Helsion was overjoyed upon hearing the news from the island. Tanashia and Ascan were finally dead—it felt like a toothache he had endured for ages had suddenly vanished.

The device developed by Barunen, Tanashia’s mentor, had proven extremely useful.

It was a massive apparatus resembling a spinning propeller, designed to interfere with the locking mechanisms of magic stones within a certain radius, rendering them incapable of storing magical energy.

This device had been installed aboard the warship that attacked the island, preventing Tanashia from using any magical engineering weapons whatsoever.

Though it had been used this time to eliminate Tanashia, it would prove invaluable in the future—after all, even with her gone, her magical engineering weapons still remained.

Now, no one else would be able to use the magical engineering weapons Tanashia had created.

As time passed and people grew neglectful of Tanashia’s inventions, Helsion intended to purchase them all. After all, once Barunen’s device was deactivated, they could be used again.

No matter how he thought about it, it was a brilliant idea.

For a while, nothing but misfortunes had occurred, leaving his mood gloomy—but now that things were proceeding smoothly according to plan, Helsion’s expression brightened.

“We’ve eliminated the threatening magical engineering weapons. We should act before the alliance between the Arwen Empire and the Lazent Empire solidifies.”

At his muttered words, the steward standing beside him wore a puzzled expression—but as always, he dared not voice his question aloud, remaining silently at his post.

Helsion spoke again.

“Steward.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Your command?”

“Invade the Arwen Empire. Summon all generals of the Karua Empire.”

The Karua Empire had long prepared meticulously to expand its territory. Especially the Arwen Empire—rich and nearby—had always been a coveted target.

Helsion’s eyes gleamed with ambition as he continued.

“War preparations are already sufficient. There’s no reason to delay further—not when we must vent all the pent-up frustration we’ve endured.”

The Karua Empire’s national strength was formidable. Moreover, Bill had trained the second-generation children, resulting in the creation of highly effective human weapons.

Deploying them in this war would undoubtedly provide tremendous power. Finally, the human weapon experiments would prove their worth.

The steward hurriedly bowed his head in response.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I shall immediately summon all generals to the imperial palace.”

Helsion nodded, seated upon his throne, and laughed arrogantly.

“Hahaha.”

The Arwen Empire’s military strength had already been thoroughly investigated. With Tanashia’s magical engineering weapons now out of the picture, Helsion was certain the Karua Empire would win the war.

The Lazent Empire did cause slight concern—but having only recently formed an alliance, they would not willingly plunge into a losing battle at great cost to themselves.

And even if they did intervene, Helsion was confident he could seize control of the Arwen Empire in an instant.

Later, once Helsion absorbed Tanashia’s magical engineering weapons, he would be able to triumph in even more wars.

Merely imagining it made him feel as though the entire world already lay beneath his feet.

I had secretly boarded a fishing boat with Ascan and sneaked into the Lazent Empire.

The small island that had been our destination lay roughly between the Arwen Empire and the Lazent Empire—so when we docked at the nearest available port, we ended up here.

It was obvious the Karua Empire would be searching for us, so I concealed my identity and hid with Ascan inside an abandoned chapel.

Not only did we lack funds to openly secure lodging, but we also feared that any misstep might expose our whereabouts.

Along our journey here, I had left markers requesting aid from the Cain Trading Company, formerly operated by Dekain. For now, all I could do was hope they would discover them and arrive as quickly as possible.

I supported the staggering Ascan and helped him sit down on a shabby chair inside the chapel.

“Cough, cough.”

When he coughed, I saw his palm smeared thickly with blood.

Noticing my worried gaze, Ascan quickly hid his hand. Then, forcing a faint smile as if to reassure me, he said,

“I’m fine.”

“I know you’re not fine at all.”

Just looking at Ascan’s complexion was enough to tell me how gravely his health had deteriorated.

Normally, he could harden his body like steel, making him nearly impervious to injury—he was so robust he never even caught a common cold.

Seeing him now, pale-faced and barely able to hold himself upright, felt like my heart was being torn apart.

Even without anyone telling me, I could sense the time he had left was running out.

“Ascan, don’t worry. Once we get the Arhane flower, you’ll be fine.”

