Utopian System

Mei reviewed the numbers for the fifth time, her fingers tracing the neat columns of figures.

The amounts of mana she was handling now was almost surreal.

Each page told a story of sacrifice and hope.

"The debt to the citizens is completely settled," she commented, meticulously organizing the records with practiced precision. "But they keep contributing."

"It's hope," Ren responded without looking up from his own calculations, his quill scratching steadily against parchment. "They believe that if they contribute enough, Elio will eventually find a way to end this."

The silence that followed was broken only by the scratching of quills on paper. Finally, Ren sighed, putting down his work.

"A lot of hope from many, but… Diana is growing more distant with me," he murmured, his voice mixing concern and frustration. "We barely talk lately, and when we do..."

"I know what you mean," Mei set aside her documents, looking at her companion with sympathy. "It's like Lila. She gets worse every day too."

"At least Diana doesn't watch Elio and Zara constantly," Ren ran a hand over his face, exhaustion evident in his features. "The way their relationship flows, how natural they are together... it must be like salt in the wound for her."

Mei nodded, remembering how her friend visibly tensed whenever Zara and Elio interacted. The small gestures of affection, the shared glances, the way they gravitated toward each other without even noticing, each moment another small cut to Lila's heart.

Even her felt it a bit… but Lila was…

"Today it's their turn to feed the deposits," Mei commented, worry evident in her voice.

"The two of them?" Ren straightened in his chair. "Diana and Lila together?"

"At the outer barrier. Where Zahyla..."

She didn't need to finish the sentence. They both vividly remembered the previous incident, how Zahyla had found exactly the right words to provoke Zara, mocking Elio with cruel precision that had almost resulted in tragedy. The memory still made them shudder.

"The squads move in groups of ten now," Ren reminded her, though his tone suggested little comfort. "After what happened with that soldier..."

Another heavy silence fell. The angry soldier had been careless, letting his hand cross the barrier for just a moment after her teasing. Zahyla had seized that instant of negligence. What followed... Mei still had nightmares about that day.

"Should we...?" Ren began.

"Inform Elio?" Mei shook her head decisively. "He has enough concerns. Besides, they're level 19 warriors. They have had worse… and Elio near Lila…"

But even as she said it, worry refused to leave her face. Zahyla had a particular gift for finding people's emotional weaknesses, for pressing exactly where it hurt most. And Lila... Lila was practically a walking target these days.

"We can only hope they maintain their composure," Ren murmured, returning to his calculations. "And that Zahyla is in a mood to simply observe today."

Mei nodded, though they both knew it was unlikely. Zahyla never missed an opportunity to play, like she was extremely bored.

♢♢♢♢

The deposit glowed softly before them as they approached. Diana watched Lila from the corner of her eye, noting how her friend seemed lost in her own thoughts, her gaze distant and pained.

"Why do you keep torturing yourself like this?" Diana finally asked, her voice gentle but direct. "Lately he doesn't even look at you, and still..."

Lila kept her eyes fixed on the ground for several moments. When she finally spoke, her voice was barely a whisper, fragile as morning frost.

"I can't... I don't know how to get over it," her hands trembled slightly. "I try, I really do. I tell myself it's useless, that he's with Zara, that I'll never get him. But then..."

Her voice broke. "Then he does something heroic, or shows that compassion he has for everyone, or simply... simply exists, being himself, and I'm back at the beginning. It's like being trapped in a cycle I can't break."

"I understand more than you think," Diana stopped, causing Lila to pause as well. "I mean… It was similar with my mother."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Lila looked at her with confusion, the unexpected comparison drawing her out of her melancholy.

"Not romantic, obviously," Diana smiled weakly. "But that feeling of being trapped in an emotional cycle... of not being able to move past something even though you know it's destroying you. My mother was... complicated. Always demanding perfection, always comparing me to others. I hated and loved her simultaneously, and I hated myself for not being able to resolve those feelings."

"What changed?"

"The shared pain potion," Diana lowered her voice. "It's a secret, but... the god gave it to us in the main exchange and I asked Ren for a loan. When we shared it, I could feel all her pain, and found that she didn't hate me… found her constant worry that I wouldn't be strong enough to survive in this world. And she felt my desperation to be acknowledged, my frustration at never being enough."

Diana ran a hand through her hair, the memory still vivid. "It didn't fix everything magically, but... it gave us perspective. I understood that her harshness came from love, from fear of losing. And she understood how her actions truly affected me… Even though god said it was primarily to help old rulers manage their mind living too many years…" Continue your journey on empire

"Are you suggesting I give Elio a shared potion?" Lila asked, her eyes widening at the possibility.

"No, no," Diana shook her head quickly. "I'm suggesting you try to see things from his perspective, and maybe find a way for him to see things from yours. The worst case would be direct rejection, but even that might be better than this emotional limbo you're in."

"The weight of an entire city on his shoulders," Lila murmured thoughtfully. "The responsibility of keeping everyone safe, of becoming stronger… wait, I may fall in love harder if…"

A musical laugh interrupted her thoughts.

"How adorably pathetic!" Zahyla's voice floated to them from the distance. "Heart troubles while your world slowly crumbles. Isn't it charming?"

The two tensed, turning toward the voice. Zahyla floated beyond the barrier, her cruel smile visible even at a distance.

"Oh, don't stop on my account," she continued, her voice mixing amusement and disdain. "Please, continue discussing how little Lila might make her precious leader notice her. It's much more entertaining than watching you fail in your pathetic attempts to become stronger."

Diana stepped forward, placing herself protectively in front of Lila. "Not everyone measures a conversation's worth by its utility in battle."

Zahyla's smile widened. "No, I suppose not. After all, what else do you have left besides your little dramas? Trapped in your cage, playing at being warriors while time runs out..."