SLDS 57

Fate is truly strange. No matter how hard you try to avoid it, it ends up repeating in a similar way.

Cecil leaned his head against the damp stone wall. Each time he let out a weary breath, white vapor emerged; just as Cecil remembered, the underground prison was still cold.

His complete isolation was the same as well. The reality that was repeating itself without a single deviation was so absurd that Cecil laughed like a man who had lost his mind.

Half a day had already passed since he was locked in the underground prison. There was no sign of an investigation, and not a single person came to visit.

He should be properly punished, or He’s royalty, so he should be forgiven. Outside, they were undoubtedly engaged in a fierce debate over this issue.

Whatever the case, it seemed certain that he had gotten on Alexis’s bad side. Cecil didn’t care what happened to his own reputation, but he was devastated that the trust he had painstakingly built up had crumbled.

He was staring blankly at the sky visible through the window. Then, he heard the presence of someone in the distance, and the shadow of a torch-bearer began to flicker.

Cecil turned his head at the sound of the approaching footsteps.

His wish that it could be anyone but one particular person was in vain, as Alexis entered the dark prison.

Cecil covered his face with both hands. Facing Alexis was an incredibly painful thing for him, too. He truly wanted to stop deceiving him, lying to him, and being hurt by his sharp gaze.

Before long, Alexis came over to where Cecil was squatting in the corner. He bent down to bring himself to eye level with Cecil.

“There’s no one else here. So tell me honestly.”

“……”

“There’s no way you did it. Are you planning to take the fall just to save your attendants?”

Cecil smiled weakly. To think he still believes in me. Alexis has changed a lot.

“What difference does it make? Even if my attendants did it, I would have been the one who ordered them.”

“Look me in the eye and say that properly.”

“……”

“Was it really you?”

Cecil lowered the hands that were covering his face and met Alexis’s gaze. Hearing his placating and soothing voice made the corners of his eyes sting. Right now, he was struggling with all his might to believe Cecil somehow.

“Tell me it’s not true, even now.”

“……”

But Cecil stubbornly held his tongue. When he averted his gaze, Alexis ground his teeth and glared fiercely at Cecil.

“Was your oath to me a lie as well? You entice a person as if you would give them anything, and now you’re going to stab me in the back?”

“……”

“You were chattering away just fine earlier, so why can’t you speak now!”

Alexis grabbed Cecil by the collar and roughly shoved him backward. Thud. With the resounding impact, clumps of mud and moisture rained down from the stone wall he hit.

Not only Cecil, but also the back of Alexis’s hand, where his veins stood out starkly, became dirty. The noble crown prince had come all the way to this filthy underground prison, knelt down, and given him a chance, yet Cecil didn’t even show a hint of conflict.

At that sight, the last shred of faith he had been holding onto was shattered into pieces.

For Alexis, the fact that Cecil had betrayed him was more unbearable than the fact that he had tried to harm Yuria.

He threw the dagger he had been carrying in his coat against the stone wall. The jewels that had beautifully decorated the sword struck the wall and shattered into fragments. No matter how precious something is, once it is broken, it cannot be put back together, and it is bound to lose its value.

“I never should have kept someone like you by my side. I should have never even paid you any mind.”

“……”

“I find myself cursing myself for having trusted you, even for a moment.”

Alexis immediately straightened his knees and stood up. He was gone in an instant. Before long, even the sound of his footsteps faded, and only silence descended upon the underground prison once more.

Left alone, it was only then that Cecil could finally unclench his tightly balled fists. Four deep nail marks were imprinted on his soft palm.

It was worth it to endure so desperately. He thought he would cry if he saw Alexis, but he was more okay than he had expected.

Cecil wiped away the moisture welling in his eyes with the back of his hand, then leaned his head weakly against the stone wall.

✽ ✽ ✽

The rumor spread far and wide.

The evidence and confession alone were sufficient, so there was no need for an investigation. It was confirmed that the culprit who tried to harm Yuria was Cecil Adrian.

Thanks to the empress’s active efforts to save him, Cecil was able to be released earlier than expected. However, since his crime could not be completely ignored, he was sentenced to be locked in the chapel’s confessional for a week.

The meaning was for him to repent there all day long. There was no one to attend to him, and his meals consisted only of dry bread, a handful of salt, and water.

The days of falling asleep and waking up in the cramped confessional repeated.

