Darkness and Light
Angel woke up feeling refreshed. After telling Seoho stories of the past a few days ago, she couldn’t have felt more relieved.
Angel had subtly emphasized that they had gone through quite a lot of hardships and experienced various trials and errors. And regarding the very last thing—what ultimately happened to them—she answered with a bright smile.
‘Well, there are no records left. Well, since it’s destiny, don’t you think they lived happily?’
Of course, their ending wasn’t happy. The blonde man who had been dragged to this world returned to his original world after just one year.
‘It doesn’t say how he returned, but it was recorded that he left at the same time the thread was severed.’
Angel recalled Seoho, whose expression had become strange after hearing that story, and laughed, then lowered the corners of her mouth as she recalled Rosetta, who had been sitting beside him with a calm smile, looking at Seoho nonchalantly.
Unlike Seoho, who seemed a bit worried, Rosetta didn’t even look at her or show interest in the story, as if such past matters didn’t need to be minded, as if he had no interest in Angel’s story at all.
Even as she got heated at his dismissive attitude, at the same time, when she imagined the pain Rosetta would experience after losing him, anticipation rose within her.
‘Right, no matter how good things are now, in the end it’s destined to be ruined.’
His current appearance was disgusting to look at, but Angel drank her tea while anticipating the future to come. The worse their relationship was now, the more painful later would be.
It was high-quality tea specially prepared for that joyful day that would come before long, but her mouth tasted bitter.
“Haah.”
Perhaps this uncomfortable feeling in a corner of her heart was because of that existence called Seoho. Some time had passed, and as her excitement subsided with anticipation for the future, faint guilt touched Angel.
The otherworlder who came to this world through the mirror she had given out of ill feelings toward Rosetta. Angel felt guilty toward him who had become unluckily entangled between her and Rosetta.
‘Because I like him.’
It had been truly a long time since she’d seen such clear and clean eyes. After becoming the Holy Maiden, there were almost no people who looked at her with such eyes free of any dark intentions.
‘But… still, what’s more important is seeing the Emperor crumble.’
She couldn’t ruin things because of shallow goodwill toward the otherworlder.
However, it would be troublesome if Seoho pushed her away. The more Seoho and Rosetta relied on her, the more she could watch Rosetta change up close.
‘It would be good to become close.’
Today, it seemed good to invite Seoho to have lunch together.
Listening to the servants’ conversations, she heard that these days Rosetta went to the office to work. She intended to take advantage of the gap when Rosetta was absent to draw out more stories from him.
Unlike the first day, at Seoho’s attitude of strangely keeping his distance from her, Angel had deliberately volunteered to stay at the palace, using the excuse that there were still many stories left to tell.
‘The excuse won’t last long.’
So while staying here, she planned to meet Seoho as often as possible to create suspicion and anxiety about Rosetta, and trust in herself.
‘It’s been quite a while since the last meeting…’
Just then, along with the sound of knocking on the door, a servant’s voice was heard.
“Holy Maiden, there’s been contact from His Majesty.”
“From His Majesty?”
“Yes.”
She had originally intended to meet Seoho, but she didn’t know they would contact her first.
‘Did something happen? Or is it a warning?’
She couldn’t tell if this was a good or bad thing. Angel asked the maid.
“What for?”
“He said something came up and wishes to meet urgently.”
“Didn’t he say what it was about?”
The maid answered.
“He didn’t say that much, but he said that the Holy Maiden is absolutely needed.”
That she was absolutely needed.
She didn’t know what business he was calling her for, but seeing that he said it was urgent, she thought it might be related to that otherworlder.
‘He’s not the type of person to mention urgency to warn me.’
Angel quickly rose from her seat.
“Really? Then let’s prepare. It’s rare for His Majesty to ask for help, so as a citizen, I should naturally go see him.”
***
Seoho found it hard to understand the current situation. The strange dream, the voice he heard in the dream, and even Rosetta’s sudden story.
‘The power of the gods? He said I received the Power of Dawn?’
He was told he received something, but it wasn’t like anything had changed or he could feel anything. His head was complicated. Seoho sighed and asked.
“Rosetta. If I received something, wouldn’t I have felt it? I felt it in the dream, but after waking up, I don’t particularly feel anything.”
“It will take a little time to adapt to the power.”
Seoho looked at Rosetta with eyes full of suspicion.
“I might not have received it.”
“Then shall we test it?”
“What?”
Rosetta looked truly confident. Seeing that attitude made him wonder if his words were really true, but since he couldn’t feel anything, it was hard to completely believe him.
