WHM | Chapter 86

Chapter 86

Instinctively, Cedric’s mind screamed that they needed to escape immediately.

“Jeon. We need to get out. Now.”

Cedric practically lifted Jeon onto his back as he rushed out of the room.

Smoke was already filling the hallway. As they reached the stairs, a wave of scorching heat hit them.

“Damn it.”

There was no reason the fire should have spread this fast in a building that had been quiet and perfectly fine moments ago.

“They really went all out…”

Cedric felt a painful throb at the back of his neck.

Who else could it be? That arrogant man from earlier—Jeon’s so-called uncle, Hyler.

He was the only one reckless enough to start something like this.

“Can we go this way?”

“We have to try.”

But the old wooden staircase Cedric had used to climb up was now being swallowed by flames.

Just as Cedric stepped forward and reached out to Jeon, several steps collapsed at once.

He barely managed to jump down—but now Jeon was left above, alone.

The fire hadn’t fully surged yet. If Cedric left right now, he might be able to escape safely.

“Hyung… go first.”

Jeon suddenly realized the situation.

“How would you get out alone?”

“If I stay here… you’ll…”

If you die too, what am I supposed to do?

He couldn’t say the rest of the sentence, but Cedric understood it all.

Cedric scanned left and right. The railing seemed intact enough.

If he stepped on it, he could leap and climb back up.

‘I saw your death.’

Aileen’s anxious warning rang in his head.

Was this the future she had seen?

If he stayed, would he die?

“Let’s get out. Together.”

Cedric shook off the thought and moved.

He grabbed the railing, climbed up, and leapt back to the top of the stairs just before the structure gave way beneath him.

“Whew…”

He ruffled Jeon’s hair as the boy stared at him in awe.

“We need to find another way down.”

“C-cough… There’s another stairway… on the other side.”

Thick smoke was rising quickly now. Tears streamed down Jeon’s face as he pointed toward the far end of the hall.

“Then we go that way.”

Neither he nor Jeon would die here today. Cedric was determined.

He refused to let Aileen suffer another death she couldn’t prevent.

* * *

Aileen was pacing anxiously in her room when she happened to look outside.

“…What is that?”

One of the distant buildings had light inside.

No—

It wasn’t light.

It was fire.

And the flames were spreading, growing bigger.

No. No, this couldn’t be happening.

Her nightmare couldn’t be coming true like this.

“No, no—”

Aileen ran out of the room and rushed outside.

People were already shouting and running everywhere.

“Fire!”

“Bring more buckets!”

“Hurry! The fire isn’t going out!”

Aileen pushed through the chaos, searching for one person.

The one who should be organizing everyone.

The one who should be giving orders.

“Where’s Cedric?!”

He was nowhere in sight.

Her small voice was drowned in the frenzy.

She spotted some knights gathered in discussion, with the butler beside them.

“The fire spread too fast. We can’t—”

“We still have to try going in!”

“Is someone definitely still inside?”

Aileen approached and raised her voice again.

“Where is Cedric?!”

This time, her voice held a sharp edge. Several knights and the butler turned toward her.

“The young lord entered the annex earlier… He went in to look for the master. He hasn’t come out.”

“Jeon too? Both of them?”

“Yes.”

At that moment, a loud crash shook the ground. Part of the roof collapsed, scattering sparks and debris.

“Lady Aileen, please be careful!”

Ruth rushed forward to shield her. Aileen barely noticed the ember that landed on her dress as she brushed it off.

Her heart twisted painfully.

Once again, she had made the wrong choice.

‘If you fear death, you can’t do anything.’

He had said that.

But Cedric… she wanted him to be afraid of death.

She wanted him to avoid it.

She should have begged him to listen.

She should’ve told him every detail of her dream.

She should’ve done anything to convince him.

‘But you…’

Even so—

Even if she had—

Cedric would have gone in anyway, because Jeon was inside.

“Lady Aileen! We caught the culprit!”

Two knights dragged a man forward, tied and forced to kneel.

A familiar face.

Hyler—the shameless relative who had made such a scene earlier.

“We saw him throwing away an empty oil can and trying to climb over the wall.”

“I-I didn’t know anyone was inside! I did sneak in, but the oil spilled by accident when I was leaving—”

His jacket bulged suspiciously.

Aileen signaled to a knight.

