Gardenia’s Heart

Her ears alerted her that Abelia was approaching, but she would never raise her guard against her sister.

Sweat streamed down her face, her trembling rabbit ears betraying the searing pain consuming her mind.

”It’s a shame it had to come to this because of your foolishness. Goodbye, Selene.” The man’s voice carried a chilling emptiness, the transmission cutting off without even waiting for a response.

Selene wanted to curse him with every ounce of strength for what he had done, but just staying on her feet was already draining the last remnants of her strength.

The sensation of warm liquid seeping between her fingers made her shudder. The metallic taste invaded her mouth as she glanced down at her crimson dress, now stained even darker.

”Rgh... Blargh...” She coughed up another thick wave of blood, eyes fixed on the absurd sight before her.

With a bloodstained hand clutching a knife, Abelia stared at her with cold, lifeless eyes. At her side, Cleomel traced a thin cut into the floor with the tip of her spear, while Oliver drew his sword. Even blank expressions could be partially manipulated by muscle movements to simulate emotion. Yet the faces of those three bore no trace of being anything more than empty shells.

Selene had already realized Velmont was several steps ahead the moment Lily noticed he was preparing his plan, but she never expected it to be this overwhelming.

”Damn... This is so fucked up.” Unable to hold back a curse, Selene studied her open wound.

Since the attack had been made with a small fruit knife, her organs hadn’t been damaged enough to kill her instantly from blood loss.

”The spleen... the kidney... and maybe part of the large intestine? You could’ve gone a bit easier on me, Sis...” she muttered, grimacing. Having just one of those wounded would be bad. All of them at once? A disaster.

Her mind raced for options. The rabbit-eared girl wasn’t naive enough to think words would reach them now.

Pressing her hand to her chest, she steadied her breathing. Selene knew the gravity of the situation. She couldn’t hesitate. She had to move.

She leapt to the side just in time to dodge the spear aimed straight for her heart, rolling across the floor of the room.

”Aaaaaaargh!” A guttural scream escaped her lips as searing pain exploded through every nerve, her body dragging along the carpet, leaving a trail of blood behind.

It didn’t matter that not all her organs were damaged. When pain grew so intense that the brain preferred unconsciousness over staying awake, every movement felt like reliving the worst agony imaginable. It was as though her entire body screamed in protest against the strain.

As she struggled to pull herself away from Cleomel, a shadow loomed over her like a solid wall.

In front of her, Oliver swung his sword in a vertical arc, his dull, lifeless eyes seeking nothing but her head.

With her left hand pressed firmly against the wound to slow the bleeding, she used her right and her shoulder to shove herself sideways, sliding under the plush sofa until she hit the central table.

The tremor of the stardust blade piercing deep into the floor echoed around the room.

But Selene had no time to care. Clenching her teeth, she fought to distance herself from the next threat.

Silently apologizing in her heart, the rabbit-eared girl grabbed her sister’s ankles just as Abelia prepared to stab her again, yanking with all her strength and causing Abelia to fall backward onto the table with a crash.

Forcing her aching body to move, Selene planted the tips of her toes firmly on the ground, gripping the sofa with her free hand and hurling herself forward in a desperate burst of motion.

At that very moment, the sofa was split in two by a steel spear.

”Argh!” Struck in the back by shards of wood, Selene grimaced, her clenched teeth muffling the scream that threatened to escape.

Using the momentum, she twisted midair, shielding the left side of her body with her right. Her head jolted violently as her shoulder slammed against the wall, the cry trapped in her throat only because the impact had forced every bit of air from her lungs.

”Aah... aaah...” She coughed repeatedly, gasping for breath while spitting blood from her mouth. It took her only a moment to realize her right shoulder had been dislocated from the blow.

Her pink eyes were blurred beneath disheveled strands of blonde hair, yet she could still make out the three figures who were now closing in on her again.

A sword, a spear, and a knife. All three weapons aimed at the girl collapsed on the floor simultaneously.

And then, a dull explosion echoed through the room.

Where her life should have ended without question, the three assailants were instead pushed back by a wall of vivid green ink.

Her golden hair cascaded down her back as the ribbons tying it unraveled. Struggling to rise on her knees, the girl who could barely use either arm stood, a small trickle of blood running down her forehead.

A faint blue glow now emanated from her mouth, where a stardust brush shimmered between her clenched teeth.

