Chapter 296
“This is no nightmare. But it’s not the afterlife, either. An ending like this would never be permitted for me.”
His words were too firm to be mere speculation. They carried the certainty of someone who had imagined every possible end for himself.
“Or is this a ploy to lull me into complacency before dragging me down again? That would be the most effective approach. How clever.”
Even as distrust coiled in his gaze, Kazhan covered Ysaris’s hand with his own—not just brushing her fingertips, but guiding her palm to fully cradle his cheek. His eyelids lowered halfway, but his crimson eyes still raked over her with unnerving intensity, as if memorizing the matured lines of her face, now slightly older than the version of her he had known.
“I told you I have no intention of killing you.”
“If you say so.”
“What will it take for you to believe me?”
“Are you pitying me?”
The abrupt question caught Ysaris off guard. Her lips parted, then pressed shut. It was true—she did pity him—but she hadn’t planned to voice it. Before she could recover, Kazhan continued, his voice low and eerily calm.
“This is fine too. Any reason is acceptable, so long as you don’t leave me again. I’d be satisfied. Frankly, I’d rather die by your hand than—”
“……”
Ysaris fell silent, words failing her. A memory surfaced—his voice, years ago, ragged with pain.
Back then, he had begged. Not for her love, but simply for her presence. Hate me, push me away—just don’t leave.
Now, she understood it hadn’t been manipulation. Kazhan would have been content with anything, so long as she stayed.
And she had left him anyway. Without even leaving behind a wedding ring.
“…You keep doing this.”
‘You keep making yourself the victim, until I’m the one who feels like the villain. I had the right to choose myself, too. I was too exhausted to carry you. I had every reason to despise you—’
Ysaris bit her lip hard. Her voice threatened to waver, so she swallowed her breath and shut her eyes.
The lids trembled like thin ice over a lake. When she opened them again, exhaling slowly, Kazhan was waiting—patient, attentive, as if hanging on her next words. His blue eyes held hers, deadly serious despite his belief this was all an illusion.
The black hair she once hated, then learned to trust again. The red eyes she once loved, then grew to resent. His expression, as unreadable as ever, yet brimming with unmistakable devotion.
It stirred something in her.
“I won’t lie to you. You’re right. I do pity you, Kazhan.”
“Hm.”
He nodded, as if this were expected, even acceptable. Before he could speak, Ysaris pressed on.
“But I don’t know if that’s all it is. There might be more—or the opposite. You’ve always been… confusing to me.”
She held his gaze steadily, stepping closer rather than retreating. Her voice was firm.
“Still, there’s one thing I can say for certain. No matter what I feel, what I want from you right now hasn’t changed.”
“And what’s that?”
A pause. Then, simply.
“For you to wake up from this dream.”
Silence.
Kazhan studied her, shoulders slackening as he reached some quiet conclusion.
“So in the end—”
“I won’t kill you. There has to be another way out of this place.”
Ysaris cut him off, watching the faint tremor in his red eyes. He had believed this was the afterlife—of course he wouldn’t know how to escape. But that didn’t mean they were trapped.
“So think with me, Kazhan. Find a way to leave this place with me. You’re this world’s master—you can do it. And once we do…”
Once they stepped out of this ruined space and back into reality—
A faint smile touched her lips. It mirrored the one Kazhan had once envisioned for them, yet carried a bittersweet ache.
“…I’ll stay by your side.”
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