"Fascinating!" exclaimed Hrassin, a wide grin of delight spreading across his face. "This girl is priceless! A truly remarkable acquisition!"

               "I fail to see how someone like Lirany could be useful to yokai, except as food," Ayun replied dryly.

               The fact that he’d been ordered to report any findings kept him stuck in the office, which reeked too strongly of expensive liquor, and Hrassin’s presence irritated him. Even so, his remark made the port’s overseer grin at him.

               "Ah, so her name is Lirany! She wouldn’t even tell us that much!"

               Ayun shrugged. He found little significance in a name, but the ruler clearly had a different perspective.

               "From now on, you’ll neglect your usual duties. I don’t care about those filthy ships! Your sole responsibility is this girl."

               "You want me to deliver her food instead of looking after the vessels?" Ayun asked with a slight raise of his eyebrow.

               He would have embraced the change without any regrets.. Carrying a tray up a few flights of stairs sounded far easier than managing enormous ships or dealing with grumpy sailors, and his tail swayed slightly at the thought of a calmer day ahead.

               "Not just that," Hrassin replied with a mischievous grin. "I want you to earn her trust, make her love this city... to be loyal to us. But tread carefully. She has the power to obliterate the harbor with a mere snap of her fingers."

               "I thought she was meant to stay here only for a short while. When am I supposed to have time to get close to her?"

               The idea that a human could survive long in a yokai den, where they were seen as nothing more than prey, seemed absurd.

               "Truth be told, I'm tempted to keep her... But what use do I have for a scared, weepy girl, hmm? Do your job as I commanded, and the girl’s power will reshape history!"

               Ayun pressed his lips into a thin line as he closed the door behind him, leaving Hrassin in his office, already sinking into another bottle of fine wine. For a fleeting moment, he felt the claws of instinct scraping at the surface, threatening to shred all those carefully laid plans.

               Indeed, Lirany could be dangerous, and if such power fell into the wrong hands... Yet, she seemed utterly helpless in controlling her gift. Most likely, the yokai in Tharym would view her as food rather than a weapon, and Hrassin, sooner or later, would change his mind.

               But that wasn’t his concern! He had a mission to carry out, and he had to see it through. With a deep sigh, he made his way toward the kitchens.

               The stone corridors, dimly lit by flickering torches, were deserted. A few rats scurried past him, rushing to escape his path. Though he was accustomed to the rodents, a fleeting smirk crossed his lips—his presence, that of an ancient predator, was enough to frighten any living creature in this perilous place.

               A shadow slipped into view ahead, and though his vision in the dark was limited, Ayun's sharpened senses instantly identified the figure lurking in the gloom.

               "Any news?" Hachyro asked in a low voice, his tone feigning innocence, as he leaned casually against the wall, arms crossed.

               Ayun’s normally composed and distant gaze narrowed, and a flicker of barely restrained ferocity glinted in his eyes.

               "News?" he hissed dangerously. "Does the corpse in the underground lake ring a bell?"

               Fury—an emotion almost alien to him—consumed him, impossible to suppress. He had been summoned by Hrassin, who had grilled him for nearly an hour about the remains of a noble’s son found floating in the lake. Ayun had assumed Hachyro’s earlier threat was merely a scare tactic to silence the boy. Never had he imagined that the arsian would go as far as murder.

               While everyone else believed the monstrous creature in the depths to be the culprit, Ayun had noticed the telltale signs: clear, deliberate cuts on the young man's body—precise incisions that no marine beast could have made.

               "I did what you couldn’t," Hachyro scoffed with defiant indifference. "The dead can’t talk, can they?"

               "Couldn’t?" Ayun snapped, his tail fluffing up as it reflected the storm raging within him. "I don’t kill indiscriminately just because something displeases me!"

               Hachyro tapped his tails against the stone floor, a malicious grin spreading across his face.

               "If it bothered you so much, perhaps I could... deal with the rumors another way," he suggested slyly. "Half the harbor, along with Hrassin, would be a decent start, don’t you think? What’s your opinion?"

               At that moment, one of the torches exploded, and Ayun fixed him with a piercing glare, his intensity making the air feel almost tangible. Strange currents of energy swirled around him, creating a vortex that stirred up the dust in the tunnel and made the remaining torches flicker as if on the verge of extinguishing.

               "Dare to lay a finger on Tharym," he whispered menacingly, "and you’ll never have the chance to hear another rumor again."

               For a fleeting moment, a shadow of unease crossed Hachyro’s face. After a brief hesitation, he took a step back. He had made a habit of provoking Ayun, but this time he knew he’d crossed every line.                Ayun no longer feared his own power, as he had at the harbor, nor did he suppress it. The shadows in the tunnel danced, drawn to his tightly coiled aura, ready to erupt at any moment.

