Morgana let out a soft sigh as the topic shifted almost too smoothly, just as she had hoped.

She didn’t want her niece to suffer again, and so Morgana while listening to Lia’s new topic, her gaze drifted, quiet yet heavy, toward the unseen presence of the one who had hurt Lia, as if even the air still remembered him.

’Even if the memories are erased, the imprint he left still lingers within her... has he rooted himself deeper than any of us inside her heart?’ she wondered.

Morgana and Mary had stood beside Lia from the moment she first opened her eyes to the world, had held her through every fragile step and every fleeting joy.

And yet, somehow, a boy who entered her life barely a year ago had become something irreplaceable... like a quiet pillar holding up the fragile temple of her heart.

How devastating it felt, truly... a quiet, aching kind of devastation that settled deep within the chest and refused to leave.

It was the kind of feeling parents carried in silence, when the daughter they raised slowly chose another hand to hold, another voice to listen to, another presence to lean on more than theirs.

So devastating, it almost made her chest tighten with sharp and unspeakable pain.

"Aunt?"

Lia’s gentle voice pulled her back.

Morgana blinked, then smiled, warmth returning to her expression as she looked at her niece, who sat there glowing under the soft light.

"Tell me something..." Morgana said, her eyes narrowing just a touch with playful curiosity.

"Do you... perhaps like someone?"

Lia’s face bloomed instantly into a pure, genuine smile, "Of course, Aunt... I do," she said sweetly, tilting her head slightly.

"I like you and Mother the most."

The innocence in her voice sparkled so brightly that it pierced straight through Morgana’s chest.

That affection, so warm and sincere, made her throat tighten, guilt rising like something bitter she could barely swallow.

’Damn it!’

Morgana coughed lightly, turning her face away for a brief moment before composing herself.

"Not that kind of liking," she clarified, her tone shifting into something teasing, her lips curving into a knowing smile.

"I meant... your love life. You know... the kind where hearts race, where you want to be close... loving, kissing..."

She leaned in slightly, lowering her voice into a playful whisper, her eyes glinting as she added,

"and all the things that make your heart tremble."

Lia’s reaction was immediate... Her cheeks flushed a deep, vivid red, spreading all the way to her ears as she quickly lifted her spoon, hiding half her face behind it like a shield.

"Y-You’re so mean, Aunt!" she protested, her voice flustered and soft, almost stumbling over itself.

"H-Hmph... I hate you!!"

Morgana laughed softly as she leaned even closer, resting her chin lightly on her hand. Her voice softened, coaxing and affectionate as she whispered,

"Come on now... You can tell your aunt. I’m on your side, aren’t I?"

She exaggerated a small pout, even pretending to wipe away invisible tears, her expression almost theatrically pitiful.

Lia hesitated, her fingers tightening slightly around the spoon. Even though she knew Morgana was pretending, that faint hint of sadness in her aunt’s eyes tugged gently at her heart.

With a small pout of her own, she finally gave in just a little.

"No... I don’t love anyone," she said, "Are you satisfied now?"

Morgana’s smile softened, her gaze growing thoughtful as she tilted her head slightly.

"Oh? Really?" she murmured, "Then tell me... do you have any preferences at all? Perhaps... the kind of person your heart might one day lean toward?"

She paused briefly, then added with a faint, playful glint, "Who knows... maybe your aunt could find someone like that for you."

Lia’s blush lingered, but she slowly lowered her spoon, her expression shifting into something more contemplative.

Her fingers lightly traced the edge of the table as she tilted her head, as if searching through feelings she could not fully name yet.

Morgana watched closely, her brows knitting ever so slightly. She wasn’t sure what kind of image would form in Lia’s mind now.

With Aether gone from her life, it should have been anyone but him... it had to be!!

And yet, a faint unease lingered.

If she could find someone who matched Lia’s ideal, someone who could gently take root in her heart, then perhaps... just perhaps... those lingering traces would finally fade away.

Morgana waited, her attention fixed entirely on her niece.

