Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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“Young goddess, are you certain you wish your thread to be cut from the Moirai’s Tapestry? Once the shears
fall, you must enter the cycle of rebirth. There is no turning back.”
The Acolyte of the Fates was stunned, but he recorded my plea nonetheless.
“In seven days, you will pass through the Chasm of Lethe,” he said without looking up. “After that, the name
Elara will cease to exist.”
“Wait,” he paused, his eyes widening in shock. “Your name is Elara?”
Everyone in the Underworld knew that Hades, the King of Shades, had a wife he had cherished for a thousa
nd years. Her name was Elara.
I nodded calmly.
Only by having my life–thread rewoven could I ensure that he would never find me again.
1
When I walked out of the Hall of Fates, the realm of Hades was being transformed. In just a few hours, the
usual gloomy, damp chill had vanished. The dark halls were draped with garlands of pomegranate blossoms,
their deep red a startling blush of life in the land of the dead.
A newly arrived shade, looking bewildered, asked another, “Is there some kind of celebration? Is Lord Hades
taking a new queen?”
A passing Fury shot her a disdainful look and scoffed, “You’re so clueless. Our Lord Hades has been married for an eternity! He and his queen have been devoted for nearly a thousand years. In a few days, it will be Lady Elara’s birth anniversary. Lord Hades has been planning the feast for ages!”
I walked past them, a silent sigh escaping my lips.
Everyone in the Underworld knew that the current king, Kaelen, valued his wife more than his own immortal
life.
Once, when I had fallen gravely ill, Kaelen had ventured into the River Lethe itself, sacrificing half his divine power to retrieve a single, frozen bloom from its banks to use in my cure.
Even before he became the ruler of this realm, he had died for me in the mortal world.
After his death, his soul descended here, but he refused to drink the waters of oblivion. He just stood stubb-
ornly by the Stygian Path, waiting.
When others asked him why he wouldn’t move on, he would say, “I’m waiting for Elara. In life, I was her man.
In death, I am her shade.”
Decades later, when my soul finally arrived, Kaelen had already become the formidable King of the Underwo- rld. He welcomed me with the grandest ceremony the realm had ever seen.
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From then on, every soul and spirit, from the lonely shades in the Asphodel Meadows to Charon himself envied our divine romance.
During countless nights of intimacy, Kaelen would whisper in my ear, “Elara, we will be together for all eterni ty, our souls forever entwined.”
I never doubted his sincerity. It’s just that sincerity can be so fleeting.
A month ago, I discovered that Kaelen was hiding another woman–a nymph–in a secluded corner of his domain. Every time he claimed he had “duties to attend to,” he was actually going to be with her. Unbeknow nst to me, that nymph had already begun to occupy most of his time.
I gave a bitter smile, tuning out the Fury’s gushing account of my “perfect” life with Kaelen, and walked away.
Back in our Asphodel Pavilion, I took out a mortal writ of severance.
Stroke by stroke, I wrote down my name.
Even though Kaelen, as a god, was not bound by such mortal contracts, I followed the old customs. Since I
was the one breaking our vow of eternal companionship, this was my final tribute to the love we once shar
- ed.
Just as I finished the last stroke, a gust of wind swept through the room. Kaelen was back.
He smiled, wrapping his arms around me from behind, his voice laced with fatigue. “Elara, my love, what are you writing?”
The hand holding the quill trembled slightly. I feigned composure and quickly covered the writ with a fresh
sheet of papyrus.
Kaelen sensed something was amiss. “I’m sorry, Elara,” he coaxed gently. “There were some unruly souls causing trouble on the Stygian Path. I had to deal with them, so I’m late.”
I didn’t expose his lie. I had just come from the Stygian Path myself; it was perfectly calm.
He smiled, pulling out a hairpin carved from obsidian and starlight, and gently combed through my long hair.
His voice was so soft it could drown a soul. “Don’t be upset, Elara. Let me do your hair for you, shall I?”
I remained silent, feeling him lean in to style my hair. In that instant, a faint scent of jasmine washed over me. I turned my head slightly and saw it–a small, red love bite on his collar.
