The marketplace was alive with the colors of spring — fluttering silks, scattered flower petals, music in the air. But Saien stood frozen in the middle of it all, like stone.
His eyes were locked on **Renju** — dressed in royal silk robes that Saien had *never seen before*. There was a sigil on his shoulder. Gold embroidery. **A crown prince’s mark.**
And beside him… a woman. Elegant. Laughing. She leaned close to Renju, touched his arm, and — *kissed him*.
Saien’s breath caught. His heart crashed into his ribs.
He moved.
His boots echoed sharply as he approached them. The crowd shifted like waves around him. The woman looked up first, startled. Renju turned a second later, gaze unreadable.
“Renju,” Saien said, voice hard.
The woman blinked and stepped back slightly, but Renju didn’t react. Not a flinch. Not a smile.
He simply said, “Saien.”
“What is this?” Saien asked, barely containing the shake in his voice. “You told me you were a wandering swordsman. You said titles disgust you.”
Renju’s silence was cutting. Cold. Like the man Saien *used to know* was gone.
“And now you wear the mark of a **crown prince and kiss a noblewoman like I never existed?”
Renju’s jaw tensed. “It’s not what it looks like.”
“Then what is it?” Saien snapped. “Why would you lie about something so important?”
The woman opened her mouth to speak, but Renju raised a hand, stopping her. He looked back at Saien — but his eyes were distant, as if buried under frost.
“I don’t owe you an explanation.”
Saien’s heart clenched.
“You do,” he whispered. “Because I loved you.”
A long silence.
Then, Renju’s voice — low, barely above a breath: “I don’t love you anymore.”
The words sliced through him. Saien stared, unblinking.
“…What?” His voice cracked.
Renju looked away. But Saien saw it — the way his throat trembled, the tears he *refused* to let fall.
“Let’s end this,” Saien said. His voice, once soft, turned to steel.
He stepped back. Waiting.
Waiting for Renju to say *anything* — to fight, to scream, to *beg*.
But Renju just stood there. His face like stone. His fists clenched.
“…Okay,” Renju said quietly.
Then he turned.
And walked away.
With "her".
Saien stood alone. The moment they disappeared around the corner, his knees gave out. He sank to the stone pavement, surrounded by music, laughter, and people who didn’t know his world had just shattered.
His shoulders shook. Tears spilled, silent and unstoppable.
"He lied to me."
"He left me."
"Why did he look like he was the one breaking?"
Here’s that emotional follow-up scene, written in a **simple, flowing prose style** — perfect for your novel or to adapt into a script/chat story later. This part shows **Saien’s quiet heartbreak** right after Renju walks away.
The street was quiet now. The crowd had moved on. The laughter, the music — all faded into a dull echo.
Saien stood there, frozen.
His legs trembled. His chest felt hollow, like someone had carved everything out and left nothing behind.
Renju was gone.
He had walked away with that woman…
And said *he didn’t love him anymore.*
Saien swallowed the tightness in his throat and forced his feet to move. One step. Then another. Every part of his body screamed with exhaustion, but he kept going — down the cobbled streets, past the orange trees, past the corner where Renju once kissed him beneath the lanterns.
Everywhere he looked, **memories** flashed.
Renju’s rare smile.
His warm hand on Saien’s wrist.
The way he used to whisper his name like it meant something.
*All lies.*
*Was it all a lie?*
By the time he reached his small home, the sun had already dipped below the horizon.
He opened the door, walked in, and didn’t even light a lamp.
He sat on the edge of his bed — slowly, like his body might collapse at any moment.
Then he finally broke.
Silent sobs wracked his chest, tears spilling freely down his face. He curled inward, burying his face in his hands, trying to muffle the sound.
But there was no one to hear him anyway.
He cried.
And cried.
Until his body gave up…
And sleep took him in the darkness.