After a moment that felt longer than it was, Lia finally parted her lips.

Her eyes brightened, shimmering with a soft, almost dreamy glow, like someone imagining something precious for the first time.

"I don’t really care about status... or how beautiful he is," she began, her voice soft but steady, her fingers clasping together lightly as if holding onto the thought.

’Doesn’t care?’ Morgana repeated inwardly, already adjusting her silent checklist.

’Then I’ll choose someone noble... and undeniably handsome. Just to be safe.’

Lia continued, her voice growing quieter,

"But... I want him to be taller than me... maybe around the same height as Mother..."

Her cheeks deepened in colour as her gaze dropped slightly, her lashes trembling.

"S-so that when he... stands close... or gently corners me..." she murmured, her voice softening into a shy whisper, almost dissolving into the air.

"It would make my heart... f-flutter uncontrollably."

’Definitely 1000% taller... check!’

"His body should be muscular... not just strong, but... defined," Lia continued, her voice soft yet vivid, as if she were carefully sketching him into existence line by line.

"And he should have this... dangerous expression... the kind that makes people hesitate before getting close... like he carries something sharp beneath his calm."

Her cheeks suddenly deepened in colour, spreading across her face, and her shoulders trembled faintly as her thoughts softened, turning inward, more intimate.

"B-But... when he’s with me..." she stuttered, her voice dropping into a fragile whisper, her fingers unconsciously twirling the end of her ponytail in slow, nervous loops.

"H-he should be gentle... like a flower... soft in a way that only I get to see... so gentle that it makes me want to tease him... just to see how he reacts..."

Morgana raised her brows slightly higher, a faint, amused curve touching her lips as she observed the sudden shift, her eyes glinting with quiet intrigue.

’Oh? Look at her... getting shy all of a sudden... so cute ~ I didn’t know she could make that kind of face. So hard on the outside, soft within... check!’

"Though I don’t really care about appearance..." Lia added, her voice regaining a bit of steadiness, though the blush stubbornly lingered on her cheeks like a fading sunset.

"I think I’d like it if he had black hair... something deep and calm... or... maybe white... Fierce and danger....."

She paused, tilting her head slightly, her gaze drifting as if comparing two vivid images in her mind.

"Well... both together would be fine too," she murmured, her lips curling faintly as her imagination grew more detailed.

"But his eyes... they must be ice blue... like a snowstorm swirling around him. Cold, distant... almost untouchable to others..."

Her expression softened, her gaze turning distant, almost lost in something tender and quietly yearning.

"...and yet... when he touches me... it should feel warm... like all that cold disappears just for me."

’...O-Okay...’

Morgana’s thoughts faltered, her expression slowly tightening into something uncertain, a faint crease forming between her brows.

"Also..." Lia continued, her tone shifting again, a faint seriousness threading through her words as her fingers slowed their movement.

"He must accept my mother, too. You know how she is... she can be a little possessive... and sometimes... she might say things that hurt without realising..."

For a brief moment, her eyes dimmed, a fragile vulnerability flickering through them before she steadied herself.

"But I’ll be there for him," she added quickly, almost defensively, as if reassuring both herself and an unseen future.

"I won’t let him face it alone... still... just in case... if she ever does something behind my back..."

Her expression shifted once more, something sly and faintly dangerous blooming beneath her softness... like a shadow beneath light.

"But I want him to be even more possessive than my mother..." she whispered, her voice dipping into darker,

"So possessive that he would... strangle me with love... hold me so tightly that I forget everything else... even her... completely!!"

A strange, delicate smile curved along her lips, beautiful yet carrying an unsettling edge.

’...gulp’

Morgana swallowed her dry throat, the motion audible even to herself as her composure began to crack. The fork in her hand stilled midair before she quietly set it down, her appetite fading as if it had never existed in the first place.

Then, just as suddenly as a shifting tide, Lia changed again.

Her expression softened into that of a maiden quietly in love, her head lowering shyly as a curtain of hair slipped slightly across her cheek.