Nothing grew in the barren lands of the Underworld but asphodel. Where would the scent of jasmine come
from? Kaelen must have traveled to the mortal realm, gathered a large bouquet, and used it to win another’s
favor.
He had probably just climbed out of that nymph’s bed.
My gaze darkened.
The real agony was realizing that the moments I thought were filled with happiness were, for him, moments
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of betrayal. The line between true and false happiness is so hard to discern.
Kaelen, oblivious to my turmoil, gently inserted the hairpin. His eyes were full of adoration as he praised me sincerely, “Elara, your skin is fairer than moonbeams. So beautiful.”
I forced a smile, covering his eyes with one hand while folding the writ of severance with the other and hand ing it to him.
“A gift for you,” I said. “Just promise me you’ll wait seven days to open it.”
Kaelen smiled, taking my hand and agreeing instantly. “Of course. Anything for you, Elara.”
I looked into his smiling eyes, thinking to myself: in seven days, the name Elara will be gone from this world
forever.
2
The next day, Kaelen cleared his schedule, eager to take me to see fireworks in the mortal realm.
The world of the living was vibrant and bustling. A rare spark of excitement lit up my face. If it hadn’t been for Kaelen, I never would have stayed in such a desolate place… but now, it no longer mattered.
Kaelen shielded me as we walked through the crowded streets, frequently turning to adjust the hairpin in my
hair.
A little girl selling flowers ran up to us, her face bright with a smile. “Mister, buy a bouquet for this pretty lady! May you two be happy together forever!”
I froze, about to refuse, but Kaelen was already smiling and picking out flowers. After careful consideration,
he decided to buy her entire basket.
“Wait.”
I snapped out of my daze and stopped him.
Kaelen looked at me, his eyes full of warmth. “What is it, Elara? You don’t like them?”
I nodded, my voice flat. “I don’t like jasmine.”
His expression froze instantly, his pupils contracting. He looked… unnatural. He forced a stiff smile. “Elara, I thought jasmine was your favorite. Why the sudden change…?”
A sharp pain pierced my heart. Once, to make me happy, he had commanded an entire mortal courtyard to
bloom with jasmine just for me. Now, to please another woman, he traveled to the mortal realm to bring her bouquets of it.
In that moment, I desperately wanted to ask him: when he gave her jasmine, did he feel even a flicker of guilt?
Before I could speak, a young, handsome acolyte rushed out from behind Kaelen and slammed into me. I
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had no time to dodge and was knocked to the ground.
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My ankle twisted, swelling instantly. My hands were scraped. The hairpin tumbled out and landed crookedly
on the pavement.
The acolyte shot me a triumphant glance before turning to Kaelen. “My lord! There are rogue titans stirring ir
the deepest pits of Tartarus! You must go at once!”
Kaelen frowned, a bolt of dark energy shooting from his hand towards the acolyte. But as he recognized the face, he abruptly withdrew the attack.
My gaze faltered.
I knew this “acolyte.” It was the nymph, Lyra.
She was disguised as a man, but it only accentuated her fair, jade–like skin.
Kaelen looked at me with a pained expression as he helped me up. “Elara, you go on ahead. I’ll take care of
this…”
Hearing his words, I hid my injured hand behind my back and answered flatly, “It’s fine. I can go back by mys
elf.”
He tenderly wiped a smudge of dirt from my face, then turned and snapped at Lyra, “Be more careful. If you
ever harm Elara again, I will have your immortal soul!”
He glanced at me guiltily again, then bent down to retrieve the hairpin. Before he could, a group of laughing children ran past, and the hairpin vanished into the crowd.
A flash of annoyance crossed Kaelen’s face. He was about to search for it himself when Lyra tugged on his
sleeve, her voice soft and cloying. “My lord, we’ll be too late…!”
She wasn’t even bothering to disguise her feminine voice anymore, her expression a blatant provocation.
Kaelen frowned and roughly shook her hand off, his tone turning to ice. “If you don’t vanish from my sight, I
will unmake you.”
He channeled his power, and in an instant, her exposed arm turned red and swollen.
A flicker of defiance crossed her face, followed by a pout. She turned and left.
