The Truth Behind the Flames

Smoke still clung to the night air like a ghost, drifting over the ruins of the abandoned building. The fire had devoured everything, leaving behind only charred beams and collapsed stone. To the world, it looked like a tragic accident.

To Lira and Serin, it was the end of their plan.

But Arin was still alive.

Barely.

Pinned under fallen debris, her breaths were shallow, her consciousness flickering like a dying candle. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t scream. She could only listen.

And she heard everything.

---

The confession

Lira stood at the edge of the rubble, her arms crossed, her expression twisted with satisfaction. Serin stood beside her, surveying the destruction with a cold, calculating gaze.

“She should be gone by now,” Serin muttered. “The fire was enough.”

Lira scoffed. “You underestimate her. She survived worse when she was a child.”

Serin’s eyes narrowed. “You mean the accident?”

Lira smirked. “Accident? Please. You still believe that?”

Serin turned to her, confused. “What are you talking about?”

Lira’s voice dropped, dripping with cruel pride. “I killed her daughter.”

Serin froze. “Lira—”

“She was always in the way,” Lira continued, her tone disturbingly casual. “Arin loved that child more than anything. As long as she had her daughter, she didn’t need me. She didn’t need you. She didn’t need anyone.”

Serin stared at her, horrified. “You… you never told me that.”

Lira shrugged. “Why would I? You were already obsessed with her eyes. I didn’t need you distracted.”

Arin’s heart clenched. Even through the pain, the words stabbed deeper than any wound. Her daughter… the one bright piece of her life… gone because of Lira’s jealousy.

She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. But her body wouldn’t move.

Serin swallowed hard. “You’re insane.”

“No,” Lira said, stepping closer to him. “I’m realistic. Arin was born with everything. Power. Status. Love. Even after her daughter died, people still adored her. I was invisible. I refuse to be invisible.”

Serin looked away, conflicted. “We already burned the building. It’s done.”

Lira’s smile sharpened. “Not yet.”

---

The bulldozer

A rumbling sound echoed from the street. Arin’s fading vision caught the silhouette of a large machine approaching — a bulldozer, its headlights cutting through the smoke.

Serin stiffened. “You’re going too far.”

“We need to be sure,” Lira said. “If she survived the fire, she won’t survive this.”

Arin’s breath trembled. She tried to move, tried to push herself free, but her limbs refused to obey. Her body was too weak, too damaged. All she could do was listen as the machine rolled closer, crushing debris in its path.

Serin hesitated. “Lira—”

“You wanted her eyes,” Lira snapped. “This is the only way to get them.”

Serin fell silent.

The bulldozer moved forward, its engine roaring. The ground shook. Arin felt the vibrations through the rubble, each tremor a reminder of her helplessness.

She closed her eyes.

Not out of fear.

But out of acceptance.

Her first life was ending.

---

After the collapse

When the machine finally stopped, the building was nothing more than a flattened heap of stone and ash. Lira waved the driver away, her expression calm, almost cheerful.

“Now,” she said, brushing dust off her dress, “let’s retrieve what we came for.”

Serin swallowed hard. “Are you sure she’s—”

“She’s gone,” Lira said firmly. “No one survives that.”

They climbed over the rubble, searching. Arin’s body lay partially uncovered, still, silent, unmoving. Serin stared down at her, his expression unreadable.

“She looks peaceful,” he murmured.

Lira rolled her eyes. “Stop pretending you cared.”

Serin didn’t respond.

Lira knelt beside Arin, studying her face. “Even now… she’s beautiful. Those eyes really were her greatest blessing.”

Serin exhaled slowly. “And her greatest curse.”

Lira reached forward.

Arin didn’t feel anything.

She didn’t hear anything.

She didn’t see anything.

Her world had already gone dark.

---

The end of the first life

When Lira and Serin walked away, carrying what they believed was their prize, the night swallowed the ruins behind them. The moon drifted behind clouds, hiding its light.

The world moved on.

But fate did not.

Arin’s story wasn’t over.

Her second life was waiting.

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