I knew this because I had read the novel . Ascan’s condition could only be cured by the legendary Arhane flower, which bloomed once every hundred years amid bitter cold.

Ascan looked at me with startled eyes and asked,

“You know about the Arhane flower?”

“Of course. I even know where it blooms. So just hold on a little longer.”

Despite my hopeful words, Ascan merely offered a faint smile.

That smile carried the unspoken implication—he might not last even that long.

Fury surged within me. If he had told me about his condition sooner, we wouldn’t have ended up in such a perilous situation.

“You should’ve told me earlier.”

“True. I never imagined you’d know the whereabouts of the Arhane flower, which I searched for in vain.”

I wanted to lash out at him with resentful words—but realistically, how could he have guessed?

Only I knew this because I had read the original novel.

Biting my lip, I fetched a discarded blanket from the corner of the chapel and draped it over Ascan’s shoulders.

“Just a little longer. Just a tiny bit more. Understand?”

“Yes, of course.”

Ascan answered without hesitation, but the pallor of his lips betrayed his words.

I was anxious. And terrified.

Truthfully, I wanted to throw my arms around him and sob uncontrollably.

But if I did that, it would feel like admitting he truly had little time left—so I clenched my teeth and held back my tears.

‘You’ll be okay. We escaped that island with nowhere to run—this time, we’ll overcome it too.’

In situations like this, I had to keep my wits about me.

Ascan had saved my life countless times. Now, it was my turn to be his strength.

Swish—

I gazed at Ascan’s pale face and placed my hand on his forehead, checking for fever. To my shock, he was far hotter than I expected.

“You have a fever… a very high one. If you’re tired, you can sleep.”

Ascan shook his head slightly in response. Then, gazing at me with tender affection, he replied,

“I don’t want to sleep right now. I’m afraid if I fall asleep, I won’t wake up again.”

Understanding his meaning, I bit the soft flesh inside my mouth. I feared that if I let my guard down even slightly, my tears would burst forth.

Unconsciously, I kept repeating the same words in my heart.

‘Don’t die. Don’t die. You can’t die.’

I felt like begging anyone—anyone at all—to save him.

Swallowing my rising sobs, I forced a composed expression and nodded.

“Fine. Then don’t sleep.”

“I want to look at you a little longer.”

Ascan tilted his head slightly and stared intently at my face. His gaze was so sweetly tender, so incongruous with our dire situation, that I couldn’t help but let out an awkward chuckle.

“You must think my face is a mess after all this running…”

“You’re beautiful. In my eyes, you’ve never been anything less than beautiful—not even for a single moment.”

His unexpectedly sweet words made my heart skip a beat.

Still staring fixedly at me, Ascan continued in a low voice.

“It was incredible how you got me off that island. I never expected you to use Kalspelliver to create an explosion in such a brief moment.”

“I made a vow ten years ago—I’d never turn my back on you again.”

Ascan and I had barely boarded the fishing boat before Kalspelliver exploded.

At the last moment, we nearly got engulfed by flames—but thanks to him shielding us with his undying flames, we barely managed to escape.

Ascan murmured with a bitter smile.

“Ten years ago… How ironic the situation is.”

Perhaps it was fate’s cruel joke—the circumstances now mirrored those from ten years ago, when Ascan and I had been forced to part. The only difference? This time, I hadn’t abandoned him.

As I recalled that past moment, a sudden curiosity struck me.

“Come to think of it, back then you also asked me for a reward. I never got to hear what you wanted.”

“Oh, didn’t I tell you?”

“Yeah. What were you going to say? I’m suddenly curious.”

At my question, Ascan smiled faintly and replied,

“I wanted you to promise me one thing—that no matter what happened, you’d always keep me by your side. I wanted to be with you forever.”

It was an unexpected wish.

Back then, I had casually offered him a reward without much thought. Yet apparently, even then, he had already held me in his heart.

Learning his wish from ten years later stirred my emotions. My nose tingled inexplicably, so I deliberately feigned nonchalance as I responded.

“What’s so special about a promise? Why trade it for a reward?”

“Being together forever isn’t such an easy thing.”

