Moonlight streamed through the curtains.

Listening to the sound of the wind outside the window, Ardiana gently stroked Tie’s hair.

“......Was that really all? Was that what you wanted most?”

Tie looked up.

The little girl, resting her head on Ardiana’s lap, nodded.

“Yeees.”

A room lit by only a single candle.

On the ceiling, the shadows of Tie and Ardiana blended together into one.

Ardiana recalled what had happened only a short while ago.

After Tie had finally calmed down from crying, she had asked the child what she wanted most.

How she wanted to spend this moment.

But Tie had wanted only one thing.

‘Tie wants to lie on your lap...... and have you pat her hair like this. Until Tie falls asleep.’

“......I thought you would ask for something else.”

Even now, she did not understand how she had managed to come all the way here from the imperial palace.

Only one thing was clear.

The journey had felt as though she had crossed an entire continent.

‘At first, I did not want to come at all.’

Not because she wanted to avoid this.

She had simply been too afraid and kept postponing the moment.

She could not shake the feeling that she was still not ready.

But Tesetan had been firm.

‘There will never be a “later,” Ardiana. You know that too.’

‘.......’

‘Time is not given forever. When you keep looking only toward the future, it becomes very easy to lose the present. I was like that in Korea too. Because of that carelessness, I left Tie all alone.’

‘.......’

‘Someday, let’s return to Tallocium. When that day comes, let’s never separate again, not even for a moment. I only made promises to the child that I could not keep...... and never returned.’

‘.......’

‘In the end, that is why Tie came back here alone. Because I made everything turn out this way. Because I left the child crying and suffering alone. You...... at least you should not do the same.’

Ardiana had not been able to answer a single word.

Because Tesetan was completely right.

‘You and I both...... let’s value the present more. Let’s stop wasting time. And also.......’

‘.......’

‘I think the child already knows.’

But the moment she heard the rest, Ardiana forgot how to breathe.

‘......I think she knows. That’s how it feels. She’s my daughter. I know Astie.’

After hearing those words, Ardiana remembered something too.

The child’s eyes, fixed intently on her whenever she was beside Tesetan.

And then, the moment their gazes met, Tie would hurriedly run away.

‘U uum, where did Tie leave her kindergarten bag~? It was here before, but now it’s gone!’

The child had only pretended to be busy in the next room.

Deliberately avoiding coming near her.

Shuffling her feet in place, kicking the floor with the tip of her shoe, suddenly running away, then secretly watching her again from somewhere far off.

And at that moment, Ardiana understood.

No, there was no way she could not understand.

‘......You were afraid.’

Tie had been afraid.

As though she feared her premonition would turn out to be true.

Or perhaps the opposite—that it would turn out to be wrong.

Because Tie was already a child who understood that sometimes expectations were better left as expectations.

“Okaay.......”

Still lying on Ardiana’s lap, Tie mumbled sleepily.

Drowsiness already lingered thickly in the child’s voice.

Her tightly clenched little hands were tiny, and her lowered eyelids were so thin and pale that the veins beneath them could almost be seen.

Ardiana answered quietly.

“Yes. I’ll keep patting your hair until you fall asleep.”

After that, with ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) her other hand, she pulled up the blanket and carefully tucked the child in.

The wind rustled outside the window, while the voices of the squad members talking downstairs drifted faintly up from the first floor. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Tie murmured softly.

“And also...... Tie wants to learn music too.”

Between her words, the child breathed slowly and evenly with sleepiness.

“Music?”

“Yees. The friends from kindergarten learn piano. And viloin too.......”

“......”

“And when they go to lessons, their mama comes with them...... and buys them tteokbokki afterward.”

“......”

“And then tells the teacher...... that her baby is the best.......”

Ardiana’s hand froze.

Tie had grown up receiving a kind of love Ardiana had never even known existed.

Carefully, so she would not wake the child, Ardiana slowly withdrew her hand.

