Chapter 23 : Answer

The intense sunlight pierced through my eyelids and woke me up.

My brow furrowed instinctively, and my whole body felt heavy and sunken.

My chest still aches as if it were being torn apart, and with every breath, I felt a pain that seemed to echo through my heart.

But what weighed me down even more heavily was the dark, sticky shadow lingering in a corner of my mind.

The scene I saw in my dream was still vivid.

Flora being stabbed by the Hero’s sword and collapsing.

I was certain it wasn’t just a simple dream.

The woman who resembled me.

The White Clan’s prophet, Yeji.

Everything was etched deeply into my mind.

The sensation of her cold hand brushing against my cheek was still vivid, and when I focused on my chest, I could distinctly feel the presence of her energy that had seeped into me.

“Peri! Are you awake?”

A familiar voice called out.

Fiora, her face pale, was looking down at me with worried eyes.

Her dry, bloodless lips trembled slightly with tension, and just by looking at her, I could tell how much she had fretted while I was unconscious.

“…Sister…”

I tried to open my mouth, but the cracked voice that emerged could only manage a few words.

I wanted to ask where I was and how long I had been unconscious, but what slipped out from between my lips was an entirely different question.

“How… is Flora…?”

The moment I uttered that name, my heart pounded violently.

A sense of unease surged over me, as though the terrible scene from my dream was about to become a reality.

The scene of the Hero’s sword piercing her, or the imagined sight of the royal guards killing her, wouldn’t leave my mind.

“That witch, you mean?”

Fiora let out a short sigh and shook her head.

“She managed to behead the mage we captured, but the royal guards drove her out. She’s not here. Don’t worry.”

Her response reassured me that Flora was alive, but soon, another wave of anxiety swept over me.

The cold, harsh gaze directed at me, the sharp and icy eyes, came back to my mind.

What might have happened to her after being dragged to the Demon King?

Did she change her mind and decide to reject me?

Even the mere possibility that she had turned her back on me made it hard to breathe.

“Why do you look so worried? She’s a witch of the Demon King’s army.”

I bit my lip, unable to say anything in response.

I didn’t have the confidence to explain this tangled emotion to my sister.

Something burning like a firestorm in my chest surged uncontrollably within me.

I tried to abruptly get up from the bed, but my body wouldn’t follow my will.

My legs couldn’t support me properly, and as I lost my balance and was about to collapse to the floor, a firm arm wrapped around my waist and caught me.

“What’s wrong, Peri? You still need to rest!”

Fiora raised her voice as she tried to lay me back down on the bed.

I struggled against her, flailing my arms as if to resist, but my legs wouldn’t muster any strength, and the pain in my chest worsened the more I moved.

In the end, I had no choice but to accept her words.

I was in no condition to move properly right now.

“How long was I unconscious?”

I asked weakly, as if resigned.

Fiora clicked her tongue and replied,

“A week. Do you have any idea how much trouble you caused the mages and priests because of that damn heart of yours? They barely managed to keep you alive. I really thought you were going to die. According to the sage, you’ll have to stay bedridden for at least another week. They said your insides are completely wrecked.”

Her voice carried genuine concern, but I felt nothing.

All I could feel was urgency.

“Now that I’m the queen, I’ve cleared out all the nobles and petty people who used to badmouth you. So don’t worry about anything and just rest.”

She added a wry smile to her words, but they offered me no comfort.

My head was filled with entirely different thoughts.

Where is Flora now?

What does she think of me?

Without realizing it, my hand reached for my neck.

An all-too-familiar sensation.

The leather collar met my fingertips.

It was the mark of her love and obsession, left behind.

“Now that I think about it, there’s that collar. Whoever kidnapped you has some nasty tastes. Here, let me take it off for you.”

Fiora noticed me feeling my neck and spoke with a tone of disgust.

As her hand naturally reached for my nape, I instinctively grabbed her wrist.

“…Don’t touch it.”

A firm and cold voice escaped my lips, surprising even myself.

