CHAPTER 47: CHAPTER 47 – ETERNAL NIGHT (PART 4)

Chapter 47 – Eternal Night (Part 4)

"Do you think Sommeil is still stuck fighting monsters?" Evelyn asked, her voice cutting through the uneasy murmurs of the crowd.

Jack’s gaze lingered on the restless people protesting in the distance before he answered.

"Perhaps. The city is quite big, and there are countless places to clear. Even with his strength, I doubt he could finish that quickly. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes another day for him to fully clean the city."

Evelyn frowned. "What are you planning to do then? Should we just wait longer?"

Jack didn’t answer right away. His eyes remained fixed on the angry people shouting at Herman, and his mind wandered down a web of possibilities.

’Sooner or later, Herman will be forced to face them. He’ll have no choice but to tell the truth, and maybe things will calm down for a while. But... with Sommeil still not back, it’s clear their anger will only keep building.’

He had originally planned to wait until the city was completely cleared. That would have been the safest option. But every passing minute weighed on him. Sommeil’s delay only confirmed what Jack already feared—he didn’t have the luxury of time.

’As long as Sommeil cleared a large portion of the city, it should be easier to move around. I can’t sit here any longer. I need to check the places I need to check.’

His decision settled, Jack finally spoke.

"I’m leaving."

Evelyn’s eyebrows shot up. "Hm? Already?"

"Yeah. I can’t wait any longer," Jack replied firmly. ’My parents are somewhere in this chaos, and every second wasted puts them in greater danger.’

Evelyn studied him in silence for a moment before nodding. "I see... well, I’m leaving too."

Jack slung his bag over his shoulder and added, "We’ll meet back here in fifteen minutes. I need to take care of something first."

Without waiting for her reply, he turned and walked away. Evelyn’s eyes followed his back, a strange glint flashing in them before she too disappeared into the crowd.

Watching from the side, Lune narrowed her eyes. Her expression turned suspicious. ’That look Evelyn gave him...’

She drifted closer. "Hey, Jack."

Jack was bent over, gathering food and water from the storage area. Without looking up, he answered, "Hm?"

Lune hovered in front of him, her voice calm but probing. "Are you hiding something from me?"

Jack froze mid-motion, then raised his head. His tone was steady, but his eyes sharpened. "Hiding something? What exactly are you implying?"

"Well... I’m not implying anything," Lune said lightly, though her arms crossed over her chest as she scrutinized him. "I’m just curious."

Jack returned to packing supplies. "Of course there are things I haven’t told you. I don’t need to tell you everything, and frankly, I can’t."

Lune tilted her head, her eyes never leaving him. "Hm, but this feels different. I think you’ve lied to me."

Jack paused again, his expression unreadable as he looked up at her. "I don’t know what you’re talking about, Lune."

"It’s about your relationship with Evelyn," she pressed, finally revealing her suspicion.

Jack’s brows furrowed. "My relationship with her?"

"Yes." Lune’s gaze was sharp. "You told me you didn’t really know her, that the only reason she acknowledges you is because she sees you as a rival. But the way the two of you fought, the way you acted around each other... it doesn’t feel like that. You two have a history, don’t you?"

The air grew heavy, silence filling the storage area. It was the most tense moment between them since they first met. Lune’s eyes bore into his, searching for even the slightest crack in his composure. But Jack remained calm, his expression like stone.

"Does it seem that way to you?" he asked after a long pause.

"Yes," Lune answered firmly. "And I rarely misread people. Evelyn doesn’t look at you as just a rival. Her eyes... they say she knows you. Very well, in fact."

Jack said nothing.

"If that’s the case, then I can understand. You don’t need to feel ashamed of your past with me, my love. I only want to know why you hid it." Lune’s voice softened, but her eyes still gleamed with curiosity.

After a moment, Jack exhaled quietly. "Hm. You’re quite perceptive. You’re not entirely wrong."

Lune’s eyes widened slightly. "Oh really? So what were you two?"

"You could say... our circumstances as kids forced us together," Jack replied, his voice measured. "We both attended the same primary school. But since our grades were well above our age group, we couldn’t study with our peers. We kept jumping from one class to another, and that meant we spent most of our time together."

"Oh," Lune murmured, listening intently.

"But once we entered middle school, we parted ways. Each of us went in a different direction."

Silence hung between them again.

"I only saw her as someone I had to stick with because I didn’t know anyone else," Jack continued. "Being alone was... disadvantageous."

Lune’s expression softened, but her voice pressed further. "And why hide that from me, Jack?"

"Because there was no reason to mention it," Jack said coldly. "That story doesn’t benefit you. It changes nothing."

He saw no need to reveal his past. Just as he knew very little about hers, she had no need to know everything about him.

"But it does benefit me," Lune whispered. "It helps me understand my husband’s past."

Jack’s eyes darkened. "Then you should have asked him. I’m not your husband."

Her lips parted, eyes widening in disbelief. "How can you say that? You’re the same person, Jack."

"I’m not. And I never was." Jack’s tone was firm, final.

He dropped the last of the supplies into his bag, then straightened, staring directly into her eyes. His gaze was cold, unyielding.

"Listen, Lune. I understand you were sent back to the past to meet me, and maybe I was the one who made that happen. But there’s something you don’t seem to understand. The moment you met me, the future you came from was erased. I will never become the man you married. The butterfly effect has already taken hold. Look around you—nothing is the same anymore."

Lune’s eyes trembled with emotion. "But... you’re my husband. You’re the same Jack I fell deeply in love with. How can you claim you’re different? You said yourself things changed when I met you. Yet how can you be so certain you won’t remain the same?"

Jack’s jaw tightened. "Because the circumstances are different now. I know what could change me, and I can avoid it. The man you married didn’t. He let those things shape him." He paused, his words turning colder. "It’s better if you consider him dead. It will spare you hope... and false expectations."

With that, he turned away and walked out, leaving Lune frozen in the dimly lit storage.

Her face crumbled as his words echoed in her mind.

"Consider him... dead?" she whispered, her hands trembling as they rose to cover her face. A single tear slipped down her cheek, glittering like glass as it fell.

"No... no. He didn’t die. He’s still here, standing right in front of me. Jack didn’t die. He told me..." Her voice broke, muffled against her palms. "He told me I’d find him again. He told me he wouldn’t leave me."

Her chest tightened, breath catching as though the air itself rejected her. Her heart clenched with unbearable pain.

"My Jack didn’t disappear," she muttered, lowering her hands. Her eyes shimmered with determination through the tears. "He only guided me to meet him earlier in his life—to change what happened. That’s my task. I’ll guide him back to who he was."

Her voice trembled, but her conviction was clear. "I will bring my Jack back... no matter what it takes."