Chapter 123: The Cursed Ring
"You think Silas would give me the flower if I asked?"
Lara stood before the three squirrels she had kept, with Cher quietly beside her. The atmosphere inside the shuttle had grown unbearably heavy, so Lara had slipped away to spend some time with her babies, and Cher had followed without saying a word.
The squirrels, perhaps unsettled by the flight, remained unusually quiet. Instead of causing a ruckus and playing with Lara like they usually did, they huddled together, their bodies tense.
"We still don’t know what that flower really is," Cher said as she watched Lara gently stroke one of them.
After a brief silence, Cher suddenly asked, "Do you remember the first time we met?"
Lara’s hand paused for the briefest moment before resuming its gentle rhythm. A faint smile appeared on her lips as she turned to look at Cher.
"You used to smile a lot more."
Her gaze drifted back to the three squirrels.
"I know why you remembered that day. You helped me save three little puppies from falling off a cliff."
The memory resurfaced in Cher’s mind with startling clarity. She could almost feel the salty sea breeze against her face as she lunged forward, barely catching the hand of a little girl who had already begun to fall.
"You almost died that day," Cher said with a quiet sigh. "Ever since I met you, you’ve always loved being around monsters."
A complicated expression crossed Lara’s face before she lowered her eyes and continued petting the squirrel.
"At least they aren’t treacherous."
Her voice carried a quiet bitterness.
"They don’t smile at you while planning to stab you in the back."
For a moment, silence settled between them before Lara spoke again in a much heavier tone.
"I don’t think I’ve ever said this before..."
Cher looked at her in surprise.
"Thank you for staying by my side all these years."
She let out a slow breath.
"I honestly don’t know if I could’ve made it this far without you."
The words seemed to lift a burden that Lara had carried for years. Her life had never been easy, but Cher’s friendship had made it bearable.
And Cher fell silent.
Without realising it, her thoughts drifted toward the darkest Chapter of her life, the moment everything had fallen apart. For years, she had avoided those memories, refusing to let herself revisit them.
Yet Lara’s words had dragged them back. After all, Lara had been the one who set those events in motion.
Sensing the change in Cher’s expression, Lara already knew where her thoughts had gone.
"Silas is a good man."
She knew how dangerous this subject was, yet avoiding it would help no one.
"He isn’t like Cameron."
"I’m leaving."
Cher turned around without another word, as her pace quickly became a run. Watching her disappear down the corridor, Lara let out a helpless sigh.
"I know Cameron hurt you deeply," she murmured to herself. "But Silas is different."
She could only hope Cher wouldn’t judge Silas for another man’s sins. Eventually, she returned her attention to the squirrels and gently scratched one behind its ears.
"This is why I prefer my babies over humans."
As Cher hurried through the shuttle, she reached the final compartment, the storage room. There, the bathtub remained where it had always been, filled with perfectly still, icy water.
’Silas isn’t Cameron...’
She couldn’t help recalling what Lara had said before leaving.
Almost unconsciously, Cher walked to the bathtub and rested a hand against the cold water. Ripples spread across the surface, warping her reflection into something twisted and unfamiliar.
She wasn’t disturbed by the sight. If anything, it felt painfully familiar.
To everyone else, she was the proud daughter of the Avaron Clan, the unshakable genius whose arrogance matched her strength. That image had always remained intact because her pride refused to let it crack.
Only she knew the truth.
Beneath that flawless exterior, everything had long since shattered. Her reflection looked exactly as she felt.
’Fear wounds what strength cannot...’
Gaia’s words echoed through her mind once again. For the first time, she wasn’t thinking about the Calling or the dragon’s blood. Instead, she found herself wondering whether those words had never been about the dragon at all.
Perhaps they had always been about her.
Without realising it, the world around her shifted.
The bathroom faded away, replaced by a lavish ballroom overflowing with light and music. She looked younger, dressed in an elegant gown that perfectly matched the extravagant celebration surrounding her.
"May I have this dance?"
The familiar voice instantly froze her blood.
Cher turned sharply.
Standing a few steps away was a young man four years older than her, the emblem of Frontier Academy displayed proudly on his chest.
He looked exactly as she remembered: handsome, refined, powerful, the kind of man countless girls admired.
Yet his face slowly twisted into something grotesque, his gentle smile stretching into one filled with malice.
Then her eyes fell upon the ring. It was the very same ring he had once offered as a promise of marriage.
Back then, she had accepted it willingly. Now it looked like the most cursed object in existence.
Cher instinctively stepped backwards.
"S-Stay away from me... You bastard."
Despite the hatred burning inside her, her voice emerged weak and trembling.
Then the ballroom darkened.
