"It wasn’t long before I found out what happened to her. The king himself came to talk to me. He made up a story and said that she tried attacking him. I could tell he was lying, but there was nothing I could do to fight him. I am not nearly strong enough to fight the king on my own."

Eden had tears streaming down her face.

"Miss Lidia... I had no idea. I’m so sorry."

"It’s okay. But sometimes, I think back to the day I told her she could go by herself. Maybe if I went with her, things could have been different, and she would still be here with me. I could be waiting for her to return home like usual, and she would give me a hug and kiss before bed. Is it strange to miss days that you never have anymore?"

"In your case, I would be surprised if you didn’t." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Lidia sighed.

"Maria reminds me of her in so many ways. Only, she seems to be a lot more to herself."

Lidia looked Eden in the eye with a stern look.

"I’m not going to lose another daughter. No matter what."

A chill ran down Eden’s spine. Her glare was much more threatening than she was used to. Lidia meant every word she said.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Lidia stood up from the table and walked towards it.

"Who is it?"

A low voice could be heard from the other side.

"Miss Lidia, I apologize for the inconvenience, but the Katra clan summons you for an urgent meeting at once! It is of the most vital importance so I must insist you come."

"Ah, those guys. But you didn’t answer my question before. Who are you?"

The man cleared his throat and said proudly.

"Gabriel Katra at your service ma’am!"

Lidia opened the door with an annoyed look.

"Oh... you..."

"Hey! What is that tone for?! I will have you know I’ve come in first place in many competitions including one that has to do with my charismatic-"

Lidia closed his lips with her fingers. Gabriel tried to muffle to get his last words in, to no avail.

"Yeah yeah, I get it. Just tell me what this is all about. Nothing else please."

Gabriel shook off the initial shock of having his mouth shut by Lidia then continued.

"The palace is in danger ma’am. Mr. Katra wants to discuss forming an alliance to fight the opposing threat together using our combined strength!"

"We aren’t fighters. Kindly get away from my door before I throw you through a window... again."

"But... Miss Lidia. This is a threat the king himself can’t take. We need all the strength we can get."

A small fire lit in Lidia’s heart.

’The king is scared... Is this the chance I’ve been waiting for?’

"When does he want to meet, Johnathen?"

"Uh. It’s Gabriel ma’am."

"Whatever."

"He wants to meet now. I’m really sorry if you have plans. It’s okay though, I remember this one time I was going to a fan meetup, and I had to miss it because-"

Lidia grabbed the man by the head and threw him through the nearest window in the hall.

"Welp. Looks like I’m going to be busy tonight. Do you mind cleaning up this mess, Eden? I’m very sorry."

"I don’t mind at all ma’am, please go to Mr. Katra right away!"

"Thank you again for listening. You are right, I do feel much better."

Lidia gave Eden a smile and waved her bye. Before she ran off, she turned around one last time.

"Oh, by the way, if Gabe asks for your autograph, it is imperative you say no. Trust me."

Eden chuckled and started walking towards the window to clean up with a broom. As soon as she got near it, Gabriel jumped back through it to get back into the palace, dirtying the place even more.

"Oh boy. This reminds me of the time that I placed first in the jumping through windows-"

Eden smacked the man in the head with a broom when he wasn’t looking and innocently started sweeping, pretending like something randomly just fell from the ceiling on to him.

Lidia started approaching the Katra Clan door. Before she even knocked, a man was ready for her and opened the door. At their dining table, Katra was already sitting down drinking a dark liquid.

"Lidia. It’s been a little while. I’m glad you were able to meet the kings demands on the food supply."

Lidia remembered how the king had treated her when she was summoned to him to talk about that. The feeling of her own blood leaving every hole in her face was terrifying to recall.

"Me too. Why don’t we skip the small talk today and cut straight to the chase."

"My oh my, you seem to be in quite the mood today."

"I’ve been in quite the mood for a while now."

Lidia walked over to the dining table, sat across from Katra in a chair and crossed her legs.

"So, as my extremely annoying friend may have told you, we are under threat of an attack. The scale of this attack is unprecedented. I am afraid and embarrassed to say, the strength of the Katra Clan is not nearly enough. I have a feeling with our combined efforts; only then do we stand a chance."

Lidia started playing with her hair, refusing to meet Katra’s gaze.

"Ok."

"So, what do you say? Put any differences we may have had in the past or currently have and fight a common enemy with us. Who knows, many friendships may even spark from fighting together. This would only benefit the kingdom as I see it."

"Can I have something to drink?"

Katra was in disbelief by the lack of manners from Lidia. Normally, she was the nicest person in the room. He had never seen this rude side of her in his life.

’What is going on with her?’

"Certainly. I’ll grab it for you, just stay seated for now."

"Thank you."

Katra got up and poured Lidia a cup of water. However, Lidia refused to drink from it.

"What’s wrong? Go ahead and drink up."

"I’m good. Thank you for the water though."

Katra’s face started glowing red from annoyance.

"Did you come here to toy with me or to have a discussion?"

"Sorry, it’s just... you never got me a birthday present a few months ago and I haven’t received an apology yet."

Katra looked at Lidia completely dumbfounded.

’I can’t tell if she’s being serious or not, but she looks angry!’

"Would you quit it, Lidia! This is serious stuff!"

"Oh, I know it’s serious. I was really looking forward to a new pair of work shoes."

Lidia started pouting, still refusing to make eye contact.

’I can’t believe I’m offering an alliance with such a childish woman. Is this even a good idea?’

"I’m... sorry for not getting you a birthday present. I’ll make sure to make up for it. Can we talk now?"

Lidia started smiling and finally met his gaze.

"Thank you, that’s much better! As for your alliance, you can shove it up your ass!"