Finally managing to stand fully despite the pain wracking her body, the girl who should have been mercilessly torn apart stared coldly downward.

Moving the stardust brush with her teeth, Selene spread a layer of bubbling, incandescent ink across her wound to block the bleeding.

Yet the most terrifying thing wasn’t what she was doing—it was the fact that she was cauterizing an open wound, without anesthesia, without even moving.

When the wound was sealed, Selene finally removed her hand from it. She pressed her left hand over her right shoulder and, with a single decisive motion, snapped it back into place, restoring the mobility of both arms.

Taking the brush from her mouth, she turned toward the painting on the wall behind her. There was no time for delicacy. With a single flick of her fingers, a dense layer of ink pierced through the canvas and the safe hidden behind it, allowing her to retrieve a single item.

The glass vial bore golden ornaments, and the small amount of glowing green liquid inside shimmered brighter than the room’s lights.

Removing the silver lid, Selene downed the entire potion in one desperate gulp.

Lesser potions could heal minor wounds. Intermediate ones, commonly used by mages, treated non-fatal injuries.

”You know how this single healing potion costs more than my entire mansion, Sis.”

And then there were advanced potions—the kind that could give you a fighting chance against mortal wounds.

The sound of shattering glass echoed as Selene hurled the empty vial to the floor, splintering it into countless shards.

Since the injuries to her organs weren’t too severe, she still had a chance of surviving—so long as she sustained no further wounds before the potion could work its magic.

There was a limit to how much pain she could endure through sheer willpower. Any attempt to remain conscious beyond that threshold would be no different from experiencing pain worse than death itself.

Her breathing was ragged, cold sweat soaking her body. Every inch of her ached enough to make her want to cry, and if even a single attack struck her fully before the potion could take effect, she would be dead.

But for the girl with rabbit ears, none of that mattered.

Her pink eyes watched as her three opponents finished breaking through the wall she had conjured and advanced toward her.

Three against one. She couldn’t have asked for anything better.

”If you wanted this to be a fair fight, you should’ve aimed for my heart, Sis!” A grin spread across her bloodstained lips, not of triumph, but of pure exhilaration.

The girl with rabbit ears lunged forward, raw, overwhelming joy igniting in her chest, born from the sheer challenge she faced amid the chaos.

In response, a black sword sliced through the air with a sharp hiss. The rapid, precise motion aimed to cleave her slender body in two.

Leaping, Selene coated her feet with mana, and with her full weight, stomped down on the flat of Oliver’s sword, driving it into the floor beneath.

Oliver didn’t move—he couldn’t. Trying to wrest the blade free with brute strength was pointless against the crushing force Selene imposed on it.

Without taking her eyes off the swordsman, Selene pointed her stardust brush to her right.

”Devour.”

Without a moment’s delay, the words left her lips, and from the brush’s tip, a rattlesnake surged forward.

The viper, formed from swirling white ink, slithered along Cleomel’s spear, moments away from skewering her, and coiled around her muscles—twisting her neck, elbow, and forearm—forcing her to stumble backward.

A cacophony of destruction filled the room. Whether it was the wooden ceiling or the bookshelf, Cleomel’s mana-imbued spear smashed through everything in its chaotic struggle against the magical serpent.

”This reminds me of when you used to rub my ears, Sis... but you didn’t have a knife back then.” Selene muttered, finally turning toward Abelia, who had been fruitlessly trying to stab her all along.

Continuing to deflect the knife strikes with her left hand, Selene carefully watched her sister’s movements.

Selene wasn’t a physical combat specialist, and though she was on the brink of collapse, she shouldn’t have had this much trouble fending off attacks from a non-combatant like Abelia.

Yet every thrust from the black-haired woman was so heavy, it resembled the strength of a novice mage still mastering their body.

”Even if you don’t realize it, your body is being forced to channel your mana, huh?” Selene narrowed her pink eyes, noticing the faint bluish aura shimmering around Abelia’s hands.

Whether great or small, mana wouldn’t kill a person just by existing in their body. Since Abelia wasn’t casting spells, she wasn’t in danger of burning through her mana reserve all at once. However, Selene knew that someone so inexperienced with mana control, subjected to such strain for too long, couldn’t possibly avoid lasting consequences.

