↳ 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗹: 𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀

𝙆𝙖𝙧𝙡 𝙃𝙚𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙜 - 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦

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[ any reader ]

"Fuck sake, Karl, it's not like I want to do this. I'm doing this because I have to!"

"And why do you have to leave me? Huh? Am I not good enough? Did I not treat you well?"

"Yes! You aren't the problem, you know that."

"Do I?"

"Stop it. Just stop it. I don't wanna leave but I don't know how much more of this I can take. I know you want to kill Miranda. I know you need your army to help you accomplish that, but what I don't know is whether you'll survive. I love you too much to watch you get yourself killed."

"So this is it." You pause with your back to him.

"Ethan is coming. As we speak he is on his way to take down Miranda with you. This is what you need to do. This deserves your attention. Not me."

"Don't leave."

"If I stay and you don't make it out alive..." your eyes water. "It will kill me."

"You think I'd leave you alone in this place? I can't leave unless she's dead. As soon as I put her in the ground, we'll be free. I can take you far away from here-we can travel the world like we always talked about."

You tilt your head back, gazing upwards to try to blink the tears away. "I'm sorry." Your voice cracks. "I know this isn't fair. I know that I'm hurting you but maybe this is for the best."

"You know that's not true."

And you do.

"You've been worried every second of everyday about me. Wondering whether Miranda will find out about me-if she'll let me live. If I leave, you won't have to worry. You can focus on giving her what she deserves."

He stares at the floor, biting the inside of his cheek. "I'm doing this for us." Karl murmurs. "The only reason I fight is for you. This is all for you."

The lump in your throat aches and you close your eyes. "I will never stop loving you, Karl."

He watches you walk away without looking back, knowing it'll be too painful for you to see him standing there, so broken and afraid. The guilt weighing heavily on your shoulders as you trudge through the field.

-

"I screwed up, didn't I?" You put your empty plate down. The Duke smiles lightly, glad to see you ate his meal and evidently enjoyed it.

"Why did I do that? Why did I leave? Why now? I left him at the worst possible time. Right when he's about to go into war. When he's about to face his so called Mother." You scrape your hair back. "I'm heartless."

"You felt it was the right thing to do. People often feel guilty when making tough decisions, and sometimes that is because they are making the right one."

"I thought it would hurt less. I don't know why I just-I thought if I ended things and he didn't make it, that it would somehow be less painful. I'm stupid. I was so, so wrong. If anything it hurts more."