The wind howled, and people willingly crowded together just to cross. The situation was even more complicated because the ship was loaded with a huge amount of cargo.
Lyiana was forced to board a cargo ship to meet with her colleague. The clothes she usually wore were luxurious, but this time she had to swallow her pride. She looked more like a desperately poor woman.
Besides living as a promiscuous woman, Lyiana had also become skilled at accepting jobs that involved taking people's lives.
There was no way to live by relying on dreams forever. That was the principle the woman always lived by.
While other women out there were busy building their careers and becoming accomplished individuals, Lyi chose to become a woman of the underworld. That was the path she had chosen for her life.
She wore a wool kurung dress. Since the crowds passing by were growing thicker, she put on a burqa to cover part of her face.
"Jerome, convince me that we'll succeed." Elys gazed at the twilight hanging overhead. The breeze was like Elys's loyal escort.
Jerome, who had been standing behind her, stepped forward until he was beside Elys. The man looked at his friend's face. The serious lines on it were unmistakable. A mission rooted in family and love had drawn them both in.
"Trust me, Elys. I'll always be by your side—as someone who's fighting alongside you to find peace after the anxieties of the past." Elys turned and looked at Jerome with hope in her eyes.
"Forgive me for bringing you to this dark gate, Jerome," Elys said, her eyes glistening with tears.
"If our hearts didn't hold love for our parents, you and I would never have come this far. There's no need to feel guilty now. Let's resolve to become brave, devoted children for our parents."
The spill of twilight revealed that Elys had found the same hope. She smiled at Jerome. The broad-shouldered man smiled back.
The mountain beneath their feet bore witness to the hopes of two souls.
Jerome and Elys both knew that the journey ahead would grow even more difficult. This was the riskiest course of action they had ever chosen.
"King, I don't know what fate has befallen you. And I know none of this is your fault. It's only because you know more that you're so precious to everyone," Jerome whispered as he gazed at the surrounding landscape.
"What did you say?" Jerome hadn't expected his voice to carry to Elys.
"Nothing, Elys." From Jerome's answer, Elys was certain it was still closely connected to every problem they were facing now.
Rain had just fallen, soaking this dense forest—the place where Lazim had been surviving. The middle-aged man slept beside his dog, which remained awake.
The loyalest of pets occasionally looked at its master, then checked to make sure the area around them was safe from attacks by humans or wild beasts.
Before long, Lazim woke up. He heard Subi barking nonstop. The dog's barking sounded unusual.
Lazim followed the sound of his dog to its source. He wanted to see who else was in this cool forest besides himself.
When he arrived at the place where Subi was barking, Lazim laughed. "So you found this, Subi?"
The dog darted back and forth, its tail wagging repeatedly—a sign that it was happy with what it had found.
Looking at the corpse Subi had discovered, Lazim could tell that it had been dead for only a few months. He didn't know what had killed it—whether it had been a wild animal or a human.
However, Lazim could sense that someone must once have inhabited this forest.
"Come on, Subi. Let's leave this place. Let nature claim the corpse on its own."
The cool air, the wet earth, and the alternating songs of birds kept Lazim company through his days.
The man did not continue walking. He saw that his dog was asking him to confirm something. It turned out to be a footprint. He was certain the tracks were still fresh too.
"It seems I'll be brought face-to-face with these people. I can see noble hope in their tracks."