Chapter 152
“You’re awake. How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine.”
Though his answer was calm, the look in his eyes as he gazed at the approaching Song Jiwoon was filled with mixed emotion—relief, joy, and quiet sorrow.
It had been five years since the king had lost his mind after embedding the jewel in his forehead and roamed the mountains in madness. To now be able to face his one and only disciple with a clear mind—of course he was overwhelmed.
Kneeling beside the couch, Song Jiwoon looked as though he might cry as he carefully asked:
“Do you... recognize me?”
It was a question he had asked again and again over those five years.
When the king ran away at the sight of him, clinging to the last shreds of sanity. When he’d attacked him under the influence of the jewel’s energy. Even then, Jiwoon had shouted until his voice broke, begging to be recognized.
That short sentence contained all the suffering of those years. The king realized it—and smiled bitterly.
“...How could I forget you? Even with my mind consumed by that cursed energy, you were the one thing I couldn’t forget.”
He patted Jiwoon’s head gently, then lifted his gaze.
He looked over Cha Seohu, Cha Sahyeon, and Ryu Sunghyun—who had followed into the living room—his silver-blue eyes pausing especially long on Seohu and Sahyeon.