Chapter 201: Ner’s Choice (5)

 

I took off my top and lay down on the bed.

 

Once again, the empty spot beside me felt painfully vivid.

 

Yet, at the same time, my mind wandered to the events with Ner.

 

I replayed the emotions I had felt through her, over and over again.

 

“...Ha.”

 

I covered my face with both hands.

 

Trying to calm my emotions, I closed my eyes to prepare for tomorrow.

 

But at that moment, I sensed a disturbance outside.

 

What started as a faint noise I could easily ignore soon grew louder, making it impossible to dismiss.

 

“...?”

 

At the strange sound, I sat up and moved toward the living room.

 

I didn’t even think to put my top back on.

 

As I stepped into the living room, Arwin, having heard the commotion as well, was coming down the stairs.

 

She froze for a moment when she saw me, then walked over and asked,

 

“What’s going on...?”

 

“...”

 

I noticed torches being raised one by one in the center of the village. Without a word, I opened the gate and stepped outside, determined to find the source of the commotion.

 

From inside the house, I could hear Sylphrien and Lan moving about as well.

 

The torches were approaching us quickly.

 

What on earth could cause them to stir up such chaos?

 

The answer was clear before long.

 

...Sien.

 

Something must’ve happened to her.

 

A cold chill ran down my spine.

 

‘...Please.’

 

I begged inwardly as I bolted toward the approaching torches.

 

“Berg...!”

 

Arwin followed closely behind, calling my name.

 

Before long, I was face to face with a crowd surging toward me.

 

They approached, struggling to catch their breath.

 

Baran, standing at the forefront, spoke to me,

 

“Captain, you... you need to come quickly.”

 

“...Please tell me it’s not that.”

 

Baran quickly nodded, his voice strained.

 

“It’s not... it’s not what you fear. But... it’s Lady Ner...”

 

His words made my mind go blank. I couldn’t say anything.

 

What he was saying didn’t make sense.

 

“...Ner...?”

 

What on earth could have happened to Ner?

 

We were just together not too long ago.

 

“...Berg!”

 

As I stood frozen, Arwin pushed me from behind.

 

Her actions snapped me back to my senses.

 

“...”

 

I quickly nodded at Baran and responded,

 

“Lead the way.”

 

.

.

.

.

 

The building we entered to find Ner was the same one we used to manage the plague victims.

 

I silently followed Baran’s lead.

 

I didn’t let myself speculate or imagine anything.

 

That would only feed my anxiety.

 

“...Go inside.”

 

Baran stopped in front of a familiar patient room.

 

I glanced back at him.

 

This room... I knew it all too well.

 

“...This is Sien’s room.”

 

“Go inside, Captain.”

 

But Baran, as if to reassure me that there was no mistake, urged me once again.

 

I looked at him, then quietly knocked on the door.

 

If Sien was asleep, I didn’t want to disturb her.

 

Given how frail she had become, nothing was more important than rest.

 

I didn’t know why Baran had brought me here, but I would find out soon enough.

 

“Captain Berg, please... don’t be shocked.”

 

“...”

 

Baran’s voice trailed behind me.

 

I was about to open the door when—

 

—Bang!

 

The door flung open with force on its own.

 

“...”

 

And there, standing tall, was Sien, staring straight at me.

 

I couldn’t remember the last time I had seen her standing on her own.

 

My body froze at the sight.

 

Was I dreaming?

 

Just this morning, she had been too weak to even sit up.

 

“...Bell...!”

 

Her face still concealed behind a mask, she called my name.

 

Tears welled up in her eyes, as if to prove she was real, not some illusion. Then, with surprising strength, she threw herself into my arms.

 

The strength with which she embraced me was unbelievable.

 

It was just like the strength she had in her healthier days.

 

I couldn’t fathom how a person could change so drastically overnight.

 

Feeling her weight against me, I whispered,

 

“...What is happening...?”

 

Sien trembled as she clung to me, her voice shaking.

 

“...My body...?”

 

“...”

 

“...I feel so much better, Bell... so much...”

 

I couldn’t make sense of it.

 

No medicine could have brought about such a miracle.

 

The only thing I could compare it to was the miracles she had performed back when she was a saintess.

 

But Sien didn’t look overjoyed, despite her newfound strength.

