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“Where have you been?” Young Master Cha asks me as I come back into Jeongjingak.
‘God he annoys me so much,’
“I am here, am I not?”
“Uk…” I give more focus into what he’s about to say upon hearing my pupil’s name.
“Jang Uk could die!”
My eyes widen and I’m panicking. ‘ What does he mean Jang Uk could die?’
“Once he traps the soul shifter and himself in the secret room, Uk will die,” Cha Beom informs me why my pupil could die and that worries me even more.
“Why? Why did he go alone?” I ask with fear in my voice.
“He said he had to. He said he was responsible,”
I can’t bear leaving Jang Uk in such a dangerous situation all alone. He can’t even use spells right now. I need to be by his side.
As I try to walk away after making a decision, the Crown Prince’s grip on my arm stops me.
“Where are you going?”
“To the secret room,”
“If the door to the secret room is open, that means Uk died after failing to lure the soul shifter there. If it is closed, he is probably already dead. There is no use.” He tries to talk me out of it but how can I? Jang Uk is there all alone, not being able to use spells against a soul shifter who can. I can’t just leave him like that.
“You said you would not be persistent in trying to hold onto me. You cannot stop me. So, please. Let me go,” I beg him as the fear inside of me grows.
‘What if I’m too late?’
‘What if I can’t protect him?’
His grip against my arm loosens and I finally leave the room. ‘Jang Uk, you better not die on me,’ I tell myself as I go to retrieve my sword.
I reach the secret room and I freeze in my spot. The door is closed.
‘If it is closed, he is probably already dead,”
‘No. No. No. This can’t be,’ I look around and see a pool of blood by the entrance. I can no longer hold my tears back. The thought of a world without Jang Uk scares me so much that I don’t even want to think about it. He is and will continue to be the only constant in my life. I can’t lose him like this. I won’t.
“But I can never turn back time even if I regret something,” I remember the words of my pupil.
“Jang Uk,” I whimper out as I prepare myself to open the door.
My trembling hand reaches for the button as I push it and unlock the secret room.
The door slowly unlocks, the fear in me growing by the second.
The only figure in sight was that of the soul shifter. He turns around and I can no longer hold myself back. I gather energy from the atmosphere and throw it over to him. He fails to block it and is now in an unstable condition. I use this as a chance to perform tansu and end him once and for all.
I slowly make my way into the room, fearing for what I may see. My tears just keep coming out as I continue to walk into the secret room. The body of my pupil is nowhere to be seen.
Just then I hear footsteps behind me and I am so relieved.
“You are still alive, my pupil,”
I turn to face him and I desperately want to close the distance between us.
“Why did you hide it?” He asks me.
“Because…” I hesitate. “I wanted you to die.” ‘ That was a lie ’
“Then why did you come for me?” He asks me once more.
“Because.. I thought you would die,” I barely stop myself from sobbing while answering him.
“Since you have unsheathed the sword, make your decision,” He’s getting closer.
“I know you have been avoiding me. I also know that everyone’s lives are in your hands,” He stops in front of me.
“As you promised, point your sword at me first,” He walks closer and I have no choice but to raise the sword in my hand to his neck. Just like our first meeting.
“If you stab me, then I will die as the one who released the assassin,”
His eyes are slowly filling up with tears and I can’t bear to look at him.
“If you withdraw your sword, I will make you another promise,”
I slowly lower my sword and I can see him breathe out of relief.
“Fine. Make me another promise just like you said you would,”
He closes the distance between us and pulls me into a tender kiss. His mouth feels warm against mine as I give into the kiss. He pulls away for a short while and I feel our noses rub against each other as he tilts my head to kiss me once more.
My hand makes its way onto his waist and I grab onto him. I feel him cup my face, kissing me harder than the first time. His tongue traces against my lips and I let him take control.
His hand is on the small of my back, pulling me closer by the second. I drop my sword and wrap my arms around his neck.
He slowly takes a few steps forward and I follow, taking a few steps back. My back hits the wall and we slowly pull away.
“I thought I lost you ,” I whisper against his lips while I grip his body. ‘I’m never letting go of him ever again,’
“I’m here now, aren’t I?” I feel his breath on my lips and I try so hard to control myself but fail.
His lips are back on mine, our bodies clash with each other’s as we continue to savor this moment. My hands run through his hair resulting in a contented sound out of him.
His lips trail down my neck and I can’t help but moan. I feel him smirk against my neck before he continues to leave soft kisses there. My hands make way to cup his face and I pull him back up to face me.
“What promise are you making me now?” I question, waiting for his answer.
“I promise…” he hesitates, “ to protect you forever, to love you forever, ”
“I want to spend forever with you and only you,”
No one has ever said anything like that to me and for once in my life, I finally feel loved. His words, actions, and just him as a person makes life worth living.
“I love you, ” I confess and I have no regrets. His eyes widen at my sudden confession.
‘Was it too early to tell him that I love him?”
To save myself from further embarrassment, I push him away and try to leave the room but a grip on my arm isn’t letting me do so. He pulls me into a hug and doesn’t let go despite my complaints.
“I love you too ,” the second those 4 words came out of his mouth, my world stopped.
“I love you so much that I feel sick when I’m without you, I love you so much that I miss you first thing in the morning, throughout the day, even when you’re in front of me, so don’t ever try to run away from me,”
“I won’t. I love you too much to do so,”
He pulls away from the hug and plants a soft kiss on my forehead.
“By the way, what are we gonna do with his body? They’ll know it wasn’t you because you can’t use any spells right now,” I ask him, still gripping onto his body from our hug.
“We’ll just lock him in the secret room and come up with a plan with the rest,” He suggests as he grabs my hand and leads me out of the room, not forgetting to take my sword and return it to its place.