Turning Chapter 796

Chapter 796

'…It’s been a while since this happened. I thought it was an illusion, but to think it’s real is astonishing.'

The somber ash-gray Peletta Castle. The extinguished stove. Kishiar from that day.

Yuder looked down at the sword in his grip, then clenched his teeth tightly.

Everything around him seemed to melt into a blur. In the midst of his fragmented and flowing memories, Yuder found himself, almost instinctively, plunging his sword into the heart of that man. A warm liquid, the only source of warmth in this cold and dark place, gushed forth. After a momentary glance at the fallen man, he discarded his sword and turned, heading for the secret passage.

But when he came to his senses, Yuder found himself once again facing that same man.

'…It’s been a while since this happened. I thought it was an illusion, but to think it’s real is …'

Staring blankly at the man's face, Yuder raised his sword once more, bringing it down over the man's smiling visage. Again, everything seemed to end.

And when he emerged from the secret passage into the darkness outside, Yuder found himself once again before Kisiar.

'…It’s been a while since this happened. I thought it was an illusion, but to think it’s real is …'

He repeated his actions in a frenzy, stabbing over and over.

Yet, no matter what he did, he couldn't escape the presence of the man, who bore the same smile.

Gasping for breath, Yuder ran through the pitch-black corridors of Peletta Castle's secret passages.

'Pant... Pant...'

Strangely, he heard the sound of water splashing beneath his feet, though no water was present. Turning reflexively, he saw crimson footprints in disarray, ending right behind him.

His head throbbed intensely. Ignoring the sticky liquid clinging to and dropping from his shoe soles, he kept running forward, no longer looking back.

Where must he go to escape this place?

Where indeed...

Then, in the midst of the darkness, he collided violently with someone.

'Ugh...'

Caught off guard, he nearly rebounded, but the other person quickly grasped him, pulling him close. Yuder struggled instinctively, trying to push the other away, but their strength was unexpectedly formidable.

"It's okay," whispered a gentle, familiar voice close to his ear.

"It's okay..."

The repeated whisper sent shivers down his spine. Only then did Yuder cease his struggling. The arms embracing him felt strangely comforting, like a protective barrier.

"Do you recognize me?" asked the voice, once Yuder had calmed down.

He ceased his labored breathing and lifted his head, which had been buried in the other's chest.

At first, he couldn't make out the other's face in the darkness of the passage. But as he blinked, his vision gradually cleared, as if black ink was being washed away.

A sharp jawline. Red lips. Pale, smooth cheeks. Long eyelashes framing glass-like eyes that gazed into his.

And the golden hair, just like the one he had seen fading beneath his sword moments ago.

"!" Yuder stiffened and tried to push him away, but the other grabbed his wrist and brought it to his face.

"Here, feel for yourself."

The overlapping hands fluttered above the other's face. This direct approach surely made the other's presence known to Yuder. Initially, Yuder just let his face be touched, shrinking his fingertips as the other led, but at some point, his hands became free. Yet, he continued to gently caress without realizing.

The man allowed Yuder to touch his face anywhere, obediently bowing his head. When Yuder brushed against the soft eyelashes, they curved beautifully. The plump lips were no different. Strangely, it felt familiar, but the sensation was still too vague to grasp.

Suddenly, a warm breath laced with laughter escaped through the man's lips. Unable to understand why he laughed, Yuder stopped his hand, prompting the man to speak.

“...Do you remember? I’ve touched you like this before.”

“…”

“Back then, and even now, we're following the same path. Perhaps this is what it feels like to know who the other person is just by the touch of fingertips.”

At first, Yuder didn't understand the meaning.

But those words, like the last drop in a full cup of water, slowly awakened Yuder's blurred consciousness.

Yuder slowly and awkwardly opened and closed his eyes.

Then, he finally gazed straight into the eyes of the man before him.

“…Kishiar.”

Despite his hoarse, almost torn voice, the man smiled gently, softening his brows.

“…Commander?”

“Yes.”

The man overlaid his hand on Yuder's, which still rested on his cheek, tilting his head.

“It's me.”

His eyes, filled with tender blurriness, disappeared behind the lowered eyelashes, and his lips pressed firmly onto the palm. Yuder then realized that the drenched blood had somehow vanished completely.

“What's this? Why am I here… Earlier, it definitely wasn’t… this place…”

“Dreams are like that. You don’t dream because you want to, nor avoid because you don't.”

Kishiar answered firmly yet gently.

“So, shall we leave now?”

“...But how… Where exactly?”

“Isn’t this Peletta Castle? I guess we just have to go that way.”

The fact that up until now, no matter where he went, he had only encountered Kishiar of 'that day', made Yuder agitated. However, Kishiar started walking down the corridor, unfazed, holding Yuder's hand.

Yuder hesitated but then followed him.

What if, at the end of this, the same scene unfolded again? Would it be another repeat in front of Kishiar?

As Yuder gripped the hand in the pitch-black confusion, Kishiar turned his head.

He spoke as if knowing why Yuder was acting so.

“It's alright. Whatever awaits us at the end...”

“…”

“I won’t be the one to let go of this hand first.”

In response, the man's fingers intertwined tightly with Yuder's. The strength and warmth of the firmly held hand captivated Yuder, making it impossible to pull away.

With each step toward the end of the corridor, the surroundings grew increasingly hazy, but it no longer felt like a dark maw about to swallow him.

Why, he wondered. The answer came surprisingly easily.

This time, it wasn’t just him alone. There were two of them.

“-…”

Yuder softly opened his mouth, inhaled, and opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the flame of the burning magic stone stove. As he blankly stared at it, a voice came from beside him.

"Did you sleep well?"

"…Commander?"

"Yes."

The man who had been embracing Yuder from the side pressed his lips to his cheek and lightly rubbed his forehead. His eyes, as if having just woken from a shared sleep, looked languid.

‘…Wait a minute. Why are we like this?’

Yuder blinked and suddenly felt as if he'd been doused with cold water, jolting awake. He quickly sat up and looked around.

“What… What happened? I thought I just closed my eyes for a moment in Peletta… No. In the dream, the Commander…”

“Yes. We were connected in the dream. Just like last time.”

Although Yuder was the one who had the dream, Kishiar responded calmly, as if wondering why Yuder was so surprised.

“When I came back, my lovely assistant was sleeping with such a tired face. I tried to take you to the bedroom, but you wouldn't wake up easily, and it seemed you weren't having a pleasant dream.”

“So… What did you do?”

“I wrapped you in a blanket and held you tight, praying fervently for you to sleep well. And then, voila. Suddenly I was there.”

The tone was so light it was hard to believe. But there was no reason for Kishiar to lie in such a situation, so it must be true.

Yuder bit his lip and cautiously asked.

“…So, did you see it this time too?”

“See what? Your dream?”

“…”

“All I saw was you wandering through the underground passages of Peletta Castle. Unlike before, I was glad I could catch you without having to call out several times.”

That meant Kishiar hadn't seen the scene of himself dying. Yuder exhaled deeply, relieved.

‘That's fortunate.’

Even if one knows about it through words, seeing such a scene directly is decidedly different. Moreover, this dream… it felt similar yet entirely different, distorted in a new way. It felt less like reviving forgotten memories and more like only glimpsing shattered fragments.

Even now, awake from the dream, all that remained was a faint sensation of seeing Kishiar that day and the dreadful feeling of wandering through the passage. There was no sense of gaining new information or feeling like any gaps had been filled.

“Anyway, I never expected to see the secret passages of Peletta Castle like that. So, it must have been that time in this dream.”