 

“...But...but... Bell...”

 

It was at that moment, from the expression on her face, that I realized something.

 

Whatever had happened to her body... was somehow connected to Ner.

 

Before I could even revel in the joy of seeing Sien standing, worry welled up inside me.

 

“What happened...?”

 

My voice came out softer, more controlled.

 

Sien’s face twisted in sorrow as she looked up at me.

 

She began to explain, her words faltering.

 

“I... I don’t really know. But... Lady Ner... she pinned me down and started chanting some sort of spell...”

 

“...A spell...?”

 

“And then... this orange light... it came out of Lady Ner’s body... and into mine...”

 

“...Ah.”

 

With her brief explanation, I finally understood what had happened.

 

If it was an orange light thread... that could only mean one thing.

 

Ner’s spell.

 

Every time I set out on an expedition, she would cast that spell for me.

 

I had always taken on her energy in exchange.

 

It was a spell she had performed over and over again.

 

Thanks to it, I was able to fight more effectively on the battlefield, but the price was always Ner’s exhaustion. She would need to rest after each time.

 

But this... this was different. No spell she had ever cast was this powerful.

 

It wasn’t meant to raise someone who had collapsed to such perfect health.

 

“...Foolish girl...!”

 

Just then, I heard Lan curse from behind me.

 

I turned to find her standing there, blinking nervously.

 

Without paying any attention to me, she asked Baran,

 

“Where is Ner?”

 

Her voice sounded slightly frantic.

 

I had never seen Lan lose her composure like this before.

 

As I stood frozen, trying to process everything, Sien pushed me gently on the shoulder and said,

 

“Go... go to Lady Ner, Bell.”

 

“What?”

 

“I... I’m okay now. But... but Lady Ner...”

 

“...”

 

Ner, who always had to exhaust herself to give me strength.

 

If that was the case... if raising Sien from such a weakened state required this much power... what had it done to Ner?

 

Lan’s reaction was starting to make sense now.

 

I nodded to Baran.

 

He understood the gesture and began to lead the way.

 

I hugged Sien tightly and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

 

She returned the embrace, holding onto me just as strongly.

 

No one could understand how relieved I was that she had recovered.

 

But before I could fully experience that joy, I had to find out what had happened to Ner.

 

We moved a little farther, and soon, I saw a room crowded with the people of Blackwood waiting in front of it.

 

The sheer number of medical staff gathered outside was a sign that something serious had happened.

 

“...”

 

I wanted to ask what was going on, but I couldn’t bring myself to speak.

 

Maybe I was afraid.

 

Afraid of what more shocking news I might hear.

 

But I couldn’t just stand there.

 

Gathering my resolve, I decided to move forward without questioning the people waiting in front of the door.

 

I pushed the door open gently.

 

Inside, more nurses were tending to someone.

 

Everyone inside stood up the moment we entered.

 

And once they stood, I finally saw the person they had been caring for.

 

White hair. Fair skin. Slender eyes.

 

Ner lay there, her eyes closed, utterly still.

 

She was breathing shallowly, quietly frozen in place.

 

“...............Ner.”

 

Not long ago, she had been walking beside me, full of life. Now, she was like Sien had been, collapsed and unable to open her eyes.

 

Her breathing was faint and labored.

 

Even the simple act of breathing seemed like an unbearable struggle for her.

 

“.............”

 

My heart sank at the sight.

 

Before I realized it, I had knelt beside Ner.

 

“...”

 

My hands, uncertain and lost, hovered in front of her face, trembling.

 

There has never been a moment more bewildering than this.

 

“...Ner.”

 

I called her name once more.

 

Her eyelids trembled faintly.

 

“...Wake up.”

 

I whispered softly.

 

“She might not be able to.”

 

Lan’s quiet, simmering voice spoke from behind me.

 

“...”

 

“This type of spell... there’s only one that results in this.”

 

Lan’s anger toward Ner’s choice was evident.

 

She bit her lip hard and asked the unconscious Ner,

 

“...Did you really have to go this far...?”

 

I turned to Lan, her words sinking in.

 

“What do you mean...?”

 

“...”

 

“What do you mean she might not wake up?”

 

Lan looked me in the eye, her gaze unwavering as she began to explain.

