That night, Aedan followed behind Elaris once again, moving through the shadows of the streets.His steps were mechanical, his eyes vacant, as if he were nothing more than a puppet driven by commands.
"This way," Elaris whispered, her slender finger pointing toward a corner at the mouth of an alley.
There, standing alone, was a girl.
She looked no more than fourteen or fifteen years old, wearing a simple white dress, clutching a small, unremarkable bouquet of wildflowers.She leaned quietly against the wall as if waiting for someone, and when she saw Aedan, a flash of surprise crossed her face — quickly followed by a bright, genuine smile.
She walked up to him, gently offering the flowers."These are for you," she said.
Aedan froze, staring first at the bouquet, then at her face — so clean, so pure, untouched by the dust of the world.Softly, he asked, "Why?"
"You looked... so sad," the girl bit her lip, her eyes full of warmth and honesty."I don't know what you've been through, but... I wanted to wish you good luck."
At that moment, it felt as if a dagger had plunged into Aedan's chest, twisting slowly, cruelly.It had been so long since anyone had spoken to him like that — simple, pure, and heartbreakingly kind.
She wasn't enchanted by his appearance.She simply... wished him well.
Elaris's shadow began to drift closer.
He couldn't.
He couldn't do it.
In the next instant, Aedan shoved the girl away with all his strength.
She cried out as she fell onto the stone road, the wildflowers scattering in a soft halo of yellow and white.
The noise caught the attention of passersby. Voices called her name from the distance, and soon someone came running toward her.
Elaris emerged from the darkness, her figure cloaked in shadow, her eyes locked onto Aedan.Those once-tender eyes were now as cold as frost.
She didn't make a move — she knew that acting rashly would only attract trouble.Instead, she grabbed Aedan's wrist, her nails digging into his flesh, and dragged him forcefully into the night.
Neither of them spoke on the way back.
Not until they reached the gloom of their temporary home did Elaris finally break the silence.
"Aedan," she said slowly, "you disobeyed me."
Aedan lowered his head, saying nothing.
Her voice was terribly calm, like the deadly stillness before a storm."Aedan... do you not love me anymore? Why would you betray me?"
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
Elaris walked to him, lifting his chin with a single finger.She looked into his eyes and said sweetly, "Darling, when you make a mistake, you must be punished. You know that, don't you?"
With a flick of her hand, an overwhelming force clamped down on Aedan, binding him tightly.It felt like invisible chains wrapped around him from all directions, squeezing his body, stealing his breath.He couldn't move. He couldn't even speak — his throat was crushed under an unbearable weight, silencing every sound before it could form.
His eyes widened with fear as he stared at her.Elaris only smiled — a cold, graceful smile.
No whips. No fire.
Instead, she chose the Pain of Silence — a torture that only the soul could feel.No physical wounds.Only a searing agony that tore through every nerve, shredded every fiber, and crushed every whisper of will — a relentless, inescapable torment.
No screams.No begging.Only suffocating silence and the slow, brutal shattering of the spirit.
Tears blurred Aedan's vision, but Elaris showed no mercy this time.
The suffering seemed endless.
His body collapsed, bones aching, muscles seized, yet he was forced to stay awake — forced to feel every exquisite shard of pain.Every heartbeat sent a fresh wave of agony through him.Every breath was another act of cruelty.
By the dawn of the fourth day, the curse finally lifted.Aedan crumpled to the floor like a broken doll, trembling uncontrollably.
Elaris knelt beside him, looking into his hollow, sightless eyes.In a whisper soft as silk, she asked,
"Do you still love me?"
He didn't answer.
But she didn't seem to mind.
Smiling, she gently draped a thin black cloak over his battered body, wiping away his tears and sweat with slow, tender hands.
Kissing his cheeks, she murmured softly,
"Aedan... you once promised to give up everything for me. Don't forget your vow."
Aedan's lips trembled faintly, but he said nothing more.
From that day forward, he never defied her again.
Whatever she asked, he did.
He no longer spoke of leaving.No longer showed guilt.No longer struggled.
He looked at no one else.He only saw her.
He became her lover, her servant, her possession.
And when he thought nothing, he felt no sorrow.
Her smile was the most beautiful thing left in his broken world.
Aedan grew to love kneeling at her side, resting his head in her lap, feeling her stroke his hair, praising him,
"Aedan... you are the most handsome man in the world."
After that, Elaris never punished him again.She treated him with endless gentleness, endless affection.And Aedan —Aedan smiled even in his sleep, dreaming he was truly happy.
But dreams, inevitably, must end.
And when he awoke —Elaris was gone.