Until the dust settled. It was when Aden disappeared completely from her sight that Ludmila, who had been standing still in that spot, turned around.

Ludmila returned to her room. She packed her pre-prepared luggage. It contained clothes and necessary items.

She didn’t forget to pack a jewelry box to sell and use when living in another kingdom beyond the frozen lands.

Finally, she tidied up the blanket and stood at the door, looking at the room. It was impeccably neat.

Ludmila, gazing at the scene with her red eyes, approached the swaying curtains and tied them.

The scene of the room with soft sunlight entering.

She loved this scenery. The air, the smell, even this coziness.

It was a place where she felt she could stay for a lifetime if asked. But there was no longer a place for her here.

Accepting this fact humbly until the very end, Ludmila took out a letter from her bag.

She placed the letter in the center of the desk. It was her final message to Aden.

Memories of writing this letter at the villa embracing the starlit river vividly came back to her.

As bitterness and regret intertwined, Ludmila’s eyes grew more somber.

Unable to let go even after putting it down, Ludmila stepped back with a deep sigh.

All preparations were complete.

“Ludmila.”

A voice calling her was heard. Beressa had entered, opening the door.

As if it was time, Ludmila nodded calmly at Beressa’s composed nod.

Taking one last look around the room, Ludmila exhaled a long breath.

It was time to leave.

As Beressa had said, the patrol schedule of the Frozen Land Guard was adjusted. So that she could reach the Kingdom of Islau beyond the gate without anyone’s hindrance.

Beressa continued the journey with Ludmila to Orbit, known as the center of the frozen lands and the edge of the Khan territory, beyond that gate.

The two exchanged casual conversations. Stories of the day they met.

Ludmila’s gradually changing impression and the experiences they shared.

Though it had only been 3 months, the conversation didn’t stop during their half-day walk.

It was when the twilight was coloring the frozen lands, after setting out early in the morning, that the gates of Orbit came into view.

Ludmila and Beressa, stopping in front of the guards of the Kingdom of Islau in the distance, silently gazed at the scenery for a moment.

Until their cheeks grew cold from the cool breeze blowing. The silence was broken by Beressa’s soft sigh.

Following that sigh, Beressa was seen wearing a quiet smile.

“I’m sorry, Ludmila. I won’t make excuses. You don’t have to forgive me.”

At this cool apology, Ludmila slowly shook her head.

Beressa had said her choice was selfish, but Ludmila didn’t think so. It was an entirely normal decision.

The lives and blood of hundreds of thousands of clan members versus the life of one unrelated woman. There was no need to even consider what to choose.

Aden, who couldn’t make a hasty decision despite seeing the tilting scales, was just a bit different.

At the end of this train of thought, as that name and face came to mind, Ludmila wore a bitter smile.

Coming this far, her future became even clearer.

She’s leaving this place. She can never return. Though it was the future she had so desired and wished for, the heaviness in her heart was ultimately because that man kept lingering in her mind.

“Thank you, Beressa. Thanks to you, I was able to adapt well in Habertz.”

Those words were sincere. Beressa accepted her feelings with a cool nod.

Ludmila, staring at Beressa’s tear-filled eyes, reached out her hand.

Her half-sister who was born with the same fate as herself.

The only difference was that Beressa had brothers to share her heart with and a clan to move forward with, while she had nothing.

So it should be the person with nothing who leaves.

“I’ve sent a letter to the Kingdom of Islau. After passing through the Orbit gate, if you go a little further, you’ll see the gate of Tenets, the border of the Kingdom of Islau. A man named Angar will be waiting there, so you can rely on him. I’ve prepared everything, including a new identity.”

Wiping tears with the back of her hand, Beressa did everything she could until the end.

Not simply expelling Ludmila to a foreign country, but preparing all means for her to settle there.

“And… don’t worry about Aden. I’ll talk to him well. I’ll make sure he doesn’t chase after you, so live doing what you wanted to do there. Like when you first set foot in Habertz.”

Ludmila slowly nodded.

By now, the rosy sky was beginning to darken. It was time for Beressa to return as well.

She had to hurry on horseback to reach the guard post before dawn. She couldn’t sleep in this dangerous place.

It was time to say goodbye.

“Take care, Beressa.”

“Be happy, Ludmila.”

The farewells exchanged with their hands clasped dissipated into the air.

Facing the blowing wind, Ludmila once again mounted her horse.

Treading on the final rosy carpet created by the twilight, Ludmila moved away. It was the farewell to the Empire she had so desired.

