The evening sky outside Selena's courtyard bled with the color of crushed rose petals, soft hues sinking behind the stone walls like fading hopes.
Inside her room, Selena sat quietly, her face gloomier than a storm-washed window.
Her thoughts spiraled in silence, tangled in regrets she couldn't untangle.
She had made up her mind—finally—to go and speak with Leo. She had hesitated long enough, stewing in uncertainty and stubborn pride.
But when she gathered her courage and searched for him, he was nowhere to be found.
Again.
And again.
It was like chasing a shadow on the edge of dusk—every time she reached for him, he had vanished.
The weight in her chest felt as if someone had dropped a stone into her soul. It was heavy, cold, unmoving. Her hands trembled slightly as they rested on her lap, delicate fingers curling and uncurling as though trying to grasp at hope.
"Leo…" she murmured under her breath, but there was no answer, not even from the wind that brushed the curtains gently.
Then, just as she leaned her head back against the wall, eyes closing with weary acceptance, a voice echoed faintly—inside her mind.
—Don't be sad.
Her eyes snapped open.
She looked around the room quickly, heart hammering in her chest. No one was there. Just the quiet flicker of a single lantern on the wall and the low hum of silence.
Was she losing her mind?
—You're not alone.
The voice came again. Soft, distant, but unmistakably there.
Selena froze, her lips parting slightly. Her pulse was a fast rhythm against her skin. She clutched her chest, as if trying to silence the echo that had formed inside her.
"Who…?" she whispered aloud, her voice dry like wind-blown dust.
But the room remained silent.
Over the next few days, the voice returned again and again.
At first, she ignored it, brushing it off as stress or imagination. But it kept appearing—whenever she was alone, whenever her heart ached, or whenever her thoughts spiraled toward Leo.
It was always calm. Playful, even.
By the fifth day, it was no longer a whisper—it was clear. Echoing, almost warm.
Selena clutched her head and sat up straight one morning, her patience finally snapping.
"Who are you?!" she shouted in her mind.
The answer came, followed by a quiet chuckle that danced like ripples in still water.
—Who am I? Hahaha… I am you. You are me.
The laughter echoed again, clear and unhurried. Selena's eyes widened in disbelief, as if reality had slipped through her fingers like sand.
"What…?"
—I am your inner self, the voice explained with serene clarity. I've always been within you. And now, it's time to awaken.
Selena remained frozen. Her mind tried to reason with it, but her soul resonated strangely with the voice. There was a part of her—a primal, instinctive part—that didn't reject it.
"Awaken what?" she asked, almost in a whisper.
—Your power.
The voice felt stronger now, no longer distant. It throbbed within her bones, warm and waiting.
—You possess a top-tier physique known as the Fairy Physique. It is rare. It is beautiful. It is… powerful.
Selena's breath caught in her throat.
—This physique allows you to form your inner self into a true being. A spirit companion… a battle ally… a second self. Your very essence, born into flesh.
Her heart raced. "Me? I have that?"
—It is yours by fate, the voice replied. And it is awakening. Slowly. But it needs time.
Hope flared inside her like the first light after a long night.
"I can… finally do something," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "I can finally prove myself. To Leo…"
The voice seemed pleased. —You can. But your current fitness… your realm… they are too low.
Selena bit her lower lip, eyes narrowing in determination. "Then how do I speed up the awakening?"
—You will need spiritual resources. Rare herbs. Ancient materials soaked in energy. That… will accelerate your progress.
Her heart lifted, her mind spinning with sudden clarity. "I just need to gather those… then I can finally stand beside him."
—Yes. But they are not easy to obtain, the voice said gently. They are costly. Difficult. You will need strength. Power. Wealth.
Selena's expression wavered.
Even with her family's support, such things were far beyond her current reach. Most of those materials were sealed in auctions, guarded by sects, or deep in forbidden lands. The fire in her chest flickered.
But then she remembered—
Leo's voice, firm yet warm.
"If you ever need anything, just ask me. Anything."
A small, soft smile spread across her lips. She clasped her hands together, her shoulders trembling not with fear—but joy.
"Leo will help me," she whispered. "I just have to ask."
The voice hummed in amusement. —So… do you have a solution now?
"Yes," she said, her voice firmer now. "With Leo's support… I can do anything."
A brief silence passed.
Then Selena furrowed her brow slightly, a curious thought emerging in her mind.
"If you're… my inner self… then how come you know so much more than I do?"
The voice laughed lightly again.
—Think of a baby. Does it know what milk is before it tastes it? Yet… the need is already there.
Selena blinked.
—I am part of you, but I am what you will become. That requires growth. That requires resources. Just as a seed knows the tree it must become… so too do I.
Selena's lips parted slightly. The logic was strange, surreal—but it made sense.
She nodded slowly. "Then… I'll do whatever it takes."
She tried several times over the next few days to find Leo again. Each time she approached his quarters or the outer courtyard, she was turned away—kindly, but firmly.
Leo was in seclusion.
It made her chest ache, a dull ache like rain tapping endlessly on stone.
Finally, one evening, with her resolve burning brighter than her embarrassment, Selena summoned a servant and asked for Butler Wang.
Soon, the old butler arrived, calm and upright as ever, with eyes like aged glass that had seen everything yet judged nothing.
"Young Miss," he said with a respectful bow. "You called for me?"
Selena clenched her fists by her sides and forced herself to speak.
"I need… some resources," she said in a low, hesitant tone, cheeks tinged pink with embarrassment.
