“Soon, the sun will rise.”
―It’s a dream!
Sienna's heart screamed. It
had been almost two months since her last dream, and the thought that this one
might end abruptly made her anxious. She was surprised by how much she welcomed
the faint feeling of disorientation that dreams often brought.
The Emperor’s gaze was
fixed on the sky outside the window, where the first light of dawn was
beginning to appear. It really seemed like the sun was about to rise, just as
the Emperor had said. Sienna wondered if this dream would vanish with the
sunrise, or if it would simply lead to the beginning of a new day.
―The great wish. What is
it? Tell me.
In reality, she had found
no clues. Even if the Emperor didn’t reveal what the great wish was, Sienna at
least hoped for a hint about where to find such information.
Without turning to face the
Sky King, the Emperor stood up.
“Leave.”
―No!
Sienna felt a deep sense of
urgency. There were still so many things she wanted to ask. It couldn’t end
like this.
The true nature of the
relationship between the Emperor and the Sky King had yet to be fully revealed.
Were they only a source of pain to each other? Was there really nothing between
them?
“Your Majesty.”
“I have nothing more to
say.”
“Your Majesty, are you
sincere in that?”
The Emperor remained
silent.
“Your Majesty, look at me.”
“...”
“I will keep my promise. I
will leave the capital and never return. Unless Your Majesty comes to Blackmist
Castle, we will never meet again. Is that truly what you want?”
The Emperor closed his
eyes.
―You stubborn fool!
Sienna wanted to shout at
her future self, furious at her own obstinacy. She knew her own personality,
and if she was being stubborn, she wouldn’t back down, which only made the
situation more frustrating.
“Your Majesty, look at me.”
―Look! Just turn your
head!
“Your Majesty.”
―You can’t end it like
this!
“Sienna, look at me.”
―Gasp.
Sienna’s breath caught in
her throat. A wave of electricity seemed to surge through her body, and she
could almost hear the sound of her own heartbeat, pounding loudly.
The Emperor flinched, then
slowly opened his eyes and turned around.
―Kuhn…
Though he was older now,
and though this version of Kuhn wasn’t exactly the man she knew, Sienna’s heart
ached with familiarity. She mentally superimposed the Kuhn she remembered onto
the middle-aged man before her. Was he doing well? Was he safe? She worried
about him and missed him deeply.
“You never ask.”
There was a barely
contained anger in the King’s voice. The Emperor looked at him without
speaking.
“Aren’t you curious? Not
even a little?”
“...”
“I thought you’d at least
ask once. About how he’s doing, whether he’s healthy, how much he’s grown. Did
it never cross your mind?”
―No, it can’t be…
“Do you even remember when
his birthday is?”
―Please, don’t let it be
true.
“There are only a few
months left. He’s about to come of age.”
―Tell me it’s not true!
“Eckart is your son!”
―Ah…
“No matter how much you
deny it! You carried him for nine months, gave birth to him, and even named him
yourself. He’s our son.”
Sienna gasped for air, her
breath coming in short bursts. If only she had hands, she’d pound on her chest
to alleviate the suffocating pain. She finally understood the true meaning
behind the King’s earlier words—when he had said, “I thought you would return.”
He had never imagined she would abandon their child.
Through the Emperor’s eyes,
Sienna looked at the Sky King, but she couldn’t gauge the Emperor’s expression.
She wondered desperately what kind of face he was making.
“Your Majesty.”
The Emperor’s voice was
calm, almost chilling in its indifference. Sienna could imagine that his
expression was as cold and detached as his tone, and it made her heart sink.
“I’ve never married. How
could an unmarried man have a child?”
The King glared at the
Emperor.
“I’m not asking the
Emperor. I’m asking the consort. Does that child mean nothing to you?”
The Emperor slowly blinked
and opened his eyes again.
“The consort merely
fulfilled her duty.”
The King let out a bitter
laugh.
“A duty?”
“You asked me for an heir,
and I gave you one. Why bring it up now?”
It would have been easier
to bear if there had been some trace of resentment or anger in the Emperor’s
voice. At least that would have meant there were lingering emotions. But the
Emperor’s tone was cold, almost mechanical as if he were speaking about
someone else’s life.
“Are you serious…?” The
King seemed at a loss for words, his expression mirroring Sienna’s own sense of
disbelief.
“To you, he’s not your son.
He’s just my heir.”
Sienna watched the man
before her, through the Emperor’s eyes, feeling as though she were looking at
someone who had lost all hope. His face was that of a man who was silently
weeping, though no tears fell.
The Kuhn she knew in
reality had always been strong, resolute, and unshakable. Even when he broke
his alliance with the Iron King or abandoned the grand plan that held the hopes
of his entire clan, his resolve had never wavered.
She had never wanted to see
him like this.
“Is that truly your
answer?” The King’s voice had grown quiet as if he were speaking to himself
rather than to the Emperor.
Lowering his gaze, the King
stood still for a long time, gathering his emotions.
“As a merchant, I’ve always
known when to cut my losses. If you linger too long, you end up paying for it.
But life isn’t a transaction, and there are some things you can’t let go of so
easily.”
The King lifted his head.
In just a short time, he looked utterly exhausted.
“That’s why I’ve bothered
you for so long. But this is the last time. I promise.”
His voice was steady, but
it made Sienna’s chest tighten with pain.
