Kaden stood in front of the gigantic Ouroboros building, Inara already disappearing inside six minutes ago.

Yet he didn't go back, his mind thinking about what would happen. Now that he had accepted the advice of Blanche and Reditha, he was beginning to feel regret.

Maybe Inara didn't need space. She needed clarity. She needed to be told that it was not him rejecting her because she was not good enough.

That he already had three women inside his head and felt bad about adding a fourth just after the incident with Aurora.

It was all guilt. And it was all guilt that made him close his heart toward Inara, giving her nothing but friendship. All of that, hoping she would do the same even if her actions said otherwise.

Kaden sighed, his head ducked low. Plebeians walked through and around him without giving him a glance.

No one could see him. No one could even sense him. His Absence trait was activated, making him able to hide from the world.

A shame that the trait could not hide him from his own feelings.

So there, Kaden had the luxury to question himself. And naturally, the first thing that came to mind was…

'Did I act wrongly?'

His self-doubt was loud enough for his two companions to hear him. And though they were not asked, they answered.

'You did, Kaden,' Reditha answered calmly. At the same time, her body steamed out from Kaden, wrapping her arms around his neck protectively.

Now Reditha's body was made of crimson stars. A sight to behold.

Blanche stayed silent. She was new; she didn't know Kaden well enough to give her input.

At Reditha's words, Kaden jerked his head to one side, eyebrows arched. 'What do you mean?'

'You are too passive with the women around you, Kaden.' Reditha shook her head, caressing his cheeks. 'You never take the first action, and you let them lead the relationship in the way they want.'

Kaden's frown deepened, a chasm slowly forming between his eyebrows.

'Your relationship with Lady Meris was all done by her,' she said. 'You did nothing but follow her lead and accept her love declarations.'

Kaden began to feel irritated, but he fell silent.

Reditha could sense it, yet she smirked and continued. If it irritated him, that meant she was true enough to get under Kaden's skin.

So mercilessly,

'Your relationship with Lady Vaela was the same. You accepted the fact that she bound her death with yours. Even now, Kaden, you have done nothing to change that despite the fact that you can. Why?'

'I don't want to,' Kaden's response was curt.

Reditha shrugged. 'That's your choice. But it doesn't change the fact. Even Aurora, too, partially led the relationship.'

'And now Inara.' She clicked her tongue. 'If from the beginning you hadn't gone along with her way and had actually shown her your own stance, all of this could have been avoided.'

'But you decided to do nothing but watch, giving her hope for something more, only to snatch it away with a loud silence.'

'So yes, my dear master…' Reditha leaned her face toward Kaden's left ear and whispered with a provocative tone,

'…it's all your fault.'

Kaden's lips twitched heavily. He had never felt the need to give a well-landed uppercut to Reditha, but at that moment, the urge was boiling inside him.

'You are lucky, Reditha,' he grated, jaw clenching tight. 'You're lucky I do not beat women.'

'You have beaten many women. Even killed some.'

'Is your goal today to anger me?'

'Am I doing a good job?'

'Unfortunately, yes.' Kaden sighed, passing a hand down his face. 'And also unfortunately, you are right.'

It was something Prometheus didn't notice until now. For him, all he was doing was not restricting the women he was with, letting them express whatever they wished.

But all of this was the consequence of his low experience with women. Added to that, his bad experience during his past life with a girl… Kaden had decided that not doing anything was the right choice.

Clearly, he was wrong.

But it was too late for Inara. The girl had already confessed, and he turned her down after acting with her like he loved her in that way.

The more he thought about it, the more angered with himself he became.

Now what should he do with Inara?

Speaking with her?

'And tell her what?' Reditha interjected once more.

Kaden didn't respond. He himself didn't know what to say to Inara.

Sorry, I was acting like I mirrored your feelings, but in fact I see you as a friend?

'Bad idea,' Kaden mused inwardly.

He lifted his head toward the dark, now starless night. He had planned on going to Meris to ask what was going on with her. But finally, he would wait until tomorrow.

In the meantime, he would walk the streets of Waverith, clearing his head and pondering his actions.

He must change his way of dealing with women.

