23

"…What?"

Lily doubted her ears.

What did this woman just say?

There was no way she heard that correctly.

A slave? Who did she mean?

For a moment, she thought it was just a mischievous joke, so she looked at her.

"H-heuk…"

She was crying.

For the first time in her life, she saw tears in her Unnie's eyes.

The sight of tears flowing down her Unnie's excessively beautiful face was breathtakingly captivating, but Lily did not like it.

Tears that shone like jewels trickling down her pale face.

Lily wanted to consume every tear from that face.

She wished those tears were shed only for her.

She wanted her to smile only for her.

She wished she would only look at her for the rest of her life.

Even if she had to become a slave, her…

'…No.'

Lily shook off the dark desires slowly creeping into her mind.

She made a promise to herself.

She would not show any impure feelings toward her until she became an adult.

She decided to hide her messy feelings from the woman who only saw her as a little Unnie, not as a woman. But she had no intention of hiding them forever.

Though she couldn't approach her now, she vowed that the moment she became an adult, she would devour her. Until now, Lily had been desperately waiting for that day.

But now…

A slave?

Not her slave, but someone else's?

'…It's because of that woman.'

Despite the rage boiling in her chest, Lily's mind was eerily calm.

It wasn't hard for her to figure out who had made her Unnie cry.

She looked at her.

The woman looked at her Unnie with a relaxed smile.

She wanted to kill her.

She wanted to tear that hateful smile apart and free her Unnie from her grasp.

But she couldn't.

She instinctively knew.

The overwhelming aura of a powerful figure that she exuded.

That, as she was now, she couldn't even touch a single hair on her head.

Clenching her lips so hard that they bled, she swallowed her anger.

'It's impossible for now.'

But.

But one day.

She would kill that despicable woman so that she could never lay a hand on Hera again.

***

There's a saying.

A man is said to cry only three times in his life.

When he is born, when his parents pass away, and when his country is taken away.

That doesn't mean men are limited to crying only three times, though.

It simply implies that a man's tears are rare, reserved for the most critical moments as evidence of profound sorrow.

In fact, I can barely recall ever crying.

I did shed a tear once at my mother's funeral.

But aside from that, never.

So, then, who is this pitiful person crying now?

Normally, my tears were never this light.

But already twice, and in just one day, I couldn't hold back my emotions and ended up crying.

Crying like this in the arms of someone much younger than me.

If the me from before this possession had seen this, I would have cursed myself while grabbing the back of my neck.

'But what can I do when the tears just come out…'

Perhaps it's because I've become a woman now. It feels like I've become overly emotional.

As I sobbed, Lily patted my back with her small hand.

"Unnie."

"Sniff… yes?"

Lily's small, gentle hand wiped away my tears.

When I looked at Lily, who was calling me with a warm voice.

"Sniff… huh…?"

Lily… why do your eyes look like that…?

Her eyes, which seemed to absorb all the light, were dark, completely opposite of her kind voice.

I had seen those eyes before.

In that picture, Lily had the exact same look in her eyes as she did now.

'But… why?'

In the novel, Lily lived alone for several years, fleeing after losing her Unnie.

She must have had such eyes because she had lived such a hard and miserable life.

But why, now, does she have those same lifeless eyes?

"Unnie."

"Y-Yes?"

"You love me, right?"

"W-What? All of a sudden?"

"You love me, right??"

"Hic."

Her presence pressed down on me as if to crush me.

I felt my entire body stiffen under her overwhelming aura.

"O-Of course, I love you… You're my sister…"

When I answered in a trembling voice, she stared at me for a moment, and then-

"…I can't hold back anymore."

"Lily…? Mmph?!"

Lily pulled my head towards her, crashing her lips against mine.

It was a gesture we had done countless times before, but something was different.

If our kisses before were light touches like a baby bird pecking its mother,

Now, it was as if…

"Mmph?! Lily…?"

She was devouring my lips like a beast.

"Sniff…! Mmph…!"

As I flinched, she held my head with both hands, preventing me from escaping.

While our lips clashed violently, something soft slipped into my mouth.

"Mm?!?"

A soft object slid into my mouth, brushing against my tongue as if licking it.

It was Lily's tongue.

"What are you doing!!!!!"

Bang-

With someone's scream, a golden wall rose from the ground between Lily and me, separating us.

Right after that, something grabbed my nape, quickly pulling me back.

"Gasp!?"

And suddenly, she appeared in front of me.

Athena was glaring at Lily with a terrifying expression.

"I believe I warned you not to touch my property?"

But Lily seemed completely unfazed by the hero's fierce aura.

If anything, she even seemed to smile slightly.

"This is something my Unnie and I have always done."

"…What?"

Athena's golden eyes blazed as she turned her gaze sharply to me.

"Really, Hera?"

"Uh… huh?"

I couldn't focus because I was still reeling from Lily's shocking kiss.

Athena, as if impatient, asked once more.

"Hera. You need to answer."

"Y-Yes?"

I shook my head vigorously to get a grip on my wandering mind.

'Lily must have made a mistake.'

It had to be because of the sudden situation, causing her to lose control without even realizing it.

