Chapter Sixty-Nine

In the Khitan palace, Euyn steels himself to escape after wagering with Quilimar. He notes an exposed crossbow and silently signals Mikail, planning to exploit the guards’ weak armor. Despite fear, Euyn chooses to attempt the impossible: use the ring on the onyx egg to win freedom.

He touches the ring to the egg, enduring searing pain as the metal glows. The egg turns to solid gold, proving Euyn can wield the relic and therefore has royal blood. The revelation triggers Euyn’s bitter recognition that Theum—or one of Theum’s sons, Joon or Omin—fathered him.

As Euyn tries to cue Mikail toward the crossbow, guards misread his movement as reaching for a hidden blade. Quilimar, enraged, draws a concealed saber and lunges. Euyn counters by pressing the ring to her breast, intending to turn her to gold; the ring flares, Quilimar screams, and a body thuds to the floor amid shouts to save the queen.

Almost simultaneously, Quilimar’s saber drives through Euyn’s ribs into his heart. The glow fades, Euyn collapses, and the room’s chaos recedes to the sound of water and drums. Mikail cradles Euyn, who, freed from pain, focuses on their love and whispers a final vow as his vision dims.

Euyn dies in Mikail’s arms, his sacrifice proving his lineage and triggering unknown consequences for Quilimar and the gathered factions. The attempted escape becomes a fatal stand that may alter Khitan’s succession and the group’s perilous position.