It's been a week since she entered this new world of Lylas realm. She was now acquainted with his whole staff and even considered his personal maid one of her good friends. There was something about Mena that felt like home to her, as if she were a long lost sister from virtually another realm.

Alana now had a set schedule for her days in this realm.

She would wake up very early in the morning, bathe or shower, put on an expensive outfit and make-up. It has been a week without seeing Lylas' presence, except for that one time in her dream. The dream she would have long forgotten by now, had it not been for her quick thinking of writing it down.

Alana dressed up each day because somehow Lylas' warning in her dream about watching her closely still wrung in her head. Although those words had been said as a threat, she still dressed up with hopes of running into him.

She didn't really know what to expect him to do seeing her in these clothes. Mena had explained that they had been bought sorely for her stay here. And because she hadn't initially known what Alana's taste was, had opted for many collections mortal women liked to have.

Alana knew it wouldn't really make any difference for Lylas to see her in such expensive attire. He saw her as a threat, a means to end an end. Yet deep down, she was hoping she would be so appealing in his eye, he would change his mind about her.

Each day after breakfast, Alana would go the to lotus spring bath. When the sun peak was at its highest she would dip herself into the warm waters to dispense the fire demon's foul energy still residing in her. Mena would accompany her during this process, since she had the key to open up the lotus spring boundary.

Alana was told that Lylas sent someone to compel her businesses partners, Jake and Pam, into thinking Alana took a business trip abroad. And so in their minds they thought she was staying for two weeks to scout potential clients. Thus, she didn't have to worry about work.

During midday after each dip into the lotus spring, Alana was given reign to explore his palace lands. This was because during this time, Zenos would be busy with the affairs of running the place while Lylas was out of the realm. And Mena would be guiding Gigi and Fifi on the art of mastering immortality. There wasn't anyone to babysit Alana.

With this freedom, Alana explored more of this palace. Specifically on how to get into the green woodlands she saw from the view of her bedroom.

Alana was restricted against two wings, according Zenos. Master Lylas's house and the garden forest beyond the palace. Since she had been warned against this, it irked Alana. She saw this woodland garden from her room and it's aura somehow was beckoning her over.

According to Zenos, she couldn't enter it even if she tried.

"No one is allowed. No one but Master can get into it. He's sealed it with his powers and since his magic is so strong, no one can even break the seal or manipulate it with their own measly cultivation in comparison to his."

And so she—a mortal without any power—couldn't even imagine the concept of how his magic worked.

Alana wanted to try anyhow. She was getting bored of this repetitive routine. Although her fellow habitants were an amusing odd sets of species, they were also quite reserved when answering her questions.

The major thing Alana wanted to know was about Lylas wife? However knowing that they won't divulge this truth to her, she opted for easier inquiries.

Inquiries such as; where does Chef get his ingredients? Why they mediated seven times a day for an hour? How they were able to live peacefully despite the fact that their species were sort of mortal enemies? These sort of questions were easily answered and Alana slowly began to adapt to this realm and how it worked.

Lylas realm was sanctuary to every creature that sought refuge there. They were free to practice whatever powers they willed, free to roam and create their own spaces and lands to suit their needs. However, the only rule Lylas put out, was that there will be no wars waged amongst one another and no evil intentions and acts.

***

The only exciting place she was allowed to go to was the lotus spring and that was it. For the past week, she had explored every inch of the humongous palace, except for those places she was restricted to go to.

That was why when she woke up this morning, careful as to not alert, Gigi and Fifi, whom took such a great liking to her, they eventually began sleeping by her side as company. She showered, went down to eat the healthy bland breakfast once again. This healthy diet was too good for her. She missed junk food so terribly, it felt like she was on withdrawal.

In the kitchen there was not even pancake ingredients. She missed bacon, missed bread and not this whole meal seedy bread they've been feeding her. She missed biting into a burger, missed ice-cream, and most importantly, chocolate.

She gobbled down her oat meal before tottering to the back entrance. It was there she began trekking toward the pathway to the forest garden.

"It's sealed.... You can't enter it even if you tried....No one can." She remembered Zenos's words.

I'll just take good look. She reasoned. It had looked so inviting from her window, maybe seeing it in a different perspective would invoke a different experience entirely.

Alana bordered the huge shrubbery wall, looking for an entrance until she found an opening. She wondered what will happen if she tried touching the invisible boundary seal. Will Lylas be alerted? Will the seal hurt her?

She threw caution to the wind, simply closed her eyes and went for it. Her arms protected her face—just in case— as she suddenly beelined straight for the entrance.

She was astonished at her success. Alana didn't even feel any different when she went through the entrance easily. How and why had it been so easy for her to get through? She had no answer for this phenomenon.

Caution made her alert to any danger around her. Her instincts, however, made her feel as if this garden was safest place for her in all the realms on earth.

The fact that she easily entered it made her wonder whether Zenos's warning was actually just a baseless caution, to invoke a fear in her so that she wouldn't ever think of entering the garden. Or maybe when Lylas made the boundary seal, he hadn't bargained for a mortal human to be able to pass through.

Or maybe she was just a special case. The exception in the grand theme of it all. She supposed being in his realm after having survived that encounter with the frightening fire demon, truly did make her a "special case".

She was suddenly reminded of Kilan's words about her being the only mortal with primordial essence. She thought him crazy then, but considering these past few days and the dreams she had when growing up, it now sort of made sense.

Alana could finally appreciate the splendour of the garden. The air was different inside. She felt as if she were in another world entirely. The birds chirped their melodious songs, accompanied by the blooming of flowers upon her entrance, the place completely came alive upon her wake.

Alana walked through the garden discovering different breeds of flowers and tree blossoms she'd never seen before. The garden was extremely serene and heavenly. There was so much of land to cover, Alana could see how it would take virtually all day to explore everything.

The path she walked in suddenly split in two, one lead to dead end where the glimmer on the surface made the background seem like it was rippling. The other path lead to a lone tree. This tree was what beckoned her over.

The tree looked like an apple tree with blossomed flowers and the ripe fruits in many different shades of the rainbow. These fruits captivated her, she wondered how they would be like to taste.

As Alana was about to touch the fruit, a voice shouted, stopping her, "It's not for you to touch!"

"I'm sorry!" Alana startled, so frightened by the swiftness of his entrance. She didn't even hear him move behind her.

"What are you doing here? I thought I made it clear this place was forbidden!" His tone voice was low but Alana felt as if he'd yelled.

"I'm sorry." Alana apologised again, feeling reprimanded. She had after all trespassed into his forbidden territory.

"How did you get in?" He glared at her

Alana shrugged intimated. "I just walked in."

"W-walked in?" He was astonished. "No one just walks in through my boundary seal...you cannot tell me I wasted a good portion of my power in creating the boundary to keep people out only for it not work! No one but me and the one whom this garden belongs to is able to access into it. Who are you exactly?"

"I'm Alana Walkers, nice to meet you." Alana smirked.

She was about to thrust her hand out in shake when she saw that he wasn't the slightest bit amused. Instead the glare of his face deepened.

Alana pursed her lips. "Sorry..." She apologised once again. "...I was curious, I mean, from the view of the room I'm currently staying in, this place looked so inviting. Why would you keep such a remarkable garden a secret?"

Alana didn't know where the sudden courage was coming from. The man practically detested her very presence for all she knew. However, she smiled wide for him and took a step closer to him under canopy of apple blossoms.

Lylas ignored her apology and went to check the fruit she almost touched.

"These are Rana-apples, the juiciest kind in existent... they are a rare and have only ever been grown by her. Other than its flavours, they're exemplary for cultivation. They are her favourites. If a mortal tarnishes such a fruit, it looses its colour and begins decomposing away." He explained.

"Her favourites?"

Lylas frowned as if her question was irritating. "The one whom this garden belongs to."

"Karla?" Alana asked.

She remembered Zenos mentioning that Lylas created a recovery space just for Karla to heal. Alana wondered whether this garden was that recovery space. Since he's been religiously looking after Karla since her her stay here, It could explain how he popped out of nowhere to catch her here.

He must love her then, Alana thought. This place is so pretty for it not being stemmed from love. Alana didn't know why this thought made her heart curdle with jealousy.

Lylas's head whipped at her remark and the disgusted frown of his face confused her.

"How you could have concluded that this place belongs to Karla is beside me."

"Don't you love her?" Alana dared ask.

Lylas's eyebrows raised, his eyes were very intent on her daring question, however there was a slight admiration there for it.

"In this life there's only been one person to have occupied my heart...I have no room to love anyone else besides her."

He's speaking in riddles. Did he love Karla or not? Alana thought in frustration.

Somewhere in the middle of her heart's jealousy, Alana suddenly remembered the very detailed dream she had a week ago.

