Sarah's POV
The world felt eerily still. The wind that had once swept through the Blackwood estate now seemed to have disappeared, as if the very air had been suspended in time. Everything around me was quiet, save for the occasional rustle of grass underfoot. I stood in the middle of an empty field, the only reminder of what had been the mansion-a scattering of broken stones, jagged and sharp, like fragments of my own shattered past.
The moon no longer hung in the sky. The blood moon that had cursed the land, that had bound me to the Blackwood family, that had driven everything to its breaking point, had vanished. Its crimson glow, once so blinding, was gone. It had all been torn away, leaving only silence and darkness in its wake.
I stood in the aftermath, the weight of Axel's sacrifice pressing heavily on me. He had given everything to save me-to break the curse that had kept him bound to the Blackwood family for centuries. The man who had loved me, who had defied everything for me, was now gone. His light, once so brilliant and fierce, had faded into nothingness. I could still feel the echo of his presence, but he was no longer here.
How do I live with this?
It was a question I had asked myself repeatedly, but it never seemed to have an answer. His final words to me-"Live, Sarah. For both of us."-hung in the air like a ghost. They echoed in my mind, a constant reminder of the price I had paid for my freedom. I had asked him if there was another way, if there was anything that could have spared him, but he had told me that there was no other choice. His sacrifice had been inevitable.
But that didn't make it any easier.
I took a shaky breath and let my eyes fall to the ground, to the ruins of the mansion that had once been my prison. The Blackwood estate had stood tall, imposing, and full of dark power. Now it was nothing but a heap of crumbling stone, its walls reduced to rubble. The mansion that had been home to a dark legacy, a family tied to the demon that had bound them to immortality, was gone.
And yet, even in its absence, I couldn't escape the feeling that something was missing. The curse had been broken, the family's grip on me had been severed, but in its place, a void had opened up-one that was filled with grief and loss. Axel's absence was like a wound in my soul.
I closed my eyes and allowed myself to sink into the memories.
The first time I had met Eren felt like a lifetime ago. He had been so warm, so full of promise. His smile had drawn me in, and I had believed in him, in the life we could build together. Our wedding night had felt like a dream-a dream I now realized was built on lies. I had been so eager to escape the darkness that had always loomed over me, but I had never truly seen what was in front of me. I had never understood the weight of the chains that bound me to the Blackwood family until it was too late.
And then there was Axel. Always there, always watching. I had never truly seen him until he had kissed me, his lips so soft, his hands so gentle. In that moment, I had understood the depth of his love for me, and yet, it had come too late. The words we shared that night had been a silent confession of everything we couldn't have. His love for me was unspoken, but it was there, in the way he looked at me, in the way he protected me from the shadows. And in the end, it had been that love that saved me.
Why didn't I see it sooner?
The guilt was unbearable. I had been so blind to Axel's suffering, so caught up in my own world that I had never truly understood the depth of his pain and his sacrifice didn't make it any easier to bear. How could I live with the knowledge that the man who truly loved me, the man who was a forbidden desire, had given up everything for me? That he had broken the chains of the Blackwood curse, only to fade away, leaving me to pick up the pieces of a life I didn't recognize?
I remembered the final moments, the ritual that had brought us to this point. The cold stone altar beneath me, the chilling chants of Eleanor and Victor as they tried to hold on to their power. I had been bound, powerless, my heart racing as I had awaited the inevitable. The mansion had felt like it was closing in on me, the walls pressing in as I had felt the weight of my fate closing in.
And then Axel had come.
His arrival had been like a storm, a force that shattered the Blackwood family's control. The look in his eyes, so fierce and determined, had been the moment I knew he wasn't just the man I had fallen in love with-he was my savior. His words had cut through the chaos like a knife, commanding the room, demanding freedom for me and for himself. In that moment, I had seen him for who he truly was-a man willing to sacrifice everything to break free from a curse that had kept him trapped for centuries.
Axel had never been just my protector. He had been the key to my salvation, the one who had broken the curse that had held us both captive. And now, as I stood in the ruins of the mansion, I realized that he had left me with one final gift-freedom.
But what did freedom mean if it came at such a cost?
I couldn't stop the tears from falling, couldn't stop the ache in my chest as the grief overtook me. Axel had sacrificed himself for me. And I had let him. I had stood by, helpless, unable to stop the inevitable, and now I was left to face a world that felt empty without him.
The silence around me was deafening. There was no more mansion, no more family, no more curse. But there was also no more Axel. The void he had left in my heart seemed too vast to ever fill.
How do I live without him?
I didnt realise how quick Axel had unknowingly crept into my heart and took the throne. İ never realised that the lines between us will be blurred to this point.
The question lingered in my mind, but there were no answers. No guide for what came next or what I would do. All I knew was that I had to keep going. For him. For the love he had given me, for the sacrifice he had made.
I wiped my eyes, standing slowly, the weight of the world pressing on my shoulders. The field stretched out before me, endless and empty. There was nothing left. Nothing but the knowledge that the Blackwood legacy was over, that I was free from its chains, but at the cost of everything I had ever known.
I began to walk, my steps slow and unsure, but there was a glimmer of something deep within me-something Axel had seen in me, something that had remained even in the darkest of times. Strength.
I had to live. For him. For both of us.
I didn't know what the future held, but I knew one thing for sure. I couldn't stay in the past. I couldn't stay in the ruins of my former life. I had to move forward, even if it meant stepping into the unknown.
I looked up at the sky, the stars faint and distant. There was no blood moon to guide me anymore, no curse to bind me. It was just me, standing alone in the silence. But even in that silence, I could feel Axel's presence. He was gone, yes, but the love he had given me-his sacrifice, his unwavering commitment-would live on.
I would carry it with me, always.
Live, Sarah.
The words echoed in my mind again, and for the first time since Axel's death, I understood what they meant. I would live. I would survive. For both of us.
And as I took the first step into the unknown, I knew that I was not truly alone. Axel's love would guide me, even in the darkest of times. And that was enough to keep me going.
I will live. For you, Axel