The moment he heard it, Daniel ran straight to the room where Lucy was staying.
As he moved, he thought.
Why had Count Khaledra suddenly decided to dispose of Lucy?
He asked himself the question—and didn’t take long to find the answer.
Because of me.
In this reconstructed world of memory, the only foreign element was Daniel Steiner.
If he had never infiltrated this place, Lucy would never have been marked for disposal.
Everything I did, thinking it was for her sake...
In the end, it had led her to death.
Gripped by the need to take responsibility, Daniel rushed up the stairs and down the hall.
He ignored the servants who tried to stop him and finally reached Lucy’s room.
He took a deep breath—then opened the door without knocking.
“...Eh?”
Lucy made a strange noise as she hurriedly hid something behind her back.
She was blushing, as if caught doing something embarrassing.
“Don’t get the wrong idea, okay? That doll—I just made it because I was bored. Not because I was thinking about you or anything...”
Lucy’s excuse trailed off, sweat forming on her forehead.
It was because Daniel was looking at her with a dead-serious expression.
“...What’s wrong?”
How could he even begin to explain this?
Controlling his breathing, Daniel thought hard—then stepped toward her.
“Young Lady? You said you wanted to see the sea, ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) didn’t you?”
He knelt on one knee in front of her.
Then held out his hand.
“I believe now is the perfect time. Would you come with me—to see the ocean?”
“...The sea? All of a sudden?”
“There’s no time! You have to decide right now!”
Daniel’s raised voice startled her for a moment—but then she understood.
“...If not today, I’ll never get the chance again?”
Her voice trembled. Daniel nodded.
Only then did Lucy fully understand. She reached out and took his hand.
“I’ll go. Let’s go see the sea.”
****
With Lucy in his arms, Daniel didn’t hesitate—he fled the mansion immediately.
There hadn’t been nearly enough time to form a plan. All he could think was that he had to get Lucy away from that hellish place.
But of course, Count Khaledra wasn’t the kind of man to sit still and watch.
The moment he heard Daniel had escaped with Lucy, he gave the order to his private troops.
Find them both. Kill them on sight.
And now, Daniel was being hunted by the Count’s soldiers.
“He can’t have gotten far! Sweep the area—search every inch!”
“Permission to open fire! I repeat, open fire has been authorized! The Count said we are to shoot to kill. Load live rounds!”
“Close the net! Force him to show himself!”
The voices of the soldiers echoed all around.
Daniel crouched behind a dead tree, catching his breath. No matter where he looked, the area was crawling with troops.
Torchlight and flashlights lit up the forest in every direction. There was nowhere to run.
“Damn it...”
Grinding his teeth, Daniel tensed—when Lucy, still in his arms, spoke quietly.
“Hey... I changed my mind. It’s okay if I don’t see the ocean anymore. Maybe... maybe you should hand me over. The Count might forgive you if you do it now...”
He didn’t want to hear it.
“Don’t talk like that. Not now.”
With that, Daniel forced himself to his feet.
He intended to use a moment of loosened patrols to get just a little farther.
But just as he moved toward the trees, a flashlight beam locked onto his back.
“There! He’s over there!”
“Shit! He’s running! Open fire!”
As soon as they spotted him, Daniel sprinted.
Gunfire rang out behind him.
Bullets slammed into trees, grazed past him, split the air around his body.
Each time it happened, his muscles tensed involuntarily—but he didn’t stop running.
Will I survive this?
He asked himself the question. But the answer was already clear.
No. I won’t.
At this rate, death was inevitable.
And still, his feet kept moving.
If it were just me, I might have given up...
But in his arms, Lucy was curled up in terror.
There was no way Daniel could let her see him give in.
So he kept running.
But willpower alone couldn’t overcome everything.
Bang—
A distant shot rang out—and a stray bullet hit Daniel square in the shoulder.
His body reeled violently.
He nearly collapsed—but somehow managed to stay upright.
The pain made him grit his teeth, but he could still move.
Taking a breath, Daniel broke into another run.
Praying for a miracle. For a sliver of survival for the both of them.
Branches scraped his skin as he ran—but his vision was beginning to blur.
His breathing was ragged. He couldn’t get it under control. His sense of direction failed. His body tilted with every step.
Only sheer willpower kept him going.
But that didn’t last long.
Crack! His toe caught on a stone. His body pitched forward.
With Lucy still in his arms, Daniel tumbled down the slope.
The world spun chaotically.
He rolled again and again down the incline—until his back slammed into a tree.
“Ghh...!”
Pain exploded from the wound in his shoulder. Daniel let out a short, sharp groan.
Looking down, he confirmed that Lucy, still in his arms, was unharmed.
Relief flickered through him for a moment—but it was meaningless.
“He rolled down the hill!”
“This way! Regroup on me!”
He could hear the voices of the soldiers not far off.
So this is the result of all that struggling.
His strength left him in a wave of futility.
Resting his head against the tree, Daniel saw Lucy quietly sobbing like a lost child.
“Why... why would you go this far...”
Her small, trembling hand touched his chest.
“Why are you doing this for me... why...”
As if she couldn’t understand, Lucy choked on her words.
Daniel didn’t answer. He simply lifted a hand.
He placed it gently on her head and spoke softly.
“...I’m sorry. I said I’d show you the ocean...”
“I don’t want the ocean!” S~eaʀᴄh the nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
Lucy yelled and hit his chest with her fists.
There was no strength behind it.
“I didn’t want the ocean...”
All she’d wanted was to be with the one person who understood her—Daniel.
When she’d said they should go see the sea together, it was only because she hoped he’d be by her side when the day came to leave the mansion.
The ocean hadn’t mattered.
To Lucy, Daniel was what mattered.
Daniel understood what she meant.
But there was no turning back. And even if he could, he’d make the same choices again.
He couldn’t ignore Hamilten’s abuse. He couldn’t let Count Khaledra dispose of her without a word.
“I see him! All units, take aim!”
The soldiers were close now.
Daniel knew it was over. His dry lips parted.
“Lieutenant... I guess this is the end for me. What a pathetic way to go. I promised I’d protect you, but...”
Lucy’s eyes widened.
Daniel gave a bitter smile and lowered his hand from her head.
“Forgive your useless commanding officer.”
Then Daniel closed his eyes.
He didn’t know what dying in a world of memory truly meant—but he was ready to accept it.
And yet, no gunshots came.
Daniel waited.
And waited.
But the sound never came.
Confused, he slowly opened his eyes.
The world had frozen.
The soldiers were locked in place, fingers on their triggers. Even the grass in the wind had stopped moving, like a paused screen.
And then...
Right before him stood Lucy.
Not the Lucy who had been called Young Lady as a child.
But Lucy Emilia—the one who wore the military uniform of his lieutenant.
The only thing she shared with the girl from before were her crimson eyes, now filled with tears.
“...Lieutenant?”
Daniel spoke faintly, like someone seeing a vision in their final moments.
Lucy lowered her head.
Their lips met.
He didn’t resist.
Breaths mingled. The scent of her filled his senses.
In this colorless, frozen world—they were the only ones left in motion.
Time passed, slowly.
And then, as she pulled away, Lucy—breathless—grabbed Daniel’s hand.
In that instant, the world began to fracture.
Everything in view cracked.
As if it were about to collapse entirely.
But neither Daniel nor Lucy paid it any mind. They kept their eyes only on each other.
After a short silence, Lucy raised a hand to his cheek.
“Daniel Steiner.”
Her lips moved with certainty, as if to say she would never forget.
“I remember you.”
And with that, the false world began to fall apart.
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