Dark as ink. No light all around.
I suddenly fell down on my knees, feet were tied with sharp branches.
The middle of the chest is rough and full of thorns, piercing the heart.
A girl came out from nowhere, a girl who looked exactly like me.
That girl grabbed the thorns in the center of my chest.
"Wake up, wake up… Wake up myself. The person inside you, tormented by society. Standards cause fools to destroy themselves. But when you accept, you will die. Live to survive, die to give meaning. What lies, is what you have done, light up hope with your own colors. Death is the final reminder… Rise from the depths of Hell! Accept it!"
Listen to yourself, how hard to believe... But it also helped me realize that only self-reliance can help me find a way out.
I accept it… Death to find the meaning of this life!
Light gradually appeared as the eyes opened.
The number twenty is getting closer and closer, there is not much time left.
Thinking that I had accepted my fate, I felt anxious with many emotions.
Immersed in the awareness of death, I finally realized how helpless I had been living for so long.
But now, I have a purpose to continue living.
I won't die until I deserve to die.
I thank the killer, thanks to his "catalyst", I was able to face my own weakness.
Everyone will die anyway.
I accept it, I am its prisoner, I become friends with it.
Death is not something we should fear, but a springboard to find meaning in our death, to continue living.
"What are you thinking? Or still daydreaming?"
I turned my face to the side, light shining in my eyes. Slowly hugging my body, I pulled myself up.
"This is the rest room, right? And you?"
"Codename S, Deputy Commander of the Éclairer citadel under the Enlightenment Army. We received word from Baron Albert about your critical condition. Fortunately, Baron Albert arrived at the right time, otherwise it would have been difficult to save your life. Are you feeling better yet?"
Glancing through the window, the self-proclaimed Baron was leaning against the wall, looking pensive.
I shook S's hand, it was soft, unlike the rough hand of a soldier.
"Thank you… I owe you so much, even my life. In the moments of confusion, perhaps I have understood a little more about the meaning of this life. No matter how heartless, bad, and cruel people are, there will always be strong individuals like you, sacrificing themselves for the sake of the people."
"What did I do so much to be praised like that? But anyway, thank you. Rarely does anyone respect a soldier like you do!"
The girl smiled, a holy smile, the smile of an angel.
Under the golden sunlight, S's hair is even more brilliant.
She lifted me up, then gently left the room, at the same time Albert quietly entered.
"Cecile, are you okay?"
The man spoke up.
I walked over to him, raised my head, and looked him straight in the eye.
Snapping my hand over his forehead, I let out a long sigh.
"If you didn't hurry, I would probably be dead. But because of that, I realized a couple of things. We need to have a serious talk."
"What 's up? You just woke up and you're already so serious? Don't tell me… you're facing an adolescent crisis! Even after dying and coming back to life!"
The atmosphere immediately became more tense, partly because my body was still exhausted, and also because his stupid joke made me lose all my interest.
Looking up at the hospital gate, a familiar figure suddenly turned away, as if it had been following me for a long time.
Probably Raymond.
Only he implicitly "looks" at me, his gaze full of regret.
Seeing that, he probably realized that he was joking at the wrong time, so he stretched out his hand to support my chest.
"Need me to straighten your body up?"
"You still haven't answered my question, Albert. But this time, no one will interrupt us. Even if I have to pull your tongue out to hear the truth, I'll do it!"
He frowned, looking confused.
Then gently help this girl sit neatly on the chair in the corner of the room.
Stepping to the water table, he poured a cup of tea that was still smoky, like its heat was cooling down.
"Would you like some tea, I'll make two if this lady needs it?"
Albert asked, his voice slightly relaxed again.
The guy didn't get an answer, so he walked over, using my fingers to grab the cup, and went to the side of the bed, folding the thin blanket.
After cleaning the room, he leaned his back against the wall next to me.
"Is Marquis Ress who you just met when we were meeting at the foot of the tower? I guess so, because his demeanor is unmistakable. So what did he tell you?"
"That you don't exist… Or rather the name Baron Albert de Crusein is just a story from the bible. So in the end, who are you? Why me, and how many secrets of this Kingdom do you and my brother Raymond know?"