Gathering her disheveled emotions, Vivian suppressed the redness in her eyes and put aside her broken, vulnerable appearance.
Secretly escorted by a group of Dragon Emperor Guards, she left the Dragon Emperor Bureau headquarters and arrived at the bustling Lumina Square.
Vivian finally stopped at the entrance to a fashionable clothing store.
The store was quiet and elegant, bathed in soft, warm white light. Hoshimi Miyabi stood tall in the center, her aloof bearing giving off an air that kept strangers at a distance.
Vivian walked slowly up to her. Though slender, she had an imposing presence, and her eyes were still slightly red and damp from crying. Her voice was cold, with a hint of impatience:
"Why did you specifically ask me to meet you here? What exactly do you want?"
Hoshimi Miyabi's fingers moved lightly as she toyed with the weapon called Jealousy. Her expression was impassive, and she dispensed with pleasantries.
With a flick of her finger, she sent a clear photograph flying through the air. It landed squarely in front of Vivian.
"See for yourself."
Vivian lowered her eyes to the photograph. At first, her gaze remained undisturbed. She took it for an ordinary intelligence photo and thought nothing of it.
But when her gaze settled clearly on the young man in the photograph, her pupils contracted sharply, and the blood in her body froze in an instant.
The young man in the photograph stood tall, dressed in brand-new fashionable clothes. His figure was familiar to her very bones.
Even though his eyes were closed, that unmistakable face and aloof bearing belonged to the person she had been obsessively longing for over the past year. There was no mistake.
The longing, hurt, and obsession that had built up in her heart erupted all at once.
Vivian could no longer remain calm. She hurried forward and gripped Hoshimi Miyabi's arms tightly, her emotions spiraling out of control, her voice urgent:
"Why do you have this photograph?! Is Brother Yingheng still alive?!
"If he's alive, why hasn't he come to find me even once in an entire year?!"
Hoshimi Miyabi frowned slightly and let Vivian hold her arms. Her voice remained calm as she slowly laid out the facts:
"I immediately sent people to secretly protect the clerk who took this photograph. This lead is highly confidential; only the four of us know about it at present.
"According to what the clerk saw, an unfamiliar girl led Lord Dragon Emperor into the store by the hand to pick out clothes."
She paused, then stated the most crucial information, enunciating every word:
"The girl declared in public that Lord Dragon Emperor was her boyfriend. Throughout the entire time, Lord Dragon Emperor kept his eyes closed and said nothing.
"Judging from all the signs, he is most likely gravely injured, blind, and temporarily unable to speak."
Those words were like a poisoned blade, stabbing viciously into Vivian's heart.
She stared fixedly at the figure in the photograph as dark emotions spread wildly in her eyes. Overwhelming possessiveness and frenzied jealousy utterly consumed her reason.
She lowered her voice and muttered to herself, her tone hoarse and sinister, filled with bone-deep chill and a twisted viciousness:
"Damn it... that damn homewrecker."
"How dare she take my Brother Yingheng away without permission, how dare she claim that role and covet him... I'll cut her into a thousand pieces."
No sooner had her chilling words fallen than the wooden door of the clothing store was gently pushed open.
Alice stepped softly into the store, her features gentle and innocent, her whole bearing pure and tender.
Seeing Vivian trembling violently and losing control of her emotions, she did not hesitate. She hurried forward, opened her arms, and gently embraced the tense Vivian, her movements tender and soothing.
She gently patted Vivian's back, her voice soft and sweet, full of pure comfort and kindness, with the gentle acceptance only a close friend could offer:
"Vivian, don't be angry, and don't be afraid. That clerk told us lots of other details too."
Alice tilted her face up and earnestly relayed the clues, her eyes clear and unblemished, looking entirely pure and innocent:
"Brother Dragon Emperor was dazed and didn't understand anything. He even almost changed clothes right there on the street.
"The clerk guessed that he most likely lost his memory from his injuries and couldn't remember anyone. That's why he never came back to find us. He didn't stay away on purpose, and it's not that he stopped liking you."
She gently comforted the distraught and obsessive Vivian. "Let's not get angry without knowing what happened, and let's not hurt anyone. We can look for him together, little by little, okay?"
Beside them, Hoshimi Miyabi shook her head gently. There was no hint of compromise in her cool eyes, and her firm voice broke through the gentle reassurance:
"I won't search with you, and I certainly won't let you find him."
Hoshimi Miyabi fixed her gaze on Vivian, whose emotions had yet to settle as she remained in Alice's arms, and went straight to the point:
"Vivian, I'm not wrong. With how extreme and obsessive your mental state is now, you won't give Lord Dragon Emperor his freedom once you find him.
"Your first reaction will be to imprison him completely, deceive him, keep him all to yourself, lock him by your side, and take complete control of everything in his life."
"I will never let you hurt him in the slightest."
Her most secret obsession laid bare, Vivian abruptly broke free of Alice's embrace. Her scarlet eyes locked onto Hoshimi Miyabi as her yandere viciousness erupted in full force:
"Only I can protect him!!"
"I'm the only one in the whole world who can give him the safest, most complete protection!"
Her chest heaved violently, her emotions completely out of control as she roared with utter madness and unwillingness to accept it.
"You're just using protection as an excuse to keep him all to yourself!"
Vivian clenched her fists, her eyes blazing with fighting spirit, her obsession reaching its peak:
"In that case, we'll settle this once and for all! I will never lose! He can only be mine!"
Faced with her nearly crazed challenge, Hoshimi Miyabi's expression did not change. She remained cool and calm, with only a trace of pain hidden deep in her eyes, scarcely perceptible.
She slowly turned to leave, her cool voice echoing through the quiet clothing store. "Vivian, you're sick."
"You've already developed an obsession with harming and imprisoning him. So I will never let you see him again."
Hoshimi Miyabi's back was straight and solitary, her words resolute, concealing a desire to protect him that had never wavered over the past year:
"From the moment he disappeared a year ago, giving his life for the world, I had already made up my mind.
"If he could come back alive, I would give everything I had to make sure no person or power ever hurt him in the slightest again."
"The three of us, and all the forces we each control, have long since entered the game.
"Every side is watching like a tiger stalking its prey, and undercurrents are stirring. In his current vulnerable state, blind, unable to speak, and innocent with no memories, if he were exposed at our side and drawn into a conflict between the three of us and the power struggles of the major forces, only endless danger and disaster would await him."
"For him as he is now, staying by our sides has never been protection. It would be the greatest harm."
When her cool voice fell silent, the delicate balance between the three of them was utterly shattered.
Alice stood where she was, a trace of astonishment still on her face.
Vivian stood rooted to the spot, viciousness surging through her as her scarlet eyes remained fixed on Hoshimi Miyabi's departing figure.