He hastily yanked his hand away from Choi Yeo-min’s grasp. A faint warmth lingered where his lips had touched the back of his hand, but it quickly dissipated—as if it had never been there to begin with.
Night’s goal was to restore the laws of nature that Humanity’s Moon had taken away. And for them to bring back the night as they wished, the Moon had to fall.
“People are going to get hurt.”
Just like the day the mansion in District 5 had collapsed, countless people would die and suffer. He didn’t want to see that day repeat itself, burned into his memory like a lingering trauma.
“For the greater cause, sacrifices must sometimes be made.”
“But—”
“Seo-yul-nim, you only need to focus on leaving this place.”
Choi Yeo-min cut him off firmly. Straightening his posture, he loomed over Seo-yul once more. Their eyes met, and for a brief moment, his hand moved as if to reach for him—but he stopped himself at the last second. Then, he turned away.
“On the final day, I’ll come for you.”
With that, Choi Yeo-min silently stepped over the unconscious servant and left the bedroom, just as quietly as he had arrived.
Only after the door shut behind him was Seo-yul able to exhale the breath he had been holding.
The final day was when the grandest party at the estate would take place—the event where the next leader of District 1 would be officially chosen.
If Night’s attack destroyed Humanity’s Moon while so many important figures were gathered, the number of casualties would be beyond anything he had ever witnessed, far worse than the devastation in his memories.
What should I do?
He didn’t want to see more people die or get hurt. But if he spoke the truth, he would be exposing Choi Yeo-min as someone connected to Night.
If Choi Yeo-min was captured, he would lose his only means of escaping this place.
Once the District’s Day ended, the new ruler of District 1 would be officially declared. If he became the leader’s partner, he would never be allowed to leave the estate again.
You know this is your last chance.
Would it be easier to ignore it all if he thought of these people as strangers? No. It wouldn’t.
If only he had remained ignorant.
Had he known how heavy the weight of the truth would be, he would have stopped Choi Yeo-min from speaking. If he hadn’t learned the truth, he wouldn’t feel so torn apart now.
“Ugh…”
A faint groan broke the silence.
Lifting his head from where it had been buried in his hands, he looked toward the collapsed servant.
For now, he had to act normal.
Rushing to his feet, he ran toward the servant before any suspicions could arise.
“Are you alright?”
“What… just happened—”
The servant rubbed his sore neck and looked around. But Choi Yeo-min was already long gone, leaving only Seo-yul in the room.
“Did you see who it was—”
“I had just woken up too, so I didn’t see their face.”
Feigning nonchalance, Seo-yul massaged the back of his own neck as if he had been knocked out as well. The servant looked like he had a million questions, but luckily, he seemed to buy the act and didn’t press further.
“You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?”
“No, I’m fine.”
After helping the servant back to his seat, Seo-yul used exhaustion as an excuse to return to bed. The servant muttered something about needing to increase security, but he only nodded absentmindedly, too lost in thought to process anything.
—Seo-yul-nim, just focus on leaving this place.
He had wanted to be selfish, just this once. But could he really live a normal life after abandoning so many people to their deaths?
Still, more than anything, he didn’t want to stay here any longer.
He had wished for it every day—someone, anyone, to take him away from this place.
***
“Vincent-nim.”
He didn’t know how much time had passed. By the time he snapped out of his thoughts, Vincent had already returned, having finished his schedule for the day. If the servant hadn’t spoken, he might not have even noticed Vincent sitting next to him.
Before Vincent’s gaze could pierce through his thoughts, Seo-yul quickly adjusted his expression. Fortunately, ever since he had arrived here, melancholy had been his default state. As expected, Vincent only looked at him with concern.
“Vincent-nim, I need to talk to you—”
“Later.”
The servant, who had been waiting for Vincent’s return, had no choice but to shut his mouth. Vincent didn’t even glance back as he gestured for the servant to leave. With no other option, the servant bowed deeply before silently exiting the room.
“I’m back, Seo-yul hyung.”
As soon as he greeted him, Vincent collapsed against him, resting his head on Seo-yul’s lap.
By now, Seo-yul had grown used to Vincent touching him without permission, so he didn’t push him away.
