CHAPTER 21: THE GOLDEN THREAD

_Screech!

The faint creak of glass echoed through the dark chamber as her nails dragged across the windowpane.

A shrill, almost metallic sound, soft at first, then sharper, like a whisper turning into a scream.

She leaned against the cold surface, her breath fogging the glass before fading away.

The light outside barely reached her, filtered through layers of frost and dust that clung to the window.

Beyond it, snow fell quietly over the garden, flakes tumbling like slow-moving stars.

Servants and knights stood beneath the pale glow of lanterns, laughing and enjoying.

Their muffled voices reached faintly through the glass, full of warmth that didn’t belong inside that room.

Her reflection in the window looked half-ghost, half-girl, eyes hollow, lips pale, hair tangled across her shoulders.

The tattered hem of her dress brushed against the marble floor, leaving faint trails of dirt where she had walked.

For a moment, she pressed her forehead to the glass, watching a maid toss a snowball at a maid.

The maid shrieked and laughed.

The sound didn’t reach her.

_Screech!

Her nails screeched again, slower this time, dragging from top to bottom, leaving pale marks like claw wounds on the pane.

If she squinted, she could almost imagine herself out there.

But the cold inside the room was different from the cold outside.

This one was heavy.

Lonely.

She smiled faintly, or maybe she only thought she did, and whispered something to her reflection.

"I ended up causing trouble for everyone again, didn’t I?"

The glass didn’t answer.

".."

I stood silently a few paces away from the girl, surveying the room.

’What now?’

But the voice I was expecting didn’t come this time.

’Orran?’

There was no answer.

"Do you think I’m selfish?"

The girl spoke again without turning back.

"..."

I remained silent.

’Is this another trick of the Dream Eater?’

It didn’t feel like that.

My instincts told me this was different.

"You know... I always wanted to enjoy the life outside these walls,"

the girl continued softly, not caring whether I answered or not.

"I wanted to... I wanted to do all the things everyone else could do." Her voice cracked a little.

Silence fell over the room.

’This is so awkward...’

"I loved them, you know," she whispered after a long silence, her fingertips still pressed against the glass.

The snow outside thickened, blanketing the garden in white.

"I really did. Every single one of them."

Her voice softened, trembling with something that wasn’t quite sorrow.

"But sometimes... I hated them, too."

_Screech!

She drew a slow breath, and her nails scratched the glass again.

"I was jealous," she said.

"Of their freedom. Of their laughter. Of the way they could walk out that door and breathe the cold air without it hurting."

Her shoulders shook slightly.

"They all said they cared for me, and I know they did, but they never understood what it was like to be trapped here.

To smile and wave every morning, and then watch them leave at night."

"That was as far as their sympathy went," she murmured bitterly.

"A few kind words, a warm blanket, a promise to visit again tomorrow."

Her reflection in the glass distorted as her breath fogged the pane.

"They thought... They thought pity was enough."

The way her voice broke at that moment, it wasn’t a sob; it was exhaustion given sound.

"I wanted to scream sometimes. To tell them how unfair it felt. But every time I tried..."

Her hand slowly fell from the glass, leaving faint smudges behind.

"Every time I tried, they just smiled. They told me to rest. To be patient. As if patience could fix me."

Silence settled again, heavy and suffocating.

"It was warm there. Peaceful. The pain, the walls, all of it just... disappeared."

Her tone grew softer, almost wistful.

"I could walk again. I could run. I could laugh with them, not just watch."

She turned slightly, her eyes glimmering faintly in the darkness, not with madness,

but something close to guilt.

"It said I could stay. That I could stay there as long as I wanted."

The sound of her voice was almost childlike, hollow with disbelief at her own choice.

"I just had to let go."

She let out a shaky laugh.

"And I did. I let go."

She hugged her arms, trembling.

"I let go... Sob... I couldn’t refuse... even though I knew it was wrong... Sob..."

The sound of her sobbing filled the room.

Her voice broke completely.

"Sob... Please leave me here... this is what I deserve."

The room fell silent again,

’Alright,’

I shifted slightly, looking around the room,

’Her life. Her choice. But...’

I reached out for the door behind me, but it refused to open,

’Where is the exit?’

I had been looking around for a while, but everything felt like a painting.

I approached the girl, standing a little far away from her.

