Chapter 5

Silas POV

On the weekend, Leah had a sudden impulse to go to the equestrian club.

Zane naturally accompanied her, and as her bodyguard, even with only half a breath left, I had to follow.

The equestrian club was in the suburbs with beautiful scenery.

Leah wore a sharp red riding outfit, her hair pulled high, looking spirited and heroic.

That was her favorite look from before. Confident and bold, like a flame.

"Silas, go bring my horse."

She flicked her riding crop, chin slightly raised.

Her horse was a spirited black stallion that used to only respond to her and me.

But these past few years my health had deteriorated, so I rarely touched it.

Enduring the discomfort in my spine, I walked into the stable.

For some reason today, my vision was very unstable, flickering between light and dark.

When I led out Shadowwind, it snorted restlessly, hooves pawing the ground uneasily.

I reached out to calm it, not noticing that someone had tampered with the girth under the saddle. It hung loose.

"What's taking so long?" Zane called from nearby. "Leah's getting impatient!"

I led the horse over.

"Silas, I want to try riding Shadowwind today. Leah said I could." Zane walked over with an innocent smile, reaching for the reins.

The instant his hand touched the reins, something between his fingertips discreetly pricked the horse's neck.

Shadowwind spooked! It reared up on its hind legs with a shrieking whinny.

"Watch out!"

Almost instinctively, I lunged toward Leah, who was closest to the horse.

In that moment, my world suddenly plunged into complete darkness.

Not the blackouts from before, but true pitch darkness.

I'd gone blind.

I could only rely on what little hearing and memory remained to shield Leah in my arms, using my back to take a heavy kick from the panicked horse.

The clear sound of bones cracking exploded in my chest.

I grunted, a mouthful of blood surging from my throat and spraying onto Leah's riding outfit.

But I still held her tightly until the stable hands controlled the horse.

"Silas! Have you lost your mind!"

Leah pushed me away in shock, her face turning deathly pale at the sight of blood on her clothes.

She frantically tried to check my injuries. Her hand had just touched my shoulder when she heard Zane's scream from beside us. "Ow... my leg... it hurts so much..."

Zane sat on the grass clutching his knee. In reality he'd only scraped it slightly while dodging.

Leah's hand froze.

She looked at me, then at the wailing Zane.

Finally, she bit her lip and withdrew her hand.

"What happened? Can't even handle a horse properly!"

She stood up and hurried toward Zane, her tone anxious. "Zane, where are you hurt? Let me see!"

I lay on the grass, my ribs likely broken and piercing my lung. Every breath carried a strong taste of blood.

I tried to get up, but the pitch darkness made me lose all sense of direction.

I reached out my hand bewilderedly, trying to grab onto something for support, but grasped only empty air.

"Leah..."

I called out instinctively.

"Shut up!"

Leah didn't look back, examining Zane's wound, her tone full of irritation and disappointment.

"Silas, you're truly useless now. Not just your body, but have you lost all sense of right and wrong too? Did you deliberately spook the horse to try to kill Zane?"

I smiled bitterly, blood foam choking in my throat, triggering a violent coughing fit.

"I can't see..."

I said softly, my voice so quiet only I could hear it.

"What did you say?" Leah seemed to hear something and glanced back at me.

"Silas, stop playing dead."

She commanded in a harsh tone. "Stand up. Don't embarrass yourself here."

I listened to her voice, trying hard to focus, but couldn't find her direction no matter what.

Before I could at least see blurry light and shadow. Now, there was nothing.

I felt around the ground, my fingers digging into the dirt, using the leverage to prop up my body bit by bit.

"That's right, Leah."

I still didn't look at her, but faced the empty sky with a smile uglier than crying.

"I've become blind."

"From now on, I probably really won't be able to lead your horse anymore."

Leah froze.