Chapter 5 – Part 5

It is over now.

Lying on the ground, Ann felt hot tears trickle down her nose.

A rush of indescribable emotions flooded her. When she realized that she was too weak to cry out, she consoled herself by saying that it was meant to be.

Facing the end, Evan’s words flashed through her mind like a lantern slide.

If only she had told him she loved him without hesitation and asked him to love her more.

She regretted not fully enjoying and loving him in the moment.

Though she was filled with useless regrets, she wasn’t sad.

She wanted him to live.

‘Please be happy.’

Her final feeling lingered in Ann’s body for a long time.

* * *~~~~

[Breaking News] The Great Army has been defeated, what’s next?

Terran Imperial Year 925, August 4th

The last lamentations to honor the souls of the dead were published in the newspapers.

Anne Riley (22) – Lieutenant in the Medical Corps. Killed during the Battle of Vorenia.

~~~~

Her name, written on a flimsy piece of paper, was hidden among the dense letters.

When Kyle, Martin, Hans, and Carly saw it, they couldn’t help but drop the newspaper in their seats.

As much as they tried to deny it, they couldn’t believe it….

The streets were littered with the names of the dead, and the anxiety of the passersby grew as they stepped on them.

It was a moment of history repeating itself.

So many people had lost their families, friends, and hearts.

“Terran must be destroyed! I want my son back!”

“My child, he doesn’t deserve to go like this!”

Shouting, the voices against the Emperor of Terran grew louder and louder.

A few days ago.

Evan Davis, the only man to return to Castle Dehart alive from the Battle of Vorenia, sat for a long time on his horse, half in a daze.

The soldiers gathered around him, eager for news of the departed, could guess by the look on their commander’s face.

“Tell me it’s not true, please.”

“…Ah, no, Commander, what about the lieutenant? I heard she went to get you.”

“…….”

Evan’s unfocused eyes turned to Martin. Martin’s hands shook.

The faces of those who had gathered around him stiffened at the commander’s unresponsive demeanor.

Soon, sobs echoed around the castle.

Evan’s blue eyes looked up, pouring deep resentment into the dazzlingly blue sky.

Anne, who used to look at the sky and marvel at its peculiar cloud shapes, was no longer in this world.

Dismounting from his horse, Evan stared at his damp saddle for a moment, then pulled it from his mount.

He quickly made his way to the abandoned gardens within the castle walls, now used as a place of mourning for the dead.

Barely salvageable bodies were buried here and there. They were so hastily buried that they were practically mounds of worm-crawling dirt.

Evan crouched down beside a small pond, buckled his leather saddle, and muttered to himself.

“It must be a dream.”

Unable to remain sane unless it was a dream, he frantically tried to erase any trace of her.

But as much as he wanted to deny that she was dead, he couldn’t remove the blood stains that had already soaked into the saddle.

“Where did it go wrong?”

Evan thought, remembering Anne’s face.

Had it been his arrogance that had brought her to Calohas?

If he’d died a gentle death right then and there, would she still be alive?

If he had held on to her tighter, would the outcome have been different.

“D*mn it.”

This isn’t right.

‘The thing you tried to do wasn’t saving me. Why didn’t you stay in a safe place instead of rescuing me?’

Evan staggered up the castle’s stairs.

His gaze lingered on the staircase, precisely by the window.

He remembered her outlandish words on the winter night, when the breeze from the window had ruffled their hair.

“Do you want to stay with me tonight?”

“Do you know what you’re saying?”

“I’m not a child, Evan.”

Evan felt the despair of his world falling apart. The most vibrant, joyful time of his life was over.

Now he would miss her every day.

With a feeling like a cold spike piercing deep into his chest, he let out a rough breath.

He fled the place like he was running away.

Reaching his room, he grabbed the bottle on the display case with unfocused eyes.

He yanked the cork out with one swift motion and gulped down the strong liquor.

His throat bobbed up and down as he drank.

A man roughly snatched the bottle from him.

“…Evan Davis.”

Tears filled the corners of Evan’s eyes as he stared at the man with half-hearted recognition.

“Do you feel relieved?”

Ailon Terrosa.

Ailon’s expression twisted.

Evan scoffed and reached for the bottle again.

Ailon shoved him roughly against the wall.

“Get a grip.”

When they were very young, Evan and Ailon used to draw and play in the corner of the tents after every hunting tournament.

As the years passed, Ailon was called “Your Highness” rather than his first name, and the friendliness between them had long since faded.

Except for this moment.

“Ailon, back then, I just cursed you silently and let it go.”