Her fingers tightened around the fork, absentmindedly stirring the soup in slow, uneven circles that betrayed her inner turmoil.

"I... I..." she began, her voice trembling, each word stepping forward carefully,

"Whenever I feel angry... or disappointed... or sad..."

Her grip tightened further, her knuckles paling as emotion gathered beneath her chest.

"I... I want him to be there... to give me his shoulder..." she whispered, her voice barely above breath, fragile yet sincere.

"I don’t need answers... I don’t need solutions... I just... want somewhere to lean... and someone who will truly listen... even if I make no sense."

Her lashes lowered, casting faint shadows against her cheeks as her voice softened further,

"My mother always says... a woman should never show weakness to a man... that they might use it against us... that we must always stay strong..."

A pause.

"But... I want him to accept my weakness... and... show me his too..." she continued, her voice trembling with quiet longing.

"So that... we can share everything... the good, the bad... everything... forever... without hiding."

A faint smile touched her lips, soft and sincere, carrying a warmth that felt almost sacred.

"Just seeing him smile... would make my heart race... faster than it should... and when I’m tired... he should carry me on his back... take me home... stay with me... feed me... b-bath me... t-then b-bed..."

Her voice faltered, dissolving into flustered breaths as her thoughts spiralled further than she intended.

"and then... I... I... I..."

Her face flushed a deep, burning crimson, heat blooming across her cheeks as realisation struck her all at once,

"A-Aunt! What are you making me say?! Oh goodness...!!"

In her fluster, she gripped the fork tightly and stabbed into the piece of meat before her again and again, her movements quick and restless, her head shaking rapidly as if trying to escape her own words and thoughts. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Chuckk~Chucck~Chucckk~Chcukkk~

Morgana, on the other hand, sat completely still.

Her soul felt as though it had quietly slipped out of her body, leaving behind only a hollow shell that stared blankly at the poor piece of meat being mercilessly pierced, over and over, crimson blood splattering across the plate like a silent, violent confession.

It looked less like a meal and more like a miniature battlefield... a quiet, personal massacre unfolding without mercy.

Slowly, almost mechanically, Morgana lifted her gaze from the poor meat, her expression frozen somewhere between disbelief and dread.

There sat Lia, blushing furiously, her eyes squeezed shut, her entire form trembling with embarrassment as if she were hiding from her own imagination... an imagination that felt far too vivid, far too real... far too familiar!

’Oh dear... oh dear...!!!’ Morgana screamed inwardly into chaos.

She already knew.

She freaking knew exactly who this image belonged to.

’Damn it... even her ideal... It’s still him, isn’t it?’

Her fingers curled into a tight fist, her nails pressing into her palm as unease crept deeper into her expression.

’Oh, my dear sister... let us pray your precious daughter never remembers him... because if she does... if even a fragment returns...’

A cold shiver slid down Morgana’s spine, like the whisper of an approaching storm.

She could already see it, clear and vivid, a future painted in blood and ruin, even without witnessing a single moment of it.

Even though she had never seen the closeness between Aether and Lia with her own eyes, she had heard everything... every detail, every confession, every lingering emotion that refused to fade.

After all... she was her aunt.

Lia told her everything from beginning to end... every fleeting moment that had passed between them, every fragile emotion that had taken root and grown quietly within her chest.

She spoke of how she had fallen in love without even realizing when it began, how his presence had slowly become something she could not live without, how he had offered his shoulder when her world felt like it was breaking apart, how she had chosen to let go of Kai... every detail spilled out, like a heart that no longer knew how to hold itself back.

Only a few delicate fragments remained untouched, sacred pieces of memory that belonged to no one else... moments meant only for Lia and the one she cherished.

Chuckk~Splash~Chucck~Splash~Chucckk~Splash~Chcukkk~

"Haha... Aunt, so you mean~ Haha... so mean~ How could ask that... ahah~meanie~"

Morgana gulped as the blood splattered the entire table like a manic.