 

“...In exchange for restoring Lady Reiker’s health, Ner has weakened herself. The spell also places an immense burden on the caster’s body, to the point that... there’s a significant chance the caster could lose their life.”

 

Her explanation confirmed what I had feared.

 

“...It’s a spell typically only performed between deeply loving couples. But she used it... for someone who wasn’t even her partner...”

 

“..............”

 

Suddenly, everything fell into place.

 

Why Ner had collapsed. Why Sien had recovered.

 

I finally understood the decision Ner had made. The spell she had cast.

 

She had sacrificed herself to save Sien and the child I had with her.

 

She had given up her own happiness, wishing for mine instead.

 

“.........”

 

I couldn’t say a word.

 

What must she have felt as she made this decision alone, without telling anyone?

 

What thoughts had run through her mind when she chose this path?

 

Was this a result of my choices too?

 

Because I had treated Sien with more care... had Ner wished for Sien’s life over her own?

 

“...”

 

What had gone through her mind when she cast a spell that she knew might prevent her from ever waking again?

 

She had always said she lived her life as an outsider.

 

Had she felt like an outsider even in her final moments?

 

Did she believe, until the very end, that she wasn’t deserving of love?

 

“...Ner.”

 

The thought broke my heart in a way I had never felt before.

 

Only now, after she had reached this state, did my feelings become crystal clear.

 

My lost, trembling hand gently brushed her face.

 

Why hadn’t I done this before?

 

Ner, my first wife.

 

We had so many memories together.

 

Memories I had tried to suppress, acting cold and distant to maintain my composure in front of her.

 

But now, with her unable to look at me, I found myself recalling them, one after another.

 

What if she never woke up?

 

Would she leave this world, scarred and broken, without ever feeling love?

 

Would I spend the rest of my life regretting this moment?

 

“...Wake up.”

 

Why hadn’t I given her the simple embrace she had asked for?

 

Looking back, it was such a small gesture.

 

I vividly remembered her standing with tears in her eyes, arms wide open, waiting for me.

 

What if I had just hugged her once more? What if I had just held her hand one last time?

 

I took her hand in mine and gently stroked her forehead.

 

“...Wake up, Ner.”

 

Ner’s cold skin chilled my chest.

 

“...Huh?”

 

Just then, Lan let out a startled gasp behind me.

 

I immediately understood the reason for her reaction.

 

Ner’s eyes were slowly opening, though with great difficulty.

 

I gripped her hand tightly, trying to calm my trembling heart.

 

I prayed this wasn’t her way of waking up just to say her final words.

 

I had witnessed moments like this far too many times, and I was more anxious than ever.

 

“...Ber...r...”

 

The first thing she whispered upon opening her eyes was my name.

 

Suppressing the whirlwind of emotions inside me, I responded to her.

 

“...I’m here, Ner.”

 

Hearing that, a faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

 

That smile... despite knowing this wasn’t the time, anger began to rise within me.

 

“Who...”

 

“...”

 

“...Gave you...”

 

“...”

 

“Who told you to make this kind of choice...?”

 

“......”

 

“Who asked you... to do something like this...?”

 

Ner just continued to smile faintly, as if none of my words mattered.

 

“...Pl...”

 

Then, she whispered something.

 

I leaned closer, bringing my ear near her lips.

 

Her voice, though faint, became clearer.

 

“...Please... grant my... wish...”

 

A wish.

 

I nodded.

 

Who could refuse a request in such a situation?

 

“Tell me.”

 

“...I...”

 

Ner’s dry lips moved slowly, her words barely audible.

 

I had to focus all my attention just to hear her.

 

“...Hold... me...”

 

“What?”

 

Her eyes began to close again.

 

In response, I gripped her hand even tighter.

 

“Say it again, Ner.”

 

I urged her.

 

With her eyes still closed, she whispered painfully,

 

“...Hold... me...”

 

Finally understanding her request, I closed my eyes tightly.

 

“...Ha.”

 

Even after risking her life to save Sien and my child, the only thing she asked for... was to be held.

 

A bitter, almost amused sigh escaped my lips.

 

To the woman who had slipped back into an uneasy sleep, I responded,

 

“...Alright.”

 

And then I embraced her.

 

“I understand... So fight through this.”

 

Just like in the days of our marriage, I held her in my arms once again.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

 

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