“When I was a child,” Xara began, her voice a soft whisper carried by the breeze, “you know, I was always… curious about the other races. Even though they were different from us, somehow, we all shared the same basic traits… and it made me wonder… why? Why were they different? Dragons, Mermaids, Elves… every single race… I questioned what made them different from us… for what reason… for what purpose… and that piqued my interest in them,” she said, her eyes reflecting a distant world as if seeing her childhood self once again.
“I wanted to find out why… that’s where everything truly began in my life… my first step toward something much bigger than myself,” Xara muttered in a soft, almost tender tone as she stared at the beautiful scenery, red petals still flowing gracefully through the air.
Aether didn’t say anything. He simply sat there, listening to her words with a quiet, intense focus. Though he didn’t interrupt, something within him stirred — he too started to feel curious.
Xara took a brief pause, her fingers lightly brushing against a floating petal before continuing her story. “After that… I started to research… slowly but surely, I began to find small correlations,” she said, her voice picking up a thoughtful rhythm.
“Things that seemed to link the races to the environments they lived in. Like here, in the Naiadae Empire — water is the most prominent element. And that influences the physical reactions of living beings, causing them to adapt to this unique environment… changing them, moulding them in ways that make them a part of this place,” she explained, her gaze fixed on the glistening surface of a distant ocean.
Aether nodded thoughtfully as he mused, ‘Of course, that’s how evolution works—’ but before he could even finish his thought,
Xara muttered under her breath, almost like a secret being confessed to the wind, “But that’s wrong.”
“Huh?” Aether blinked in surprise.
Xara gave a small, almost bittersweet hum, “Yeah… it’s completely wrong,” she said, her voice laced with both sadness and fascination. “The races and empires… they are not linked at all.”
Aether frowned, struggling to reconcile her words with what he had always believed. “But… I thought being here made the aquatic races stronger, since the place is mostly filled with water, right?”
Xara chuckled softly, a musical sound filled with both amusement and a trace of weariness. She nodded, “Correct. Looks like someone is paying attention in the academy,” she teased lightly, glancing sideways at Aether with a small smile that made his heart skip a beat.
Then she continued, her tone turning serious again, “What you’re saying is technically right. But it has nothing to do with the aquatic races being born here. Even someone with no natural aquatic affinity, but who is proficient in water techniques, can become just as powerful as those who are native to this Empire.”
Aether softly hummed, his brows furrowing in thought. “So… maybe the gods designed it that way?”
“Haha…” Xara chuckled again, this time a little louder, her eyes sparkling with a mysterious glint. She looked so beautiful in that moment that Aether almost forgot to breathe. “Maybe… maybe not…” she murmured, almost to herself, her gaze becoming distant once more.
“It made me even more curious… and that’s when I started to delve deeper… into blood research.”
Aether raised his eyebrows slightly. “Blood research?” he echoed, his voice low, almost cautious.
“Yes,” she confirmed, nodding slowly. “So far… the only real way to find the connection between all races was to look at their blood. I tested so many samples, spent days and nights with nothing but the scent of blood and ink around me… My entire life… almost all of it… was devoted to chasing this single question.” She looked down at her hands, almost as if she could still see the stains of her efforts. “Blood here, blood there… I researched every single blood sample I could get my hands on… and you know what I found?” She lifted her head from his shoulder, her eyes burning with a strange light, and said with grave seriousness, “One common thing among every one of us… The Origin Blood.”
“Origin Blood?” Aether frowned deeper.
Xara nodded again, her voice low and fervent. “That’s what I’m calling it…. Vampires, Wolves, Elves… every race had this one mysterious thing hidden deep within their blood,” she said, then turned to face straight, lifting her hand toward the sky as if trying to grasp something invisible. “I am still searching… still trying to understand what it is… The Origin Blood,” she whispered, her voice trembling with the intensity of her obsession. “I want to find it… I have to know it… The curiosity inside my mind is like an endless fire, getting worse and worse every single day. I can’t even rest for a moment… not a single day passes without me thinking about that blood… what it is… why it’s there… that cursed piece hidden inside all of us,” she confessed, her words starting to spill out faster, more desperate. “It’s like our blood was tainted… corrupted somehow… a curse running silently through our veins… I… I…”
As her emotions spiralled out of control, her expression turned wild and almost unhinged. Aether, alarmed by the sudden change in her, gently cleared his throat, coughing softly, “Cough.”
Xara blinked in surprise, her body visibly flinching as if he had pulled her out of a dream. A blush rose quickly to her cheeks as she lowered her face, clearly embarrassed by her sudden outburst. She fidgeted nervously before finally speaking in a low, shy voice, “N-Now you understand why, right?”