Then she spent a long time looking at the child’s closed eyes, tiny nose, and lips that occasionally moved faintly in her sleep.

“......You grew up far too kind.”

Tie had not spoken a single word of blame toward her.

Instead, she had tried to comfort her, saying everything had been fine.

‘Let’s value the present more.’

Tesetan’s words echoed through her mind once again.

Ardiana drew in a deep breath and lifted her gaze.

“Music...... then music it is.”

Tesetan had spoken about the present.

But Ardiana did not want to be satisfied with only the present.

If possible, she wanted to imagine the future.

A happy future.

“Perhaps because this is my first time.”

For some reason, happiness only made her greedier.

Quietly, she began recalling the greatest musicians in the entire empire one by one.

For Tie, only someone invited to perform at state ceremonies would do.

“And during lessons, I’ll always stay beside her.”

And afterward, whether Tie did well or poorly, she would still say her baby was the very best.

And then......

“I should ask the head chef to make that...... tteokbokki.”

Judging by the sound of it, the dish clearly was not from here, so she would probably need to ask Tesetan for the recipe.

And in the end, in order to make all of that happen......

At that moment, the door quietly opened.

When she saw who had entered, Ardiana smiled faintly.

“You know, you were wrong.”

Tesetan stopped where he stood.

His gaze drifted toward Ardiana and the sleeping Tie resting on her lap.

“There is a future. I’ll make sure there is one myself. So.”

Ardiana drew a short breath.

“Tomorrow I’ll tell His Majesty that I am postponing my appearance. I’ll remain here.”

Tesetan’s pupils widened.

“The things happening here can only be handled by me. So you’ll go to the Central Continent instead. Once we find a way to protect the child, there should be a home we can safely return to.”

She beckoned him closer, and Tesetan walked over.

Ardiana touched his cheek gently and added in a quiet voice:

“When you return, everything will already have changed.”

“......”

“Promise me.”

Blink.

Blink.

Tie opened her eyes because of a tiny flickering light somewhere far away.

Something bright was glowing in the darkness.

“......Where is Tie?”

When she mumbled the words, her voice echoed back at her.

There was nothing here.

Absolutely nothing could be felt.

Only a golden light flickering far ahead.

Tie swallowed hard and, having no other choice, cautiously walked toward it.

Step.

Another step.

With every step, the light dimmed and brightened again.

And when the distance finally shortened—

“Ah!”

Tie abruptly stopped after noticing something inside the light.

With a bewildered expression, she stared at the glow, then turned around to look behind her, where there was still nothing.

Then she called out quietly:

“Who’s there?!”

Someone was sitting curled up inside the light.

The face and body were hard to make out clearly, but the bare hands and feet sticking out beyond the glow were visible.

“C can you hear me?”

But the figure inside the light did not answer.

The hands and feet sticking out also remained motionless.

Tie drew in a deep breath.

“Fuu...... haa......”

Then she carefully stepped closer again.

Once she finally reached the light, Tie held her breath and crouched down.

First, the child cautiously poked the hand sticking out.

“......It’s a kid like Tie too?”

Looking closely, the hand was very small.

At most, it looked the size of a child her own age.

“Hey, are you okay?”

Tie poked the unmoving fingers several more times before falling silent.

Soon, after making up her mind about something, the girl tightly clenched her fists.

“......Okay. It’s all or nothing!”

Tie suddenly grabbed the hand sticking out of the light.

Then she pulled with all her strength.

But contrary to expectations, the child inside the light came out far too easily.

So easily that Tie lost her grip and plopped backward onto the floor.

“Owwie.......”

Quietly groaning, Tie rubbed her bottom and stood back up.

And then, the moment she saw the figure standing before her, her mouth fell open in shock.

“Y you...... youuu!”

The being stared at Tie at exactly eye level.

An emotionless face.

Tightly pressed lips.

And golden light radiating all around.

Tie cried out:

“There’s two Ties now!”

Because Astie had stepped out of the light.

Or rather, something that looked exactly like Astie.