Unrequited Love - Paperwhite

Finale of Elfish Perennials - Ch.1

        Since Welwitschia, the king of Plantdom, had fallen into a coma because of poisoning, Hyacinth became the host of the Century Feast with the support of the nobles. After giving an exuberant speech on the feast, he went back to the palace with the nobles to have an after-party. By the time Hyacinth arrived at the banquet hall, his wife, Paperwhite was already sitting on the dais waiting for him. He sat next to her, then he looked at the noble floral-elves below. Pleased and proud, he raised his glass.
　　
        ‘Thank you for all your hard work. The Century Feast would not be possible without your help, so cheers to you all!'

        Unexpectedly, all the nobles turned their glasses upside-down, pouring the dew onto the floor. Their actions and the mess on the floor made Hyacinth's face darken in an instant.

        ‘What are you all doing? I thought everyone wanted the dew of the Mother Tree. Was I wrong?' Hyacinth asked while suppressing his anger.

        However, Hyacinth's question fell on deaf ears. Among the nobles who were all wearing frigid expressions, the one standing at the front gave a snort of contempt and said, ‘Your Highness, are you still trying to lie to us at this point? We knew the dew you've been giving us is fake.'

        As staggered as Hyacinth was at his crime being exposed, he still attempted to maintain his composure and said, ‘What are you talking about?! Who told you that ridiculous rumor? There's no way I would lie to you!'

        ‘I told them.' A voice sounded from the side of Hyacinth in a tone so soft and gentle that seemed incongruent with the strained atmosphere in the hall.

        ‘No… Why would you…' Hyacinth turned his face and looked at Paperwhite—the elf who spoke—in disbelief.

        Paperwhite had an extremely pale face that barely had any colors except for her red-tinted lips. She gazed steadily into Hyacinth's face. However, the admiration and love that used to fill her eyes were then replaced by a cold and profound determination that sent a shudder through the prince's heart. Even so, the prince refused to believe the elf who loved him so deeply would do such things to him.

        ‘Paperwhite, stop messing with me. Clear things up now. This isn't something you can joke about.'

        ‘I'm not joking,' said Paperwhite with a scornful dry smile. Without seeing such an aggressive side of his wife in the past, Hyacinth was so staggered that he forgot to stop Paperwhite from continuing her words.

        ‘You plotted everything to marry me so that you could get to the Mother Tree. It's such a pity that you never got your wish because you weren't even allowed to be near the Mother Tree nor to get her dew under my mother's order—'

        ‘Shut it!' It was only then did Hyacinth finally realize that Paperwhite had gone out of his control. He abruptly swung his arm and yelled to cut her short. ‘Enough with your nonsense! Just beat it!'

        When Hyacinth strode to the front of Paperwhite trying to push her away, the noble elves all stood up and grabbed him, then forcibly pressed him against the floor.

        ‘You— Damn it!' Even though Hyacinth struggled desperately, he alone could not resist the strength of multiple elves so he could only growl like a captured animal with his eyes bloodshot and his face contorting with rage.

        Paperwhite felt an indescribable sense of joy as she watched Hyacinth shaking with embarrassment. She could not help but recall the day she got her heart shattered—the day when Hyacinth told her that she would never be the elf he loved. She still had vivid memories of the pain she felt that day. His words were like countless daggers that kept stabbing her heart until it was completely broken into pieces.

        A sudden wave of mixed emotions—sorrows, grievance, resentment—swept over Paperwhite, trapping her like a black sealed box. All the negative emotions continued to gnaw away at her heart, tainting the vibrant love she had for Hyacinth with deep darkness.

        Paperwhite knew that she could never stop loving Hyacinth for the seed of love had been planted so deep in her soul that it wouldn't disappear even though she knew that her husband had never loved her. It was also her overwhelming love for him that made it impossible for her to not feel jealous, whether it was the elf that her husband loved or the throne that he had always wanted; she was jealous of all the things that took Hyacinth's attention.

        The jealousy she felt was even stronger, deeper, and more overpowering than the one she had felt for Sakura.

        She thought that she would eventually be the love and center of Hyacinth's life one day as long as she kept loving him and helping him quietly. Yet, her dream was soon shattered by Hyacinth, who said that she would never be the one for him.

        So she crumbled.

        She decided to be Hyacinth's deepest regret if she could never be the love of his life, and thus she made a plan of ruining the Century Feast as well as shattering Hyacinth's lifelong dream of taking the throne.

        When Paperwhite was drawing up her plan, a noble elf came for Hyacinth, who just happened to be out of the palace, so she received him.

        The elf straightforwardly asked Paperwhite for more dew, mistaking her as an insider who knew about the trade of the Mother Tree's dew between the nobles and the prince. Paperwhite realized that Hyacinth had been lying to the nobles the moment she heard the elf because her mother never allowed other elves to be near the Mother Tree and it was impossible for Hyacinth to collect her dew. He must have been deceiving the nobles and winning their loyalty with fake dew.

        Paperwhite immediately told the elf the truth and exposed Hyacinth's crime while offering him a deal.

        ‘I can give you the real dew as long as you help me.'

        ‘How would I know if you aren't lying to me like Hyacinth?!'

        ‘You can trust me because I'm the daughter of Mysorensis, the guardian of the Mother Tree. I can go in and out of Blossomville and see the Mother Tree whenever I want but Hyacinth can never do that.' Paperwhite then pointed at the elf's rotting arm and said, ‘Besides, I don't think you have much time to waste.'

        Without any other choices except to say yes, the noble elf gritted his teeth and said, ‘Okay, what do you want?'

        ‘I…' As Paperwhite closed her eyes, different images of Hyacinth appeared in her head; everything about him had been long imprinted on her mind.

        “I want him to always think of me. I don't care if he hates me as long as he never forgets me.”

        A wry smile tugged at the corner of Paperwhite's mouth as a funny thought came up to her.

        “If I can't be the love of his life, then he shall not be the king of anyone's life. From that perspective, we'll finally be a match made in heaven.”

        When Paperwhite opened her eyes, they were no longer filled with tenderness but a deep gloom. Then she said in a rare ruthless tone, ‘I want Hyacinth to lose everything!'