Chapter 13
That night, Sophia had another dream. She opened her eyes as if waking up in another world. She looked down at her hands. They were not pale like a doll’s, but the hands of a real human body. But she instinctively knew that this dream was a continuation of the previous one. She was inside that body again.
Sophia looked around. This time, she was standing at the edge of a high cliff. She was still wearing a white dress, and her long hair was loose.
Below the steep cliff, flames were boiling and burning. Even though it was far down, she could still feel the heat from up here. Her hair swayed like waves in the wind blowing up from below. The heat felt so real that Sophia stepped back in fear.
That must be the flames of Hallas.
Even though she had never seen it before, she knew. The fire moved like waves in the sea. The red ground flowed like liquid.
[Don’t you remember? Your body already fell into the hellfire of Hallas a long time ago.]
That’s what the Duke had said.
Then, in the dream, did she fall here and die?
“This is crazy.”
Sophia quickly turned around to run away. Even if it was just a dream, she didn’t want to burn to death here. As she turned in a panic, she bumped her forehead into someone standing behind her.
“Ugh.”
Her forehead hurt like she had hit a rock. Did the Duke come here to throw her in again? But when she looked up, it wasn’t the Duke staring down at her. It was a man with long black hair, one eye covered by a black eye patch. He looked more like a warrior than a noble.
Who is this man?
As Sophia frowned and wondered, the man who had been silently watching her finally spoke.
“Are you scared?”
He was the kind of man who made you want to say, Yes, I’m scared of you. Without realizing it, Sophia almost stepped back. But behind her, the flames were boiling fiercely.
“Who are you…?”
“Of course you’re scared. Everyone is when they face death. But you must not give up. You have to remember the Duke who pushed you this far.”
His voice was calm and steady, without emotion. He seemed to be advising her. Suddenly, she felt that the only reason she had made it here was because of this man’s help.
“Do you want me to die?”
Sophia asked. Her words came out as if they had a will of their own, ignoring her thoughts. There was a hint of betrayal in her voice.
This body must have known this man. It must have trusted him deeply. She could feel a dull pain in her chest and a dry bitterness in her throat.
“Of course not. I don’t want to lose you either.”
The man replied. He hesitated for a moment, reaching out his hand, then clenched it into a fist and pulled back his feelings.
“But… you’re the only one who can fight him. You must end this. We can’t let him destroy this world any longer.”
“So… this world mattered more to you than I did, right?”
“Sophia.”
Her words were like a firm truth she was telling herself. But the man looked hurt by them. Sophia found it surprising that even a man as stiff as him could show such an expression, and she stared at his face in a daze.
“You can blame me if you want. You can think I’m sending you to your death. That’s partly true. But please, don’t ever say that I saw you as nothing more than a tool. How could I not know that you are the biggest part of this world he’s ruining?”
His words were quite sincere. But this body didn’t want to hear it. She turned and walked back toward the edge of the cliff. She didn’t want to, but her body wouldn’t listen to her.
“I don’t trust you or the Duke. All either of you want is to use me. The Duke wants to kill me to regain his power. You want to kill me to take away the Duke’s power. That’s the only difference.”
“Sophia.”
“Was there ever a time when I wasn’t just a tool to you?”
“You were never just a tool. Even now, I don’t want to lose you.”
“There’s no need to sweet-talk me. I’ll jump, just like you wanted. But I want the truth.”
“Will you believe me if I tell you the truth?”
“Of course! Don’t you know I’ve always tried to trust you?”
Sophia’s calm voice rose in emotion. She could feel her body trembling. This desperation—Sophia instinctively realized it.
She was in love with the man in front of her.
Oh no, seriously? While I’m engaged to the Duke?
Sophia was shocked.
Is that why the Duke burned me in the flames of Hallas? Because I cheated on him?
But the Duke had never mentioned another man. He only said that she had hurt herself, and that’s why she burned. He said she promised never to return but came back anyway. That made Sophia believe the Duke had burned her. But now, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
Sophia began piecing the dream together like a novel. The man who just appeared gave her a major clue.
My god.
Judging by the conversation, this body had fallen in love with this man and chose to die in the flames of Hallas—to take the Duke’s power away.
She didn’t know why her death would weaken the Duke, or what this “power” was. But she was impressed by her own imagination.
I’m really writing a novel here. And who is this guy anyway?
Sophia looked at the man again. She couldn’t understand why this frightening man was more attractive than the beautiful Duke.
She peeked at his face through the long hair covering half of it. Looking closely, he was quite handsome. His long eyelashes and slightly drooping eyes looked sorrowful.
Still, isn’t his vibe too gloomy?
Sophia thought grumpily. How could she fall for him when someone like the Duke existed? Even now, her body had practically confessed to him, and yet this man just stood there, silent, as if lost in thought.
“Forget it.”
Apparently, even this body couldn’t stand it anymore. Sophia turned around and headed for the cliff again. She moved without fear. Inside, the real Sophia started to panic, afraid she might really jump. She tried to stop her legs with her hands, but her will was completely ignored. She was just a visitor in this dream.
Oh god, she’s really going to jump! Are you insane?!
Sophia forgot all lady-like words. Who would speak elegantly in a moment like this? The heat grew stronger. The wind burned the back of her neck. But Sophia was determined.
Even if this was just a dream, how could she be so set on dying? Sophia’s life motto was to live long, lightly, and happily.
Please. Come to your senses, woman!
At this point, she didn’t even feel like they were the same person. If she could, she would slap this woman. But her body kept ignoring her and walked to the very edge. Finally, it stopped and looked down at the boiling fire below.
See? You’re scared too, right?
Let’s turn back. Or at least, wake up. Just then, the man grabbed Sophia’s arm. He pulled her hand up to his chest.
“I choose you.”
He said.
“I want to die with you.”
Then, he stood in front of her, back toward the cliff.
Yeah right. Die alone, buddy.
That’s what Sophia thought. But this body seemed surprised and pulled her hand back. A wave of worry rose inside her.
“This is crazy. What about your kingdom?”
“I don’t care.”
“What do you mean you don’t care? Isn’t that why you fought the Duke all this time?”
“Sophia.”
He gently called her name and cupped her cheek.
“It’s true. I don’t care anymore.”
He didn’t care about all the people behind him. He didn’t care about those who died believing in him.
“My life is in your hands. No matter what happens, I’ll stay with you.”
He confessed his feelings with quiet loyalty. His feet were already on the edge. If Sophia gave a little push, he would fall.
She could feel strength in her hand. Her heart was overwhelmed with sadness. She must have known what he had sacrificed, what he was turning away from.
Sophia hugged him.
Are they really going to die together like this?
Sophia thought, completely giving up. She could feel her body leaning forward.
Sophia seemed more afraid of dying alone than dying itself. She felt the man’s neck against her arm. She stood on tiptoe and buried her face in his shoulder and cried for a moment. But before her tears could reach his shoulder, Sophia turned and pushed the man.
Thud. His unguarded body was pushed. He tried to grab her, but she was already falling into the air. Cutting through the fierce wind.
The fall was not romantic at all. Sophia clenched her fist and shouted toward the face of the man growing smaller in the distance:
“Live. Ezekiel.”
It was a scene from an overused tragic drama.