Fiora’s eyes widened in surprise at my unexpected reaction, and I could see a mixture of confusion and intrigue flicker in her gaze.

“Hmm… Don’t tell me you’re wearing that by choice?”

She asked in a teasing tone, holding onto my wrist as if she had figured out what I was feeling.

“While you were asleep, I asked that old sage to look into the collar.”

Resting her chin in her hand as though intrigued, she smiled broadly, her lips curling upward.

“Apparently, it prevents you from moving beyond a certain distance from its creator. It even allows them to monitor your emotions and thoughts in real time. And get this—they can control your body however they want, regardless of your will. Oh my, Peri, don’t tell me you’re into that kind of thing?”

Her playful words made my face flush instantly.

I was too overwhelmed by the unexpected functions of the collar, and I felt as though my most embarrassing secrets had been laid bare for all to see.

“Ha! Look at your face—completely red! You’re like a stranger, so unfamiliar!”

She clutched her stomach, laughing as she teased me.

“You’ve really changed. Not too long ago, you were like a doll— always with that vacant expression, as if everything in the world was a nuisance.”

“Back then, you seemed so indifferent, like nothing could faze you, not even if someone tried to wring your neck.”

Fiora’s words hit right on target.

That was how I used to be.

Emotionless, devoid of desires, even my will to live flickered like a dying flame.

But after meeting Flora, I began to feel a stir of emotions within me.

When she was abducted by the Demon King, despair surged from the depths of my heart.

When I fought against beasts, it felt as if anger consumed me whole.

Fear, shame, joy, and sadness— every emotion rang vividly and powerfully through my being.

I had become someone entirely different from who I was before I met her.

Now, more than ever, I felt truly alive.

“So, who exactly are you involved with like that?”

Fiora’s question gave me pause for a moment.

But I didn’t want to hide my relationship with Flora.

Perhaps a part of me wanted my sister’s acknowledgement.

“…Flora Silverwood.”

As soon as I spoke her name, Fiora’s expression froze.

Her gaze darkened as if a shadow had fallen over her, and a mix of disappointment and worry flickered in her eyes.

Her large eyes swirled with emotions like waves colliding, each one tangling with the others.

Facing that expression, even though I had anticipated such a reaction, a chill ran through my chest.

A heavy, awkward silence filled the room, as if time had completely stopped.

Fiora stared at me intently, her lips pressed tightly together.

Fiora didn’t say anything, but the confusion and conflict in her eyes were unmistakably clear.

After a long silence, she finally spoke slowly.

“…For now, just get some rest today.”

Her voice was much calmer and heavier than her usual lively tone.

“This… I need some time to think about it.”

She said nothing more, turning her head away in silence.

She slowly walked toward the door, and after a moment, stepped out of the room.

The sound of the door closing echoed through the room, leaving only a heavy stillness behind.

In my heart, I began my own silent deliberation.

On one side of the scale was Fiora, and on the other, Flora.

The scale had already tipped.

The result was clear, leaving no room for doubt.

I raised my right hand and gently touched the white collar around my neck.

Its smooth and soft texture was vivid against my fingertips, giving me the illusion that Flora’s touch still lingered on my nape.

When I closed my eyes, Flora’s face came to mind with perfect clarity.

Even if her feelings for me truly had changed, even if her love for me had cooled…

it didn’t matter.

Even if she wanted to leave me, I had no intention of letting her go.

If her heart had changed, I would confine her until it turned back to me.

And this time, I would place the collar around her neck instead.

A faint smile crept onto my lips.

A cold certainty began to rise from deep within me.

If even Fiora, with her usually composed demeanor, looked so troubled and conflicted, there was no way others would ever understand.

To the world, Flora was nothing more than an evil witch of the Demon King’s army, a notorious criminal.

The Hero.

The Demon King.

The world’s gaze.

She had too many enemies.

If that was the case, wouldn’t it be best to hide her away, to confine her somewhere far from the world?

The idea of keeping her in a place where no one’s eyes could reach, spending time with just the two of us, offered a glimmer of hope in what had felt like an otherwise hopeless journey.