Perfect — you’ve created such a rich emotional flow with drama, heartbreak, and a turning point into quiet survival. Let me now write this entire section in smooth, **novel-style prose**, with flowing descriptions and natural dialogue, staying faithful to your structure.
When Saien opened his eyes, the world was dim. His lids felt heavy, swollen. His eyes—puffy, red, tired from crying. His throat was dry, and his cheeks sticky from dried tears.
He sat up slowly.
*Why did it have to end like that?*
*Why did he lie to me?*
His chest ached again just from remembering. And without warning, fresh tears spilled down again.
He forced himself to stand and wash his face at the basin. The cold water did little to ease the weight in his chest.
*What did I do wrong?*
*Was I not enough?*
He stared at his reflection.
*I’m handsome. Pretty, even.*
*People used to say I looked like someone out of a poem.*
So why... why didn’t Renju love him anymore?
A sudden pang in his stomach cut through his thoughts.
“Ugh… I should eat something,” he muttered to himself.
He went into the kitchen, pulled out the food he had — bread, rice cakes, leftover soup — and began eating nonstop. Mouth full, stomach aching, and still... crying.
“I’m not enough… I’m not enough for him,” he choked out mid-bite. “How could he leave me like that? Am I really so easy to throw away?”
He kept eating, tears falling freely down his face. His emotions swung wildly between grief and frustration. And when the food was gone, he slumped again.
Sleep returned like a heavy fog.
---
For the past few days, it was always the same.
Eat. Cry. Sleep. Repeat.
But today, he felt something different.
A gnawing exhaustion deeper than heartbreak. A dull ache in his lower belly. A kind of fogginess in his head.
“…This isn’t normal,” he muttered.
So he dressed and dragged himself through the streets, cloak wrapped tightly around him. He arrived at the healer’s home just before noon.
The elderly healer looked up from mixing herbs.
“You again?” she said gently. “You look like you haven’t slept in days.”
“I haven’t. Can you check me?” Saien asked. “I think something’s wrong.”
She nodded and gestured for him to sit. She examined him, checking his pulse, his scent, his eyes — then paused.
“…Why are you wandering around without a mate?” she asked.
“Huh?”
“You’re pregnant.”
Saien blinked.
“…What?”
“You’re with child,” she said simply. “Don’t you feel it? Your body’s been working overtime to support new life. It’s dangerous to walk alone without a mate right now.”
“But I don’t *have* a mate,” Saien said, confused.
The healer raised a brow. “Have you had… relations with someone recently?”
Saien stared into space.
Then he whispered, “I… I did. We were lovers. But we broke up.”
The healer sighed. “Well. That ‘lover’ left something behind. Be careful. Your body is no longer just yours. Go home and rest.”
Saien nodded numbly. “...Thank you.”
---
On his walk home, he kept whispering to himself.
*How am I supposed to take care of a child… when the father left me?*
He thought of Renju again. And *that woman* who kissed him.
Maybe she was the real reason Renju lied.
Maybe he truly never meant to choose Saien in the end.
Either way—he couldn’t stay here. Not in the city where everything reminded him of what he lost.
He looked around the house one last time. It felt like a shell now. A memory.
So he began to pack.
Clothes. Food. A pouch of saved coins.
He stood at the door and whispered, “Goodbye.”
---
The carriage ride was quiet. Long. But peaceful.
Hours later, the scenery began to change — rolling green fields, farmlands, trees swaying in the wind. There was no noise here. Just calm. Birds. Breeze.
As the carriage stopped near a small village, a man approached him.
“Hello, traveler. Where are you headed?”
Saien stepped down. “I’d like to stay here. Do you know if there’s a house I can rent or buy?”
The man nodded. “I can ask someone to help with your baggage. You look like you’ve come a long way.”
“…I have,” Saien said quietly.
“Wait here. I’ll fetch someone.”
Saien looked around as the man left. It was peaceful. Nothing like the city.
*Maybe this place can be my new start,* he thought.
And for the first time in days, his chest didn’t ache quite as much.
