20

"What was that?!" Khittan urgently asks the boy after he and Karin come back from the time travel. When Karin touched his hand just now, the sound of the bell from the shrine resonated, even a slight, but still audible for both of them.

So, even before they could watch the end of the ceremony, they had to run towards the sound and come back to the present before it was too late. It feels somehow realistic, Khittan gasps for air after a long endless run. So did Karin. The girl gasps with her face reddened like a tomato.

"What was that, venerable?" asks Khittan one more time.

"That's an ancient ritual called The Red Thread ritual," the boy answers him. He swipes his palm into the water and splashes Karin and Khittan with that.

"I thought it was only for the dead!"

"The ritual can be performed to the living human, too..." says the boy. "But, there is a consequence..." he continues, looking in vain.

Karin stares at Khittan. The man frowns, looking worried as well.

"So, is this why the destiny keeps colliding with us? Because of the ritual?" asks Khittan.

"It was supposed to rejoice an everlasting love between two people. Love together, until death do them part. But, that only works for people who truly love each other. Ties two enemies, it will be nothing but a curse that will haunt you two," the boy glares at Karin.

"Lady Sun... Your ancestor had done the worst thing ever to The Crown Prince's ancestors. Fortunately, the rule of the Kingdom has been restored, but it caused a lot of pain for The Crown Prince for nearly four lives," says the boy.

"And here I am, thinking that Khittan is guilty," Karin softly replies to him. After that, she glances at Khittan.

"I'm sorry for what happened..."

"No one is guilty. All of these... It's already written in Destiny," Khittan replies. Then, he looks at the boy.

"Sorry if I keep repeating the same words all over again. But, what now?" he asks.

The boy glares at both Karin and Khittan. He slowly releases his hands from them.

"There is one thing that we can do. But, for that, you have to make a choice," says the boy. "Be careful about what you wish. You might live in misery if you're wrong," the boy continues.

"Let's just end this-"

"Lady Sun, I know how much you care about The Crown Prince. But, are you ready to face the consequences of your hasty choice?" the boy inquires her.

Karin glances at Khittan who is staring at her.

"What choice do we have, venerable?" asks Khittan.

The boy looks at him with gloomy eyes. Deep down inside, he can feel how much Khittan loves Karin. The love between these two people is too great. A masterpiece that can't never described in words, even the greatest painting can't relay the emotion.

Karin cares too much for Khittan. The man, on the other hand, rather dies for her. The love between them reminds the boy of the legendary story, The Gift of Magi.

"This is hard," the boy says.

"Just tell us, venerable..." Karin softly talks to the boy.

"Fine..." Finally, he gives up.

"To break the curse, both of you have to undergo a ritual that will break the invisible red thread that binds you two for ages..." says the boy. "I have to bury you two alive, at the very spot of the place where your ancestor; Milady, killed The Crown Prince's ancestor. This means I have to break the curse before the reincarnation takes place," he continues.

"That didn't sound too bad, I think!" says Khittan.

"The worst is yet to come, Your Highness..." the boy gives Khittan a sharp glare.

"Once I stop the reincarnation, the memories of you two will get wiped out as well," the boy continues.

"What do you mean?" asks Karin.

"You two will know each other as a stranger. No memories, nothing. It's like a button of reset. After the ritual, both of you will wake up in a new you. You never meet each other. You have no clue about each other," the boy replies to Karin. "So did your love. It won't exist. Never exist," he continues.

The news feels like a slap on the face for both of them. All this time, all those feelings will be gone, just like that. The love between them will end, like a vague memory that never existed in life.

This means Khittan might lose Karin, forever.

"If that means to end the misery, I think I'm ready for it," Karin's voice feels like a stab into Khittan's heart.

"Khit has already suffered since he learned about the dream. I can't imagine how he has lived for the past few years with those dreams. He suffered too much!" says Karin. "My existence in his life only brings harm than good. I rather walk away from it!"

"Don't you think your action is selfish, Karin?" asks Khittan with a stern voice. They exchange looks, piercing gaze into each other's eyes.

"Khit, I'm doing this for you-"

"Have you ever asked what I want?"

"Khit..."

"I love you, Karin. How can I live knowing that I'm gonna lose you?"

The air falls in silence after Khittan's confession.

"Khit, I won't let you suffer just because we're afraid of losing each other. Why should we continue the love, knowing that in the end, one of us will hurt each other again?" Karin's inquiry makes Khittan's eyes glassy.

"Lady Sun..." the priest touches her forearm. "I'll give you two a room to decide. Dont take action in hasty. Besides..." the priest points his finger at the boy. "It's back to normal again. He needs a rest,"

Karin glares at the boy. He is in his normal state now. The soul that possessed him had left him, making a room for Karin and Khittan to decide whether they still wanna continue the ritual or not.

"I'll prepare a room for both of you. It's getting late and you two must be tired by now," the priest leaves them with the boy. Karin and Khittan exchange looks. With a heavy heart, Khittan moves towards Karin.

"We need to talk..."