CHAPTER 184: CHAPTER 184 – IN THE LONG SILENCE

After the shadows of Alicia and Stacia disappeared into the expanse of the sky, Sylvia stood silently on the upper balcony of her castle. The wind that had once teased strands of her hair now flowed more quietly, more hollow. As if even the air itself realized that two pulses of life had just departed from this place.

The castle returned to calm. Too calm.

Sylvia slowly turned around, her black gown shifting lightly over the cold obsidian floor. She walked slowly down the main corridor, accompanied only by the soundless steps of zombie servants standing rigidly along the hall. Their empty eyes didn’t blink, didn’t meet her gaze only followed commands and functioned. Like dolls that moved endlessly in a world untouched by time.

Before long, she arrived back in her study.

The desk was still cluttered with stacks of reports and construction documents. Some were maps from survey teams, exploration notes from scout units, and remnants of magical experiments attempted by undead mages. But all of it felt heavier today. Not because of the workload, but because of the atmosphere around her once again... empty.

Only she and Celes remained.

Celes was already there. The silver-haired girl stood near the bookshelf, as if selecting a read, but her eyes occasionally stole glances at Sylvia. As soon as Sylvia entered and pulled out her chair, Celes approached.

"Alicia and Stacia are gone?" she asked in a soft, almost whispering voice.

Sylvia nodded without turning. "Yes."

"They... will be alright, won’t they?"

Sylvia paused her hand over a document. She inhaled slowly before answering, "Alicia is with her. And Stacia is not a weak girl. They’ll return."

Celes nodded, though her expression remained anxious. She knew, even if Sylvia appeared composed, something inside the queen was hollow like a chamber slowly drying out after losing its spring.

"Then... I’ll make some tea."

Sylvia didn’t answer, but she didn’t stop her either. Celes stepped out of the room, leaving behind a faint trace of dried-flower perfume she always wore. As her footsteps faded away, Sylvia stared at her own hands. She felt a chill between her fingers, as if the warmth that once resided there had turned to ash.

Hours passed.

The study was filled only with the sound of a pen scratching paper and the occasional rustling of flipped documents. Celes sat on a long couch near the window, holding a cup of tea in both hands. She said nothing. Occasionally, she glanced at Sylvia, who was deeply engrossed in her work or perhaps pretending to be.

"I want to step out to the balcony for a moment," Sylvia said at last.

"Should I accompany you?" Celes asked quickly.

Sylvia glanced briefly, then shook her head. "No need. I just need... some air."

She walked out of the study, down a long hallway lined with softly glowing blue candles. Her shadow stretched behind her, like a lonely figure carved into the stone walls.

When she reached the eastern balcony, the evening breeze greeted her gently. A thin mist hung in the distance, draping over valleys and ancient ruins, part of the domain she now ruled in this world. For a moment, she remembered Nocture.

Nocture, which had now become a nation.Nocture, now ruled by Sofia.

Sofia... she thought, unconsciously lifting her gaze to the sky, as if hoping that face would appear among the clouds.

She still remembered every detail of Sofia’s face when angry, when laughing, when trying to hide her worry. How Sofia’s presence was the anchor that kept her steady in chaos.

And now... that anchor was far away.

Night slowly approached. When Sylvia returned to her room, the nether flame in her small lantern flickered gently, casting soft shadows across the stone walls. In the corner, a small table was already set with a teapot and a few light snacks. Celes once again had prepared everything meticulously.

"I’ve prepared warm water if you want to bathe," Celes said as she stood from her chair.

"Thank you," Sylvia replied briefly.

She changed into dark-colored loungewear and let her long hair down from its tie. In the quiet of the room, accompanied only by the firelight and the aroma of tea, she sat on her bed and began brushing her hair.

Celes stood not far from her, hands folded behind her back.

"I know you miss them," Celes said quietly.

Sylvia didn’t reply.

"And I know... I can’t replace them."

This time, Sylvia turned to her.

"I never asked you to replace anyone, Celes."

Celes gave a bitter smile. "But I want you to know... I’ll stay here. I’ll wait for you, even if only in silence."

Sylvia looked at her for a moment silent, deep, unreadable. Then she turned back, finishing brushing her hair.

Silence once again enveloped the room after Sylvia finished brushing her hair. She placed the white bone-carved comb on the small table beside the bed, then looked at her reflection in the bronze mirror hanging on the wall. Her gaze... cold, calm, yet glimmering faintly with longing and an emptiness she couldn’t erase.

Behind her, Celes still stood in silence, as if waiting for something.

"I’m going out for a while," Sylvia said softly, without turning around.

