Jasper Mort
The door clicked shut as Herrick exited Kaan's room. His eyes looked swollen and his shoulders were sagging in grief.
Jasper was leaning against the stone wall opposite the door, his expression somewhere between relief and a bit of annoyance. Probably at himself considering his roles and duties.
His arms were crossed and gaze fixed on nothing in particular. The sound of celebration could be faintly heard inside the manor, causing him to feel more uncomfortable.
He was bitter, but he knew this was the only way.
Herrick exhaled shakily and rubbed at his reddened eyes.
Jasper stayed silent as he waited for him to catch and gather himself.
One second.
Two.
Three.
"How is he?" Jasper finally asked.
"Stable. I gave him sleeping pills, paralyzing agents and recovery medicine." He said with a sniff.
Jasper pushed off the wall and started walking down the corridor. Herrick followed, clearly unsettled.
"Why did you have to go that far?" Herrick asked. "You could've talked to him."
Jasper sighed and replied like he was explaining it to a child, "You think I didn't try?" He fisted his hands and clenched his jaw. "He would've left, even if I begged on my knees, he would have left. And if he left…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Because every time Jasper thought about that plan—about Kaan quietly stepping into his own ending—it felt like standing on the edge of a void. Like the world would simply continue without its axis.
"I know how strong he is," Jasper went on. "If I hesitate even once, he's gone."
Herrick hesitated as they reached the stairwell. He understood Jasper's feelings and logic very well. No one, not even him, wanted Lord Kaan to die.
Especially such a dishonoring death, after what he has done for all the Brightfall members.
Herrick finally opened his mouth as they reached the end of the steps. "This is the first time any of us have gone against his orders. Are you sure about this?"
Jasper stopped and turned to look at him.
"I am sure," a faint tremble in his voice. "I have to be."
Because the alternative—losing Kaan—was not something he was willing to accept.
"So what's the plan now?" Herrick asked.
Jasper gave a tiny smirk and said, "Keep him in as long as possible and solve the problem with the kingdom; after all, the Ravial kingdom is not an easy one to take down. But anything for him, right?"
Herrick shrank a little from the obvious threat that was looming on Jasper's tongue.
'Anyone who helps Lord Kaan to freedom, will definitely lose his life.' Herrick thought as he watched Jasper with wariness.
A sudden voice cut through the hall.
"How is he?!"
Ivey came running toward them, her long green hair trailing behind her, eyes wide with panic. She nearly tripped over her own feet before stopping in front of them.
Her hazel eyes, wide with worry, searched our faces for answers.
"All good," Harrick said as he moved towards Ivey, clearly trying to escape Jasper. "He is resting now."
"Thank the stars. When Jasper carried him in like a sack of potatoes, I thought–" Before Ivey could finish, Herrick steered them away.
Jasper was left staring at their back as they moved towards the garden.
It took a full minute for Jasper to get back to head. He turned towards the communication room.
The moment he stepped inside, the crystal orb on the pedestal started shining red as if it was waiting for him.
A call from the Frost Castle.
Jasper sighed and rubbed his face as he pulled the chair out and sat on it.
He felt the cold and smooth surface of the orb and embedded his mana into it.
The red slowly receded as the mist gave way for the person on the other end to appear.
A very familiar face, with an even more familiar background.
Black hair pulled back neatly, crimson eyes as sharp as an assassin's blade.
She was dressed like a miniature black vampire noble, with dark clothes and a maroon fur cape.
A scowl was already carved into her features, which let Jasper know he is in for an earful tonight.
Skyler Joshi.
The Ice King's personal assistant.
The most competent woman Jasper knew—and the one person he'd rather not explain this to.
'Always such a delight to see her...'
"Hey, Sky. How's everything over there?" Jasper asked, already bracing for the storm.
Her voice detonated through the room.
"You idiotic, obsessive psychopath," Skyler snarled, "what have you done to my lord?"
Jasper closed his eyes for half a second.
'There go my ears. But this is going to be painful.'
He opened his eyes and straightened, fixing his expression to something he is not currently.
Calm…
He just has to be calm enough to survive Skyler and if he explains it well enough to her, she will be his most powerful ally against Kaan's idiotic plan.
"He's alive," Jasper started, laying it out and leaving no room for misunderstandings.
Skyler still didn't soften; her face grew darker, like that information was anything but useful. "You don't get points for that. Start explaining. Slowly. And pray I like the order of your words."
Jasper was about to sigh but stopped himself. "The kingdom believes the Ice King is dead. Officially slain by me. The celebration you are hearing is the proof it worked."
Her eyes twitched and as her ears picked up, no doubt registering the distant cheers coming through the crystal.
When she focused back, a hint of fury was there, but Jasper could also see the hidden fear that she was trying hard not to show.
"And unofficially?" she asked.
"He's here. Sealed. Safe."
