"So they're scared of me?" Seamus asked, clenching his hands.
Seamus Danford had lived in the shadows of others for as long as he could remember. He hid in them, tried not to be noticed, as if something terrible would happen the moment someone truly saw him.
It was only a feeling—an instinct—but now he understood why. And he was glad he listened to it.
Now, with a system that could make him strong, he would hide a little longer. But not forever. One day, he'd rise above them all.
Madeline's eyes widened in interest. "In a way, yes," she said, tilting her head. "But don't you get frightened, Seamus? From what I've seen, you're a coward."
Seamus frowned. "I might be," he admitted, "but I'm not suicidal. I plan to live." He leaned in, eyes sharp. "And I know you know how. But I can't let Isolde die."
The room went quiet. He took a deep breath.
"I'll be the patriarch of this covenant. It's only fair, isn't it?"
Madeline gasped. The cup in her hand slipped, crashing against the table. Tea spilled everywhere as did her laughter.
She laughed hard and loud, and didn't stop. But Seamus didn't flinch. His expression didn't change. He'd heard worse.
He had served others for years—twelve-hour shifts, just to pay off his father's debts. Getting yelled at, humiliated, and talked down to. It was nothing new.
"I'm not joking, Madeline," he said calmly. "I never had anything. I never even dared to want anything. But now… I have purpose."
Madeline's laughter faded. She crossed her arms. "And how much are you willing to sacrifice?"
Seamus paused. His fingers tapped slowly against his thigh. Her question was layered, and it wasn't about money.
"I can only sacrifice myself," he said.
Madeline smirked. "How about Viviane? Isolde? Or your dear father?"
She stood, then leaned in close, her lips near his, her dress slipping slightly to expose just enough.
"I heard your father's a drunk and a gambling addict who made your life hell. Isolde only wants your power. She'll keep bleeding you dry."
"And that sweet, sweet girlfriend of yours? She's trying to kill you. Don't you want to get rid of them all, Seamus?"
"I've never had that thought cross my mind," Seamus said, grabbing her jaw gently but firmly. "But what about you, Madeline? How much are you willing to sacrifice? Since you seem to think you're the best of us all."
He smirked. "And frankly, you should be willing to give up more than I am. Because you need me more than I need you."
Madeline's expression darkened. "You arrogant, weak brat. The last time someone disrespected me like this, his head ended up rolling on the floor."
"But mine's still attached," Seamus shot back. "Isn't it?"
"If you were as strong as you say you are, you would've destroyed this House already. But you haven't. You came to me with some pity speech no one with a brain would believe."
***
"Seamus! Don't hide from me!" Viviane's hoarse voice tore through the silence of the garden.
Fire swirled into her palm before she hurled it into the bushes. The explosion sent ash and smoke curling into the air, blackening the petals and scorching the grass.
"I know you're here! You can't run or hide from me!" she screamed again, fire trailing her fingertips like claws.
"We're soulmates! We'll die and burn together in eternity! No woman is going to take you from me!"
Veins popped on her temple, red and pulsing like molten lava beneath her pale skin. Her long nails gleamed crimson, and her wild hair moved like it had a will of its own.
The scorched bushes shifted suddenly. They didn't just part—they reshaped and morphed into something.
The leaves shimmered then melted into the form of a woman. Isolde stepped forward without a single scorch mark on her skin and the same condescending smile on her face.
"My, my, look at you," she said, folding her arms as if she had been watching a performance.
"You've finally evolved. Burning bushes and screaming declarations of eternal love. How charming."
Viviane's eyes widened as she realize who was in front of her. The fire around her blazed hotter.
"You..." she hissed. "Traitor! You slept with Seamus without my permission!"
Isolde tilted her head, amused. "Oh, darling. I prefer the term opportunist and why would I ask permission from you? You are my daughter and in a way, everything you own is also mine."
Viviane didn't answer. The fire in her hands exploded forward like a cannon, and she lunged toward Isolde with a shriek.
But the flames twisted midair, forming a rose made entirely of ember and ember alone. It floated for a moment before falling uselessly to the ground.
Viviane blinked in confusion. The world had changed.
The sky above was suddenly dusk purple, the stars pulsing with her heartbeat. The grass beneath her shifted to velvet, and the flowers around them began chanting like praying.
"Are you forgotten, my dear," Isolde said sweetly, walking toward her with her bare feet silent on the ground, "This is my dream realm, the world I made, and I am unbeatable inside it."
"Huh! Shut up and fight!" Viviane didn't hesitate.
Threads erupted from her fingertips, each one wreathed in flame. They darted at Isolde like venomous vipers.
But Isolde only smiled as the threads passed right through her body like smoke. Her figure flickered, and from the side, another Isolde stepped out of a hedge, this one holding a book made of screaming mouths.
"Fight with your fists and feet, you whore!"
Viviane turned, but the ground beneath her had become liquid. Her foot sank into the earth, now thick and tar-like.
"You think rage makes you strong?" Isolde asked, voice floating from all sides now.
"You think obsession makes you powerful? You're just another little girl playing with fire and hoping it burns the pain away."
Viviane growled, her body igniting in full. Her hair lifted like wildfire, her skin glowing from the inside out. She exploded forward with hands burning bright.
But the fire dimmed as soon as it got close.
Isolde raised her hand, and the air thickened. Viviane choked, no, the fire inside her choked. It turned into smoke and filled her lungs.
Her threads coiled around her own wrists, dragging her to the ground like leashes.
"Do you even know what you're fighting for?" Isolde whispered near her ear, though she was nowhere to be seen.
"You're screaming about soulmates, yet you can't even tell the difference between love and possession."
Viviane tried to stand and move. The ground grew teeth and bit into her legs.
"And you?! Do you think you know more than me?" she spat. "You're a psychopath! Your heart died with you! Don't you dare teach me about love when there isn't any left in you!"
She summoned her threads in fury, but one snapped. The backlash burned across her arm, blistering skin as her vision swam.
"Aaaahhhh!!!"
Even when it was all a dream, her body could feel every pain. Too real to be called a dream. Too cruel to be anything else.
But this was Isolde's power.
The dream wouldn't end until the dreamer died.
Isolde stepped into view again. Her smile was gentle, but at the same time pitying and mocking.
"Love," she scoffed. "In this cruel, cold world, who needs it? That's why you're weak, Viviane. Because your mind is rotting with fantasies that will one day kill you."
She tilted her head, eyes shining with malicious and amusement.
"Power. That's the only thing you need. And with that, I do possess Seamus."
Her voice lowered but still gentle like a mother. "I know you attacked him in the hallway to the garden."
Viviane froze.
"I wonder if he still loves you after that," Isolde whispered.
Viviane's bloodshot eyes widened. "He still loves me! He will forever love me! It's our promise!"
Isolde laughed. Not cruelly but with something far worse. She laughed like she had already won.
"Really?" she said, stepping closer. "Love is always bound to beauty. But look at you now, Viviane. Are you still beautiful?"
"Seamus only sees a monster. A rabid thing that tried to kill him."
Viviane trembled, but her rage only grew hotter. Her threads lit with flame, but the garden around her laughed. The trees bloomed black roses. The sky turned inside out.
Isolde circled her.
"Humans are weak," she said, her voice echoed in every blade of grass.
"They are cowards. Fools pretending to walk in a world not built for them, with their heads high, thinking they belong."
She touched Viviane's chin, lifting her face gently.
"And that's why he will never see beauty in you anymore."