               "Maybe I won’t have to kill them myself," the arsian said with a harsh, cruel grin.

               With an agile leap, he disappeared into the shadows, and with his departure, the swirling dust and air currents dissipated. Ayun remained in the tunnel, breathing deeply and silently cursing Hachyro.

               By the time he reached the girl’s room, he was utterly exhausted. The suffocating sensation had intensified along the way, and his blood boiled, turning every breath into a struggle to contain his agony. He placed the tray of food on the bed, barely noticing how Lirany, frightened, had curled up in the far corner of the room. He sat down on the floor, resting his forehead on his knees, desperately searching for an oasis of calm.

               All he wanted was to shut himself off from everything and everyone, to be alone, if only for a moment, so he could quell the inferno raging inside him. His breathing was erratic, as if the air around him had become an enemy too thick to draw into his lungs. In that moment of confusion, he became aware of his energy thinning, losing faint, almost imperceptible threads. It was Lirany; he could feel her cautiously approaching, and a moment later, her voice broke through the haze:

               "Are you okay?"

               It wasn’t fine. But calming his thirst for release through conventional means risked scaring her outright. An idea began to take root in his mind. He knew that Lirany perceived the world through his life energy, but she had always kept a safe distance. The image of the mice he had found dead in her room suddenly resurfaced in his thoughts. What did he have to lose?!

               “Lirany,” he whispered. “Can you... can you come closer?”

               “If I do, your life will be in danger,” she replied, a note of sadness in her voice. “My power could kill you.”

               “It won’t happen,” he promised firmly. “If I feel dizzy, I’ll tell you to step back. Deal?”

               With one hand pressed against his chest in an attempt to calm his heartbeat, Ayun extended the other toward her. Lirany, hesitant, gazed at him for a long moment before mustering the courage to accept his gesture. Each movement seemed measured, as though an extra second might seal her fate. Her hesitation didn’t bother him. Patiently, he sensed her fear and hope interwoven, urging her to move forward. Then, slowly, her fingers met his palm.

               At first, nothing happened. But suddenly, his body was enveloped in a golden glow—a halo of shimmering lights that slid off his skin, transferring to her hand. As if the girl’s thirst for energy ran deep, she absorbed the lights greedily. Her gaze, initially dark and heavy, began to take on a warm brown hue, her eyes regaining their vibrancy, enriched by the strength she received. The moment lasted only a few seconds, but when the energy stabilized and the magic dissipated, a faint connection lingered between them. Lirany, now able to see much more clearly, yanked her hand away with a small gasp, startled.

               Ayun stared at his hands, astonished. That oppressive sensation of suffocation had vanished entirely, leaving him able to take deep breaths with ease. Usually, it would only subside, but now it felt utterly obliterated, as if the suffering within him had been nothing more than a shadow. All of it, just from Lirany’s touch.

               “How... how do you feel? “ she murmured, a note of fear in her voice.

               He lifted his gaze, and when his eyes met hers, he smiled sincerely.

               “I’m fine. Thank you, Lirany. “

               He inclined his head in a gesture of gratitude, but he could see the doubt on her face. She didn’t completely believe him, and she had her reasons. This new, revealing discovery had brought him a sense of joy he didn’t want to let go of, but he owed her an explanation. And more than that—she had helped him in a moment when he would have been powerless without her, and the desire to offer something in return gnawed at him.

               “Are you sick? “ she asked suddenly, frowning.

               “It’s not exactly an illness“ Ayun replied, still feeling the echo of relief in every fiber of his being. “I’ll tell you, but... it’s such a beautiful day to stay cooped up here. What do you say? Would you like to see the port? We can talk along the way.“

               Rumors had already spread throughout Tharym, so revealing his predicament no longer posed any additional risk. Lirany's eyes widened with an almost childlike delight, but hesitation held her back.

               “Are you sure? “ she asked, as if still afraid to believe her luck. “I mean... can I really leave this room? “

               “You’re not a prisoner here“ Ayun reassured her gently. “Going out alone would be dangerous, but with me, you’ll be safe. “

               The truth, however, was more nuanced: while she wasn’t a prisoner, her freedom to leave the port was limited—just like his. Yet, the fascination of seeing the city overwhelmed any other thoughts she might have had. In less than a minute, she had swapped her nightgown for a simple brown dress.

               He waited for her in the hallway, respecting her privacy, and when she emerged, her face radiated a mixture of excitement and barely-contained apprehension.

               As he had expected, everyone around them stared intently. The news that a human was in Tharym had spread quickly, and Hrassin’s decree forbidding anyone to touch her only heightened the temptation. Some yokai, who had never seen a human before, watched her with vivid curiosity, while others bore predatory expressions, their eyes gleaming with unrestrained hunger. Only fear of the city's sovereign and Ayun’s presence kept them from venturing too close to Lirany.