The Last Promise
The night was unusually cold.
Dark clouds covered the sky, hiding the moon behind their shadows. Rain poured over the imperial palace, washing the stone pathways and filling the courtyard with the continuous sound of falling water.
The palace, which was usually filled with music, laughter and the voices of servants, was unusually silent that night.
The imperial guards stood in formation along the courtyard. None of them dared to speak. Their eyes remained fixed on the two figures kneeling before the imperial throne.
A young woman dressed in a once-beautiful silk gown knelt on the cold stone floor. Her long hair was soaked by the rain, and a small cut marked her forehead. Her hands were tied behind her back, but she held her head high.
Beside her knelt a young man.
His clothes were torn, his body weakened, and blood trickled down the side of his forehead. His breathing was uneven, yet his eyes never left the woman beside him.
They had been brought before the emperor.
And tonight, their fate would be decided.
The emperor sat upon his golden throne, watching the two people before him. He wore an elaborate black imperial robe decorated with golden dragons. A crown rested upon his head, symbolising the authority he possessed over the entire empire.
His expression was calm, but his fingers tightened around the armrest.
“Is this truly the decision you wish to make?”
His voice echoed through the courtyard.
The young woman slowly raised her eyes.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The emperor stared at her.
“Even after everything I have offered you?”
She remained silent.
“I offered you a place beside me. A life of luxury. A position that every woman in this empire would dream of possessing. You could have lived in the finest palace, worn the most beautiful jewels and commanded the respect of an entire kingdom.”
He paused before continuing.
“Yet you rejected everything.”
The young woman lowered her gaze for a moment.
The emperor stood from his throne.
“All because of him?”
He pointed towards the man kneeling beside her.
The young woman turned towards her beloved.
For a brief moment, the fear in her eyes disappeared.
“He is the one I chose.”
The emperor’s expression darkened.
“Do you understand what you are saying? I am the Emperor of this land! My word is the law. My decision determines the fate of thousands. And you dare to reject me for an ordinary man?”
She looked directly into his eyes.
“Your Majesty, I have never desired your throne, your wealth or your power. I never asked to become your empress.”
“Then what did you want?”
“To live a life of my own.”
The emperor remained silent.
“I wanted to choose the person I would spend my life with. I wanted to laugh without fear, to wake up without worrying about the expectations of others and to love someone without having to seek permission.”
Her voice trembled, but she continued.
“And he gave me that happiness.”
The emperor looked at the man beside her.
“What can he possibly give you that I cannot?”
The young woman answered without hesitation.
“Something you can never command.”
Silence followed.
For the first time that night, the emperor had no immediate answer.
He had been raised in a world where people obeyed his commands. Ministers bowed before him, generals followed his orders and nobles competed for his attention.
He had never needed to ask twice.
When he wanted something, he obtained it.
And when he wanted someone, he expected that person to belong to him.
But this woman had refused him.
Not because she lacked ambition. Not because she feared the consequences.
She simply loved someone else.
The emperor found that truth unbearable.
“Take him away,” he ordered.
Two soldiers immediately approached the young man.
The woman struggled against her restraints.
“Wait!”
The emperor raised one hand.
“Do not test my patience.”
“Please, Your Majesty. If you wish to punish someone, punish me. He has done nothing wrong.”
The emperor laughed bitterly.
“Still protecting him? Even now?”
She lowered her head.
“Please.”
The young man struggled against the soldiers.
“Stop! Don’t beg him!”
He looked at the emperor.
“If you wish to punish me, then do it. But do not force her to suffer for a decision that was entirely hers.”
The emperor’s eyes narrowed.
“You speak as though you have some authority here.”
“No, Your Majesty. I have none.”
“Then remember your place.”
The young man lowered his head, but his voice remained firm.
“My place is beside her.”
The woman looked at him.
Despite the circumstances, a faint smile appeared on her lips.
The emperor noticed it.
Even with their lives hanging by a thread, they continued to find comfort in each other.
That sight disturbed him more than their defiance.
He had everything a person could desire, yet he could not obtain the one thing he wanted.
“Separate them.”
The guards moved forward.
But before they could pull the two apart, the young woman managed to reach for the man’s hand.
Their fingers touched.
For a moment, the world seemed to become quiet.
The rain continued to fall, the soldiers remained around them, and the emperor watched from his throne.
But neither of them seemed to notice anything.
The young woman looked into his eyes.
“Are you afraid?”
He gently shook his head.
“Not when I am with you.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I wish we had more time.”
“So do I.”
“I wanted to see the spring flowers with you. I wanted to visit the mountains and see the ocean. I wanted to grow old beside you.”
He smiled sadly.
“We will.”
She looked at him in confusion.
“In another life,” he whispered.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
“If there is another life, will you find me?”
He tightened his grip around her hand.
“Even if we are born in different places, even if we have different names and even if we forget everything that happened here, I will find you.”
“What if I don’t recognise you?”
“Then I will make you fall in love with me again.”
She let out a small, broken laugh.
“And if you forget me?”
He looked at her for a long moment.
“Then I hope my heart remembers what my mind cannot.”
She rested her forehead against his.
“Promise me.”
“I promise.”
The emperor turned away.
He could no longer bear to watch them.
“Enough.”
His voice was cold.
“Carry out the sentence.”
The soldiers immediately moved.
The young woman closed her eyes.
The man beside her held her hand until the very last moment.
And beneath the dark, unforgiving sky, two lives came to an end.
But their promise remained.
The rain gradually stopped.
The courtyard became empty.
The soldiers returned to their positions, and the servants silently cleaned the palace grounds. Nobody spoke about what had happened that night.
The emperor returned to his private chambers.
He removed his crown and placed it upon a wooden table.
For a long time, he stared at it.
He had won.
The woman would never belong to another man. The man who had stood beside her would never return.
Yet, strangely, the victory brought him no happiness.
He walked towards the balcony and looked at the distant mountains.
A servant entered quietly.
“Your Majesty, shall I prepare your evening tea?”
“No.”
The servant bowed.
“As Your Majesty wishes.”
Before leaving, the servant hesitated.
“Your Majesty...”
The emperor turned.
“What is it?”
The servant lowered his head.
“May I ask something?”
“Speak.”
“Did Your Majesty truly love her?”
The emperor’s expression changed.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he looked away.
“Leave.”
The servant immediately bowed and disappeared behind the doors.
The emperor remained alone.
He had believed that possessing her would make him happy. He had believed that giving her everything would eventually make her choose him.
But he had never considered what she wanted.
And now, there was nothing left to give.
He closed his eyes.
Perhaps, somewhere deep inside, he already knew that he had lost something far greater than the woman he wanted.
He had lost the possibility of being loved.
A thousand years later.
The world had changed.
Kingdoms had become countries. Palaces had become skyscrapers. Horses had been replaced by cars, and royal messengers by electronic devices.
The imperial throne had disappeared into history.
Yet, some things remained unchanged.
Somewhere in a modern city, thousands of people continued to live their ordinary lives, unaware that their paths were about to cross.
Two strangers were living under different names, carrying different identities and following completely different dreams.
They had no memories of the palace.
No recollection of the rain.
No knowledge of the promise made beneath the dark sky.
And somewhere in that same city, another man was preparing to enter their lives.
A man who had once possessed an empire.
A man who had once destroyed two lives because he could not accept their love.
Time had given all three of them another chance.
But whether this life would bring forgiveness, friendship or another tragedy remained to be seen.
After all, some promises survive death.
And some mistakes follow the soul into another lifetime.
To be continued...