The meeting in the Nuber region continued for two days.

It took time to produce proper results due to persistent arguments.

Finally, the chieftains of the Nuber region accepted the proposal only after gaining numerous benefits in exchange for participating in the war.

Aden, who had been in meetings for two days without proper sleep, immediately set out on his return journey without rest.

Everyone tried to persuade Aden to rest before leaving, but he, having no intention to stay any longer, hurriedly mounted his horse.

When he reached the Black Wall, crossing the afternoon air again with his unrested body, it was already close to midnight.

Salom, who had rushed out after belatedly receiving news of his return, immediately wore a dismayed expression while seeing him off.

“My lord, I have something to report.”

“Later.”

Instead of looking at his serious face, Aden stroked the mane of his tired horse.

A surprised voice followed, but Aden calmly sent the horse back and entered the castle.

The Black Wall remained unchanged from usual. Crossing that unchanged place, he entered the bathroom and first washed his body.

The fatigue caked on from continuous night work and long travel washed away with the hot water. What followed was a clear mind.

Lifting his head to look at his reflection in the mirror, Aden let out a wry laugh.

The man in the mirror was no different from a corpse. His eyes were sunken, and his cheeks were hollow.

The side effects of working without proper eating were starting to show.

Even the strongest man would find it difficult to endure for weeks without proper sleep.

Wiping his face with his wet hands, Aden turned off the faucet.

After drying off the moisture on his body with a long towel, he changed into neat attire. Then he entered his office again.

There, he organized the unfinished agenda items and issues that had piled up during his absence. It was then that a knock was heard.

His moving hand paused, and a faint gleam appeared in his eyes. After telling them to enter, the door opened and Beressa appeared.

A bitter smile spread across Aden’s lips as he confirmed her entering with his own eyes.

What was he expecting? Knowing it couldn’t be, he laughed at the foolish lingering hope he had harbored as he leaned back in his chair.

Beressa came in and stood before Aden. A resolute face, as if she had made some decision.

“Ade…”

“Did the work go well?”

“…Pardon?”

That resolve was shattered by Aden’s words that burst out before her voice could even trail off.

As Beressa’s eyes trembled slightly, Aden rubbed his face dryly.

In the brief silence that followed, Beressa seemed to realize something, bit her lip, and then nodded.

“That’s good.”

With those final words, Aden rose from his seat.

Though he hadn’t finished his work, he moved his legs to pass by Beressa.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m tired, so I’m going to rest a bit.”

He had only slept two hours in two days. His head wasn’t working to think about many things.

He didn’t want to punish or blame anyone for their sins either. He just wanted to sleep.

Leaving the gaze fixed on him behind, Aden left the office.

As the darkness-filled corridor filled his eyes, Aden’s steps moved. The destination of those steps, not knowing where they were going, was in front of a tightly closed door.

Forgetting the futility of coming to Ludmila’s room at this time, he opened the door.

The scenery inside was revealed silently. An empty scene, but no different from before.

Just like when she wanted to leave this place, it was the same now. An unpacked guest.

In the end, Ludmila left in the same state as back then. As Aden entered the room and scanned around, a letter on the desk came into his view.

Neat handwriting that could be recognized at a glance as belonging to someone.

Aden, silently looking at that letter stamped with the initial ‘P’, turned his gaze away to look at the window.

He approached that place where moonlight was pouring in and closed the curtains. Then he sat down where Ludmila used to lie down to sleep.

Only then could he understand. The reason he could endure despite the fatigue that made him feel like he would collapse at any moment was because of the lingering attachment he couldn’t let go of.

Facing the fact that that attachment was futile and stupid right before his eyes, Aden could no longer endure.

The body that had sat down crumbled onto the bed.

The ceiling that Ludmila would have looked up at while lying down was filled with pitch-black darkness.

Thinking about how many anxieties she must have harbored while lying here, suddenly, he felt disgusted by his past self who had yelled at her.

If he could go back to that time. Aden realized the meaninglessness of such a momentary assumption.

At the end of the silence, the sound of a clock striking midnight, announcing the dawn, was heard.

He felt like he might stay up all night again if he remained like this. His head was heavy, his body was tired, and his mind was fatigued. He needed to sleep tonight.

But as dawn deepened and darkness grew deeper, his mind became even clearer.

Ludmila is not here. There is no one to help him fall asleep. No lap to lie on, no shoulder to lean on. No one to show his disarray and vulnerabilities to.

A miracle possible only twice.

There was no third miracle to come looking for him in the deep dawn.