But now, he regretted not heeding his cautious words.

“Sorry.”

Ailon looked at Evan, his expression stony, and pulled a necklace with an emerald ring from his pocket.

He had often seen Anne Riley stare at it for long periods of time, even when she was busy working.

So, after being informed by a guard, he retrieved it.

“Take this. But for now, keep it deep in a drawer where you can’t see it.”

“…….”

“We have a lot of work to do. To reveal the whole truth of what Anne Riley was saying…. D*mn it.”

It was no use talking to someone who didn’t look human.

Evan was lying on the floor, covered in blood. This scene would only create scandals.

Ailon forcibly grabbed him by the shoulders and lifted him up.

“Walk under your own power.”

Dragging Evan into the next room, Ailon shoved him into a bathtub filled with water.

Evan was submerged at once.

By the time the turbulent waters subsided, only tiny bubbles of air floated on the surface.

Ailon cursed under his breath and perched on the edge of the tub.

He slipped his arm under the water and grabbed Evan’s top.

Evan’s skin, once covered in black blood, gradually returned to the color of flesh.

“Are you trying to die?”

Evan let out the tiniest of groans at Ailon’s shouted question.

“I should have died on the spot, then Anne would have given up on me and turned back.”

Tears filled his hollow eyes and eventually fell. The clear sound of water droplets echoed.

The tiny tremors grew louder and louder, and Evan’s breathing grew ragged as he grunted and fevered.

He was unharmed, but he was writhing in pain as if his heart were being ripped out of his chest.

The whole scene was horrifying.

Ailon’s eyes moistened as he watched. Sadly, he understood most of what Evan was feeling.

He’d been pained by Aaron’s death himself.

Every moment he breathed, he lived recalling that girl’s smile.

He knew that the excruciating pain of losing a loved one would last a lifetime.

* * *

It had been two weeks since Anne Riley’s death. A report was sent to the higher-ups stating that everyone who observed the battle in Vorenia, except for the messenger and Commander Evan Davis, had died.

All the soldiers who had gone with Evan Davis were slaughtered by the enemy occupying their retreat.

The only news about Evan Davis, the sole survivor of the battle, was that he had disappeared after returning.

Entering Anne Riley’s room, Carly gazed at the man lying on the floor, clutching Anne’s quilt in his arms.

She couldn’t help but sigh at the sight of him, his body so broken.

Carly, who had known Anne for a short time, had also cried at the news of her death.

Not only Carly, but anyone who was even slightly touched by her enthusiasm, anyone who had been favored by her, would have felt the same way.

But now, two weeks later, life has returned to normal, except for him.

Carly stared at the paper on her nightstand and hardened her expression.

《Court Summons》

It held him responsible for the defeat.

“This is absurd. The soldiers in the castle all said you disappeared. And now they’re already looking to assign blame… damn it.”

Even those who knew nothing about this war knew one thing.

The Terran Empire had been on a losing streak long before Commander Davis arrived. The former commander was incompetent, and the tide of battle always seemed oddly unfavorable to the Empire.

It was Duke Evan Davis who enlisted to try and turn things around.

Despite this, the Empire’s attempt to blame him entirely for the war’s outcome ignited fury.

Carly raised her voice.

“You didn’t even get to the bottom of the story surrounding Connor Johannes.”

The blunt accusation didn’t reach Evan.

He still didn’t speak, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed as if he couldn’t hear his surroundings.

Carly dropped her head and spoke, her voice filled with sadness.

“I’m sorry for trying to take advantage of you and Miss Anne, but if we stay like this, we’ll lose everything she’s been trying to protect, okay?”

Dark circles stood out under Evan’s eyes. And there was a whisker of untrimmed stubble on his chin.

Looking as if he had lost the world, Carly covered her face with her hands and screamed.

“Please, just answer me! Anne saved you because she wanted you to live!”

“…I didn’t need to be saved.”

“Duke!”

Carly said, clutching her chest.

“Please, live. Live vibrantly. Cry and miss her madly if you must, but don’t live like a wreck!”

“…….”

Evan was silent again.

It was time for the little regrets to take root in Carly. She looked around as she cried.

Anne’s room was so organized. There were even fresh flowers in a vase on the desk.

Carly, who was often in and out of Anne’s room, had never seen her belongings so neatly organized.

“Ha….”

Only then did she faintly realize how much Evan missed Anne.

She could somewhat grasp the enormity of the shock her death had brought him.

In his despair, she could say no more.

Carly added a white flower to the ones Evan had carefully arranged and left the room.

