Chapter 96

Seris’s POV

“I like you a lot.” His words echoed as my fingertips brushed his cheek. His eyes—once bright with adoration—were sealed shut. I remembered how he’d promised, “I wish I could protect you,” and I’d answered him, “I wish I could protect you too, Kaien.” Now tears blurred my vision as I cradled his face. “Wake up, please,” I whispered. “You can’t die on me, Kaien.”

A memory cut through my sorrow: “Will you run away with me when things get worse?” he’d once asked. He hadn’t fled; instead, he’d taken the blow meant for me. Instinctively, I seized a fallen tree trunk, pulling with every ounce of strength until I wrenched it free from his side and flung it aside. His body slid to the earth—motionless, silent. Not a sigh, not a flicker of an eyelid.

His voice resonated in my mind: “You know I do care about you, Seris.” And again, a gentler murmur: “I wouldn’t mind if you were mine, though.” How bitter those words became, reminding me he’d stayed when my