"But the forest goddess, she must be yearning for her identity. She must feel like a stranger," Meera asked, confused.
"That's the point," the forest goddess explained. "Genia lived in the human world for so many years. She adopted the customs there, assimilated the thinking there and accepted that world as her reality. For her, that apartment, that city, and that simple life were her truth."
The Forest Goddess took a deep breath and continued, "If I suddenly tell her that she is a Beast-World spirit, that her existence is connected to this magical world, she will not be able to bear the shock. Her mind will refuse to accept it. She will feel betrayed."
Mara said, lost in thought, "So will she remain in this illusion forever?"
"No," the forest goddess said, smiling. "Truth can be suppressed, but it cannot be erased. As she grows closer to these brothers, as she experiences the magic of this world, her buried memories will slowly awaken. She will know the truth when she is mentally and emotionally capable of handling it."
After listening to everything the forest goddess said, Mara breathed a sigh of relief, but there was still a fear in her mind. She said, "But the Forest Goddess, the leader of the White Tiger Clan, and his mate... they are dangerous. If they find out Genia's true identity, they will try to use her as a weapon."
A glint flashed in the forest goddess's eyes, a mixture of warning and conviction.
"Genia isn't a weapon, Mara. She's the link that can reunite this broken family. She is the light that will dispel the darkness of the Black Tiger Clan. We just have to let her find her own path."
Mara bowed her head and said, "As you say, Forest Goddess."
The forest goddess looked at the bowl again, but this time she did not summon any visions from it. She looked only into the depths of the waters, where the lines of fate were entangled.
"The game has begun," she whispered. "And this time, the pieces are making their own moves."
***
Here, in Kevin's palace, Genia was now back in her room. She looked out the window, where the moonlight silvered the forest trees. She looked at the blue feather in his palm.
Just then, she heard footsteps outside the room. The sound was very faint, almost nonexistent, but as a Rabbit-Beast, her hearing was now very heightened. She held her breath.
Someone was standing behind the door. He was breathing—heavy and hot, like the breath of a large predator.
Genia slowly placed her hand on a small wooden stick kept near the bed.
"Who is there?" she asked in a harsh voice.
There was no response from outside, but she felt the man watching her. A gaze that wanted to completely capture her.
Suddenly, a deep and velvety voice echoed, "Go to sleep, Genia. The night is getting dark, and the hunters of the forest have woken up."
Genia's hair stood on end. It was Alex's voice.
"What are you doing here, Alex? Don't you remember my condition?" she asked, though her heart raced.
But then she remembered that both Alex and Kevin had been invited by his elder brother, the clan's leader. So they quickly finished their meal and went to meet their elder brother.
Genia hadn't expected him to return so quickly. She further asked, "You went to visit your elder brother, right? How come you're back so soon?"
Alex did not open the door, but his voice now felt closer, as if he was talking from across the wall. He replied, "I remember the bet. I didn't come in. I was just making sure you were safe. And as for returning so soon, our elder brother had called us together to protect the clan. But that discussion ended quickly. That's why Kevin and I came back so early. It's late; you should go to sleep. Good night, Genia."
Saying this, Alex left from there.
When Alex left, Genia breathed a sigh of relief, but a question arose in her mind. Why was Alex, who always maintained his dignity and distance, standing outside her room secretly? Was it just protection, or something more? She looked toward the window, where the blue bird had returned.
The bird chirped once and disappeared into the darkness.
Genia closed her eyes. She knew the future would be even more challenging. On one side was Kevin's passion, on the other, Alex's secret, and the cruel shadow of their elder brother loomed over them. But she wasn't afraid anymore. She was in a world where strength wasn't just about muscles, but about mind and heart. And Genia had both.
"Let's see who wins," she said to herself and fell into a deep sleep, while a new storm was brewing in the forest outside.
The silence of the night sank deep within the palace walls. Outside, the sound of forest crickets created a rhythmic noise, but the silence within the palace was like the sound of an approaching storm.
Genia was fast asleep in her room. Her breathing was slow and regular. She was completely unaware that the secret of her soul was the subject of discussion in a celestial palace high above the clouds. To her, the world was still a puzzle, one she was slowly trying to unravel.
