Chapter 243:
Dream of a better world. -Don Quixote-
****
Ouch.
Yu-hyun bit his lip.
He was suddenly waking up from his dream now?
The clear condition was met just now?
‘That can’t be.’
Yu-hyun thought.
If he accepted Don Quixote’s words and left here, then it would really be over.
The end of the Mental Realm.
The last of all stories.
He didn’t come this far with this man just to see this.
“I don’t want to.”
Yu-hyun lifted Don Quixote up with difficulty and stood up.
“Sancho?”
“Didn’t you say you wanted to see your hometown, sir? You said you would go back, didn’t you? Or did you lie to me all this time?”
“That’s…”
“You want me to just leave after coming this far? No way.”
He didn’t understand why he was being so stubborn, even to himself.
Just.
He was just annoyed.
He felt like he had to do this, or else it wouldn’t work.
“Let’s go back. To your hometown.”
The story of this world was not over yet.
Yu-hyun carried Don Quixote on his back and staggered towards Rocinante.
Was it because the illusion that swallowed this world had disappeared?
Rocinante, who had boasted steel-like muscles, was an old and sick horse. Rocinante, who could barely stand up, looked miserable.
Where did the famous horse that roared the world with the last knight go, and only the horse that was dying of illness remained here?
He didn’t even have time to feel sorry for him.
“Rocinante.”
He called his name softly.
Rocinante, who had been lying down, barely raised his body and met Yu-hyun’s eyes.
His half-closed eyes looked at his master on Yu-hyun’s back.
“Let’s go together. To your master’s hometown.”
Neigh.
But.
Rocinante refused Yu-hyun’s words.
The horse that had fought with him until a while ago, said in a weak voice that had no trace of life left, that he would stay here and that they should go if they wanted to.
“…I see. I get it.”
Yu-hyun didn’t bother Rocinante anymore.
He left him behind and walked away with Don Quixote on his back.
Everyone who was here knew that they couldn’t be together anymore. 𝚏𝚛ee𝐰𝗲𝚋n𝐨𝘃𝗲l.𝐜𝐨m
Whinny.
The presence moved away.
Rocinante felt the loose wind blowing from beyond the hill.
His blurry eyes looked at the back of his master who was getting farther away.
When the two people disappeared beyond his sight.
Thud.
Rocinante, who had been standing still and watching, fell to the side.
Death was approaching.
Already, from the moment he faced Yu-hyun, this horse had reached his limit.
He hid it and turned his back on them out of loyalty to his master.
Even if he was a beast that couldn’t speak, he didn’t want to hold his master back on his way.
He squeezed out the last bit of strength he had left and endured it until now.
Yu-hyun knew that too, so he left him as he wished.
Neigh.
Rocinante snorted as he lay down.
He thought the adventure with that man was fun.
They ran across the plains together, defeated evil, and saw beautiful scenery.
He wanted to go to the end of the world with that man.
He thought so.
Swoosh.
The wind blew over the plateau where even warmth had disappeared.
Rocinante closed his eyes and dreamed.
He saw himself with a white and dazzling mane fluttering in the wind, carrying Don Quixote on his back and running across the plains.
***
Yu-hyun kept walking with Don Quixote on his back.
Towards Don Quixote’s hometown, El Toboso.
[Do you know where we are?]
‘I don’t.’
I don’t know where we are.
Yu-hyun didn’t even know where he was heading right now.
‘But strangely, I feel like this is the right way.’
It wasn’t just a simple guess.
As he climbed up this hill with Don Quixote on his back, he felt that he was being guided by something invisible.
Here.
This is El Toboso.
The beautiful village that Don Quixote had spoken of, his hometown.
Don Quixote felt it too, as his body twitched on Yu-hyun’s back.
“Sir Knight. Do you feel it?”
“Yes. We are getting closer. To my hometown, El Toboso.”
Don Quixote said weakly.
For someone who had said he didn’t want to go home, his voice sounded slightly hopeful.
To Don Quixote, his hometown was reality.
The reality that always cruelly restrained him from dreaming, and tried to force him to wake up.
Don Quixote loved his village, but he also hated it.
That’s why he left the village.
Wearing armor, carrying a lance and a sword, a shield.
Leading Rocinante.
To achieve his dream.
“Sancho. I feel it. The air of my hometown. El Toboso.”
His hometown, the place he had longed for but didn’t want to return to, was getting closer.
In the end, Don Quixote had no choice but to accept reality as he approached his hometown.
That all his adventures so far had been nothing but a dream.
Dreams eventually end.
“Sancho, are you there?”
His senses were fading.
