There are no grown men in our village.

When girls turn 18, they participate in a coming-of-age ceremony in the ancestral hall. Dressed in ceremonial clothes, they line up to enter, and when they come out, their faces show a mix of pain and joy.

When my eldest sister turned 18, Grandma forbade her from attending.

However, one night, she snuck into the hall. When she came out, she was limping, and blood was dripping between her legs.

Our village lay deep within the mountains, hidden away from the outside world, where ruby mines ran through the earth.

There was an old legend that said if one could craft an entire bed from ruby and sleep on it long enough, it would grant eternal youth.

Ruby was rare and even harder to mine, but that was exactly why our village was so prosperous.

Yet, for all our wealth, our village was a strange place. There were no men here, only women.

I had two older sisters, but I should have had three older brothers as well. They were all drowned at birth.

I witnessed the execution of a male infant once. The boy had just been born when they covered his mouth, not allowing even a single cry to escape.

"Men are born wicked. If their cries anger the mountain spirit, our clan will be destroyed!"

They carried him to the deep pool at the back of the mountain and tossed him in. The baby struggled for only a moment before sinking beneath the surface with a faint gurgle.

I crept behind them and peered into the water. The pool was vast, filled with skulls that had been floating there for years. Some were so old they were little more than hollow, insect-eaten fragments.

Grandma was the village chief, ruling over everything without challenge. No one dared to defy her.

My eldest sister, Lily, was about to turn 18. Soon, it would be time for her coming-of-age ceremony.

However, Grandma, who had always doted on her, had forbidden her from attending. When my sister tried to protest, she was struck across the face.

"Enough! I said you're not going, and that's final."

Even though Grandma was 99 years old, her strength had not left her. Lily's cheek swelled almost immediately.

Seeing her beloved granddaughter's tears, Grandma let out a sigh. She stroked Lily's cheek tenderly and said in a soft voice, "It's for your own good. Once you've gone through the ceremony, you won't be able to become the chief."

Lily's eyes lit up. "You want me to become the next chief?"

Grandma smiled but said nothing. Her withered fingers traced Lilly's pale arm, and her usually cloudy eyes gleamed with a sharp, knowing light.

The young women of the village, all dressed in their finest robes, lined up to enter the ancestral hall. One by one, they came out with flushed faces and wore shy smiles. Some could barely walk straight, their legs pressed tightly together as they stumbled out.

Lily grabbed one of the girls who had just stepped out and asked what the ceremony was about.

Why did they all come out with expressions that showed both pain and joy?

With a warm blush on her face, the girl's voice trembled with an uncharacteristic sensuality. She opened her mouth as though to tell Lily, then stopped herself after recalling something. A mysterious smile crept across her face. "Oh, it's nothing. Just a little pleasure, that's all."

…

Lily woke me up in the middle of the night to keep watch while she sneaked into the ancestral hall to find out what was going on.

"But Grandma said if you want to be the chief, you can't go through the ceremony," I reminded her.

Lily's grip tightened on my wrist. "This stays between us. If Grandma finds out, I'll know you snitched. Why shouldn't I be allowed to attend? Grandma just doesn't want me to experience any fun."

Her eyes sparkled, full of anticipation. It was like she already knew what secrets the ancestral hall held.

The night was eerily silent, and the dim candle light flickered through the cracks of the hall's door, the flames dancing in the wind.

I hid in the shadows, swatting at mosquitoes. The sharp slaps echoed in the stillness.

Huh? Something was not right. Noises seemed to be coming from inside the hall. I heard soft sobbing too. It was Lily.

"Lily! Are you okay?"

I thought something had happened to her, so I pushed the door to go in, only to find that she had locked it from the inside.

"I-I'm fine…"

Her voice dragged with a strange, teasing rhythm. It was softer than the hum of cicadas on a summer night.

The noises inside grew louder, and I could not shake the feeling something was wrong. I climbed up to a window to make sure she was safe.

The window was too high. I could not see much of the room even if I stood on my tiptoes.

Still, I could make out there were four thick iron chains tied to the pillars, rattling violently as though something was straining against them.

