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The work continued for hours. Everyone was growing increasingly exhausted. The fact that everyone they'd found so far was dead also contributed to this.
Heiner gritted his teeth and lifted the wooden beam. Dust and ash flew up. His hands, covered in ash and dirt, were filthy and covered in wounds.
Where did it start?
Suddenly, a distant question followed him.
Why did it turn out like this?
Lifting the split wooden board, he saw a broken piano amidst the debris. Even amidst the ruins, the keys looked white and clean. Heiner pried them open, hoping to find something.
What should I have done?
But no matter how much debris he cleared, the woman he desperately sought was nowhere to be found. For a moment, Heiner felt a destructive urge to smash the piano.
What ruined you, me, and all this?
Heiner had previously answered this question: It was the world's fault. It was the fault of the corrupt monarchy, the fault of the vicious Margrave Dietrich, and the fault of the masses who were indifferent to the lowly.
It was the fault of that woman, so infinitely beautiful and innocent, who had been so deformedly assembled in his head.
But in front of this huge ruin, all of those things became worthless.
Water dripped onto the back of his hand. A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, leaving a circular mark on the broken gray stone. Heiner lifted the stone and threw it away.
I thought about it. I promised myself.
I'm going to ruin and drag her down into this abyss I'm in. I'm going to make her something no one wants.
Even me.
So that even I don't love you anymore.
A hollow laugh, almost a sob, escaped his lips. Heiner roughly wiped away the beads of sweat running down his face. Why had he forgotten? Why had he overlooked it?
What a terrible abyss I am in.
The only way out of this place is death...
Sweat continued to drip down his forehead and around his eyes. It was now unclear whether it was sweat or tears. Veins bulged thickly across his wet forehead.
“Annette...”
Now, now is enough.
He wanted to stop arguing about whether that woman was right or wrong.
Unresolved feelings should have simply been left unresolved. That was the right thing to do. They dragged it out here, forced it to this point, and ended up in this mess.
I made that woman like this.
Heiner barely managed to suppress a scream. His chest felt like it was being burned by a hot blade. He thought, collapsing.
Maybe I shouldn't have been born...
At that moment, a gray military uniform was visible through the depths of the rubble.
Heiner's hand paused. He called over a soldier working nearby and began digging with him.
After removing the debris stuck in the gap under the piano, a white hem was revealed along with a gray military uniform.
"Uh?"
The soldier he was working with raised his head and shouted.
“I found two here!”
Heiner's eyes widened when he saw the white hem of the clothes.
“One woman and one man... a nurse and a soldier!”
There were two nurses, including Annette, who joined the rescue operation. The other nurse survived unharmed.
So that nurse...
Even though it was news he been waiting for, his heart sank for a moment. The sight of a dirty nurse's uniform, glimpsed through the rubble, stung painfully.
Heiner began to delve frantically, his lips trembling. The woman in the nurse's uniform remained motionless.
Annette, please, no, please, you can't do this, you can't do this to me, Annette, Annette, please, don't do this to me, no, no, no.
He muttered indiscriminately, not even realizing what he was saying. But the words remained in his mouth, unable to be uttered.
“I feel like they're trapped in the space under the piano! There’s hope!”
“One, two, lift it up here! One, two!”
Heiner and others lifted the building's debris. As the work progressed, the body began to gradually reveal itself.
Soon, a pale profile came into view. Her eyes were closed, as if dead. Heiner felt his breathing rapidly increase.
The woman buried in the rubble looked like a dirty rag doll, lifeless.
The soldier above Annette was lifted first. His face was a complete mess, looking more like he'd been badly beaten than wounded by fire or the collapse.
The task of rescuing Annette then began. The soldier who had been looking down gave instructions.
“I think we need to clean this place up!”
A piece of building debris was crushing Annette's left arm. Heiner lifted the wooden wall and pushed it outward, then threw a pile of debris.
“Hold on here! Lift her up!”
Annette was finally pulled out of the wreckage. Her face and body were covered in countless tiny scratches.
The soldier, who had quickly examined the two's condition, raised his head and spoke.
“They’re alive! They’re both alive!”
The moment he heard those words, all the strength drained from his body. Heiner stumbled for a moment, then, with all his might, he stood.
He shouted in a hoarse voice.
“Doctor! Doctor! There’s a survivor here!”
The moment he uttered the word "survivor," his chest tightened. It felt like his whole body was heating up.
Heiner stroked her hair with the utmost care, as if he were handling a fragile sheet of glass. His hands, torn and scratched from clearing the debris, trembled with relief and emotion.
A military doctor rushed in and quickly treated them. People gathered, murmuring. The doctor, who had been examining Annette's condition, paused for a moment.
“Ah, her hand...”
He sighed softly as he examined Annette's left arm, which had been crushed by the rubble. Her left arm was clearly in dire straits.
“Get a stretcher! Get them to the nearest hospital right away!”
Annette and the soldier were quickly loaded onto a stretcher and transported to the ambulance. Heiner ran alongside Annette on the stretcher.
