Reloua's heart tightened when she heard Teleu mutter, "Interesting..."
"What is it?" she asked, stepping beside him.
Teleu had been acting weird ever since they entered Gyan's room. He'd insisted on locking the door behind them, scanned every corner like he was checking for traps, and now he was studying pieces of paper with the focus of a general inspecting war maps.
She leaned over and picked up one of the sheets.
Her breath caught.
Beautiful sketches filled the page—precise, neat, almost architectural. They showed a palace corridor and an ordinary-looking wooden door with nothing special about it except a small round hole in the bottom-right corner. The drawings were so detailed you could almost imagine standing right in front of that door.
She shuffled through the other papers. All the same—corridors, rooms, hidden corners—and next to each were handwritten notes from Gyan with little checkmarks and crosses.
Chair Storage: Normal looking, won't attract too much suspicion in case of use. ☆
Kitchen Hall: Too much happening. Not good in case of use. □
"What is all this...?" Reloua whispered, eyes wide.
Her little brother had been doing... an investigation? A search? For what?
Teleu was already scanning the notes with fascination, absorbing every detail, mapping out the palace layout effortlessly in his mind.
"Looks like Gyan's been searching for something," he said calmly. "And he hasn't found it yet."
Reloua frowned. "But what could he possibly be looking for? Why would he wander around the palace sketching every corridor like a little spy? He's only eleven. This doesn't make sense."
Before Teleu could answer—
Cough... cough...
Reloua froze.
Teleu turned.
On the bed, Gyan stirred. His eyes fluttered open, landing directly on his sister's face. For a moment he looked confused—like someone trying to figure out if they're awake or still dreaming.
Then he scratched his cheek lazily.
"Ahhh... yeah," he mumbled sleepily. "This is probably that phenomenon Old Kinte talked about... Right! That thing where you wake up in your dream."
A tiny sigh.
"I should go back to sleep. Maybe that's how I really wake up..."
He squeezed his eyes shut.
One... Two... Three...
Gyan's eyes opened slowly.
For a moment, he just stared—gaze unfocused, drifting—until it settled on his sister. His pupils trembled. His lips parted.
"...Sister?"
His voice was barely a whisper.
Then he lurched forward, stumbling off the bed and rushing straight into Reloua's arms. He crashed into her with desperate force for someone so small. His thin fingers clutched her clothes like she'd disappear the moment he blinked.
"I... I thought I'd never see you again..." His voice cracked. "I thought... it was going to be like Mom... I thought you weren't coming back..."
Hot tears spilled down his face and soaked into her shoulder.
Reloua's breath caught, her own eyes burning. She wrapped her arms around him tightly—tighter than she ever had—her hand instinctively cradling the back of his head.
"I'm here now," she whispered, voice soft and warm despite the emotion shaking through it. "I'm here, Gyan. Everything's alright."
Teleu stood a few steps away, silent, unmoving—watching the siblings with a blank expression. Despite the deadpan face, there was a faint shift in his eyes, a flicker of something that recognized the weight of the moment.
Gyan finally loosened his grip, though his fingers refused to let go completely. He sniffed and wiped his cheek with his sleeve before looking up at Reloua again.
Then his gaze slid toward Teleu.
"...Who's he?"
Reloua glanced at Teleu, then back to Gyan. "He's our new guard. And he's going to be your mentor from now on—martial arts, weapons, discipline. He'll train you personally."
Gyan's red-rimmed eyes narrowed slightly as he studied Teleu—head tilted, quiet, calculating. Teleu stared back without blinking, neither bowing nor reacting.
After a moment, Gyan looked back at his sister, his small frame relaxing just a bit in her presence.
Reloua brushed his hair away from his forehead. "What were you doing with all these sketches, Gyan?"
He hesitated—glancing at the scattered drawings on the bed—then nodded to himself, like he was remembering something important.
"It's like you told me before," he began, voice still soft but steadying. "You said... if something that big happened to you, if you disappeared like that... it couldn't have been done by outsiders alone. Someone inside must've helped. Someone who knows our schedules... the palace layout... everything."
He lowered his gaze, fingers gripping one of his papers.
"So if there are spies inside the castle, then... they must have a place where they meet. A hidden room. Somewhere quiet but accessible... a room people wouldn't question if they saw someone near it."
He pointed to one sketch, then another.
"So I started mapping the palace. Every corridor, every door, every storage place. I wanted to narrow down the possible meeting spots. Somewhere they could gather without being noticed. I got close... eliminated a lot of rooms... but I still haven't found it."
His voice held no arrogance. Just honest, earnest explanation—an innocent genius trying to make sense of a world way crueler than he deserved.
Reloua's chest tightened painfully.
She placed her hand gently on his head, rubbing softly. "Gyan... kids your age shouldn't have to think about things like this."
His eyes lowered, but he nodded.
She turned toward Teleu. "Teleu... can you handle the rest?"
Teleu gave a short but serious nod. "I will."
Just then—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
All three turned toward the door.
A moment later, Teleu unlocked and opened the palace door. Old Tai stood outside, breathless and anxious, with several servants behind him carrying trays of steaming food.
The moment Gyan stepped into view, Old Tai's eyes widened—and his face crumpled in relief. "Young Prince...!"
He rushed forward and wrapped Gyan into a trembling hug. Gyan, still fragile from the emotional storm, let himself be held quietly.
The servants entered the room afterward, setting food down for both Reloua and Gyan. Warm dishes filled the once-quiet space with soft clattering sounds and gentle aromas.
Teleu stayed at the doorway, watching silently.
When everything was settled and the siblings had started eating, he stepped outside and took his position in front of the prince's small palace—back straight, eyes scanning the garden with cold vigilance.
Inside, the dim echoes of grief slowly gave way to soft conversation, gentle laughter, and the fragile comfort of a family reunited.