Chapter 64: You just have to focus on what you like and forget about the rest
She closed her eyes, hoping for just a few hours of rest before deciding on her next move. As soon as her head touched the pillow she sank into a deep sleep.
...
She found herself on Mount Sandalphon. Snow was falling gently, covering the ground with a pure white blanket.
Andromeda was sitting near a campfire, a large pot hanging above the flames. She stirred the contents with a long wooden spoon, the scent of the soup mingling with the fresh mountain air.
She knew it was a dream but she did not want to wake up one dreams without being able to wake up. Everything seemed real like her memories...
Suddenly, a snowball smashed against the back of her head. The cold snow slid under her collar, making her let out a cry of surprise.
"You!!!" she exclaimed while turning around abruptly.
Daemon stood a few meters away from her, a mischievous smile on his lips. He already had another snowball in his hand, ready to be thrown. His eyes shone with childlike joy.
"What are you doing!?" she shouted while standing up, one hand on her still cold neck. "You’ll see!"
She stretched out her hand, channeling her chi to gather an impressive amount of snow. She compressed the snowball until it was hard as ice, then threw it with deadly precision.
But Daemon was not to be outdone. He dodged with a leap, already shaping a new snowball that he threw back at her immediately. The projectile smashed against her shoulder, splashing her with snow.
The scene quickly turned into a snowball fight worthy of the greatest battles. They ran, laughed, took shelter behind rocks and trees, their projectiles whistling through the icy air. Andromeda even used her chi to create bigger and faster snowballs, but Daemon always seemed to have a step ahead.
Finally, they collapsed side by side on the snow, looking at the gray sky above them. Their breaths formed clouds of steam in the cold air.
"You are really immature," said Andromeda while shaking her head, a smile despite herself on her lips.
"I’m told that often, hahaha." He turned his head toward her, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "I like sweets, chicken soup, and I am terrified of the ocean, even though I lived near the sea.
Andromeda shook her head, looking at him from the corner of her eye with a slight smile. "A real kid," she murmured to herself.
They remained silent for a moment, listening to the wind and the crunching of the snow. Then she spoke again.
"You like butterflies too?" she asked while pointing a finger toward the sky. "It is almost impossible not to see a butterfly when you are around."
Since she had known Daemon, she always saw butterflies flying around him, as if they were attracted by his presence.
"Not really," he replied while shrugging. "It seems I have been attracting them since I was little." He raised his hand and a butterfly with blue wings descended toward him, delicately landing on his finger. "They have become my companions over the years."
Andromeda narrowed her eyes. This butterfly had a much higher chi concentration than that of an ordinary insect. But she had not paid attention to it at that time.
"And you?" asked Daemon while looking at her. "Don’t you have things you like or are afraid of?"
Andromeda thought for a moment, her eyes fixed on the gray sky. "Hmm... I lived a lot in the desert. I quite like the cold and snow."
Daemon turned toward her, a surprised expression on his face. "Huh? Only that?"
She shrugged. "I do not really have time to think about that kind of things. I hate a lot of things, and there are few things I appreciate..."
Daemon slowly nodded. "Hmm, I see."
He turned his gaze toward the sky, then, with a sudden gesture, he took Andromeda’s hand. She jumped, trying to pull it back.
"What are you doing!?"
But he did not let go. With his other hand, he formed a circle with his fingers and placed it in front of his right eye, covering his left eye with his palm.
"My father used to tell me that when many things make us unhappy," he said softly, "it is enough to focus on what we like and forget the rest."
He turned his head toward her, a gentle smile on his lips. Through the circle formed by his fingers, she could only see him. The rest of the world, the snow, the fire, the trees, everything had disappeared. There was only Daemon, his smile, his eyes shining with a light she had never seen before.
She remained silent, looking at him through that small circle.
Daemon smiled, breaking the spell. "I feel a bit embarrassed, master, you staring at your disciple with such intensity~"
She looked away, feeling warmth rise to her cheeks: "Tss... kid stuff." She stood up quickly, brushing the snow off her clothes. "Get up, the food is going to get cold."
She turned toward the pot, but as she took a step, she heard a wet sound, a sound she knew too well not to recognize.
She turned around abruptly. A silver blade emerged from Daemon’s chest, the bloodied tip shining faintly. He spat out a gush of blood, his eyes widening in surprise then collapsed.
Behind him stood a woman. She had the same face as Andromeda, the same fine features, the same silhouette. But her eyes were completely black, without iris, without pupil, two empty abysses that stared at her with contempt.
Andromeda felt her blood run cold. "What the?!..."
The black-eyed woman smiled, a cold and cruel smile. "I did what you should have done that night!"
Andromeda drew her short sword in an instinctive movement and leaped toward her evil double. Her blade sliced through the air in a deadly arc, aiming for her throat.
But the black-eyed woman dodged with supernatural grace, her own blade emerging from nowhere to parry the attack. The clash of steels echoed in the mountain silence.
Andromeda attacked with fury her movements precise and fast, but every technique she used, her double reproduced it identically, as if it knew her thoughts even before she formed them.
She attempted a slashing blow, aiming at her opponent’s flank. Her double made exactly the same movement, the two blades clashing with a crash.
She changed strategy, switching to a low attack, trying to unbalance her rival. The black-eyed woman followed perfectly, her blade sliding under Andromeda’s.