Even the rocking of the stretcher seemed to hurt her. All sorts of nasty worries about what might happen during the transport to the hospital consumed his thoughts.
The transport vehicle was three or four steps ahead. From beginning to end, he couldn't take his eyes off Annette's pale face.
At that moment, his vision slipped.
At the same time, he felt a burning sensation in his side.
Heiner gasped and stumbled forward. He instinctively placed a hand on his side. Blood welled up on his palm.
It was a gunshot wound.
"Your Excellency!"
“It’s a sniper!”
“Locate and protect His Excellency!”
His gray uniform was soaked with blood. Heiner raised his bleary eyes and looked at Annette again.
“9 o’clock! It’s on top of the bell tower!”
“Your Excellency, please get into the car!”
“Damn, there are still troops left...”
All noise seemed distant. Only her beautiful, sublime face remained vivid, as if imprinted on his retina. Heiner slowly closed his eyes, then opened them. His lips twitched slightly.
God, if you really exist, please take my life...
This woman...
Ah...
His thoughts slowed. The soldiers shoved him into the ambulance. Shouts and gunshots could be heard outside. Cough. Blood spewed from his mouth.
Two stretchers followed. Heiner leaned back on the chair, his gaze never leaving the stretchers until the very end.
The medic hurriedly stopped the bleeding from his gunshot wound. Heiner tried to push the medic away with his weakened hands.
“No, stop...”
Blood spewed from Heiner's mouth again. He tried to tell the medic to stop treating him and focus on Annette, but all that came out was a ragged gasp.
Soon, the vehicle pulled away. A shocking sensation gripped his stomach. His vision began to flicker. His eyelids fluttered.
“Your Excellency, you must not lose consciousness!”
Heiner groaned and grimaced, then looked back at Annette. Her body swayed along with the car's jolt.
‘Is it okay to shake like that...?’
She looked so fragile, like she could shatter at the touch. She was always fragile, but now even more so. It felt like the debris from the building had rained down on her tiny body.
Heiner stubbornly stared at her face, his eyelids growing increasingly heavy as he forced himself to close. The countless scratches on her beautiful face and body were heartbreaking.
Annette.
Annette Rosenberg.
He muttered the name he had called countless times, the name that had ruled his entire life.
You were right. It was better for us not to see each other. Just seeing each other would hurt each other.
So when you wake up, I will finally let you go completely.
Go to a very far place.
A place far away from me.
His vision blurred and cleared repeatedly. Heiner's head kept tilting back. Slowed breaths escaped his pale lips.
Far away from me, very far away... where I can’t see you and you can’t see me...
Rattle rattle.
The transport vehicle left the ruined Huntingham.
Heiner gritted his teeth and lifted the wooden beam. Dust and ash flew up. His hands, covered in ash and dirt, were filthy and covered in wounds.
Where did it start?
Suddenly, a distant question followed him.
Why did it turn out like this?
Lifting the split wooden board, he saw a broken piano amidst the debris. Even amidst the ruins, the keys looked white and clean. Heiner pried them open, hoping to find something.
What should I have done?
But no matter how much debris he cleared, the woman he desperately sought was nowhere to be found. For a moment, Heiner felt a destructive urge to smash the piano.
What ruined you, me, and all this?
Heiner had previously answered this question: It was the world's fault. It was the fault of the corrupt monarchy, the fault of the vicious Margrave Dietrich, and the fault of the masses who were indifferent to the lowly.
It was the fault of that woman, so infinitely beautiful and innocent, who had been so deformedly assembled in his head.
But in front of this huge ruin, all of those things became worthless.
Water dripped onto the back of his hand. A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, leaving a circular mark on the broken gray stone. Heiner lifted the stone and threw it away.
I thought about it. I promised myself.
I'm going to ruin and drag her down into this abyss I'm in. I'm going to make her something no one wants.
Even me.
So that even I don't love you anymore.
A hollow laugh, almost a sob, escaped his lips. Heiner roughly wiped away the beads of sweat running down his face. Why had he forgotten? Why had he overlooked it?
What a terrible abyss I am in.
The only way out of this place is death...
Sweat continued to drip down his forehead and around his eyes. It was now unclear whether it was sweat or tears. Veins bulged thickly across his wet forehead.
“Annette...”
Now, now is enough.
He wanted to stop arguing about whether that woman was right or wrong.
Unresolved feelings should have simply been left unresolved. That was the right thing to do. They dragged it out here, forced it to this point, and ended up in this mess.
I made that woman like this.
Heiner barely managed to suppress a scream. His chest felt like it was being burned by a hot blade. He thought, collapsing.
Maybe I shouldn't have been born...
At that moment, a gray military uniform was visible through the depths of the rubble.
Heiner's hand paused. He called over a soldier working nearby and began digging with him.
After removing the debris stuck in the gap under the piano, a white hem was revealed along with a gray military uniform.
"Uh?"
The soldier he was working with raised his head and shouted.
“I found two here!”
Heiner's eyes widened when he saw the white hem of the clothes.
“One woman and one man... a nurse and a soldier!”
There were two nurses, including Annette, who joined the rescue operation. The other nurse survived unharmed.
