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Chapter 480  Chapter 107.3 - Aftermath

The Matriarch\'s cold, calculated smile remained fixed as she watched her daughter, waiting for a reaction. Irina knew that this was a test, a challenge that her mother had set before her to see just how far she was willing to go, how much she was willing to defy expectations.

The mention of "that boy" had been deliberate, a reminder of the warnings she had received.

But Irina was not the same girl who once cowered under her mother\'s shadow, who let others dictate her choices.

The visions she had seen, the future she knew could come to pass, had strengthened her resolve. Astron was no mere orphan, no insignificant boy. He was something much more, and she would not allow her mother or anyone else to convince her otherwise.

"I will," Irina said firmly, her voice steady despite the tension in the room. "I will take responsibility for my actions. But know this, Mother—I will not be swayed by anyone\'s opinion, not even yours. I have seen what lies ahead, and I know the path I need to take. He is now part of that path, and I won\'t turn away from it."

The Matriarch\'s eyes narrowed slightly, her expression hardening. "You think you can defy me, Irina? Do you think you can choose someone like him and still hold the respect and power that comes with being an Emberheart? Do you think our family can afford to take such risks?"

Irina met her mother\'s gaze head-on, unyielding. "Not everyone is like you when it comes to choosing a partner, mother. Do not project your own failures onto me." Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn

The air in the room thickened, growing unbearably hot as the Matriarch\'s fury ignited. The flames within her eyes seemed to burn with a relentless intensity, and the temperature in the chamber rose to a blistering level. Irina could feel the heat pressing down on her, searing her skin, but she remained unmoved. She had endured this before and had been forced to withstand it as a test of her resolve.

This time, however, she was no longer the frightened girl who cowered under the Matriarch\'s gaze. She was stronger, and she would not back down.

"You dare speak to me of failures?" the Matriarch hissed, her voice crackling like the very flames she commanded. The sheer force of her anger seemed to warp the air around her, making it difficult to breathe. "You, who have barely begun to understand the weight of the Emberheart name, dare to judge me?"

Irina met her mother\'s blazing eyes head-on, refusing to look away. "Yes, I dare," she replied, her voice steady despite the fire licking at her skin. "I am not you, Mother. I will not make the same mistakes, nor will I let you dictate my choices. I know what I\'m doing."

The Matriarch\'s fury flared even hotter, and for a moment, Irina thought the flames would consume them both. But then, just as suddenly, the heat began to recede. The Matriarch clicked her tongue in annoyance, the flames in her eyes flickering before settling into a cold, steady burn.

"Your claim," the Matriarch said, her voice now devoid of the earlier rage, "it seems you are confident. Too confident, perhaps. But confidence without wisdom is nothing but foolishness."

Irina nodded, her own resolve unshaken. "Confidence is necessary, Mother. Without it, I would be nothing more than a puppet, doing what I\'m told without understanding why. I am confident because I know what I must do."

For a moment, there was silence. Then, the Matriarch\'s expression shifted. The fiery anger in her eyes dimmed, replaced by something else—amusement and perhaps a hint of curiosity.

"Is that so?" the Matriarch mused, her tone softer, almost contemplative. She leaned back in her chair, studying Irina with a newfound interest. "You\'ve grown, Irina. I see it now. You\'re not the same girl who once hid behind arrogance and pride."

Irina didn\'t respond, but the Matriarch\'s words hung in the air, heavy with meaning. There was a shift in the room, a subtle change in the dynamic between them.

"I\'m curious," the Matriarch continued, a slight smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "If you are so sure of your path, then show me. Prove to me that you have what it takes to uphold the Emberheart legacy. Show me that you are worthy of the power and respect that comes with our name."

Irina\'s heart pounded in her chest, but she kept her composure. "I will, Mother," she said, her voice steady. "I will show you that I am worthy."

The Matriarch\'s gaze lingered on her for a moment longer; then she nodded in return. "You may go."

******

As the heavy doors to the Matriarch\'s chamber closed behind Irina, the room fell into a deep, contemplative silence. The Matriarch remained seated, her gaze fixed on the door long after Irina had gone.

The flames in the hearth flickered softly, casting dancing shadows across the room, but the Matriarch\'s thoughts were elsewhere, far from the quiet crackling of the fire.

Irina had changed—there was no doubt about it. The girl who once relied on arrogance and pride as a shield had grown into a woman with a fierce resolve, one that even the Matriarch had not fully anticipated.

The shift was undeniable, and it intrigued her.

The Matriarch leaned back in her chair, her fingers steepled in thought. The confrontation revealed more than just Irina\'s defiance; it showed the strength of will that the matriarch had long sought for her daughter.

But that strength came with a cost, one that could either elevate the Emberheart legacy or bring it crashing down.

\'So she\'s chosen her path,\' the Matriarch mused silently, her thoughts turning to the boy Irina had so vehemently defended. \'Astron Natusalune...\' The name lingered in her mind, accompanied by a flicker of irritation. A mere orphan, an insignificant boy in the grand scheme of things—yet Irina had seen something in him, something that made her defy even her mother.

\'What could it be?\' The Matriarch\'s thoughts wandered back to the request Irina had made recently, a request that had piqued her curiosity.

The opening of the armory, an act reserved for only the most trusted and capable, had been granted at Irina\'s insistence. That alone had been unusual, but the fact that it was for the boy—that had been unprecedented.

The Matriarch rose from her chair, her robes whispering softly as she moved toward the large window that overlooked the Emberheart estate. The night sky stretched out before her, dark and unyielding, much like the future that now lay ahead.