To her surprise, Butler Wang's response was calm and almost dismissive of her concern.
"Young Miss," he said with a soft smile, "you don't need to inform me of such things. You may collect anything you need from the treasure room beneath the manor."
She blinked in surprise. "I… can?"
"Young Master gave standing orders," Wang said, bowing slightly. "Any resources you need, no matter the type or value—are yours."
Then, as simply as he had come, he turned and left.
Selena stood frozen for a long moment, her chest swelling with something too deep for words.
Warmth. Trust. Hope.
He still thinks of me… even now…
She exhaled shakily and quickly made her way to the treasure room. With each step, her heart beat faster—not from greed, but from gratitude.
She was going to make the most of this chance.
And she would awaken the power inside her.
The corridor that led to the treasure room was dimly lit, carved from smooth stone and veined with thin strands of glowing blue crystal—like frozen lightning coursing through ancient rock. The soft hum of spiritual energy lingered in the air, brushing against Selena's skin like a quiet promise.
Her footsteps echoed in rhythm with her heartbeat. She wasn't nervous now. Not anymore.
The memory of Butler Wang's calm voice still lingered.
"Young Master gave standing orders… Any resources you need, no matter the type or value—are yours."
Selena had paused for a moment after hearing those words. The weight in her chest, the one she'd carried for so long, seemed to melt just a little.
He still remembered her. Still cared.
She reached the end of the corridor and stood before a large gate marked with golden runes. The treasure room. A place where countless rare herbs, scrolls, materials, and relics were stored—a hoard any sect would envy.
With a faint pulse of spiritual recognition, the gate opened with a soft hum.
A wave of warm, dense energy brushed her face. It was like standing on the edge of a spiritual spring—dense, heady, and full of life.
She stepped inside.
The room was wide and circular, shelves stacked with jade boxes, crystalline bottles, ancient scrolls, and small chests marked with talismans. Each item pulsed with energy, faint and contained but undeniably powerful.
Selena walked in slowly, her gaze shifting from herb to bottle, from relic to sealed scroll.
And for the first time in a long while, she smiled without hesitation.
She remembered the voice's words clearly.
—You will need spiritual resources. Rare herbs. Ancient materials soaked in energy.
Each of those items… lay right in front of her now.
Her hands hovered over a shelf lined with crystal bottles filled with glowing liquid—Essence of Moon Orchid, she recognized one label. Next to it, the Root of Scarlet Vine. Further in, a set of pearls gleaming with faint mist: Cloud Mist Essence Pearls, used to refine the meridians.
She began picking what she needed with delicate care, reading each label twice, sometimes whispering it softly under her breath to commit it to memory.
Inside her, the voice returned—quieter this time.
—These will help. These will feed the awakening.
Selena nodded, carefully placing one last herb—a blossom of Dreamgrass—into her satchel.
A soft glow pulsed from within her chest. Not visible. Not loud.
But there.
The first step had been taken.
She paused at the edge of the room, taking a final glance at the space around her. The treasure room was silent, holding its breath like a guardian of old secrets. But it had opened its arms to her, because of Leo.
Because he believed in her.
A small part of her wanted to cry—but she didn't.
Instead, she turned and walked out, steady and quiet, her steps firmer than before.
As she ascended the stairs, she found her thoughts drifting to him again.
Leo.
Even in seclusion… he had thought ahead for her. He hadn't forgotten. He hadn't cast her aside.
Her fingers curled around the strap of her satchel, knuckles whitening slightly.
"I'll show you, Leo," she whispered into the silence of the hall. "I'll show you I'm worthy of standing beside you."
The voice in her mind stirred again, like a soft ripple on still water.
—You're already closer than you think. The Fairy Physique… it's no ordinary gift. It is ancient. Sacred. It blooms through struggle, not ease.
Selena's lips parted. She could almost feel the change—slow, distant, like a dawn still hidden beyond the hills.
"What happens after I awaken it?" she asked.
—You will no longer walk alone.
The words echoed with weight she couldn't quite grasp, but something in her chest shivered. As if a door had opened a crack—just enough to let through a sliver of destiny.
The voice continued gently.
—Your inner self will take form. A second you. A companion of power and thought, molded from your essence. You will fight as one. Think as one. Feel as one.
She swallowed. "And if I fail?"
—You won't, the voice replied simply.
She wanted to believe that. She would believe it.
Still, a question tugged at her thoughts, one she hadn't fully voiced.
Earlier… when the voice had spoken so clearly, so confidently—it had felt too knowing, too… separate.
She stopped just before reaching her room, turning to face the empty air.
"If you're really my inner self," she said aloud, "how do you know all these things? About the physique… the resources… even the awakening timeline?"
There was a pause. A heartbeat of silence.
Then the voice chuckled again, warm and slightly mischievous.
—A baby doesn't know what milk is… but it still cries for it.
Selena blinked.
The voice continued, —You don't need to know everything. You just need to grow. I am that growth, and I know what I need to become. I know what you will become.
There was something deeply humbling about that. A strange reassurance wrapped in mystery.
"And the resources?" she asked one last time. "How much more will I need?"
—As much as it takes to bloom. The Fairy Physique does not awaken through meditation or combat alone. It needs nourishment. It needs essence. You are like soil, and I am the seed inside. Feed me, and I will rise.
She nodded slowly, gripping the satchel more tightly.
Whatever it took… she would give it.
Leo had given her the path.
Now it was her turn to walk it.
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