I was running. Through a field cloaked in shadows.The ground was trembling, cries echoing in the distance. Blood. So much blood. People ran, fell, and screamed. I couldn't stop it. I couldn't save them. My breath was short, like my life was slipping through my fingers.
Then, out of nowhere—A mirror.
It stood tall before me like it had always been there, waiting. I saw myself inside it. Not the battlefield. Not the death.Just me.A normal girl.So sweet. So alive. So… human.
But then—Blood trickled from my eyes inside the reflection. Not tears. Blood.I gasped. My eyes widened.And as I looked closer, I saw the scar on my neck beginning to bleed.A slow, silent stream.And I felt it.That haunting, shivering feeling.I did something. Something I shouldn't have.
I tried to look away. Tried to lie to myself.But before I could finish the thought—I woke up.
My shoulders were rising and falling, my chest heavy with breath.I wasn't on the battlefield.I was… lying in a bed. Soft, unfamiliar.A warm room, dimly lit.
And then I saw him.
Raiden.
Sitting by the window, his sword resting against his shoulder. His face was deep in thought, far away, as if the war outside still echoed in his mind.
I shifted.
Only then did he notice me.
In a second, he was by my side. His hand helped me up, gentle but firm.
"How do you feel?" he asked, his voice soft, almost relieved.
I paused. "Weak… great."
He blinked, then laughed. "Yeah. Great. That's how people usually feel after almost dying."
I smiled. "What happened?"
"You collapsed. Lost consciousness. The villagers offered us a place to rest and recover."
Then I remembered.His leg.
I reached for it almost instinctively, lifting it carefully onto my lap. I traced the bandages.
He flinched, startled. "You really are fine, aren't you?"
His wound was healing. The herbs were working.
He looked at me with a strange warmth. "It's almost dinner."
"Dinner?! Wait—how long was I unconscious?!"
"Two days."
My eyes widened. Two days?!
But I could stand. And walk.He helped me outside, his arm steady beneath mine.The sky was turning a deep indigo. Lanterns flickered to life one by one.
As we stepped into the village, the people noticed me.
They came. Like I was one of them. Like they had been waiting.
They smiled, asked me questions, touched my shoulders, offered food.Their kindness overwhelmed me. Their voices layered like birds in the trees.
And then—
A booming voice rose above them all:
"We want to honor you! You slayed the monster that haunted us! When Danak was here, we always feared the dark. Now we will celebrate!"
And so, we were taken—Raiden and I—to the heart of the village.A clearing surrounded by cherry trees and firelight.
We sat, and children gathered around, hugging us like we were heroes from their stories.
Then an old woman stepped forward, her eyes clouded with age and memory. She began to speak:
"One hundred years ago, there lived a warrior. A woman who shattered everything that dared stand in her way. Her name… was Lianhua."
The name echoed in my bones.
"She didn't know her own strength. Didn't even know her age. But she was magnificent. Her enemy was the Demon King, who wanted to destroy her. Some say out of fear. Others say… envy."
"They clashed. Blades rang through the sky. And yet—at the end—they exchanged weapons. Some say they were friends. Others believe… their battle never truly ended."
The crowd fell silent.Their faces were still.
Then, a little girl came to me.
She smiled. "Hey, you safed us all! You're so nice with that sword. You're Lianhua!"
Everyone laughed. It was just a joke.After all, that legend was a hundred years old.
I laughed too. But something inside me—didn't laugh.
Later that night, the celebration began.A fire was lit. Lanterns danced above our heads like stars.
Music filled the air—soft, ancient, beautiful. Instruments I couldn't name sang through the night.
People began to dance in the grass.
Children tugged at my hands. "Dance with us!"
I shook my head. "No, I…"
But the little girl's eyes… I couldn't say no.
She handed me a fan.
A delicate fan. With a cherry blossom symbol on it. My breath caught.
I stepped into the center. Everything went quiet.I recognized this moment.
I had danced this before.
In the Empire's palace, far from here. Alone. Always alone.
But now—I lifted the fan. Slowly.Moved it left, right.The dance flowed through me like water.My feet remembered. My soul remembered.
And when the step came, the one where the partner should appear—There was no one.
Just silence.
But then—A hand touched mine. Firm. Familiar.
Raiden.
He was there.Not saying a word.Just dancing with me, perfectly in rhythm.
His eyes met mine—cold and distant—but somehow full of something else. Something only I could see.
Other men joined in, the dance blossoming around us.
But Raiden never let go.
His hand was warm. Steady.Protective.
He didn't speak. But I felt it.That connection.Unspoken. Unnamed.Something lost, but not gone.
Maybe we were just friends. Maybe something else.But in that moment… we danced like soulmates who had forgotten who they once were.