Chapter 7: The Day Everything Change

  A soft, happy hum drifted through the bustling streets of the Sunstone Ward.

  Lin Meihua walked, not with the rigid, purposeful stride of a council member, but with a light, easy grace she hadn't felt in centuries. The city, once a cage of expectations, now felt different. The golden light reflecting off the polished marble seemed warmer, the chatter of the crowds less like a demanding roar and more like a pleasant melody.

  She was on her way to Kun's apartment, a quiet, wonderful evening ahead of her. The thought of her small, secret sanctuary made the weight of her public life feel... manageable.

  She paused, looking at the window display of a high-end boutique, its silken dresses and glittering jewels arranged in a perfect, artful display. Tacky, she thought, her nose wrinkling slightly. Definitely not for him. She scanned the items in another shop, a thoughtful frown on her face, but nothing seemed quite right.

  With a small sigh, she moved on, continuing her walk through the bustling streets until she found herself in a quieter, older part of the district. There, nestled between a bustling teahouse and a tailor's shop, was a small, antique store she had never noticed before. Its windows were dusty, and its sign was faded, but something about it drew her in.

  She pushed open the old wooden door, a small bell chiming above her head. The air inside smelled of old paper, polished wood, and something faintly sweet, like dried flowers. And then she saw it. Lying on a bed of black velvet in a glass display case was a simple, crimson necklace. Attached to it was a small, silver locket. It wasn't flashy or expensive like the jewels in the Sunstone Ward, but it had a quiet, timeless beauty. It caught her eye instantly.

  "Ah, Lady Meihua," a soft, crackling voice said from behind the counter. "What business do you have in my humble shop today?"

  Lin looked up from the display case, her focus broken. "Ma'am," she said with a polite nod. "How much is that necklace over there?" She pointed to the crimson piece.

  "Ah, that one." The old shopkeeper smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners. "You have a good eye, Lady Meihua. This is two hundred Cal. But for you, I can give it for one hundred and fifty." She carefully took the necklace out of the case and showed Lin how the small silver locket could be opened, just big enough to hold a tiny, folded note, or perhaps a picture.

  "May I ask what it is for, Lady Meihua?" the shopkeeper asked, her voice full of a gentle, grandmotherly curiosity. "Commander Lihua doesn't seem the type to wear something like this."

  "No, it's not for her." Lin’s gaze was still fixed on the locket. "It's for... someone else."

  "Oh?" The old woman's smile widened into a knowing, teasing grin. "A boyfriend?"

  "No! He's not—" Lin's face immediately flushed with color. She looked away, flustered. "He is... someone important to me," she admitted, her voice growing softer. "And tomorrow is an important day. The one-year anniversary of when I met him. I wanted to get him something special."

  The shopkeeper's smile was warm and genuine. Young love, she thought, even when they don't know what to call it yet. "Then take it, Lady Meihua," she said, carefully wrapping the necklace in a small cloth bag. "I'm sure this will be the perfect gift for this 'special person'."

  Lin paid the amount, her blush still lingering on her cheeks, and bowed her head. "Thank you, ma'am."

  As she left the small, dusty shop and stepped back out into the bustling street, the happy, tuneless hum returned to her lips.

  Meanwhile, back in the Amber Palace, the atmosphere was anything but happy.

  The air in the High Council chamber was thick with a tense, impatient silence. Sunlight streamed through the high, arched windows, illuminating the dust motes dancing over the massive, round table where the elders and council members sat, talking amongst themselves in low, worried whispers. They were all waiting for someone they knew, deep down, wasn't going to show up.

  King Qin Hong paced back and forth in front of his ornate chair at the head of the table, his footsteps a sharp, angry rhythm on the polished marble floor. Near the window, Zhu Lihua stood with her arms crossed, her expression a mask of cold indifference as she stared out at the city below. At the table, Xiang Feng fidgeted, nervously tapping his fingers on a stack of scrolls.

  "She is not here again," the King finally roared, his voice echoing in the vast chamber. He slammed his fist on the table, making the scrolls jump. "Where is she?!"

  He rounded on the council members, his voice a low, furious growl. "Multiple late reports. Missing multiple meetings. Abandoning overseas envoys. What is going on with her? Does anyone else want to add to the list?"

  An elderly councilman cleared his throat nervously. "Her patrol reports for the western district are three weeks overdue, Your Majesty."

