Chapter 313
‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.
“Please. Please…”
The closer I got to where you had lived, the more unhinged I felt.
The once-intact cityscape gradually turned into ruins. You had moved near the operations command headquarters, and it was only natural that the air raid had been concentrated there.
When I was only one corner away, the road was completely blocked by collapsed debris, making it impossible to drive any farther.
I abandoned the car and then ran but stopped.
“No…”
Where a three-story red brick house had stood, there was now nothing but heaps of shattered bricks and twisted framework.
“Rize!”
I shouted your alias in the middle of the chaos, but there was no answer. I grabbed people who were deep into rescue efforts and asked them, but no one had seen you or Rupert.
When the air-raid sirens sound, people are supposed to flee to the basement. You and Rupert had to be there, beneath the collapsed building.
I joined the others, tearing at the rubble with my bare hands. Only when the sun behind me had begun to sink and stab at my eyes did I finally uncover the entrance to the basement.
I frantically cleared the stones blocking it and went inside only for darkness to swallow my vision.
The basement ceiling had collapsed as well.
“W-We survived. We’re alive.”
People who had been lucky enough not to be crushed by the falling ceiling began crawling out toward the light.
You weren’t among them.
“Rize!”
You had to be here. The silence was driving me insane. I screamed your name until my breath nearly gave out, rummaging through debris and checking the faces of the dead—
And then I found Rupert.
He was buried under a pile of stones. His leg, pinned beneath a thick wooden beam, was bent at an unnatural angle. He was alone.
“Where’s Dana?!”
Desperate, I grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out of the rubble. He came up limp, like a corpse. No matter how much I shook him, he didn’t open his eyes or respond.
“Why are you alone?!”
I vented my fury at what I thought was a dead body.
“You said you’d stay by her side! You were supposed to protect her!”
You boasted about being a descendant of Godwin, you told us to trust you.
As I threw Rupert back onto the rubble, something struck me.
The flat slab beside him wasn’t the basement floor.
From the gap beneath it, I saw fingers protruding—misshapen nails, crusted with dried blood. A hand I could never mistake.
The moment I lifted that heavy slab was the most terrifying moment of my life.
Beneath it, I saw you, curled awkwardly on your side.
I couldn’t see blood, or anything obviously mangled. But in that instant, I was certain you were dead.
…That image still hasn’t left me. Even now, when I see you curled up, it comes rushing back.
But you’re alive. Healthy. If you weren’t, I’d be trapped in that nightmare every moment of my life.
“Dana… no…”
I lifted you into my arms. Your head and limbs dangled lifelessly. I couldn’t accept that you were gone.
And thank God I didn’t.
Clinging to my last shred of hope, I fumbled for your neck and felt a pulse. Even then, I thought it might just be wishful thinking born of desperation.
“Dana? Open your eyes. Please.”
I tapped your cheek, and your eyelids fluttered faintly, though they didn’t open.
That tiny response was enough to flood light back into a world that had gone completely dark.
I carried you outside, shoved you into the car, and raced toward the hospital.
The roads were still in chaos, blocked and clogged. Often, I had to crawl along at a pace slower than walking or detouring entirely.
In the end, I couldn’t stand it anymore.
I slung you over my back and ran.
“Just a little longer. Just hold on. We’re almost there.”
I kept talking to you as I ran. Sweat—or maybe tears—kept blurring my vision, making it hard to breathe.
Every step felt like the line between heaven and hell.
It was unbearable.
The hospital was overflowing, patients and families packed so tightly there was no room to move. There were countless patients as critical as you, and all they told me was to wait my turn.
I was on the verge of losing my mind.
“Actually… we’ve been told to admit those who can pay first.”
One of the receptionists whispered to me, perhaps taking pity on my ashen face.
For a brief moment, hope flared then died. In my rush, I had left my jacket, with my wallet inside, in the car.
I stood there, frozen, wondering if I should leave you alone in the hospital lobby and go back—
Then I noticed what you were wearing.
Over your coat, you had Rupert’s outer jacket on. I checked the pockets. His wallet was inside.
There wasn’t much cash when I opened it.
“…This should be enough to guarantee the treatment, right?”
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