Chapter 165

Deep night. Asad returned to the dragon palace.

The black scales covering his skin had spread much further than before, now occupying about two-thirds of his body.

"Your Highness."

Asad entered the bedroom. Kinaine was lying on the bed exactly as he had left him. Since he had deliberately not drawn the curtains, the moonlight entering through the large window brightly illuminated the pale face. It was light enough to wake a sleeping person, yet his lover remained motionless in sleep.

Asad staggered toward the bed.

"Don't worry. Although I failed this time, there must be another way. There should be helpful books in Basar's library."

Asad climbed onto the bed, lay down, and whispered as he embraced Kinaine's body.

"Even if not, I'll definitely restore everything to how it was, by whatever means necessary. I promise."

"......"

"...You're not angry that I tried to marry someone other than Your Highness, are you? It was all for your sake. I didn't do it with any other intention."

Asad rubbed his cheek against Kinaine's chest, as if acting spoiled.

At that moment, Asad's eyes wavered.

Kinaine had always smelled good. It wasn't the scent of pheromones, as he usually controlled his pheromones perfectly. It must have been his unique body scent.

But now, nothing could be sensed. All that could be smelled was the cold and disgusting odor of death.

"......"

Asad slowly raised his head and looked down at his lover. Then he continued speaking as if nothing was wrong.

"Come to think of it, Your Highness also enjoyed bathing. Let's go to the bath. I'll wash you."

As Asad was getting up, his eyes suddenly caught sight of Kinaine's torn shirt hem. Especially around the left shoulder, where Hasan's sword had stabbed him, it was tattered. Thanks to the purification magic, the clothes were clean, but the torn parts hadn't been repaired.

Why hadn't he noticed this? He felt upset for no reason. Asad frowned and reached out.

"Before that, it would be better to change your clothes first. Stay there. I'll change them for you."

Because he disliked seeing him in clothes with sword marks, Asad first undressed Kinaine. When all the shirt buttons were undone, a body full of scars was revealed. Asad's hand trembled finely at the sight of the body, so thin that the shape of bones was visible.

Asad ultimately couldn't remove the lower garments.

"It must be uncomfortable to move, right? I'm going to carry you, so don't be surprised."

Asad carefully warned and lifted his lover's body.

It was strange. They say dead people become heavier, but Kinaine wasn't like that. He was much lighter than Asad remembered.

"...When you wake up, you'll need to eat a lot. I'll prepare the foods you like, so you must eat everything without leaving anything."

The thin body seemed like it might break at any moment, so he couldn't put strength into his arms.

It wasn't originally like this. Except for the thin bone structure typical of omegas, it had been a firm body with well-defined muscles. But now, no trace of that time could be found in Kinaine.

He thought of the life force that had leaked out little by little, like water seeping through the cracks of a broken cup.

There had been days when he smelled blood on Kinaine. Each time, Kinaine had made clumsy excuses about accidentally bumping into something, and he had mocked Kinaine for making such mistakes.

It must have hurt a lot even then.

It must have hurt, continuously.

He had cruelly tormented such a person. He had strangled that slender neck. He had made him kneel on the cold floor for days, led him to be killed by magical beasts, and slashed his heart with a tongue as sharp as a blade.

"......"

Asad suddenly recalled a truth he didn't want to acknowledge.

In fact, Kinaine had had another choice. If he hadn't revealed the truth until the end, he could have become the dragon's bride, healed his body, and lived in glory...

But Kinaine hadn't chosen that. He hadn't chosen his own life. Even though any living being would naturally prioritize their own life.

Your Highness wasn't that kind of person.

The prince Asad remembered loved his life, and his soul shone brightly like an unquenchable flame. He was never someone who would easily give up his life.

But what about the Kinaine he met in the spirit realm? He didn't fear death and used his body like a tool. He had come to no longer value his own life.

Asad now understood too. That pain had carved and carved away at his lover, ultimately shaping him into such a form.

And also that he hadn't been by his lover's side until it came to that.

"Gasp."

Suddenly, strength drained from his body and everything went black before his eyes.

When he regained consciousness, Asad was kneeling on the floor.

"Your Highness!"

Asad screamed at the sight of Kinaine collapsed on the floor. He didn't even think of getting up and hurriedly crawled on his knees to approach Kinaine.

"Your Highness, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

He quickly embraced Kinaine. But the body in his arms was cold and stiff. It felt like holding a piece of wood rather than a person.

At that moment, something hot welled up from within his chest.

"Your Highness, I..."

He had been someone too precious to even dare touch. It was unimaginable for him to be insulted by someone, let alone be made to kneel.

If someone had treated Kinaine that way, wouldn't it have been his duty to end that person's life?

But instead of protecting his lover, he had pushed someone who was already standing at the edge of a cliff.

"I was wrong..."

I was wrong. Please forgive me.

Words of apology poured endlessly from his parted lips. But not even a refusal to forgive came back.

"Please..."

The power of magic once again enveloped Kinaine's body. It was magical power strong enough to restore even a dying injured person to a perfect state.

But the moment it touched Kinaine's body, the brilliantly shining magical power vanished futilely into the air without creating any miracle.

"Please, Your Highness..."

Like the endless stream of pleas, Asad continuously poured out magical power. He tried desperately to breathe life back into the cooling body.

But in truth, he knew.

That it was too late.

"I was wrong..."

The dragon embraced the cold, lifeless body of his lover.

The world was terribly quiet in its stillness.

* * *

Even in Basar's study, Asad couldn't find an answer. If Basar had known the answer, he would have revived his own mate. But Basar had failed, and all Asad found were traces of that failure.

Asad began to search the entire world for a way to resurrect the dead. He didn't miss even a single far-fetched superstition, and would rush anywhere if there was even a small clue.

But the result was always the same. The more he struggled, the clearer it became that the dead could not be brought back to life.

But Asad didn't give up.

What was needed to revive the dead?

It was a miracle.

Asad stood in the ruined temple. It was the same temple where he had tried to hold the wedding ceremony before.

All other temples had been completely destroyed by Asad, so this was the only temple remaining in both worlds.

"So you still won't appear."

He had thought that if he destroyed temples and insulted the statues, perhaps they would show themselves before him. But the gods merely remained silent. As if loftily untouched by any desecration.

Asad glared at the statues looking down on him. Once, he had knelt and pleaded before these statues.

"I've pleaded enough. If you won't give it, I'll have to take it."

That was Asad's final warning to the gods. Asad turned his back on the temple and left. Behind him, a long, pitch-black shadow rose like a tsunami and completely destroyed the temple.

Asad went to his lover's side, thinking about what he had to do.

"Your Highness, I've returned."

The cold grew more intense as he approached, but Asad stepped into the room as if he didn't feel it at all.

In the center of the room lay a massive piece of ice. The ice, reflecting the sunlight coming through the window, sparkled so brilliantly that it could have been mistaken for a jewel if not for the cold it emanated.

Asad stopped without approaching further. With a wave of his hand, as if shooing away an insect, the uninvited guest standing near the ice was instantly pulled before Asad.

Though one might have been startled by such a sudden force, the uninvited guest wasn't flustered.

"You knew I would come?"

"Yes, because you're obsessed with me."

Asad looked down at the uninvited guest with an expressionless face.

"I'm going to open the gate to the divine realm. Shinsurial, you know how."