―How cruel.
Sienna felt a deep
resentment toward her future self, the Emperor. How could she remain so
indifferent when the man standing before her spoke with such pain?
“I had no plans to use our
child as leverage.”
―I know. You’re not that
kind of person.
If only she could convey
her thoughts. If she could speak in the Emperor’s place, she would say what the
silent monarch refused to say.
“If only… if only things
hadn’t started this way. But what use is there in saying that now?”
The King muttered as if
speaking to himself. He placed something on the table in front of the Emperor,
and Sienna let out a small gasp.
It was the gemstone she had
given to Kuhn in reality, not long ago.
“I won’t take anything from
this room with me, Your Majesty.”
His words sounded like a
vow to leave without any regrets.
The King bowed deeply,
slowly raising his head. His eyes showed no bitterness, only a hint of sadness
that quickly faded away.
“May you live in good
health, and may your empire be blessed.”
The King opened his mouth
as if to say something more but closed it without a word. For a brief moment,
he met the Emperor’s eyes, then turned away.
Sienna stared in disbelief
as he walked toward the exit.
―No…
Could it really be the end?
Was he truly leaving?
The King didn’t hesitate or
look back. Despite the vastness of the reception room, it only took a few
strides for him to reach the door. As he left, the door slowly closed behind
him, swallowing his figure.
―He’s gone…
Sienna stared at the closed
door for a long time, unable to look away, following the Emperor’s gaze.
"Four months and ten days,"
the Emperor muttered to herself, words that seemed to carry an unknown weight.
"How could I ever
forget that day? How could I…."
―She’s talking about the
birthday… of that child?
The Emperor walked to the
sofa and picked up the gemstone from the table, holding it in the palm of her
hand. She stared at it for a long time, and Sienna found herself compelled to
do the same, though she shared only the Emperor’s vision, unable to access her
thoughts.
She felt a deep
frustration. What was she thinking? What emotion filled her as she looked at
the gemstone?
The Emperor raised her head
and moved toward the bedroom. She opened the door, entered, and once again
unlocked the hidden vault she had opened earlier. With slow, mechanical
movements, she placed the gemstone inside and shut the vault, her actions
steady, devoid of any visible emotion.
Standing in front of the
closed vault, she remained still for a long time before murmuring again,
"He’s almost of age. He’s all grown up."
Her voice trembled faintly,
a strange mix of sadness and joy.
The Emperor then moved to
the bed. Sienna wondered if she was finally going to rest, but instead, she sat
on the edge of the bed, staring blankly into space. Watching her, Sienna began
to understand a little more. The Emperor didn’t know how to express her sorrow.
She had learned only to bury it deep within herself.
"He must look just
like his father. He did when he was young, too."
―You haven’t forgotten,
so why did you say those things to the Sky King?
"You’re lucky your
father is with you. You won’t have to get caught up in this mud."
―You could have been
honest with him. Asked for his help….
Sienna sighed, interrupting
herself.
―But you couldn’t, could
you? You’re me. Of course, I understand how you feel.
She thought she could
almost grasp the reasoning behind the Emperor’s choices, trapped as she was in
a corner of her own making. The Emperor’s pride must have been one of the last
things left to her.
The idea of seeking help
from anyone, admitting that she couldn’t escape the trap on her own, was
utterly intolerable.
―I can do it now,
though.
Sienna thought of Kuhn. It
wasn’t embarrassing to show weakness to him or ask for help. She loved him, and
revealing her flaws to him didn’t make her feel ashamed.
But it seemed that such an
emotional bond had never existed between the future Emperor and the Sky King.
―Could things really
turn out this way?
The future versions of the
two were so different from their present selves. It was dizzying to imagine
that reality could follow the same path as this future.
The Emperor opened the
drawer of the bedside table. She pulled out something wrapped in velvet cloth.
Carefully, as if handling the most precious treasure, the Emperor unwrapped it,
revealing a small, round pocket watch.
The watch’s hands weren’t
moving. The Emperor pressed the button at the top, and a soft click sounded as
it opened.
Inside was a small
portrait—a silver-haired woman. It was Sienna. She stared at the image,
perplexed by the idea that the Emperor would cherish a pocket watch with her
likeness.
―Was this a special
gift?
The Emperor closed the
watch, pressed the button twice, and it opened again. This time, the portrait
had changed. The inner structure of the watch was double-layered. The new
portrait showed a child, his hair dark.
―Ah…
Sienna immediately realized
who the child must be.
Her vision blurred as tears
streamed down the Emperor’s face. Sienna wanted to see the child’s face more
clearly, but the tears distorted her view, making the already small portrait
difficult to discern.
“Eckart…,” the Emperor
whispered the child’s name, kissing the pocket watch as she wept.
Sienna listened to the
heart-wrenching sobs of the Emperor. The sorrow echoed through her, lingering
until the dream slowly faded.
When Sienna opened her
eyes, tears spilled down her cheeks.
It’s over, she thought.
The day in the dream had
ended, and she knew, somehow, that the dreams themselves had also come to an
end. She couldn’t explain why, but a deep, intuitive sense told her this had
been the last.
Sienna rolled over, burying
her face in her pillow. Her shoulders began to shake, and her quiet sobs grew
louder.
The tears wouldn’t stop. It felt as though someone was tearing her heart apart, and the pain was unbearable.
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