Chapter 61 Chapter 61

Chapter 61 Chapter 61
I didn't realize it until I opened my eyes.
The sky beyond the window had turned a deep shade of blue, while the last streaks of orange sunlight slowly disappeared behind the rows of old buildings. The cramped room Dahlia and I now called home was filled with long shadows. The air felt stuffy, even though I had left the window slightly open.
I didn't get up right away.
I remained lying on the thin mattress, one arm draped over my eyes.
I had no idea how long I had been asleep.
The last thing I remembered was resting my head on the pillow a few hours ago. After that, everything faded into darkness.
For the first time in days of running, my body had finally surrendered to exhaustion.
But my mind had never truly rested. The dream came back. The endless corridors of Crimsonveil Palace. The towering stone ceiling overhead.
The echo of footsteps reverberating through the halls.
And at the end of the corridor. A man stood with his back to me. Black hair. A long cloak.
Straight, unwavering shoulders.
I didn't even need to see his face to know who he was.
Alaric.
I let out a long sigh and lowered my arm from my face.
"You're so infuriating." I rubbed my temples.
"Why are you still chasing me... even in my dreams?"
There was no answer. Only the slow ticking of the old clock in the corner of the room.
I forced myself to sit up.
The old mattress creaked softly beneath me.
Across the room, Dahlia was still asleep.
I watched her for a moment.
She was curled beneath a thin blanket, her long hair covering part of her face. Her breathing was soft and steady, but I knew it wasn't truly peaceful.
Ever since we left Crimsonveil, neither of us had slept the same way again.
As vampires, we didn't need much rest.
But when our bodies were deprived of blood...
Sleep became the last way to conserve what little strength remained.
I stood carefully, making sure not to wake her.
The wooden floor creaked beneath my feet.
I pulled the curtains open a little wider.
Outside, the city was beginning to come alive.
Shop lights flickered on one by one.
People crowded the sidewalks.
The distant sounds of traffic blended with laughter and fragments of conversation drifting up from the streets below.
Humans. So many humans.
Once, I thought living among them would be easy.
They were fragile. Weak. Their lives were painfully short. Yet somehow, that was exactly what made living in their world so much harder.
They never stopped moving.
Never stopped watching one another.
Never stopped asking questions.
One small mistake. And everything could fall apart.
I rested my forehead against the cool windowpane. The cold was strangely comforting.
"I'm still alive."
The words slipped out before I realized it.
Softly.
Almost like a whisper.
"I'm still free."
But even as I said them. I didn't truly believe them. Free. What did that even mean?
If every time I closed my eyes, I saw Alaric.
If every corner of this city reminded me that anyone could recognize me. If every night I had to fight the instinct to hunt humans. A quiet laugh escaped my lips.
It sounded hollow, even to my own ears.
"Congratulations, Elysian."
"You escaped the palace."
"So... what now?"
I stared at my reflection in the glass.
The face that had once been carefully adorned by royal attendants now looked pale and exhausted.
Dark circles shadowed my eyes.
My hair had begun to lose its shine.
I barely recognized myself. The Princess of Crimsonveil. The title sounded as though it belonged to someone else. Back then, I used to complain about being trapped inside the palace.
Now, There were things I never thought I would miss.
The grand library where Cassian loved teasing me. The black rose garden Mother tended so lovingly.
The enormous dining hall where even the sound of a fork echoed. Even Father's stern voice whenever he called my name.
I closed my eyes.
"No."
I shook my head quickly.
"Don't think about them."
"Because if you start missing home..."
"...you'll start questioning why you left."
And I couldn't allow that.
I couldn't forget.
The arranged marriage had been real.
I had run away.
Not because I was childish.
But because I was afraid.
Afraid of becoming the fourth wife of a vampire whose previous wives had all died.
Afraid that one morning, my name would become the next one carved into a Bloodfang grave.
A small voice behind me broke my thoughts.
"Big Sis."
I turned immediately.
Dahlia was sitting up on the mattress.
Her eyes were still half-closed.
Her hair was a complete mess.
But the moment she saw me standing by the window, a faint smile appeared on her face.
"You're awake."
I smiled back.
"I guess I slept longer than I meant to."
Dahlia rubbed her eyes.
"It's rare to see you sleep until evening."
"I'm surprised too."
"You must've been exhausted."
I didn't deny it.
Because it was true.
The exhaustion wasn't just physical.
It weighed on my mind as well.
I felt as though I had been running nonstop, even while standing still.
Dahlia climbed out of bed.
"Sis...."
"Hm?"
"Last night..."
She hesitated. Her expression turned uncertain.
"I had a dream."
"What kind of dream?"
"I dreamed we went home."
My chest tightened.
"I saw Mother."
"She smiled just like she used to."
"Father was there too."
"And then..."
Her voice grew quieter.
"Everyone kept asking why we'd been gone for so long."
I didn't answer right away.
Because I knew.
Dahlia wasn't really talking about her dream.
She was telling me she had started missing home.
And truthfully...
So had I.
Instead, I walked over to her and gently smoothed her messy hair with my fingers.
"It was only a dream."
She looked up at me.
"Big Sis."
"Yes?"
"If one day, all of this is over...."
She bit her lip.
"....do you think we can go home?"
I smiled.
A smile that felt painfully fragile, even to me.
"I'll make sure we can."
Though deep down...
I had no idea whether that would ever truly be possible.