Celes wanted to ask, "Where to?" but held her tongue. She simply bowed her head slightly and replied, "In that case... I’ll prepare your blanket later."

Sylvia nodded, then walked toward the balcony doors. She opened the heavy wooden panels slowly, letting the night breeze sweep in, carrying the scent of wildflowers that grew along the castle’s edges. The wind also brought a chill not one born of the air’s temperature, but of a growing coldness born from the sense of loss slowly freezing behind a queen’s cloak of power.

She sat on the long stone bench on the balcony, crossing her legs and leaning back. On her lap lay a thin gray blanket, which she pulled over her knees. On the small side table, a cup of tea still steamed gently, its vapor dancing in the crisp night air.

In the distance, the moon hung pale. The night sky was clear, strewn with stars, yet all of them seemed so far away unreachable, like Sofia’s heart on the other side of the world.

"What are you doing now, Sofia?" she whispered in her heart. "Do you miss me the way I miss you?"

Her hand gripped the cup, but she didn’t drink. She only gazed ahead, watching the silhouettes of old trees etched faintly by moonlight.

She closed her eyes for a moment. And in the darkness behind her eyelids, she imagined their faces Sofia, Alicia, Stacia... all of them. Their laughter. The warm silences when they sat together. A life that should have been... but now felt severed by the distance of worlds.

After several minutes of stillness, Sylvia let out a long breath and rose from her seat. The cup of tea remained untouched.

She returned to her room. Celes had already prepared the bed, the blanket neatly folded, the lantern’s flame dimmed. The girl stood at the bedside, her eyes following Sylvia as usual, but this time with a hint of caution in her gaze.

"Thank you, Celes. You may rest tonight," Sylvia said in a calm tone, even though her heart wasn’t truly calm.

Celes nodded gently. "Very well. Good night, Sylvia."

As Celes walked out and quietly closed the door behind her, Sylvia stared at the door for a few seconds, then slowly climbed onto her bed.

She lay on her side, hugging a pillow with one arm. Her long hair spread across the soft sheets. The high stone ceiling above her was etched with intricate symmetrical patterns, and the flickering lantern cast moving shadows that danced like whispers of memory.

Tonight felt quieter than usual. Emptier. Colder, even though her body was covered.

But she didn’t complain.

She only breathed softly and closed her eyes.

"Tomorrow... I’ll begin again," she whispered, barely audible.

Outside, the night wind continued to drift gently. The world turned in silence, and the night pressed on slowly, quietly wrapping Sylvia in the solitude of a queen.

On Earth – City of Nocture

The same night sky stretched wide above Nocture, only from a different side of the world. On a stone balcony overlooking the central square, a woman stood still, wearing a long white-golden cloak adorned with the royal emblem on her shoulder a black dragon shimmering faintly under the moonlight. The night wind swept through her soft chestnut-brown hair, making her appear like a painting stirred by the wind beneath a starry midnight sky.

Sofia hugged herself not because of the cold, but because something kept rumbling in her chest. Something that had never truly quieted since Sylvia’s departure.

She gazed up at the sky, the moon, the stars, the vast stretches of galaxy. But there, Sylvia was nowhere to be found.

How long had she led Nocture alone?

How many nights had she stood in this exact place, hoping for news, for hope, or even just a fleeting dream of her beloved?

She knew Sylvia was still alive. She knew Sylvia was still carrying out her duty in another world. Zark had informed her that the Queen was now accompanied by two sisters they had never known, Alicia and Stacia.

But... that didn’t make the emptiness any less.

"...Sylvia," she whispered softly, her voice nearly swept away by the wind. "You must be looking at a different sky now, huh?"

Her hand touched the small black pendant that hung from her neck a gift from Sylvia before leaving for the other world. The coldness of the stone, when touched, brought with it a fleeting warmth, like the one she used to feel whenever they were together.

"This world moves so fast without you. But I’ve never forgotten that all of this is happening because of you. The people of Nocture believe in you. They call you Queen, even when you’re not here..."

She looked at the high-hanging moon, and for a moment, her eyes glistened not out of weakness, but because of a love left unspoken.

"And I... I just want you to come back. Not as a ruler. But as Sylvia. As yourself."

Silence.

The sounds of undead guards stood still in the distance, unmoving, like shadows guarding the world in silence. The city below the balcony began to dim, lights fading one by one. But within Sofia’s heart, a single echo repeated an ache of longing she never had the chance to voice. A yearning she could only entrust to the night sky, hoping the same wind might carry it to wherever Sylvia was.

She closed her eyes.

And in that quiet, across two separate worlds, two hearts missing each other quietly called out...

...in the long silence.