You were in the forest, fighting Wanderers when the Mad King came from somewhere, galloping on his black, armored stallion. He threw his sword, striking the Wanderer before getting stuck in the ground.

In a second he was at your side, not stopping his horse for a moment as he reaches out a hand towards you. "Get on" he says as he pulls you in front of him while the horse kept running.

He gives you a side eye glance before returning his gaze back on the road. "Gawking?" he says before throwing you one more glance "Hold tight." he says as he leans forward, grabbing his sword as the horse passes by.

As you move away to a quieter place in the forest he slows his horse to a peaceful walk as you pass by ghostly lilies that bloom like whispers in the dark kissed with pale gold and soft lavender undertones.

Their petals curve outward like starfire caught mid-bloom, shimmering faintly as though dusted with starlight or magic.

Nestled among them are tiny violet-blue wildflowers, delicate and shadowed, adding depth to the otherwise silver-toned patch of flora. The entire scene glows subtly, almost enchanted, as if the flowers themselves remember something… or someone.

(Despite the beauty, there's a quiet sorrow to them—too luminous for a living world, too still to be real. They feel like flowers that grow only in dreams… or in the ruins of a kingdom locked in a time loop.)

"Earlier, you mentioned "the price of pursuing eternity." What were you referring to?" he looks down at you as you speak before looking back ahead.

"The Dead are trapped in a perpetual cycle. Only painful deaths await them." he looks back down at you. "Leave while you still can... Or you'll meet the same fate."

You look down at the rein of the horse and reach out to pull it, forcing the horse's head to the right, but the Mad King swiftly catches your hand, placing his on top of yours "In a rush?" he looks at you with that stern expression of his.

"Didn't you tell me to leave while I still can?" he scoffs at your question catching both of your hands on the rein as he guides the horse to the left.

"I said leave. Not die" you turn your head back to look at him as he does that before he eventually comes to a stop and gets down from the horse.

"This land only cares about you walking into its trap." he walks to the head of the horse while looking at you. He then reaches and pet's the horse head.

"They said the fate of the city is in my hands." you look down at your hand. "I'm the Chosen One- It's also my "weapon" against you." you give him your hand and he gives you a side eyed glance before looking down and scoffing lightly.

"You said their fate is in your hands." he takes your hand and kisses your gloved knuckles not breaking eye contact with you. You try to pull your hand back but his grip doesn't falter in the slightest.

"However, you're still in my hands." he looks down at the hand he still holds before his gaze returning to yours.