Airna's reflection in the mirror twisted with hate.
Her breath was heavy. Her hands trembled. Memories clawed their way to the surface.
She was a child once.
A small, weak child in a world that didn't care.
The orphanage was cold. The people were cruel. She had nothing.
She still remembered the pain of hunger gnawing at her belly, the bruises on her arms from the older children who stole what little she had.
Then he came.
Duke Reinhardt.
His presence was overwhelming, his expression unreadable as he looked down at her.
"Come with me."
Her tiny hands clung to his as he lifted her out of that miserable place.
She thought she had been saved.
She thought she had a home.
But the moment she stepped into the grand mansion, her excitement turned to fear.
A girl stood at the top of the grand staircase.
Rosalena.
Her face was twisted in an ugly expression of grief and anger.
Tears stained her cheeks, her fists clenched.
Her mother had just died.
And she looked at Airna like she was nothing but an intruder.
From that day forward, Rosalena never spoke to her.
Never looked at her.
Never acknowledged her as a sister.
The maids followed suit.
They feared Rosalena—her arrogance, her presence, her power.
Airna was nothing in that house. Just an unwanted guest.
And no matter how hard she tried, she could never be part of their world.
Then came that day.
The day her fate was sealed.
She had gone outside with her maid, enjoying the rare warmth of the sun. For the first time, she felt free.
Then the monsters came.
They attacked, claws ripping through the air, eyes glowing with hunger.
She screamed.
She tried to use her divine power.
But nothing happened.
She had no power.
No strength.
She was going to die.
Until she appeared.
A woman draped in black, her lips curled into an eerie smile.
Her presence made the monsters tremble.
Her aura was dark, powerful… endless.
Airna, choking on her sobs, looked up at her with desperation.
"Please…" she whispered. "Please save me. I don't want to die."
The woman smiled, crouching before her.
"Why do you wish to live, child?"
Airna's breath shook. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Because… because it's not fair."
"Why am I the one suffering?"
"Why was I the one abandoned?"
"Why is it always her?"
Her voice cracked, hatred burning in her chest.
"It's all because of her."
"Rosalena."
The woman tilted her head, amusement flickering in her dark, endless eyes.
"You desire power?"
Airna nodded frantically. "I'll do anything."
The woman's smile stretched wider.
"Then make a contract with me."
Airna's breath caught.
"A… contract?"
The woman nodded, reaching out a single hand. Dark energy coiled around her fingertips.
"Give me your divine power, piece by piece, every day."
"And in return, I will give you strength."
Airna's heartbeat pounded in her ears.
She didn't hesitate.
She grabbed the woman's hand.
Darkness surged through her, wrapping around her like an embrace. The cold seeped into her bones, whispering promises of revenge.
That was the day Airna changed.
From that moment on, she stopped waiting for things to be fair.
She took what she wanted.
And now…
Now, Rosalena had taken everything from her again.
Her powers. The Crown Prince's attention. Her future.
No.
She wouldn't allow it.
A twisted, eerie laugh bubbled up in her throat.
Her fingers twitched as black energy crackled at her fingertips.
"Fine."
"If the monsters couldn't kill her… I will."
She grinned into the darkness, her blue eyes gleaming with madness.
"This time, Rosalena… you won't escape."