Once she was gone, Kaelen’s expression softened. “Elara, you look around. I’ll be right back.”
I nodded numbly.
He lovingly stroked my hair one last time, then ordered two of his guards to stay and find the hairpin. “This hairpin is a symbol of my vow to Elara,” he said, his voice cold. “It must be found.”
Listening to his passionate words, I scoffed inwardly.
His heart had already changed. Why pretend to care?
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As his figure disappeared, I silently followed him.
I watched as he caught up to Lyra and pulled her fiercely into his arms.
His voice was a low growl. “You should not have appeared in front of Elara.”
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The nymph, still disguised, her eyes red–rimmed, lightly beat against Kaelen’s chest. “I only went to see you because I missed you so much. How could you be so cruel?”
“Look,” she pouted, holding up her swollen arm, “don’t I look… alluring in this uniform?”
A sliver of sheer, translucent fabric was visible at her cuff.
Kaelen’s Adam’s apple bobbed, his eyes darkening.
“Want to see what I’m wearing underneath? I know you’ll like it,” she purred.
He grabbed her arm, his eyes now clouded with desire. “Don’t tell me… it’s a mortal’s silken finery.”
She giggled, burying her head, in his chest, cooing, “You’re so wicked!”
Laughing and teasing, they disappeared into a secluded pavilion. Their entangled silhouettes danced on the window screen.
I stood outside, listening to the sounds of their passion. I watched Kaelen repeatedly kiss her injured hand.
A searing pain shot through my own ankle. I looked down to see it swollen beyond recognition.
I had already decided to be reborn, to forget. But at this moment, my heart was filled with a bitter ache.
A single tear traced a path down my cheek. The soft moans from inside grew louder. I clamped my hands over my ears, but I couldn’t block out the sound. It seeped into my mind, a sharp knife twisting in my heart.
I forced myself to limp away, ignoring the agony. My hair was a mess. The hairpin was gone, my ankle was sprained, and I looked utterly pathetic.
I desperately told myself this was the last tear I would ever shed for him.
When I stumbled back to the Asphodel Pavilion, Kaelen’s two guards were waiting, holding the hairpin.
My eyes fell on it, and I suddenly remembered the day Kaelen had proposed. His face had been flushed, but he had looked at me with such sincerity.
“Elara, I will be good to you for all of eternity.”
I had looked at him, and my heart had soared.
From that day on, he had devotedly fulfilled his promise. In the end, he had even died to protect me.
Now, the hairpin was still as beautiful as ever, but the man who had made the vow was a stranger.
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I shook my head, and when I spoke, my voice was steady again.
“I don’t want it anymore.”
I didn’t want the hairpin, the symbol of our vow.
And I didn’t want Kaelen anymore.
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I fell into a restless sleep, and it was only then that Kaelen returned. He moved quietly, carefully slipping int bed beside me and pulling me into his arms.
I kept my eyes closed.
He took my cold hands in his and murmured an incantation, warming the room with the very heat of the Phlegethon, the river of fire.
In my drowsy state, I felt him almost reverently tuck my cold hands into his own embrace to warm them.
A wave of sleepiness washed over me, and I finally drifted off.
When I woke up, the space beside me was empty.
A handmaiden approached. “Lord Hades has been very busy,” she explained.
I nodded, indifferent. Whether he was truly busy or off with Lyra, it no longer mattered.
I spent the next few days clearing out the pavilion.
Kaelen had given me many things. A lantern that held a captive star, custom–blended incense that smellec
of forgotten memories, a lover’s knot woven from my own hair…
I packed them all into a box and cast it into the fires of the Phlegethon.
As the flames died down, Kaelen pushed open the door. “Elara, what are you burning?”
I smiled. “Nothing. Just some useless old things.”
He nodded, glancing around the now–empty room. “I’ll find you some new treasures to entertain you in a few
days.”
I didn’t answer. In a few days, I would be completely free, no longer waiting for him in this dull, lifeless realm
Time was short. I made sure to burn everything.
Coincidentally, my birth anniversary and the day my thread was to be cut from the loom were the same.
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