Letting out a deep sigh, Vincent reached up and tapped Seo-yul’s cheek lightly, as if asking for attention. When Seo-yul finally looked down, Vincent grinned brightly.
“I pushed myself a little too hard today since we’re going out tomorrow.”
“Where—”
Only then did he remember the promise they had made to leave the estate together.
Well, it hadn’t been a promise he had agreed to entirely, but since Vincent had brought up Se-yul, he had no choice but to go along with it in the end.
“I’m really looking forward to it.”
The way Vincent smiled, so bright and full of excitement, reminded him of the innocent boy he once knew.
Of course, that was only natural—it was still him, after all.
No matter how much time had passed, that version of Vincent was still there.
“I hope tomorrow comes quickly.”
In a place where the only bells that marked the passage of time were those that rang for the District’s Day, tomorrow was meaningless. Yet he spoke of it so easily.
The tomorrow where we would be together, the tomorrow where we would always stay by each other’s side.
But I wished for a different tomorrow.
A tomorrow where I was no longer by his side. A tomorrow where he and I lived separately, with no ties between us. A tomorrow where we would never meet again.
“…Yeah, that would be nice.”
So, knowing I was being selfish, I closed my eyes to it.
I repeated it over and over in my mind—they have nothing to do with me.
***
Stepping out of the bedroom, Yeo-min finally released the breath he had been holding.
The fact that he had to sneak into a place he had once roamed freely the day before irritated him, but this was Vincent Shining’s domain—he had no choice.
After his feelings for Seo-yul had been discovered, he was cast out without hesitation. He had gone to the Apostle, telling himself it was for the best since their plans were approaching their final stage anyway.
But in the end, thoughts of Seo-yul had led him right back here.
How did I hold back all this time?
Now that he had fully acknowledged it, there was no suppressing it anymore.
He wanted to touch Seo-yul. He wanted to kiss him. He wanted to whisper how much he loved him.
The only painful part was knowing that he couldn’t.
But soon, Seo-yul would leave this place with him—not with Vincent Shining.
And when they started over in a place where no one knew them, wouldn’t Seo-yul eventually open his heart?
His head, completely consumed by fantasies that didn’t suit him, was filled with nothing but Seo-yul.
What would he say if he knew?
He would surely scold him, telling him that emotions only got in the way of the greater cause.
Well, it doesn’t matter. I won’t be seeing him again anyway.
After this was over, Yeo-min planned to cut all ties with Night.
Once Humanity’s Moon fell, Night itself would cease to have meaning. It would dissolve naturally.
Yeo-min retraced his steps, avoiding prying eyes.
By the time he arrived at Ina Shining’s quarters—the opposite end of the estate from Vincent’s bedroom—his back was damp with nervous sweat.
***
“Where have you been?”
As soon as he opened the door, the Apostle spoke as if they had been waiting for him.
Yeo-min stiffened for a split second but quickly masked it with a casual smile, stepping toward them with ease.
“I just went for a walk.”
It’s suffocating in here, he added quietly.
The Apostle chuckled at that. Yeo-min smoothly redirected the conversation and made his way toward his usual spot in the room.
But just as he was about to sit—
“Do you remember the promise we made with Vincent Shining?”
The Apostle’s sudden words made him freeze halfway.
His eyes flickered, but he quickly shut them tight for a moment before opening them again, schooling his expression into one of perfect composure.
“Of course.”
“Good. That’s a relief.”
Do they know something?
But no—he had never let anything slip in front of the Apostle.
His feelings, his plan to escape with Seo-yul—those were secrets only he and Seo-yul knew.
“Yeo-min-nim, emotions do not serve the greater cause.”
The Apostle repeated the same words he had heard countless times before from him.
For a brief moment, defiance surged inside him, but he clenched his fists tightly, swallowing it down.
“…I understand.”
The tense, uncomfortable standoff continued for a moment.
Thankfully, it was the Apostle who looked away first.
“You should rest,” they said, dismissing him with an air of disinterest before lying back down, muttering something about feeling unwell.
Yeo-min lingered for just a second before giving a small nod and heading to his designated space in the corner of the room.
Only when he stepped behind the partition that divided the space—only when he was completely out of sight—did his carefully maintained expression shatter.
