The Plan to Take Out the Last Crimson Eye

The moon hung low over the capital, a thin silver blade slicing through the darkness.

It should have been a peaceful night.

Instead, it was the night Lady Arin Valoria’s fate was sealed.

Arin, the last bearer of the crimson eyes, walked through the quiet streets with a small lantern in hand.

Her steps were hesitant, but her heart was hopeful.

Her adoptive sister, Lira, had sent her a message earlier that day — a rare gesture of kindness.

“Let’s talk. I want to fix things between us.”

Arin wanted to believe it.

She always wanted to believe Lira.

Even after years of coldness, jealousy, and whispered rumors, Arin clung to the hope that her sister still cared.

And when her lover, Serin, encouraged her to go, she felt reassured. “She’s trying, Arin. Give her a chance.”

She didn’t know those words were poison.

The abandoned building stood at the edge of the old district, its windows shattered, its walls cracked like broken bones.

Arin paused at the entrance, her lantern flickering.

Something felt wrong.

The air was too still.

The silence too heavy.

But she stepped inside anyway.

“Lira?”

Arin called softly.

“Serin? Are you here?”

Her voice echoed through the hollow space.

No answer.

She moved deeper, her lantern casting trembling shadows across the floor.

The smell of dust and mold clung to the air.

Her heartbeat quickened.

She turned to leave—The door slammed shut behind her.

Arin spun around, startled.

“Who’s there?”

Footsteps approached.

Two silhouettes emerged from the darkness, their faces illuminated by the lantern’s glow.

Lira.

Serin.

But their expressions were not warm.

Not apologetic.

Not anything Arin had hoped for.

Lira’s smile was sharp, cruel.

“You came. How obedient.”

Serin didn’t smile at all.

His eyes were cold, calculating — eyes Arin had once thought held affection.

Arin’s breath caught.

“What’s going on?”

Serin stepped forward.

“You should have died quietly, Arin. It would’ve been easier.”Arin froze.

“Died…?”

Lira laughed, a sound like broken glass.

“Did you really think we’d let you keep everything? The inheritance? The clan’s legacy? Those eyes?”

She leaned closer, her voice dripping venom.

“You were born lucky. I wasn’t. And I’m done pretending to be your shadow.”

Arin stumbled back, her lantern shaking in her grasp.

“Lira, Serin… please, this isn’t—”

“It is,”

Serin interrupted.

“Your eyes are worth a fortune. Enough to buy us power, status, everything we deserve.”

Arin’s heart shattered.

“You… you were using me?”

Serin didn’t bother answering.

His silence was confirmation enough.

Lira snapped her fingers.

Flames burst to life around the room, spreading across the old wooden walls. The abandoned building had been prepared — soaked in oil, rigged to burn fast.Arin gasped as heat surged toward her. “You’re going to kill me?”Lira tilted her head mockingly. “Not just kill you. Erase you.”Serin’s voice was flat. “No body. No evidence. Just ashes.”

Arin backed away, coughing as smoke filled her lungs.

The fire grew rapidly, licking up the walls, crawling across the floor. Her lantern slipped from her hand and shattered.

“Why?” she whispered, tears blurring her vision.

“I loved you both…”

Lira sneered.

“That was your mistake.”

The flames roared, swallowing the room.

Arin tried to run, but the heat was overwhelming.

Her dress caught fire, pain searing her skin.

She screamed, collapsing to her knees.

Serin watched without emotion.

“It’s done.”

But Arin wasn’t dead yet.

She crawled toward the door, her fingers bleeding, her breath ragged.

She reached out, desperate, terrified, betrayed beyond comprehension.

The fire closed in, suffocating her, burning her, consuming everything she was.

Her last thought wasn’t of Lira.

Or Serin.

Or her clan.

It was of the Duke.

The cold, distant Duke Kael Ravenworth — the only person who had ever looked at her without greed.

The only one who had ever defended her.

The only one whose gaze had held something she never understood.

I should have trusted him…Her vision blurred.

Her body collapsed.

The flames swallowed her whole.

And the world went dark.

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