CHAPTER 31

After Lucian left, the silence didn't remain silent.

Even the silence was screaming at me.

I still had my back turned to the door. I couldn't breathe… couldn't cry.

No tears fell, but something inside me… emptied out.

Lucian's footsteps faded.

The door closed.

Another sealing sound.

⸻

Had it been hours… or just minutes? I couldn't tell.

Eventually, someone came.

The same two mage officers stood beside me.

Their faces showed no emotion. One of them simply asked:

"Can you walk?"

I nodded.

I stood up with difficulty.

With each step… my throat still burned.

The taste of the truth serum… still lingered on my tongue.

⸻

I was taken to the Tower's internal discipline chamber.

Surrounded by glass, but magically dimmed.

You couldn't see who came… and no one could see you leave.

I was alone.

⸻

The next day…

An official decision was delivered.

One of the mage officers appeared with a cold, sealed document in hand.

"Mage apprentice Elysia has violated directives by making contact with authorized knight Kai Durenwall in the mission area; this action goes against mage protocol.

She will be kept under observation. Interrogation is concluded. No additional punishment will be applied."

Signed below:

High Mage Lucian Virell.

That was all.

No mention of dark magic.

No mention of the game, of memories, or of truths.

All I had done was touch Kai… and that was considered a crime.

Lucian hadn't told anyone. Even though he hated me… he still didn't tell anyone.

Once I was back in my room, I opened the system window.

For some reason… a small sliver of hope.

[Romance Status: Lucian – MAX]

I narrowed my eyes.

So nothing had changed.

Did the system not record real experiences?

Or… were heartbreaks invisible to the system?

Suddenly… another name popped up.

[Romance Status: Cassian – MAX]

Cassian?

I hadn't even met him.

It happened because I completed some side quests, sure… but we hadn't even locked eyes.

Love at first sight?

Ridiculous.

"There has to be a way to delete this," I muttered as I fumbled with the system.

But no. The system… felt like it was still in alpha.

This world I was trapped in was complex, detailed, almost real… but the system was still version 1.0.

Incomplete.

Flawed.

Then I remembered Kai.

When I saw his memories… I learned that his mother had been killed by a mage.

I had never noticed before because… I used to skip most dialogues while playing the game.

But now… it was real.

Kai was real.

And I… owed him an apology.

I had no idea how he was doing after the mind attack.

What did he go through? What does he remember? Has he recovered?

I had to go to Lucian.

I knocked on his door.

"What is it?" he said.

No expression on his face.

His voice was like metal.

"…I need to see Kai," I said.

He answered without looking me in the eye:

"Go."

That was it.

No questions, no explanations.

As I walked out of his room, a void grew inside me.

On the way… I heard a disturbance.

Up ahead, Garon was grappling with another NPC.

Screams, shoves, threats.

I stepped in.

"Enough! What's going on here?!"

Garon turned to me.

His eyes… looked strange.

A short pause. Then he lowered his head. "I'm sorry… I just got a bit angry," he said.

But two seconds later, he started yelling again.

His face darkened, his hands trembled.

I had to pull him away.

This Garon really seemed senile… something was off.

Still, I had no intention of dealing with that now.

I left him and continued toward Kai.

I reached the infirmary.

My heart… felt like it had hidden behind my ribs.

I held my breath.

Knocked on the door.

"Come in."

I opened the door.

Kai… was lying in bed.

Bandages on his shoulder, a scratch on his forehead.

But his gaze was still sharp.

His expression didn't change when he saw me.

"…Elysia."

"I need to talk to you," I said.

I closed the door.

I stayed standing.

He sat up.

But didn't get out of bed.

His eyes scanned me from head to toe.

"I heard Lucian tore into you," he said quietly.

"…We talked.

Because I got involved in a mission I wasn't assigned to… and messed up some things."

Kai paused for a moment.

Then, with a sarcastic tone:

"Saving me… and maybe a bit of jealousy… could've played into that decision."

I didn't reply.

If I told another lie… I wouldn't be able to stand myself.

"There was a stranger in my mind," he said.

"She held my hand. Took me away.

Then killed a creature.

That was you, wasn't it?"

He looked at me.

"I remember the moment you held me in your arms clearly.

It was… quite heroic."

My eyes welled up.

I swallowed hard.

"…Yes. It was."

A pause.

"I hate mages," Kai said.

"Because a mage killed my mother."

I knew. But… hearing it from him was something else.

I slowly stepped forward.

Reached the edge of his bed.

One more step… and I could've touched him, but I didn't.

"I'm sorry."

Kai lowered his head.

Then murmured with a bitter smile:

"If you had just told me from the start… I wouldn't have been angry.

Maybe I'd grumble a bit.

But I would've understood."

"I didn't want to hurt you, Kai. I really didn't."

A long silence followed.

Kai's eyes… softened for a moment.

But then he pulled back.

Leaning against the pillow, he looked up at the ceiling.

"You should've been a knight," he said.

I couldn't help but smile.

Because he was right.

"You're right," I whispered.