Sighing again, Kaden turned on his feet and strode away.

In his mind, Prometheus sincerely hoped that Inara would be okay. And that their relationship would not be strained.

That was what he was praying for.

But Kaden knew the bitter truth.

It was far too late.

He cursed and slammed his foot on the ground. The ground shattered and erupted skyward.

The folks cried in shock. Kaden didn't care, he continued his walk, self-blame evident in the curl of his lips.

The wise were truly right. One single mistake could make one spill a hard-earned bucket of water onto the ground.

And the only thing that could be done once it was already spilled was to refill it with a new one.

But would it be the same?

It wouldn't.

It could be better. It could be worse.

Kaden's perception was tingling. And the feeling he was getting was one he didn't fancy.

Once again, he cursed. This time, his chest boiling with anger.

What a bloody idiot he was!

…

Kaden departed, walking to who knows where. Inara, meanwhile, was inside her house, walking aimlessly, her steps unsteady, her body swaying as if about to fall at any given moment.

Her mind was blank, unable to think of anything else.

Inside, her monsters were eerily silent. None of them wished to speak. Especially Oeil.

For some reason, the current state of Inara made her tremble in fear. She preferred her mother to curse her and beat her rather than be like this.

It pained her.

Oeil wanted to say something, but she knew it was not the moment. So she fell silent, whining and trembling at the overwhelming feeling coursing through Inara.

It was heavy, yet it was dark. It was filled with self-blame and disappointment.

There was rarely anything more wrenching in matters of the heart than being turned down by your first love. The one you were ready to give everything of yourself to.

Inara slowly shook her head, regaining a semblance of herself, now standing in front of a big serpentine door.

Without knocking, she put her hands on the two gigantic doors made of the dead skin of snakes and pushed.

The doors creaked in protest but eventually yawned open. The inside was dark, with soft green light floating all around.

Inara strode inside, the doors closing immediately behind her with a loud bang.

Her right eye sharpened, her snake slit narrowing, allowing her to see clearly inside.

Her ears twitched, hearing the sound of water dripping down. Wordlessly, she followed the sound.

She passed by the numerous pieces of furniture in her mother's room and went directly toward the bathroom. Once again, Inara didn't announce her presence.

She opened the glassy door and took a step inside.

Her eyes settled on an intriguing sight.

Her mother, Medusa Serpentine, was sitting at the edge of the bathtub, her back facing Inara.

Inara raised a tired eyebrow, noticing something she never had before.

On her mother's back, there was a wide tattoo of a snake biting its own tail.

Inara frowned. Something inside her was shaking at the sight. She tilted her head, feeling as if the snake of the tattoo was staring at her.

Her Origin quivered.

She instinctively staggered back, blinked, only to see Medusa looking at her with her cold, serpentine eyes.

"What are you doing here, Inara?" Medusa asked, her voice soft despite her eyes.

Taking hold of herself, Inara shook her head. Her mother's question made her remember why she was here, making her forget the experience just now.

So she hung her head low, then slowly,

"He said no," she whimpered.

The snake princess didn't know why, but now that she was with her mother, she stopped holding herself back and just let her feelings pour out.

She began to sob.

"M-Mother… he… he said no…"

Medusa immediately understood, her eyes widening. She got up from the bathtub in haste, naked, and wrapped her daughter in a tight hug.

Inara began to choke on her breath, her cries growing louder and louder.

"H-Hero said no, mother… mother… mother…"

Medusa bit her lips at the repeated words of Inara.

Inara didn't stop saying the same thing, crying furiously.

Inside her, her monsters cried with their mother, feeling her pain of being rejected.

Medusa only bit her lips harder, her heart wrenching at the pain her daughter was going through.

She hugged her and whispered words to her. That was all she could do.

"It will be fine. It will be fine. Okay?" Medusa whispered, hugging Inara tighter. Behind her, her tattoo was mysteriously gone.

Inara only cried harder at those words.

Medusa smiled wryly, stopping her own tears at the sight of her daughter, and slid down with Inara to the ground, her back against the bathtub.

Inara continued to cry. And she cried until no tears came out. She cried until she fell asleep.

—End of Chapter 368—

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.