Chapter 95
The wind had finally softened here.
Not peaceful.
Just exhausted.
Far from the battlefield, broken stone stretched across the land like a wound that refused to close.
The sky above was dull and colorless—
as if it had forgotten what it once looked like.
---
John stopped walking.
His steps slowed.
Then stopped completely.
---
In his arms—
the Princess.
Unconscious.
Breathing faintly.
Alive.
---
For a while, he didn't look at her.
He simply stood there.
As though deciding whether this moment was even allowed to exist.
---
Then quietly—
he lowered himself onto one knee and gently rested her against a broken stone slab.
Carefully.
As if she might disappear if he let go too quickly.
---
Silence returned immediately.
---
For several seconds—
he didn't move.
Then—
---
John: "...Sorry."
---
The word came out quietly.
Not meant for anyone else.
Not meant for the world.
Only for her.
Even if she could never hear it.
---
The Princess shifted slightly.
Still unconscious.
Yet not completely lost.
---
"...mm..."
A faint sound escaped her lips.
---
John noticed.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
---
Slowly—
he leaned closer.
Careful.
Almost hesitant.
Trying to catch whatever she was trying to say.
Trying to hear the words hidden beneath the weakness.
---
But halfway there—
he stopped.
---
Her face was too close.
Too calm.
Too familiar.
---
A silence stretched between them.
Not empty.
Just dangerous in a different way.
---
John looked away slightly.
"...Tch."
---
Then, almost against his own better judgment—
he reached out.
A loose strand of hair had fallen across her cheek.
His fingers brushed it aside.
And lingered a second longer than they should have.
---
Another moment passed.
---
Then—
without allowing himself time to reconsider—
he leaned forward.
Slowly.
Carefully.
His hand came to rest against her forehead.
For a moment, he stayed there.
Silent.
Motionless.
As if weighing something he had no right to say.
Then—
he lowered his head slightly.
And pressed a brief kiss against his own hand.
A quiet gesture.
Indirect.
Restrained.
Gone almost as soon as it happened.
As though even that much was more than he should have allowed himself.
---
He pulled away immediately.
His expression unchanged.
But his hand remained tense at his side.
---
The Princess stirred.
---
"...hmm..."
Her eyelids slowly opened.
---
Confusion came first.
Then awareness.
Then shock.
---
Princess: "...John?"
---
Her voice was weak.
Hoarse.
Yet instantly alert.
---
She tried to sit up.
Pain immediately forced her back down.
---
Her eyes sharpened.
Not frightened.
Analyzing.
Measuring.
---
Princess: "...Where am I?"
---
A pause.
Her gaze swept across the ruined landscape.
---
Princess: "Where is everyone?"
---
Her voice remained steady.
But John could already hear the concern beneath it.
---
Then she looked directly at him.
---
Princess: "Why are you here?"
---
John didn't step back.
Didn't react.
He simply watched her regain control of herself.
---
John: "You're safe."
---
Princess didn't accept the answer.
Not even for a second.
---
Her eyes narrowed.
---
Princess: "Don't use that word as if it explains anything."
---
Despite the pain, she forced herself into a more upright position.
---
Princess: "After everything that's happened..."
A pause.
---
Princess: "...I can't trust you anymore."
---
Her tone remained calm.
But firm.
---
Princess: "Right now..."
---
She held his gaze.
---
Princess: "You're a threat."
---
Silence followed.
Sharp.
Precise.
---
John looked at her for a moment.
Then lowered his eyes slightly.
---
John: "...East."
---
Princess blinked.
---
Princess: "What?"
---
John: "There's a ship."
---
A brief pause.
---
John: "Your people are there."
---
Princess processed the information carefully.
---
Princess: "...A ship?"
---
Her voice stayed controlled.
Though confusion slipped through.
---
Princess: "What ship?"
---
Princess: "How do you know that?"
---
Her eyes narrowed again.
---
Princess: "And why am I here?"
---
John remained quiet for a moment.
Then answered.
---
John: "You were taken away from the battlefield."
---
Princess watched him closely.
---
John: "I brought you here."
---
Princess: "Why?"
---
A simple question.
Direct.
---
John didn't answer immediately.
---
Then—
---
John: "Because you would've died there."
---
Princess fell silent.
She didn't reject the answer.
Nor accept it.
She simply remembered it.
---
Princess: "...And the Lord?"
---
John's expression didn't change.
---
John: "That doesn't matter right now."
---
Princess: "No."
---
Her voice grew colder.
---
Princess: "It does."
---
She shifted slightly, enduring the pain.
---
Princess: "I need context."
---
A pause.
---
Princess: "I don't make decisions without understanding the situation."
---
John looked at her.
Longer this time.
---
Then quietly—
---
John: "...Then ask your own people."
---
Princess frowned.
---
Princess: "My people?"
---
John: "They know more than you think."
---
Princess stared at him.
---
Princess: "That's nonsense."
---
John said nothing.
---
Princess: "Why would my own people hide anything from me?"
---
John finally answered.
---
John: "Ask Guinevere."
---
Silence.
---
The Princess froze.
---
Princess: "...Guinevere?"
---
A dozen questions flashed through her mind.
---
Princess: "And why should I trust you?"
---
John turned slightly away.
---
John: "You're still alive."
A pause.
---
John: "Isn't that proof enough?"
---
The answer irritated her more than she expected.
---
Then—
---
BOOM—
---
The ground behind them trembled.
A burst of molten energy erupted through the ruins.
Heat flooded the air.
---
Princess reacted immediately—
but John moved first.
---
He grabbed her and pulled her backward.
Shielding her without hesitation.
---
CRACK—
---
Stone exploded where she had been sitting moments earlier.
---
The heat faded.
The silence returned.
---
John released her at once.
---
John: "...Stop staying here."
---
He stepped away.
---
John: "Go east."
---
A pause.
---
John: "Follow the coastline."
---
Then he turned.
Preparing to leave.
---
Princess: "Wait."
---
The word wasn't loud.
Yet it stopped him instantly.
---
She reached forward.
And caught his wrist.
---
John froze.
---
The wind passed between them.
Slow.
Heavy.
The Princess looked at his back.
Her expression unreadable.
---
Princess: "...You keep leaving gaps in your answers."
---
A pause.
---
Princess: "That usually means either deception..."
---
Her grip tightened slightly.
---
Princess: "...or regret."
---
Silence.
---
John didn't turn around.
But he didn't pull away either.
---
That was what she noticed most.
---
For a brief moment—
the ruins felt distant.
The war felt distant.
Everything felt distant.
---
Princess slowly loosened her grip.
Not letting go completely.
Not yet.
---
Princess: "...I'll go."
---
A pause.
---
Princess: "But not because you told me to."
---
John remained silent.
---
Princess: "I'll go because I need answers."
---
She hesitated.
Only slightly.
---
Then added more quietly—
---
Princess: "...And I don't like unanswered questions."
---
A faint silence followed.
---
At last—
John spoke.
Softly.
---
John: "...Good."
---
Then he started walking again.
Without looking back.
---
This time—
she didn't stop him.
---
But neither of them forgot the hesitation.
The warmth.
Or the distance that still remained between them.
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...CHAPTER 95ENDS...