The King finally woke up.
It had been nearly two full months since he had fallen into what everyone had co to call an eternal sleep—a state so deep and unresponsive that even hope itself had started to feel pointless. And now, after all that ti suspended between life and death, this was the first mont he opened his eyes again, the first ti light reached him after all those silent days.
"Ah..."
Layla’s voice trembled, and she couldn’t hide the joy flooding her expression. Not that she tried to. No one could have blad her for it.
She had already given up once. Slowly, painfully, she had accepted the idea that her father would never wake again. The healers had shaken their heads, the priests had whispered prayers that sounded more like farewells, and every passing day had chipped away at what little hope remained. She had begun preparing herself for the worst, steeling her heart for a future without him.
And now, all of that vanished in an instant.
The mont she saw her father’s eyes open, the fear, the grief, the sleepless nights—all of it collapsed like it had never existed.
"Layla?"
The King’s voice was low and rough, thick with confusion. It wasn’t weakness—it was disorientation. And that was only natural.
Anyone would be confused. One mont, you go to sleep like any other day, unaware that anything is wrong. The next thing you know, you wake up months later, your body heavy, your senses dull, the world subtly different. Ti had moved on without him, and he had no mory of it.
"I’m really glad you’re here and awake, Father," Layla said, her voice breaking despite her best effort to keep it steady.
She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly. It wasn’t a polite embrace or a restrained one—it was desperate, emotional, filled with everything she had been holding back for months. Her shoulders trembled as she held him, as if she were afraid he might disappear again if she let go.
It was a touching reunion. A genuine one.
Watching them stirred a mory in —Selene and Zeruel reuniting with Juna after she had been asleep for an entire year. That mont had been heavy with emotion too. Relief, disbelief, joy, and lingering fear all tangled together in a way words could barely capture. This felt just like that. Different faces, different circumstances, but the sa raw feeling.
Then the King’s gaze shifted.
Only then did he notice .
His eyes moved slowly, taking in the room, before finally settling on my presence. It made sense that he hadn’t noticed at first. Compared to him, I might as well have been invisible. To a Titan King, I was no more than a speck of dust standing at the edge of his awareness. And considering he had woken up with Layla hovering over him, clearly distressed and emotional, it was only natural that I hadn’t been his focus.
"Humans?" he said, his tone neutral but sharp enough to cut through the air.
"Ah—F-Father," Layla said quickly, pulling back just enough to look at him. "I know I acted on my own."
She hesitated for a brief mont, choosing her words carefully.
"But given the state of everything, I thought it would be best to ask for their help."
The King didn’t answer imdiately. Instead, he looked at Layla, really looked at her, as if gauging her resolve, her exhaustion, and the weight she had been carrying in his absence. Then his gaze shifted downward, toward his own body, likely sensing the lingering effects of whatever had been done to him.
"I see," he said at last. "Now I understand the situation."
His voice was calm, steady, and thoughtful.
"You acted on your own for the sake of the people," he continued. "I don’t bla you at all."
It was clear he already understood more than he was saying. He didn’t need a full explanation to piece things together. Sothing had happened to him, and because of that, sothing had happened to the Titan Kingdom. Layla hadn’t acted out of rebellion or recklessness—she had acted out of necessity.
"And so," the King said, turning his attention back to , "what do you want as repaynt, Human?"
He paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
"No... you aren’t human, are you?"
There was no shock in his voice. Just curiosity.
Honestly, I couldn’t even answer that question myself with complete confidence. I knew I was sothing like an offspring of Lilith—sothing born from her influence, her power, and her existence. That alone disqualified from being normal by any reasonable standard.
"I don’t really want any repaynt," I said plainly.
"Oh?" he replied.
"Aren’t you the Elven Breeder?" he continued. "The one attempting to unite all the countries and tribes of the Great Forest into a single nation?"
At this point, I barely reacted to the title. Being called the Elven Breeder had beco routine enough that it didn’t bother anymore.
"Well," I said, "it’s not like my main goal is to force unification."
I shrugged slightly.
"But it would be good if it happens. Honestly, it’s fine if you don’t consider it. Still, it would be highly appreciated if you joined."
I knew I was being vague. I wasn’t cornering him or making demands. And judging by the way his eyes studied , he understood exactly what I was doing.
"You seem like soone who’s good at bargaining," the King said. "I’ve seen your kind before. You’re a snake. You slither into circles where you don’t quite belong, always searching for sothing to gain."
The words weren’t an insult. Not really. They were an observation.
He paused for a mont, then let out a faint smirk.
"But snakes like you are the most interesting kind," he added. "And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with trusting your judgnt."
With a deep breath, he shifted and sat up from his bed. The bed itself was enormous—easily a hundred tis larger than —and even now, it groaned and creaked beneath his weight, the sound echoing through the chamber.
"You want my country to join this unification, correct?" he asked.
"Yes," I answered without hesitation. "If you permit it, I want your country to unite with the newly established nation."
The King chuckled quietly, a sound heavy with experience.
"You’re trying quite hard," he said. "While saving our people was comndable, I don’t think that alone is enough for to imdiately accept your proposal."
Then he stopped.
"But..."
He turned his head and looked directly at Layla.
"I don’t think I’m the one who should be deciding this."
Layla froze.
Her eyes widened, and confusion flickered across her face. It was obvious she hadn’t expected that—hadn’t even considered the possibility.
"Layla," the King said calmly, "what do you think?"
"Um..."
Layla hesitated, clearly unsure how to respond.
And honestly, so was I.
Even though he was the King, he was deliberately placing the decision in soone else’s hands. But as I watched the way he looked at his daughter, it beca clear that this wasn’t uncertainty.
It was intention.
And whatever he was planning, Layla was at the center of it.
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