A Night to Decide

The wind was oozing with a loud, obnoxious sound as if warning the street vendors to be prepared for the storm that was about to come and ruin their stalls. Everyone was running here and there to shut their stalls before the storm came. However, among them, walking completely unbothered by the warning of the storm, was Ava. To the onlookers, she might have looked like she was chill about the storm, but they were wrong. It wasn't that she was chill about the storm, but the cyclone she had in her heart, her mind, and her life was nothing compared to the storm that was threatening to come.

"It took me a whole night to learn about your purple medicine." Flashbacks from her earlier conversation with Princess Tiara began to run in front of her eyes. "It is made up of ashes of five hundred rare herbs," Tiara said, holding the round purple medicine between her delicate fingers as if it were a prized artifact. "The strongest sedative on the earth. If a normal person takes it, they will go into a deep sleep, probably for a month, right, Zambi?" She arched an eyebrow at Zambi, her tone biting.

"Ye-yes, Your Highness," Zambi stammered, her voice trembling as she kept her gaze fixed on the ground.

"However, you take it daily." The princess stepped closer to Ava, her silk gown whispering against the floor. "Yet, you walk and talk like normal. How is that possible?" she asked, her lips curling into a knowing smirk. "Let me tell you how." She crossed her arms, her golden bangles clinking softly. "Because when a witch takes it, she becomes powerless, like a normal human."

"This… this can't be true. I am not a witch. My father has told me that my mother once worked in a brothel, and it was there that they met and fell in love." Ava reasoned, her voice shaking as she gripped the edge of her shawl for comfort. "I don't know much about witches, but I don't think any woman who has mystic powers would be so helpless that she'd be compelled to work in a brothel."

"Listen, I don't know about your mother, nor am I interested." Tiara waved a dismissive hand, her rings glinting in the light. "All I care about is you being a witch. Which you are. And see the irony, you're married to the person who hates witches to the core." She leaned in, her breath carrying the faint scent of jasmine. "You know what he did to the witch protector who invaded that day? He killed her. In the most cruel way possible. That's how much he hates witches."

Tears welled up in Ava's eyes, blurring her vision as the weight of Tiara's words crushed her. She stood still, motionless. The biggest truth of her life had been disclosed like this, with threats of separation and blackmail.

"I don't like you much, Ava, but since you saved me once, I'm being generous with you. Leave Felix." Tiara's voice softened, but the malice in her eyes remained sharp. "Go far away from him. Save him from the torment of killing his beloved wife, and save yourself from having the last memory of your life as your husband's face filled with pain, betrayal, and hatred. If this offer doesn't feel tempting to you, then..." she paused, the suspense that the silent held was like a two-sided blade. "We can always go with the original plan where I tell Felix about your truth. Then, either he'll kill you in hate, or you'll kill him in self-defense. And if neither happens, I'll reveal your truth to the whole state and make sure Felix and his family are punished for hiding a witch in their house. The whole state will call him a hypocrite and make his and his family's lives hell. As for you, you'll be beheaded in the middle of the marketplace," she threatened, her eyes narrowing. "Since it took me a whole night to collect proof about you being a witch, I'll give you the same time. A whole night. You have a whole night to pack your baggage and disappear from General's life. If not, be ready to bear the consequences."

Ava's leg tumbled into the stage where people were beheaded publicly for great treason. The sudden bump made her mind yank out of her flashback, and her eyes wandered to the execution stage with terror. She had absentmindedly come near it, or maybe her subconscious mind had brought her there, warning her about the consequences of her foolishness.

As the guillotine began to stare at her with its imaginary eyes, her breathing began to race heavily, as if she were deep in the ocean and her one source of oxygen was a very thin pipe—so thin that even the air hesitated to pass through it. The psychological suffocation of panic was so harsh and brutal that she passed out.

------

Ava blinked her eyes open to find herself in her bed, while Felix sat on the chair nearby, his hand clenched around the armrest.

He stood up abruptly as he saw Ava's movement, his face a mixture of relief and concern. "Ava, my lady, are you okay?" he asked, leaning down and brushing a strand of hair off her clammy forehead. "You passed out in front of the public execution stage. What were you doing there?"

"My lor—" She was about to complain to him about the bad dream she had just now, but the memories from before began to fill her mind, making her realize that it wasn't a dream. The conversation she had with the princess was real, and so was the threat.

She looked at Felix's eyes, which were filled with concern for her. Then Tiara's voice rang in her mind.

"Either he will kill you in hate, or you will kill him in self-defense."

"Go far away from him. Save him from the torment of killing his beloved wife, and save yourself from having the last memory of your life as your husband's face filled with pain, betrayal, and hatred."

"I… I don't know why I went there, but I'm fine now," she murmured, forcing a faint smile as her gaze darted away.

Dorothy knocked at the door. "It must be due to a lack of nutrition," she said, her tone lighthearted. "I've brought a whole chicken soup." She raised the tray to show Ava, her grin playful. "May I come in?"

"Yes," Felix replied without hesitation. He made Ava lean back comfortably by putting a pillow behind her back, then approached Dorothy with a nod of gratitude. "Thank you. I'll take it from here," he said, taking the tray from her hands.

"As you wish, General," Dorothy said, her smile lingering as she gave Ava a playful smile before leaving.

After that, Felix put the tray beside Ava and began to transfer soup from the container to the bowl. He blew delicately at the soup on the spoon, testing its warmth before bringing it near her mouth. "Here," he said softly, his gaze fixed on her with a mix of tenderness and worry.

Ava's heart bled at her misfortune. The idea of seeing hate in those eyes that had always looked at her with special delicacy made her eyes water. She loathed how much fortune hated her, how much it never wanted to be on her side. She was finally getting the happiness and love she had always wished for, but now it was going to vanish soon and turn into ashes, exactly like the body of that witch protector.