Chapitre 2: 1. The Red Envelope
Somewhere deeply hidden from the city's prying eyes, a castle stood beyond the lush green forest. It was grand, marvelous, a sight to behold, yet... not anyone could enter this place.
Beyond the castle's walls, in the ballroom, as the music started up a lively song, a group of girls gracefully waited for a chance to dance by the edge of the dancefloor. With their grand ballgowns, they looked like the stars of the night. They were beautiful rosebuds.
Before them, there were young gentlemen in their tie and suits, looking dashing and handsome, hoping to get a dance with these beautiful ladies. Each one had their own demeanor, some were shy, while others were confident. But each one was polite and amicable when asking for a dance.
Staying far away from the action, there were two girls indulging in the delicacies a ball could offer.
One of them, in particular, seemed dedicated to erasing the existence of the food in this ball. Everything she picked up disappeared like the smoke. Anyone that saw her in action would wonder how such a petite body could handle so much food and not grow sideways.
However, anyone that approached her and got a closer look at her face would start to wonder, how such a girl came to be?
She was like a beautiful black swan. Her eyes were alluring like that of a cat's, her lips were rosy as pink petals, and her hair was long and shiny like silk threads. In a sea of flowers, she was easily set apart because of her unique presence.
In her past life, she must have been an empress to a long-lasting dynasty.
Even if she was holding for dear life to a plate of cupcakes.
That girl was Chen Jingyun.
Beside her, almost like a bodyguard, there was a tall beautiful girl. One look at her and it was easy to tell it was a warrior. She was strong and sharp. If she set her eyes on you, you were already on the blacklist.
She was very disciplined. Each and every movement of her was intentional and controlled. She was much more restrained.
She was Lu Xin.
"Chen Jingyun... you're starting to gain attention from the headmistress." She casually looked out for her friend. "She looks like she wants to make you run thirty laps around the castle in heels."
Chen Jingyun only shrugged her shoulders and kept taking sweet bites. Nothing seemed to drag her down from the ninth cloud.
Not even dear Ms. Liang who dedicated her time to whip Chen Jingyun into a proper lady.
"Ms. Liang will surely understand why I must do this. This will only go to waste if I don't eat it..."
"Well, if you keep going, you will only get a food coma."
"Well, I'm immune to food coma..."
Lu Xin could sigh and shake her head with a smile. In her head, there was a familiar scene playing on the loop.
Chen Jingyun would start to grab onto her stomach and complain she felt so heavy. She would, later on, drag herself to bed and sleep for two hours straight.
"If you say so."
Chen Jingyun only smiled, her eyes lighting up like the stars, and she bit into another cupcake. Looking around the ballroom, she let herself go, enjoying the moment. Beautiful sights, beautiful sounds, beautiful tastes.
Just look at that mesmerizing glass roof, revealing the starry sky upon them!
This night was perfect.
As the music escalated, and the cupcake wraps kept piling up, the ballroom turned into a joyful atmosphere. Everyone had something to smile about. Even Lu Xin seemed to get carried away by the mood accepting the food Chen Jingyun kept sending her way.
However, when the laughter was the loudest and the music was the merriest, the beautiful glass roof was broken by a sturdy object.
Breaking the beautiful night into despair.
Screaming, everyone ran to convert themselves from the broken glass and the sturdy object. The music stopped abruptly, and the cupcakes were being fiercely protected by Chen Jingyun. Who in turn was covered by Lu Xin.
Once the chaos settled, everyone stood up, lowering their hands from their heads. The silence was piercing as everyone's eyes took in the scene.
The roof had a massive hole, piercing the night into the room, there was glass everywhere, which managed to cut a few unfortunate people, and lastly, there was the strange box that broke the glass.
Everyone's eyes were on the strange box. Stunned, confused, and shocked.
One brave young man decided to approach it and see what it had inside, but a loud voice stopped him.
"Everyone stay where you are!" The headmistress, Ms. Liang, firmly commanded as she hastily walked towards it.
She was an old woman with the air of that of a military commander. She believed in discipline, obedience, and order. She ran this place with a tight grip.
It took very daring individuals to go against her words.
But in this situation...
Nobody wanted to become a nuisance.
They were also curious and wonder who could have done such a thing. If the students didn't manage to get away, there could have been casualties.
This was not a light matter.
Worst case scenario, it could be a bomb waiting to explode.
Kneeling before the strange box, the headmistress swept the remaining glass pieces with the flair of her sleeve. Once the box was safe to touch, the headmistress carefully unlocked it and revealed its content.
Inside, there was a bed of fresh black roses, softly holding a red envelope with fine carvings.
While it all seemed harmless, the fact that it had been delivered in such manner, and the color of those roses, it signified its ill-intentions.
Taking the envelope out, the headmistress studied its appearance. It was made from fine paper, rich to the sight and soft to the touch, almost like satin. Then there was the wax stamp, a shade darker from the envelope. It held a strange symbol of cuts.
Seeing that symbol, the headmistress turned cold. In her eyes only worry and fear could be seen.
Which one of her students was in trouble?
Flipping the envelope, the headmistress traced her finger across that name. Sadness and helplessness seemed to overcome her.
Holding onto the envelope, the headmistress stood up and began to address everyone.
"I understand, tonight's events must have scared and confused all of you. Anyone that was wounded, please proceed to the infirmary. As for the rest, I will have to ask you to return to your chambers while we call the authorities. The ball is over."
Nobody complained, but the whispers did traveled across the crowd. One by one they left, heads huddled together as they discussed tonight's events. What could that letter be?
Looking down at the envelope, the headmistress could only sigh and make her way to a certain person.
Still standing by the food, Chen Jingyun picked up the food she managed to protect. If the ball ended, surely her banquet could continue, right?
Shaking her head at her friend, Lu Xin started to help her on her mission. The quicker Chen Jingyun looted the food, the quicker she would be able to take this damned dress of her!
However, reality proved cruel to Chen Jingyun.
Tapping on her shoulder, there was the stern face of the headmistress. Only this time she seemed more worried than angry...
"Headmistress?" Chen Jingyun tactfully asked. "Is there something wrong?"
Sighing, the headmistress showed her the envelope.
"I believe this is yours to open."
Lowering her plate, Chen Jingyun took the red envelope. It was beautiful, but... why was the headmistress giving her that letter?
Taking it, Chen Jingyun briefly studied the envelope from both sides. She found the reason why it was given to her. After all, it was addressed to her.
She wondered who would deliver a letter in such a high profile and dangerous manner.
On the other side, her eyes lingered on the strange stamp. She didn't know what to think of it, but it strangely seemed familiar to her, like she had seen it before.
"Headmistress, this..." Lu Xin covered her mouth. Her eyes wide as she looked at the stamp. Streaks of worry were revealed in her eyes.
"What?" Chen Jingyun questioned, but neither party wanted to respond.
Not waiting for a second longer, Chen Jingyun broke the seal open and found a pitch-black paper of the same fine material.
Grabbing onto that piece of paper, she slid it out of the envelope and only found a word written in red calligraphy.
Die.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone