☀️ Arselia and Akonia

She flinched, almost losing a piece of her ear, and said: "No, why would I? Everyone experiences setbacks in life," her voice sounded perfectly calm, and her eyes were invisible in the current lighting – instead, there were only black voids on her face. "Yes, I failed miserably in the park, so what? It's just some silly, improvised fun competition; it doesn't define a person's real situation in life. Yes, I made a fool of myself in front of some drunkards, damaging the dynasty's reputation and ruining the hopes of my employer in a competition that I never wanted to participate in, and I only signed up out of solidarity, giving in to her puppy-dog eyes after six months of persuasion, but so what? Things happen; it's not the first time, and it won't be the last. The main thing is that my friend's competition, plus one participant, was successful; for something like this, it's a small price to pay. In the end, it was my personal choice," she turned away. "It's within my authority to simply be happy for the winners and feel sorry for the losers."