"Sealed?" Skyler repeated, incredulous. "You put a magic sealer on him?"
"Yes."
"You absolute lunatic."
Jasper got up and leaned one hip against the table. "He was going to leave. And if he had left, he would have died. Not in battle. Not gloriously. Quietly. On purpose."
The room went silent.
"So…" Skyler licked her lips as her voice dropped an octave. "You are saying he planned this."
"I'm saying he planned to disappear once everything was done. To make sure we survived without him."
Skyler shut her eyes for a moment, dragging a hand down her face. When she looked back up, her voice trembled despite her control.
"That idiot…"
Jasper felt something tight loosen in his chest. Skyler was like him. He knew that, but she was also very illogical when it came to Kaan. That's why he had let Herrick know about his plans first rather than Skyler.
"I know," he said softly.
Skyler exhaled sharply, her face scrunched up in utter disbelief and a bit more fury. "So you kidnapped him. Faked his death. Threw the kingdom into chaos. All because you couldn't let him go."
"Yes."
There was no point denying it.
"And what's your plan now, Hero?" she asked coldly. "Because Ravial won't sit still just because their greatest enemy 'died.' They'll test us. Push borders. Tear at treaties. We are now headless chickens for them."
Jasper's gaze hardened. This, at least, was something he understood.
"I hold the front, I take the hero's role to its end. I stabilize the kingdom. I crush Ravial if I have to. Plus we have the greatest weapon in our arsenal."
"It's Kaan, isn't it?" Skyler demanded.
Jasper hesitated.
Just for a fraction of a second and nodded.
"I'll keep him alive," he said quietly. "I'll show him that this world is worth living in. He won't be able to resist once we start planning in front of him. He'll argue. He'll interfere. He'll help." His voice dropped a notch. "If I have to reshape his thinking a little to make him stay… then so be it."
Skyler studied him, red eyes searching his face like she was weighing a blade.
"…If you hurt him," she said quietly, "I will dismantle you. Title or no title."
Jasper gave a faint, humorless smile. "Fair."
The crystal dimmed.
The call ended.
Jasper stood alone in the room, listening to the sounds of celebration outside. Cheers for a death that hadn't happened. Praise for a hero who had just committed the greatest lie of his life.
He turned toward the corridor leading back to Kaan's room.
'Hold on and just…stay.'
Jasper stopped outside Kaan's door.
Night was falling so the corridors were dimly lit with candles. Even still, the place felt darker and colder.
The cheers didn't make him feel any better. This was his decision. This was his plan but he could not help but feel a bit of regret.
He could have done a million things to stop Kaan but this was what he ended up doing.
He didn't move to enter. It felt wrong to him. Instead, he stood there, listening.
Inside, no sound came.
Herrick's pills would keep Kaan under for a while. Long enough for the body to recover and for the world to settle into the lie.
Jasper rested his forehead briefly against the cool wood of the door. His mana pulsed into the door as it recognized its owner.
"You always did this," he murmured to himself, "carried everything alone. Decided when the story should end."
His fingers curled slowly, nails biting into the wood and shallowly marking it.
"You don't get to choose that anymore."
A faint ripple of mana stirred behind the door. Weak. Unfocused.
Jasper straightened instantly.
He frowned and pressed his palm flat against the door, sensing carefully. Kaan's presence was there—muted, restrained, but unmistakably alive. The magic sealer hummed softly in response, doing its work.
Relief washed through him.
'Good.'
Footsteps came down the corridor.
Jasper turned just as Ivey appeared, clutching a folded cloak in her hands. Her usual brightness was dimmed, eyes rimmed red from earlier tears.
She was not the bright lily that Kaan called her.
"He's still asleep?" she asked quietly.
"Yes."
She nodded and held the cloak out. "Herrick said he will be cold when he wakes up. Even sealed, his body reacts like it always does."
Jasper took it. Their fingers brushed, and Ivey hesitated.
"…You won't let him disappear, right?" she asked, voice barely more than a whisper.
Jasper didn't answer immediately.
Then, firmly, "No."
That seemed to be enough. Ivey gave a small nod and retreated down the hall, leaving Jasper alone once more.
He stood by the door until dawn came and his body told him to rest.
The corridor filled with light again, the maids moved and the guards changed shifts. But Jasper was unmovable.
But he still didn't move away from the door.
It wasn't until a maid saw him and reported to Herrick and he returned that anything changed.
"You are no good to him like this, take some rest." Herrick gripped Jasper's shoulders and squeezed them a bit. "I will stay. I promise I won't leave his side."
Jasper hesitated but nodded.
He should rest to make sure he can be in full power in case something happens.
He turned and made his way to his room. He didn't bother changing or removing his boots.
He simply lay down and forced his eyes shut, letting exhaustion drag him under.
Even then, his thoughts never truly left the room down the hall.