12 p.m. The day was bright, but the energy was heavy, just like yesterday. My head throbbed, a dull ache reminding me that drinking had solved nothing. Rain had passed, leaving the air sharp and still, and the sun struggled through the lingering clouds.
I rolled onto my side and forced myself upright. That was when I noticed a letter resting neatly on the side table.
Carefully, I opened it.
"It is not often that I express my feelings, but this should be one of those times.
I had a dream last night. Perhaps the last piece of happiness granted to me before a lifetime of… well, you understand.
A fantasy where I held control over my life. A dream where you and I were married. Where we left this land and lived exactly as we desired.
That can never be. Duty cannot be abandoned. But the dream remains, and it will always be worth having.
I know you understand how difficult it is to choose between freedom and obligation.
If I were in control, I would choose you. Every single time.
This is not meant to deepen the wound we share. It is meant to bring closure.
The time we shared was the only happiness I felt during my mission. Every battle, every fight, I looked forward to the possibility of encountering you as my ally.
And I know you well enough to understand this: you would never abandon this life for anyone, and if you did, you would no longer be the man I believed you to be.
So this is the end of us, Kael. It hurts, because we are destined to meet but never meant to last forever.
Still, do not let this stop you from attending my wedding. I want you there, not as what we could have been, but as my friend.
Come for me, Kael.
P.S. I wrote this right after I put you to bed. Before I left, I smiled and cried, knowing it would be the last time I could care for you in that way.
Yours, Selena"
⸻
"Wow," I whispered. "She really did."
My hand trembled as I noticed something beneath the letter. A wedding invitation.
The event was today, at the king's palace in Hassellania. The dizziness that had plagued me faded. A friend had returned to my mind.
By the time I arrived, the sun was bright, illuminating white stone towers above the valley of Abrame. Banners of gold and deep blue fluttered against the sky like vows carved into daylight. Bells rang, ceremonial and measured, not sharp but inevitable. This was not a wedding born from desire alone; this was history sealing itself.
I stepped forward anyway. This would end it, I told myself. Seeing her with another would finally kill the hope that lingered. I believed that lie all the way to the gates.
Inside, the cathedral breathed wealth and silence. Marble floors reflected sunlight streaming through the stained-glass windows. Nobles lined the aisles, colors bold and only afforded by power. And then,
"Kael."
I turned. Zephyr stood there, calm as ever, hair tied back, eyes steady. Older, quieter, tempered by life's unyielding lessons.
"You came," he said.
"I said I would," I replied.
He studied me, long and deliberate. "You look like someone attending his own funeral."
"Feels about right," I muttered.
Zephyr exhaled through his nose. Not a laugh, not sympathy. Just truth. "Do not sit too close to the front. Kings notice everything."
That word landed like a stone. "Kings?" I froze.
Zephyr's gaze sharpened. "You did not read the invitation properly, did you?"
My chest tightened. "She is marrying into royalty?"
He shook his head slowly. "No. She is royalty."
The bells rang again, their tones slicing through the cathedral. My vision locked on the aisle.
She stepped forward. Selena. Not in armor, not in shadow, not with the bloodied resolve of a warrior. White silk flowed from her shoulders, gold embroidery tracing the crest of Abrame along her veil. Each step measured, deliberate. Trained. Every motion a promise to the duty she was born to serve.
Beside her, her father. King Timbrine of Abrame. The same presence I had faced months ago, when he tested my soul instead of my sword.
My breath left me.
I never stood a chance.
And yet, when she lifted her gaze, it found me. Just for a moment, long enough to fracture the world. Her expression unchanged, but her eyes softened, recognized, remembered, not the stranger in the crowd, but the man she once chose, even if only in a dream.
I waited for the pain to leave. It did not.
Instead, it settled deeper. Sharper. Quieter.
Because now I understood. This was not love stolen. This was love never granted permission to exist.
Zephyr's presence beside me reminded me I was not alone. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"I thought this would end it," I said. "Seeing her married, untouchable."
"And?" he prompted.
I watched Selena stand at the altar, radiant, unyielding. "It did not kill it. It made it eternal."
Vows were spoken, promises etched in stone, applause thundered across the hall. I did not clap. I merely stood. For the first time, I did not ask God why. I asked for strength, to witness, to let go without turning away. To love her by honoring her choices, even if it meant my heart remained a silent kingdom of its own.
When the ceremony ended, she did not look back. She had already said goodbye last night. And I had finally arrived.
The celebration carried on. Laughter, music, raised glasses for futures that would never include me. I left before the day grew loud.
The wind met me beyond the palace walls, cool and honest. No banners, no crowns, just distance. I did not look back, not because it did not hurt, but because some things are sacred when left untouched.
Above Hassellania, lights of the realm blurred into constellations of gold. Somewhere below, Selena learned to stand beside a throne. Somewhere above, I learned to stand alone.
And between those truths, God remained, not a voice, not an answer, but solid ground beneath me.
I rose into the sky, carried by shadow and faith alike. For the first time, I understood: love does not always demand to be chosen. Sometimes it asks only to be released.
And I released her, not from memory, but from claim.
The day swallowed the palace whole. Ahead, only the path remained. And I followed it.