  "The Snow Flower has clearly wilted," another muttered, just loud enough to be heard.

  The King's glare snapped to Zhu Lihua. "Commander?"

  Zhu Lihua simply glared back, her fiery eyes meeting his without a hint of fear, forcing the King to look away first.

  The elders and council members began talking amongst themselves, their whispers growing louder.

  "What if she was kidnapped?" one suggested.

  "Or brainwashed?" another added. "Perhaps by those rebels she found."

  "Maybe she's been replaced by an imposter," a third whispered, his eyes wide.

  They threw every theory they could think of into the air, each one more outlandish than the last. They couldn't comprehend it. Why was the perfect Snow Flower, the pride of Jinlun, suddenly changing? Why was she becoming lazy, forgetting the lifelong duties that had defined her? And why now?

  "Your Majesty."

  The room went quiet. All eyes turned to Xiang Feng, who had meekly raised his hand.

  "What is it, boy?" the King growled.

  "I... I have a report, Your Majesty," Xiang Feng said, his voice trembling but clear. He looked as if he had been wanting to say this for a long time.

  "Go on," the King gestured impatiently.

  "I saw her... almost die, Your Majesty."

  A collective gasp filled the room. Zhu Lihua's eyes widened, her cold composure finally breaking. Lin Meihua was arguably the second strongest person in Jinlun, right after Zhu herself. For her to "almost die"... the implications were terrifying.

  "Are you saying there is a calamity-level threat out there, Xiang Feng?" the King asked, his voice now a low, dangerous whisper.

  Xiang Feng shook his head. "No, Your Majesty. It was... a lone bandit." He took a deep breath and began to explain. "It was last week. Senior Lin and I were on a mission to suppress a small bandit encampment on the outskirts of Jinlun. The reports said there were only three, so we didn't bother to call for reinforcements. After we engaged them, I was split up from Senior Lin. I took out two on my own easily enough; they were just common thugs. But after waiting for a while, Senior Lin didn't return, so I went to look for her."

  He paused, the memory clearly vivid in his mind. "There, I saw the most unimaginable scene. The bandit... he was winning. Senior Lin had been pushed back, her body covered in cuts from his sword. She looked exhausted. She tried to summon one of her ice spears—her signature attack—but it shattered into nothing before it even left her hand. She ultimately won, but she had to rely on martial arts alone."

  He looked down at his hands. "I thought... I thought I was seeing an illusion. I didn't bother telling anyone about it."

  Zhu Lihua’s mind flashed back to the day after that mission. She remembered seeing Lin in the palace corridors, wearing a long-sleeved, high-collared dress instead of her usual combat qipao. At the time, she had thought it was just an odd choice. Now, she realized the horrifying truth: Lin had been hiding her injuries.

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  Before Zhu could speak, the King’s voice, cold and hard as steel, cut through the stunned silence. "If what young Xiang Feng says is true, then this cannot be allowed to continue. She has clearly fallen, in one way or another." He stood, his face a mask of grim resolution. "I will order a spy to tail her. We will find the reason for this decline." He looked around the room. "Dismissed."

  As the council members began to file out, Zhu Lihua approached the King, her steps heavy. "Your Majesty," she began, her voice stripped of its usual command, replaced by the quiet plea of a concerned mother. "At least let me talk to her. One last chance."

  The King looked at her, his expression softening almost imperceptibly. "Very well, Commander. You have one chance. But after that, whatever my spy uncovers will be used to determine her punishment."

  In a small, newly-renovated apartment in the forgotten district of the city, a girl sneezed.

  "Gross. Did you get sick?" Kun asked, instinctively moving his plate of half-eaten noodles away from her.

  "Only idiots like you get sick," Lin stated, wiping her nose with the back of her hand.

  They were eating happily, their easy banter filling the small room, completely unaware that a fateful meeting had just taken place to decide her future.

  The next morning, the sun had barely risen, its first pale rays filtering through the canopy of the dense forest just west of Jinlun's outskirts. Two figures walked together down a narrow, leaf-strewn path, the air around them cool and still.

  "Why are we walking out here so early, Master Lihua?" Lin asked, her voice calm and cold, a defensive wall already erected. "Are we dealing with more bandits? Or another rebel camp?"

  "No," Zhu Lihua replied, her voice flat and unreadable. "Neither."