"Hmm, excuse me-"

"Sob... Please... don’t... Sob... help me...," But the girl cut me off mid-speech.

"I am not trying..."

"PLEASE!!... Sob...please."

"Right.."

’She isn’t listening.’

"Haa..."

I let out a sigh,

Counseling was definitely not my thing, but well,

’Let’s give it a try.’

"I think you were quite lucky, though."

The girl froze,

"...Lucky?"

She raised her head, eyes wide with disbelief.

"Did you just call me lucky?"

I shrugged. "Compared to most, yes."

Her expression twisted. "You—"

She took a shaky step forward and grabbed my collar.

_Thud!

Or at least tried to, but I side-stepped and she fell on the floor instead.

"Do you think being trapped in this body, in this room, watching everyone live while I just exist, is lucky to you!?"

Her voice wavered into a whisper, broken and raw.

"You... What do you even know!?"

Tears stream down her face,

"At least you exist... If..." I spoke in an unhurried tone,

"If it had been a commoner girl in your stead, she would have died, not even knowing what killed her."

".."

"You have a loving family lot of people who care for you... and most of all."

I looked down at my hand,

"You are alive."

"What good is living like this?" She asked.

"I don’t know... But won’t you like to find it out... You have a chance to..."

I kneed near her face,

"Sure, your situation might be bad... So what? At least you have got a chance to fix it."

She shook her head violently.

"You don’t get it! I tried. I tried. B-but..."

"Then, try again. It’s not over as long as you are breathing."

"I-It’s not...It’s not that e-easy."

I scratched my head,

’Damn... I am running out of juicy lines now.’

Then I paused,

’Oh! right..’

"You know, there are some places that even this dream can’t show you."

Her head jerked up, confusion flickering through her tear-stained eyes.

"W-What... what are you talking about?"

I thought back to the novel’s description.

"Well, for starters, have you ever been to the Northern Cliffs during sunrise?"

She blinked, caught off guard.

A faint grin tugged at my lips.

"Then you wouldn’t know how the whole sky turns gold and crimson, like someone spilled fire across the clouds.

You can actually hear the sun rising there. The wind hums differently."

Her brows furrowed, lips parting slightly.

"That’s... not real."

"Of course it’s real," I said.

"And a real honeyed bun from the Winter Market. Or—" I snapped my fingers dramatically,

"—a steaming bowl of spice broth after walking through snow all day."

She stared at me silently,

"I am actually planning to go there someday. If you want, you can come along."

"T-That’s not fair," she muttered.

"For someone like me...."

"Life’s not fair," I replied, shrugging.

"But what can you do? Whatever hand you’re dealt, it’s yours."

"B-But my condition..."

"Haa, fuc—" I caught myself, sighing.

"I mean, I lived for years with a broken core."

Her eyes widened slightly.

"And trust me," I continued, my tone firm but calm,

"It wasn’t any better than what you’re going through."

"You too...?"

"But I managed somehow."

For a moment, I looked her straight in the eyes.

"I’m sure you can too."

Silence settled again in the room,

The girl, Melissa, grabbed my sleeve lightly.

"W-Would you help me?"

"That’s right-" I stopped mid-sentence, blinking.

"Pardon?"

"You... you said you went through something similar." Her eyes shimmered faintly, fragile but bright, like a candle flickering in a storm.

"Would you help me?"

’I was just going with the flow... Alright! Can’t back down now.’

With everything I knew, or thought I knew, there might actually be something I could do.

"S–Sure," I replied, my voice a little unsure even to my own ears.

Tears spilled down her cheeks again, but this time they weren’t from sorrow.

"Sob... Truly..." she whispered, her lips trembling into a faint, relieved smile.

"T–Thank you..."

I found myself staring at her face.

"Well," I muttered under my breath,

"I’m sure it’ll work out somehow."

But before the words could fade, something shifted.

A faint shimmer bloomed from her chest, soft, golden, and pure, like sunlight breaking through water.

It pulsed once... twice... and then began to rise.

A slender thread of light floated toward me, weightless and delicate,

Yet humming with something I could feel deep in my bones.

’What is this?’

Out of Curiosity, I reached out and brushed my fingers against it.

_Blink!

A surge of warmth shot through me, too bright, too fast.

In an instant, the world around us vanished, swallowed by a blinding light that filled everything.