At the inn near the Fergus Family residence, Liu Yu secured a room for the night under her family's name and settled Gaia in.
"Gaia, I must go now," she said naturally, cupping his face and placing a kiss on his forehead. "May the gods bless you."
The fragrance of roses filled the night air.
The young man's eyes were bound with white silk, and he sat quietly at the table as purple lilacs bloomed outside the window. Before leaving, Liu Yu couldn't resist glancing back.
Just moments ago, she had foolishly felt it cruel to leave this innocent young man alone in the world.
After all, he was a god, capable of creating and destroying worlds.
Liu Yu strode out of the inn.
"Miss Beiliya."
The coachman drove the carriage over.
Liu Yu lightly jumped onto the carriage:
"Back to the Fergus Family."
It was close to midnight, and the earth was asleep, with only the streetlights still glowing.
The Fergus Family residence was located at the end of Damp Street in the eastern part of the city, a three-story white-walled, pointed-roofed building. In front of the building was a beautiful garden filled with unknown flowers.
The coachman drove the carriage to the stables, while Liu Yu lifted her skirt and walked through the garden.
She strolled along the garden path.
The tension in her nerves eased with the night breeze. She stopped, found a hidden spot, and sat down—the tall shrubs concealing her shadow.
Liu Yu didn't want to face the strangers in the house yet: her unfamiliar mother, step-sister, and servants.
She stared blankly at the sky.
Compared to the smog-filled northern capital, the sky of Elven Continent was exceptionally clean, like a giant sapphire dotted with diamonds and a silver crescent moon.
"Not a full moon," she mused.
But a full or crescent moon held no meaning for her.
She had no home.
Adopted at three, abandoned at ten, and returned to the orphanage.
Back then, she had cried and asked the headmistress, "If there are gods in this world, why don't they listen to my prayers? Why did my parents abandon me? I was so good, so very good."
The headmistress had told her, "The gods are too busy. They can't take care of everyone. Maybe you'll have to wait a very, very long time before they hear and see you."
From then on, she stopped waiting.
She wouldn't place her hopes on others, only on herself.
What she wanted, she would only strive to achieve herself.
Crickets chirped in the grass, and one even jumped onto the chair beside her, its black eyes "looking" at her before quickly hopping away.
Liu Yu slowly smoothed out the wrinkles in her skirt and stood up.
She walked through the path, up to the terrace. The house was brightly lit, and the stained glass windows cast a soft, beautiful light.
The door on the first floor was wide open, with no one inside.
The fireplace crackled with a warm blaze, and the heat enveloped her as soon as she entered. On the table were half-eaten pastries and bread.
Liu Yu's stomach growled.
With her anxiety eased, she felt the hunger. She picked up a baguette and took a bite, nearly breaking her teeth—it was inedible.
Liu Yu regretfully tossed it aside. She walked to the staircase; if she remembered correctly, the kitchen should be behind it: Natasi often worked there wearing an apron.
Before she reached the door, she heard two low whispers of complaint.
"Damn it! Miss Beiliya hasn't returned from her wild escapades."
"Maggie, it's normal for nobles to party all night."
“Miss Natasi would never do that! Poor Miss Natasi, ever since Mr. Leonard left, she has become a neglected little thing…”
“Shh, I heard that Mr. Leonard was killed by his wife and her lover, just so they could inherit his estate.”
“...Oh, poor Mr. Leonard, oh my poor Miss Natasha, she is so unfortunate...”
"Meow—"
A sharp cat's cry suddenly broke the silence of the night.
The whispering servants were startled. When they turned around, they saw a dark shadow outside the kitchen:
"Who?! Who's there?!"
When the golden hair brighter than gold came into view, the servants visibly relaxed, but soon their faces turned pale, as if they had seen a ghost:
"Miss Beiliya?! Why, why are you here?"
Liu Yu bent down and picked up the black cat that was meowing at her feet, her cherry blossom-like lips curling up.
"Did my mother kill Uncle Leonard? Oh, I should really call the temple's priests to see this. My mother must have divine powers to control the storms at sea."
Natasi's father had died in a storm while doing business at sea.
The book was vague about this, and Liu Yu couldn't be sure of the truth. But there were rumors that Natasi's stepmother had conspired with her lover to kill her husband for his inheritance—
However, since she was now Beiliya, she naturally denied it until the truth was clear.
Liu Yu's gaze landed on the staircase, where a piece of skirt was visible, and a slim shadow hid in the dark.
The servants looked awkward:
"Yes, yes, Miss Beiliya is right."
"Prepare some thin pancakes and bake some bread. I'm hungry."
Liu Yu arrogantly lifted her chin and said, "Furthermore, do not let me hear you speak such words again, otherwise, I, Belia Fergus, will have no choice but to send you to Sauron Prison for a while."
"Yes, yes..."
The servants were silent, trembling.
Today, Miss Fergus hadn't thrown anything or lost her temper, but she was a hundred times more terrifying. Especially when she smiled and said she would "dock half a month's wages," it made them shiver.
Liu Yu took the black cat to the living room.
The skirt behind the staircase disappeared.
She decided to change first; the petticoat was too tight, and this cat...
She met its gaze.
If she remembered correctly, it had just bitten Natasi's grey sparrow to death this morning?
That grey sparrow was no ordinary bird.
No, it was ordinary before. It was just a common grey sparrow, saved by the kind Natasi on a cold winter night.
But then, when the God of Light descended in error.
He was careless in creating his avatar and even more careless in sending it. A mistake occurred midway.
