Chapter 13.6

Splash—both of them sank into the surging waves.

Cold seawater wrapped around their bodies. A muffled sound rang in their ears, drawing them deeper into the silent abyss.  

As Herace’s arms, which had been holding her tightly, lost strength, Brienne hurriedly opened her eyes.  

Dark red blood was spreading through the murky water.  

‘……No.’  

Brienne flailed desperately, clutching Herace.  

She held tightly to his body, which kept sinking, and looked up toward the surface. They needed to get up quickly, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t see any light.  

Terror gripped her.

‘Please.’ 

‘Please, Herace…’  

‘Open your eyes.’  

Brienne, pale as a ghost, tightened her grip on the unconscious Herace, determined not to let go. She tried to swim up with all her might, but the more she struggled, the deeper they sank.  

Herace’s blood spread uncontrollably, staining the darkness all around them red.  

Splash—a large wave rose not far away, just as despair filled Brienne’s eyes.  

A figure, cutting through the current, grabbed her shoulder and pulled her up with strong arms.  

As Brienne was hauled up by that rough strength, she recognized the familiar back.  

Once again, it was Kaiden Bannon.

* * *

Pulled ashore, Brienne choked and coughed up the water that had filled her throat, her face flushed red. Her vision was blurry, her whole body trembling, and she couldn’t collect herself at all.  

But even in that state, Brienne lifted her head to look for Herace. She crawled desperately toward him and shook his body.  

“Herace……!”  

But he still did not open his eyes.  

He must have swallowed just as much seawater as she had, but he wasn’t even coughing.  

‘……No way.’  

With trembling hands, Brienne felt along Herace’s shoulder. Pressing her ear to his chest, she could barely hear a faint heartbeat.  

He was still alive.  

But……

‘The sound is strange.’  

It wasn’t the strong beat she was used to, but a slow, quiet pulse. That unfamiliar sound brought tears to Brienne’s eyes.  

Brienne, her vision blurring, hurriedly pushed at Herace’s body with the back of her hand.  

Her lips trembled as she broke the arrow stuck in his broad back.  

“…Help me.”  

‘Please help me, Kaiden.’  

Brienne’s voice shook as she pleaded, and slowly, the light returned to Kaiden’s eyes, which had been staring blankly at Herace.  

He quickly lowered himself.

“Brienne, move back. We need to prop him up against a rock.”  

Even before he finished speaking, Kaiden slid his hand under Herace’s shoulder and lifted him.  

Herace’s legs dragged limply, his body unmoving like the dead, and Brienne’s heart dropped.  

She knelt beside Herace and gripped his hand tightly.  

It was so cold it hurt.

“…Please, open your eyes, Herace.”  

Brienne looked at Herace, who would not wake, and was engulfed in despair.  

Had she been too careless?  

At first, she survived with Kaiden’s help, got out of situations with the communicator.  

Had she become too complacent, thinking luck was on her side?  

She should have been more careful.  

Since she’d resolved to protect Herace, she should have expected something like this could happen.

“Please, wake up…”  

Brienne cupped Herace’s cheek, repeating the same words over and over.  

‘Open your eyes.’  

‘If you die like this, we can’t go back together.’ 

A faint groan escaped Herace’s lips at that moment.  

“…Herace!”  

Brienne jerked her head up and checked his face. The dark gray eyes, which she thought would never open again, were looking at her.  

He managed a weak smile and whispered,  

“I always thought making you cry was such a pathetic thing to do…”  

His cold, icy hand touched the corner of Brienne’s eye.  

“…But knowing you’d cry for me, it’s not as sad as I thought.”  

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Herace’s smile was as gentle as ever.  

But Brienne could not miss it.  

His eyes were growing dim, as if they would go out at any moment.  

Herace Belif was dying before her eyes.  

Brienne grew more and more afraid.

“Herace, why…”  

“…I’m sorry.”  

“……”  

“I couldn’t keep the promise I made to you…”  

Herace’s weak voice tore at Brienne’s heart.  

Brienne shook her head in denial and forced a smile.

“Herace, what are you saying… We, we promised to leave together. If we just hold on a little longer, here…”  

“Brienne.”  

Herace cut her off with a bitter smile.  

“Please, don’t cry too much just because of me. The Brienne Ford I love must… always be happy.”  

And at that moment,  

The large hand that had been caressing Brienne’s cheek fell limply.  

“No, Herace…!”  

Brienne shook her head in panic. She gripped his hand desperately, but Herace did not respond. Brienne pressed her ear to his chest and barely held back her sobs.  

