Gardenia’s Heart

What had just happened?

Only a few minutes passed from the time Hector threw the woman into the river until the explosion occurred. Their first thought would be a sudden attack from a monster, but when they focused their vision on the source of the noise, something they never imagined was there.

The silver-haired woman appeared on the banks of the river, her body was surrounded by small purple and red rays. An icy, expressionless face stared at the five men. On her face, there were now two eyes, one azure blue reminiscent of the calm skies of a sunny day, and the other...

“What the fuck is that?”

A crimson-red iris seemed to study the interior of the five men's souls slowly. The pupil had a diamond-shaped pattern and emitted an orange glow. If blue eyes were rare, red eyes were beyond rare. None of them had seen an eye that color in their entire lives.

“Hector, are you getting weaker or something? The girl is clearly alive.”

Ignoring the unfamiliar red eye, Travis commented on the situation that not even he understood.

“I'm sure I pierced her heart, there's no way she's alive.”

Among all five men, Hector was the one most surprised. He was experienced, far beyond any of them there. His technique as a wizard was excellent, but his ability as a swordsman was what saved his neck for most of his life. He would never be wrong about eliminating a target or not.

“Well, it looks like the heavens have given us another chance to make a profit.” Laughing at the situation, Travis happily approached the silver-haired girl. “Lily, you saw what happens when you try to resist right? If you go with us without complaining now, we will treat you well.”

As he watched Travis approach, one of the other men with a bow on his back noticed something strange.

“Hey, that girl only had one arm... right?”

The confusion generated by the red eye made them ignore the sudden appearance of another arm on the girl. His voice was low, so only those next to him heard.

Meanwhile, Travis finally got close to the silver-haired girl. His walk stopped for a moment when he noticed the woman start walking towards him.

“I see you’re finally listening to the voice of reason, now let’s-”

The man didn't even finish his sentence. The woman just walked beside him, her steps never stopping, not even when Travis' head fell to the ground.

---

“I’m lighter”

Twirling the sword she stole from Travis in her right hand, Lily commented on how much she felt her movements were more fluid.

(Lily, are you okay!?) As always, Nia screamed desperately in her mind. Although she knew the girl couldn't hear her, she continued calling her, however, something she couldn't imagine occurred.

“Yes Nia, I’m very well”

Lily's soft and sweet voice traveled throughout Nia's body which was now inside her.

(Do you hear me? Do you really hear me?)

“I feel like I'm having déjà vu” Lily laughed as she wiped the blood off the sword. “Your voice is beautiful Nia, I’m so happy to finally be hearing it.”

Nia couldn't believe Lily was actually hearing her voice. This could only be a coincidence or a lie, such great happiness could not exist.

“Nia, you saved me right? Thank you very much."

Placing her left hand that was now there on the area that was pierced, Lily could now feel her heartbeat. More specifically, she was feeling Nia who was inside her and served as her heart.

If Nia could cry, no, even if she couldn't, she was already crying.

(I-I was so worried! Lily! Eewk...! Lily)

“Yes, I'm fine now Nia” She smiled as she tried to calm down

(I love you, Lily. I love you!)

Without even realizing it, Nia spoke the words she most wanted to say. She didn't know how the words would be received, but when she heard the response, she knew that today would be the most special day of her life.

“I love you too, Nia.”

The cheerful and sincere response was like a spell, resonating in the deep of the metamorph's mind. She was so happy that all the fear she felt earlier seemed to have been just a distant nightmare.

Although she wanted to continue her cheerful conversation, Lily noticed the four men drawing their weapons and slowly approaching. On her bare feet was a portion of Travis's blood that had been lying a few feet behind.

Take a life. This wasn't something she ever imagined doing, after everything she'd been through throughout her life.

“Nia, can you help me deal with this?”

The question was gentle and calm, even in this situation. If Nia refused, Lily wouldn't force her. Perhaps because of the bond that the two now shared, Nia was sure of it.

Since she was born, orders to kill came all the time. She didn't know why she needed to follow them. Why did she need to fight for the will of someone she didn't even know? However, when Lily asked her that, it didn't even take a second for her answer to arrive.

(Even if you want to make this whole cruel world your enemy. Even with nothing left to sacrifice, I’ll protect you! I’ll always be on your side)

The voice she answered beyond what she expected was conviction and warmth. Lily couldn't help but smile. Approaching those men, now faster and faster, it was time to get it over.

Unlike other times, Hector did not take the lead, positioning himself next to a man holding a bow. At the front of the group, one man was carrying a sword while the other had his hands engulfed in flame.

"What is it? Aren’t you going to try to bring me to bed this time?” Raising an eyebrow, Lily asked curiously.

She laughed internally when she noticed that the two men ahead took a step back when they heard her voice.