Rosetta pointed to a small flowerpot in the middle of the room and asked.
“Puti, is that a flowering plant?”
“Ah, yes.”
“Bring it here.”
Puti approached Rosetta with the small flowerpot. Rosetta, who received the pot, handed it to Seoho and said.
“Now, Seoho. Try desperately wishing for flowers to bloom.”
“For flowers to bloom?”
At Seoho’s response full of questions, Rosetta thought for a moment and explained.
“I said broadly that it’s healing, but there are various other abilities too. It feels related to life. I also have a hard time expressing it properly.”
It really was like that. Even after hearing the explanation, he didn’t really understand what it meant. Life? What on earth was that?
To the confused Seoho, Rosetta thrust the flowerpot at him and said.
“Seoho. Try touching the leaves with your hand. And feel it.”
Seoho glanced at him, then had no choice but to raise his hand and caress the plant at Rosetta’s expectant look. Rosetta continued speaking as if helping Seoho.
“What do you feel?”
Contrary to the expectation that it would be smooth, the leaves had fine hairs on them. Seoho caressed the fluffy leaves and answered.
“Not particularly, rather than feeling something… The leaves are fluffy. They must have hairs.”
At Rosetta’s look telling him to say more, Seoho hesitantly added.
“It smells like grass too.”
Rosetta smiled prettily as if he’d done well and said.
“Now try thinking that flowers will bloom on this plant. What color flowers will bloom?”
At the end of his words to Seoho, when he asked Puti, he immediately answered.
“They’re flowers with purple and white mixed together.”
“So he says. Imagine it. White flowers blooming, purple flowers blossoming.”
Seoho looked down at the plant hesitantly.
‘If it doesn’t work, Rosetta will give up too.’
It was regrettable that Rosetta would be disappointed, but this was probably Rosetta’s misunderstanding. Seoho was certain it would fail, but still, he did his best to follow Rosetta’s words.
He touched the plant and imagined white and purple flowers blooming. Seoho, who had been continuing his imagination while caressing the leaves, opened his mouth when there was no reaction from the plant.
“See, there’s no reaction…”
Seoho, who had been speaking, flinched and trembled for a moment. Starting from his heart, something was flowing toward his fingertips.
And from Seoho’s fingertips, a sparkling white light poured out.
Seoho stared blankly down at his hand. In the place where the light had disappeared, a cute flower with purple and white mixed together was blooming.
“Uh…”
He was making a stupid sound when Rosetta grabbed Seoho’s hand strongly.
“Look, you also have the Power of Dawn like me now.”
“…This is real?”
A strange light came from his hand and flowers bloomed.
Everything that had happened to him recently was impossible. But still, this was too much.
Moreover, it wasn’t just any power but divine power. It was no different from stealing Rosetta’s power.
After even confirming it, it seemed certain that he had taken his power. As Seoho’s face darkened, Rosetta, who had been smiling happily, looked at Seoho with worried eyes and asked.
“What’s wrong, Seoho?”
“No, it doesn’t feel real… And I feel bad for Rosetta.”
“I said this before, but Seoho. It’s power I don’t need. And I’m happy that you have the same power as me.”
Rosetta said, his eyes curving.
“I feel like I’m connected to you more strongly. We have the same divine power.”
“Ah.”
For a moment, the thought he’d had before came to mind.
The thought that Rosetta must have been very lonely. Rosetta, who was loved for the single reason of having divine power, of having received a name from the gods, must have been very lonely.
But now, as Rosetta said, he had come to possess the same power.
‘Will Rosetta be less lonely now?’
It was merely taking Rosetta’s power, yet he was this happy. Rosetta might have been truly very lonely.
And now he seemed to feel a sense of kinship with Seoho.
Seoho asked hesitantly.
“Are you really okay?”
Rosetta nodded his head greatly as if it were true.
“I’m okay.”
“…It was originally Rosetta’s. If you need it, tell me anytime.”
Then Rosetta’s smile deepened.
“Then Seoho will always have to be with me.”
“Yes, I will.”
Rosetta asked back as if surprised.
“Really?”
It was strange since they’d just had this conversation.
“Yes. We’re like that now anyway.”
“…Does Seoho like being with me too?”
It wasn’t wrong since being with Rosetta was comfortable and warm. And… because Rosetta needed him.
“What? Yes. Right?”
At Seoho’s words, Rosetta’s smile awkwardly stiffened. At Rosetta’s face that had suddenly become awkward, Seoho looked at him in surprise.
