The air seemed to freeze in an instant, cold seeping into Astra's very bones. She stood motionless, her chest clenched by an invisible hand, her breathing shallow and strained. A web of grievance, anger, and humiliation wrapped tightly around her, binding her in place. Her eyes stung with heat, but she bit her lip hard, refusing to let the tears fall.
"Secretary and maid…" The words were like icy blades, slashing at her pride over and over again. She had once been proudly independent, free-spirited, and untamed. Now, she was reduced to a mere accessory in his eyes, stripped of all respect. The wound in her heart cut deep, and even breathing felt like tasting bitter agony.
Her fingertips trembled, but a resolute glint gradually sharpened in her eyes. Humiliation and rage churned within her chest. She needed to break free, to shatter this invisible cage. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to focus, summoning the energy within her. A faint glow shimmered at her fingertips.
She began to trace a spell in the air, points of light like tiny fireflies gathering with hope's fragile glow, dancing at her fingertips. The symbols slowly took shape, just a bit more, and she could unleash her freedom, crushing Jiang Ting's control once and for all.
But just as the spell was about to complete, an unseen force struck back. A searing pain ignited in her fingers, as if they were being burned by fire. The glow instantly extinguished, and the symbols shattered into nothingness, dissipating into the air.
The pain spread up her arm, forcing her to stumble back a step, cold sweat breaking out on her forehead.
Suddenly, a chilling ancient sigil appeared in her mind, coiling around her soul like a chain—cold, relentless. Its voice echoed in her heart, deep and absolute: "You cannot defy the oath you made with him."
Astra's pupils shrank in shock, confusion flooding her mind like a surging tide. An oath? When did I make an oath?
Memories sliced through her thoughts like a dagger. She suddenly recalled that night—Jiang Ting leaning close, his voice low and seductive: "I'm giving you the chance to refuse. Just say 'no,' and I'll let you go."
And she had stayed silent. She hadn't said "no."
Her heart skipped a beat, and her face went pale. That silence had become an unspoken contract, binding her irrevocably to his control. Her acceptance, her silence, had unknowingly sealed this curse-like vow.
Her fingertips trembled even more violently, fury, humiliation, and fear twisting together into a snarl of torment. She couldn't cast her spell of defiance, not just because of this binding oath, but because of an obstacle buried deep within her own heart.
A cruel truth whispered in the back of her mind: Her silence might not have been entirely forced. A hidden emotion, one she refused to acknowledge, coiled within her like a venomous snake, weakening her resolve just when she needed it most.
She hated herself—hated that she couldn't say that one simple word, hated that she could still feel her heart flutter at his gaze, his closeness, his searing intensity.
Her fists clenched tightly, nails biting into her palms, the pain keeping her grounded in reality. But it couldn't banish the chaos and conflict within her.
"I can't even lie to myself…" she whispered, her voice laced with bitter self-mockery and despair.
Her eyes burned with defiant determination, the fire in her spirit not yet extinguished. She knew she had to find a way to break this chain, to one day obliterate his control. But until then, she could only endure, burying her humiliation and fury deep within.