She turned to him, her eyes wide and vulnerable, her voice carrying a raw earnestness that gripped his heart. “I really have no time for love and all… Aether,” she said, reaching out with trembling fingers to softly touch his hand. Her touch was so light, so hesitant, yet it burned against his skin like a silent plea.
“My life… it’s already over,” she whispered brokenly. “I spent most of my time in this research, chasing after shadows… and until I find the answer, until my endless curiosity finally stops haunting me… I could never focus on anything else… even if you love me… even if you wait and hope… I…” her voice cracked, the pain slicing through her words. “I might not be able to reciprocate the way you deserve.”
Her hand tightened slightly around his, a silent plea for understanding.
“In the end,” she whispered, voice trembling like a dying flame, “you will be the one who gets hurt… the one who is disappointed… and I… I don’t want to see you break because of me.”
Aether hummed softly, a low sound that barely left his throat, before turning to her and facing her directly. His eyes, raw and burning, locked onto hers. “Even though you married… and even had a child…” he said slowly, almost like he couldn’t believe the words himself, “you still say you don’t have time?” There was a deep, unmistakable jealousy in his tone, as if each word tasted bitter on his tongue.
Xara bit her lips, her body leaning closer to him without even realising it. Her voice came out softer, almost pleading, “I already told you… it was a deal between Velc and me… nothing else, Aether,” she said, her fingers twitching slightly as if she wanted to reach out to him, yet held herself back. “I was never interested in marriage or any of that… not then, not now…”
Aether bit down hard on his lower lip, his heart squeezing painfully in his chest. His eyes trembled, emotions swirling uncontrollably inside him. “So, no matter what I do… no matter how much I try… You still won’t accept me?” His voice cracked slightly at the end, betraying the rawness he could no longer hide.
Xara sighed deeply, the sound almost like a soft cry escaping her lips.
Seeing his trembling face, she felt a sharp ache pierce through her heart. Her chest tightened as she whispered, “Come on, Aether… you’re making this harder than it already is…” She looked away briefly, swallowing the lump in her throat. “This isn’t just about me. You have a life too, you know…” she continued, her voice shaking. “Who knows… You might find someone better than me… someone who can love you the way you deserve…” Her words, meant to sound comforting, felt hollow and painful even to her own ears.
Aether’s lips quivered again. His fists clenched tightly at his sides before he turned his head away from her, staring at the darkening sky. “I see…” he whispered, the heartbreak so heavy it weighed down the air between them.
“…”
“…”
There was a small, fragile silence between them. Neither spoke. The only sounds were the soft rustling of the evening breeze and the distant calls of night creatures awakening. Both simply stared out at the scenery, lost in a storm of thoughts and emotions.
Xara’s heart thudded painfully against her ribs for reasons she didn’t want to admit.
She stole a glance at Aether from the corner of her eye. His face was calm, but she could see the turmoil hidden beneath, the pain that mirrored her own.
With a heavy, almost broken heart, she muttered, “Anyway… Let’s go home… It’s getting darker no–“
Before she could even finish her sentence,
“Push me away if you want,” he muttered, his voice steady but trembling at the edges, as he turned to her with a serious, unwavering gaze.
Xara’s heart skipped a beat, her body tensing. “A-Aether… what are you doing?” she stammered, her voice catching in her throat as she instinctively leaned back, a trace of fear laced in her movement — but it wasn’t fear of him. It was a fear of herself.
“Kiss you,” he said simply, directly, without hesitation, without pretending anymore.
Xara bit her lips harder, her mind spiralling into panic. Her eyes started shaking violently, reflecting the turmoil inside her chest.
She wasn’t ready for this — no, it wasn’t that. Deep down she knew, if he kissed her now, she would lose everything she had built to protect herself.
All the rejections, all the cold words… were just a fragile facade to keep him sane. No — to keep herself sane!!
If he touched her lips now… she was already doomed. She would be undone completely.
Aether leaned closer, his breath brushing against her trembling lips.
Xara clenched her fingers tightly, nails digging into her palm, willing herself to move — to resist — but her body refused to obey.
Her heart was beating too wildly, too violently, drowning out all reason.
She watched helplessly as Aether puckered his lips, only an inch away from touching her. She could feel the heat radiating from him, the undeniable pull between them.
“A-Aether…” she gasped, her lips parting instinctively. Her heart felt like it might explode inside her chest. Yet still… she didn’t move away.
She didn’t push him back!
Aether hovered barely a few millimetres before her lips, his gaze burning into her soul. His voice was a desperate whisper, pleading yet commanding, “Push me…”
“…”Xara remained frozen, her entire body trembling, her mind screaming to move, but her heart… her heart wanted this more than anything.
Seeing her silent, Aether leaned in.
“~hmm~”
Their lips touched.
