Ral Mirchi was an extremely strict instructor.
She had long blue hair, a stern expression, and a sharp, capable aura that made her seem a little intimidating.
But Jasmine was naturally strong-willed, and she had an immense confidence in herself. No matter the pressure, her spirit would not be crushed.
Though she had neglected physical training during her years at school and as a corporate worker, making her physique no different from an ordinary person’s, she was already gasping for breath during the physical assessment that Ral assigned—and on top of that, she was scolded mercilessly.
Still, Jasmine couldn’t stand to show weakness. Discouragement or frustration simply didn’t exist in her vocabulary. She only pushed herself harder.
After just three hours of basic training, Jasmine was drenched in sweat. Her tied-up silver hair was soaked, sticking to her skin.
When she collapsed to the ground, too exhausted to move, Ral handed her a silver ring.
“This is an A-rank ring prepared by William. Use this first. Focus, awaken your consciousness, and try to ignite the Death Flame.”
Jasmine took the ring with trembling, weak hands, barely managing to slip it onto her finger. She poured all her strength into it—but the ring remained completely inert.
Ral knew this wasn’t a task that could be completed immediately. She glanced at the time and said, “That’s enough for now. I’m leaving. Take this time to feel it out.”
Jasmine, however, misinterpreted Ral’s departure as disappointment that she hadn’t ignited the flame yet. She hurriedly sat up, anxious: “Miss Ral!”
Ral paused. “What is it?”
Jasmine hesitated, then couldn’t hold back: “Among your past students, what’s the record for the fastest to ignite the flame?”
Ral was silent for two seconds, her gaze distant with a hint of nostalgia. “That would be the three from the Vongola family. They almost ignited the flame the moment they put on the ring.”
Ah, yes. In that erased future line, only Yamamoto Takeshi and Rokudou Hayato ignited their flames immediately. Tsunayoshi Sawada had also tried, but it took him quite some effort.
Of course, Ral would never reveal such confidential details to Jasmine.
“…”
Jasmine’s heart sank.
Naturally, she interpreted Ral’s words to mean that Tsunayoshi Sawada had ignited his flame immediately upon wearing the ring.
Damn it—how could he be that strong?
She hadn’t even figured out what a Death Flame was, or what “awakening” meant.
She refused to accept it.
How could she be surpassed by him from the very start?
Jasmine clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms, lost in the fury rising inside her. The thought of him—his cold yet pitying gaze, the way he left without a glance back, how no matter how hard she tried she could never catch up, let alone surpass him—ignited a fire in her chest like nothing else.
Ral, about to leave, heard the faint sound of the flame igniting and turned back in surprise.
She saw it.
The silver-haired woman slumped on the ground, head bowed, trembling.
Her right hand was tightly clenched, hanging by her side. On the silver ring she wore, an orange flame—the Great Sky Flame—had appeared!!
Ral gave the faintest smile. “Congratulations. You did it.”
Jasmine finally realized. She lifted her hand in disbelief, seeing the flickering orange flame on the ring.
She had… really succeeded?
It dawned on her: her “unwillingness to lose” was her awakening! Ral explained that the Great Sky Flame was the rarest of the seven Sky Flames, and necessary for a leader. A person could potentially ignite more than one type of flame.
Ral then gave her rings of other elements to try. Jasmine discovered that she could ignite both the Great Sky and Storm-element rings.
Her Death Flame had two attributes: Great Sky and Storm.
Igniting the Death Flame was only the first step. After determining her attributes, Jasmine would train with Ral to identify her weapon proficiency, and the Vongola tech division would customize a box weapon for her based on Ral’s feedback and Jasmine’s data.
—This arrangement had been established by the former Phoenix family head, Jasmine’s grandfather, and the Vongola family. A contract had been signed and a deposit paid.
Hearing this warmed Jasmine’s heart. Her mother had died early, her father had constantly taken her from place to place, and then he too passed away. She had been alone for so long, she hadn’t felt family warmth in ages.
Her grandfather was gone, and she had no chance to repay him in life. She silently vowed to restore the Phoenix family to glory, honoring his wishes.
That night, exhausted and sore, Jasmine was half-asleep under the massage of her maid Claire when Butler William brought her two pieces of news.
First, basic intelligence on all the Italian MAFIA families had been collected and organized.
Second, the suitcase Jasmine had brought from Japan had been misplaced during shipping and still hadn’t been found. William had visited the airport several times, but they kept passing the buck.
Through special channels, William learned that there had been a clash between two MAFIA families at the airport that night. One family took advantage of the chaos and stole the shipment.
