Chapter 57

057.

“Kalen!! No… Kalen!!!”

She felt as if she were going mad.

Clinging to Kalen’s body, Sinat began to tremble pitifully.

She had only just managed to acknowledge her feelings.

She had finally found the courage to speak to Kalen.

But now, all Kalen could do was struggle helplessly.

And he did it—once again throwing himself into danger—to save Sinat.

The realization that she had dragged the man she loved into peril so many times was more than she could bear.

If she could, she would give up her life to save him.

But Sinat’s body and mind were too fragile to endure everything that had happened so far.

Sinat could only hold Kalen tightly in her arms.

She was unable to take any other action.

“Kalen…!”

They say that if you wish hard enough, it will come true.

Unexpectedly, someone answered her heartbreaking cry.

“…Sinat.”

A strange mist was fading, seeming to lose its power.

The voice of Felicious sounded somewhat sorrowful, as though it had been struck by the mist.

“Wh- who…”

Felicious is Sinat’s spirit.

The rulers and heirs of the spirit realm cannot contract with humans.

The first exception to this rule was being made right there.

“It’s me… Kal-dragon… Kalen’s dragon.”

“Kal-dragon…?”

The name that reached Sinat’s ears, while she was unable to focus due to Kalen’s impending death, brought her spirit back.

“Kal-dragon…? That figure is…”

“Things are complicated. I can explain later, so please calm down a bit.”

“A, ah. Kal-dragon. Please help me. Kalen is…”

“Sinat.”

Their unusual relationship made it all the more special.

Sinat’s loneliness was filled by Kalen, but Felicious’s loneliness was filled by Sinat.

Not that Sinat didn’t consider Felicious, Kal-dragon, special.

Especially in situations like this, Sinat had nowhere to turn but to Felicious. Perhaps her despair was understandable.

After Kalen grabbed the Kishar, Felicious and Tia-se, who had been connected to him, regained their senses.

The overwhelming torrent of emotions that had been growing calmed down, and the dizziness in their heads began to settle.

Thus, Felicious decided to calm Sinat first.

Carefully holding her trembling body and gently patting her back.

Her hyperventilation gradually ceased.

Sinat was finding stability in Felicious’s embrace.

“Are you calm now?”

“…Yeah.”

After a while.

Sinat, who had just regained her breath, was let go by Felicious after confirming her condition.

But the fundamental problem remained unresolved.

Sinat’s fear would only go away if Kalen’s condition improved.

And that was…

Impossible.

“Sinat. Can you listen without getting upset?”

Listening and getting upset means that whatever’s coming isn’t good.

Sinat, guessing Felicious’s intent, closed her eyes and nodded calmly.

“You won’t die. We’re not in the human realm, so no real physical harm is occurring.”

“So…?”

“But conversely, that’s why it might be even more serious.”

“…”

“The body refers specifically to the physical form. Your coming here to the spirit realm is a very unique case. If your soul goes back to the human realm damaged like this from the spirit realm, I don’t know what might happen…”

Felicious trailed off.

It was difficult to tell the already distressed Sinat such things.

Even Tia-se, standing beside her, and Felicious herself found it hard to speak negatively about Kalen’s condition.

If only they could use every bit of hope and possibility.

But false hope patched up with lies inevitably leads to greater costs later.

It was important to make an accurate and appropriate judgment of the present state,

And then move in a better direction subsequently.

That was the demeanor of an heir who would carry the ruler’s responsibility for the spirit realm.

“…Still, because of how extraordinary Kalen’s actions have been, what I say might not be correct.”

This was also an accurate and appropriate judgment.

It was a truth without falsehood, but Felicious couldn’t deny how much her own hope was interwoven into her words.

After all, if only the situation could resolve as they had just discussed…

“…Does that mean there’s no harm to my life?”

“Yeah. At least not to your physical life.”

Physical life.

She was talking about one’s body ceasing to breathe, stopping all physical functions, reaching biological death.

Felicious assured Sinat of this, and just as Sinat was about to reconfirm…

“However, the soul…”

Felicious bowed her head apologetically.

The body dies only when it sustains an utterly fatal wound.

Kalen had come here to the spirit realm after his soul had separated from his body.

In the same way that spirits present in the human realm cannot cause physical harm,

A soul in the spirit realm cannot cause the body to die when it is injured.

Simply, lifespan.

The soul is the other half of everything.

An injured soul means, without a doubt, that if it’s in a severe state like Kalen’s, there will be a clear decrease in lifespan.

Having heard all of this, Sinat could not lift her head.

All she could see in her lowered gaze was Kalen’s strained form.

This young man had sacrificed his own lifespan to save her.

She was so grateful and yet so regretful.

