The End, and the Beginning (9)
Ian's expression disappeared.
"What?"
"What is the reason? Is it a crime of abandoning the duty of a guardian and abusing power for one's own ambition? What kind of doggy logic is this? She was the one who made it that way!"
Oslo triumphs over the Great Rift and becomes the master of the throne. It was the future that Millenia had tried to prevent and had finally blocked.
'This is not a dream.'
Is it an unfulfilled future? Why are you showing this to me?
I'm already dead.
Contrary to his doubts, his body moved on its own. Ian grabbed Rahon's forearm hard
"What are you talking about?"
"Oh, it hurts, it hurts! Break your arm, you bastard!"
"Tell me straight! Millenia... Is she in jail?"
"That's right!"
Ian stepped back with a stunned expression.
"That ignorant bastard, how can you repay the favor for letting you live?"
Rahon, who was whining as he sprinkled power on his arm, tilted his head to the corner.
"Huh? Wait, how do you know a kid?"
"You know what a kid is?"
"What is me..."
"What is it?"
Rahon hesitated and sighed heavily.
"I've treated you before. When she was very young."
Was Millenia sick enough to be healed by the "Saver"? Ian guessed something and asked again.
"When do Millenia suffer from headaches? When she was about ten years old."
"What did you know?"
Rahon spun his arm once and took a sip of tea.
"In fact, she was in a state that could not be healed by power. It's not because of her body, but because her heart hurts. So I was worried about it the whole time... I don't feel good."
"She said she was healed."
"Huh?"
"If the power doesn't work, how can you heal Millenia?"
Rahon laughed bitterly.
"As a medicine to lose memory."
"...Did you erase the memory of her mother's death?"
"It would be great if I could make the painful memories disappear. I had no choice but to erase all her memories from the years. Otherwise, she would die."
"Brother, who is this guy?"
Ian remembered Millenia's sad face, who had known Ian for only a month.
Ian, who did not know such a situation at the time, could not overcome his disappointment and disappointment.
That's why he decided not to watch Millenia. Even that didn't last until the end.
Millenia was chosen to be the first walker and lost her eyesight, so he couldn't bear it and went looking for her.
His lips moved uncontrollably
"Je couldn't have been beaten by the Millenia family."
"Their house is ruined."
"...Ruined?"
"The Marquis collapsed and died while saving a little girl in prison."
"Chevio, what about Kjer?"
"He was caught trying to get a kid out of prison... He hung on the gallows."
Ian squeezed his eyes shut.
He doesn't know if this was a nightmare of the dead or an unfulfilled future, but it was so cruel.
"I looked at it and saw that it was suspicious. Think about it, if you had intended to release the little girl so quickly, would he have destroyed the family? In the face of opposition from the nobles."
"..."
"It's obvious why they're trampling on it so thoroughly. He doesn't want to let her go. So I asked the Pope about it..."
Rahon twisted his lips with a cold expression.
"There are already rumors in the Empire that the little girl will be given a heavy sentence. They said she would soon be punished for crossing."
"..."
Ian went to Millenia, who was chosen to be the guardian, only because he was worried.
He wonders if she's crying alone. How uncomfortable it would be to suddenly lose her eyesight. What if shr suffer from insomnia again?
Ian went to Millenia with such worries. The first words she said were still fresh in his mind.
"The dressing room is over there. I left the jewelry there, so take it with you."
Even though he killed his presence as much as he could, let alone make a sound, she sensed Ian. Of course, she mistook him for a thief.
"I'm not a thief."
Only then did Millenia turn her head. Her unfocused eyes stopped exactly where he was hiding.
"Then what is it?"
"With you. I want to play chess."
"You want me to play chess? Do you have no sight?"
It was a nervous tone, but her expression was different. She could convey her Impatience that the other person would be hurt.
From that day on, he visited her once a month.
He deliberately did not reveal his identity. After all, she doesn't remember Ian.
As the meetings continued, the meaningless time began to be enjoyed again.
It wasn't like he was doing anything special. It was just a conversation, a few words, and a game of chess.
Still, he looked forward to the day when he sneaked into her bedroom the most in a month.
It is not an exaggeration to say that he lives another time just for that day.
The bigger her place in his heart, the more guilty he felt. He thinks he is taking advantage of Millenia's despair.
He had no choice but to admit it. He knows that he loves Millenia.
Therefore, it didn't matter if he had to hurry back to the territory and couldn't meet her.
Ian is no longer the foolish kid who didn't know his heart and was just showing off his pride uselessly.
When he's done, make a formal proposal to her.
And he confessed that he was the big boy who had sneaked into the bedroom.
