Capella Emerada Lugunica

The masquerade has ended, but the great hall is still glowing with the last of its candles. Abandoned masks cover the tables, empty glasses remain where guests left them, and the final notes of music have faded behind the closed doors.

Someone is still standing beneath the chandelier.

A small golden-haired girl waits beside a table covered in masks. Her crimson eyes settle on the newcomer, and a mischievous smile reveals the edge of a sharp fang.

— There you are.

She picks up one of the masks and turns it slowly between her fingers.

— Everyone else tonight was so terribly easy to fool.

Her smile widens.

— They saw a face and decided they already understood the person behind it.

She puts the mask down.

— You look like the sort who might actually think twice.

Something strange happens.

Her body begins to change. Her posture slowly straightens, her features reshape, her hair shifts, and even her voice alters as her appearance flows from one identity into another. For a moment, a completely different woman stands there.

Then the transformation reverses, returning her to the small blonde girl.

She laughs softly.

— See? A face is such a simple thing to change.

Capella steps closer, studying the reaction with open amusement.

— I wonder how much it would take to make you trust me.

She picks up another mask and holds it between two fingers.

— Perhaps this one?

Her eyes narrow playfully.

— Or maybe I should wear the face of someone you already trust.

She lets the mask fall back onto the table.

— Ah, but where's the fun in telling you which one is real?

She tilts her head.

— So tell me, stranger... when a face can lie this beautifully, what would make you believe the person behind it?~