SWY Side Story 8

Lestel’s long silver hair shimmered like glass beads in the morning sunlight. Sharhan absentmindedly rubbed the back of his neck as he stared at his handsome lover. He had known that face all his life, yet his heart still fluttered as if he were seeing it for the first time. Thinking back, there had been times in the past when he had also stolen glances at Lestel.

Of course, back then he’d always told himself it was out of annoyance, not excitement or affection. He had really been hopelessly dense. So caught up in their rivalry, he hadn’t realized he’d fallen for Lestel long ago.

If Lestel hadn’t deliberately twisted the relationship between them, he might never have figured it out.

‘If I’d seen Lestel with someone else, I would’ve mistaken the pain in my chest for competition, not jealousy.’

But now he understood. That dark, suffocating feeling he’d had when Lestel was surrounded by others had been jealousy all along.

“Want me to fetch some water so you can wash?”

Lestel turned to him, sensing his gaze.

“It’s fine. I’ll go.”

Sharhan stretched as he stood. Sleeping on the ground had left his whole body stiff. He rolled his neck from side to side and blinked heavily. Since taking over the watch from Lestel at dawn, he’d tried to sleep, but hadn’t rested deeply. He had grown too used to sleeping wrapped in Lestel’s arms.

“Not much we can do without a safe place to sleep.”

They couldn’t both fall asleep when they didn’t know if survivors or corpses might attack. Taking turns on watch was their only option.

“Looks like we’ll finally reach the tax storehouse today.”

“By noon at the latest.”

When they had left the Ice Cave, they thought it would only take a few days, but it had taken longer than expected. The delay in their return worried Sharhan, especially thinking about the others still waiting, Iris in particular. With that in mind, he hurried to Lestel’s side.

There, he saw a spring formed in a cut tree stump. Rainwater had likely gathered there. Sharhan dipped his hand into the clear-looking water. The coldness was sharp enough to make his nose wrinkle. The haze from lack of sleep vanished instantly.

“Don’t drink it. It looks clear, but it’s been sitting a long time. You could get sick.”

“Yeah. I’m just going to wash.”

For drinking, they had water from the stones. There was no need to risk anything unnecessary.

While Sharhan washed up, Lestel prepared a simple breakfast. As always, it was potatoes. They were getting tired of eating the same thing every day, but neither complained. After eating and tidying up, they set out on the road again.

“You think Thunder and Lightning are still alive?”

They had whistled several times back in Afrol, where they parted from the horses, but Thunder and Lightning hadn’t shown. If the horses were still alive, they would’ve come running at the sound.

Sharhan worried they had been caught by survivors or killed by corpses.

“They’re alive.”

Even so, there was little conviction in Lestel’s voice. It sounded more like a hope than certainty.

“They are. I’m sure of it. They’re both smart and strong.”

Sharhan spoke with firm belief, then, as he often did now, reached for Lestel’s hand. Unless they were in the middle of a fight, they tended to walk holding hands. At some point, it had become a habit.

For some reason, anything with Lestel became a habit quickly, sleeping in his arms, walking while holding his hand.

Lestel felt Sharhan’s fingers find his without a word. He didn’t mention it. If he got too happy and said something like, “Honey, do you like holding my hand?” then Sharhan, who embarrassed easily, would likely snatch his hand away. And Lestel knew he’d be the one feeling regret.

They walked quickly, exchanging quiet words now and then. On the way here, they had fought off many corpses. Later, they figured the sudden increase in them had been caused by the sound of the collapsing castle. Whenever they were delayed by the undead, Sharhan cursed Parel in his mind.

“There it is. The tax storehouse.”

As expected, they arrived around noon. The area around the storehouse was quiet. A few people moved cautiously, even stepping softly to avoid making noise.

Sharhan spotted Ardelle among them and smiled in relief. Just then, he sensed someone approaching from behind. He let go of Lestel’s hand and turned sharply, weapon ready.

“Samson!”

It was Samson, smiling brightly as he approached. Beside him was Randall, holding several dead rabbits. Randall gave a respectful nod, and both Sharhan and Lestel nodded back.

“I knew it was you two. No one else has such striking silver hair like Lestel.”

“How has everyone been?”

“We’ve managed… for the most part.”

Sharhan didn’t miss the shadow that passed over Samson’s expression.

“Something happened?”

Samson didn’t reply right away. He sighed first. His face darkened, as if he no longer had the strength to pretend everything was fine. Sharhan’s heart thudded.

“Did something happen to Derry…?”

Unable to wait, he asked urgently. Samson shook his head.

“No. Derry’s safe… He got hurt, but he’s alive.”

“He was hurt?”

“A large group of corpses swarmed in not long ago. After you left, the area stayed quiet for a while, and we let our guard down. One of the scouts who’d gone into the forest saw them and panicked. He screamed and ran toward the storehouse.”

Sharhan’s brow furrowed. He could guess what had happened next. If everyone had stayed silent inside the storehouse, they might have made it through unharmed.

But the scream had drawn the corpses in. The rest was obvious. Of course, it wouldn’t have been intentional. Just a moment’s mistake. But the consequences had been devastating. The moving corpses must have rushed the storehouse all at once, and the people, having grown complacent during the calm days, had probably panicked. There hadn’t been many who could fight well, so the damage would’ve been heavy.

“You must’ve lost a lot of people.”

“Yes. The children were inside the storehouse and made it through safely, but we lost a number of adults. Still, thanks to their sacrifice and Derry’s efforts, we managed to get everyone inside and survive by staying quiet for a few days.”

Trying to lighten the mood, Samson gave a small, awkward smile.

“Are you here to see Derry?”

“Yes. And we also have something to propose.”

“What kind of proposal…?”

Before he could finish, Randall said, “Let’s talk inside,” and began walking ahead. Samson seemed to come to his senses and gestured quickly for Sharhan and Lestel to follow. The three of them headed toward the storehouse behind Randall.

“Oh right, once we’re inside, there’s someone else besides [unauthorized copy]Derry who’ll be happy to see you.”

Samson spoke like a mischievous kid with a secret.

“What?”

Sharhan had just repeated him when–

“You’re back… huh? Lestel!”

Hearing footsteps, Ardelle had turned around, then froze at the sight of Sharhan and Lestel. Her wide eyes swept over them as if in disbelief before she shouted Lestel’s name and ran over. Sharhan, standing right beside him, let out a small laugh at her predictability. Then he stepped in front of Lestel and scolded her.

“Am I invisible?”

“Of course I see you. Just not as happy to see you. Lestel, how did you get here? Did you meet Iris?”

“We did.”

“I wasn’t asking you.”

She glanced sideways at Sharhan, sulking, but her face was glowing with joy she couldn’t hide.

“I heard something happened.”

At Lestel’s question, Ardelle nodded with a somber look.

“Yeah. I guess Samson told you. The corpses swarmed us… we managed to survive, though we did lose people. Derry’s going to be really happy to see you. He said he’d follow you as soon as he recovered, but just when he was almost better, he overused his magic and now he’s stuck in bed again. Come inside. Also, in the storehouse–”

“Ardelle.”

Samson cut her off, winking playfully. Ardelle blinked, confused for a moment, but then caught on and smiled. She pushed the two of them toward the storehouse.

“Quit pushing. I can walk on my own.”

Despite Sharhan’s grumbling, Ardelle giggled and nudged them inside.

The interior was dim but not dark, thanks to the lit torches. It smelled damp and musty, but that was unavoidable.

As the door opened, everyone turned toward the entrance. In the middle of the surprised and delighted crowd, Sharhan and Lestel were about to search for Derry when their eyes landed on something else and froze.