Ian was full of such pathetic dreams. He didn't know that she was about to become another man's lover.
"The punishment of crossing..."
"Is that so? But what is the punishment for crossing?"
Suddenly, he stopped just as he was talking. At the same time, numerous doors filled the surroundings.
Now he knows how this dream goes. Maybe Millenia will come out next.
Ian walked between the doors. His feet stopped unstopplably. It was in front of an off-white door with no pattern.
There is only one reason for the choice.
"It's the same color as Millenia's skin."
Ian opened the door.
***
When he opened his eyes, Ian was in the middle of the desert with the sun shining down. His scalp was sore.
Even though he was wearing a hat and other protective clothing, he couldn't breathe. Je feel like he's stuck alive in a boiling pot.
"Whoa..."
Hot breath hovered in the mask. It's frustrating. He wanted to take it off right away, but it would burn his face.
Ian took a sip of water and raised his magnifying glass.
A large cross was erected in the middle of the desert.
The punishment for crossing began right there.
So they had to come from the entrance for a long time from the entrance. So that the sinner would not be able to escape from the desert.
Soon, the executioners will leave Millenia there.
Then intercept her and get out.
After being healed by Rahon, waiting for her on the edge of the desert, she lived with him in a place where no one could find her.
Thinking about his plan, Ian lowered the magnifying glass.
"It's too slow."
The punishment for crossing must begin before noon. This is because the sun is the strongest at that time.
But it was almost noon, and he couldn't hear the sound of the wagon.
Something is wrong. Ian jumped up and ran.
Even though he runs for more than an hour, all he can see is sand. lan stopped with a feeling of madness.
Did I miss it? Should I go back?
Golden eyes wrapped in protective glasses wandered frantically on the vast sand... His blood dried.
"Where are you? Where are you..."
Just as he was about to turn around and run, he caught something.
At first, he thought it was a piece of clothing, but it wasn't.
"Millennia!"
Ian's pace quickened as he took one step at a time.
His knees buckled in the puffy sand. Hot sand stuck in his cheeks.
However, there was no time to feel pain. Ian hurriedly got up and ran again.
"Millenia..."
Millenia was lying on the ground wearing a thin piece of cloth.
Her original appearance was so messed up that he couldn't remember. Her whole body was covered in blisters, and blood was sizzling from the scar.
The moment he saw her, he realized that it was too late. Her breath was thin as if she was about to run out.
"No, no... Please, Millennia, please, please..."
Ian carefully hugged her and drank water. Then he poured it between her lips, which had changed shapelessly.
How many times did he repeat that? Her eyelids slowly went up.
Her dark eyes, which have become turbid from the heat of hell, look up at him.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Am I too late? I am too..."
Millenia showed no response. It seems that he can't hear the sound at all.
Ian took her hand and stretched out his fingers one by one.
She had burns all over her body, but only her palms were strong. How painful it must have been for her to clench her fists so tightly.
Ian wrote slowly on the palm of her hand. Tears fell from his golden eyes.
Please don't die
Millenia's lips curled slightly
"I'm sorry... I do."
Ian hugged her as she was out of breath. Her limp body slowly turned to ashes and scattered.
"No! No way!"
He grabbed the ash that was flying in all directions and slammed it on the floor. Tears dripped from his tightly closed eyes.
"Why are you doing this? Why are you giving me this pain? Why!"
It was the moment when the screams of vomiting blood echoed through the desert.
The heat that consumed everything disappeared like a wash, and his body became lighter.
Before he knew it, Ian was standing in front of countless doors.
"I don't like it. I will not choose anymore."
Just as he was muttering and sitting down, he heard a voice of unknown gender.
"What you have experienced is the past that I have arranged, and the future that the first walker has blocked. Protector, choose the last Juncture now."
Gateway? What kind of gateway were the three gates that I had passed through?
"Did she choose it too?"
"The first walker chose all the gateways with the sole intention of being forgiven."
"So what happened?"
"Her wish has come true."
"If a Guardian dies, can you make a wish come true?"
"If you choose the right door."
Ian didn't understand it exactly, but he felt like he had passed through the previous three gates.
Now only the last juncture remains. If he makes the right choice this time, will he be able to fulfill his wish? Can he really go back to her?
Ian looked around at the many doors.
The choice that was so easy suddenly became difficult. Which of them is the correct answer?
"Which door should I choose?"
"You already know the answer, Protector."
He already knows the answer.
His feet moved on their own. Ian walked and walked through the rows of doors.
His feet, which had been moving restlessly, suddenly stopped.
The door was so huge that even the sky was obscured, and Millenia's profile was engraved on the white front.
Ian opened the door.
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