Thinking about it, Ascan was right—staying together forever was no simple feat. Even now, his life hung in the balance.

Then, suddenly, my eyes fell upon a white veil lying inside the chapel.

Perhaps it was because I had recently witnessed Noxia’s wedding—but the moment I saw the pure white veil, the first thought that came to mind was my own wedding to Ascan.

Perhaps the strongest promise I could give him was marriage—a vow to spend my entire life with him.

Without thinking, I picked up the veil from the corner. Then, gazing at Ascan, who was watching me silently, I said,

“Shall we get married?”

“What?”

Ascan’s eyes widened uncharacteristically—he was clearly startled.

“What are you saying right now…?”

“You said you don’t want to be separated from me. Between a man and a woman, the strongest promise is marriage, isn’t it?”

“Well, yes… but I never expected you to be the one to bring up marriage first.”

“Why? You accepted Noxia’s wedding proposal so naturally last time. Don’t you want to marry me?”

At my question, Ascan turned serious. He spoke firmly, as if rejecting the very notion.

“No, that’s not what I meant—I intended to be the one to propose to you.”

His earnest reaction amused me, and I couldn’t help but smile.

There was no rule that he had to be the one to propose. If I wanted to, I could speak up anytime.

“Who speaks first doesn’t matter. What matters is that I want to marry you.”

At my words, Ascan momentarily lost his voice, his face flushing. Then, as if unable to contain himself, he wrinkled the corners of his eyes and smiled.

“Just imagining marriage with you… it makes me happy.”

“Why just imagine? If we want it, we can hold it right now.”

As I spoke, I placed the veil I had fetched from the corner atop my head. Ascan frowned, as if questioning my meaning.

“You can’t possibly mean to marry right now? Without an officiant or guests?”

“Yes. You and I are all we need.”

“But…”

“Why so many objections? You do want to marry me, right?”

“I don’t want you to have a shabby wedding. And I don’t even know how much time I have left…”

“What does a fancy wedding for others’ approval matter? I only need you. And precisely because you’re in danger, now is the time.”

Not long ago, I had witnessed Noxia’s wedding, celebrated with the blessings of many.

A dazzling venue, a beautiful wedding dress, countless guests—I needed none of it. As long as Ascan was by my side.

Ascan spoke with a somber expression.

“What did you take my words to mean? I might not live much longer.”

“I know. That’s exactly why we should do it now—get married.”

Ascan stared at me as if unable to comprehend. It was such a simple concept, yet my decision seemed incomprehensible to him.

“You said you want to be with me forever. If your days are numbered… become my husband now. So I’ll never forget you, even in death.”

“…!”

Ascan’s eyes widened. His gaze, fixed on me, trembled intensely.

“…Are you serious?”

“Have you ever seen me say things I don’t mean?”

As I spoke, I looked at Ascan, my face covered by the pure white veil. Nothing else existed—but nothing else was needed.

“Since no one else is here, let’s conduct it like a private vow ceremony.”

Before Ascan could respond, I raised my palm high and declared solemnly,

“I, Tanashia, vow to cherish and love Ascan for my entire life. In life and in death, I will never forget him, and I will always be with him.”

At my words, Ascan’s eyes reddened. Looking as if he might cry at any moment, he murmured softly,

“…No wonder I couldn’t help but fall for you.”

“Your turn. Say it too.”

At my urging, Ascan smiled, his eyes still red. Raising his hand in the same posture as mine, he opened his mouth reverently, as if swearing to the heavens.

“I, Ascan, vow to accept Tanashia as my wife and love her for my entire life. I will love only her and remain with her forever.”

The moment he finished speaking, I seized his raised hand in midair. Still wearing the veil, I pressed my lips to his like sealing a vow with a kiss.

Ascan stared at me with startled eyes, and I grinned playfully.

“A wedding kiss can’t be skipped, right?”

At my words, a deep smile spread across Ascan’s face. Though his complexion was paler than ever, he looked happier than anyone else in the world.

A shabby chapel.

A private vow ceremony with no one but us.

Yet our hearts overflowed with happiness.

Even one minute, one second—was enough. As long as we still drew breath, we wanted to love each other without regret.