"Her name is Nyssara Vale."
Vairon and Kaelira's eyes brightened at her name. Kaelira walked over to the young girl, looking her up and down like a mother-in-law inspecting a future daughter-in-law.
After an uncomfortable few seconds, she broke into a wide grin that finally caused the beautiful young girl to show a shred of emotion—or, more accurately, a physical response to a hidden danger.
"Nyssara Vale~. What a beautiful name! It suits you perfectly, sweetheart! Come, call me Big Sis Kaelira!"
Under the pressure of Kaelira's expectant expression, the young girl, Nyssara, spoke for the first time. Her clear, cold voice nearly froze the surroundings solid.
"No."
Kaelira's smiling face froze. Vairon's cheeks puffed as he choked down a laugh, while Aelshira, without any reservations, burst into a mad peal of laughter.
"GAHAHAHA!"
Kaelira's lip twitched as she stood straight and coughed into her hand. Her other hand closed into a tight fist, veins bulging beneath the skin as it trembled violently under her self-restraint.
"N-Now that isn't really a respectful way to speak to a senior, is it? I'm not asking for much—just an address. Come, let's try this ag—"
"No."
Once again, a childish voice devoid of all warmth cut through her words like a merciless guillotine. The trembling in her hand had traveled throughout her entire body at this point.
Kaelira's face seemed to suffer from constant, severe muscle spasms as her breathing grew strained.
"L-Little Nyssara, can't you sh—"
"No."
Violent trembling intensifies.
"How about—"
"Annoying."
"THIS FUCKING BIT—"
Just as Kaelira's fury erupted, a mass of shadowy tendrils leapt up from the ground and dragged her into her own shadow. A few moments later, a faint rumbling could be felt emanating from deep within the manor.
Aelshira's laughing fit gained fresh fuel, and she nearly doubled over in her icy throne. This time, Vairon couldn't hold back either, clutching his stomach as he broke into laughter.
Meilan stood with her arm outstretched, a layer of qi wrapped around her fingertips. She retracted her hand with a sigh of relief, then turned her wholly unamused gaze toward Vairon and Aelshira, who were crying tears of laughter.
With a smile that was not quite a smile, she addressed the two troublemakers with ruthless authority, shocking everyone present. A dark, volatile aura surrounded her, and those uninvolved shivered as they almost faintly saw the outline of a wicked skull hovering behind her head.
"Is something… funny?"
Instantly, both Vairon and Aelshira—two titans of their respective generations—halted their laughter in a heartbeat. Vairon adopted a mock-solemn expression, while Aelshira, the famed Lion Empress of the North, cowered meekly behind her grandson, holding him out in front of her like a living sacrifice.
Chayrith turned his head from his foolish father to his whimpering grandmother, then back to his nanny and caregiver. His expression turned serious as he gave a heavy nod, reaffirming that Meilan was, in fact, the scariest human being on the planet.
Meilan turned the black, swirling voids she called eyes toward Vairon. His only response was a sharp turn of his head as he attempted to shirk all responsibility.
Her soulless pupils then snapped toward the now-empty icy throne, where only little Chayrith sat in a daze, searching for his missing grandmother. Meilan's eyes narrowed before she sensed something behind her.
Turning around, she locked onto the "dignified" figure of the Palace Mistress as she hastily retreated deeper into the manor, leaving behind parting words.
"I-I just remembered that I haven't had a chance to bathe and refresh myself since leaving. So I'll go bathe quickly to make myself more presentable. See ya!"
Seeing their fearless leader flee in haste due to a woman not even a quarter of her age, the Snow Heart Palace members who had accompanied her gulped nervously. Their gazes swiveled toward Karliah as their last source of security.
Feeling their anxious stares, Karliah rolled her eyes and was about to scold them when her attention was drawn to a shocking sight.
Her cold, unfeeling disciple had begun walking toward someone of her own volition—and not just anyone, but the birthday boy himself. For some inexplicable reason, Karliah felt a pang of nervousness she hadn't experienced in a long time.
The last time she had felt anything close to this was five years ago, when she had found Nyssara.
That day, Karliah had been traveling through a remote region near the border of the Northern Realm's forbidden zone: the White Oblivion Zone. Returning from a personal excursion, she had felt drawn to a small, impoverished village just a few miles from the border.
There, she met the two-year-old Nyssara for the first time.
Was there anything special about her? No.
Did she possess an ancient or obscure bloodline? Not at all.
For all intents and purposes, Nyssara was an ordinary child, without even a hint of anything strange or unique. And yet, there was something in her eyes that compelled Karliah to break her long-standing vow to never take a disciple—something that made her feel fear for the first time since arriving in Genara.
It was a coldness. No—Nyssara wasn't merely cold.
She was indifferent.
An indifference so profound that even Karliah, with all her power and wisdom, felt like an ant crawling before her. Never had she felt so… small in the presence of another being. And yet, a two-year-old child had invoked such emotions at their first meeting.
Nyssara had stared at her with those fathomless eyes, as though peering straight into her soul and encasing it in ice. Only when the girl's mother appeared did the spell over Karliah finally break.
When she regained her senses, she saw that same child's face lit with a radiant smile—so sudden that her mind nearly suffered whiplash from the transition. In that moment, Karliah resolved to take Nyssara as her first disciple.
She had expected resistance, perhaps even outright refusal. Instead, Nyssara agreed immediately. Her only request was that her mother be allowed to accompany her.
Karliah agreed without hesitation, and the master-disciple ritual was quickly completed. Over five years of nurturing and guidance, Nyssara had gradually opened up to her, treating Karliah with nearly the same trust and respect she showed her mother.
Yet even now, Karliah understood her no better than she had on that first day. That strangeness remained unanswered.
It wasn't until she saw Vairon's reaction that Karliah realized he might possess a clue to what made her disciple so special. And now, seeing Nyssara approach someone of her own accord, she became even more certain that this eccentric family might finally provide answers.
Nyssara stood before the icy throne, looking down at Chayrith. Her face was a mask of stillness, her eyes clear and unyielding.
But now—now they held something unfamiliar.
For the first time, her eyes seemed alive.
Chayrith stared back, his expression inquisitive as he tilted his head in confusion. Yet Nyssara saw the truth hidden in his gaze. She felt a fire burning hotter than the sun, and her body shuddered almost imperceptibly, as though his eyes were scorching her soul.
For the first time in her young life, Nyssara felt it—truly felt it. Like a rainbow parting dark clouds, the sensation swept through her in an overwhelming tide.
Warmth.
A warmth that burned—yet also sheltered.
She released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Under the stunned gazes of the Snow Heart Palace and Aetherion Clan members, she squatted down until she was level with Chayrith.
As they gazed into each other's eyes, a strange sensation enveloped them both—an unspoken understanding, a connection forming without words.
Nyssara's icy expression cracked ever so slightly, the faintest trace of curiosity and budding amity appearing on her brow.
The silence stretched for what felt like an eternity before she finally spoke. Her voice was clear and cold, yet beneath the frost lay a subtle warmth.
"Nyssara."
Chayrith blinked a few times. Then a wide, toothy grin split his face.
"Nysa—Nysar—NINI!"
With that resplendent, childish shout, the little girl imprisoned behind a glacier of ice finally melted.