He couldn’t see anything, and now he couldn’t even smell anything.
He was on Yu-hyun’s back, but he couldn’t even feel his touch.
Don Quixote couldn’t see his hometown anymore.
But even feeling his own situation, Don Quixote smiled. He was so happy that he could finally step on his homeland.
“Sancho. Are you by my side?”
“Yes, Sir Knight.”
“Sancho. Are you really there?”
“Yes, Sir Knight. I am here.”
“Sancho. I can’t see anything. But you can see it, right? Can you tell me what you see? El Toboso of La Mancha. This is El Toboso. My hometown. My home.”
The place he didn’t want to come back to, but when he did, it felt like magic.
Don Quixote let out a laugh mixed with dry breaths.
He still sounded like a boy dreaming, with a voice full of ideals.
“Sancho. I can’t see anything in front of me. But you can tell me, right? What do you see? Where are we passing by?”
“…Of course, Sir Knight.”
Yu-hyun spoke without stopping his steps.
“It’s a beautiful village, Sir Knight. Just as you said, it looks peaceful. There are flowers everywhere, and clear streams flow endlessly. I see children playing with branches in the distance. They must be trying to become great knights.”
“That’s right. Just as I said. Even though I left so long ago, my hometown hasn’t changed at all.”
“We are passing by the square now. I see a bakery in the distance. Unfortunately, it seems like they haven’t opened yet, because I can’t smell any bread baking.”
“That’s alright. People can’t always work.”
“I see farmers in the distance. They all look happy, maybe because of the good harvest.”
“Yes. This place has always been fertile. I used to help them out sometimes when I was young.”
“It’s uphill now. There are green trees on both sides of the road. Beautiful butterflies are flying around.”
“Yes. That’s right, that’s how it was. It reminds me of the old days.”
“And…”
Yu-hyun told Don Quixote everything he saw and heard and felt.
Don Quixote echoed his words, exclaimed or responded softly.
Even though he only heard them, it seemed like he could see the scenery in front of his blind eyes, and the old knight rejoiced like a boy.
“We are at the end of the village now, at the highest hilltop house. We have finally arrived at your house, Sir Knight.”
“Is that so? We’ve come this far already.”
“Be careful, Sir Knight. Let me help you.”
“It’s okay. I can walk by myself from here.”
Don Quixote refused Yu-hyun’s help and walked into the house with his own strength.
Yu-hyun looked at Don Quixote with an uneasy gaze and turned his head to take in the view of the village.
What he saw was a shabby ruin.
A dead village that barely had any traces of being a village.
[…Yu-hyun.]
Baekryeon couldn’t hide his pity and called Yu-hyun’s name.
The Divine Spirits felt the same.
They had watched him silently.
When he first saw this scene, when his expression crumbled endlessly, when he still tried to explain the village’s scenery to Don Quixote with a bright voice.
“…”
The village of El Toboso, which Don Quixote was so proud of, was no longer there.
A barren plateau with no trees.
There might have been a village and people once, but now it was a forgotten land that no one visited.
Yu-hyun followed Don Quixote into his shabby house.
Creak.
As soon as Don Quixote opened the door, he thought he heard a voice from inside.
“Welcome.”
A beautiful blonde lady greeted him with a smile.
Don Quixote trembled.
Soon he realized that he had seen nothing.
It was an illusion.
There was no one in the house.
His family, the lady he was looking for, his friends from his hometown.
No one.
Don Quixote moved slowly, feeling his way with his hands.
He slumped down on a chair.
The chair that had not been touched for a long time squeaked and made a noise.
The dust piled up on the chair rose up.
Don Quixote coughed without realizing it, but felt a longing for the sensation that flickered at the tip of his nose.
Don Quixote’s wrinkled hand lightly swept over the table.
He could not feel anything at his fingertips anymore, but Don Quixote felt something.
Something that no one else could see, only he could feel.
The atmosphere of his hometown.
Yu-hyun, who had watched the scene silently, sat on another chair and stared at Don Quixote quietly.
A narrow space filled with dust.
The sunlight coming through the broken window was all there was in this shabby house.
The two men kept silent for a while.
The first to open his mouth was Don Quixote.
“Sancho.”
“Yes.”
“Sancho.”
“Yes.”
“Sancho.”
“Yes.”
Don Quixote kept calling Yu-hyun like a soulless person.
Yu-hyun also answered the same way every time he was called.
“Sancho.”
“Yes.”
“Sancho.”
“Yes. Sir.”
“Thank you.”
Don Quixote said abruptly.
“For following this stubborn old man to the end. For letting me return to my hometown. For believing in me.”
