Cyra erged from the forest after so ti, her hands covered in blood, and her face showing a lazy satisfaction.
Zane and Viktor waited at the tall tree for her. Zane imdiately frowned when he saw her bloodied fingers and stayed in place, while Viktor moved toward Cyra with bright eyes.
"You were the reason for those roars, right? I thought so." Viktor chid in a singsong tone as his eyes fell on her bloodstained hand before moving toward her golden hair.
"Hmm~ Did both of you have fun on your tour?" Cyra asked softly as she pulled out a water bottle from her space and quickly washed her hands.
"Yup! It was so much fun; we even earned free money by capturing two horned rabbits. Every beast we encountered matched the ga perfectly, the..." Viktor excitedly rambled, telling her all about their day.
Seeing her clean hands, Zane moved closer, his nose wrinkling at the bloody scent that clung to her like an overpowering perfu.
Cyra noticed, and a teasing light flickered in her eyes as she pinched his cheeks, with her other hand wrapped around his waist, holding him in place.
"You need to wash up; you stink," Zane muttered with a frown, trying to pull away from her hold. Cyra ignored him and drew him closer instead, fully aware of how much he hated being dirty—if she were in her normal form, even she would have been bothered by the stench of blood clinging to her.
"Hmph, are you even listening to ?" Viktor snapped, annoyance flickering across his face as he noticed Cyra's distracted look.
Cyra chuckled softly and ruffled his silver curls. "Dear, I heard everything you said. You ntioned the shares and the beasts looking the sa as the ga," she said indulgently, watching as his expression eased and a playful smile curved his lips.
Cyra handed Viktor a water bottle to quench his thirst after talking, and they all slowly walked out of the primitive forest, not in a rush to return.
"When are we returning to Desire Island?" Zane asked, a hint of longing in his voice. The forest was beautiful, but it could never replace ho.
Viktor looked over at Cyra, also missing his flowers and torture room. Despite having a beautiful view and unique beasts, he yearned to return, and they needed to move forward with his and Zane's plan.
Cyra pushed the plant aside, clearing their path before she spoke. "Five days should be enough for those eyeing my island's resources to make a move." Her tone was chillingly calm.
She wished the mastermind would reveal themselves within those days, but she knew better—it was impossible. She would have to hunt them down in whatever dark hole they were hiding.
At her words, Zane and Viktor exchanged a look of realization. Cyra wasn't just there for sightseeing—she was setting a trap to purge the greedy aristocrats daring enough to target the island.
"The island won't get destroyed again, right?" Zane asked, his voice strained. He still rembered the devastation from before—the island had been his first real ho since leaving the desolate land. No matter how beautifully it was rebuilt, the mory of its ruin still pained him.
"Don't worry, love, they would have been able to cross the town, much less reach the mansion," Cyra promised in a firm tone as she hugged him closer and pressed a kiss on his forehead — she wasn't going to let what happened repeat itself again.
"Tell Nicole to leave so people for , it's been a while, and I'm feeling a bit rusty," Viktor requested casually, as if he was discussing what to eat for dinner and not planning to torture people.
Zane glanced at Viktor with a strange expression before looking away. Cyra humd as they entered the cave leading to the island.
It was nightti here as well, and the guards on duty were surprised to see three unfamiliar faces. However, recalling the clans' heads' instructions, they straightened up and nodded respectfully in greeting before returning to their posts.
Cyra nodded in response before grabbing Viktor and Zane firmly and flashing back into the mansion. Their surroundings moved in slow motion. Zane closed his eyes, enjoying the breeze brushing against his face and Cyra's body warmth.
Viktor watched as leaves slowly tumbled from the steam, the wind brushing against his face. His eyes glead with awe at Cyra's speed—it made everything around him seem to move in slow motion. No matter how many tis he had witnessed it, the sight never failed to amaze him.
"We're here,'' Cyra announced as she stopped at the entrance of the mansion—two people holding covered trays were about to knock and were startled by their sudden appearance.
"Enter and place the food down," Cyra instructed, pausing to let them adjust to the sudden change in surroundings. After a few seconds, their dizziness faded. Viktor stepped into the mansion, and his stomach growled at the sight of food.
The two won quietly set the tray down and left the mansion; their backs covered in cold sweat from the pressure of Cyra's presence.
They didn't get to see her earlier when they brought lunch, but they now understood that Lilly instructed them to be cautious and respectful while serving her. 'That woman is dangerous.' These thoughts flashed in sync in their minds.
…
The next day on Desire Island, the forest woke up as usual, but today the town staff were bustling, helping with the harvest. They weren't doing it manually; instead, they controlled the machinery used. So helped wash the fruits Mira was going to use to make fruit juice and dried fruits.
"Input this quantity into the machine,'' Louis instructed Mira from the side, watching as she reduced the amount of sugar on the hologram screen.
They were in a wide clearing, and in front of them was the machine Mira bought for making juice; another one on the side was for drying fruits.
The workers poured a mix of different fruits into the machine opening, pressing it shut when the fruit capacity was reached.
"We have to follow this recipe for now and see the result before we leave it for others to handle," Mira said as she set up the machine's functions and the ti it was to stop before pressing the on button.
"Hmm. I don't know if it will co out okay with this much fruit. What if it fails and becos inedible? Maybe we should employ a professional—" Louis began to ramble, but Mira interrupted before his overthinking and panic consud him.
"Don't worry, if it turns out badly, we can give it away for free to the town's staff and keep trying until we get it right, so don't worry your head too much." Mira's confident tone and casual smile eased Louis's nerves sowhat.
"Alright... I'll take our words to heart," Louis responded with a smile, feeling excited to try new recipes. The machine humd as Louis shuttled back and forth to check the progress and taste, figuring out if so ingredient should be added or increased.
The air buzzed with activity and the faint sound of the machine, while Kyle was tracking the drone's route—using the map to check the delivery stop in the other town.
"Five minutes to reach," Kyle murmured to himself as he waited patiently for the drone to arrive. Once five minutes had passed, he turned on the cara and watched as the drone flew across the sea and onto the island.
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