LILIANNA

Lilianna’s senses sharpened as she slowly became aware of the pressure of her weight on the bed. Huh? Her breath deepened, anxiety riddling her muddled mind. 

No way! Had her emotions spiral out of control enough to wake her up?

Lilianna scuffed up her hair in frustration. She hadn’t been able to tell Phoenix details about the ring. Lilianna didn’t even know where the ring was– if Lily Bianca and Delbert never chatted, would Lily Bianca still have the ring? Damn it! The more she thought about Phoenix’s situation, the more her throat constricted. Would she figure out how to establish a connection with her? Would the method even work? Lilianna’s head grew heavier, her fingers icy. What would happen if the events in the time-loop broke? Would the world collapse? If Phoenix’s soul disintegrated as a result, Lilianna might just go insane.

Should she switch their souls back instead? Would everything return back to normal? 

The image of Phoenix’s bloodied body was etched in Lilianna’s memory. That nightmare. Was it a premonition? Did it mean Phoenix was in danger from this world or in Galathia?

Lilianna’s hand searched for the necklace around her neck. With her eyes still closed, she focused on Lily Bianca’s ring and Phoenix, imagining Phoenix holding the ring in her hand. 

Lilianna tried to connect to her through a never-ending string. She tried again, and again, and again. Lilianna didn’t know how long she spent attempting to connect with Phoenix, but nothing worked. It could only mean Phoenix was not holding the ring. Lilianna bit her lip. 

What if she blasted a hole into this place so Phoenix could escape and avoid dealing with Damon? That way, she could exchange their souls back and return to how things were.

No, that wouldn’t be right. 

With Damon’s Family’s connections, if they saw Phoenix wielding strange abilities and told others, Phoenix’s life might end up in more chaos.

Once Lilianna gave up on forcing a connection, her stomach was already grumbling. She used the device to call on Jessie again instead of eating at the kitchen. This way, Lilianna could talk to her in private, and it would be easier for her to let some information slip out. 

Her mind still buzzed with thoughts about Phoenix. She had the urge to sleep again and connect with Phoenix in the dream world, but the more anxious she was, the more difficult it was to sleep.

When Lilianna heard someone’s footsteps and a tray being rolled in from outside,  she pushed herself to calm down.

Jessie came in, and Lilianna felt more at ease. She smiled. “Hi, Jessie.”

“Hello, miss.”

Lilianna was on the brink of her emotions exploding, her sanity almost collapsing. She had always struggled with processing her own emotions, and she embraced this chance to confide in someone else.

“I had a bad dream last night. Do you have time to chat with me?” Lilianna already knew that Jessie was assigned to keep an eye on Phoenix, but she still asked regardless.

“Of course!”

“I had a dream about someone I love. I’m not sure who they were, but we had a big argument, and I didn’t understand why they wouldn’t listen to me. I only wanted what the best was for them, but they were being very stubborn. I was so frustrated.”

Jessie set up Lilianna’s meal. She wasn’t yet skilled with arranging the utensils, so she would sometimes induce harsh noises from clashing against the plate. Lilianna helped her out and even offered for her to join. 

Jessie sat down and took a bite of a loaf of chewy french bread. “I see. Miss, do you remember what you were arguing about?”

When Lilianna saw her relaxed and focused gaze, her emotions poured out like a wave. She stopped eating her food and complained. “This person said they wanted to help me. But if helping me meant they would be put in danger, I don’t want it. I think it’s selfish for them to push that onto me. We could have stayed as we were, you know? Where we could both be happy with the time we have left.”

Jessie stopped talking. Lilianna also went silent. Had she said too much? She didn’t know why, but she was comfortable with talking to Jessie. It had also been a long time since she interacted with others and even got to share her emotions, so it was easy for her to lose control of them. Lilianna felt relieved and a bit guilty..

“I see…I think,” Jessie paused as she recollected her thoughts. 

“It's a tough situation. You both appear to care about each other, but you can’t see eye to eye because you don’t want them to be in danger because of you. This dream seems very vivid. Do you think this might be your lost memories resurfacing?”

Indeed, she had said too much. Lilianna pretended as if she was disoriented. “Perhaps. I’m not sure, exactly. I just remembered we had an argument, I don’t remember anything else, what their face looked like, or where we were. I just recall feeling frustrated.” 

Lilianna immediately redirected the conversation. “By the way, yesterday, Damon had a lot of guests, right? Most of them seem familiar to me. Who were they?”

Jessie took a moment to deliberate before deciding to share the information. She nodded to herself in affirmation.“They are important guests of Sir Damon. I heard he invites guests over to help build a reputation amongst the high society.” 

