A wave crashed over Karan. Though it was clearly a dream, the cold seawater felt eerily vivid.
Karan struggled with all his might not to be swept away by the waves. But humans were powerless before nature.
Karan was swept away by the waves and dragged into the sea. His body was helplessly sucked into the deep ocean.
Perhaps because it was a dream, he wasn’t out of breath. The weight of the water pressing down on him was just overwhelming.
Karan surrendered his body to the water entirely. Perhaps because he was certain it was a dream, he wasn’t afraid at all.
Gradually, the underwater environment started to feel comfortable. Then, inexplicable scenes began to pop up one after another.
Most of them were memories of Elise. She looked more mature than now and didn’t recognize Karan.
Even when he spoke to her, she only glanced at him briefly, neither smiling kindly nor calling his name familiarly.
“Chase, come here.”
And Chase was by her side as if it were natural. She smiled at Chase. Then Chase moved away from her, seeming annoyed.
‘That bastard!’
Before Karan could get angry, the scene changed.
Gates began to open, one after another. Karan led warriors to subjugate the gates. He grew impatient hearing news of Chase’s continued success.
Karan achieved military merits but lost many warriors. However, he had to rush forward without time to grieve.
“Your Highness Karan, this is Elise Worton. Congratulations on your gate subjugation. You’ll naturally be the Tetris representative for the Ragnaros expedition, right? I look forward to working with you.”
Elise extended her hand to Karan. Karan’s heart raced. The excitement and emotion from that time came alive again.
Similar scenes repeated.
Karan watched Chase and Elise’s intimate moments in despair, struggled to get even a little closer to her, and was enthralled by her slightest gesture or glance.
The scenes kept changing.
As time passed, Karan became hopeful that he would grow closer to Elise. But that hope was shattered in an instant.
“The scandal with Your Highness had the biggest impact,” Haltbin told him with a gloomy face.
“Miss Elise is in the underground prison.”
What did that mean? Underground prison was one of the words that didn’t suit Elise.
Karan’s heart began to race fearfully. His consciousness chased after his dream self.
Karan headed to the underground prison. After cutting down Bedrokka’s knights again and again, what he saw in the underground prison was Elise dying.
“You should have held on… just a little longer! Fiercely, like you always have.”
Karan shouted, then pleaded. But Elise didn’t open her eyes.
At that moment, a magic circle came into Karan’s view. He activated it as if it were a law of nature.
A massive light enveloped him. Then, with a whoosh, the seawater receded.
Karan was left alone on a white sandy beach.
It was a terrible nightmare, yet it was reality.
Ah, I see.
I’m living a second life.
A sudden realization struck him.
The life he was living was his second life, and the memories he just saw were from his previous life.
Despite realizing this shocking fact, his face remained calm.
Karan’s face only contorted in anger because of himself.
He was furious at his past self.
He couldn’t forgive himself for failing to protect Elise in his previous life.
However, he wanted to praise the decision to turn back time at the cost of his own life.
Thanks to that, he was able to meet Elise again.
Everything was completely different from the past. Wondering why, Karan recalled his first meeting with Elise as the beginning of the change.
“The seat next to you is empty. May I sit?”
‘Elise came to find me. As if she knew I would be there.’
Sometimes, Elise showed prophet-like qualities. She offered solutions as if she could see the future, and they all turned out to be correct.
‘Does Elise remember the past?’
Suddenly, his complicated thoughts became clear. Everything seemed to fall into place.
Getting a second life wasn’t surprising. It wasn’t even strange.
There was only one thing that mattered to him.
‘Elise came to find me.’
Karan’s heart, which had been calm, began to race fiercely.
She had chosen him.
As euphoria enveloped his entire body, he felt a burning heat inside.
The hot sun rose above the horizon and flew towards Karan.
That ball of fire seemed like the path leading to Elise.
Karan willingly threw himself into that fireball, forgetting that his entire body was burning.
****
“Haltbin, ice! Quickly!”
The room where they had been engraving the magic circle became busy exactly a day later, at night.
As soon as Elise drew the last line of the magic circle, Karan’s body began to burn with fever.
It wasn’t an ordinary fever. He was radiating heat as if he were literally a ball of fire.
Leber clung to him, massaging him with ice and continuously pouring water into his mouth.
