Chapter Two: When Something Begins to Awake
After a few minutes…
Lily pushed the front door open quietly, as if the night was still clinging to her clothes. Then she climbed the stairs with weary steps, carrying something inside her she refused to admit.
And the moment she reached her room, she threw herself onto the bed, as though everything that had happened moments ago had returned to press into her chest once again.
She closed her eyes…
And a small smile slipped onto her lips—a smile she couldn't stop no matter how hard she tried—while her thoughts spun chaotically around an encounter she never expected… and still didn't fully understand.
The next morning—
Lily woke to the faint light seeping through her window. She washed her face, trying to dispel the remnants of the night clinging to her heart, then brushed her teeth slowly, as if preparing to face a new day unlike any morning before.
When she began descending the stairs, the house felt quieter than usual, yet the scent of breakfast filled the air, restoring a fragment of the comfort she had lost for years.
The maid stood by the table, having prepared everything with care, and her brother was seated, waiting for her, looking at her with his usual half-smile.
She paused for a moment at the last step… gazing at them as if they were a warm scene in a world filled with shadows.
Then she said in a soft voice:
Good morning.
Ken looked at his sister Lily and tilted his head slightly, raising a brow as if something had suddenly caught his attention, and said:
"My dear older sister…
You seem very energetic today. Did you and Aldric make up? Is he my brother-in-law again? Well then… when's the wedding?"
Lily walked toward him with calm steps, then lifted her hand and lightly smacked his head, as if trying to bring him back to reality. Her voice carried both annoyance and affection as she said:
What are you even thinking? No, I haven't made up with Aldric yet… and I don't want to. So don't call him your brother-in-law again,
alright?
She pulled out a chair and sat down slowly, resting her elbow slightly on the table as she looked at him with a faint smile that hid far too much behind it:
Anyway… what about you? Have you found a suitable girl?
At that moment, Lauren glanced at them while she was pouring juice,her focus on her task, yet her eyes followed their conversation with quiet concern before she spoke in a tone that blended firmness with warmth:
Alright… you two shouldn't be late for school, so save this conversation for another time.
Now… eat your breakfast.
Then she turned toward Lily, as if a question had been lodged in her chest all night, and asked slowly:
"By the way, Lily… did anything strange happen to you? Or did someone try to talk to you… I mean, anything unrealistic… like wanting to train you to become a hunter or a strong warrior?
Lily raised a brow, staring at Lauren as if trying to read what lay behind those words, then said:
"Is there even someone like that in this small town?
No, nothing happened to me, and no one talked to me. Why are you asking? That's a very strange question.
Lauren gave a small smile, though tension was clearly woven into it, and said:
"Well, my little one… don't take it too seriously. Still… I hope you'll talk to me if anything strange happens to you, alright?"
Lily simply nodded quietly… without saying a single word, as if something in her heart had not yet found the courage to surface.
Lily looked at Lauren and exhaled slowly before speaking in a voice that carried a hint of determination:
"Lauren… where is my father's book?
The book he used to read stories to me from.
I searched for it everywhere… all over the house, and I couldn't find it.
Do you know where it is?"
Lauren stopped moving, then looked at Lily with a complicated expression, as if the words had gotten stuck in her throat for a moment, before she finally spoke after a long sigh:
"All right… I know where it is.
However… you are not suitable to read it right now.
So… I hid it from you."
Lily lifted her head quickly, but Lauren continued before giving her a chance to protest:
"Still… why do you want to read that book?
It's useless… just ordinary pages.
Did someone ask you to bring it to them?"
Lily blinked slowly and looked at Lauren, her voice carrying a faint tremor as she said:
"No… no one asked me for the book.
Then she raised her brow, her voice tinged with a quiet anger:
"What do you mean I'm not suitable to read my father's storybook?
You have no right to stop me from reading it.
So… give me the book."
Lauren gave a small, faint smile—one carrying something Lily couldn't quite understand—before she said:
"Sorry… but you have no right to read this book.
