Chapter 31: Smoke Beneath the Stars

Chapter 31 – Smoke Beneath the Stars

Kaden walked slowly outside, but he didn't take the route toward his carriage. And still, Rea followed behind him in a slow and steady manner.

The night was quite beautiful, with stars filling the sky—making it one of the rarest things in the world of Darklore… a starry night.

A perfect time for a date.

But none of the two young people here cared about that.

One, because he just didn't care about any of this and wanted to go home and prepare for Fokay.

The other, because she was now in a bad mood after Nuke's words.

All in all,

The atmosphere was quite awkward. And Kaden didn't even try to change it.

'What a bother…' Kaden thought inwardly. He may have acted in favor of Rea back inside, but it was only because she was now officially his fiancée, so even if he didn't actually hold any feelings for her—or anything at all—he had to act on her behalf.

That's what honor does.

That's what responsibility does.

It makes you act in ways you don't want to. It makes you do things you'd rather leave undone, all for the sake of appearances, duty, and weight you never really asked for.

It was so… constraining.

But what could you do?

In this world, even the most unfettered man has responsibilities.

So really…

What does being free even mean?

Kaden didn't know. And truthfully, it wasn't his goal.

His goal was to be strong. Strong enough that even the constraints—responsibility, honor, and reputation—could be crushed under the weight of his power.

And if his strength wasn't enough?

Kaden smirked silently, his blood-red eyes glowing fiercely.

'Then I'll just have to die again. And again. And again. Until I reach the point where I'm untouchable. Until I reach a point death could never claim me, until even death starts to miss me.'

That was his goal.

But that was only his goal.

So—

"What's your goal?" Kaden suddenly asked as he stopped walking. He didn't turn back immediately.

They had arrived at a kind of a hill. A perfect spot to look up at the sky.

'What made me walk this way?' Kaden thought softly before snapping out of it as Rea's voice broke the silence.

"My goal?" Rea repeated softly, her voice carrying an inquiring tone.

She hadn't expected such a question—not from him.

Kaden nodded, his back still to her. "Yes. Your goal. What do you wish to achieve in your life?"

"If that can make you open up easily, I'll go first. My goal is nothing incredible, I just want to be strong enough that nothing can threaten me or my family."

Kaden said it in a nonchalant manner, like it was nothing special.

But how hard was it to be strong enough that nothing could threaten you in this cursed world?

That was something Rea didn't fully understand. Her mind was still clouded with anger, and maybe she wasn't mature enough yet to grasp the full weight of what he had said.

So,

She just brushed Kaden's goal off as something basic. Something every man loved to claim.

"My goal…"

She paused. Then gathered herself.

"My goal is to revive my family. To make it stand again alongside the other three great houses. I also want to find the killer of my grandfather and take revenge. And I…"

She paused again.

She didn't know why she was telling something like this to a man she had just met. But somehow, she just felt like saying it. Like the words needed to come out. Like the moment demanded it.

She wanted to tell him her goal, but in the same breath, she wanted to share her fear with this boy who looked like he feared nothing.

"And I… want to be happy too."

That was a weird thing to say. Because what does being happy even mean?

Such an abstract statement.

Such an abstract word.

Happiness.

"What can make you happy?"

"Will you be happy if you succeed in taking revenge and bringing your family back to the same status as ours?"

Kaden asked instantly. His red eyes still fixed on the distant horizon, as if there was something fascinating out there.

But really, there wasn't.

He just thought that it will be easier to open up to someone when he didn't have to feel his eyes on them. 

Just like how a sinner enters a church and confesses to a faceless priest.

Same concept.

Different setting.

"Yes… I would be happy if that happened." Her voice wavered. It was doubtful.

And Kaden picked up on it.

He finally turned and looked at her.

Needless to say, Rea was a breathtaking woman. White hair and red eyes that glowed like rubies, with a slender figure that showed the grace and control of a true noble.

But Kaden looked at her with impassive eyes. Her beauty didn't even register.

He was more curious about something else.

"What are you preparing to do for this goal of yours?"

That's what he wanted to know.

Because he was prepared to die. Prepared to suffer mental breakdowns. Prepared to go through horrible deaths again and again just to achieve the strength he needed.

So… what about her?

Rea hesitated.

She didn't know what to say.

What was she really ready to do to achieve her goal?

She had never thought about it. Not seriously.

Hell, she didn't even know how to achieve her goals in the first place—so how could she know what she was ready to sacrifice?

"I… I don't know," she answered quietly. Her voice shaking slightly.

Kaden looked at her silently. His gaze didn't hold any criticism.

Then he smiled.

"It's fine. You're still a child after all."

He said, as if he himself was not a child. 

He then started walking away, but his voice echoed softly behind him.

"You'll never succeed in your goal if you don't know what you're willing to let go. What you're willing to sacrifice."

But Rea's voice cut through the air—sharp and loud.

"And you? What are you willing to let go?"

She shouted the words at his back.

Kaden didn't stop walking.

But he still responded.

"My life. I'm willing to die. Again and again. I've already made death my friend for this little goal of mine."

And with that—

He disappeared.

Rea stood there, stunned.

His own life?

'Is that why…?'

Is that why he didn't fear death?

Why he didn't fear failure?

Because he was already prepared to lose it all?

'How a 15 years old boy can think like this?'

She didn't move. Just looked in the direction Kaden had walked away, her eyes distant and unreadable.

And after a while… a small smile appeared on her face.

"What am I willing to sacrifice for, huh…"

She turned and walked away.

This time, her steps weren't hesitant or pensive.

They carried a bit more purpose. A bit more weight.

Still not as steady as Kaden's.

But they had progressed.

There was smoke now. A faint trail.

And as they say—

Where there is smoke…

There is fire.

—End of Chapter 31—