But in two different rooms of the palace, two hunters were awake.
Kevin paced restlessly in his room. His footsteps echoed on the marble floor. He looked out the window, where the moonlight touched the treetops. He took a deep breath and stroked a silk cloth on the table with his fingers.
"Genia…" He said her name softly, as if it were a sacred mantra. There was a strange gleam in his golden eyes—a passion that wouldn't let him rest. "She can't be attracted to Alex. Alex is a stone. Cold, lifeless, and dull. She needs excitement; she needs the fire that only I can give."
Kevin suddenly stopped and clenched his fists. The scene of Genia praising Alex kept replaying in his mind. The thought alone burned him to the core. "I'll give her everything she's never imagined. Every precious diamond, every rare flower in the world, will be at her feet. Just once… just once she should look me in the eyes and say she loves me."
He sighed heavily and collapsed onto the bed, but his eyes stared at the ceiling. Sleep was far from him.
At the same time, at the other end of the palace, Alex was standing on his balcony. His hands were clasped behind his back, and his gaze pierced the depths of the dark forest. His posture was steady, but his mind was a whirlwind of thoughts.
Alex closed his eyes. Genia's words about Mara—Kevin's mother—ringed in his ears.
"She was talking about mother as if she knew her," Alex whispered to himself. His voice was as cold as ice. He furrowed his brows. That name was rarely used in this palace.
His mother, Mara, was a witch along with the Beast. This secret was known only to him among his four brothers, and his mother, Mara, made him promise to keep it a secret, but she died years ago. How could any outsider, and especially a girl from the Monkey-Clan, talk about them so casually?
"The chances are zero that she's met him. Still, there was a truth in her words that couldn't be denied."
Alex opened his eyes. There was no love in his eyes now, but a deep curiosity and suspicion. He was attracted to Genia, but his rational mind was warning him.
"Genia, who are you? And what are you looking for here? Are you on a secret mission, or is there a secret hidden behind your memories that could shake the foundations of the entire Black Tiger Clan?"
He gave a cold smile. Alex loved solving mysteries. "I'll let you speak on your own terms, Genia. But I won't take my eyes off you. Your every move, your every smile, and your every silence will now be under my watch."
He made a slight gesture in the air and sent an invisible magical thread in the direction of Genia's room. He didn't want to hurt her, but he wanted to feel the ebb and flow of her energy. He was taught magic by his mother Mara because he had insisted that she should also teach him magic.
Upon his insistence, Mara taught him magic but also warned him not to practice it in front of anyone. If he did this again, it could endanger his life.
Alex accepted everything he said, but he could not stop himself from asking his questions. Like whether the other mothers have magic like hers, and what kind of magic they have. And whether the four brothers have magic like hers.
Seeing his question, Mara told him that all four sisters had different magic, but he would know about all of them in detail when he grows up, and those four brothers also have a part of that magic, but they do not know how to use it yet. First they have to learn to use it, and then they can use that magic.
However, they all died before Alex could learn how to use his magic from them.
***
The next morning, when the first rays of the sun touched the windows of the palace, Genia woke up with a long yawn. Her ears twitched slightly—a natural reaction to her new body. She looked out the window, where dewdrops glittered like pearls on the grass.
After getting ready, she went straight to the garden where Alex often stayed alone in the morning.
Alex was standing under an old banyan tree, studying some ancient texts.
As soon as he heard Genia's footsteps, he said without raising his head, "There is a different kind of curiosity in your gait today, Genia."
Genia smiled and moved closer to him and said, "Your hearing is really amazing, Alex. Or maybe you were waiting for me?"
Alex closed the book and turned to her. His deep eyes studied Genia's face. He said, "I'm not in the habit of waiting. I only look at the results."
Genia took a small detour and then stopped in front of him. With a feigned innocence in her eyes, she said, "Then consider why I'm here."
Alex raised an eyebrow and said, "Tell me."
"I want to go to your area," Genia said simply. "I mean, the part that's under your control. I've seen the dazzling sights of Kevin's palace here, but I heard your area is quieter, the architecture is different, and the forests are more mysterious."
A wave of suspicion crossed Alex's eyes. He asked, "Where did this sudden curiosity come from?"