Memories turned into glass beads, and the divine power that should have belonged to Gaia arrived three days early, attaching itself to the grey sparrow—
Even if this divine power was less than a billionth of the God of Light's vast power, it was enough for the human world.
The grey sparrow gained divine power, becoming sentient.
Grateful for Natasi's lifesaving grace and moved by her kindness and misery, she became her "fairy godmother."
It used its divine power to create the most beautiful dresses, the most luxurious golden carriages, and even nourished her less-than-perfect face, making everyone fall for her.
The prince became her admirer.
Compared to Natasi, the original Beiliya was more like a troublemaker, and Liu Yu was now facing a sieve full of holes: if she didn't fill them, the holes would fill her.
"Meow meow meow—"
The black cat didn't know the trouble it had caused, still innocently blinking at her.
Liu Yu began to consider the possibility of taking the "grey sparrow" for herself. Her high heels clicked on the spiral staircase, making crisp sounds.
Suddenly, she felt the black cat's fur stand on end, its four paws tense, and its throat growling threateningly at the air.
A grey sparrow appeared out of thin air, diving toward her at high speed. The wind from its wings blew the crystal chandelier, making "tinkling" noises.
"Bang—"
A painting on the staircase fell.
“Chirp chirp! Come back!”
Natasi panicked and poked her head out from the third floor.
Liu Yu quickly grabbed the railing to avoid being blown over.
The black cat silently jumped out of her arms, baring its teeth.
"Beiliya!" At that moment, a shrill voice nearly pierced her eardrums, "Oh, my dear Beiliya, are you alright?"
"Maggie, Tina, hurry up and catch that damn bird!"
A fiery red figure rushed over and hugged Liu Yu tightly.
She was dressed in an immodest manner, her red silk robe's belt left undone, exposing a large expanse of her fair skin. Barefoot, she threw herself into Liu Yu's arms, enveloping him completely.
Liu Yu's face was pressed firmly against the woman's body, and the strong scent of roses filled her nostrils—
It was fragrant and warm.
She was a bit dazed:
"Mother?"
"Oh, my Beiliya," she first gently stroked the girl's head, but soon her expression turned fierce as she shouted towards the ceiling, "Natasi! Natasi! Oh, damn it!"
Natasi came down in a panic, her small face as pale as a ghost:
"Jiujiu, Jiujiu didn't mean it! Please forgive him!"
She seemed terrified, her legs trembling.
Liu Yu patted the woman who was holding her tightly:
"Let me go."
Mrs. Fergus had a strikingly beautiful face, though fine lines had begun to appear at the corners of her eyes. Still, she retained her charm. She gently released Beiliya and "scurried" over to Natasi, slapping her across the face—
"Damn it! I've told you before, take care of your bird!"
"This beast dared to hurt my Beili! You wait, this time I'm going to pluck all its feathers and make soup!"
Natasi covered her face and screamed:
"No! I won't let you hurt him!"
The servants waved bamboo poles, desperately trying to hit the grey-spotted bird in mid-air.
The grey-spotted bird flapped its wings, dodging left and right.
"You won't? You lowly commoner, this is the Fergus Family's house, what right do you have to say no?"
Mrs. Fergus slowly approached Natasi.
She reached out her hand to slap her again, but was stopped midway—
Mrs. Fergus looked at her beloved daughter in confusion, her voice softening:
"Beiliya, what's wrong with you?"
Natasi also widened her eyes, curiously looking at her step-sister.
"Natasi."
Liu Yu slowly spoke, her gaze fixed on the tiny black eyes of the grey-spotted bird, "You don't want Jiujiu to get hurt, do you?"
In truth, the servants couldn't possibly hit the grey-spotted bird, but it seemed to have taken a liking to her, constantly flapping its wings around her—as if something about her was attracting it.
Liu Yu thought it over and could only attribute it to the memory bead.
Natasi nodded:
"Yes, Beiliya sister, please let Jiujiu go, okay? He really didn't mean it."
Liu Yu's eyes curved into a crescent moon, and when they fell on others, her azure blue eyes seemed like a gentle sea:
"Of course, no problem at all."
The girl bent down, enveloping the other in her shadow, the arc of her lips both wicked and enchanting:
"Natasi, give Jiujiu to me, and I will never harm my own things."
Natasi's smile froze:
"Beiliya... sister?"
"What, unwilling? Or do you think... Beiliya sister... would go back on her word?"
"No," Natasi lowered her eyes, her tender little feet curling nervously, "Jiujiu won't want to, he only eats what I feed him."
"And if he's willing?"
"Then... then I'll give him to sister."
In no time, Liu Yu returned to her room with the grey-spotted bird.
Natasi bit her lip, watching, thinking: Why? Jiujiu wasn't supposed to like me the most? Beiliya sister already has so much, why does she have to take away the little happiness I have left?
"Louis."
Natasi, barefoot, walked up to the attic, moving in the darkness.
A pale man silently enveloped her from behind.
"I only have you left."
Natasi sobbed softly, "Why, Mother, Father, even Jiujiu, one by one, they all leave Natasi? Is it because Natasi is not good enough?"
The vampire duke's pale hand caressed her cheek:
"No, my noble princess, you deserve all the best things in the world. I will take them back for you."
He reverently kissed the back of her hand.
"Then, Louis, do you think... sister is beautiful?"
Natasi, timidly and self-consciously looked up, then lowered her head, "Sorry, Natasi shouldn't have asked."
Her filthy, stinking, desire-filled blood, how can it compare to yours?
The vampire's fangs easily pierced the tender skin of the girl's neck, "My dear Natasi."
