>>Amber

Why the hell would he be thinking about that?!

Since he didn't pursue it after we left Aethel, the Elf Kingdom, I thought he'd just let it go.

"W-why do you want to know what!?" I asked.

"Why did you learn it? No," His voice got sterner, "Who did you learn it for?" For a moment he looked really scary

Which made me panic

Very badly

"You sound angry," I was wary

"I'm curious," He stepped towards me and I stepped back in response.

"Uhhhhh," In all honesty, I could not defend myself. Not with my current world setting, "Is knowing important?" He kept stepping towards me slowly, and I kept going back while avoiding his gaze.

"Yes," He replied, "Because no matter how much I think about it, it doesn't make any sense. Why would you know how to dance like that? You lived as a noble, there is no way you learned that there." Unfortunately my back hit a wall and I found myself trapped

!!!

I tried to move sideways but he slammed his hand next to my head to stop my escape path, "The only option is," He continued as I tried to move the other way but he slammed his other hand there, trapping me between his arms, "That you learned it in the two years we were away," I couldn't look at him, "But why?" I felt the intensity of his gaze, "For who?"

"You're overthinking it," I said, "I learned it just for fun,"

"Just for fun?" His voice was calm but I could sense the intensity in it, "From Where?"

"Look," I said, "It was-" I had no idea what to say, he was putting me on the spot, "I learned it from a friend!" It was from Youtube.

"My Lady, do not lie to me," He grabbed my chin and made me look at him, "I'm not fond of liars," Our eyes met and I saw his furrowed brows and that gaze that was looking for the answer.

"I-" I gulped, "You wouldn't understand even if I told you!" I was wracking my brain but I couldn't think of anything good to say.

"Try me," He said, "Name the person,"

"There was no person," I tried to move my face away but he tightened his grip on me, making my face stay in his direction.

"Are you trying to hide him?" He seemed to get more suspicious and why was he looking like he was frustrated? "I won't kill him, just tell me who it was."

!??!?!

What is he talking about? And kill? Why would he say that!? Wait, did he originally plan on killing someone if there was actually someone I did it for?!

"What!?!?" I was baffled, "There is no him!!!! Or her!!!"

"Then what is there?"

"Something you won't understand!" I tried to push him away and move. There was no way to explain this to him. But when I tried to push him away he grabbed my shoulders and slammed my back against the wall again.

It didn't hurt though, I felt a cushion behind me. A magic cushion.

"Then make me understand," His grip on my shoulders increased, and that did hurt me.

I winced in pain, "There was another life!" I blurted out, "I lived another life. One that only happened because you killed me!"

...

"What?" I felt his grip loosen while my eyes went wide.

!!

I gasped as I realized what I had said

Ah shit,

I can't believe I panicked that bad.

I let out a sigh as he let my shoulders go.

"I'm kidding," I said and began to walk, "I was just making things up." I wanted to run away when he caught my wrist and pulled me back.

"You're not lying." He said

"I-I am," I tried to move away again but he didn't let go of my wrist.

Instead I felt his magic take over me. My body stiffened and turned me towards him

!!!

He grabbed my chin with his fingers and made me look up at him, "You lived another life? You lied about living it in a dream, didn't you? You actually lived it."

I pursed my lips.

"It sounds ridiculous, Hael. You don't actually believe that, do you?"

"It's not ridiculous." He replied, "I already had my suspicions."

!!!

"What?" I was shocked.

"I've read all the records left by previous Tower Masters. One of them talked about transmigraters."

I gulped.

We looked at each other in silence,

The light made his crescent moon earring shine. There was silence everywhere else, with just the two of us standing in that gigantic corridor.

"I killed you?" He whispered.

....

I couldn't bring myself to say it again. I shouldn't have said it the first time. Any other person would have taken it as a joke, but I guess Hael isn't that person. He said he already had his suspicions.

He must have had them since the time I came back. He was the only one who noticed my change in The Cory Manor.

"You lived another life?" He asked again but I couldn't meet his gaze. If he already knows about people like me, I don't see any need to lie about it. The only reason I didn't tell him was because it sounded so ridiculous.

"Yes," I replied, "I actually came back in time after living that life."

"And,"

"You killed me,"

There was dead silence in the

"I did... what?"

I closed my eyes and let out a sigh, "You did," I opened them and looked at him again, "In my first life, you killed me along with the rest of the Cory Manor." I gulped, "On the night of my eighteenth birthday." A shudder went down my spine when I recalled that.

I felt the magic holding me fade away

"I see..." He gave me a very slow, disturbed nod, "Why?"

"Why?" I finally looked at him, "Did you not plan on killing me in this life?"

"No," His answer came immediately and without hesitation, which actually caught me off guard.

!!!

"Oh,"

"I would have killed you when I saw you again if I had any such plans." He said.

"Right..." I looked away. He didn't kill me, rather he does things that have caught me again.

There was silence between us for a few seconds but neither of us moved. Then Hael spoke again.

"So why did I kill you?"

...

I turned to glance at him, then looked away. It was an expected question to ask.

I folded my arms, "Well," I couldn't help but smile sarcastically at myself when I thought about it, "I hurt you a lot." I said, "I kept using the heart stone on you and as the years progressed, by the end of it, there were times I even let the guards beat you up." I paused, "I used to lock you up too."

"..."

"..."

"..." The awkward silence was expected as well. Things in this life turned out very differently, after all. He must be thinking about the differences.

"I don't hold it against you, I deserved it. I was like the rest of the people in The Cory Manor."

"Is that why you apologized?" He asked, "Because you did what everyone else did?"

"..." I knew he was asking about the apology I made back when I was Corvina, "Yes... And I'm sorry again. I-" Am I going to make some stupid excuse here? That I was in love with him? So, I couldn't keep myself in control? "No matter what, I shouldn't have done those things and I don't blame you for killing me."

There were a few seconds of silence again.

"So, this... Other life of yours, was it better?" His voice got lower but his question changed my mood a little.

A genuine smile spread across my face, "So much better," My face brightened, "It was perfect." My heart ached at the memory, "So much so that I would give everything to go back to it." I looked at him and found his gaze already on me.

His eyes had never left me but my words seemed to disturb him.

"You would give everything to go back?" He repeated my words. His eyebrows were furrowed, creating deep lines between them.

"I would," I nodded, "It was nothing like the life I have here. And I lived in an ordinary place, with an ordinary family. But everything was perfect." Hael turned his face away which I found odd. It was a strange realization I had at that time that he never really looks away from me.

So now that he did it, it sort of stung.

Silence took over the place again.

***

The magical light faded away and the wind died down. I opened my eyes and found myself in my room on the second floor of the cafe.

Hael had sent me back alone.

There was silence everywhere around me. After our conversation ended, Hael didn't speak to me again. I told him I wanted to go back to my place and he teleported me out of there without a word.

...

He didn't even look at me again.

I turned to look at the window that led to the balcony and walked over to it.

Is he disappointed now? That the original me was so bad to him?

I opened the door-sized window and walked to the balcony. Looking at the sky above, I sat down on the ground and sighed

Now what?