Catching Abelia’s knife in her hand—despite the blade slicing into her palm—Selene wrenched it away and flung it aside. She then shoved her sister back with force, pinning her against the wall with a dense layer of ink.

Before she could stabilize, Selene was forced to step off Oliver’s sword.

”My sister don’t know a single spell, but you do, don’t you?” Selene’s bloodied grin widened, her voice dripping with satisfaction as if savoring every second.

The air trembled. The pressure in the room intensified, and small whirlwinds began to form around the pitch-black blade.

“You’ve grown so fast~,” Selene nearly sang, watching the scene unfold. Simply being in the same room with the forming attack was enough to send shivers through every nerve in her body.

But she couldn’t just admire it—she had to end this quickly.

Wiping the thin line of blood trickling from her forehead before it reached her eyes, she bent her knees until she nearly touched the ground—and then leapt.

The entire room flickered with light.

Perceiving the world upside down as her feet met the ceiling, Selene pushed off again, diving straight toward Oliver.

The boy’s stance faltered, his supporting leg buckling as the girl with rabbit ears gracefully avoided the whirlwinds and, with precise movement, perched herself on his outstretched arms.

“This will hurt me more than it will hurt you.”

With a grim smile that didn’t reach her eyes, Selene twisted beneath his arms, locking them tightly with her own. Then, hanging from him, she hooked both legs around his neck. If she used mana, she could have easily torn his head clean off—but instead, she relied solely on the centripetal force of her spin.

In a blink, she hurled him against the floor with a brutal crash, the impact driving Oliver’s body deep into the wooden planks.

Releasing a weary breath, Selene stood again, her entire body burning and creaking from the force she had just exerted.

“No wonder I can trust Sis with you—you never give up.” She murmured, watching as Cleomel approached, her white ink viper already destroyed.

Selene raised her right arm just as Cleomel’s spear spun, a hardened green ink barrier meeting the thrust head-on. Both fighters staggered back a step before clashing again.

Each of Cleomel’s strikes shattered Selene’s ink barriers like sandcastles, and every new creation the rabbit-eared girl conjured held against the onslaught as though defending against a colossal beast.

“Do you know why I need my brush to use magic?” Selene asked, voice tight as the brutal dance between them continued. Her pink, blurry eyes dilated further.

A mage didn’t need a magically conductive tool to cast spells, yet Selene required her brush. This was not because casting the weakest spell with her mana would produce such minimal results that until she had her stardust brush, she couldn’t use her magic properly.

Certainly not.

In her case, the truth was the exact opposite.

As another clash ended in a stalemate, Selene leapt back. With a swift motion, she tossed the stardust brush into the air, caught it between her teeth, and extended both hands forward.

From her palms, a massive surge of blue aura erupted. In the blink of an eye, an overwhelming cascade of multicolored ink exploded toward the dark-skinned knight.

The devastating blast obliterated the room’s wall, tearing through it and scattering into the school gardens outside.

“That’s because… if I don’t have a way to help me restrain my power, the attacks end up like this,” Selene muttered, voice hoarse as she pulled the brush from her mouth, gazing at Cleomel lying on the ruined floor.

Having immobilized all three opponents, Selene finally allowed herself to glance at the searing burn on her waist. The pain hadn’t lessened, but at least she wasn’t coughing up blood anymore—so she wouldn’t die from it.

Wasting no more time on herself, Selene’s pink eyes swept the entire room.

From what her rival had told her, Velmont needed direct physical contact to create a stigma on someone. Yet none of the three who had attacked her had been touched by that man.

So there shouldn’t be any way they were being controlled.

The way Abelia, Cleomel, and Oliver had been acting didn’t resemble the coordinated behavior described among the prisoners in the mine. Their attacks were crude and exaggerated, as if they’d received only the simplest of orders, increasing their strength only when the previous attack failed.

“We have a big problem!”

A desperate shout echoed as the door burst open, revealing two figures entering the room. One of them, a short-haired man, stepped in with his armor partially shattered, the image of a battle-worn warrior. His shield on his back only reinforced the impression. Yet his expression twisted with unease, and when his eyes scanned the wreckage in the room, he froze.

“You two...”

Ignoring the man’s words, Selene narrowed her eyes at Oliver’s two companions. They hadn’t been controlled.

Oliver’s friends had stayed by his side the entire time. Why were they different? Was it because they were weaker? No—Selene knew Velmont would use everything at his disposal to get to her.

