Two hours had passed since Lizzy and Revanio arrived at the Calyx family's hidden refuge. The two of them waited in a suffocating silence, longing for any message from Morgana. Anxiety pressed on their chests like an invisible weight.
Lizzy couldn't understand how they were handling the chaos she had caused outside. The uncertainty only made her guilt churn deeper, tightening in her stomach like a cold knot.
She should have listened to Revanio — should have stayed quiet when he told her to. She should have trusted Morgana and Revanio more. After all, not even once had this family shown her hatred or suspicion. Their kindness was so sincere it ached in her chest, so gentle it made her want to weep.
And eventually… she did.
After holding it in for far too long, Lizzy's tears finally spilled over. She cried because she was afraid, and cried again because she was overwhelmed by the kindness the Calyx family had shown her.
"I—I'm sorry…" she whispered, her voice trembling. It was the second time Lizzy had cried in front of Revanio. It felt embarrassingly vulnerable… yet she truly couldn't stop herself.
The long-haired young man exhaled slowly. He watched Lizzy, her shoulders slumped, tears streaming down her face. At least he could understand why she broke down. Anyone would be confused — terrified — if they were in her shoes.
She had been thrown into this planet against her will, then instantly branded a monster simply because she had black hair. If he had been the one in her place… Revanio might have done something far worse.
"I'm sorry…" Lizzy sobbed again, this time louder, her words broken by hiccups. "I didn't… hiks… I didn't mean to… cause trouble… hiks… for all of you…" Her stuffy nose made it difficult to breathe as she forced the words out. "I really… hiks… really am… sorry…"
Her apology was met with silence — long, heavy, and uncertain. Revanio watched her quietly, saying nothing for more than ten minutes. Not because he didn't care… but because he didn't know what to say. Unlike Morgana, Revanio wasn't good with comforting words. He had no idea how to soothe someone else's pain.
"…It's all my fault. I'm really sorry…"
Revanio parted his lips, finally trying to speak — but before he could, a winged scroll suddenly fluttered into existence before him. He caught it, and the wings vanished, leaving behind an ordinary roll of paper. Recognizing it as Morgana's spell, he immediately unrolled it.
A faint smile ghosted across his lips when he finished reading. "My mother and sister are safe. You don't have to apologize."
At those words, light slowly returned to Lizzy's eyes. She turned to him with fragile hope, her voice soft yet trembling. "R-Really? They're okay? Everything's really okay…?" She inched closer, trying to peek at the message in Revanio's hand.
"The chaos in the city has calmed down," Revanio explained gently. "It'll take time before the city fully recovers… but for now, you'll stay here. Mother and I will take turns watching over you."
Revanio quickly rolled the paper before Lizzy could see more of it. Lizzy's gaze shifted from the scroll to Revanio's warm hazelnut eyes.
"Was… was anyone hurt?" she asked timidly. "I was scared back there… I thought I might've lost control and—hurt someone."
"Relax. No one died," Revanio assured lightly. "At worst, a few broken bones."
Still, guilt washed over her. The self-defense skills she'd spent years learning suddenly felt like weapons she didn't deserve to wield.
"You were only protecting yourself," Revanio added, as if reading her mind. "There's no need to feel guilty. Anyway… I need to go now. Stay here. I'll be back."
He slipped the scroll into his pocket and turned to leave — only to freeze when he felt a tug on the hem of his clothes.
"W–wait… can't you tell me?" Lizzy pleaded. "What exactly happened? How did you fix everything? Please… this concerns me too. I deserve to know."
Revanio paused. Then, quietly, he explained everything — Morgana's plan, the deception, the tricks they used to fool the entire city.
"It worked," Revanio said softly. "You're safe now. But I need to return before they notice anything strange about my mother and sister's disguise."
Lizzy's eyes widened in disbelief. So they had used a doll — one that looked exactly like her — to fool the citizens.
