Build Up [2]

Iris Star had always been peculiar.

And she wore that identity like a badge of honor.

Her fascination with butterflies began at a tender age.

But it wasn't with the delicate, commonplace ones that children often chased in meadows.

No, Iris was drawn to something far rarer, far more dangerous.

A species known as Crimson Helios.

These butterflies, with their blood-red wings streaked with iridescent black, were both mesmerizing and deadly.

Their mere presence could paralyze weaker creatures.

Their touch capable of spreading a venom that could incapacitate a fully grown beast.

Most people recoiled at the sight of her tending to these creatures.

Branding her a strange girl obsessed with something that could kill.

But Noah Ashbourne was different.

Noah had come to live at the Star estate when both were still children.

A temporary arrangement while his family handled pressing matters in the capital.