“No... There was a moment...”

Something clicked in her mind. Selene’s gaze dropped to her nephew lying on the floor. There had been only one moment when Oliver’s companions were separated from him.

“When he went to the bank...”

Lily had been with him. She would have noticed if anything obvious had been done. So when could it have happened?

What was the common factor between the three that no one else in the room shared?

“It can’t be!”

The realization sent a surge of adrenaline through her, making her ignore the pain as she shouted.

Shoving her hand into one of Oliver’s pockets, she yanked out a small object.

You needed it to enter the city. You needed it for any basic task—even going to the bank. It could sit in plain sight, and no one would find it strange. In fact, you had to keep it on you, guarding it carefully to avoid losing it.

The small hourglass emitted a faint crimson glow. Its red sand seemed to pulse, drawing the eye of anyone who touched it. The moment it brushed Selene’s skin, her fingers tingled as though the object were trying to dominate her will.

“Bastard,” Selene growled through gritted teeth.

Crushing the visitor’s hourglass in her hand, Selene watched the glow shatter along with the glass. Oliver’s face slowly returned to clarity, his eyes blinking as confusion overtook his features. He shifted, glancing around the destroyed wooden floor.

“A-Aunt...?” Using his elbows and knees, Oliver struggled to lift his aching body from the ground.

“Easy now. You and Cleomel were tough enough that I couldn’t hold back,” Selene muttered, giving his back a few light pats before turning toward Cleomel.

She found the knight still stirring on the ground and wasted no time. Reaching into Cleomel’s pocket, she pulled out another hourglass, shattering it with her fingers.

Just like Oliver, Cleomel’s face twisted in confusion as she stirred, body trembling with exhaustion as her gaze darted around the room—until it fixed on a single spot.

“L-Lady Abelia...”

Selene didn’t need to ask to understand.

Approaching the wall, the rabbit-eared girl gently cupped her sister’s cheek. Abelia strained against her bindings, her whole body struggling to break free from the hardened ink that restrained her.

Sliding her hand toward Abelia’s bag, Selene pulled out the hourglass tucked inside and crushed it, the crimson dust scattering across the floor.

As if a candle had been snuffed out, Abelia’s entire body went limp, her frantic thrashing ceasing as she slumped in place.

Carefully, Selene unraveled the ink binding her and cradled her sister in her arms. For a few seconds, there was nothing but heavy breathing—until Abelia’s obsidian eyes fluttered open, her body too weak to move.

“Selene... your wound... that blood... I—”

Selene pressed her forehead gently against Abelia’s, silencing her.

”It’s okay, it wasn’t your fault.”

Letting out a soft laugh, Selene gently carried her sister over to Cleomel and placed her in her arms.

”But you’ll have to accept my gallery exhibition about you.”

She pressed a single kiss to her sister’s forehead, then gave the group a playful wink before walking toward the door.

Kasa and Davi remained frozen in place, their expressions torn between confusion and the urgency that had brought them here.

”Lady Selene, we have a probl—!”

Selene silenced them with a light tap on their shoulders, her expression hardening.

”I know.”

Only the two of them could see the look in her eyes.

The sound was growing louder by the second, filling the room like a rising storm.

”Oliver!!!” Without turning around, Selene shouted with all her strength.

With a sweeping motion of her black brush, she conjured a barrier of green ink behind her, separating herself from the others.

”While speaking to Velmont over the communication device, I heard the wind howling. There’s only one place in the city where the wind gets that strong, even with the fog—the central district, where his castle stands!”

The clamor behind her swelled further.

Oliver clenched his jaw, understanding without needing to ask anything more. Calling out to his companions, he nodded to Cleomel, and together they leapt through the shattered wall.

”Perhaps... this will be the greatest practical exam ever conducted.”

Her voice faded into the noise. No one answered.

Her golden hair was a mess, her red dress torn and stained. Pain throbbed through her entire body, and she felt as though she could collapse at any moment.

But none of that mattered now.

From this point forward, it would be a solo performance.

Over a hundred students of the Mage Academy surged up the staircase, faces void of expression, hands glowing with spells prepared to strike.

”With my family to protect behind me... how could I possibly retreat?”

Spinning the stardust brush between her fingers, a defiant, bloodstained smile stretched across Selene’s lips.

”I may be a fool, but sometimes, even a younger sister has to show off!”