With no light, he couldn’t tell how the day was passing, and the only way to know the time was when his meals were brought in.

Cecil didn’t want to use the wooden bucket that served as a temporary toilet, so he limited his water and food to a minimum. It was only natural that his energy would wane.

He had committed no crime, so what was there to ask God for forgiveness for? He sat leaning weakly, endlessly waiting for this agonizing punishment to end. It became increasingly difficult to bear the stuffiness.

On the surface, it seemed like an elegant punishment, but in reality, it was no different from breaking one’s spirit and stripping away one’s human dignity.

Driven to his mental limit, Cecil pounded on the tightly enclosed wooden walls and screamed to be let out. Of course, in the empty chapel, there was no one to answer him.

Before he knew it, it was the fourth day, and Cecil had become noticeably exhausted. His cognitive abilities had deteriorated to the point where it was difficult to distinguish what was a dream and what was reality. At dawn, someone secretly came to him in that state.

The confessional door opened, and the white robes worn by priests flickered before Cecil’s eyes. Without realizing it, Cecil spoke to the being in front of him.

“…Please, get me out of here.”

“Not yet. You have to pay for your sins.”

“What did I do that was so wrong.”

Cecil weakly tilted his head back. Perhaps hurt by the priest’s flat refusal, tears streamed down from his closed eyes.

“Are you sad?”

“Yeah… I’m sad.”

“Why are you?”

But Cecil did not answer. He had only responded in a half-asleep state, and soon his head drooped as he fell into a deep slumber. It seemed he was having a bad dream. Even his breathing was mixed with sobs as he gasped for air.

A large hand reached out and wiped away the tears on Cecil’s face. Alexis pushed back the hood of the robe he was wearing and looked down at the sleeping Cecil.

“Reflect on your actions properly. And then come to me and beg sincerely. Not that I’ll take you back, though.”

On the promised seventh day, the attendants of the Peridot Palace gathered in front of the chapel from early in the morning, waiting for the door to open.

The few minutes that were left dragged on interminably.

It seemed like a situation where they could have shown a little flexibility, but the strict executioners tried to adhere to the schedule thoroughly, and the attendants could only stomp their feet, their insides burning with anxiety.

At last, the door opened. Cecil walked out slowly, supported by the executioners. His already thin frame had become even more gaunt, and his once smooth skin, his lips, and his hair were all a mess.

Upon seeing Cecil, the attendants burst into tears and ran to him. The group, huddled together in a single mass, embraced each other like a family separated by war, sharing their joy and sorrow.

“…It’s all over now. It’s okay.”

Cecil patted the attendants and spoke in a mature manner. His faintly smiling face now seemed truly enlightened.

He had to rest in bed for several days. Having drastically restricted his meals during that time, it was difficult for Cecil to consume anything right away.

The attendants made every effort to put even one more spoonful into his mouth, bringing him thinly cooked porridge with honey and milk at every meal, and they diligently cared for their master, massaging Cecil’s stiff limbs with great care.

Thanks to them, Cecil was able to regain his strength quickly. He gradually increased the amount he ate. His weak and sallow complexion remained, but that was a problem that would be solved with time.

It was two days after that when Johannes came to visit Cecil again. Johannes, who had been fidgeting, unable to bring himself to enter the bedchamber, was finally able to show his face only when Cecil gave him permission with a glance.

“…Are you okay?”

“As you can see. Neither bad nor good.”

“I… I didn’t know you would suffer this much.”

“I’m truly sorry,” Johannes said, bowing his head deeply in a sincere apology. He didn’t have the courage to even face Cecil.

He had assumed that since Cecil was royalty, he would naturally be pardoned immediately. Because Cecil had suffered more than expected, Johannes, too, had just spent a guilt-ridden week.

Even when he tried to act shameless, whenever he actually faced Cecil and his attendants, something called guilt kept tightening its grip on his heart.

“Johan, it’s all in the past. I don’t want to talk about this with you anymore.”

“Cecil.”

“If you’re done saying what you have to say, would you please leave? I want to rest.”

Cecil showed signs of fatigue and waved his hand. It was a relief, if it could be called that, that he was willing to exchange even a few words. At Cecil’s cold response, Johannes had no choice but to nod and turn away.

The day of their return to the Themion Kingdom was not far off. Johannes now stood at a crossroads.

Would he muster his courage, however late? Or would he become a coward and flee to his own country? Everything depended on Johannes’s will.