Vaelira, the mistress of the District of Líria, descended from her throne with the elegance of someone who knew exactly the power she wielded — and how to use it.
"Where are they?"
"Coming up the main street. They're heading straight here."
The Mistress smiled.
Not the sweet smile she offered her clients, but a thin, sharp one.
"Perfect.
Let them come."
She turned toward the doorway, the light reflecting in the lilac gleam of her eyes.
"It's been a long time since I've had fun with visitors."
And she walked out to meet them.
Ayumi and Rina led the way, guiding the small group through the pink-lit streets. The city seemed to pulse with life — but a twisted life, far too seductive to be natural.
Sienna walked fast, clearly irritated, her pace quickening with every step.
"I can't believe they all fell for something this stupid," she grumbled. "Letting themselves be led around just because of other women… even that walking pile of muscles, carrying people like trophies."
Elenya glanced sideways at her.
"You're worried, aren't you?" she commented neutrally.
Sienna turned her face away sharply.
"It's not worry. It's anger.
Hatred for whoever did this.
And I can't wait to find the one responsible."
But her tone hid something more.
Something Elenya — and even Emanueru — could sense.
Nothing explicit. Just the tension in her jaw, the unconscious grip tightening around her grimoire.
Emanueru walked behind them, observing every detail of the district.
"All these women…" he said quietly. "They move the same way. They speak the same way.
It feels like something is coordinating everything."
Rina nodded.
"There probably is. We don't know who… but there has to be someone at the top of the city. Maybe in the central hall."
"We tried to reach it once," Ayumi added, "but we were turned away before we even got past the doors."
Sienna narrowed her eyes.
"Then that's exactly where we're going."
Elenya lightly touched her shoulder.
"Carefully. We still don't know what we're going to find."
Sienna snorted.
"Careful isn't my strong suit.
Whoever did this is going to pay. We're bringing Ethan, Jay… and that muscle-brain back."
Ayumi and Rina exchanged quick looks.
It was impossible not to notice that Sienna's anger had a… personal target.
The group turned the corner and found a wide street paved with pale stone. At the far end stood a grand, ornate building: delicate columns, colorful veils, rose-colored lanterns.
Ayumi pointed.
"There. The central hall.
If someone commands this enchantment… they're inside."
Emanueru pressed the grimoire against his chest.
"Do you think they already know we're here?"
Rina answered without hesitation.
"In this place?
They probably knew the moment you entered the city."
Sienna smiled darkly.
"Even better.
If they want to play, I'll show them how real games are played."
She snapped her fingers.
"They're going to learn the meaning of the word 'regret.'"
Elenya sighed.
"Just… try not to act alone, please."
"No promises," Sienna muttered.
They climbed the steps.
The massive doors, carved with figures of dancing women, opened on their own, releasing a wave of sweet perfume.
A voice echoed from within, smooth as silk:
"Come in. I've been waiting."
Sienna clenched her teeth.
"Great.
Looks like we won't have to look for anyone."
She tilted her head.
"The faster I drag them back to their senses, the better."
Elenya held back a brief smile.
Because that sentence — that tone — said everything Sienna never admitted out loud.
They entered.
The hall was vast, lit by rose-colored lanterns that cast soft shadows through semi-transparent curtains. The perfume was stronger there. Warmer. Sweeter.
Like a trap.
Sienna, Elenya, Emanueru, Ayumi, and Rina advanced cautiously.
And then…
they saw her.
Seated on a throne of polished dark wood, atop a short flight of steps…
Vaelira.
The woman seemed not to belong to a physical world.
Her skin radiated an almost supernatural smoothness.
Her crimson hair fell like liquid silk over her shoulders.
Her body was slender, curving, perfectly balanced.
And her face — delicate and lethal at the same time — drew a moment of silence even from the most seasoned archers.
Elenya, accustomed to beauty beyond the ordinary, blinked slowly.
Ayumi murmured, almost without voice:
"…How can someone like that even exist?"
Vaelira smiled when she noticed the reaction.
A slow, confident smile, from someone who already knew the effect she had.
She stood.
Each step set its own rhythm through the hall, soft and irresistible.
"So…" she said, her voice velvety, "you're the visitors who dare walk through Líria without kneeling before me?"
Sienna crossed her arms.
"I don't kneel to anyone. Least of all you."
Vaelira laughed.
A light sound, almost musical.
"Oh, little one… you bark so loudly to hide your fear, don't you?"
Sienna snapped back instantly, venomous:
"You'll learn what fear is when you're on the ground.
How dare you do this to my friends?"
Vaelira arched an eyebrow, clearly amused.
"Oh… so you're the one who feels the most.
How… delicious."
Sienna flushed with rage.
"Shut up."
Vaelira approached slowly, like a feline studying its prey.
"Your friends must be so tired…
So needy."
She tilted her head.
"You left them outside alone… how careless."
And then she snapped her fingers.
The side doors opened.