The scene of Dyon and Ri making their way into Heaven's Wine and climbing to the top floor remained clear. They happily chatted with one another before finally scrolling through the menu options of the restaurant.

Suddenly, Little Lyla called out to Ri. Tears hadn't fallen from her eyes just yet, but even though her face remained stone cold, one could see that she was fighting an inner turmoil.

'That's me' Jade thought to herself silently. 'Those emotions she's feeling, that's how I felt Helpless Alone'

She watched as Ri ordered Ice Petals Dance, a spiritual fruit in the shape of a flower with thousands of petals. Tears fell from her eyes as she described how her mother used to peel this fruit for her, but ever since she disappeared, Ri hadn't had enough skill to peel it for herself

Jade's heart was torn to pieces when she saw the caring looking in Dyon's eyes. 'Why didn't he look at me like that when I was feeling the same pain?... Could it be that he doesn't care about my pain?...'

...

~Ri trembled as Little Lyla wrapped her arms adorably around her head, "It's okay big sister."

Dyon watched this scene with a sadness still in his heart. He slowly stood, walking over to Ri and plopping down beside her.

He smiled at Ri who was holding Lyla in her arms silently, still unwilling to cry.

Dyon looked at the menu to see what had sent Ri into such a state.

There, the image of a beautiful flower shaped fruit appeared. It was a cold, ice blue, and its petals were not unlike the aloe fruit from the human words although their shape was much more delicate and fragile.

The flower spread out from its center beautiful, layering petal after petal in an elegant design. Dyon didn't know why, but he didn't ask Ri whether or not she wanted it. He simply tapped the screen, causing the fruit to slowly manifest onto the round oak table.

After waiting in silence for a few moments, Ri pulled Little Lyla into her lap. Patting the little girl's head, Ri took a deep breath, feeling a little bit better. She wiped the tears from Little Lyla's eyes, unwilling to the cheerful little girl cry.

"This is a fruit my my mom used to cut for me when I was younger. It's called Ice Petal's Dance. My mother loved the fruit so much, that she created a sword technique named after it I haven't had it for a long time. Partially because I miss her, but also because it almost impossible to eat properly," she said softly.

Dyon looked at the fruit, a pondering look in his eye, "Why is it impossible to eat?"

Ri sighed, "Each petal contains the actual fruit within it, which makes peeling the fruits a near impossible task. There are hundreds of petals. Few people are even willing to go through the hassle. That's not even to mention that the coating of the petals is bitter to taste, but the fruit inside is really thin compared to the coating. So, if you peel it incorrectly, you could either end up with bitter tasting fruit, or no fruit at all"

Dyon pondered on this, and suddenly smiled, "How did your mother peel it?"

Ri smiled gently in reminiscence, "Her sword cultivation was so profound she would use her sword qi to peel the petals back, leaving only the fruit behind. It was delicious."

Dyon smiled, reaching his hand to the center of the fruit.

Ri looked confused, 'Is he trying to do what my mom did? There's no way he has that much control'

But suddenly, Ri's doubt vanished. Her eyes widening in shock.

Dyon's eyes flashed with gold, remembering one of the very first arrays he had ever mastered the spatial transference array.

Sweat beaded down his forehead as the array contorted and deformed, slowly coating each and every one of the ice blue petals.

Little Lyla looked on, giggling happily as she watched.

Minutes passed, and soon, Dyon stopped, looking towards Ri with a large grin.

"Today, I serve you Ice Petal's Dance," Dyon gentle grasped the center stem of the flower fruit, pulling upwards.

A sweet aroma filled the private room. It was like lavender dipped into apple cider, giving their noses a slight and gentle itching sensation.

The juices of the fruit slowly dripped from the now pinkish flesh as Dyon held the fruit's shell in his hand.

Ri's hands trembled as she slowly picked a petal peeling it off and softly chewing on it.

The tears she had held back finally couldn't be held back any longer. The only sound left in the room was a blue haired girl sobbing in a fit of happiness and an aching longing.

"Thank you, Dyon"~

Jade's longing and bitter expression turned darker and darker as she watched these scenes. Why couldn't he look at her like that? Why didn't he console her like that?

"Don't you see, Jade?" The Clan Head stood to the side and sighed. "This young man already has someone else in his heart, what is the point of hurting yourself like this?

"As an Eostre, we're all cursed to be unfeeling until the day we shatter our connection with our manifestation. Hold it in and suffer a little now so that the future generations of our family can be unshackled from this sorrow. Do you want your future daughter or grand daughter to feel the way you do now? Cut this part of yourself away

"As cultivators, we live long lives. One day, you'll find someone you can truly share your fate with"

Nothing in this world was black and white. The thoughts of the Clan Head were sincere. He truly felt that his Eostre Clan had sacrificed too much for an Elvin Kingdom that had given them nothing back. Why should their future generations sacrifice even more?

Their selfish King left, disappearing without a word. Who knew how the Clan Head would react if he knew that King Acacia left to chase after his wife? Maybe he would have sunk into madness himself given the irony

How dare you chase after your happiness while we wallow in misery?