Lilianna mirrored Jessie’s nod, understanding a bit more of the picture. It was the mafia. It seemed this was Damon’s way of regularly building a connection with the upper echelons of society. Lilianna didn’t want to admit it, but it was a smart way to build an image while keeping up to date with current events.

She thought about how Damon had even wormed his way into Lilianna’s family. They were not part of high society, but they were well-networked. Lilianna’s parents in particular were acquainted with politicians and billionaires. 

Yet, her parents’ primary focus was not in accumulating more wealth. They were committed to  serving others who were less fortunate. They use the money they earned to help children from other countries all over the globe, and they need to travel often because of that.

After finishing her food, Lilianna told Jessie she needed to take a nap. Jessie stared at her confused, but Lilianna smiled and said she had been tossing and turning all night. 

Once Jessie made her way out, Lilianna went straight for the bathroom. 

She closed the window curtain, kept the lights turned off, and looked for any tiny glowing light. After spending some time inspecting, Lilianna didn’t find anything. She turned the lights back on and scanned the areas Phoenix mentioned to keep an eye on. Lilianna also didn’t see anything. Her shoulders lowered, feeling somewhat safer within the confines of the bathroom. 

However, the longer she spent in isolation, the more her anxious thoughts about Phoenix creeped in. Lilianna paced around the bathroom as she held the necklace against her chest and attempted to connect with Phoenix. Nothing. 

She didn’t understand what could be keeping Phoenix from even just touching the necklace. As long as Phoenix was holding that piece of Jewelry, Lilianna felt like she would be able to connect to it. 

If Lily Bianca had not encountered Delbert on the dance floor, she should still have the ring. Unless it was lost somewhere during the ball? What if Phoenix couldn’t ever find that ring? That was their only method to talk to each other in real time. Lilianna’s slippers resounded in the bathroom at an irregular pace. Sometimes quick and hot-headed, other times slow and introspective.

No, I can’t keep feeling anxious about this. I need to get Phoenix out as early as possible, so we don’t even have to switch souls to begin with.

With a soft rustle, the curtain slid open, and Lilianna leaned over the bathtub to slide the window open. Through the gaps in between bars, Lilianna observed the outside. It didn’t seem windy today. 

The door clicked, and Lilianna positioned herself to lie on the dry bathtub. She held her finger out and manifested a small bubble. Hand motions weren’t necessary for manifesting the ability, but Lilianna noticed Lily Bianca liked to do it as if the ability was part of her body. Lilianna reflexively copied the only teacher she had, albeit indirectly.

As she injected part of her consciousness in the bubble, the world around her became hazy. Lilianna, now in the image of a bubble, floated higher until she had been able to slip through the bathroom window. 

Lilianna hovered down and around until she found a small opening in the kitchen. The workers chatted idly while preparing for dinner. The room was filled with unhurried sounds of knife hitting the cutting board, and mixing and pouring of liquids in containers.

Lilianna’s bubble form creeped back inside the mansion through the kitchen window when no one was looking. She drifted upwards and snuggled close to the ceiling. This way, the cameras won’t be able to notice her gliding around. 

Even if someone were to look up and stare straight at the ceiling where she was, she could always pop the bubble herself and try again. And like this, she floated about and patiently waited for doors or windows to open until she was able to get into the mansion’s security room.

The room currently had two people conversing as they observed countless monitors. Their coffee sat untouched on the table as they talked passionately about a current sports game. The room unsurprisingly lacked windows, but had artificial lighting. 

Lilianna moved downwards to get a better angle at the monitors. She needed to figure out how many cameras there were from the room she was in coming towards the window of the second floor.

“... when Eterna ruled is over.”

Satisfied with the information she’d gathered, Lilianna was about to leave when the conversation between the two caught her attention. Eterna was Phoenix’s family name. Lilianna waited for the other’s response.

One of them grabbed his cup from the table and took a sip. “Right. Those stubborn idiots still stuck in the past. The Novarise Family already built an alliance against them. They don’t stand a chance.” 

“‘Sides. Boss Damon finally caught the biggest fish to use against them,” the other one said. The two looked at each other knowingly, grins spreading across their faces.

“Eterna will be no more!”

Lilianna wasn’t surprised. She had always known Damon was bad news. However, to think that he was the reason Phoenix’s body was bruised and had head trauma, and he had the audacity to talk to her casually. It had left a bitter taste in Lilianna’s mouth. 

When she got back to Phoenix’s body, it was already dark outside. Lilianna understood where the cameras were– she just needed to figure out a way to get around them and figure out how to disable the window’s security system. She would need Phoenix’s help to understand this.

Lilianna fixed herself up and laid on the bed. Her soft wish for Phoenix’s well-being slowly vanished as she fell deeper into sleep.