Chapter 1054: Confession [1] |
At first, I thought I was dreaming. After all, dead people were supposed to stay dead. That was common sense.
Yet after what felt like an eternity of darkness, I suddenly became aware of my surroundings. What came first was sensation. I felt weak, numb, strange, as though my body did not belong to me and I could only think.
The process was painfully slow, but eventually, I managed to open my eyes. My thoughts felt sluggish. The first thing that greeted me was an unfamiliar ceiling, unfamiliar yet strangely familiar at the same time.
I had never been here before. I was certain of that much, since most ceilings in the capital were very high up, and this one was much lower than any I was used to. However, the style reminded me of someone. It reminded me of Sir Mic… Click. Suddenly, the sound of a door opening echoed. I tried turning my head, but the effort felt enormous.
Footsteps entered the room. I wondered who it could be. A servant, or someone from the empire? The thought made my heart tighten.
Then the figure stepped into view, and I froze.
"…Father?"
The words barely escaped my lips.
For a moment, he simply stood there, staring. His eyes widened, and his body trembled. The expression on his face was one I had never seen before, shock, disbelief, hope, and fear, all mixed together.
"Arianne." His voice cracked. "Arianne…"
He kept repeating my name, over and over again, as though afraid I would disappear if he stopped.
"You're awake." His grip tightened. "You're finally awake. I'm glad. I'm so glad."
Seeing him like that made something inside me break. I had never seen my father cry before, yet now he sat beside me crying like a child. Somehow, that made me want to cry too.
I could not understand anything. I was confused, terrified, overwhelmed.
Was I not supposed to be dead?
The memory of my execution was still clear. I remembered all of it.
So why was I here? Why was I alive?
For a long time, neither of us spoke properly. My father seemed unable to stop looking at me, as though he was worried that if he blinked, I would disappear again.
Eventually, after calming down slightly, he began explaining things, and the more he spoke, the more unbelievable everything became.
Sir Mic had not only killed members of the royal family related to my death, but he had dared to even touch an imperial prince, and succeeded to the extent that the empire itself no longer existed. The Black Serpent Empire had fallen.
At first, I thought I was still dreaming, because none of it made sense. However, as days passed, I came to accept my new reality, even though so many things had changed.
Thanks to Sir Mic, my death was avenged, and not only was I brought back to life, I was even given a stronger body. Damn, I don't even have a bit of my foundation yet, but I can cast spells better than I could before.
Also, what was this "status" thing that appeared after I followed my father on a hunt a few days ago? Unfortunately, just like me, my old man had no idea, but fortunately, the only man who could answer all my questions soon appeared.
It had been only a few months since I last spoke with him, though for me, it felt like only a few days had passed. But seeing how he seemed to have grown even stronger, I realized it truly had been a while since we'd last seen each other.
When I saw him again after so long, I saw an intense look of emotion flash across Sir Mic's expression. It was so brief that I thought it might have been an illusion, but I knew I wasn't wrong.
Seeing how he looked at me with a different gaze than before, I remembered the words my father had told me days ago on our short hunt.
Yes, Sir Mic was incredibly powerful and very unique. Normally, I didn't deserve to stand at his side, but even though he didn't need to, he still brought me back to life.
I might be ignorant of high tier magic, but I knew the cost of my revival couldn't have been cheap, yet Sir Mic had sacrificed for me anyway.
Could it be he saw me as more than just a friend? Maybe not in the same way I viewed him, but surely a little more special, right?
I don't know if it's because I died once, or because I owe him my life, but whatever the reason, it made my emotions even more intense, and I got bolder. That night when he arrived, I kissed him.
I can still remember the look of surprise and shock on his face. *Given how awkward the kiss had been, was it possible this was his first kiss too?* I don't know why, but the thought of that made me want more. I wanted to be more of his firsts.
I really didn't know where my audacity came from, but I got bolder each day that passed without him stopping me. *Was it that I needed to die for Sir Mic to like me?* In any case, after spending a while in Thorbvale and telling my father goodbye, I followed Sir Mic to the empire.
Though I could see some traces of damage around, it didn't stop me from seeing the prosperity of the empire city. It was really memorable.
Since then, it's been more than a month since Sir Mic and I got here. As I lay on his chest, listening to his powerful heartbeat and breathing in his strong scent that almost made me moan in comfort, I heard his youthful deep voice echo near my ear.
"Arianne, I have something to say to you. Something to show you."
*
Feeling the soft warmth of the young woman resting against him, Michael found himself enjoying the moment.
However, as the days passed and moments like this became increasingly common, another feeling began growing within him.
Guilt.
At first it had been small, easy to ignore and push aside. But now it had become impossible to escape, a quiet weight that pressed harder with every passing day.
Arianne seemed blissfully unaware of it, but Michael felt as though he was standing at the edge of a cliff. Every day that passed like this felt like another step closer to the fall, and he had no idea how to stop walking.
All of this stemmed from a question he could not answer.
Did Arianne like Michael?
Or did she like Mic Nor?
The question haunted him, returning every time her gaze met his, every time she smiled at him.
Mic Nor was the person she knew. The one she had developed feelings for, the one she trusted enough to fall asleep against. The problem was that Mic Nor was not entirely him. Or perhaps the problem was that Mic Nor was him but his profile here wasn't.
Michael no longer knew.
All he knew was that even though he remained the same person beneath it all, despite the minor differences, when Arianne looked at him, who exactly was she seeing?
Michael?
Or Lord Mic Nor?
And if she ever learned the truth, would anything of what they had remain standing? Or would it all collapse the moment the mask came off?
The thought made his chest tighten.
Michael felt genuinely afraid, and he didn't fully understand why this particular fear cut so deep each time it surfaced. He didn't like the possibility that the feelings currently directed toward him might vanish the instant she learned the truth.
It felt selfish. Pathetic, even.
Yet Michael could not deny it.
He enjoyed this.
He enjoyed her presence.
He enjoyed her smile.
He enjoyed the quiet trust she placed in him without hesitation.
Most importantly, he enjoyed being loved.
Was it because this was a first for him, in both lives? He didn't know.
But a problem remained, and it was that he selfishly wanted that love directed toward Michael. Not the mask. Him.
He wanted her to choose that version of him.
The real one.
As these thoughts ran through his mind, he felt Arianne shift slightly against him. Her head remained resting against his chest, steady and unguarded. The familiar scent of flowers drifted into the air between them, soft and warm and achingly normal.
For a few moments he remained silent, gathering whatever courage he had.
Then he finally made a decision.
A difficult one. But necessary.
If he continued avoiding it, things would only grow worse later
"Arianne."
His voice was soft.
"Hm?"
She tilted her head slightly, eyes still half lidded with comfort.
"Arianne… I have something to tell you."
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