"Cecil, it seems that your medicine has at last started affecting her." Suddenly, a man's voice echoed within their surroundings, making Scarlet gasp in surprise.
The sound reverberated around them, echoing in the darkness of the night, sounding like some kind of ghostly entity speaking from beyond the grave.
Scarlet felt goosebumps rise on her skin as the hairs on her body stood up straight, fear gripping her heart.
The voice continued. "Good job, Cecil. I knew you wouldn't let me down."
Soon, the branches around them rustled, and a tall figure emerged from the shadows, revealing his features under the dim moonlight.
The person stepped forward, revealing himself to be a handsome young man wearing a black robe embroidered with golden runes, which made him look quite distinguished and imposing.
His eyes shone with intelligence and wisdom that far surpassed most people in their youth, while his skin was flawless, pale white, making him seem like some sort of aristocrat born into royalty.
He had short brown hair with a few strands sticking out of the side of his head and dark eyes that were sharp and piercing.
Upon seeing his face, Scarlet immediately recognized who he was. "Rick Cutler!!"
Rick Cutler, a fellow disciple of the Twilight Mist Sect that Scarlet met several times before. He always tried to court her, but Scarlet showed zero interest in him, as he was arrogant, entitled, and full of himself.
The young man, named Rick Cutler, chuckled. "You've guessed it, Miss Scarlet."
"Young Master Rick..." Cecil exclaimed as soon as she saw him and ran into the embrace of her young master.
"Why...?" Scarlet uttered in disbelief. "Why did you do this to me?"
Cecil gave a gentle smile to Scarlet, as if apologizing for everything that happened, and began to speak. "It's really simple, Scarlet. You're just too stubborn for your own good, not wanting to listen to anyone other than yourself. If you had agreed to become Young Master Rick's lover, then none of this would have ever happened. You see, Young Master Rick really likes you, Scarlet.
He's admired you since the day he joined the Twilight Mist Sect, and he was hoping that one day you would reciprocate his feelings, but you always brushed him aside, ignoring him whenever he came to visit you."
Cecil paused for a moment before continuing, her eyes filled with sadness and regret. "You know, I also really like you, Scarlet. You're so strong and beautiful, always willing to help others even though they don't deserve it. You have a big heart full of kindness and compassion. That's why I couldn't stand watching you turn away from someone like Young Master Rick, who is such a great guy.
So I offered my assistance to help bring you together with him so that you could finally find happiness, Scarlet, just as I did."
Scarlet just couldn't believe what she heard and turned silent.
At that moment, Rick gave a gentle tap on Cecil's shoulder and made a gesture, which she understood, and then moved away from his embrace, nodding before she stepped towards Scarlet.
Shortly, she crouched in front of Scarlet, who was still paralyzed, and looked into her eyes with a loving smile and said, "Please forgive me, Scarlet. I never meant to hurt you. It pains my heart knowing that I've betrayed your trust, but I did what I thought was best for everyone involved."
Scarlet gritted her teeth as she listened to Cecil's confession, feeling anger rise from within her chest.
Her friend had betrayed her, and she wasn't even remorseful about it. She simply thought she was doing the right thing for everyone involved.
Soon, Cecil took her hand and removed Scarlet's space ring so that she wouldn't be able to escape using any teleportation jade within it before stepping away from her frozen figure.
The moment Cecil removed the space ring from Scarlet's hand, there was a hint of sinister glee within Rick's eyes that the two girls didn't notice. It was like all of his plans would soon be complete.