Even as she tried to stifle her voice, she could no longer hear the clear heartbeat she should have.  

Herace’s heart had stopped.

“Please, Herace…! Open your eyes again!”  

Brienne, on her knees, pulled Herace’s face into her arms. Her lost hands fumbled through his silver hair.  

Brienne’s tears fell in streams onto his angelic face.  

It shouldn’t be like this.  

They were supposed to go back together.

“…You said, you said you’d be engaged to me. You said we’d do that when we went back, Herace, right?”  

No matter how earnestly she whispered, Herace did not move.  

‘……Liar.’  

Brienne felt she could almost hate Herace for making such an impossible joke.

<When you can’t believe in yourself, please believe in me. Even in the moments when it feels like the world hates you, I, at least, will always stay by your side, Brienne.>  

He’d said that.

“Wake up…! Herace, please open your eyes!”  

Unable to contain her overwhelming emotions, Brienne pounded Herace’s shoulder again and again.  

Then Kaiden suddenly grabbed her wrist.

“Brienne, get a hold of yourself. You’re…”  

But she couldn’t.  

“…Get a hold of myself?”  

Brienne stared blankly at Kaiden’s hand gripping her wrist, then shook him off fiercely.  

“Kaiden, you… If only you hadn’t brought those people…”  

Brienne, clutching Herace, glared at Kaiden with bloodshot eyes.  

“This… this wouldn’t have happened. Herace wouldn’t have died.”  

“……”  

Kaiden’s hand, frozen in the air, trembled.

“Rien, I…”  

“Please, Kaiden. I told you then, didn’t I? Never show your face to me again, just disappear from my life…”  

Brienne’s voice, blaming Kaiden, shook violently.  

“Why were you even here in the first place? Why do you keep interfering!”  

Her scream, sharp as a blade, was hurled at Kaiden.  

Kaiden looked at her with the face of a wounded man. Brienne gave a hollow laugh.

“…Don’t pretend to be good now. Don’t try to help us. I’ll never forgive you.”  

‘You hated me from the start anyway.’  

‘You never once thought of me as a friend.’  

‘You knew all my feelings, and you just toyed with me for fun.’  

Brienne glared at Kaiden, adding with force,  

“Wasn’t it enough? Why, why did you follow me here and even take Herace from me…”  

At that moment—

“I did it because if I hadn’t, you would have been in danger…!”  

Kaiden’s wavering gaze fixed straight on Brienne.  

His deep blue eyes, like the sea, were now brimming with tears.  

“I didn’t know either. My feelings for you… that damned feeling, at first I didn’t even know what it was.”  

If only he’d known.  

If only he’d realized a little sooner, things might never have come to this.  

On the day of the engagement, he wouldn’t have hurt Brienne with cruel words, claiming it was the only way to break her heart.

When Herace came to propose to the Ford family, he wouldn’t have acted arrogant, wishing Herace’s plan would succeed.

No, maybe before that ridiculous engagement even started, he would have told Brienne everything and asked her to run away with him.

If only that had happened……

Kaiden, staring at Herace, whose eyes were closed as if in a deep sleep, let out a hollow laugh.  

Why was his life always like this?  

He hated living under his father’s control, so he chose another path, yet even the results of his own choices always turned out this way.  

He’d promised himself he would wish for Brienne’s happiness, but in the end, he’d hurt her worse than ever.  

He ruined everything.  

Now, to Brienne, he was nothing but a terrible person.

“…I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Brienne.”  

Kaiden slumped down helplessly, whispering as if collapsing.  

“……”  

Brienne’s tear-stained eyes turned to Kaiden. Kaiden Bannon was kneeling and begging before her. She could not believe this situation.

“Kaiden. What are you even saying right now…”  

“Ever since I saw you and Herace together, I regretted it every day. I should have realized sooner that a life without you meant nothing to me…”  

Kaiden’s voice, usually so smooth, trembled weakly.  

“So I thought I could never appear before you again, that I’d live my whole life regretting it, always being sorry. But here, I could meet you…”  

Tears fell from his eyes, hotly soaking the sand.

“It was my selfishness. I knew Riela wasn’t you, but I lied to myself and came here every day, making her my substitute.”  

“……”  

“And then you really came here. That’s all. I really… I never meant for this to happen.”  

Kaiden muttered emptily, bowing his head and covering his eyes with his hand.  

Uncontrollable tears streamed down his cheeks beneath his hand.

As children,  

The two who used to smile at each other as if they were the only ones in the world were now crying, with the cooling Herace between them.