Night Prince

So it Ends

With each knife that carved a soul out of a body, the fighters felt nothing. Such was war. It forces one to shut their brain down and deliver the deed.

And for those with even the slightest sliver of humanity stirring in their hearts? They simply trembled and killed, praying that in doing so, their loved ones would be safe.

Regardless, nobody has time to contemplate the horror of war, nor its awfulness, for that would mean they would never get to see the light of home ever again.

Focus.

It was all about focus.

They could only choose to focus on their target out of honour, out of self-preservation, and out of justice, amidst the million other reasons why one would choose to fight.

But ultimately, to fight and win...

...Or die.

There wasn't a more convincing reason than that amid a growing battle.

Yet, every death was someone who in another life, or at another place, could have been family.

A brother or a sister.

So, as Seri and the rest of the people battled with their enemy, they had to fight through the pain – both physical and mental – in hopes that in the next lifetime, it wouldn't have to end like this.

In the end, humans weren't meant to kill one another. We were all born to protect and love.

To go to war was against our innate instincts to love. Because of that, the collateral damage inflicted was colossal, beyond what one could bear.

Clashing swords echoed around the thickening air. Blood splattered, much like how the dust around them flew with each struggle between the rebels and the royal army.

One would think that killing would get easier after the first time, but that wasn't true.

It only gets harder as your soul gets chipped off bit by bit until you learn how to tune everything out to protect yourself.

That was the hard lesson Seri had grasped as she fought through the ache in her heart, having been the sole witness to some of the rebels' deaths.

Unfortunately, she barely had time to mourn, for another rebel had slammed right into her, provokingly.

Time was relative when one was fighting for their life.

So, she had no choice but to fight on.

"Ah!" Seri let out a loud shriek when a blade sliced across her right arm, rendering her temporarily helpless as she scrambled away from the rebel.

Momentarily, she had been distracted by the loud rushing of the blades coming from the North, for Cho Cheol Gang and their prince were having their final showdown.

Cursing, Seri rolled away from her opponent, forcing herself to look away from her lover even when he was pressed against the tree by Cho Cheol Gang. Rather, Seri focused all her attention on the rebel.

In a series of strikes and cuts, Seri finished her off, and for a time, she could finally breathe again.

But the same couldn't be said for Ri Jeong Hyeok.

This may not be the first time Seri has witnessed her loved one in danger, but nothing could ever prepare her for her soulmate's death, especially not when he was merely a few feet away from her as she stood there helplessly watching him.

If only those few feet didn't feel like a mountainous path.

Suddenly, the world resolved itself into pain and semidarkness, right as Cho Cheol Gang's heavy blade tainted with the blood of his enemies slashed through the air, straight towards the love of her life.