The sky was heavy that night.
Dark clouds pressed low, as if the heavens themselves couldn't bear the truth Li Xian had just learned.
He stood alone in the courtyard, unmoving.
The words still echoed in his mind—
"Everything you knew… was a lie."
His fingers trembled.
"…No," he whispered, but even his own voice sounded distant, unfamiliar. "That's not true…"
But it was.
His father—the man he feared, the man he thought he understood—was a stranger.
His mother…
He didn't even know how she died.
Not the truth.
Not even a fragment of it.
A sharp pain rose in his chest, and suddenly it was hard to breathe.
"What… was real then…?" his voice cracked.
A drop of rain fell.
Then another.
Soon, the quiet courtyard was filled with the soft sound of rainfall.
Li Xian let out a broken laugh, tilting his head up as the rain soaked his face.
Good.
Now no one would know he was crying.
His knees gave in, and he collapsed onto the cold stone ground, shoulders shaking.
A sob escaped him before he could stop it.
"I don't know anything…" he choked. "I don't know anything at all…"
All those years—every memory, every belief—felt like a cruel illusion.
Even his own heart felt unfamiliar.
And then—
Han.
The name alone made his chest tighten painfully.
Li Xian squeezed his eyes shut.
"…He hates me."
The way Han looked at him earlier—cold, distant, filled with something that cut deeper than anger—
It wasn't just hatred.
It was disappointment.
And somehow, that hurt more.
"I deserve it…" Li Xian whispered weakly. "If everything about me is a lie… then what right do I have to stand beside him?"
Rain poured harder, drenching his clothes, his hair clinging to his face.
But he didn't move.
Didn't care.
For the first time in his life, Li Xian felt completely… empty.
A shadow appeared at the edge of the courtyard.
Silent.
Watching.
Han.
He had followed him.
At first, he told himself it was just to make sure Li Xian didn't do anything reckless.
That's all.
Nothing more.
But now—
Seeing him like this…
Broken. Alone. Crying like he had lost everything.
Han's chest tightened.
His hands clenched at his sides.
"…Pathetic," he muttered under his breath.
But the word didn't feel right.
Because the truth was—
He had never seen Li Xian like this before.
Not the proud, annoying prince.
Not the one who smiled like he owned the world.
This… was someone else.
Someone fragile.
And it unsettled him.
Han took a step forward—
Then stopped.
His expression hardened again.
"…This changes nothing."
Even if Li Xian didn't know the truth…
Even if he was just another piece in someone else's game…
The past didn't disappear.
The damage was still there.
Han turned away.
"…Stay out of my sight."
The words were quiet, almost lost in the rain.
But Li Xian heard them.
And something inside him shattered completely.
He didn't look up.
Didn't try to stop him.
"…Okay," he whispered.
Han paused.
Just for a second.
That answer…
It was too soft.
Too empty.
But he didn't turn back.
And soon, his figure disappeared into the rain.
Left alone, Li Xian slowly lowered his head, his wet hair hiding his expression.
The rain kept falling.
Cold.
Endless.
"…Okay," he repeated, barely audible.
As if accepting something irreversible.
Something final.
That night—
Something inside Li Xian changed.
Not loudly.
Not dramatically.
But quietly…
Like a candle being extinguished.