"Then… what happened to the doll that looked like me?" Lizzy whispered. If it hadn't been replaced, she would've been the one out there…
Revanio looked away.
"They took it to the town square… and burned it. With black fire."
THUD.
Lizzy's heart dropped. Her entire body went cold. A final execution. Without trial. Without a single chance to speak. A death sentence delivered instantly.
Her breath faltered. Her throat tightened painfully.
"They won't find you here," Revanio said softly. "So don't go anywhere. If you leave… you might end up like that doll."
After giving his warning, Revanio finally left her alone.
Lizzy's legs gave out. She collapsed onto the floor, trembling. She didn't even have the strength to walk the mere three steps to the nearby chair. And then… she cried again. She no longer knew what her future would be. This planet… this world… it felt like it had never been meant for her.
"Brother… I want to go home…" Curling into herself, face buried between her knees, Lizzy's quiet sobs filled the small room — aching, fragile, and unbearably lonely.
⊱⋅ ────◇✦◇──── ⋅⊰
Hours passed.
Lizzy's eyes were swollen from crying. She sat on the floor, hugging her knees in complete exhaustion. Her grief extended even to her once long, black hair — now scattered pitifully across the floor.
During her breakdown, Lizzy began to blame everything on her black hair. She hated it — resented it — for bringing her so much misfortune.
So when she found a knife on the table…
Lizzy grabbed it and cut her long black hair off. Now it hung in messy, uneven strands around her shoulders. But Lizzy no longer cared.
A door creaked open behind her. Footsteps approached. Then—
"A g-ghost?!"
Lizzy turned weakly toward the voice. She recognized it instantly. "Milliane…" she croaked.
Realizing the 'ghost' was actually Lizzy, Milliane gasped. "Lizzy! What happened to your hair?!"
Lizzy picked up a handful of her fallen black strands. "I cut it… It only brought me bad luck," she murmured.
"Hmph. Foolish." A low scoff cut through the room. When Lizzy turned toward the voice, she realized it was Revanio. She hadn't sensed his presence at all when he slipped in behind Milliane.
Without a word, he sat down, casually placing a glass bottle of potion and a small paper pouch on the table. "Hair and eye colors can be altered with this. You didn't need to cut yours," he said, as though it were the most trivial problem in the world.
Lizzy's mind stalled.
What? What did he just say?
"Why didn't you say that earlier?!" Lizzy shrieked, her entire being vibrating with the urge to hurl every insult she knew at him.
Revanio shrugged. "You never asked. Besides, I doubt your world has tools like these." He tilted his head, genuinely curious.
His unbearably calm attitude only made Lizzy want to scream. He acted as if none of this had any weight, as if her tears and panic and impulsive haircut were mere background noise.
Lizzy gritted her teeth. "Grr… My world does have things like that! I just didn't think this world had it too!" she snapped back.
"Then you should've asked before acting," he replied flatly.
Lizzy was just about to leap forward and yank Revanio's loosely tied hair with all her strength — but Milliane rushed in, grabbing both of Lizzy's hands before she could commit murder.
"It's okay, Lizzy. You still look beautiful even without long hair," Milliane said with a bright smile that could melt iron. The little girl was astonishingly good at comforting others.
"Let me fix it for you. Mom says I'm actually very good at this—even if I'm still little."
Lizzy's anger simply… evaporated. She could only nod meekly and let Milliane neaten the uneven strands of her hair. Despite her embarrassment, she stayed obediently still.
Revanio, meanwhile, acted as though nothing dramatic had happened. He set the food he had brought onto the table and arranged it with lazy precision — clearly unbothered by the chaos he caused. Lizzy, despite herself, felt a pang of guilt. Her heart was too soft; she couldn't stay angry at him for long.
Once Milliane was done trimming Lizzy's hair, she explained how to use the potion to change eye color and how to mix the powdered dye from Revanio's pouch. So the bottle and paper pouch Revanio had brought were all meant to help Lizzy — not frighten her.
