All’s Fair In Love And War

•••The First Rule—Never Feel••• There were rules in life that should never be broken regardless the consequences. Venus knew them better than anyone. She had grown up memorizing them the way starving people memorized prayers. Her mother,Helene had carved those rules into her mind long before she learned how cruel the world could be. Live with expectations, but never depend on them. Accept fate with a smile, no matter what it brings. Be strong in every way possible. And above all— Never listen to your heart. “Your mind is your greatest weapon,” her mother used to tell her. “The moment you let your heart lead you, you become weak.” Venus believed that completely. For thirteen years, those words became more than advice. They became survival. A mantra she repeated until emotions no longer felt human to her. Which was why the sight before her felt almost absurd. Her mother was crying. Not graceful tears. Not silent grief. She was breaking apart. Helene Ashbourne,the woman who had always stood tall against every storm,looked like a shattered child as she collapsed onto the wooden floor. “It’s all my fault.”Jimmy spoke first. The young soldier stood near the doorway, covered in dust and dried blood from the battlefield. His usually steady expression was twisted with guilt too heavy to hide. “I failed to protect him.”His voice cracked at the end. Helene didn’t even seem to hear him properly. Her trembling hands clutched the hem of his worn military coat as though he alone could return what had been lost. “Cadmus is a soldier,” she whispered desperately. “For all I know,a soldier never dies… he’ll come back, won’t he?”Her breathing turned uneven.“Tell me he’ll come back.”Then she broke down completely. The room filled with the sound of helpless sobbing. Venus stood near the staircase, staring at her mother with unreadable eyes. Not because of the news.The death of General Cadmus Ashbourne did not move her nearly as much as this did. Weakness disgusted her.Especially from someone she once admired. All her life, Helene had taught her that pain only existed if the mind allowed it to. That tears were proof of surrender. That emotions destroyed people faster than swords ever could. Yet here she was.Crumbling over a man. “You’re weak, Mother.”The words sliced through the room sharply . Jimmy looked up immediately. Helene slowly raised her tear-stained face toward Venus who was walking closer, calm and composed while grief destroyed everyone else around her. Her silver eyes remained cold, untouched by sympathy.“You’re not as strong as I thought you were.” “Venus,” Jimmy warned quietly. Helene quickly wiped her tears away. “Shut it,” she scolded shakily. “Not another word.” But Venus didn’t stop. “You lost the right to lecture me the moment you broke your own rules.”Her voice remained eerily steady.“The moment you chose your emotions over your mind… you became a slave to your heart.” Silence swallowed the room whole. Venus stared directly into her mother’s eyes, disappointment hidden beneath the blankness on her beautiful face. To anyone else, she looked like a young goddess untouched by human flaws. But there was something deeply unsettling about her calmness. Helene slowly rose to her feet. “I fear what you’re becoming,” she whispered. Venus tilted her head slightly. “Fear is weakness too.” Then the slap came without warning. The sound echoed violently across the room. Jimmy stiffened. Venus’ head turned slightly from the impact, strands of dark hair falling across her cheek. But she did not react. Slowly, she looked back at her mother,expressionless while Helene’s chest rose and fell heavily. “Did you feel that?” she demanded, voice trembling. “Did that hurt?” Venus remained silent. That silence only seemed to anger Helene more. Another slap landed across Venus’ face. Then another. And another. “You stand there speaking about strength,” Helene shouted through tears, striking her again, “but you know nothing about pain!” Smack. “You know nothing about loss!” Smack. “You know nothing about being human!” Jimmy hurried forward. “Lady Helene, stop—” “Stay out of this!”Helene shoved him away before grabbing Venus by the shoulders,her hands trembling violently. “Pain exists, Venus!” she cried. “No matter how much you deny it, it exists!” She hit her again. Again. Again. By the end, Helene was the one shaking uncontrollably. She was exhausted and broken. Her strength finally gave out as she stumbled backward, breathing unevenly. Venus remained standing exactly where she was. A faint red mark stained her pale cheek, yet her expression never changed. It was neither anger nor sadness. Almost as though she truly felt nothing at all. The sight alone terrified Jimmy. Slowly, Venus lifted her hand and touched the corner of her bruised lip.A small smear of blood stained her fingertip. She stared at it briefly before looking at her mother again. Then—She smiled. Not warmly or mockingly. Even worse. It was the smile of someone who had just confirmed a theory. “You’re wrong, Mother,” Venus said softly. Her voice was calm enough to send chills through the room.“It still doesn’t hurt.” Her silver eyes gleamed with something dangerously close to satisfaction. Then suddenly,she leaned closer. “So tell me, Mother,” she whispered, “if emotions make us human…”Her lips curved slowly. “Why does humanity look so pathetic?” Helene stared at her daughter in horror. For the first time, she realized something terrifying. Venus was not suppressing her emotions.She genuinely lacked them. Before anyone could speak again, hurried footsteps echoed from outside. The doors burst open and before them was a royal messenger.He entered breathlessly before lowering himself into a deep bow. “Miss Helene Ashbourne,” he announced urgently, “His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Cassian Valerius, requests your presence at the palace immediately.” The room fell silent once more. And while Helene still trembled from grief and exhaustion,Venus smiled wider. The royal messenger remained kneeling with his head lowered, unaware of the suffocating tension filling the room. “I was told it was urgent, my lady,” he added carefully. “His Majesty requested your presence without delay.” Helene forced herself to regain composure. She inhaled slowly before facing the messenger once more. “Tell His Majesty I’ll arrive shortly.” “Yes, my lady.” For a moment, she genuinely thought she had misheard him. Her fingers tightened around the fabric of her dress. Lady?No one had ever called her that. She was nothing more than the widow of a soldier who struggled to survive in a forgotten corner of the empire.She was just a commoner. At least, that was what she had spent years convincing herself. So why would the emperor summon someone like her?