Darkness, Exists?

Chapter-8

As Jimin sat there, lost in thought, the weight of everything that had happened settled heavily on his chest. The night air was cool, but it did nothing to soothe the turmoil inside him. His kingdom, which he had always believed to be a beacon of light, peace, and justice, seemed to be hiding dark secrets—secrets that involved cruelty, suffering, and violence. And Taehyung, the prisoner locked away in the Twilight Towers, was at the heart of it all.

His mind replayed the scene over and over—the guards laughing as they beat Taehyung, the way his body crumpled to the floor, the blood staining his face. Jimin had felt so powerless, so weak. He had stood there, frozen in place, unable to stop them sooner. What had Taehyung done to deserve such brutal treatment? He was told that this prisoner was dangerous, that he was someone to be feared, but all Jimin had seen was a man broken and beaten, yet still managing to hold onto his dignity.

Tears welled up in Jimin's eyes and fell silently down his cheeks. The image of Taehyung, shackled and gagged, with fresh bruises blooming across his body, haunted him. The glossy white eyes staring out from behind the iron mask were etched into his memory, and the soft touch of their fingers as they passed the piece of charcoal lingered on his skin like a brand.

Jimin's gaze drifted out the window, but he wasn't truly seeing anything. The moon hung high in the sky, casting its pale light over the kingdom of Lumina, but it felt hollow now, as if the light itself had been tainted by the darkness lurking within its borders. Was this what his father was hiding? The truth of their so-called peaceful kingdom?

A deep sense of shame and helplessness filled him. As the crown prince, wasn't it his duty to protect the innocent, to ensure justice was upheld? But here he was, unable to protect even one man, a prisoner who had done nothing but suffer in silence. The realization that the kingdom of light wasn't as pure as he had once believed was a painful one, and it made Jimin question everything he had ever known.

Tears flowed freely down his face now, and he didn't bother to wipe them away. He felt an overwhelming exhaustion, both physically and emotionally, but sleep didn't come easily. When it finally did, it was more of a collapse than a surrender. His body, worn out by the day's events and the weight of his guilt, couldn't hold on any longer.

As sleep overtook him, his thoughts remained with Taehyung, the man in the Twilight Towers who had sparked something within him—a connection, a sense of purpose. And though his dreams were murky and fragmented, one thing was clear: he couldn't stand idly by any longer. Something had to change, and he would be the one to make sure it did.

*****

Jimin sat at the wooden desk in the quiet records and archives section of the library. The weight of his task began to settle in. The dimly lit room, filled with the musty smell of ancient scrolls and forgotten histories, felt suffocating, amplifying his growing anxiety. The room was cold, but his hands were sweating as they carefully unrolled scroll after scroll, looking for one name—Kim Taehyung.

The lists of prisoners seemed endless, with countless names scrawled in delicate script on the aged parchment. His eyes blurred as he skimmed through them, his fingers running along the faded ink. Names, crimes, dates of imprisonment—so many people, all of them locked away in the dark towers that now haunted his every thought. But none of it seemed real, none of it connected with him, until finally, his hand stopped.

Kim Taehyung.

The name leapt out at him as if it had been waiting all along, buried under the layers of history. Jimin's breath hitched in his throat, and for a moment, the world seemed to pause. There it was, written in plain ink, but the implications of it hit him like a tidal wave.

He inhaled sharply, almost afraid to read further, but his eyes were drawn to the rest of the entry.

Age eight. Jimin's fingers trembled as he traced the letters. His heart began to pound in his chest. Eight? Taehyung was only a child when he was imprisoned? His mind refused to accept it. The same man who now sat in chains, beaten and broken in the tower, had been trapped there since he was a child?