‎

Barely out of Seraphis' throat, the metallic

*swish*

cut violently into the air. There was no mistaking the sound of a blade piercing flesh; time seemed to hold for the briefest moment, and then in one glorious movement, Seraphis was cut in two, spraying blood in the air as both halves crumpled to the ground.

Lita gasped with wide eyes-great horror still painting her countenance, disbelief holding her still. Seraphis, the merciless figure that hunted her family-was dead. Just like that.

Finally, her mother turned her head to settle on the remains of Seraphis, devoid of all expression in that instant to what she had just done. She sneered down at the corpse, her voice dripping with contempt. 

"Oh, really? Did you think you could do that and speak my name, let alone take my life?" 

"You were always weak, Seraphis. You should have known better than to challenge me."

Lita stared at her with her heart racing. Speed, precision-it was terrifying. Seraphis had been put away in a heartbeat, the one who had haunted their family for so long. Put away without a second's thought.

Flare was standing there in her silent awe at Madam Valliere's power as she reeled from her scolding and then the sudden death of Seraphis. She knew her mistress was formidable, but this-this was something else. The sheer ruthlessness and skill were unmatched.

Wiped off blood with a simple flick of her hand, her mother turned her back against the body of dead Seraphis.

"Pitiful."

She didn't need any more words about Seraphis; she turned to Lita and Flare again, looking like a stone.

"This is what happens when you defy me. Remember this moment, Lita. You are not ready for the world outside. I keep you inside the mansion for a reason."

Closer she stepped to her daughter, gazing at her with dark, angry eyes mixed with something Lita could not place.

"Do not make me regret my mercy, Lita. I will not tolerate disobedience again."

Lita swallowed hard and nodded silently in defeat. She knew this was not a moment to argue. Her mother's power, her wrath-it was now all too clear. 

"Come," her mother said, her voice commanding.

"We are going home." 

With Seraphis dead and the immediate danger over, Lita and Flare had no option but to follow Madam Valliere into the mist. But even as they walked, Lita could not stop wondering was this the real end of danger or merely the very beginning? 

As they walked away from the again crumbling temple, Lita couldn't resist an indifferent last look at Seraphis' hacked holy body. Watching the lifeless body, shredded so terrifically clean, sent shivers through her. Her mother's power was beyond all she could even imagine. How strong was her mother, truly? That echo saluted Lita's mind with every step, every experience haunting her. 

Flare walked beside her, shaking in silence. Always poised, confident, and deadly in her own right, she would have been almost immune to the presence of Madam Valliere, but all had shattered. It was becoming more and more evident that forces far more superior than Flare had ever tackled before now lay on the ground. The loss realization, mixed with the almost inconsolable wrath of her mistress, weighed heavily on her.

The heavy atmosphere loomed on as it was, bringing neither of Lita nor Flare to speak. The warmth and comfort of home seemed too far away now, overshadowed by the events of the day and the presence of Madam Valliere. 

On entering, Lita's mother turned to them and said with an expression of indifference,

"Take a bath and sleep,"

her voice quiet but laced with threat. 

The glare turned sharply to Flare, standing stiff before her mistress.

"Mark my words, Flare. You will not fail me again. Or else... your family bloodline will be wiped out." 

The threat hung in the air like a sword over Flare's head, and her entire body seemed to shudder. She nodded quickly, unable to speak, her face pale as she bowed. 

Madam Valliere had no need to wait for a reply. With the final orientation away from the room, she marched off, banging footsteps echoeing through the hushed halls as she vanished into the darkness. 

For a moment, silence reigned between Lita and Flare as the weight of it all lay upon them. The reality of what Lita had just witnessed entered her mind, but just before she cold-cast a shivering image upon it, she inquired how much more lay hidden beneath the surface. What other secrets did her mother carry? And what future awaited her, living in the shadow of such overwhelming power? 

Flare, on the other hand, stood rigid, heart pounding. For she knew better than anyone that Madam Valliere gave idle threats. The bloodline of her family now hung in the balance, and she couldn't afford to fail again. 

"Let's... go,"

Flare said in a barely audible voice, with nothing of her usual strength and composure in it. Lita simply nodded without saying a word, and they both headed toward their respective rooms to wash away the grime of the day, even if the events of the temple would linger in their minds far longer than any dirt. 

Lita, however, sank into the warm bath with thoughts heavy with question. Soon, the fear that her mother's power induced would be replaced with something else-a quiet, growing desire to understand the true depths of her mother's strength. 

As the water warmed Lita's tired body, her mind refused to settle. She found herself staring at the rippling surface of the bath as she reviewed again everything that happened at the temple: the horrifying speed with which her mother dispatched Seraphis, the icy fury in her voice as she threatened Flare, and the raw power that seemed to pulse off her.

How strong really was her mother? And how much had been hidden from her all these years? 

Lita's mind turned to that garden, beautiful beneath flowers and lights she had admired her entire life. It was an illusion, wasn't it? A well-orchestrated facade to keep her ignorant of the dark and dangerous world beyond the walls of the mansion. She couldn't shake off the building realization that her life was a confusion and fear?.