“Don't despair, this bitch just learned how to manipulate mana” Hector's stern voice was finally heard, stopping the men who tried to retreat at the sight of a girl walking over Travis's pool of blood.

If it had been even a day ago, or even an hour ago, Lily wouldn't have considered trying to accomplish what she was about to do. Relaxing her body, Lily advanced with the silver sword in her right hand directly at the man who had flames in his hands.

The man quickly noticed the killing intent and dodged the attack aimed at his neck by twisting his body. The thrust of a sword passed millimeters from where his head was. As his feet were still fixed in the same position he let the girl quickly pass him and extended his hand, from his palm the large flaming flame exploded towards Lily.

Seconds away from incinerating the girl, a black half-sphere appeared in the small space between the two, expelling the crimson flames to the sides.

“!?”

The exclaim of doubt was the last sound the man made before the sword swung clockwise and took his head off.

There was no interval between the death of the second man and the rain of shining arrows falling towards him. The man standing next to Hector shot with speed. A huge amount of mana was condensed into arrows of light that were quickly shot from his bow.

Without even needing Lily to think about it, the black half-sphere expanded and protected the girl's body. None of the arrows broke its surface. As they were all made of light, after the impact they fell apart.

“Thank you for protecting me Nia” Smiling, she once again wiped the blood off the sword by swinging it.

(I will always protect you, Lily! But we must be quick. I don't have much dark mana to extend this fight)

Nodding, Lily felt heat rise within her body. Ever since she woke up inside the frozen water she could feel Nia inside her. Every filament, nerve, muscle, and even the smallest strand of hair. Every part of her body had the presence of her beloved Nia. Her cheeks flushed as she noticed how Nia was moving things that she not even understood to make her more comfortable. It was like being completely enveloped in a tight, warm embrace that she would never dare to part with.

Her beloved girl was pumping massive amounts of power throughout her body. To the point where she didn't even understand what she could do now.

“Even if I have this, I have no idea how to use a sword other than swinging” As she looked at the weapon in hand she subtly measured her distance from the other man. “Well, I don’t need to stick to the conventional”

The girl bent her knees and leaned her body back. The rain of arrows continued to rain down on her, but Nia's protective barrier made the deadly shots as dangerous as summer rain.

A purple aura began to gather in her hand in reply to her will. The amount progressively increased as she calculated what she should do.

“Get out of there now!” Hector's voice was loud, but even it wasn't enough to save the man.

In just an instant, a sword shot through the air like a violet arrow. The silver blade emitted a loud sharp noise as it cut through the wind, in less than a blink of an eye it collided with the head of the man holding the sword.

The hit was accurate in the middle of the forehead, the coup de grace was instantaneous and the man's head exploded. He didn't even realize he was killed.

“That was stronger than I thought” Even the girl was surprised by the result.

(See how strong I am Lily?) A cheerful voice whispered with conviction in her mind.

“Yes, you are the strongest and cutest in the world, Nia”

“M-Monster!”

Observing the girl who was talking to herself collecting the sword from the third man who no longer had a head, the man holding the bow began to tremble.

“Hmm?” Upon hearing the voice, Lily's head tilted, her icy, deadly eyes seemed to twist the soul of whoever dared to utter those words. “You dare call Nia a monster, you piece of trash?”

She rushed forward at the trembling man, the new sword she had just obtained aiming for her neck.

“Get out, go away!!” He began to fire dozens of arrows, each one faster than the last, but none of them had any effect in front of the black barrier.

Realizing it was useless, the frightened man dropped his bow and began to run, his shaking legs carrying him as far as he could.

Jumping, Lily swung her sword and used the free fall to impale the man's back with the sword. Blood once again spilled as the blade crossed the man's body and pinned him to the ground.

“Aaaaaaargh!” As he was not killed instantly like the others, the archer screamed at the top of his lungs as his entire body began to burn like flames.

The girl who had one leg on the archer's back just watched indifferently as she pushed the sword down harder. Each movement elicited another scream of pain from the archer.

“The feeling of having your chest split is delicious, right?” The girl's lips turned up in a smile, but her eyes remained emotionlessly and cold.

It only took a few more seconds for the shock of having his chest pierced to make the man faint, in a few more moments he would pass out from the loss of blood and then die.

As the girl had her sights exclusively on the archer in agony, she had her guard down, at least that was what the last man thought. But when the sword he sent with all his might to cut the woman was held he cried out in doubt.

"What the hell is that!?"

On the left side of Lily's body, instead of her left arm were four purple tentacles that grew from her shoulder.

Without even turning to Hector, Lily slowly opened her mouth and spoke.

“Wait, it will be your turn soon”

Hector's sword began to tremble within the tentacles' grip. The man didn't understand what was happening, but using all his strength he managed to move a few steps away.

Panicking, Hector watched as Lily ripped the sword from the lifeless archer's body. Was that the weak and quiet girl who sold herbs in the village?