The moment they searched him, old silver spoons, gold bracelets, and various items spilled out—trinkets that looked shabby but clearly belonged to the Marquisate.

“It looks like he came to steal valuables.”

“Pathetic,” Sir Dane muttered after Aileen.

“Lock him up. Make sure he can’t escape.”

But honestly, Aileen didn’t care why he did it.

What mattered was that Cedric and Jeon were inside because of him.

“We should attempt a rescue, my lady—”

“Yes. We should go in—”

Aileen fell silent, and the knights started discussing among themselves again.

“Don’t even think about it.

Cedric would be furious and refuse if any of you tried.”

Aileen wanted to be selfish too.

But risking lives to save Cedric’s was something she couldn’t allow.

The knights weren’t superhuman. They could die just as easily.

‘I don’t have any special abilities…’

Then she remembered what was in her hand.

In her panic, she had still grabbed one thing before rushing out—

the wooden bird figurine, Huikan.

“Lady Aileen, it’s dangerous to get closer.”

“I know. I won’t go all the way.”

Aileen took a few steps forward.

Those behind her assumed she needed a moment to grieve and gave her space.

“Huikan. Deliver my words.”

She whispered softly.

The wooden bird moved as though it were alive beneath her fingers.

Flames roared wildly now—the heat stung her skin.

“Help me, Theorn.”

There was no need for explanation.

Once the bird flew to her shoulder, it would share her sight with him.

“If it’s you… you can do something. Anything.”

She trusted his incredible ability.

She didn’t care what price she had to pay.

Theorn Arwin was, after all, the one person with a special power capable of changing this situation.

“…Even for me, this requires great strength.”

“I know.”

“And the backlash will be severe.”

But that meant he could still do it.

That was all she needed.

“I know. I’ll give you anything.”

“Anything?”

“Anything.

I swear it in the name of Euryne.”

An oath in the goddess’s name was sacred.

You didn’t speak her name lightly—because the moment you did, it was believed the goddess’s eyes and ears were watching.

Breaking a promise after invoking her name meant divine punishment.

In Arwin, such an oath was never made carelessly.

“You really took that oath… You always exceed every expectation.”

She wanted to ask whether that was praise or disbelief—

—but then the sky flashed.

A bright lightning bolt streaked downward.

Thunder rolled in, clouds gathered unnaturally fast.

“Rain!”

“It’s raining!”

“Thank goodness!”

Within seconds, the gentle drops turned into a heavy downpour.

The temperature dropped as well—likely due to Theorn exerting his power.

But before the fire was fully suppressed—

“Someone’s coming out!”

His voice sounded slightly fatigued. Aileen barely heard it.

Because she saw Jeon stumbling out of the burning building, supporting Cedric.

They rounded the half-collapsed structure, covered in ash.

Aileen was the first to run to them.

“Cedric!”

“Noona… Hyung is hurt. Really hurt.”

Jeon took a few shaky steps, let out a pained sound, and collapsed. His face was entirely smeared with soot.

“I’m fine.”

Cedric fell to his knees, nearly collapsing face-first.

His face was ghostly pale.

The left side of his shoulder and his back—his clothes had burned away.

Underneath was charred flesh, red and blistered.

Even with treatment, it would likely scar terribly.

“You’re not fine, Cedric. You’re not fine at all.”

Aileen couldn’t bring herself to touch him.

She could only hold his hand tightly.

His weak fingers barely responded.

People rushed around them.

“Bring a stretcher!”

“His injuries are serious—call the physician!”

Even in such agony, Cedric didn’t groan.

He kept his eyes fixed on Aileen.

“I told you… I don’t die easily.”

He gave her a faint, weak smile.

But his gaze drifted away slightly—not quite meeting her eyes.

His hand lifted, then fell limply.

“Th… the…”

The bird.

The bird from Aileen’s room was sitting on her shoulder.

Moving.

Alive.

It tilted its head, blinking at him with eyes that looked almost human.

Even with pain covering half his upper body, Cedric’s mind froze—cold as the pouring rain.

“Hold on, sir.”

“We’ll give you something for the pain.”

The people around him were too busy to notice the bird.

But Cedric finally remembered.

That bird.

It was a rare species that lived only in the birch forests near the border of…

Arwin.

Arwin.

Aileen’s ability.

Arwin.

Those words churned in Cedric’s mind—

—right up until he lost consciousness.