  She suddenly stopped her stride, turning to face Lin in a small, sun-dappled clearing. "We're far enough away now."

  Before Lin could ask what she meant, Zhu slammed her armored gauntlets together, a sharp clang echoing through the quiet woods. A wave of heat rolled off her as she infused them with a brilliant, fiery energy.

  "You had better treat this as real combat, Lin," Zhu said, her eyes narrowed. And with a speed that defied her size, she lunged, delivering a powerful, straight punch.

  Lin was caught off guard, the attack too fast, too sudden. The blow connected with her stomach, sending her flying backward into a nearby tree with a sickening thud. She gasped for air, the impact knocking the wind out of her.

  "Dodge!" Zhu screamed, already closing the distance and aiming another fiery strike.

  Reacting on pure, ingrained instinct, Lin dodge-rolled to the side, the flaming gauntlet missing her by inches and slamming into the tree trunk, leaving a deep, smoldering crater.

  "Why... are we fighting, Master?" she asked, scrambling to her feet, her breathing heavy.

  "Because I want to confirm something," Zhu replied, pulling her fist from the splintered wood, her expression grim.

  "Confirm what?" Lin's expression was one of confusion, but deep down, a cold dread began to form in her stomach. She knew. She knew what her master wanted to confirm.

  She reached her arm out towards her master, the air around her hand chilling as she tried to summon her power. A lone, shimmering ice spear began to form. But before she could fully launch it, it flickered, wavered, and then shattered into a thousand glittering, useless shards.

  A wave of dizziness and exhaustion, a feeling she hadn't experienced in over a century, washed over her. Her knees buckled, and she fell to the ground, panting for breath.

  "So it is true," Zhu said, her voice a low, grim whisper. She walked over to the kneeling Lin, her fiery energy dissipating. "Your power is failing. You are losing your connection to your Core."

  She grabbed Lin by the collar of her qipao and lifted her up, forcing her to meet her gaze. "Since when? Tell me, Lin. Since when has this been happening?"

  Lin stayed quiet, her silver eyes refusing to meet her master's.

  "You know what this means, don't you?" Zhu's voice was no longer angry, but filled with a deep, aching concern. "A Core is tied to a singular goal in life. When you got yours centuries ago, it was tied to your duty. If it's failing... that means you have forsaken that duty."

  She let go of Lin's collar, her expression softening into one of profound worry. "But you already know that, don't you? The missed meetings, the late reports, abandoning the envoys... Tell me, Linlin," she pleaded, her voice now just the quiet, pained whisper of a mother. "What is so important that you would change the very ideals that have defined you for decades?"

  "If your mother saw you right now..." Zhu continued, her voice trailing off, full of sorrow.

  "Don't talk about my mother!" Lin finally snapped, shoving herself away from Zhu's grip. The words poured out of her, a torrent of pain and resentment that had been dammed up for decades. "Everything I do wrong, you always default to what my mother would think! For her supposed best friend, you don't know anything about her daughter! You think you do, but you don't!"

  "I promised your mother, Linlin," Zhu said, her voice cracking. "When she passed away, I promised I would raise you, take care of you. I did everything for you."

  "Everything for me?" Lin laughed, a bitter, broken sound. "Did you ever ask if I wanted any of this? Did you ever ask if I wanted to learn how to fight, how to govern? Never once! You brainwashed me into taking my council duty! You beat me every day because it was supposed to make me 'strong'! It hurt, you know! When I got my Core, I saw you smile, you were happy. So I thought, if you are happy, then I must be making the right decision. But it was hell for me. My duty, even if my power is tied to it... it's also my cage. But you wouldn't know that. All you care about is power and strength. If I had known... I would have rather been raised on the streets."

  Slap.

  The sound was sharp, echoing through the silent forest. Zhu Lihua's hand was raised, her face a mask of shock at her own action. Lin stood there, a red mark blooming on her cheek, her silver eyes wide with a mixture of defiance and hurt.

  And in that terrible, quiet moment, Zhu Lihua finally realized the truth. She had never properly bonded with the daughter of her best friend. She had trained a soldier, not raised a child. She had failed. After all, she was a…

  But before she could finish the thought, a guttural roar ripped through the forest, so loud and unnatural that it shook the very trees around them.

  Suddenly, a monstrous, goopy mess of a creature crashed through the nearby thicket. It was a vaguely beast-like shape, but its body was a shifting mass of black tar and twisted limbs, with multiple, glowing red eyes that fixed on them with a malevolent intelligence.