I could see Lily sitting there in only her fitted undergarments. Her smooth back arched and undulated sensually, rising and falling in a steady rhythm.

I clung desperately to the windowsill, wanting to get a better view. However, my grip slipped, sending me tumbling down. I twisted my ankle as I fell.

I urged Lily to hurry back, but despite her assurances that she would, it took her a full hour to finally come out.

When she finally appeared, I was leaning against the wall, massaging my aching ankle.

"Laura, come help me," Lily said in between gasps. She was out of breath. It was as though she had just emerged from the depths of the water, and her body leaned heavily against mine.

As I helped her climb over the wall, my eyes inadvertently wandered up. I was startled to realize she was not wearing any undergarments.

I asked Lily what happened in the ancestral hall. Lily's cheeks flushed red, and she stammered for a moment before saying, "Look at that smile on your face. You'll find out soon enough."

Hmph! If she would not tell me, I would find out for myself.

Feigning a stomach ache to avoid returning with her, I stealthily made my way back to the ancestral hall.

However, I was shocked to find Grandma ordering a group of people hauling things out. Thick layers of oil paper were wrapped around long bundles. Each was carried by a pair of people, but even then, it was a struggle.

Suddenly, someone slipped, tumbling down the steps and tearing the oil paper.

Grandma rushed over, her eyes wide with concern. She ordered someone to wrap it up carefully with more layers of oil paper.

I pressed myself against the wall, covering my mouth, trembling.

What stuck out of the torn paper was a pale, lifeless human hand.

"Get this handled quickly. The new goods will arrive soon," Grandma said with calm authority, giving instructions to Aunt Ivy, the person leading the team.

The group moved away, pulling a cart up the mountain. I sank to the ground, feeling utterly dazed. I was struggling to process what I had just witnessed.

Back home, I was struck with a high fever and missed the days of the coming-of-age ceremony that followed.

Each night, Lily would slip over the wall to the ancestral hall. Without anyone to keep watch, she returned quickly. She would wear a satisfied smile on her face as she drifted off to sleep.

During this time, Grandma came to check on me. I opened my mouth to ask her if they had done something bad.

Before I could say anything, her rough hand brushed against the back of my hand, sending a jolt of pain through me.

After a few days apart, her already frail hands had become even rougher. Her skin was dry and peeling as though it were about to flake off.

I instinctively swallowed my words.

I decided to wander through the village, but I noticed that no one was missing. So, who were the people they had carried out of the ancestral hall?

After the coming-of-age ceremony, Grandma's health declined rapidly. She was once vibrant and full of life, but now, she needed a cane to move around.

The villagers said that Grandma was nearing her end, while several women vying for the position of clan leader sobbed at her bedside, pouring and serving her tea and water.

"Hmph! A bunch of clowns. Grandma had already said the clan leader's position is mine for the taking!" Lily remarked with a smirk while watching the others, already imagining how they would soon be showing reverence to her.

That night, I was deep in sleep when a commotion stirred me awake.

I saw Lily dolling up herself in the middle of the night. I thought she was heading to the ancestral hall again and wanted to share the strange things I had witnessed.

Before I could voice my thoughts, she covered my mouth and pushed me into the room. "Shh! Grandma is going to reveal the village's secret to me tonight. She said I can't let anyone else know. Just go to sleep and pretend nothing happened tonight."

Lily left happily.

Little did I know that the next day would bring back not my sister but her lifeless body.

When I rushed to the ancestral hall after hearing the news, my heart dropped at the sight of her body covered with a white cloth, lying in the courtyard.

"Oh, Lily was so foolish! How could she venture into the mountains at night? Not only did she lose her life, but she was also mangled by wild beasts."

"No, it can't be Lily."

I was trembling as I reached to lift the cloth for confirmation. However, Grandma's hand shot out to stop me. "Laura, your sister died a tragic death. It'd be better if you don't look."

I shot her a furious glare. Lily had gone to find her last night. How could she have died on the mountain?

I brushed aside Grandma's hand and yanked the white cloth away.

The next second, I found myself retching in the corner, my stomach heaving as the world spun around me.