It was this sudden clarity that made her blurt out, "Ah your late wife?"

Lylas eyes suddenly flashed, the intensity weakening her gaze. His form hastened toward her briefly before he was grabbing tightly on her right arm. The exact spot he had grabbed in the dream last week.

"How do you know I had a wife?" The tone of his voice was clipped.

"Y-you told me in the dream." She reminded him.

His eyes narrowed. "You remember?"

"How can I forget?"

Lylas muttered some expletive of how his memory eraser didn't work on her.

"I'm sorry you lost her."

"Don't." His eyes flashed again.

Alana blinked at him, stunned.

Lylas let go of her hand, his eyes still intense as he towered over her.

"Your mere mortal mouth should never mention her at all."

The insult shocked Alana for a brief moment until anger surfaced. Before she could offer him her choice of words, Lylas quickly turned his back to her. His hand once more reaching out for the Rana apple she had touched.

Her anger diffused suddenly, the insult long forgotten as she was suddenly entranced by the pinkish white apple blossoms frolicking around him. The petals surrounded him in such a glow, it enhanced his manliness with a touch ethereal feel. He was a sight for sore eyes indeed.

Alana cleared her throat, trying to gather her wits again, "If we mortals are so favoured, why then are all good things in the world hidden from us."

"You're favoured because you're weak, but being weak also leads to weak-minded people and this follows the trend of explosive uncontrollable emotions that births evilest of hearts. Your species love heartily but also hate spitefully."

"...your mankind is more likely to become evil...so you can imagine how wreckless your mortals can be if given such power. That's why in history only a few of your kind manage to cultivate in the first place."

Way to put a damper on things. Alana thought remorseful. She knew Lylas discriminated against her because she was mortal, however she had thought residing in the mortal realm would have made him pity her kind enough to give them a benefit of doubt. She was now realising that this was not the case entirely.

He despised mortals, however she shouldn't feel offended since Zenos had mention he doesn't tolerate anyone from other realms either.

Zenos had also mentioned that the only two women Lylas tolerated were, Mena and Karla. From getting to know Mena this past week, the personal maid didn't seem to harbour any extra feelings for Lylas other than that of being her master. Karla on the other hand was the only other mortal he could tolerate.

In her case, she belonged to those whose presence was nuisance to him. Knowing this, resurfaced her earlier anger. Alana folded her arms across her chest and pouted.

"I doubt to think my mere fingers can contaminate such sacred fruit...you say it's the juiciest, but who will ever truly know whether your word for it is truth if one never taste it."

Alana knew she was being petty by sulking. However, Lylas really hit a nerve.

He was silent for a while and her whole being begged her to look up at him. And so she did. Alana was shocked to see such a forlorn expression on his face. He was looking right at her but his mind seemed as if it were in faraway place. His eyes were a bright golden haze that trapped her instantly into their luminescent gaze. Alana felt lost immediately.

However, as quick as whatever reverie had struck him, it went away just as quickly as he averted his gaze. He simply sighed before turning to a branch nearby. She watched him as he plucked the fruit and handed it to her.

"Try it then...if you're so confident your mortal hands will not contaminate it." He announced.

His offering hand was right in front of her and the rainbow coloured apple brimmed so brightly. Alana wondered for a moment how such a fruit could taste. Will be an explosive citrusy flavour, or will it be like the skittles from back in the mortal realm.

The slogan, "taste the rainbow" was wringing so loud and clear in her head. Alana beamed as she took the fruit from his hands and quickly bit into it.

Explosive. This was definitely the word to describe the flavour. Alana closed her eyes and felt as if she were in seventh heaven. She had never tasted such a delicious fruit in her whole entire life and how fitting that the fruit was a sacred rare find.

Alana's smile shone a thousand times brighter as she looked up at Lylas in appreciation before taking another bite. For the next minute she was busy enjoying the flavour, she didn't realise how quiet Lylas had gotten again.

Alana looked up to gauge his reaction. His expression was shocked blankness. His eyes trained sorely on the unchanged fruit in her hand.

"Impossible." He exclaimed.

And it took Alana a full thirty second to realise why he reacted this way. Apparently her mortal hands hadn't tarnished the fruit after all.

Lylas was astounded how the fruit's colours remained ever so luminescent, the mere mortal that she was, even managed to take five bites of a sacred fruit.

How she would even handle it's one thousands years worth of cultivated powers was another problem entirely.