William apologized, feeling responsible: “I’m terribly sorry, Miss. It’s my fault. The schedule was too tight. If we had waited for the luggage, this wouldn’t have happened.”
Jasmine dismissed Claire and sat up on the sofa, furrowing her brow, slightly dizzy.
She knew this wasn’t William’s fault.
That night, because there were important items in her suitcase, she hadn’t taken it as carry-on. After arriving in Italy, the luggage hadn’t come, and they had to rush to the Vongola leader’s birthday banquet, so they left the retrieval to their subordinates.
The suitcase contained the most important items of her early life.
Not only mementos from her parents, but also letters she had written to that person.
For ten years since leaving Misaki, Jasmine had prepared birthday gifts for him every year, always writing letters—but never sending them.
On paper, she could confess her heart without restraint, but since it was genuine, she could never actually send it.
Now this was a problem.
If her ex-boyfriend were an ordinary salaryman, losing the suitcase wouldn’t matter much. But he was now the 10th Vongola boss!
If someone opened it and read the letters, seeing the private truths she had never shared, she would be ridiculed!
And if he himself saw them… what would she do?
Anxiety and fear twisted inside her. She curled up on the sofa, biting her nails.
She should have burned them all back then!
But she hadn’t had the heart…
Seeing her distress, William quickly comforted her: “Miss, your suitcase is locked with a code. It shouldn’t be opened so easily. I’ll do everything I can to get it back.”
After speaking, William left, guilt-ridden, planning to use the former head’s connections to find out which family had caused the chaos.
Jasmine’s sleepiness vanished. Barefoot on the carpet, she paced the living room, agitated.
All because of Tsunayoshi Sawada!
If it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t have written all those letters, and wouldn’t be worrying about them being discovered!
Frustrated and aggrieved, Jasmine flopped onto the bed, clutching her blanket.
Suddenly, something poked her, and she let out a small yelp.
Reaching into the blanket, she found a flattened green gift box.
It was the bribe he had given her.
She hadn’t planned to open it, but now she had no choice.
Angrily, she tore the wrapping open.
Inside was a smaller box and a letter.
As she held the handwritten note, Jasmine couldn’t help but hold her breath, her movements softening.
The handwriting was unmistakably his, neater than ten years ago, yet still recognizable in the details.
[TO Jasmine:]
Thank you for coming to my birthday banquet. This has been the happiest birthday I’ve had in years.
Making you angry wasn’t my intention—it’s just that you’re too cute.
I picked a small gift, hoping it might ease some of your annoyance toward me.
This bracelet is called “Dreaming.” Wear it to sleep. It’s said that if you whisper someone’s name before bed, you can meet them in your dreams.
I heard your boyfriend didn’t come to Italy. Planning a long-distance relationship? Maybe this bracelet will ease the longing.
Of course, I’m joking. It’s just a bracelet.
I chose it because at first sight, it reminded me of your eyes.
I hope you find happiness.
—Tsunayoshi Sawada
Jasmine stared at the letter, stunned. Her grip loosened, and the paper fell, covering her flushed face.
Annoying.
Why did his tone have to be so aggravating?
Her heart raced, and she was flustered. Ten years of him calling her cute paled compared to the effect of this letter.
It reminded her of that night—when he held her close, skin to skin, whispering in her ear that she was cute while she cried.
So infuriating.
Scumbag!
He even had a fiancée, yet deliberately provoked her!
Men really only think with their lower half.
Jasmine wanted to throw the letter, but she couldn’t. She folded it back into the envelope.
She opened the smaller box. Inside was a jade-green beaded bracelet.
It felt cool on her wrist, and against her skin, it made her feel even warmer.
She didn’t have a long-distance boyfriend…
He must be expecting her to whisper his name at night so he could mock her in person later.
Ha. Was she gullible enough to fall for that?
If she had given him a bracelet like that, she’d expect him to believe it, whisper her name at night, and be caught and teased the next day.
Naturally, she assumed he had the same mischievous intent.
Calming herself, Jasmine went to the sofa, picked up a folder from the coffee table, and leaned over to study the documents.
Inside were the basic intelligence reports William had given her about Italian families.
These were well-known facts in the MAFIA world—common knowledge—but Jasmine lacked this kind of awareness.
Suppressing the heat on her face, she pursed her lips, flipping directly to the Vongola page.
She wasn’t interested in him—she just wanted information about the strongest family in Italy!
Yet, as she read line by line, her blush faded entirely, her face growing pale.