  The two women, who had been locked in their own bitter argument, now focused their attention on the new threat.

  "What is that, Master?" Lin asked, her voice a shocked whisper.

  "No... that can't be," Zhu breathed, her eyes wide with a horror that went beyond simple fear. "They were supposed to be extinct. Erased. We made sure of it."

  Extinct? Erased? We? The words echoed in Lin's mind, a confusing and terrifying new puzzle. "Master, what is that? Is it dangerous?"

  "Fallen," Zhu said, the word a curse on her lips.

  "Fallen?" Lin's blood ran cold. "Like the monstrous creatures from the Tale of Calvenoor? The ones made up to scare children? They're real?"

  "No," Zhu insisted, her voice tight with a strange, frantic energy. "They were supposed to stay as a tale. We made sure of it."

  Who is 'we'? Lin thought, her mind reeling. And why does Master know so much about these creatures?

  "Stay back, Lin," Zhu commanded, pushing her stepdaughter behind her. "In your state, you will only hold me back."

  Lin bit her lip and took cover behind a large boulder, her heart pounding. But then, she saw something that terrified her more than the monster. Zhu Lihua's entire demeanor changed. Her eyes, which had been wide with shock and grief, suddenly went blank and lifeless. Her posture became rigid, her movements unnaturally precise.

  "Failed lifeform detected," Zhu's voice came out flat, almost robotic, like a puppet speaking its lines. "Commencing extermination. Deadly force authorized. Exterminate with extreme prejudice."

  And as the Fallen creature came barreling towards her, focusing on her as if she were the only thing in the world, Zhu Lihua charged to meet it. With one hand, she stopped the monster dead in its tracks. With a punch from her other hand, she sent it flying backward through a thicket of trees.

  The monster stood up again, shaking its goopy head, and let out another roar that bellowed through the forest. But this time, Lin noticed something. The roar wasn't one of mindless rage or aggression. It sounded... pained. Like an animal crying out in agony.

  "Wait, Master!" she tried to reach out, to warn her.

  But Zhu Lihua couldn't hear her. She raised her arm, and a massive wave of flames, so hot it warped the very air, shot out from her palm. The fire incinerated the creature in an instant, leaving nothing but a patch of scorched earth. The heat was so intense that Lin could feel the surface of the boulder she was hiding behind begin to bubble and melt.

  "Failed lifeform extermination successful," Zhu said, her voice still flat and robotic. "Returning control."

  The fiery energy around her dissipated. The lifeless look in her eyes faded, replaced by the familiar, fiery gaze of Zhu Lihua. But as her consciousness returned, she seemed to register what she had just done. She knelt down, her body trembling, and slammed her fist into the scorched earth.

  "It happened again," she muttered, her voice a choked whisper. She looked at her own hands, her expression one of pure pain and anger, and punched the ground once more. For someone who had just effortlessly defeated a terrifying monster, she looked anything but victorious.

  A heavy, terrible quiet fell over the forest clearing. Neither Zhu nor Lin could process what had just happened. Zhu felt like a failure, a woman who had failed to raise her best friend's daughter and a weapon who had just lost control. And Lin... Lin just felt detached. She had finally let out the true feelings she had kept hidden from her master for centuries, but what she had seen today made her question everything. The calm, effective, almost perfect fighting style... it wasn't the hot-headed martial artist of a woman who had raised her. Was this person even her master? Or was she some other entity entirely?

  As the sun began to set, casting long shadows through the city, Lin found herself back in front of the same apartment door where she had found so much solace. She knocked softly.

  The door opened, and Kun stood there, a look of surprise on his face. "Hey, don't you have your own key? Why did you knock?" he started to say, his usual banter ready, but he stopped when he saw her face. The weariness in her silver eyes was a deep, hollow thing he had never seen before. "Uh... you want to talk about it?"

  "No," she said, her voice a quiet, empty whisper. "Today, I just want to sleep."

  She walked past him and went straight to the bed, curling up on top of the covers without even taking off her boots. Kun could only scratch his head, a deep sense of worry replacing his confusion. Hoping it was nothing serious, he quietly closed and locked the door.

  Somewhere on a distant rooftop, a figure lowered a small, lens-like device.

  Click.

  The sound was like the shutter of a camera.

  "Got you," a voice whispered into the night.