In the depth of night.
Moonlight spilled overhead, its enchanting glow swallowing and breathing out a lonely, dusky sigh.
Lantis walked alone along the corridor, her ears catching only the crisp sound of her footsteps, and the constant agitation of her heart.
Beat after beat, again and again.
Every time she recalled that face, those alluring curves, her heart would sway uncontrollably like this.
Especially tonight—the violent rise and fall of her chest, the noisy thumping of her heart echoing in her ears.
A wave of vexation surged within her.
Even now, she still insisted to herself that she could never feel Desire toward that person; it was only because she had used Magic on herself that she was like this.
She couldn’t blame herself—it was all her fault.
The hem of her deep blue gown rippled with waves, shimmering like the surface of the sea under the moonlight.
Yet beneath that sea was a void called Desire—insatiable, unfillable—where only the Shark swayed its scaly tail, lurking restlessly…
She stopped before the door of the Emerald Hall.
Drawing a deep breath, she tried to steady her still-thundering heartbeat.
Even if it did little to help.
She reached out and knocked on the door…
“Knock knock”
“Sister, it’s me.”
There was no movement inside. Just as Lantis hesitated, wondering if she should knock again, there was a sudden ‘clack’—the tightly shut door slowly opened…
A gust of fragrance wafted out—her sister’s scent…
She lifted her gaze, searching the dim room for that familiar silhouette.
It was her first time entering Mochi’s room.
The decor wasn’t luxurious—at least not like some Nobles who wished they could embed Diamonds in every wall.
A row of Bookshelves, a desk and chair, a stack of books—and a soft Bed.
Her gaze slid to the Bed, where she caught sight of a blurred, dark silhouette behind a Satin Curtain.
Her breath stalled for half a moment, her heart skipping a beat.
The figure behind the Satin Curtain was slender and graceful.
The shapely curves, hazily outlined by the curtain, set her imagination alight.
“I’m here, little sister.”
“Sister…”
Her gaze grew dreamy again, utterly intoxicated as she stared at that silhouette.
A slender, pale hand reached out, stirring the longing soul of her admirer…
“Why not come closer, little sister?”
Lantis’s breathing grew heavier, the long-desolate region of her heart finally ignited by the Flame of Desire, burning her from within bit by bit.
She slipped off her High Heels and strode toward the depths of Desire.
The closer she drew, the richer the scent became—a fragrance like Rose Fragrance, but mixed with a maddening, addictive undertone.
The scent made one’s mind ripple; the sight turned one into a Beast of Desire, unable to think of anything else.
She knelt beside the Bed, staring at that languid figure—the one who treated her like a Pet, eyes filled with mockery and ridicule.
“Sister…”
Her gaze grew ever more dazed, nuzzling her face against her sister like a puppy.
It felt as if her chest had finally cracked open—not blood seeping out, but surging, chaotic emotions that still couldn’t be sated.
“Follow your Desire—think of nothing else…”
She’d told herself these words at least ten times.
Only now, hearing them again, did she truly grasp their madness.
“Sister…”
Guided by the pale hand, she slipped into the Satin Curtain.
Mochi reclined within, the usual laziness and disdain in her gaze now colored by something different.
“Sister…”
The blaze inside her showed no sign of abating.
Lantis never imagined her heart could be so restless, like a flower swaying in the wind, helplessly driven by the gale named Desire.
She reached out a pale hand, about to touch that desolate place—when the figure before her snapped irritably, “Why so eager? I’m not going anywhere.”
Lantis drew her hand back, just like a Pet thoroughly tamed.
She had utterly lost herself, her senses completely focused on Mochi; even as her hand clenched so hard it ached, she didn’t notice.
The moonlight was enchanting and blurred, Blue Gauze drifting gently down from the sky, falling in disarray around countless lovesick souls.
“Little sister…”
Within the dim room, only two flames of candlelight gave faint illumination, the two flickering together, weaving an alluring melody called Love Desire.
Outside, a wild wind suddenly rose.
Even through the walls, it seemed those two flames were swept up in the storm.
The flames shook more violently, growing ever wilder, ever brighter.
The howling wind rattled the doors and windows.
Midnight passed.
The wild wind did not abate; instead, it grew damper, the scent of fresh grass and flowers’ blood mingling with it.
Only the flames behind the door seemed to know—a heavy rain was soon to come.
One flame burned fiercely, while the other, oppressed by its heat, glimmered with a faint blue glow—at this very moment, her eyes still bore that teasing look Lantis had never seen through.
What was she thinking now?
“Little sister…”
Suddenly, the flame flared, rolling over to pin that spot of red beneath.
“Have you forgotten… I’m the one who killed your Father.”
Those words jolted Lantis halfway out of her trance.
The scene from that time replayed in her mind, hatred and anger once again seeping from the depths of her heart.
“Do you remember what I’ve done to you, little sister…”
Seeing the rage flooding the eyes of the one below her, yet watching her expression break under her own touch, the smile in Mochi’s eyes deepened.
She continued to mock the one beneath her, reciting in a teasing tone all she’d done over the past century.
Mochi suddenly leaned in close to her ear, “Tell me, little sister—how do you feel about me now? Do you like me? Hate me? Or… do you simply love everything about me?”
The flame below burst up in defiance, pinning her beneath it, growing ever fiercer, ever more furious…
Its blaze grew rough, clawing red marks into that pale skin.
Yet this only made Mochi all the more excited.
Ignoring the mounting pain beneath her, she cried out in delight to Lantis pressing her down, “I see it—I finally see it—the Murderous Desire in your eyes, little sister! So thick, so suffocating!”
“Hahaha!!”
The harder the one below laughed, the rougher Lantis’s actions became.
Long-suppressed Love Desire and fury exploded at last.
Now, she wanted nothing more than to crush her, destroy her, turn her wholly into a product of Desire.
A cold flash swept before her eyes—a silver-bright Dagger suddenly fell into her hand…
Mochi clasped her hand, pressing the blade to her own Heart.
“Kill me. Dig out my Heart. Avenge your Father. Avenge your dignity. Now—can you do it?”
Lantis’s eyes widened, her breath coming in harsh gasps, the anger within her finally erupting—whether Murderous Desire or Love Desire, she wanted to fulfill them both…
When she finally came to, beneath her lay a pool of crimson, and in her hand—a Heart, still and bitten through by one savage wound…