The arrow never reached her, let alone piercing her. Emira lifted her hand without even turning fully. Her fingers flicked through the air as if flicking away an insect and the arrow shattered instantly, dissolving into fine golden sparks that vanished before they could touch the ground.
A soft glow lingered around her hand for a brief mont. The blessing of the Golden Goddess wrapped around her like a quiet shield, reflecting under the light for all to see.
Emira lowered her hand slowly and turned. Her gaze settled on Aron Mast.
He was no longer standing still. Instead, he was standing in front of Shiqi, as if protecting her.
He stepped forward once their eyes t. The air shifted with him, and the dark magic stirred...
"Mira," he said slowly. "You promised . You said I could have my revenge."
He stopped a few steps away from her as his voice dropped lower. "Shiqi belongs to ."
Emira raised an eyebrow slightly.
"I know what I promised," she replied evenly. "But are you sure Shiqi is the one you want revenge against?"
Her eyes sharpened. "Or are you just acting like this because you want to take her away from here and save her?"
A cruel laugh tore itself from Aron’s chest. It was harsh. Broken. Empty of humor.
"Save her?" he repeated, shaking his head slowly. "You think I want to save the woman who kept imprisoned for a hundred years?"
His gaze flicked briefly to Shiqi.
She stood frozen, her face drained of color, her body trembling as if she could no longer hold herself upright.
"She used ," Aron went on. "Bound . Locked away inside while she played the Grand Witch." His hands clenched at his sides. "She stole my ti. My choices. My life."
He looked back at Emira. "You think I care about her survival?" he asked coldly. "If she lives or dies ans nothing to . She is the one person I hate the most in the world..."
Emira studied him in silence.
"You sound convincing," she said after a mont. "But the line between hatred and love is quite thin, often blurred."
"What do you an?" The Dark lord asked stiffly.
"You love her and seeing her like this makes your heart ache."
The Dark Lord let out a sharp laugh.
It was quick and dismissive, as if Emira had said sothing ridiculous.
"Have you lost your mind?" Aron asked, his lips curling faintly. "Love?" He shook his head. "You give far too much credit."
Emira did not react to his tone. She only tilted her head slightly and lifted her hand, pointing toward his chest. More precisely, toward the brooch that hung low over Shiqi’s, now hunched body.
"That stone tells otherwise," Emira said calmly. Aron followed her gaze.
His expression hardened at once. Then he scoffed and shook his head. "You’d have to be a fool to believe that," he said coldly. "That stone proves nothing."
He looked away briefly, his jaw tightening.
"Yes," he continued after a mont, his voice rougher now. "I loved her once. When I was young. When I thought she was pure. Naive. Different from the rest."
His eyes darkened as he looked back at Shiqi.
"But ti has a way of stripping illusions," Aron said. "She showed exactly who she was."
Shiqi flinched at his words.
"She captured ," Aron went on. "Bound my soul. Trapped inside her magic while she ruled and spread hatred and made killings in my na." His hand clenched into a fist. "That is not love. That is betrayal."
Emira listened without interrupting. When he finished, she nodded slowly, as if considering his words.
"Fine," she said then. "If you truly hate her."
She lifted her hand slightly and a faint ripple of dark energy shimred in the air, taking the shape of sothing long and thin. "Use the soul-stripping whip on her."
Shiqi’s breath caught sharply. Her eyes widened in pure terror as she stared at Emira. Aron stiffened.
For a mont, he did not speak. His shoulders tensed, as if the simple suggestion had struck him harder than any spell.
"I will not," he said at last in a low firm voice.
Emira raised an eyebrow. "I will have my revenge my way," Aron continued, his tone controlled but strained. "I will not reduce myself to that."
Emira laughed softly then, as she gave him a knowing look. "Is it that you won’t," she asked lightly, "or that you cannot?"
Aron’s eyes snapped to hers. "That whip strips the soul," Emira went on calmly. "It tears away everything that ties a person to who they are. Love. Hate. mory. Even regret."
She took a step closer. "You have used it on enemies without hesitation in the past. In fact it used to be your favourite weapon."
Her gaze sharpened. "So why not her?"
Aron’s jaw tightened.
"She does not deserve that rcy. I want her to carry on with the mory still in her." he said finally.
Emira shook her head slowly.
"No," she said. "That is not the reason."
He straightened, drawing himself up, and the dark magic around him stirred more openly now. It did not strike, but it pressed outward as if heavy and heartless. "Mira," he said, his voice tightening, "are you trying to look for reasons to renege on our agreent?"
"If you want to take my revenge in front of you," he continued, "then that is not possible."
He let out a slow breath, as if forcing his temper back into control. "It is not simple," Aron said. "You speak of ending her pain quickly. Of tearing her soul apart and being done with it." His lips curled faintly. "That is rcy."
"I do not want rcy for her," Aron went on. "I want her to live."
Emira did not interrupt. She only watched him.
"I want her to wake up every day knowing she cannot escape," Aron said. "Knowing that death is coming, but never knowing when." His eyes flicked to Shiqi again. "I want her to feel ti the way I felt it. Slow. Endless. Suffocating."
His voice hardened. "I waited for death for a hundred years. I waited in silence. In darkness. With nothing but my own thoughts."
He looked back at Emira. "That is the fate I want for her."
Emira’s expression remained calm, but her eyes grew colder.
"If you refuse to give her to ," Aron continued, "then you are breaking your promise."
The air seed to still. "And if you break it," he said quietly, "then I will not step aside."
He took one deliberate step forward.
"I am willing to fight you, Mira."
"You may be blessed by the Golden Goddess," Aron said. "But I am not weak."
Emira finally spoke.
"Do you truly believe this is about my promise?" she asked softly.
Aron did not answer at once, only agreeing with silence... until Emira laughed.
"I must say, both of you deserve an award for your acting skills. Carrying forward your acting for more than hundred years requires real talent, my lord."
"What do you an?"
Emira smiled," There are so things that are not hidden, dark lord."
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