"So… we have to kill someone?" Liora's voice cracked, her eyes wide, glistening with unshed tears.She clutched Kael's sleeve like it was her last anchor to sanity."This is the only way… I guess," Kael murmured, avoiding my gaze.
"No," Liora shook her head furiously, "I don't want to do it!"Tears spilled down her cheeks, and her whole body trembled.
"Stop," I cut in, trying to steady my voice. "Let's just—let's find another clue. There has to be something else we can do. We don't need to kill anyone yet."
"Don't waste your time on meaningless things,"The pendant's voice echoed in my head again—cool, emotionless."You have to kill."
"No," I thought sharply, desperation clawing at my throat. There must be another way. Right?
"Nope.""There is not.""And yes—I can hear your thoughts."
"What—wait, you can read my mind?!" I gasped, forgetting to speak out loud.
"Yes. Now go. You don't have much time."
My stomach dropped.There really was no other way out of this cursed illusion?
"There's no other option," Kael said grimly beside me."We… we have to kill."
"No!" Liora screamed, her sobs growing louder. "I can't! I've never hurt anyone—never—I-I can't do it!"
"You have to," I said, clutching her shoulders. "If we don't, we'll be stuck here. We'll go mad. We'll die here, Liora."
"But…" she hiccuped, eyes frantic, "m-my lady, these people… they're real. They look like the villagers from my hometown…"
Kael's voice was hoarse. "She's right. I recognize some of these faces. The illusion's using real people… They're connected to the outside world somehow."
My heart froze in my chest.
"No!" she cried, shaking her head violently. "I can't—I've never killed anyone—I can't do it!"
My heart clenched. I wanted to protect her. But I couldn't lie to her. Not here. Not anymore.
"Liora," I said gently, kneeling in front of her. "This place—it's a trap. It's feeding on us. You saw it… the longer we stay, the more we forget who we are. It's kill or be consumed."
"Time is running out,"The pendant whispered in my head again."Each of you must kill one soul. Only then will the illusion shatter."
I could feel its magic pulsing around my neck—almost like it was thrumming with bloodlust.
Kael drew his sword first. His hands shook, but his face stayed blank.He stepped forward, picked a man slouched by the café window.
One clean strike. One splash of blood.
The illusion… trembled. Just slightly.
Liora sobbed as Kael returned, sword dripping."No… no, please… don't make me do this…"
"I'm sorry, Liora," I whispered, "but it's your turn."
We found a woman alone by the fireplace. Her eyes were hollow. Maybe she was already gone.
Liora gripped the sword like it might bite her. Her arms trembled."I'm sorry," she whispered to the woman."I'm sorry…"
The sword came down.
A scream. A crack in the air. The café lights flickered like dying stars.
Now it was my turn.
I stepped forward, gripping Kael's sword. My breath felt heavy. My legs numb.
One more… just one more…
I moved toward the last one—a man with a quiet smile, sipping tea.Too calm. Too fake.
I raised the blade.
And then—I saw it.
Eyes.Not the illusion's eyes. Not one of the fake people.
Real ones.
Pale. Icy blue.Glowing softly. Like frostbitten magic burning under skin.
A figure stood outside the glass walls of the café.Shadowed. Unmoving. Watching me.
THE MAN WHO DID ALL OF THIS.
And in that instant, the illusion shattered—for me alone.
The café around me glitched. Like reality was tearing apart.
"No—wait!" I gasped, stumbling back.
Liora screamed.
"My lady?!"
But I couldn't answer.
Everything turned black.
ALL BLACKA quiet, swallowing kind of black.No floor. No sky. No breath.
Then… I heard it.
A soft humming.
A lullaby.
"Lulaby?" I whispered, voice trembling."Who's… singing that?"
I knew that melody.Every note, every pause — carved deep inside my bones.My mother's lullaby.
And then I saw it.
A faint, glowing vision surrounded me—like a memory replaying inside a dream.
A small room.Warm sunlight pouring through gauzy curtains.The gentle sway of a rocking chair.
And in it… her.
My younger self.Curled up in a woman's lap.Safe. Smiling.Sleeping like the world couldn't touch her.
The woman — my mother? — softly stroked my hair, still humming the lullaby.
I stepped closer.My heart raced. My throat ached.I wanted to scream and cry and collapse all at once.
"Are you… my mother?"I asked her."If you are, then… why can't I see your face? Why can't I remember your voice…?"
The woman paused.
Slowly, as if sensing something, she turned her head — toward me.
My breath hitched.
But her face…
It was blurry.
Smudged out like fogged glass.The more I tried to look, the more it twisted away.
"No—don't go," I whispered.
The memory shattered.
And then—
I was falling.Spinning.Weightless, in a storm of magic and color.
I landed—not with a thud, but with a whisper.
The air shimmered, thick with glittering particles that floated like stardust.Trees stood tall, but their bark glowed faintly like silver veins, and their leaves whispered in languages I couldn't understand. The sky above was a swirl of twilight purples and deep ocean blues, dotted with stars that pulsed like heartbeats.
Water flowed from a floating spring in mid-air, spiraling into a river that defied gravity, twisting between upside-down rocks.
It was beautiful.
Terrifying.
And completely… unreal.
"Where am I…?" I breathed, hugging myself.
And then—I wasn't alone.
A figure was approaching.Footsteps silent, yet echoing.Cloaked in pale magic and moonlight.
White hair.Blue eyes.Unreal. Ethereal. Beautiful.
He looked like he belonged to this place.Or maybe, this place belonged to him.
He stopped a few steps away.Didn't speak. Just watched me.
"You—"My voice cracked."Who are you?"
He stopped a few steps away, white hair shimmering under the soft light of this strange place.
"I brought you here," he said simply, his voice calm but distant.
I stared at him. He wasn't familiar—but somehow, I didn't feel scared. Just… unsettled. Like my soul recognized something my mind didn't.
"Why me?" I asked.
He didn't answer right away. Instead, he tilted his head, studying me like a painting hung slightly crooked.
"You're not ready for the full truth," he finally said."But you had to break the illusion. I couldn't interfere directly… not until now."
What does that even mean?
"Are you the pendant?" I asked slowly.
A faint smile touched his lips—just a flicker.
"That's one way to put it," he said."Let's just say… I've always been watching. Guiding. Waiting for this moment."
His voice felt cold and warm at the same time. Familiar, but not comforting. Like a storm right before it hits.
"Why can't you tell me anything straight?" I asked, frustrated.
"Because your story isn't mine to write," he said."You'll find the answers, piece by piece. I'm just… the reminder you're not alone."
He raised his hand, and suddenly the space around us shimmered like broken glass.
"You need to go back. They're waiting for you. But next time... trust the pendant. Even when it doesn't make sense."
And before I could ask him more, the world shattered around me like a dream being erased.