Though she stared at Kalen, all Sinat could do was look blankly ahead.

—

“…”

“Kal…?”

After a bit of time had passed since emerging from the pit,

Kalen, now conscious, saw the forms of three young women before him.

Recognizing them as Sinat, Felicious, and Tia-se, Kalen sighed in relief.

Eventually, they had succeeded.

The fact that they had survived unscathed from that monstrous traitor felt somewhat triumphant.

Kalen couldn’t help but smile.

“Hmm…”

A warm feeling enveloped him.

It wasn’t hard to figure out that Sinat, with her small body, was hugging him.

“Why are you crying?”

“You… you…”

“Did you greet Felicious?”

“Huh…? Felicious…?”

“She didn’t say anything, huh?”

Kalen pointed toward Felicious and, before he could form the word ‘Kal-dragon’ with his lips,

“I, I am Felicious. Felicious von Eklarute.”

“Ah…”

Hmph.

After experiencing such a grand event.

Calling it grand was rather naive.

Putting introductions aside, Kalen turned his attention to Tia-se.

“You.”

“I’m fine… How about Kalen?”

“I’m fine too. It hurt a bit earlier, but now I feel nothing.”

“That…”

“You don’t have to say it.”

He had already heard from Felicious.

There’s no good coming from a soul being injured in the spirit realm.

Kalen didn’t want to utter any negative words.

It was a good thing.

He had successfully saved Sinat and unraveled a previously impenetrable secret of their relationship.

Perhaps also the strange ties connected to his own unique constitution.

“Look behind you.”

“Huh?”

“I should give this back to you.”

“Ah…”

With a tap on his lips, realizing what Kalen meant, Tia-se’s face turned red, and she turned her head.

Kalen awkwardly wiped “Jung” and handed it back to Tia-se.

Fortunately, the light streams of Tia-se’s “Jung” showed no abnormalities and remained in its original form.

“Haehp…”

Tia-se, having turned her head to swallow it again, looked at Kalen, who spoke.

“Should we dissolve it?”

“…”

“Contract. Didn’t we agree to dissolve it when the task was complete?”

“…”

By the rules, sovereigns and their heirs may not form contracts with humans.

It’s a rule for the spirit realm to function properly.

Thus, it was something Tia-se, more than anyone, should adhere to.

Moreover, Tia-se had never once defied the sovereign mother of Klimenie.

It was both her nature and her responsibility as heir.

This made Kalen’s words reasonable.

The fact that they had indeed agreed to end the contract once the task was complete was true.

Yet every indication pointed to the need for contract dissolution.

But there was one exception—Tia-se’s feelings were a little different.

“It’s alright.”

“Shouldn’t we dissolve it?”

“No, it’s fine.”

Though it was for a brief time,

Tia-se had shared Kalen’s journey with Felicious.

If it could be called great, it was great.

The reckless act for Sinat that only that one young man could have done.

A young man’s tale.

Tia-se, who had lived her life as an heir modestly,

The dazzling story illuminated by Kalen and Sinat,

Was enough to reignite the flickering heart of the young girl.

The human with whom she formed her first contract,

An adventure that, though dangerous, she’d never forget.

Above all, the overwhelming emotion Tia-se had felt when she temporarily merged with Kalen.

Before she knew it,

Tia-se was completely enthralled by this human Kalen.

Thus, she persisted.

A flower that should have bloomed beautifully, never defying her mother the sovereign,

Had come face to face with the world.

“Since I have exchanged this ‘Jung’ with you, I believe even the sovereign will understand.”

I want to stay with this human youth a little longer.

I want to witness, a little more, this human youth’s story.

I want to hear the tale this human youth will carve out,

Before anyone else.

With an attempted move to grab Kalen’s hand but deciding against it,

Instead, she nodded.

“Well… I’m fine too.”

“Hohh. Thank you.”

What mattered most was Kalen’s heart.

Tia-se had to put in an effort to calm the intensifying beating of her heart.

“Sinat and you, we’ve been here for too long. It’s time to return.”

Felicious, who had already concluded their meeting with Sinat, said.

Indeed, having successfully saved Sinat, they had no reason to stay in the spirit realm any longer.

“We will explain things well to the sovereigns. It seems we must part with you here. Kalen, return the same way you came.”

“Understood.”

“Then, farewell.”

“Farewell.”

Was it regretful to part in this way?

Sinat asked, looking toward Felicious and Tia-se.

“Perhaps we will see each other again in this world. We will return as manifestations.”

“You won’t be able to communicate though. For a spirit to speak to a human, both parties must endure considerable burdens.”

“…”

“Don’t cry, Sinat.”

Felicious consoled a tearful Sinat once more and turned her gaze to Kalen.

“Surely, we will meet again someday.”