At least… not until I see that you've become ready for it.
Your heart is still truly unsettled, and even now, you haven't fully accepted the loss of your parents.
So… I will not hand you the book."
She then continued with a light, teasing sarcasm, giving Lily a small wink:
"And if you don't like that… well, you can file a complaint against me if you want.
Now, my little one… eat your breakfast and head to school.
Anyway… that book will eventually belong to either you or Ken in the end.
Lily let out a deep sigh, as though something heavy had settled in her chest, then said in a soft voice:
"I just want… to know the ending of the witch and her family's story.
And whether the shadow the witch's daughters saw was real…?
Please, beautiful Lauren… tell me.
Were the shadows real? Or just the girl's imagination?
And what happened to them? Where did they go after leaving the forest?
And did they become immortal… just as the witch wished?
I really… want to know the full story.
Okay?
Tell me… and I promise I won't ask about the book again.
Lauren exhaled slowly, as if Lily's words had weighed heavily on her heart, before she spoke in a calm tone:
"Lily… I don't know what you're talking about.
I don't enjoy reading stories, so I don't know anything about it."
Then she gestured toward the plate in front of Lily:
"Come on… eat your breakfast now and go to school.
Everything will happen at the right time.
You'll live your own life… and you'll learn what you need to know when the time comes.
Anyway… I don't think you'll ever need to know any of that."
She smiled gently this time and continued:
"I think you'll live a life like any ordinary girl…
You'll graduate from high school…
Then you'll go to university…
And you'll marry a man who loves you…
And you'll have many children.
So… forget all those fantasy tales your father used to tell you.
Live your life… like any girl your age.
You don't have to be extraordinary.
Being extraordinary… means you'll lose a lot. And be of less worth than an ordinary person.
After a few minutes…
Lily put on her school coat and slowly pulled her bag over her shoulder, while Ken stood by the door tying his shoes with a hurried frustration that didn't quite hide his annoyance.
Ken glanced at her from the corner of his eye and said:
"Are you going to stay silent the whole way too? That's really annoying, sis."
Lily didn't respond. She merely adjusted her scarf around her neck, then opened the door, letting the cold morning air seep into the hallway. The air carried a faint scent of rain, as if reminding her that the day might be hiding events she never expected.
She and Ken walked side by side along the stone path leading to the main road. Their footsteps matched naturally, even in silence, as though they had grown used to this morning rhythm for years.
After a moment… Ken spoke in a light tone:
"You know, what Lauren said earlier… it sounded really strange."
Lily paused for a second, then continued walking without looking back:
"She's just overthinking… nothing is happening to me."
But her eyes—hidden from him—held a small flicker of doubt… a question she wasn't ready to face yet.
Ken continued, looking at her with a sigh:
"Sis, I want to confess something to you… I've been feeling something strange these days, like something deep in my soul has started to wake up. It's pushing me toward something unknown—making me think that my path in this life is different from yours, and that one day… we might have to choose between our family and the paths we're meant to follow.
But still, sis, I haven't forgotten what Mom and Dad always said: family comes above everything.
What about you?"
Lily flicked the top of Ken's head lightly and narrowed her eyes at him as she said:
"It seems you've been thinking a lot lately… hmm, is this the power of teenage hormones?"
Ken's eyes widened in pure disbelief, and he covered his head with annoyance as he said:
"Why am I always the target?!"
But Lily continued as if she hadn't heard a single complaint:
"Anyway, it's normal that my life's path will be different from yours. In the end… we're two separate individuals. That's just how it is."
She paused for a second, looking at him with an annoyingly insightful gaze he definitely didn't want to receive, as if she had just realized something.
"Hmm… did my little brother just say earlier that something has started to wake up inside him and push him toward something unknown?"
Ken jolted immediately, frowning sharply:
"Why did you say it like that?! Stop it!"
