# Chapter 88
(Author’s perspective.)
An empty corridor. Only someone’s dried blood on the floor hinted at the fierce battle that had taken place here. Cold air entered through the window and rushed silently. The stillness, bearing weight, pressed down on the neck of the one who remained, pressing again and again. In that spine-chilling silence, Devan opened his eyes. One side of his chest felt chillingly hollow, as if torn away. Like a madman, he rose and staggered, looking around. Nowhere in his frantically shifting vision was Ludin to be found. Until he fully realized this fact, Devan endlessly paced through various parts of the castle.
Eventually, his footsteps returned to the room where he had last seen Ludin. The opposite wall was broken through, connecting to an unidentifiable forest. He quickly tried to cast a spell, but there were no noticeable traces.
Magic. Devan suddenly looked at his own hands as a memory came to mind. Why couldn’t he take him to safety in that moment when his desperately outstretched hands had touched? Staggering, he returned to the room. No matter how many times he waved his hand, he couldn’t summon even a light feather. He couldn’t even stop the flowing wind by chance. Whatever mechanism it was, as long as one didn’t leave this indoor space, a magician became powerless. Who would create such a thing, and why? Well, it wasn’t surprising, considering it was a place where several madmen gathered to conduct nonsensical education.
Self-deprecating, Devan walked out but lost his balance and staggered. As he braced himself against the wall, cursing, he discovered blood on the floor and was at a loss for words. If that was truly Ludin’s blood, if it was proof that he had failed to protect the one to whom he had sworn eternal loyalty and love, then he had no right to breathe. His mind grew distant. His tightly clenched fists trembled.
Wimu sensed that something had gone terribly wrong. The face that was usually composed was now completely disheveled. When he discovered the empty seat beside him, his heart sank. Devan approached him silently. His lips moved, but he couldn’t easily speak. Wimu gradually came to understand the difficult truth. He had faced this expression before. It was a moment he didn’t want to remember. When he first realized they might lose Ludin forever, Devan had stood there with exactly that face, fearing the world. Wimu grabbed his collar, unable to hide his anxiety.
“Tell me straight.”
“…”
Seeing him unable to even stammer out words, Wimu felt as if someone was squeezing his heart. His mind was racing, but his heart fell endlessly downward. He tried to assess the situation while taking deep breaths. Devan, with his pale face, finally explained the situation after a long while. While he spoke, Wimu just stared at him silently. And as soon as the explanation ended, he pushed him hard and walked straight into the castle.
Before being stopped by the guards, Devan quickly intervened. But it was useless now, as the place was practically empty. Wimu, striding forward, recited the structure of the castle he had only seen on maps, changing direction toward the building Devan had mentioned. He couldn’t believe it until he saw it with his own eyes. If he went to check directly, perhaps the situation wouldn’t be as bad as he thought. Wimu walked with his gaze fixed straight ahead. When he reached the room, he called Ludin’s name softly, as if he might be secretly hiding somewhere nearby.
Just as Devan had said, there was an additional small door. Beyond it stretched a landscape completely different from the castle. Though he had swept around Arzel’s castle countless times, it was a place he could never discover. For a long time, he had circled countless isolated places solely to save one person, only to lose the only person he wanted to protect. From a place he had never considered.
It felt terrible. It was like helplessly watching sand slip through his fingers that he had been clutching dearly for fear of losing it. Wimu roughly flung the door open. There was not a hint of hesitation in his footsteps as he advanced through the undergrowth.
Devan followed behind Wimu, who began searching desperately with a hardened face. The two thoroughly searched the forest that stretched endlessly. With each tree they passed, it seemed like Ludin might be hiding. When the sun, which had begun to show itself, brightly illuminated the leaves, they thought they really saw his figure. A brightly smiling face, a face covered in despair, clearly shining eyes, and clear, delicate cheeks. Everything was Ludin, and then it wasn’t. After seeing countless illusions and losing their way, they painfully realized.
Once again, they had lost Ludin.
* * *
In a quiet office, Kadilen was staring intently at one spot. He didn’t even glance at the pile of documents in front of him. With his entire mind fixated on one place, he couldn’t concentrate on anything. The seat where Ludin used to sit. A place where the sun shone well and close to the window. Ludin occasionally lifted his face to feel the warmth of the sunlight. Below his quietly closed eyes, long eyelashes stretched out. A faint vitality returned to his white cheeks touched by light. Moments when it was hard to suppress the urge to kneel and kiss him. He thought of that beautiful sight.