Yu-hyun barely answered with his trembling lips.
“I… just did what I had to do as a servant.”
“No. You did more than a servant’s role. Without you, I could not have defeated that evil wizard, nor beaten the giant. Yes. I would have been trapped in my dream forever.”
“Sir…”
“I’m going to rest now. I’ve walked too far. I’ve had many adventures. Adventures that no one can envy. So this is the end. Sancho. Take this sword. And the burden I carry.”
Don Quixote extended his trembling hand and offered his sword to Yu-hyun.
The heirloom he had used until the end, the symbol of a chivalrous knight.
“Sancho. You are now a knight of La Mancha. You have more than enough qualifications, you have an abundance. You are already, a splendid knight.”
“Sir.”
“So, this is the end. Go. Take everything and leave this place.”
“Sir.”
“Go on, get out of here.”
“Sir!”
“Get out, I said!”
Don Quixote shouted and Yu-hyun closed his mouth.
For a while, only Don Quixote’s weary breathing filled the air.
“…”
“Sancho. I’m going to rest now. Can you understand this old and tired me?”
“…I understand.”
Yu-hyun accepted Don Quixote’s sword.
Yu-hyun looked down at the sword in his hand with complicated emotions in his eyes.
It was the sword that contained everything Don Quixote had accumulated, the sword that carried the wishes of all the knights from the past to the present.
This was not a simple sword, but a symbol of something else.
“…”
Yu-hyun tried to say something to Don Quixote several times, but he couldn’t say anything in the end.
He picked up the sword and the leather backpack and got up from his seat. Don Quixote didn’t stop him.
Before leaving the house, Yu-hyun gave his last farewell to Don Quixote.
“I hope you have a good dream.”
And then Yu-hyun left.
A silence like a quiet dawn lingered.
The knight who always dreamed of a bright future was no longer here.
There was no bravery to defeat monsters, no lovely princess waiting for him anxiously.
The dream was over.
Don Quixote was alone in the end.
He woke up from his dream and had no choice but to face the reality in front of him.
That was the fate of this old man.
That’s why he wanted to remain as a dignified knight until the end, at least in Yu-hyun’s memory, at least in that man’s mind.
Squeak. Squeak.
He felt a loss of strength in his whole body, and his head that he had held up stiffly lost its power and slowly lowered.
That’s when it happened.
There was a hand that held Don Quixote’s hand as he was dying alone.
“…Sancho? When did you come back? Get out of here, I told you.”
There was no answer.
Don Quixote realized too late that it wasn’t Sancho who held his hand.
Rather, the touch on his skin was small, warm, and soft like a woman’s hand.
Then who was the owner of this touch?
Was this a hallucination before death?
Don Quixote hoped that if this was indeed a hallucination, it would be of his beloved lady whom he had always followed and trusted.
But then he suppressed his speculation with a snort in his mind.
‘I’ve had enough of dreams.’
He had dreamed for too long.
He had repeated the same dreams over and over again, trying to deny reality.
If this was a hallucination before death, he wished to wake up soon.
He wanted to die in reality, not in a dream.
It was the moment when Don Quixote gave up everything.
“You’ve done well. My knight.”
At the sound of that voice, softly ringing in his ear.
Don Quixote felt something overflowing from the depths of his heart.
“Ah.”
Tears rolled down his cheeks.
How could he not know?
This was the voice of the princess he had longed for and dreamed of.
“My lady? Is it really you?”
There was no answer. But the gentle touch that held his hand tightened.
At that moment, Don Quixote realized.
It didn’t matter whether it was a dream or reality.
“Yes.”
He nodded and smiled with a satisfied expression.
That was enough.
That was all he needed.
He thought he had given up everything and woken up from his dream.
But his dream was not over yet.
“Of course. My princess.”
People live by dreaming dreams that will someday end.
They knew that, but they couldn’t stop.
Even though when they woke up from their dreams, they faced the cruel reality and felt pain and sorrow.
Waking up from a dream meant that they could dream another dream.
So, let’s dream again.
In a paradise where no one is sad, let’s ride a magnificent horse in a dazzling silver armor.
Let’s shout out our chivalry in a place where we spend our lives with the lovely princess.
Let’s dream such a dream.
It would surely be an exhilarating adventure.
“Will you stay with me then?”
“Forever.”
The sweet scent tickling his nose.
The warm touch embracing his falling head.
Don Quixote laughed with satisfaction.
Is that so?
“Another happy dream… I’ll have.”
The movement of his shoulders that had been gently shaking stopped.
Only the faint scent of the woman remained by his side, who had gone to dream a new dream.
Forever.
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