So that nurse...
Even though it was news he been waiting for, his heart sank for a moment. The sight of a dirty nurse's uniform, glimpsed through the rubble, stung painfully.
Heiner began to delve frantically, his lips trembling. The woman in the nurse's uniform remained motionless.
Annette, please, no, please, you can't do this, you can't do this to me, Annette, Annette, please, don't do this to me, no, no, no.
He muttered indiscriminately, not even realizing what he was saying. But the words remained in his mouth, unable to be uttered.
“I feel like they're trapped in the space under the piano! There’s hope!”
“One, two, lift it up here! One, two!”
Heiner and others lifted the building's debris. As the work progressed, the body began to gradually reveal itself.
Soon, a pale profile came into view. Her eyes were closed, as if dead. Heiner felt his breathing rapidly increase.
The woman buried in the rubble looked like a dirty rag doll, lifeless.
The soldier above Annette was lifted first. His face was a complete mess, looking more like he'd been badly beaten than wounded by fire or the collapse.
The task of rescuing Annette then began. The soldier who had been looking down gave instructions.
“I think we need to clean this place up!”
A piece of building debris was crushing Annette's left arm. Heiner lifted the wooden wall and pushed it outward, then threw a pile of debris.
“Hold on here! Lift her up!”
Annette was finally pulled out of the wreckage. Her face and body were covered in countless tiny scratches.
The soldier, who had quickly examined the two's condition, raised his head and spoke.
“They’re alive! They’re both alive!”
The moment he heard those words, all the strength drained from his body. Heiner stumbled for a moment, then, with all his might, he stood.
He shouted in a hoarse voice.
“Doctor! Doctor! There’s a survivor here!”
The moment he uttered the word "survivor," his chest tightened. It felt like his whole body was heating up.
Heiner stroked her hair with the utmost care, as if he were handling a fragile sheet of glass. His hands, torn and scratched from clearing the debris, trembled with relief and emotion.
A military doctor rushed in and quickly treated them. People gathered, murmuring. The doctor, who had been examining Annette's condition, paused for a moment.
“Ah, her hand...”
He sighed softly as he examined Annette's left arm, which had been crushed by the rubble. Her left arm was clearly in dire straits.
“Get a stretcher! Get them to the nearest hospital right away!”
Annette and the soldier were quickly loaded onto a stretcher and transported to the ambulance. Heiner ran alongside Annette on the stretcher.
Even the rocking of the stretcher seemed to hurt her. All sorts of nasty worries about what might happen during the transport to the hospital consumed his thoughts.
The transport vehicle was three or four steps ahead. From beginning to end, he couldn't take his eyes off Annette's pale face.
At that moment, his vision slipped.
At the same time, he felt a burning sensation in his side.
Heiner gasped and stumbled forward. He instinctively placed a hand on his side. Blood welled up on his palm.
It was a gunshot wound.
"Your Excellency!"
“It’s a sniper!”
“Locate and protect His Excellency!”
His gray uniform was soaked with blood. Heiner raised his bleary eyes and looked at Annette again.
“9 o’clock! It’s on top of the bell tower!”
“Your Excellency, please get into the car!”
“Damn, there are still troops left...”
All noise seemed distant. Only her beautiful, sublime face remained vivid, as if imprinted on his retina. Heiner slowly closed his eyes, then opened them. His lips twitched slightly.
God, if you really exist, please take my life...
This woman...
Ah...
His thoughts slowed. The soldiers shoved him into the ambulance. Shouts and gunshots could be heard outside. Cough. Blood spewed from his mouth.
Two stretchers followed. Heiner leaned back on the chair, his gaze never leaving the stretchers until the very end.
The medic hurriedly stopped the bleeding from his gunshot wound. Heiner tried to push the medic away with his weakened hands.
“No, stop...”
Blood spewed from Heiner's mouth again. He tried to tell the medic to stop treating him and focus on Annette, but all that came out was a ragged gasp.
Soon, the vehicle pulled away. A shocking sensation gripped his stomach. His vision began to flicker. His eyelids fluttered.
“Your Excellency, you must not lose consciousness!”
Heiner groaned and grimaced, then looked back at Annette. Her body swayed along with the car's jolt.
‘Is it okay to shake like that...?’
She looked so fragile, like she could shatter at the touch. She was always fragile, but now even more so. It felt like the debris from the building had rained down on her tiny body.
Heiner stubbornly stared at her face, his eyelids growing increasingly heavy as he forced himself to close. The countless scratches on her beautiful face and body were heartbreaking.
Annette.
Annette Rosenberg.
He muttered the name he had called countless times, the name that had ruled his entire life.
You were right. It was better for us not to see each other. Just seeing each other would hurt each other.
So when you wake up, I will finally let you go completely.
Go to a very far place.
A place far away from me.
His vision blurred and cleared repeatedly. Heiner's head kept tilting back. Slowed breaths escaped his pale lips.
Far away from me, very far away... where I can’t see you and you can’t see me...
Rattle rattle.
The transport vehicle left the ruined Huntingham.
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