The meeting ended.
The Empire was adjusting.The Heralds were already drafting new plans—relentless, unforgiving.
And Emily… only wanted to disappear.
She crossed the corridors of the imperial palace without looking at anyone, searching for a place that demanded no answers, expected no miracles, and did not remind her that she had failed.A place where she could breathe without feeling as though the world depended on her.
She found Lusian on the private terrace assigned to the Kingdom's delegation.
He stood there with his arms crossed, watching the city below, stained by the shimmering glow of mana. Snow drifted down softly, like fading ash.
Emily stopped at the threshold.
"…Lusian."
He turned his head.
There was relief in his eyes. And something deeper—something only she could recognize.
"Emily," he replied, with a softness reserved only for her.
She stepped toward him, trying to maintain her composure… but her voice trembled before her knees did.
"We failed," she whispered, as if admitting it for the first time. "I lost… men, Lusian. And I couldn't… I couldn't do anything."
Lusian did not question her.He did not correct her.He did not demand explanations.
He simply stepped forward and embraced her.
Emily did not hesitate.
She clung to him with restrained desperation, burying her face against his chest. Lusian held her tightly, one hand on her back, the other at the nape of her neck, protecting her as though the world could not reach her there.
"You're not on the battlefield anymore," he murmured into her hair. "You don't have to pretend to be strong here."
She trembled.
"I couldn't do anything…"
Lusian lowered his head, his lips brushing lightly against her temple in a silent gesture of comfort.
"It's not your fault," he said firmly. "Everything is alright."
Emily shook her head, drowning in guilt.
"But I'm a hero… I'm supposed to save people…"
Lusian took her face gently in both hands, forcing her to look at him.
"Emily. Don't carry everything by yourself. I know you. I know how hard you try—sometimes too hard. But there are things no one can stop, even when we give everything we have."
She closed her eyes.
The tension inside her began to collapse.The guilt, the pressure, the failure… all of it melted away in the warmth of his embrace.
Her fingers gripped Lusian's shirt tightly, almost pleading.
"Stay with me," she whispered. "I… I can't sleep alone tonight."
Lusian didn't need words.
He nodded.
He walked her back to her room and closed the door softly behind them.
And that night there were no strategies.No politics.No gods.No monsters.
Only her… searching for refuge.
And him… holding her, just as many times she had once held him.