No, she was truly crying.
Like the child I had once seen, who cried deeply in her heart.
The moment I understood this, regret overwhelmed me. If I had noticed her pain earlier, I might not have seen her like this. I regretted it deeply.
“I knew. I knew that I was wrong, that I made the wrong choice! But I was scared. Even if it was a lie, the happiness I felt in that moment was so sweet that I couldn’t bring myself to let it go. Perhaps forgetting everything and living like this could have been happiness for us. Yet, I acted selfishly and ended up hurting you,” Bianca confessed through her tears.
She had told me before that she was used to waiting patiently. That it didn’t matter if I couldn’t love her.
How could I not realize how much remorse and sadness were hidden in her seemingly casual words? Why hadn’t I understood her sooner?
“It’s all my fault. From the start, I knew everything would end in disaster, and yet, I still did something that hurt you. Cain, I’m sorry. I must truly be a terrible woman. So please, never forgive me.”
I took a step closer to Bianca as she cried, declaring herself a sinner as though in penitence.
“…Ah.”
I gently and tightly embraced her.
“…Ca…in…”
I had forgiven her long ago.
“I’m sorry, Bianca. I’m sorry for not understanding your heart sooner, for turning away from your pain, for not holding your hand when you needed someone the most.”
In that moment, memories of the days I had spent with Bianca flooded my mind.
I remembered a small and lonely child who looked at the world with hollow eyes, as though she had no attachments to anything. I recalled the fiery-tempered mage who found reasons to complain and bully others during our expedition.
And then, the woman who pretended to be my fiancée, smiling as if she had found a fleeting happiness.
Her actions had been wrong.
Her behavior was undeniably flawed.
Tampering with another’s mind and body because of her own desires was a grave mistake. Yet, even with all her faults, I couldn’t bring myself to condemn her entirely.
In the past, I might have burned with anger or hatred, but now, I felt differently. Perhaps the forty days I had spent with her weren’t so bad after all.
Hating her would have been easy. Shifting all the blame onto her would have been simpler still. But neither of those would solve anything.
At that moment, I decided to follow my heart and make my choice.
“So, let’s stop now. Deceiving yourself, deceiving others, and living in falsehoods will only lead to greater unhappiness. I don’t want to see you hurt anymore, Bianca.”
The world often worked this way. When people acted out of selfish desires rather than sincerity, everything inevitably fell apart.
That was why I chose to tell her the truth. I couldn’t watch her find solace in false happiness anymore.
As I spoke, I tightened my embrace around Bianca. I could feel her breath and the warmth of her presence.
“…Cain.”
Tears spilled from Bianca’s eyes, wetting her cheeks. At the same time, she whispered to me. “I’m glad I love you. Really.”
“…Can I ask you something?”
I nodded softly in response to Bianca’s question.
“Anything you want to ask.”
At my reply, Bianca lowered her gaze and whispered in a voice so soft it was almost inaudible.
“During this time with me… were you happy?”
I answered her honestly.
“…Yes, I was happy.”
At my words, Bianca smiled—a bright, genuine smile.
“…Thank goodness. That’s a relief.”
If the time I spent with her had been unhappy, it would have been unbearable for me, but it wasn’t at all.
“Yes, Cain. I actually had a dream.”
“A dream?”
At my question, Bianca slowly raised her head and met my gaze.
“I dreamed about what it would be like if, by some chance, the two of us could continue living in this small cabin together. I dreamed of a life where I lived in your arms, died in your lap, and was buried in your memory.”
“…But, that was just a dream. This moment we shared was, in the end, only a lie—a fleeting fantasy. So, it’s inevitable that our story must end like this.”
Even if this love ended unrequited, it didn’t matter to her. At this moment, she knew she loved me, and she also believed that I loved her. For that alone, she was content.
“…You know, Cain. I’ll do as you say. I’ll put an end to this falsehood. But I have one request.”
With a feverish intensity in her eyes, Bianca leaned closer and whispered in my ear.
“Hug me. Hold me. Want me. Leave traces of your presence in me…”
Get More Chapters on Patreon: From now on, FSM Level 2 will become the CN WN Bundle. The price will remain the same which is $10. Also, the price for the KR WN Bundle will also be decreased to $10 to match this bundle.
With this I have gotten rid of the level system. The reason I am doing this, is because I plan to add more chapters to the $5 Patron tiers. Previously the readers got 2 advance chapters when they became a $5 Patron, but now I’ve increased the chapters they will get to at least 5 chapters and more. So the current updated tier system will work like this:
The Individual Tiers ($5) will give you access to 5 chapters or more.
The Bundle Tiers ($10) will give you access to all the chapters of CN or KR webnovels.
The Supreme Patron ($30) will give you access to all the webnovel chapters on Goblinslate.