The moment İlyara stepped inside, she heard Elna's voice.
"Welcome, İlyara."
Was she welcome at all?
The first thing İlyara noticed as she entered the hall was that it, too, was completely white. The walls, the ceiling, the polished marble beneath her feet... Even the long table at the center of the hall was pure white.
But everyone seated around it was dressed in black.
Four women sat facing one another on either side of the table. At the head of the table sat Elna alone. She wore a black dress like the others, but the shimmering purple gemstones embroidered into it set her apart. She gazed at İlyara in all her splendor.
İlyara froze for a brief moment.
Weren't they supposed to be eating alone?
"You may not enter."
At the guard's voice, İlyara turned toward the door.
"Move." Arın said.
His voice was as emotionless as ever, yet there was a sharpness to it. As his hand slowly drifted toward the hilt of his sword, İlyara quickly stepped in front of him and turned her gaze to Elna.
"Ah, my dear İlyara," Elna said. "I can't allow Veyra's puppet to come any closer to the members of the Council."
İlyara opened her mouth to object, but Elna continued before she had the chance to speak.
"I've already broken several Council rules just by allowing him to come this far."
İlyara wanted to protest, but she couldn't think of anything to say. What could she possibly say? Besides, she couldn't force Elna to change her mind.
"I'll always be by your side," Arın said. "You don't have to listen to her."
"Hah..."
At the sound of the soft chuckle behind her, İlyara turned around.
"Forgive me," Elna said. She covered her mouth with one hand, though she couldn't quite hide her smile. "Those aren't the kind of words one would expect from a puppet."
Everyone in the hall silently watched Elna. Arın, however, remained outside the doorway and couldn't see the room clearly.
"Even after death, they still have quite a way with words," Elna continued.
The guard in white armor standing behind her stepped forward. It was Kortegin. He was still wearing his helmet.
"You heard the Council President," Kortegin said. "If you refuse to follow the rules, we can't let you in."
"Let's go," Arın said, taking İlyara's hand.
But İlyara gently slipped her hand from his.
"I need to know what's going on," she said. "I have nothing to lose."
Arın looked at her in silence for a moment. Then he straightened, placed a hand over his chest, and said,
"I'm here."
İlyara felt her heartbeat quicken, and the hardness in her gaze softened.
"I know," she replied quietly. "But I want to stay here."
At that very moment, her stomach growled.
İlyara took a small step back.
"Besides, I'm hungry," she said with a faint smile before turning away.
"Have him wait in the guest room," the guard said.
"Why?" İlyara asked.
"Puppets have sharp ears," Elna replied. "We can't allow him to carry our words back to Veyra."
As much as İlyara disliked it, Elna was right. No matter how close Arın had become to her, he was still bound to Veyra.
"Will you wait for me in my room?" İlyara asked.
Arın frowned.
"Is this what you want?"
İlyara held Arın's gaze for a moment. His pale gray eyes no longer looked as dull as they once had.
Was this a change?
No...
It didn't matter now.
İlyara averted her gaze and turned away.
"Yes."
As the door closed behind her, İlyara walked toward the dining table.
The moment İlyara reached the table, Elna rose from her chair and wrapped her in a hug. İlyara tensed at the sudden contact.
Hadn't she missed her?
And why did she care so much about someone she had only known for a few weeks?
"I'm so glad you're safe," Elna said.
"I am too," İlyara replied quietly.
Elna slipped her arm through İlyara's and led her to the head of the table. She stopped behind the Council member seated to the right of it.
"Why are you sitting there?" she asked. Her voice was colder than İlyara had ever heard it before.
The woman quickly rose to her feet and turned around.
"This is where I always sit," she said. Her eyes were vacant. There wasn't the slightest trace of expression on her face.
Wasn't she going to react at all?
"Not anymore."
With a slight wave of her hand, Elna motioned for her to move.
Without a word, the woman lowered her head and moved to one of the empty chairs.
"Please, go back to your seat," İlyara said.
The woman didn't even look at her.
"You're as considerate as ever."
With those words, Elna returned to her seat.
"Come," she said, gesturing toward the chair the woman had just vacated. "Let's not let the food get any colder."
İlyara kept looking at the woman who had been forced to leave her seat only moments ago.
The scrape of a chair beside her made her flinch.
"Please."
Kortegin had pulled the chair out for her.
"Have a seat."
As İlyara quietly took her seat, Elna addressed everyone at the table.
"Enjoy your meal," she said, then began to eat.
As the others followed her lead, İlyara let her gaze wander across the table before her. She couldn't remember ever sitting at such a lavish feast. Several different dishes had been prepared. There was even beef—a luxury she hadn't tasted in a long time. Just as she felt her appetite stir, her eyes caught on a white vase placed at the center of the table. But the flowers inside were purple.
Purple violets...
Only then did İlyara realize how tightly she was gripping the silver fork in her hand. Her breathing quickened. In an instant, the purple violets before her were drenched in blood.
"This isn't real," she murmured, trying to steady herself.
"What isn't real?" Elna asked as she took another bite. "It's all real."
At the sound of Elna's voice, the blood-soaked violets vanished from İlyara's sight.
"What are you talking about?" İlyara asked, unable to hide the confusion in her voice.
After swallowing her bite, Elna gestured toward the table.
"The food," she said. "Don't you like it?"
İlyara gave a slight shake of her hand.
"Everything looks wonderful," she said. She hesitated for a brief moment. "I just... why did you call me here?"
Upon hearing the question, Elna looked at İlyara expressionlessly for a long moment.
"Eat first," Elna said. "Then we'll talk."
She calmly resumed her meal. İlyara followed her lead and quietly turned her attention to the food in front of her.
By the time the meal ended in silence, İlyara realized it had been a long time since she'd last eaten until she was full. Maybe her face would look a little less hollow. After wiping her mouth with the white napkin, she leaned back in her chair.
"Are you full, my shadow?"
İlyara frowned at the unfamiliar way Elna had addressed her.
"I don't understand."
After wiping her lips with her napkin, Elna leaned back in her chair. One by one, the other women at the table mirrored the gesture, almost in perfect unison.
İlyara shifted uneasily in her chair.
"The Ancient's Shadow."
İlyara's shoulders slumped as she lowered her head.
"You too...?" she whispered. "...do you see me that way too?"
"No."
İlyara raised her head and looked at Elna.
"Then why did you call me that?" she asked. Leaning toward Elna, she lowered her voice. "Don't you have the same power?"
Elna leaned toward her as well.
"Yes," she said with a smile. "No one else has it but the two of us."
How?
"You told me your mother had the same power," İlyara said.
"My mother died a long time ago," Elna said, straightening up again.
İlyara's eyes widened in shock. She studied Elna's face carefully. She couldn't sense the slightest hint of emotion that suggested she was lying. Perhaps Elna was preventing her from sensing it.
"Then who was the old woman in that village?"
"Which old woman?" Elna asked.
"The old woman I helped," İlyara said. "You told me she was your mother, and that she'd been keeping you informed about me."
"Yes, I did," Elna replied, leaning back in her chair. Without taking her eyes off İlyara's, she said,
"It was me."