DOTD Chapter 11

 

🦋

 

Evan was born a Prince, but he was never welcomed by anyone.

 

As he grew up, he saw and learned too many fragile things.

 

A ramshackle little castle that was both home and prison. 

 

A mother who died in front of him, a father who never came to see him, and his title of Prince, which was nothing more than an illusion.

 

So many lives lost to war.

 

And then, out of nowhere, a woman appears before him.

 

A woman who seemed precarious in a different way than he had ever known.

 

‘Are you awake?’

 

At the sound of his voice, Bella blinked slowly.

 

The shadows cast by her lashes were gone, and her fresh green eyes looked straight at Evan.

 

He gritted his teeth to swallow the exclamation that threatened to escape his mouth.

 

‘What is this feeling?’

 

For a brief moment, the forces that had been rampaging uncontrolled and tormenting him seemed to stabilize, as if they belonged to him.

 

It was a sensation he’d never felt before in his life, and it made his emotions turbulent.

 

‘This is weird…’

 

He didn’t know what it was, but as if by instinct, all his attention was drawn to Bella. She had glossy, wavy black hair and round, clear eyes.

 

There was a clear radiance of beauty that I had never possessed and had always longed for.

 

But she was often deep in thought, and her bright eyes were somehow sad.

 

I felt uneasy, as if she could disappear before my eyes at any moment.

 

That’s why I followed her secretly.

 

— ‘I should have died.’

 

And I heard the words in the darkness.

 

‘No.’

 

Evan’s mind raced as he remembered the trauma of his childhood. The last thing he wanted to do was witness someone’s death again.

 

He hated it even more when it was Belle.

 

Stopping her was something he didn’t hesitate to do, but it took a lot of courage.

 

‘What if I’m hated?’

 

Being hated was a familiar, everyday occurrence for Evan, but suddenly he was afraid.

 

This emotion, this feeling, it was greed.

 

For the first time, he felt greedy. That feeling of wanting to be with someone all the time. It was the first time he’d ever asked someone to stay with him.

 

The first time I said to someone, “I want to be with you, but I can’t.”

 

The response was no.

 

‘God doesn’t allow me to have something.’

 

For once, he truly blamed God.

 

She had rejected his offer and refused to accept his favor.

 

— ‘What do you think you know about me?’

 

She responded curiously that she didn’t know, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t more he wanted to know.

 

I didn’t pry, but I had a lot of questions.

 

‘I was hoping it wouldn’t happen…’

 

After I mentioned the war, I heard Bella mutter softly.

 

‘I wondered what the war had done in her life?’

 

Evan thought she might have scars similar to his own. She was as different as she was alike.

 

‘I’m in danger of falling apart like a childhood fantasy. Yet, ironically, she seems so strong.’

 

The difference pierced a small crack in Evan’s heart.

 

“Evan, are you awake?”

 

Evan’s eyes narrowed, and he let out a small, heated breath.

 

“Yeah…”

 

He sat up and leaned against the head of the bed, ignoring the ache in his body as if he’d been stricken.

 

The sunlight streaming in through the small window just happened to catch his silver hair, making it glisten.

 

His eyes, so beautiful when he smiled, squinted slightly, unable to handle the bright light.

 

“Where are we…?”

 

“A village on the road to Avantha.”

 

Rowan said, pulling back the curtains on the window that let in the sun.

 

Evan’s eyes relaxed at the more comfortable view.

 

“Bella…”

 

“You’re looking for her as soon as you wake up, and you’re not even fully recovered yet.”

 

Evan paused to catch his breath, then gave a small shake of his head. It meant he was fine.

 

“It’s nothing, and you know it.”

 

Dealing with pain was a way of life for him, and he smiled weakly at Rowan.

 

Rowan, who had been crossing her arms impatiently, sighed and placed the bread and soup in Evan’s lap.

 

“Eat, and then we can talk. I’m the one with the questions.”

 

“Mmm.”

 

But Evan’s hand on the spoon refused to move up to his mouth.

 

“Again, why, what.”

 

Rowan crossed his arms again.

 

“Bella…”

 

“Yeah, Bella. I’m getting tired of the name. Let’s eat and then we’ll talk.”

 

“About those earrings.”

