Elsewhere—

Freya and Adelyn were sitting at a restaurant, waiting for the food to be served.

Since neither of them was particularly extroverted, the air between them was quiet. Yet, neither felt awkward.

Freya would occasionally speak a few words —to which Adelyn would respond simply. The back-and-forth continued for a while before there was nothing left to say.

Freya was curious to know Adelyn more deeply, but she didn’t want to seem too probing. So, she held herself back from asking anything that might make things uncomfortable.

Just as the silence settled again—

A waiter approached, bringing their dishes. He began placing them on the table when a soft yet distinct ding of a notification made Adelyn glance at her phone.

She paused when she noticed Eira’s name pop up on her screen.

Text image from Baby Eira.

As promised to the girl, Adelyn didn’t delay reading it.

She tapped it immediately, only to see an image attached to the message.

[Mama ... Eira is having lunch. Have you had yours?]

Along with it was a slightly blurred picture of her bowl of rice and a few small dishes at the side.

Adelyn’s lips curved instantly.

She couldn’t help but imagine the little girl’s face asking her the same thing in person—

Her eyes looking straight into hers, as if connecting with her naturally.

As if that bond had always existed.

"What’s wrong?" Freya asked suddenly, noticing Adelyn smiling at her phone.

Adelyn lifted her gaze and shook her head.

Then she looked at the table.

The food had already been laid out.

She quickly snapped a picture and typed a response.

[Baby, Mama is having hers now —and missing you. We’ll have lunch together someday.]

The reply from the other end came almost instantly—

A nodding sticker.

Adelyn couldn’t help but smile again. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

When she set her phone aside and looked up, Freya was watching her with a curious expression.

Not understanding the look, Adelyn asked, "Sister Freya, is there something?"

Freya nodded before serving herself a dish and passing the bowl to Adelyn.

"Yes," she said. "This is the first time I’ve seen you smile. And I must say —the way your lips curve suits you."

"First time?" Adelyn paused, then chuckled lightly. "My smile isn’t that rare."

Freya shook her head.

"Your genuine smiles are."

Before Adelyn could respond, she continued,

"The kind of smile that reaches your eyes. And the kind ..." she gestured toward the phone Adelyn had just set aside, "... you were giving just now to whoever you were texting."

Adelyn stilled for a moment.

Her gaze shifted back to her phone.

Was she really smiling like that?

"I was just texting my friend’s daughter," she said, partly explaining and partly trying to understand it herself. "She’s too sweet to be given anything that isn’t real."

Freya listened, and suddenly she was reminded of something.

The evening they first met Adelyn ...

And a smile made her lips curl. She looked at her and said,

"You seem good with kids."

Adelyn didn’t quite understand at first.

So Freya added,

"The first time we met —you handled that little girl well too."

And suddenly—

Adelyn remembered.

That had been her first time meeting Eira.

And yet, they had already formed a connection.

Eira had clung to her even then...

Was it really all just fate?

—————

Later—

After finishing lunch, both Adelyn and Freya left the restaurant together.

Freya had to return to the company, while Adelyn said she would head home.

"Do you want me to drop you?" Freya asked.

Adelyn shook her head politely.

"It would be trouble for you, Sister Freya. I can go on my own. You should head back to the company."

Freya didn’t insist.

She nodded, got into her car, and left.

Adelyn booked a cab for herself, which arrived shortly after.

But just as she was about to get in—

From a distance, a pair of eyes caught sight of her and froze.

The gaze lingered.

Then turned almost desperate.

But Adelyn didn’t notice.

She got into the car, gave the driver the destination, and asked him to start.

As the car drove away—

Someone came rushing after it.

But by the time they reached the spot—

Adelyn was already gone.

Another person came hurrying over.

"Celeste, where were you running like that?" she asked, frowning.

But Celeste didn’t look at her.

Her eyes remained fixed in the direction the cab had gone—

As if trying to confirm whether what she saw was real.

"Was it really her?" she murmured under her breath.

Beside her, Lyla frowned.

Following Celeste’s line of sight, she saw nothing.

"There’s no one there," she said, turning back to her. "Who are you looking for?"

Celeste turned slowly.

After a pause, she asked, "Did you see who left in that cab just now?"

She pointed in the direction.

But Lyla shook her head.

"I didn’t see any cab. I was on a call with Mr. Williams when you suddenly started running."

Celeste’s brows furrowed.

Seeing her expression, Lyla asked, "Who was it? Someone important?"

Celeste turned and began walking back.

"Someone who wouldn’t come back."

With that, she continued ahead.

Lyla was left confused.

But before she could ask more, Celeste had already walked ahead.

So she simply followed.

After finishing the meeting at the restaurant, when they were finally leaving —

Lyla’s phone dinged with a message.

She halted to check it, and for a long second didn’t move.

"It really happened?" she muttered.

Celeste heard it and turned back.

"What happened?" she asked.

Lyla looked up at her, still slightly stunned.

"Clara Scott wasn’t selected for The Empress’s Grief."

And then, she pointed at her phone and said, "The people at the company are quite shocked. They are all talking about it."

Lyla wasn’t really a gossiper, but given how she was reacting, one could tell that this was something she couldn’t stop herself from reacting.

However, Celeste seemed quite calm.

Seeing her like that, Lylas asked, "Wait ... how are you so calm. Does it not surprise you?"