“Okay, now it’s you”

She advanced instantly.

The man took a second to respond to the rapid advance. Taking a fighting stance, he used the sword in his hand to block Lily's blade. A bluish glow covered the surface of the sword and it clashed with the sword that had a violet glow.

Although she had more strength and speed, it was not possible for a person inexperienced in using weapons to compare with someone who had practiced their entire life.

The choice of action was already so natural to his body that he wasn't even conscious. Instead of continuing to press down on the blade that was coming from a low angle, he turned the hilt of his sword, letting Lily's sword slide down the thin side. The loss of balance from the sudden lack of support sent Lily to the ground. At least that's what would have happened if the man hadn't backed away before he was hit.

The purple tentacles that were still on Lily's left side didn't allow her to lose her balance, shooting towards the man at great speed. 

Sweat ran down his face when he realized there was a cut on his right shoulder. In front of Hector, the indifferent girl did not assume a fighting stance, only leaving the sword casually stuck on the ground before using her right hand to stroke the tentacles curiously.

“This bitch isn’t even taking this seriously” Hector roared and began to concentrate his mana.

The feeling he felt when facing the girl was not the same as facing another human. It was the same shiver any hunter had when encountering a monster. He knew if he didn't use everything he had, he would die.

The mana around Hector's body flickered. The previously light blue glow that covered his body expanded and concentrated in front of him. Lily was fast and strong, but if he managed to land one attack, he was sure he would kill her this time.

All the mana concentrated in his left hand, taking the form of bluish threads, emitting a buzzing sound of shock. The small lightning bolts clashed and grew in size until they finally reached the size of a tree trunk.

With one big movement, he threw it at the girl who hadn't even moved since she started casting.

“Your trust will be the cause of your death”

Immediately he shot the lightning, the large blue lightning crashed into the black half-sphere that grew large enough to cover the girl's entire body.

Red sparks exploded out from the clash of the two spells, the impact was so great that it dispelled the mist from a large area around.

Dropping his sword, Hector used both hands to send even more of his mana into the spell. He screamed at the top of his lungs, every vein in his body responding to the call.

Visible cracks were made on the black shield and Hector immediately roared in joy. The large sphere began to break in front of the powerful beam and within seconds it completely fell apart.

The complete dismantling of the sphere was accompanied by a large explosion. The imposing beam disappeared amidst the cloud of smoke. The heat was so great that it destroyed much of the grass. Nothing remained at the site of the explosion.

“I killed her!”

“If I had gotten hit, sure”

The voice he thought he would never hear again came from behind. His own sword he had dropped to the ground had now gone through his chest.

“Aaargh!!!?” This amount of pain was something he had never felt before, and he couldn't hold back his cry of pain.

How did she appear on his back? Even focusing on the location of the hit, his vision never stopped studying any of the directions the girl could use to escape. It was as… if she had instantly appeared on his back.

Turning his face slightly, he thought that her vision was lying to him, as he could see a large purple circle that resembled the starry sky disappearing right behind the girl.

At the same time as he spat out a large amount of blood from his mouth, he was freed from the sword blade.

Walking a few steps, he fell to his knees on the ground and began to observe the girl who was looking down on him with cold eyes.

“S-Spare me, please, I’ll do anything.”

The last attack cost all the mana he had in his body; his sword was stolen and his wound would become fatal if left untreated. The only option left for him was to beg for his life.

The girl didn't even wipe the blood off the blade before she approached Hector. The tentacles on her left arm began to reach out to grab the man, but Lily only commented gently.

“Wait Nia, this time, let me do it”

As if understanding the girl's request, the four tentacles came together and an immaculate left arm once again formed. Her heterochromatic eyes watching Hector with the same look of indifference she always had to this day.

“W-Who are you? What did you do with the woman called Lily?”

"Who am I? Are you really asking this?”

Again, Lily had no choice but to tilt her head in doubt.

“I'm the girl you wanted to rape every day. I’m the girl you wanted to sell as a slave to some pig who would give you money. I'm the girl you pissed off every day just to satisfy the little ego feeling you have inside that tiny brain. I'm the girl you squeezed her breast as a joke. I'm the girl you stuck a sword through the heart and threw into a frozen river.” 

The voice wasn't loud, in fact it was much calmer than any other time she had spoken to him. Still, there was something in that voice, something that seemed to scratch the surface of his soul. 

“And I’m the girl who’s going to kill you right here and now, you son of a bitch.”

It wasn't a single cut, not even two. The girl didn't even bother to count as she slashed Hector's entire body with the sword. The man screamed in pain as more and more blood was ripped from his body. But Lily didn't care, his death wouldn't be quick.

Long minutes passed in what seemed like hours in Hector's mind. All he could see with his blood-stained eyes was the tip of the sword that was raised high coming down for the last time on his head, splitting his entire body in two.