"Do you want to try it now?" Milliane asked, her smile warm and hopeful as always.
Lizzy hesitated, then nodded. She let Milliane handle the hair dye while she prepared the potion for her eyes. A few drops into water caused the mixture to crystallize into a translucent shape — forming an iris that resembled contact lenses in Lizzy's world.
The process felt magical, almost sacred.
After they applied everything, Milliane's entire face lit up. Now Lizzy looks fresher with shoulder-length red hair, and hazelnut eyes that make her facial features look softer.
"Wow! Lizzy, you look so pretty!" Milliane cheered, clapping her hands.
Lizzy shyly scratched her cheek. She had never liked short hair — it always made her look too boyish, and Deborah used to mock her endlessly for it. But hearing Milliane's sincere admiration… it didn't seem so bad anymore.
"R–really?" she murmured.
Milliane nodded enthusiastically. "Really! You're beautiful!" She beamed. "Let's ask Brother too!"
Before Lizzy could protest, Milliane pushed her toward the living area where Revanio was wiping a glass at the dining table. "Brother! Look! Lizzy is super pretty now, right?"
Lizzy froze awkwardly as Revanio flicked his gaze toward her. He stared for a moment, then returned to cleaning the glass.
"That's better," he said simply. "You won't be mistaken for a dangerous monster now. Keep that appearance while you're on Planet Laurel Zero Five."
His tone was painfully flat.
"Tch. You could've said that in a nicer way," Lizzy grumbled as she sat at the far side of the table. Her stomach rumbled loudly — she had barely eaten since yesterday's chaotic events.
Beside her, Milliane giggled. "You two are very close," she said innocently.
"You're wrong!" Lizzy protested.
"That's not true," Revanio objected at the exact same time.
Milliane blinked at the synchronized denial, then smiled knowingly. She watched them for a moment, eyes full of meaning, before sitting down with them for a meal. The room soon filled with Milliane's chirpy storytelling — sharing her experience pretending to be Morgana — while Lizzy laughed and Revanio occasionally responded with dry commentary.
Half an hour slipped by quickly.
"How long do I have to stay here?" Lizzy asked after clearing up the extra supplies Revanio had brought.
"The hideout is far from Glorius City," Revanio explained. "After a Silver Sibling Moon event, citizens aren't allowed outside the gates. And since a Black Gate also appeared yesterday… the kingdom will need time to confirm the city's safety."
Lizzy's shoulders drooped. She might be stuck here for weeks.
The hideout was cozy, designed like a small house — but Lizzy felt suffocated not being able to see the sky. In her world, she would go jogging every morning before school. Here, she couldn't do any of that.
"It may take three to five weeks," Revanio continued. "So be patient. Once you're allowed to leave, you'll act as our distant relative. Behave properly, understand?"
Lizzy had no better plan — no idea how to survive alone in this world. So even if it meant pretending to be Revanio's cousin, she had no choice but to follow the Calyx family's plan.
After all… they were the only ones who protected her. The only ones who didn't fear her. The only ones who welcomed her.
"…Alright. I'll behave," Lizzy said quietly. Her acceptance made Revanio smirk with satisfaction, while Milliane hugged her tightly in joy.
"Yeay! That means Lizzy is officially part of the Calyx Family!" Milliane exclaimed.
And so, Lizzy spent the next three weeks hidden away. During that time, Revanio, Morgana, and Milliane took turns visiting her and bringing her food. When Lizzy asked how she could repay their kindness, Morgana simply said Lizzy could work at her magic-item shop once she was allowed outside.
That answer made Lizzy impatient in a different way. She didn't want to be a burden on this generous family. If there was anything — anything — she could do to repay them, she would.
And deep inside, Lizzy also longed to finally see the world again. She still hadn't seen the true beauty of Planet Laurel Zero Five.
She hoped that when she stepped outside again… the world would welcome her with kinder eyes.