\'What have you seen, Irina?\\ she wondered, her gaze drifting toward the distant horizon. \'What makes you so certain of this boy, this path you\'ve chosen?\'

The Matriarch had always prided herself on her ability to predict and control the outcomes within the Emberheart family. But this—this was something different. Irina had acted beyond her expectations and had made choices that defied the careful plans that had been laid out. And now, the Matriarch found herself both irritated and intrigued.

\'Perhaps I\'ve underestimated her,\' she admitted to herself, a rare moment of self-reflection. \'She\'s no longer the girl I molded; she\'s become something more. But whether that \'more\' will strengthen the Emberheart legacy or shatter it...\' The thought trailed off, unfinished, but the weight of it hung heavily in her mind.

The mention of the armory brought her back to Astron. What could that boy possess that warranted such action? The Matriarch\'s curiosity deepened, and with it, a growing sense of unease. She would need to investigate further to understand what had sparked this change in Irina and whether it was a strength or a weakness.

But one thing was certain: Irina was no longer the obedient daughter who would simply follow orders. She had claimed her independence, her right to choose her path. And that path now included Astron—a wildcard in a game the Matriarch had thought she controlled.

\'Very well, Irina,\' she thought, her expression hardening with resolve. \'You\'ve chosen your path. But don\'t think for a moment that I won\'t be watching your every step. You will prove yourself, or you will fall. And that boy... he will be the test of whether you truly understand the weight of our name.\'

\'Very well, Irina,\' she thought, her expression hardening with resolve. \'You\'ve chosen your path. But don\'t think for a moment that I won\'t be watching your every step. You will prove yourself, or you will fall. And that boy... he will be the test of whether you truly understand the weight of our name.\'

The Matriarch turned away from the window, looking at a special place distant in the sky.

\'The mistake that I had made….I do hope that you will not repeat the same….\'

She thought to herself.

\'And for the future of our family and the choices you made, you need to be strong.\'

With that thought, she waved her hand.

"Esme."

The door to the chamber opened almost immediately, and Esme entered with her usual quiet grace, her expression unreadable. She bowed slightly, her posture respectful but alert, ready to carry out whatever orders were given.

"Yes, Matriarch?" Esme\'s voice was calm, but there was an undercurrent of understanding, a knowledge of what was likely to come.

The Matriarch did not waste time with pleasantries. "Increase the chamber\'s intensity."

Esme\'s eyes flickered briefly, a subtle acknowledgment of the severity of the command. "Are you certain, Matriarch?"

The Matriarch\'s expression remained resolute, her voice cold and measured. "Yes. Irina must be tested. She has chosen a path fraught with peril, and she must be prepared to endure the consequences of her decisions. The fire of Emberheart does not burn weakly; it must be forged in the harshest of flames."

Esme nodded, her demeanor professional as always, though there was a faint glimmer of concern in her eyes. "Very well. I will see to it immediately."

The Matriarch watched as Esme turned to leave, her mind already focused on what needed to be done next. Irina had shown strength and defiance, but that was not enough. She needed to be molded further, pushed to the very brink of her limits, to see if she truly understood the weight of the Emberheart name.

"Esme," the Matriarch called again, stopping the maid just as she reached the door.

Esme paused, turning back to face the Matriarch. "Yes, Matriarch?"

"Ensure that the chamber is set to its highest level. She must learn that every action she takes, every choice she makes, carries with it a price. If she cannot withstand the heat, then she is not ready to bear the Emberheart name."

As Esme bowed deeply, her mind raced with concern though her face remained an unreadable mask. The Matriarch\'s order was not just severe—it was extreme. The highest level of the chamber was a trial reserved for those who had undergone years of rigorous training, those who were on the cusp of proving their worth within the Emberheart family. It was a test of endurance, willpower, and the ability to control the formidable fire that coursed through their veins.

\'To think that the Young Miss would be subjected to such a trial so soon,\\ Esme thought, her heart tightening with a mix of worry and respect. \'The Matriarch must be truly furious to push her to this limit.\'

The chamber was no ordinary place. It was where the true strength of the Emberheart lineage was forged, where the flames of their legacy were tested to their very core. The highest level was a crucible that only the most seasoned members of the family ever faced—and even then, not all emerged unscathed.

Esme knew this well. She had seen many, even some of the most promising, falter under the relentless heat, their bodies and spirits broken by the intensity of the trial. Yet, she also knew that the Matriarch\'s word was law, and there was no room for questioning her decisions.

"As you wish, Matriarch," Esme replied, her voice calm and steady despite the thoughts swirling in her mind.

She turned and left the chamber, her steps measured but swift. As she made her way through the corridors of the Emberheart mansion, she couldn\'t help but think of the Young Miss—of Irina, who had always been strong, determined, and fiercely independent.

But this was different. This was a test that could either solidify her place as the heir to the Emberheart legacy or destroy her.

Esme\'s loyalty to the Matriarch was unwavering, but her loyalty to Irina was something more—an unspoken bond forged through years of service, even if she had not shown it to her.

She could not interfere with the Matriarch\'s orders, but she could ensure that Irina had every chance to survive this ordeal.

As Esme approached the entrance to the chamber, she steeled herself for what was to come. The chamber attendants, who were trained to handle the intricate workings of the Emberheart trial, bowed as she entered.

"Prepare the chamber," Esme ordered her voice firm. "Set it to the highest level."