~~~~

Terran Imperial Year 925, September 2nd

[BREAKING] Karin Region Captured.

Terran Imperial Year 925, September 28th

[BREAKING] Milharpe captured.

Terran Imperial Year 925, November 28th

[BREAKING] Enemy forces close in, will they surrender?

~~~~Carly watched as the troops continued to arrive.

This place, Calohas, is far from the capital, but once it is breached, it will only be a matter of time before the enemy reaches the palace.

She glared at the enemy forces, now frequently visible through the window. Terran was almost in a state of complete despair.

Like a well-planned script, after Evan’s single defeat and subsequent fall from grace, Megan Hale was reinstated as commander.

The rest is history. He would casually execute a plan that everyone questioned and lose.

Furthermore, the crimes of Connor Johannes, of whom Anne Riley spoke with such conviction, went unpunished.

Rather, there was talk that it was the Crown Prince’s fault and that he should be held accountable.

The last four months had been a nightmare for the Terran Empire.

With ongoing defeats, the streets echoed with requiems for the dead. Some people even wished for surrender, hoping for an end.

But surrendering now would mean the deaths of all those who had brought victory to Terran.

And the empire could not afford to pay huge war reparations, so everyone would be miserable.

Except for Conor Johannes, who had betrayed the Empire to the enemy… that had become an open secret.

BANG

The bombing continued incessantly.

Carly paced, arriving at Anne’s room, where Evan Davis was staying.

She walked past Evan, who was still grieving for her, still numb with loss, and read the letter he had received.

Knowing how rude it was to read someone else’s letters, Carly had been responding to all his correspondence.

This one was from Evan Davis’s sister.

Apparently his sister, who was staying in the capital, had heard the news and sent him a letter. Carly sighed as she looked at Evan, completely broken.

He was in no state to think.

“Should I come now? If you read this letter, contact me. Our family… we should see each other one last time, brother.”

The dry tone strongly hinted that the war would soon end in defeat. The family probably wanted to face the end together.

Then it happened.

Bang, bang, bang, bang.

Gunshots echoed in the hallway.

Though expected, fear gripped her as she struggled to breathe.

She was terrified of what might happen if they were captured, but she also worried about Evan Davis beside her.

“Duke, do you hear? Do you understand that this is our end?”

Carly looked at Evan, startled.

A slight smile crept onto his face, as he hadn’t shown any emotion before.

Looking at Evan, she saw a revolver with a brown leather handle in his hand.

Smiling in the face of death….

A single tear fell from Carly’s eye.

‘You don’t have to tell me, I know, because I’m thinking the same thing you are right now.’

The sound of footsteps echoing through the castle’s corridors grew closer. There was no delay now.

‘Father, I’m sorry.’

* * *

That day, Dehart Castle heard two shots.

The Empire had captured Dehart Castle, and less than a month later, they were forced into a humiliating pact.

Megan Hale was recognized for her contributions and granted a title in the enemy kingdom of Veil.

****Evan had only reached serenity after shooting himself in the head.

The night sky was filled with stars. He smiled at the odd feeling of peace, unlike before he died.

It was likely no illusion that it felt as though Annewas comforting him, telling him it was okay.

After returning to Dehart Castle alone, he had been in a state of denial for a while.

He couldn’t understand what was on her mind when she fell from the horse, and his self-loathing for not looking back at that moment consumed him.

“I loved you. Please, just keep going without looking back.”

Those words, ringing in his ears, drove him crazy.

But it would be different now.

Now, it was time to let everything go.

“I love you, Anne.”