Sometimes Ludin would rest his chin on his hand and fall into contemplation. With a gaze that was neither too heavy nor too light, quietly cast into the void. He smiled, a bit lonely, a bit happy. His red lips formed a gentle curve upward, then calmly came down again. At such times, he wanted to enter his mind. What scenes would pass through him? He wanted to trace and continue his thoughts together. He wished to become completely one with him.
‘I love you, Kadilen.’
That confession, so sweet. Ludin, saying those words, was kind and radiant. Even in darkness, he felt blinded by the bright light emanating from him. But the kiss soon ended. His breath stopped at the tears flowing down Ludin’s cheeks. It was he who had made him cry. A problem that should have been handled quietly had reached Ludin, ultimately causing him concern. He should have been more reassuring, but his surprised lips only spilled out awkward sentences like an immature child. And Ludin disappeared. Without even a word of goodbye. Without ever answering that promise.
After sending him away, Kadilen anxiously stayed up all night. Strangely, his heart was uneasy. It was just being apart for a day, yet it was so hard to endure. Nothing could hold his attention. When he returned, he would embrace him at once and confess his love again. He would give him only burning happiness so that there would never be a reason for tears for the rest of their lives. He suppressed his anxious heart with countless resolutions.
But soon his determination lost its way and collapsed in vain. Two men with terrible appearances bowed their heads with damaged faces. Even before they opened their mouths, Kadilen had already imagined the worst. But reality won. A hellish situation worse than anything he had imagined was unfolding before his eyes.
“One day. Just one day.”
“…”
“Why, that one day…”
His low murmur scattered before forming a sentence. For a moment, there was no sense of reality. He looked again at Ludin’s seat, which he had been staring at until just a moment ago. Ludin, with his gentle smile, had disappeared without leaving even a faint trace. It can’t be. He should have been sitting there. Even if he hadn’t succeeded in that task, he should have returned safely to the palace to be with him. That was the promise. The one he made with Ludin, and with Devan.
“Why did you leave him alone?”
In the face of the tragic outcome, anger fell on one person. How could Devan, who confidently took him away, who showed the only active attitude toward this plan, be so foolish? He might not have been reliable, but he was definitely someone who cared for Ludin. That’s why he reluctantly allowed him by his side. He couldn’t believe such weakness from him.
“…There was a magic-prevention space. They had a signal between them, but it seems Devan’s power couldn’t reach him.”
Wimu, unable to bear the cold anger and dark silence, spoke instead. But there was no confidence in his voice either. He only hid his own pain with a formal, dry voice.
“It was my mistake to send you with him.”
But Kadilen’s voice grew even colder. He slowly walked toward Devan. Instead of a strong tone, his low and calm voice more clearly revealed his anger.
“If you had just not left him alone, this situation could have been easily prevented.”
“…”
“You supported the plan, eager for time alone with him, but when he was in danger, you weren’t by his side.”
“…And does Your Majesty have plans to be alone with him?”
Devan, who had been standing still, asked with a trembling voice. Kadilen raised his eyebrow as if asking for an explanation. Devan’s expression twisted with his.
“Aren’t you someone who needs a woman more than anyone?”
With each distinct word he uttered, his face trembled with anger. He was someone who didn’t appreciate the opportunity given to him and made tears of blood form in Ludin’s eyes. He had given new despair to someone who was trying to resolve his tangled heart and start anew. Ludin had cried in his arms and regained his forgotten anxiety. As if all the wishes he had given up for Kadilen were meaningless. Ludin’s love for Kadilen was love directed at someone unworthy and selfish. Hot anger surged to the top of his head. But the king spoke again, shamelessly.
“I will never cause such wounds to Ludin.”
“Then are you planning to give him the position of a concubine?”
Devan sneered.
“How honored he would be.”
With the sound of fluttering clothes, a sword suddenly drove toward him. Kadilen whispered lowly, filled with killing intent.
“If you speak one more word, I will punish you for all your past crimes.”
The sharp sword glinted as if about to sever Devan’s artery at any moment. But Devan, without blinking an eye, also lowered his voice.
“Even if my throat is cut, I will not remain silent. For Ludin’s sake, I am not afraid of power.”
“…”
“Also, as heavy as the crimes accumulated against me are, your crimes must be just as heavy, Kadilen.”