…But is it possible to accidentally slip in a tongue…?

A mistake… it must be, right…?

I set aside my lingering doubts and looked at Athena.

"It's between girls, so… it shouldn't matter, right?"

Athena stared at me with a dumbfounded expression.

Then, as if she realized something, she smirked.

"You little one… you've been up to something quite sneaky, haven't you?"

She cast a sly smile at Lily.

Not to be outdone, Lily responded clearly, looking at Athena.

"More than you, who turns people into slaves without their will?"

"Do you have a death wish or something?"

At Athena's menacing words, I jumped in fright and quickly clung to her.

"N-No..! You promised to protect me…"

She gazed at me quietly, listening to my desperate plea.

Then she let out a short sigh, raising one eyebrow.

"Then you should use the proper title, Hera."

She demanded I address her by her title.

I couldn't answer right away, mumbling instead.

'I don't want to say it in front of Lily…'

"If you don't want to—"

But before she could finish, I hurriedly spoke up.

"O-Okay!! Please keep your promise… Master…"

I thought I heard the sound of someone grinding their teeth.

Athena glanced at Lily, then, as if mocking, flashed a sly smile.

"When my cute little slave asks so nicely, I have to comply."

"You…"

It's chilling.

Is this what it feels like to have a dagger stab you in the chest?

The strange, ominous tension between Athena and Lily was making my shoulders stiff.

'W-What should I do…'

As I stood nervously between them, a voice came to my rescue.

"Lady Athena."

Gone was the smile, replaced by a face as calm as the eye of a storm. Dania called out to Athena.

Athena stared at Dania intently.

At first glance, it seemed she was looking at her chest.

It must have been my imagination.

"May I ask you just one question?"

Athena shifted her gaze upward to look at her.

"What is it?"

"Did you force a master-servant contract on Hera?"

Dania's words hit the mark, and Athena's face twitched for a moment.

But she soon shrugged with a nonchalant expression.

"So what if I did?"

At Athena's words, Dania's expression started to falter slightly.

"And you still call yourself a hero?"

"Pfft… a hero?"

Athena let out a sneering smile.

"I never told anyone to call me that. People just started worshiping me because I happened to kill a few monsters."

It sounded like something a villain would say.

Even in the stories, Athena was never portrayed as a good person.

She only acted out of her own amusement, with no interest in human lives or the peace of nations.

That's why she was likely the villain.

"If you're done, would you mind stepping aside? I have a lot to do."

"…What do you plan to do with Hera?"

Athena alternated her gaze between Lily and me.

"It seems my slave has been wagging her tail all over the place. I suppose I'll have to teach her not to do that anymore."

"Hey!!!"

It was as if the anger that had been simmering inside Lily had finally exploded.

Unable to contain her fury any longer, Lily tried to rush toward Athena, but she was quickly stopped by Dania's hand.

"Lily, no."

"Unnie!!!! But that woman…!"

"Lily."

Lily fell silent at the sight of Dania.

Dania was clenching her fists so tightly that blood was dripping from the marks her nails had made on her palm.

Athena glanced at her and smirked.

"I was just about done being lenient… Unlike your Unnie, you seem to have some sense."

As if she had no further business, Athena released her mana into the air.

Then, a massive magic circle appeared in the sky.

Soon, a white light began to descend, enveloping both Athena and me.

"I think that's enough of a greeting. It's time to say goodbye now, Hera."

"Go… Goodbye?"

I stared at Athena with a blank expression.

"Th… This suddenly? What about them…?"

"I'll send someone separately. I'll keep my promise, so don't worry."

"Wa… Wait!! Just a little more time…"

"I've already given you more than enough, Hera."

Goodbye?

So suddenly?

I quickly turned to look at Lily and Dania.

Dania was staring at me with eyes trembling violently, and Lily…

"Unnie!!"

As if she couldn't bear to let go, she hurriedly ran into my arms.

"Don't… don't go..! I'll figure out a way to break the contract, no matter what!"

"Lily…"

"If I just learn a bit of magic… I can do it… No… If I just kill her… ugh…"

"Lily."

I hugged Lily tightly, who seemed to be in a state of panic, trembling all over.

"Lily, I'll be okay. I promise."

"How do you know what that woman is planning to do?!"

To reassure Lily, I decided to tell a small lie.

"It's okay, Lily. Did you forget how strong your Unnie is?"

I spread my arms and struck a pose like a bodybuilder, trying to lighten the mood for her, who was trembling with fear.

"But… but…"

I decided to say the last words I wanted to tell Lily.

"Lily, go to the Academy. Make lots of friends and have all sorts of experiences."

"And always keep smiling. You look the prettiest when you smile, Lily."

"Someday… I'll… definitely come find you… So please wait for me, Lily…"

"And…"

Don't forget me.

As I finished speaking, I kissed her on the forehead.

But before I could even pull away,

Snap.

At the sound of fingers snapping, a bright light filled my vision, and the scenery changed.

Just like that.

The woman with the black hair, who had been holding Lily tightly, vanished without a trace.

"…Unnie…?"