Elise, who had collapsed after completing the magic circle, suddenly got up at Karan’s abnormal reaction.
With a face that looked like she might collapse at any moment, she gave instructions. A select few moved busily for Karan’s sake.
But the fever wouldn’t subside easily.
Did something go wrong?
Elise slumped down on the floor, now damp from melted ice.
Did I make a mistake?
Was my choice wrong?
Was this attempt a mistake?
These chained questions tightened around Elise’s throat.
Though there was no shortage of air, Elise found it incredibly difficult to breathe.
Water that had run down Karan’s limp arm dripped onto Elise’s skirt.
“Your Highness…”
A voice as thin as a spider’s web barely escaped Elise’s lips.
“Your Highness Karan…”
She called out again, but Karan remained unresponsive.
It was unlike Karan, who would always answer her call no matter where she called from.
Even when they were far apart, like at the 3rd gate, he would respond as if by magic when she searched for him.
“Karan…”
Her mind was in chaos. She wanted to free Karan from the agony of his burning fever, but she didn’t know what to do.
It felt like the ground beneath her feet was collapsing. No, it wasn’t just the ground – it was her entire life that was crumbling.
She had ruined her second life too.
She had tried to repay his kindness, but instead had driven him to the brink of death.
She should never have gone to find Karan.
She should have left him before becoming accustomed to his kindness.
Before falling in love with him…
Elise stopped her thoughts there. She couldn’t bear to think that she shouldn’t have loved him.
There was so much she wanted to say. But the person who should hear it was fighting for his life.
“Urgh.”
She dry heaved, but nothing came up.
Since she started drawing the magic circle, all she had consumed was Leber’s nutrient supplement to keep from collapsing.
“Miss!”
Elise shook her head to stop Regina from rushing over.
“Take care of… take care of His Highness.”
Having proceeded with their work in secret, they now found themselves short-handed in this emergency.
Regina, who had been wiping Karan’s body with a wet towel, gritted her teeth.
Elise was only worried about Karan, but her condition was almost as bad as his.
“Miss, please sit down and rest for a moment. I beg you.”
Regina pleaded. Elise’s bowed head nodded weakly up and down.
But Elise didn’t stand up.
Now Regina started to sob loudly.
“Please, Your Highness. Please wake up soon. Our Miss will die at this rate. She’ll die, sob.”
Crying is contagious. Haltbin, Leber, and even Feu, who had little connection with Karan, began to sniffle.
Finally, tears welled up in Elise’s eyes too.
‘I mustn’t be weak.’
Elise bit her lower lip hard. To keep from crying, she tilted her head back towards the ceiling and squeezed her eyes shut.
But the tears of regret and sorrow eventually rolled down Elise’s cheeks.
Ah, if it were the past, Karan would have wiped away these tears.
In Elise’s memory, Karan was always this kind.
That’s why Elise was in more pain now. It felt like someone was thinly slicing her flesh with a knife.
If Karan would wipe her tears just one more time, she felt she could die without regret.
“…Why are you crying?”
Was she hearing things because she was so desperate? The low voice sounded just like Karan’s.
“Ha, it’s too damp.”
Even the grumbling voice, and the sigh he always added when complaining, were exactly like Karan.
“To think I’d use my first magic on such a trivial matter.”
There was a snap of fingers. A wind blew. Elise’s hair and dress hem fluttered. The wind swept through the room, drying the damp interior.
Until then, Elise thought she had fallen asleep sitting up.
She realized everything was real when she felt warmth on her cheek.
Elise opened her eyes to the large hand, familiar warmth, and the gentle touch wiping away her tears.
“Your… Highness?”
“Yes, Elise. It’s me.”
“Your Highness Karan?”
She couldn’t believe it. Karan, who had been burning with fever and at death’s door just moments ago, was now crouching in front of her, meeting her eyes.
“Your Highness, is this a dream?”
“The dream is over. Elise, thank you for giving me a good dream.”
Karan kissed her cheek. The sensation of touching him was vivid.
‘Ah, it’s Karan.’
Unbelievably, it was him.
“Sob, Your Highness.”
Only when Karan came to his senses to comfort her did Elise allow herself to cry freely.
Elise’s magic circle had been the right answer. Karan had regained his memories and power.
Vengeance TIME!!!!