Aconite’s side, standing next to Iris’s bed. An illusory outline of a red-hooded lady reflected in Iris’s dimmed eyes, which stayed on Nupian as if trying to devour her. Unlike the unpleasant smell lingering around Nupian, this strange fragrance emanating from Iris transcended all but Nupian’s keen soul, the soul familiar with this power, the soul irreversibly tainted by it.

“Are you surprised?” Iris whispered. The girl in her eyes seemed to smile.

Resisting her urge, Nupian kept still while her aura overflowed from her dress. The bedroom quavered with her state of mind, but the tremor was undetectable to most of her wives. She feinted coughing before she forcefully leaned closer to Iris, closer to the untraced lady, whose presence was no more.

“You’re a contradiction, Iris.” Nupian’s voice softened. “You’re an impossible lady, a divine mortal.”

“What have I done that you couldn’t? My escape . . . is not dissimilar to yours.”

“How much . . . did you see in my memory?” Nupian glanced at Aconite. “How . . . was she?”

“You two haven’t changed in appearance, nor in love.” Iris narrowed her eyes but could glean nothing from Nupian’s and Aconite’s lovely expressions. “Did you regret it?”

“It was the worst moment of our lives.” Nupian let her thoughts simmer. “But, even if given a second chance, I’d still tread this path.”

“Even if I pleaded otherwise?” Aconite said.

The two lovers met each other’s gaze. They couldn’t maintain eye contact for too long, not when they could feel what swam within those gazes. Nupian had to shift away, her chest too tense to breathe.

“It was the only way,” she said.

“You shouldn’t have to bear this alone.”

“Am I alone, Dear?”

Against that pitiful countenance, Aconite relented and hugged her dearest. The two disregarded their other wives, who quietly cheered and flirted with each other, puffing the heaviness in the air, turning the world a little brighter, a little happier.

They did not forget their patient and gave her wishes and souvenirs in the form of handmade desserts and accessories. Iris gladly accepted their gifts, though she lacked the places to hold them.

“Let us store everything for you,” Lucinda said. “After all, we’ve designed this bedroom for you.”

“Am I to visit that often?”

“I have a feeling that you will.”

Iris beamed at Lucinda, who, with other Monster Girls, swiftly put away the earrings, necklaces, and music boxes. Everyone’s present gradually painted this neat bedroom with a multitude of colours, colours representing thoughts and personalities.

“All these colours and noises, are you all not going to let her rest?” Nupian said. “She’s been through much; we should give her a little moment of peace.”

“You just want to hoard her love for yourself!” one of Nupian’s wives said.

Nupian blushed. “Could you let me have this one selfish wish, Honey?”

The girl hmphed. “Have I ever denied you anything?”

A bout of laughter followed. Nupian couldn’t help but giggle too, not at her wives, but at herself who had to rely on their good wills. They understood her, even though she couldn’t bring herself to speak up for her desires.

“If you annoy her, Nupian, we won’t forgive you!”

“Take better care of her, or we’ll need a long talk.”

Her wives teased her as they delightfully left the room. They waved Iris farewell and blew her kisses and winked at her. She gracefully accepted their gestures, though she couldn’t repay them with the same intensity. Her mind still pulsated up and down whenever she concentrated too hard, and her vision sometimes fractured as if struck by a hammer.

“You’ve been too sweet, Nupian,” Iris said. “Is it because of their love, or is it because of my pathetic state?”

“You would never allow anyone to pity you.”

“I cannot control your feelings.” Iris supported her head with her hand. “How funny. In the end, you’re the one who could see me in my most vulnerable time.”

“Only because you care little about me, as opposed to all your lovers.” Nupian snapped her fingers. The flowers in her hand swirled around Iris, sprinkling medicinal vapours around her. “I’d like to remove the curse plaguing you.”

Iris grabbed Nupian’s hand. There was no resistance. “Why?”

“Is there a need for a reason?”

“To traverse through worlds, just to avenge me, since when have you been so emotional?”

Nupian didn’t answer. She poured a cup of tea for her patient, her target.

Iris did not thank her, but she still drank it all.

The tea tasted the same, but there was an additional scent mixed within, a scent of profundity, born from the aftermath of an outburst. This familiar smell perfused inside Iris, calming her heart.

“I won’t give in, even if you tend to me dutifully.”

“I expected nothing but your wellbeing. I’ll have you in the end, and you’ll stay as brilliant as you are now.”

“All these helps shall be repaid.”

“Allow me to give you one last gift.”

Nupian stepped back and unbuttoned her dress. Her inner garments covered only her private parts, revealing her fair skin. She expressed no shyness, but she also didn’t flaunt her beauty. Her charms naturally radiated despite the absence of effort.

Iris laughed. “You’re the strange one, Nupian, a contradiction.”

“I’m simply giving you an assurance, the greatest one of all.”

Iris slowly got up from the bed. She looked at her enemy, who was defenceless and motionless, who was so reckless and irrational, who was so similar and intimate.

Did she just hesitate?

A ring manifested in her right hand. Its milky gem split open, warm milky liquid gushing out. The castle trembled, and the sky brightened. Illuminating pink light descended through holes amidst the sea of clouds. They pierced through the garden of the castle and landed around Iris.

She lifted her right hand. The light coiled around her arm, turning into countless shapes, weapons, jewelleries, animals, landscapes, structures, all possible things conjured up by all dreamers.

Nupian did not flinch. She gave a mischievous smile before closing her eyes. She would not dodge, would not defend, would not move.

“This will hurt dearly,” Iris said.

“It will stop me from meeting you, long enough for you to recover.”

“You’re crazy, Nupian.”

“Not as much as you, Dear.”

Iris gritted her teeth. She did not want to speak any further. She swung her right hand groundward, although not as forcefully as could be. The pink light shot toward Nupian, aiming for her heart.

“I’ll . . . see you again.” It was an inaudible whisper.