 

Rowan’s hand paused, pressed to his furrowed brow.

 

“The… the earrings that are supposedly under some sort of spell?”

 

Since most black magic was used as a curse, the two were almost synonymous.

 

Rowan’s comment was quite misleading, but there was no one here to point that out.

 

“Yeah. That.”

 

“Why?”

 

“I think it was the Master of the Tower.”

 

“What?”

 

Bringing it up again made his head hurt, and his anger at having hurt her soared. Unlike in front of Bella, Evan didn’t hide his anger, it was blatant.

 

The spoon in his hand crunched under the force.

 

“How did you know that?”

 

No, that’s not what’s important right now. Rowan added hastily.

 

“They took her away.”

 

“What do you mean, who…”

 

“Bella! The bastards of the tower, they took Bella!”

 

“…!”

 

Rowan exclaimed, remembering the symbol of Magic Tower on the carriage they had thrown her into.

 

Evan’s face stiffened as he understood Rowan’s words. He started to rise to his feet, grabbing his own sword from the bed beside him, but Rowan pressed his shoulder, forcing him back down.

 

“Evan.”

 

“…Yeah.”

 

Evan replied in a low, grave voice.

 

“Let’s leave Bella’s business alone, I think that’s a good idea.”

 

“Rowan.”

 

“I have a bad feeling about this. I feel like I’m getting tangled up in something huge, and if we wait any longer, it’s going to be hard to get out.”

 

Rowan’s instincts were good.

 

But what he was overlooking was that Evan’s senses kept screaming out something similar to what Rowan was feeling.

 

“I think so, too.”

 

“Right, then…”

 

But Rowan was cut off by the next words.

 

“I still have to go.”

 

Evan brushed Rowan’s arm from around his shoulders without hesitation.

 

Rowan’s palms were left with only a tiny bit of heat from Evan’s fever.

 

He clenched his fist, unable to grab his shoulder again with the hand that had been pushed away.

 

“You don’t regret it?”

 

“No.”

 

Clear blue eyes met with a pair of near-black ones.

 

Rowan sighed, seeing the unwavering stubbornness in those eyes.

 

“I see. I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad experience to walk into the eye of the storm.”

 

He nodded in agreement, running a hand through his hair as nervously as he spoke.

 

Evan smiled softly, as if satisfied with the answer.

 

The smile made Rowan’s stomach churn even harder.

 

“You do realize there’s something you need to tell me, right?”

 

“Yeah. I’ll tell you on the way. Let’s get going.”

 

Without hesitation, Evan rose to his feet, ready to leave.

 

🦋

 

Opening my eyes, I wondered how long I’d been unconscious.

 

I was laying in a room that was neatly organized, if not luxurious.

 

In my foggy mind, I stumbled over my last memory. Oh, I blacked out while fighting the monsters.

 

A flash of what I’d seen just before I blacked out flashed through my mind.

 

“Louis…”

 

It was a vision I saw when I was barely conscious, so I couldn’t be sure.

 

But it looked like Louis.

 

“There’s that name again.”

 

A voice came from beside me as I blinked slowly. I turned my head and saw the familiar hazel eyes.

 

“It’s you again.”

 

At my incoherent mumbling, Yzmel frowned.

 

“You’re so…”

 

He seemed to be choosing his words, as if there was so much he wanted to say, but in the end, he couldn’t find them and closed his mouth.

 

I forced the corners of my lips upward and smirked.

 

“I know.”

 

“…I didn’t say anything?”

 

“I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”

 

“…”

 

Yzmel’s expression was one of stern realization. It was a throwaway comment, but it seemed to work.

 

“I have a lot of secrets.”

 

Actually, I’m just blurting out random words right now.

 

His gaze darted blankly into space.

 

My mind was replaying the last scene.

 

Does the fact that I woke up with Yzmel next to me mean it wasn’t Louis I saw?

 

At my silence, Yzmel’s face became serious. He seemed to have more to say.

 

“I’ll believe that you didn’t mean him any harm.”

 

“Why suddenly?”

 

Not that I don’t have a guess, Adrian must have returned, the one he’s been looking for.

 

Accusing me of carrying magical items with his power was a false premise in the first place.