Darkness.
Endless darkness.
—
Lady Chen could not see anything.
No sky.
No ground.
No light.
Nothing.
—
At first, she thought she was dreaming.
But slowly—
A strange fear crept into her chest.
Because this darkness did not feel like sleep.
It felt…
Empty.
Cold.
Endless.
—
She stood there silently.
Or perhaps floated.
She could not even tell.
Her body felt strangely light.
Weightless.
As though she no longer truly existed.
—
"…Where am I…?"
Her voice sounded soft.
Small.
Weak.
—
No answer came.
Only silence.
A suffocating silence.
—
Lady Chen frowned slightly.
Trying to remember.
Trying to understand.
—
The last thing she remembered…
Was her courtyard.
—
Warm tea.
Flower petals drifting in the wind.
The sound of servants speaking quietly nearby.
—
Then—
Pain.
A sudden sharp pain inside her chest.
Like something cold wrapping around her body.
Draining her slowly.
—
After that—
Nothing.
—
Her breathing became uneven.
