Aeron and Livia soon reached the academy’s main gate. Just outside, a figure in a pink hooded robe paced anxiously, their hands clutching a small, folded parchment so tightly it threatened to tear.
Aeron’s inward frown deepened as they passed through the gate.
"You called for me?" he asked, his voice cutting through the woman’s nervous energy.
The figure jolted to a stop and spun around, pushing back her hood. She was a young woman, perhaps in her late twenties, with features that tugged at a vague, distant memory in Aeron’s mind. He couldn’t place her, but the sense of familiarity was undeniable.
"Young Master Aeron!" Her eyes, wide and slightly frantic, lit up with a mixture of relief and fear. "I finally found you."
Aeron’s gaze was sharp, analytical. "Do I know you?"
The question was a dual probe. ’Do I know you?’ and ’How do you know me?’
The woman gave a hurried nod, her eyes darting left and right, scanning the surroundings as if expecting watchers in the shadows.
"There’s no time," she whispered, thrusting the letter into his hands. Her fingers were ice-cold. "My young lady... she entrusted me to give this to you... b-before she left."
"Who is-!" The last words hit Aeron like a physical blow, freezing his next question on his lips.
Right at that moment, the woman’s face overlapped with another face from his childhood. Aeron’s eyes widened slightly in recognition.
That’s right. She was Emilia’s personal maid from back then!
But before he could form a single syllable, the woman pulled her hood back up.
"I-I’m sorry." A faint shimmer of aura enveloped her, and she shot away from the gate with a speed that was anything but ordinary, disappearing around a corner in a heartbeat.
"H-Hey! Wait!"
Instinct propelled Aeron forward a few steps, but he stopped just as quickly. It was useless. He could never catch up with that kind of speed. His fists clenched at his sides.
’Tsk.’
Left with no choice, he looked down at the letter in his hand.
The parchment felt heavy, ominous.
’...Emilia.’
He muttered the name in his heart.
’...’
A deep, cold unease settled in his chest, a silent dread telling him that whatever was written inside would shatter the fragile peace he had left.
"Who was she?"
Livia’s quiet voice broke through his turmoil.
Aeron’s gaze remained fixed on the empty road.
"...I don’t know," he lied, the words tasting like ash. "Let’s go back inside."
Livia nodded silently, her eyes flicking to the letter clutched in his hand.
She had already pieced it together. The woman’s words, "my young lady," the sheer panic... it could only be about one person.
’...It must be Emilia.’
And as they walked back, her mind raced.
Why would Emilia vanish so completely? Was it a forced kidnapping or a desperate flight? If she left on her own, why this dramatic, secretive message now?
Dozens of such questions and theories collided, but none found solid ground.
She had no clues, no real knowledge.
But one truth was absolute in her heart: Emilia would never willingly abandon Aeron, not after they had finally found each other again after so many years.
The entire situation was a tangled, frightening mystery. But as she looked at Aeron’s rigid back, his shoulders tight with a burden she could only partly share, her own resolve crystallized.
Whatever was happening, whatever dark currents were pulling at the people around him, she would not be swept away. She would not leave him to face it alone. She would stand by his side. No matter what.
"..."
They walked in heavy silence, bypassing the dormitories and heading straight for the secluded forest behind the academy. They didn’t stop until they reached their secret spot — a small, sun-dappled clearing with a familiar, flat-topped rock in front of a small lake.
Aeron sat down, the parchment feeling like a lead weight in his hands.
With deliberate care, he broke the wax seal and unfolded it. Inside were two separate letters. His breath hitched. The handwriting on the top one was unmistakable. It was Emilia’s.
He carefully opened it and began to read.
"..."
[Dear Aeron,
I hope this letter finds you well. First, I must apologize from the bottom of my heart for leaving without a word. I can only imagine your confusion and hurt, and for that, I am truly sorry.
How are you now? Are you eating well? I hope you aren’t skipping meals because of your training. What about Livia? Is she doing ok as well? And our other classmates? Please, send them my regards.
I was so happy during my time at the academy. Being friends with everyone, Amaniel, and even with Livia... it meant the world to me. But the relationship I cherished most was always ours. I still remember it all so vividly — playing princess and knight in the garden, our secret adventures. Do you remember the day we promised we would marry each other when we grew up? I have held onto that memory all these years. It was my most treasured dream.
But... reality is often cruel, isn’t it? It seems our childhood promise is one that won’t be fulfilled.
Aeron... please, live a happy life. And if you can, please take care of Livia. I know she sees me as a rival, but she is the only other girl I would ever root for you to be with. Marry her. Be happy with her.
And if you are blessed with children... could you do one last thing for me? If you have a son, name him Amaniel. If you have a daughter, name her Emilia. Let a part of us live on in your happiness. That is my final, most sincere wish.
Goodbye, my knight.
Your true childhood friend,
Emilia.]
"..."
Aeron’s eyes remained locked on the final, looping signature.
The words stopped being words.
They became a wave, crashing over him, drowning all coherent thought.
The rustle of leaves, the lapping of the lake — it all faded into a dull, roaring silence.
His mind simply... shut down.
It couldn’t process this. It was a void, filled only with the echoing finality of goodbye and the crushing weight of her wishes.
Livia, watching him, saw the blood drain from his face.
She saw the letter slip from his grip.
"?"
Her initial reaction was a deep frown of confusion.
The letter was sweet, sad, but... Wait! Something was wrong! N-No, everything was wrong!
The words! The tone! The wish!
Everything!
It almost sounded like a... a...
And then, the cold realization kicked in, slamming into her chest and stealing her breath.
’...A will.’