I woke up from the dream. I finally recollected the memories I had lost.
Rufus’ POV
I stumbled out of bed, pulled off my shirt, and looked at my back in the mirror.
There was no sign of the black thorn.
Just as Crystal had expected, the curse of the black thorn was lifted now that she was dead. And I had regained all my memories, which meant that… Crystal was really dead.
The mere thought nearly made me collapse on the spot. The pain of losing her was so unbearable that I wanted to take my own life so that I could be with Crystal.
“Rufus, calm down. Have you already forgotten what Crystal told you before she died? You have to live and take good care of your mother and two kids,” Omar said, trying to talk some sense into me. He too remembered everything we had forgotten, and he also felt the same unbearable pain I felt. “Crystal left you five years ago to keep you alive. You owe it to her to live on. Otherwise, Crystal’s sacrifices will be in vain.”
I slowly loosened my grip on the hilt of the sword. My eyes were bloodshot and swollen from crying, but there were no more tears flowing out. It was as though I had run out of tears to shed.
“Omar, what am I going to do? I can’t live without her. The full moon curse didn’t hurt as much as this. Just thinking about her lifeless body resting under the dirt makes me want to die!”
I fell to my knees and buried my face in my palms. I felt like a caged wild beast; my only options wert to wait and suffer until I died or to take my own life.
“Cheer up, Rufus. Crystal said that she’d always be with you…” Omar’s steady voice suddenly broke. He had always been rational, levelheaded, and brave. It was the first time I had ever seen him so fragile.
He probably felt too sad to function just like me.
I lost control and transformed into my wolf, smashing everything in the room.
Did people really have souls? If the answer was yes, then why couldn’t I feel Crystal’s presence? She wasn’t here with me. She was dead. She had no soul. I couldn’t see her smiling at me. I couldn’t see her beautiful eyes. I couldn’t hear her sweet voice, nor could I feel her warmth.
She was a liar! She abandoned me again and again, making sure I could never be with her.
The only thing she left with, me was a depressing loneliness. I just wanted to hold her, to kiss her-but she wasn’t here anymore.
Hearing the commotion, the guards outside rushed in and looked at me with fear in their eyes. “Your Majesty, you’ve finally woken up…”
I turned around and grabbed one of them by the collar. “Where is Crystal?
Where is she?”
“Y-you Majesty, Miss Crystal is. .” the guard faltered. In the end, he misunderstood and answered literally, “Miss Crystal is dead.”
I smashed him against the wall violently. “Don’t you think I know that? Now, where is she?”
“Miss Crystal is in her coffin,” another guard answered in a low voice.
I picked up the sword and pressed its blade against the guard’s neck. “Say that again.”
The guard knelt down shakily. “I’m sorry, Your Majesty. Miss Crystal… She’s receiving her last farewells in the mourning hall. She’s about to be buried.” I was so angry that I almost slashed his throat on the spot. “Who said you could do that? Did I give the order to have her buried?”
“It was the Queen Mother who gave the order. You’ve been unconscious for a whole week, Your Majesty. She said that it couldn’t be delayed any longer and asked us to let Miss Crystal rest in peace,” the guard explained in a trembling voice.
Laura’s POV
It rained for several days straight. The sky remained overcast and gloomy. It was as though the universe also mourned Crystal’s death. I put on a black dress and a gauze hat and went to the mourning hall.
I only informed Crystal’s closest friends of her funeral. As soon as they heard the news of Crystal’s death, Flora, Harry, and some others all came as quickly as they could.
Several days had passed, and none of Crystal’s friends had left the mourning hall. They had all stayed by Crystal’s side unwaveringly.
I had planned to bury Crystal as soon as Rufus woke up, but as the days went by with no sign of Rufus waking up, I began to worry that Crystal’s body would decay. Crystal had lived a hard life, so I hoped she could at last leave the world in a decent way.
Today was the last day of her funeral, and everyone had gathered in the mourning hall.
“Let’s begin.” I sat on the bench wearily, motioning for the priest to start the funerary service.
The priest held up his Bible and began to pray. “Death is not a sad thing. After all, her soul is now with Father in heaven. So don’t feel sad for her…” Suddenly, a wail broke out in the crowd. I turned to look in the direction of the sound, only to meet Harry’s bloodshot and swollen eyes. “How can we not feel sad for her? She’s our friend, our family! I still can’t believe that she’s really dead.”
Then the others burst into tears. No one could accept this.
No one wanted to believe that Crystal had died so suddenly.
The priest couldn’t finish his prayer, and I wasn’t in the mood to let him continue, so I made him leave first.
Sniffling, Harry walked up to the coffin and put a white rose in front of it. “I’m not angry at you anymore for going to the border without telling us. We understand why you did it. It’s okay, Crystal. You can rest now.”
Joanna, whose eyes were also red and swollen from crying, silently laid down her white rose.
Just then, a tall figure walked into the hall. It was Blair. He had come all the way here from the border.
“Come and say goodbye to Crystal.” I sighed at him.
Blair was in a trance for a moment. Holding a bouquet of white roses, he stared at the coffin unmoving for a long time. I didn’t know what he was thinking, but when I saw his shoulders quiver slightly, I knew he was in immense pain like Rufus.
“Don’t worry, Crystal. The border is fine. I swear I’ll keep it guarded.” Blair’s voice was very soft. After so many years, perhaps something had changed in trim.
Arron stood beside his mother’s coffin silently.
Seeing his little, quiet figure, I felt bitter in my heart. Kids usually had years to grow up. But sometimes, they could grow up in a single moment. Arron was still a child, and he loved asking Crystal for cakes every day when she was still alive. But ever since Crystal died, Arron not only stopped asking for cake, but he had completely stopped smiling.
I held Beryl, who was sobbing hysterically. “Beryl, your mommy’s just asleep.
Don’t cry.”
She had woken up yesterday. The moment she woke up, she said she wanted to see Crystal. I didn’t have the heart to tell her the truth, so I just said that Crystal had been attacked by black witch power and would sleep for a long time.
“Grandma, Mommy died because of me, right?” Beryl sobbed, her whole body trembling violently, her hair a complete mess. She whimpered, “Mommy got very hurt. I saw it. Mommy saved me.”
I couldn’t help but burst into tears. Touching her soft head, I whispered, “Honey, don’t cry. She’ll worry about you if she sees you like this.” Beryl cried even louder.
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