Sorry 42

 Chapter 42

    ***

    

The two people at the bar stared wide-eyed at Kylan's entrance.

    "What the hell, you. As soon as you leave, you're back at this hour."

    Thompson spoke first. Then Kylan glanced at Thompson with a look that said, "Don't be silly.” His hair was slightly disheveled, as if he'd been in a hurry to get somewhere.

    But he had come back from the barber shop with his hair and beard trimmed, and his face was clean-shaven.

    "You shaved your beard and cut your hair, man, you look handsome."

    Thompson squinted at Euris and spoke aloud. There was mischief in his eyes. Kylan shrugged off the comment and stepped in front of her.

    "Have you finished eating?"

    "Huh? Yeah............."

    "Let's get out of here."

    With that, Kylan was out the door like the wind again. Euris stumbled to her feet. 

    "Yes, sir, thanks for the meal."

    Then she opened the door and walked out. In an instant, a crisp silence descended on the bar.

    Thompson muttered as he cleared the empty plate.

    "I'm not an old man..................."

    Kylan stood outside the door of the tavern, burning his cigar. Euris shielded her hand from the sun as she walked toward him. As she walked closer, the scent of tobacco wafted in. It was the same scent she'd smelled in the room yesterday.

    "Don’t come closer, it's not good for your health."

    "We need to talk."

    Kylan looked up at Euris, his voice a little urgent.

    "I'll take you to the train station."

    He tossed his half-burned cigar to the ground and crushed it with his shoe. The look was very foreign to Euris.

    "Your husband will be worried.”

    Euris couldn't say anything in response. She followed Kylan, who acted as if he didn't remember his words from yesterday.

    The train station was quiet on a weekday morning. The two walked slowly into the station. The train was due in ten minutes, and Euris stood there, clutching her ticket.

    She hadn't said anything the whole way here. She wanted to say something about yesterday, but she couldn't think of anything to say.

    A steady breeze blew through her hair. Kylan just stared down at Euris with a gentle expression on his face. His gaze was somehow overwhelming, so she turned away. Then he spoke.

    "If stopping the war is your primary goal."

    Euris turned at the sound of his voice and looked at him again.

    "In two weeks, come back to that inn."

    "...."

    He sounded the same as yesterday. He had no intention of changing his mind.

    His skin, still white and flawless, glowed in the sunlight. The familiar red eyes stared back at her from beneath heavy black lashes.

    "..................How can you be so sure?"

    After a long moment of silence, Euris spoke.

    "What makes you so sure we can stop the war if I follow you? Aren't you.............. from the future, too?"

    Kylan blinked at her words. He seemed to be mulling over what he'd just heard. After a moment, he furrowed his brow. His expression was one of disbelief.

    "No."

    The answer came back in the affirmative, all too clearly. The terseness of his tone was rather unconvincing. 

    "Then how............... can you listen to all my stories and not be surprised?"

     "I believe everything you say, Euris, and you know I'm not easily surprised."

    He spoke as if it were a casual conversation. Euris knew Kylan was a master at hiding his emotions, so she couldn't really argue.

    "The war.............

    "I can stop it." (Kylan)

    The answer came back in a hushed voice, intercepting the last word.

    "You give me a reason."

    "...."

    The words were vague, but Euris remained silent, the sincerity in his eyes rendering her speechless.

    "If you're right, I'm an imperial bloodline of Lepallon, and I'll bet my bloodline that I'll keep my word."

    Kylan added playfully. Euris shouted back.

    "I'm not kidding."

    "The same for me."

    He shot back with a stern look.

    "..."

    "...."

    "..................If I don't come..................." (Euris)

    "Like I said yesterday."

    As Kylan finished speaking, the train pulled in, a loud noise engulfing the space, a slight breeze ruffling their hair.

    The two stared at each other in the noisy space. Kylan watched her for a moment, then blinked once.

    "Goodbye."

    He gave a brief greeting in a dry tone, then slowly turned around and disappeared. His greeting was short and clear, as if he was sure he would see her again next time.

    She watched his back for a moment, and only when he disappeared beyond the platform wall did Euris shift her gaze to the train's doors, which opened wide in front of her.

    Kylan left the platform and lit a cigar in silence.

    'One life lived, one life returned,...................'

    What she had told him the night before disturbed him. Exhaling a long puff of smoke, he looked up at the sky.

    The sky was resentfully clear, contrasting with the clutter of his own mind. It was getting a little cooler, which meant fall was on its way.

    After walking along the path for a while, he came to a bench under a large tree and sat down tiredly. Taking a long breath, he tilted his head back and closed his eyes.

    "I wonder if Yuris will show up after this week?”

    For all the effort he had put into severing the ties that bound him to her, it had been so easy to let them crumble at the sight of Euris's face.

    It was as if all the years he had been trying to forget had been skipped.

    The tilt of his head caused his hair to fall softly behind him. He could feel the sun beating down on his face, but he didn't mind. The sound of late summer grasshopper chirping pierced his ears, and he couldn't help but think of a memory. His eyes remained closed, and he breathed in slowly.

    'I was about fourteen....................'

    It was a time so long ago now that he could barely remember it, but Kylan hadn't forgotten it.

    Euris had always loved to play in the water, even as a child, and thanks to her, Kylan, who often played with her, had learned to swim.

    There was a ravine near the Count of Hebron's estate, and it was a great place to swim.

    His parents, who had accompanied him when he was younger, had stopped going with him as he grew older, but they had always firmly warned him not to go into deep water or strong currents.

    Usually an adult, such as a nanny, would accompany him, but that day it was just the two of them.

    Euris was motivated and in good spirits that day. On the way to the valley, she fluttered like a butterfly and enjoyed the heat.

    It was summer, and the sound of grasshoppers was thick. The cobblestones, warmed by the midday heat, were bubbling with algae. Kylan was happy to see Euris so excited, because by then he had already realized that if she was happy, he was happy.

    The accident came out of nowhere as the two children jumped into the water without hesitation. While Kylan was distracted, Euris was swept away by a rapid.

    Their interrupted pleas for help echoed across the valley's waters. Not far away, Kylan swam away, frightened by the sight of a small head dipping in and out of the water.

    Luckily, Kylan was a pretty good swimmer, and he quickly pulled her out of the water. With all his strength, he scooped her up and carried her to the surface.

    "Wake up, Euris, please..................!"

    He laid her down on the gravel. She was soaked to the skin, her hair sticking to her cheeks and dripping water, and the pebbles had darkened in color due to the water. The grasshopper cried softly.

    Euris's consciousness did not return easily. Despite the slaps on her cheeks and the crushing pressure on her chest, her pale complexion remained the same. Her face, white as a corpse, her eyes closed, made him imagine the worst.

    Kylan had loved her at that age, when his love had been so pure. 

    "I'm sorry, Euris, I'm sorry......this is the only way to keep you alive."

    ****

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