The Refuge of Fate

Chapter 58 - Refuge

He stood in front of a wooden door.

Thump! Thump! The way his heart pounded in his chest was exhilarating but, at the same time, was nerve-wracking. He could not find the courage to knock nor even speak any word.

What lies beyond was his fate. He was sure of that.

He gulped in anxiousness before loosening the collar around his neck and taking a few deep breaths. Finally, he found the fortitude despite the ongoing alarms in his head telling him to just go back and never come again.

Raising his hand, he closed his hand before gently knocking on the door three times.

Knock! Knock! Knock! The sound echoed all around the silent place like a clock's hand ticking a time bomb.

'Don't be nervous,' he reprimanded himself before clearing his throat when he heard a response from inside. "Come in!" said the sweet voice from the other side of the door. His hand shook for a second again before he decided he was wasting time standing outside the door being nervous.

He was bound to become a ruler. The moment he was born, his fate had been decided.

"P-Please pardon me," he muttered before gently grabbing the knob and twisting it. The racing of his heart increasing tenfold in the process. There were only a few times he had been this nervous around someone else and some of those weren't the best of memories he had.

Slowly, the door creaked as he pushed it.

He then closed his eyes as the blinding light coming from the window poured into the room like streams of magic and greeted his eyes.

"Asher!" The child called his name and his attention was immediately directed towards the beautiful boy who was standing in front of a mirror and was fixing his appearance.

The boy's midnight black hair was combed without fault. A red bow tie was placed around his neck and his black suit complemented his icy blue eyes that stood out even more with his pale complexion.

"You're here!" The boy beamed when he saw Asher.

"Y-You look wonderful, Pier," Asher complimented in which the raven-haired child giggled at. "Why are you stuttering? Hmm?"

"It's... nothing..."

"Really though? Wait a minute, I'll just fix a few things and let's go together to the ball." Pier then went back into fixing his hair in front of the mirror and Asher allowed himself to come inside the room and look at the things inside the young master's bedroom.

There weren't anything special as Asher was used to seeing this in his room as well. Cream-colored curtains hanged to cover the windows but were opened to let the sunlight creep in.

Beautiful drawers made by the greatest craftsmen in the kingdom stood before the wall and there were also impressive sets of chairs and tables all around the massive room.

That was until Asher passed by a mirror and he saw his appearance.

'I'm fifteen again,' he thought.

The reflection that he saw was different from what he remembered was like in the real world right now. His features were somehow softer and younger looking. The trace of the man stricken with grief and despair at the age of eighteen was no longer there.

Instead, a bright complexion paired with his dazzling red hair greeted his eyes.

He knew what was happening.

A dream.

This was all a dream but at the same time, these weren't dreams of sadness and regrets. These were the dreams where he knew he can spend time with Pier.