The day passed in uneasy silence.
Yumi wandered through the manor halls with Eliott by her side, trying to ignore the faint whispers that followed her — sounds too soft to understand, yet impossible to ignore. The marble corridors were lined with portraits of lords and nobles, their painted eyes watching, judging.
Each step echoed too loudly.
"Eliott," she said finally, "that outsider you mentioned… what really happened to him?"
The young knight hesitated, his hand tightening around the hilt of his sword. "I don't know much. I was a child back then. But everyone still talks about it in secret."
Yumi stopped walking. "Tell me everything you know."
He swallowed hard. "He appeared one morning in the central courtyard. Just—out of nowhere. No one saw him enter, no one recognized him. His clothes were strange, his language unfamiliar. He didn't belong."
"Like me," Yumi muttered.
Eliott shook his head. "No, not like you, My Lord. You have a name, a history—at least the body does. He had nothing. No past. No record. He was… empty."
Yumi frowned. "Empty?"
"He said he didn't remember anything. Not even his name." Eliott's voice grew softer. "Prince Ren took him in. They were close for a while. Some said the prince was… different around him."
Yumi glanced at him. "Different how?"
Eliott hesitated. "Gentler. Happier. But it didn't last. One night, something happened. The outsider started saying strange things — about mirrors, shadows, and 'a world trying to wake up.' The next morning…" He trailed off.
"They found him dead," Yumi finished quietly.
Eliott nodded, eyes dark. "Near the fountain. Smiling. No wounds. No signs of magic. Just… gone."
Yumi felt a chill crawl up her spine. The image of that black fountain filled her mind—the lovers frozen in agony, the water dark as ink.
"What if," she said softly, "he wasn't insane? What if he saw what's really happening here?"
Before Eliott could respond, a cold, familiar voice broke the silence.
"Careful, My Lord."
Ren stood at the end of the corridor, golden eyes gleaming like molten fire. "Curiosity tends to kill more than just cats in this castle."
Eliott immediately bowed. "Your Highness—"
Ren waved a hand. "Leave us."
Eliott hesitated, glancing at Yumi. "But—"
"Now."
Reluctantly, Eliott bowed again and retreated down the hall, his steps echoing into the distance.
Ren's gaze returned to Yumi, sharp and unreadable. "You shouldn't dig into things buried for a reason."
Yumi crossed her arms. "If it's about that outsider, I deserve to know. You said it yourself—I don't belong here either."
Ren smirked faintly. "Difference is, he was a mistake. You… might still have a purpose."
"A purpose?" Yumi frowned. "What does that mean?"
Ren didn't answer right away. He stepped closer, his boots silent on the stone floor, his voice lowering to a whisper. "That man wasn't supposed to exist. He broke through a boundary—one even gods can't cross."
Yumi stared. "A boundary?"
"This world," Ren said, his tone softer now, almost thoughtful, "is not what you think it is. It has rules, balance, and memory. When something appears that doesn't belong, the world adjusts itself—corrects the error."
"By killing him," Yumi whispered.
Ren's golden eyes met hers. "By erasing him."
Her breath hitched. "Then why am I still here?"
Ren reached out, brushing a loose strand of her dark hair back. "Maybe because you're different. You didn't appear from nothing—you replaced someone who already existed. The world hasn't decided if you're a mistake… or a continuation."
His words sent a chill down her spine. "And if it decides I'm a mistake?"
Ren smiled faintly, though his eyes darkened. "Then it'll do what it always does."
"Erase me," she said.
He nodded once.
Yumi's heart pounded. "And you? Where were you when it erased him?"
Ren's gaze hardened. "Watching."
She stared at him. "You watched him die?"
"I didn't need to. The world did it for me."
The silence that followed was unbearable.
Finally, Yumi whispered, "Why are you telling me this?"
Ren's voice dropped lower, almost like a confession. "Because last night, when the mirror cracked… the world saw you too."
Her breath caught. "What do you mean?"
Ren took a step closer, his golden eyes reflecting the faint light like fire. "The mirrors are gateways between what's real and what's imagined. When one cracks, something crosses over. You're not the only one being watched anymore."
He turned away, his cape brushing against the floor as he walked toward the window. "If you want to live, stay near me. Don't trust the magician. Don't touch the mirrors. And never—ever—listen if they start to speak."
Yumi's voice trembled. "Ren… what happened to the outsider's body?"
Ren paused at the window, his silhouette outlined by the dying sunlight. "They buried him in the garden. Under the roses."
"Why there?"
He looked back at her, and for the first time, his mask cracked — just slightly.
"Because he loved the roses," Ren said quietly. "And because I couldn't stand to burn him."
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Ren turned, leaving her alone with her racing thoughts and the faint echo of his words.
When the door closed, Yumi let out a shaky breath. Her hand trembled as she lifted it to her chest.
The heartbeat she felt was strong… too strong.
And from somewhere deep within the mirror on the opposite wall, a faint voice whispered back to her—
> "He didn't die under the roses."
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