CHAPTER LIX
"The Battle Within"
(Caelum's POV.)
Last night, everything had aligned. Every piece of my plan was falling perfectly into place. I had lured Cel exactly where I wanted her. One final push and I could have crushed her completely — emotionally, physically, mentally. The trap was set. The victory was mine to claim.
And yet…
I let her go.
My fingers, once trembling with power, had suddenly softened. My heart — that cursed, traitorous heart — faltered in the final moment. I walked away. I let her live.
Why?
I leaned back against the cold, obsidian wall of my chamber, my breath shallow and ragged. My chest felt tight, not with rage — but with something far more dangerous: confusion. A strange warmth that I couldn't explain or control.
Could it be… love?
No. I shook my head violently, as if the thought itself was poison I needed to spit out. I've spent my entire life erasing softness, suffocating weakness. Love? For her?
Never.
But then Flash stepped forward from the shadows where he'd been silently watching. His voice — always calm, always cutting through the noise — pierced the silence like a blade.
"Cael," he said gently, yet firmly. "You can't hide from this forever. Cel's love… your love… they're not enemies you can fight off with magic or hatred. You're feeling something real. Denying it won't make it disappear."
I clenched my fists, blood rushing to my ears.
Before I could lash out, Chiko — always the voice of balance — added quietly, "Maybe you're just tired, Cael. Tired of pretending to be the villain. Why don't you just accept Cel? Let go of the desire to rule everyone's fate. Maybe, just maybe, you don't have to carry this burden anymore."
My throat went dry.
"Stop it," I growled. "Both of you."
I turned toward Flash, my voice low but trembling with restrained fury.
"You know how much I value you, Flash and you too Chiko. That's the only reason you're still breathing. But don't overstep. Don't say things that might force me to silence you forever."
But Flash didn't flinch.
He looked at me with those infuriatingly calm eyes — eyes that saw too much.
"You can kill me if that's what you need, Cael. But even if you end my life… it won't quiet what's happening inside you. What will you do about that?"
His words struck me like thunder. For a moment, I stood there — a storm of pride and fear and guilt tearing me apart from the inside.
Finally, I whispered, barely loud enough to be heard,
"Leave. Now. When I need you again, I'll call you."
Flash didn't argue. He simply bowed his head slightly, then walked out.
The room was silent once again.
But inside me, everything was screaming.
I had driven him out of my chambers — yes. But what about the emotions I couldn't chase out of my soul? That soft voice I kept hearing in my dreams? The way my heartbeat raced every time Cel looked at me — not with fear… but with something else?
Hope.
What is this feeling? Why does her name echo in my mind like a song I never wanted to hear… but now can't stop listening to?
I dropped to my knees, my breath shallow, my pulse wild.
If this is love…
Then maybe I've already lost.
"Her Silence Screamed Louder Than Words"
Some time later, Cel entered my room.
The moment I turned to face her, I could see the questions swimming in her eyes — unspoken, but louder than thunder. Her lips remained sealed, but their silence screamed at me, begging for answers. Her hands, clenched tightly around the fabric of her gown, looked as though they longed to grab me by the shoulders and demand the truth I kept hiding.
I couldn't bear to look at her.
So, I turned my face away — not out of pride, but out of fear. Because I knew. I knew that if I looked into those eyes for too long, I might crumble.
But for how long could I keep running from her questions? The day I send her walking toward death — and yes, that day is coming — what will I do if her eyes ask me then, one final time, "Why?" Will I still be able to look away? Or will the guilt drown me?
Because no one… no one has ever loved me the way Cel does. Not with this much honesty, with this much burning intensity. Her love doesn't ask anything in return, and maybe that's what terrifies me the most.
And yet…
I have to reject her.
I must.
Her love, no matter how sincere, is dangerous — not to her, but to me. It threatens everything I've built, everything I've buried. And even if it shines like light, I've lived too long in the dark. I can't afford to let it in.
These thoughts spiraled in my mind like a storm, and I didn't even notice when Cel stepped closer… until I felt her breath behind me.
I froze.
She was right there. So close, I could feel the warmth of her presence — the quiet tremble of her longing. My heart pounded violently in my chest, unsure whether it wanted to run or reach back.
Should I turn around?
Should I leave the room before this moment becomes too real?
Should I pretend — just one more time — that I still care for her, even if it's a lie?
Before I could decide, I felt it.
Her hand — slipping between mine, slowly moving up to rest gently on my shoulder. And then… she pulled me into a back hug.
Soft, slow, heartbreaking.
She held me like someone who already knew the end was near. Like someone memorizing the shape of me before it vanished forever. And in that stillness, I realized — she knew.
She knew that in the days to come, one of us wouldn't survive.
Maybe it would be me.
Maybe it would be her.
But either way… we were running out of time.
Even though the crush Mother Fairy placed on me had finally dissolved — her magic lifted like mist under the sun — I still didn't know if death had truly stepped away… or if it was simply waiting for the right moment to strike.
Cel held me tighter. Not saying a word. She didn't need to.
And I…
I let her.
For just a breath, just a second more — I let myself be held.
Because tomorrow, I may not be able to feel her arms around me ever again.
"Even If You Kill Me, I Will Still Love You"
I finally turned toward Cel.
Tears shimmered in her eyes, quiet and relentless — the kind of tears that didn't beg for sympathy, but revealed a soul quietly breaking. Her lips trembled as if every word she was about to say would cost her a piece of herself. And then, in a voice so soft and fragile it barely touched the air, she whispered...
"Cael… I love you. And I always will."
The room stilled. My breath caught in my throat. But she wasn't finished.
"If you kill me someday… I'll still love you. Even if you sentence me to something worse than death — I'll still choose to love you. Every time. In every life."
Her voice cracked, but she didn't stop.
"And even if you—"
She never got to finish that sentence.
Because I closed the distance between us and pressed my lips to hers.
My kiss wasn't gentle. It was trembling, desperate, and full of everything I hadn't said. My lips told her what my mouth hadn't had the courage to speak: Cel, no matter what happens now, I won't break your heart. I won't leave you again. I can't. Not anymore.
She froze for a second — maybe in shock — and then melted into me. Her arms wrapped around my body like she'd been waiting for this moment through every storm, every silence, every betrayal. She clung to me like she was terrified this would vanish too, and honestly… I was afraid of that, too.
But for now, there was only us.
Two shattered souls, holding on like the world outside didn't exist. Like time had folded in on itself and only this kiss mattered — this shared breath, this aching love that refused to die.
She pulled me closer, tighter, burying her face in the curve of my neck as if trying to memorize the scent of me, the feel of my skin, the sound of my heart beating against hers.
And I let her.
Because right now…
We didn't need words.
We didn't need apologies.
We didn't even need promises.
We only needed each other.
Two broken pieces of light in a world that had tried everything to turn us to darkness.
And as we kissed — again, and again — we let the rest of the world fade away. For this moment, we weren't Cael and Cel, two enemies tangled by fate and duty.
We were just two lovers.
Holding on.
Sinking into each other.
Falling, fearlessly, into the love that had always been waiting.
To be continue....