Lily's smile widened, filled with a deep enjoyment of teasing him, and she spoke in a calm yet utterly devastating tone:
"Well… it seems you'll have to find a pretty girl as soon as possible. A girl who becomes your girlfriend… so you don't commit crimes because of all this excess energy.
Then she waved her hand as if shooing him away from his own thoughts:
"Stop thinking about these things. Just focus on your studies… and home."
Ken, who was desperately trying to regain his dignity, snapped sharply:
"I'm not committing crimes! And I never said I'm not focused!"
But Lily walked past him with calm steps, a small smile trembling at the corner of her mouth as if she were on the verge of laughing:
"Of course… of course. Keep convincing yourself of that."
Anyway, little brother, I haven't forgotten that family is everything.
The siblings reached the bus stop, where students were gathering with their usual morning chatter. Voices, laughter, notebooks being pulled out, bags being zipped shut… a perfectly ordinary world, at least on the outside.
Lily stood beside a large tree, leaning her back against it while Ken pulled out his phone and began complaining about school assignments, as he always did.
And yet… despite all the noise around her, Lily couldn't ignore the feeling lingering in her chest.
That feeling that had begun last night.
As if… something was waiting for her.
Here… school begins, and a day starts—a day that will not be like any other.
The school courtyard was crowded as usual, students flowing in from every direction, their voices intertwining with the sound of footsteps on the dew-dampened ground. Tired faces, scattered laughter, and a cold breeze drifting over the wet pavement.
Ken stood at the entrance of the main building, raising his hand in farewell to Lily as he said:
"I'm going now… don't be late, alright?"
She didn't respond—she only gave a faint wave, and each of them headed toward their respective buildings.
As Lily made her way through the long hallway, she heard a loud and familiar voice calling out:
"Liiily! You finally arrived!
Lily! Finally… I thought you were going to disappear again. I thought you had decided to get married and leave school?"
Seraphine hurried toward her with quick steps, then said in a light tone that carried a slight sharpness:
"Before we go in… just tell me this: did you forget the math homework?"
Lily replied with quiet boredom:
"I didn't forget it… I just didn't open it."
Seraphine sighed, but immediately smiled in a way that showed she wasn't surprised.
"That's exactly like you."
They walked together through the long corridor. After a few seconds, Seraphine leaned closer and whispered:
"Did you read the school announcement? The new student… Alex.
It seems everyone's been talking about him since this morning."
Lily didn't reply right away.
But Seraphine noticed her drifting expression, so she stopped and asked with slight seriousness:
"Wait… Lily? Do you know him?"
After a brief moment of silence, Lily answered in a low yet steady voice:
"I think… I met him.
Seraphine blinked slowly, as if her mind were translating the words at an agonizing pace:
"…You met him?
Where?"
Lily took a deep breath, then spoke with a coldness that carried something hidden beneath it:
"In the cemetery."
Seraphine gasped, but Lily continued before she could unleash a storm of questions:
"And… yes. I was in his arms.
Yesterday… in the cemetery.
He… caught me before I fell."
She lifted her hand slightly, motioning with a small gesture toward her waist, then added:
"I was… in his arms for a few seconds.
And he was… very handsome."
Seraphine froze completely.
"In… his arms?"
Lily raised her shoulders lightly, as if the entire situation wasn't worth the dramatic reaction:
"I almost fell… so he caught me. Nothing more than that.
But… he was handsome."
Then she added in a calm, evaluating tone:
"The strange thing is that he told me his name was Alex as well.
Do you think he might be the same new student they posted the picture of yesterday?"
Seraphine placed her hand on her forehead, as though trying to process the whole situation:
"Lily… you're joking.
You seriously met him… before his first day here… in a cemetery… and in his arms?
Lily shook her head.
"That's what happened."
Seraphine lifted her hand dramatically toward the sky in theatrical frustration:
"And you didn't tell me until this morning?!"
"You didn't ask," Lily replied simply.
"If it is him… then we'll find out today."
Lily answered softly:
"…Maybe."
Then the two of them walked inside together.