The brilliant lights dimmed until only shadows remained, while every guest slowly turned to face her. One by one, their appearances melted away, revealing the face she despised most: Cameron.
She was surrounded by countless copies of him, each holding an identical ring, each extended it toward her.
"What’s wrong, babe?"
"Come dance with us."
"Why not accept the ring like you did before?"
Their voices overlapped into a deafening chorus.
Cher continued retreating until her back struck a wall. Her breathing grew ragged. Her heart pounded violently against her chest, while every muscle in her body trembled.
"Do you think you’ve ever had a choice?"
"You have no right to blame me."
"You were the one who trusted me with your secret."
"The secret that could let any powerhouse break humanity’s shackles..."
"And you told it to me."
"What a fool."
The final voice changed. It no longer belonged to Cameron.
It became deeper, heavier, carrying the unquestionable authority of someone who had never accepted disobedience. It was Chaz Avaron, the Black Lightning Asura, her father.
"Stay away from me..."
Hearing his voice sent an even greater wave of terror through her body. Yet beneath that terror, anger surged with equal force.
Cher forced herself to look up. The countless faces surrounding her had changed once again. Half belonged to Cameron, while the other half belonged to Chaz.
"You are his daughter."
"You should’ve entrusted your secret to him instead of me."
"If that btch Lara hadn’t repeated our conversation to your father, you never would’ve known."
"You would’ve remained my lovely toy."
"My adorable fiancée."
Cameron’s voice echoed through the darkness, yet she never looked at his copies.
"You are my daughter."
"You should have told me your secret."
"You should have devoted your life to helping me reach S-grade."
Each word dripped with venom, feeding the rage burning inside her until it threatened to consume everything else.
"I’m not afraid of you anymore."
Her voice came out weak and trembling, yet beneath the fear lay a resolve that had never existed before.
She didn’t know why, but amid that endless darkness, just when the terror seemed ready to swallow her whole, a faint light appeared.
Silas stood within it, calmly extending his hand toward her.
For a brief moment, doubt overwhelmed her. She couldn’t tell whether the figure before her was truly Silas or merely another Cameron illusion. She hesitated, unable to move.
Then he smiled.
It was the same calm smile he had worn throughout their dragon blood quest, as though nothing in the world could shake his composure.
The sight of it swept away her doubts and drew countless memories to the surface.
She remembered meeting him outside the academy’s closed gates, when fear had nearly stopped her from entering the place where her former fiancé waited. Yet seeing Silas standing there so confidently, wearing that same quiet smile, had somehow eased the weight crushing her heart.
She remembered joining his team, training beside him, sharing the shuttle, surviving the assassination attempt, the days in the hospital, the mission at the outpost, the battle against the dragon, and the dragon blood quest itself.
She remembered how he had continued smiling in the face of impossible danger, standing alone atop the mine against a dragon that could have erased him with a single breath, armed with nothing but unwavering resolve.
"Don’t be afraid."
His calm voice carried an inexplicable strength that drove the darkness back.
"You’re not alone anymore."
She looked at his outstretched hand, bathed in warm light, then into his calm eyes.
Another voice suddenly whispered beside her.
’Silas isn’t Cameron.’
’Silas is a good man.’
The words echoed through her mind like a mantra, strengthening her resolve.
She stepped forward, reached for his hand, and the instant their fingers met, the darkness shattered.
"Are you alright?"
Her eyes snapped open as she surged out of the bathtub, gasping for air. She looked around in confusion, as though she had climbed out of death itself.
"S... Silas?!"
The shock on her face deepened when she saw him standing beside the tub. Worry lingered in his eyes, yet the gentle smile on his face remained exactly as she had seen it moments ago.
Only then did she notice that she was tightly clutching his hand, refusing to let go as though afraid he would disappear the moment she did.
"Come out," Silas said calmly.
He tried to withdraw his hand, but instead of releasing it, she instinctively tightened her grip, startling him.
"What brought you into my bathtub in the first place? Did you slip?"
Realising how awkward the situation had become, she hurriedly let go.
Slowly, she climbed out of the tub and stared at the rippling water, unable to understand how she had ended up submerged in the first place.
"I..."
She searched for an explanation, but none came.
"I just... wanted to see what was so special about this bathtub."
It was the only excuse she could think of.
Silas chuckled, his smile growing a little warmer.
"It’s nothing special. It’s just a bathtub filled with cold water."
Cher glanced at the tub once more before looking back at him. For a fleeting instant, Cameron’s shadow appeared beside Silas, holding out a ring exactly as he once had.
Yet beneath Silas’ gentle smile, the illusion quietly faded away.
’Will he ever give me a ring one day?’
She followed him deeper into the shuttle without another word.
After a long silence, she stole one last glance at his back.
’Perhaps... he won’t become anything like Cameron.’