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The Warden slammed his fist against his table.
His men immediately come running.
"Where's Cynthia?" He asked one of his men.
They only look at each other, no one wants to answer the angry Warden.
"Answer me!" He snapped.
"Father..." Fortunately, Cynthia finally appears.
The Warden turned his back to look at her.
"You..." He finally calmed down and took a seat.
He pressed his fingers in his temple. He frowned.
"The stones are missing, find it." He orders as he raises his hand.
The men immediately get out of his office, leaving Cynthia and him alone.
"Where's she?" He looked at her.
"Yuu's...uhm...in her room" she looked away, she's not really good at lying.
The Warden sighs in frustration.
"Just find her, I can't afford another problem right now, the capitol have their eyes on us..."
Cynthia left the room, holding the strap of her sniper in her left, she wears her mask and disappears.
...
Yuu finally finished her painting.
Her clothes are now stained with different colours of paints.
"Feeling better now?" Lucian steps closer to look at her finished work.
"Yeah, thanks again" she tossed the paint brush in the bucket of water and started cleaning herself up.
Before she left, Lucian called out for her.
"Hey!" He hesitated.
She looked over at him. "Hmm?"
"If you know...if the stones were found, just tell me..or something..." He rubbed his neck indicating that he felt some kind of guilt.
He doesn't intend to make her betray his father.
However, if he got the stones, he'll use it for the greater good.
Yuu only nods, she turns her back and lights up her lamp.
She hum her mother's favorite melody again while she walk through the pipes.
...
It takes a while until she reaches where she came from.
Cynthia was there, leaning against the wall while waiting for her.
Yuu blows the fire out of the lamp and puts it down.
"Father's looking for you..." Cynthia said while wiping her sniper's nuzzle.
"Like I said I didn't take the stones..." She said angrily as she walked past Cynthia.
"I know..." Cynthia's reply made her stop.
"Why still bothering me?" Yuu's hand grip her stuffed toy.
"Father's ask me to watch over you, keeping you away from troubles..." Cynthia finally finished cleaning her sniper and walked closer to Yuu.
"Suit yourself!" Yuu continues to walk while humming as if she doesn't mind someone is stalking her.
"What's on your mind?" Cynthia asked while walking behind Yuu.
Yuu only raised her eyebrow.
"You're not the type of person to ask that kind of question...are you sick? Or high?" Cynthia punches Yuu's shoulder light while Yuu laughs at her own question.
"I'm not high, I'm just... worried," Cynthia mumbles.
"You're not the type of person who gets worried about me" Yuu said in defense.
It's true though, Cynthia is not capable of being worried about others. Yuu thinks that Cynthia is acting strange because the Warden might say something to her.
Cynthia only stays silent.
Yuu continued humming her melody as they passed through the dark alleyways in the Barrel Zone.
...
For the past fews days, Cynthia kept her eyes on Yuu.
That makes Yuu not to see Lucian very often.
She mostly stayed in her room, or hung out in the beer house.
She really did stay out of trouble.
Yuu was now playing with her dolls again.
Cynthia really doesn't get it.
The Warden can treat Yuu very poorly, and sometimes mentally abuse her.
Yuu still swallows every hurtful word and is happy just because the Warden gave her some worn out dolls.
The Warden works with someone in the capitol, and everyone didn't know about it.
Before he sits on his throne, he and the king have a negotiation.
The King won't touch the people in the Barrel Zone as long as the people of the Barrel Zone don't touch the nobles in the capitol.
For 20 years, that negotiation between them was kept secret.
But Yuu knows about it.
And that's the reason why the Warden wants to keep her in check.
For him, Yuu is 'her' treasure that's why he was treating her like a treasure too.
That's what people believe.
Warden saw a lot of potential in Yuu, that's why he kept her by his side.
Everyone expects that Cynthia or Melrick will take over the Warden's place if he dies or retires.
But he had another plan.
Yuu is like a double edged sword.
She was dangerous if pointed at the enemy but too dangerous if she was used carelessly.
The Warden's fear is for Yuu to find out everything about 'her'.
...
The Warden summoned Yuu to his office.
The stones are still missing.
It seems Yuu already lost her interest in the stones.
She steps closer to the Warden as she knelt down and put her head in his lap.
The Warden stroked her hair gently.
"How's your day?" The Warden asked.
"It's fine, I'm getting bored staying in my room though..." She looked up to him.
The Warden patted his lap. Yuu immediately stood up and sat on it.
He stroked her hair again.
He noticed that the white streak in her hair is spreading.
"Did you do something again?" He asked firmly.
Yuu only nuzzles against him, avoiding the question.
"I'm asking you..." He pull her chin to make her look up to him
"I just....like you said, I trained again" Yuu pouts as she looks up to meet his gaze.
The Warden's sigh in her reply.
He pulled the drawer open, he pulled out a small bottle and a syringe.
"I didn't use it though..." She starts trembling.
"Your white hair is spreading, you still need to do it..." He fills the syringe with the mysterious liquid and hands it to her.
Yuu takes the syringe with trembling hands.
Hesitating to use it to herself.
"Go on, you need to do it yourself from now on..." The Warden strokes her white hair while the venom drips from his mouth.
Yuu took a deep breath and slowly pierced the syringe in her arm.
She let out a loud groan as she pressed the syringe.
After the mysterious liquid was finally inside her, she pulled out the syringe and threw it away.
"Ah!" She falls down on the ground, holding her head.
"Ahn! Ah!" She screams in pain while holding her head.
Her sight is getting fuzzy and blurry.
Her head is throbbing painfully, as if her brain wants to explode.
Her eyes suddenly turn red for a second and turn back to normal.
The white streak in her hair is slowly disappearing.
Finally, after the pain she suffered, she stopped screaming on the floor.
She was now breathing heavily as she tried to catch her breath.
She hated it when she had to use the syringe.
She doesn't even know why she needs to do it every time her white hair is coming out.
She looked up to the Warden with teary eyes.
"It hurts, father..."
The Warden reaches for her and carries her back to his lap.
"It's gone now, good girl..." He hugs her small form and strokes her hair.
She starts humming her mother's favorite melody to soothe her pain.