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Enjoy HD movies with English subtitles and stay tuned for regular uploads of the latest popular drama films.
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DivertentiTrascrizione
00:00You can walk.
00:01You made me force Evelyn to kneel for three years.
00:04No, let me explain. It's not my fault.
00:13Three years ago, I was the strongest rope guide on the Holy Mountain.
00:21During an avalanche, I risked my life to save Celeste, my fiancé Adrian's first love.
00:37But after she woke, she said I had cut the lifeline and left both her legs crippled.
00:42Adrian believed her.
00:44He threatened me with the money for my brother Noah's life-saving medicine
00:47and forced me to kneel through all ten thousand ice steps at the Holy Mountain to atone to Celeste.
00:54From that day on, I became the kneeling sinner everyone in the North despised.
00:58Today was the final step.
01:00Kneel.
01:01Adrian pushed Celeste's wheelchair in front of me.
01:05Take off your cloak, use it as her footnote, then lick the melted snow clean off her boots.
01:11He said it in full view of everyone nearby without so much as a frown.
01:16Three years ago, he had personally slipped an engagement ring onto my finger
01:20and said that no matter how cold the Holy Mountain became, he would bring me home.
01:26Three years later, he forced me to serve as a footnote for his first love.
01:31Celeste sat in the wheelchair, a white veil draped over her legs as the wheels slowly rolled over the edge
01:36of my cloak.
01:37Laughter finally rang out from above.
01:39She'll lick it.
01:41Adrian is the Duke of the North.
01:42To crawl back to his side, this sinner would do anything.
01:47Adrian looked down at me.
01:49Evelyn, lick it.
01:50Only one step left.
01:52Once I finished kneeling, Noah's life-saving medicine would keep coming.
01:57So even if Adrian wanted me to lay the last shred of my dignity beneath Celeste's feet, I endured it.
02:02But just then, a black raven pierced through the snowstorm and landed beside the ice steps.
02:08A black-edged envelope was blown to my knees by the wind.
02:11I opened it.
02:12There was only one line.
02:13Noah succumbed to the Frost Plague last night.
02:16He has been confirmed dead.
02:17The laughter above still had not stopped.
02:20Adrian only glanced at it.
02:22Putting on a show with your brother again?
02:24Did you forge this letter?
02:27Evelyn, I don't believe you.
02:29To escape atonement, you would even make up your own brother's death.
02:32I lowered my eyes to the cloak pinned beneath the wheelchair.
02:35Noah had bought it for me, with three months' worth of medicine money.
02:39Inside the lining, he had stitched a crooked line of small words.
02:43Sister, the holy mountain is cold.
02:45You have to come back alive.
02:47All at once, I felt that the blizzards of the past three years had never been as cold as that
02:51one sentence.
02:52Then, in front of everyone, I tore the atonement contract to pieces.
02:56He is dead.
02:58You have nothing left to threaten me with.
03:01The snowstorm swept away the shredded pieces of parchment.
03:05The noble seats went quiet for a beat.
03:07Then someone laughed again.
03:09Is she completely out of her mind?
03:12How dare she tear up the contract in front of the Duke?
03:16Adrian's face hardened with fury.
03:18Pick it up.
03:20I didn't move.
03:21He stepped down one ice step, stopping his boot right next to my bleeding knee.
03:27Evelyn.
03:28I said pick it up.
03:30Celeste's wheelchair rolled forward.
03:32Adrian, don't push her.
03:34She only wants to soften your heart.
03:37I saw the words Noah had stitched crushed into the snow beneath her wheels.
03:41I lunged to grab it.
03:43Celeste jerked back.
03:45Get your hands off me!
03:46Adrian moved in front of her at once and snatched my wrist in a vice grip.
03:50You're still trying to hurt her in front of me?
03:51I looked at where his fingers dug into me.
03:54The frostbitten skin was forced open under his grip.
03:56And blood seeped out.
03:58I want back the cloak my brother gave me.
04:00Celeste lowered her eyes.
04:02Her voice was soft enough that only I heard it.
04:05Good thing that sick little blood bag died.
04:08Now he won't drag you down anymore.
04:10My fingers clenched.
04:12But Adrian shoved me to the ground.
04:14You robbed her of her legs three years ago.
04:17What else do you want to ruin?
04:20I collapsed into the snow.
04:23This time, I didn't explain.
04:25The hurried crunch of footsteps came from the entrance.
04:29A boy from the Requiem house ran up the ice steps with a ragged bundle in his arms.
04:34Excuse me.
04:35Which one of you is Miss Evelyn?
04:37These are the personal effects of the deceased Noah.
04:40The bundle dropped into my arms.
04:42The knot loosened.
04:43And an old rope knot slipped out.
04:45The core was permanently stained, dark red.
04:48Adrian's expression dropped the second he saw it.
04:53Adrian snatched the old rope away before I could.
04:56I lunged for it.
04:57But he stepped back and clenched it tightly in his fist.
05:03This is evidence from three years ago.
05:07You cannot have it.
05:08I stared at him, eyes burning.
05:11Didn't you say the investigation was concluded back then?
05:14If it was settled, why are you scared to let me touch it?
05:19His gaze hardened.
05:21Because you'll use it to spin more lies.
05:24Celeste murmured,
05:25Evelyn, why did you keep it?
05:27Did you know you were guilty all along?
05:29Only those with a guilty conscience hide evidence.
05:33A noble beside her jumped in.
05:36I ignored them.
05:37My eyes remained locked on that rope.
05:39After the avalanche three years ago,
05:41I was unconscious for seven days.
05:43Everyone was eager to condemn me.
05:45Only Noah refused to believe it.
05:47Sick as he was,
05:48he found that old rope in the watch's salvage yard.
05:50He said,
05:50Sister, wait for me.
05:51I swear I will uncover the truth.
05:53But he never lived to see that day.
05:55Adrian tucked the rope into the breast pocket of his coat.
05:58When you calm down,
05:59I'll have it sealed again.
06:01I laughed.
06:03Again?
06:04You never investigated it back then, did you?
06:07His face tightened.
06:08I picked up Noah's belongings and stood.
06:14Get out of my way.
06:15Adrian frowned.
06:16Where are you going?
06:18To the Requiem house.
06:20I'm bringing my brother home.
06:22I'll send someone tomorrow to verify Noah's condition.
06:25He said coldly.
06:28I looked at him,
06:29spitting out every word.
06:31Verify what?
06:33Whether he's dead enough to satisfy you?
06:36A man's unfamiliar voice cut through the howling wind.
06:40She isn't lying.
06:41Ron,
06:42a combat healer from the watch,
06:44climbed the ice steps and handed me a bronze token from the Requiem house.
06:48No one's urn is ready.
06:52Adrian's eyes landed on the heavy mantle Ron had draped over my shoulders.
06:56His stare was colder than the snow.
06:59So you can ask for help?
07:02You just found someone else to beg.
07:04I was so tired that the very thought of explaining nauseated me.
07:08Ron stepped in front of me.
07:10Your grace,
07:11Evelyn needs to be tended to.
07:13Adrian scoffed.
07:14I'm talking to my fiancé.
07:16It's none of your damn business.
07:18I looked up.
07:19Not anymore.
07:20He froze.
07:21I took the broken silver betrothal bracelet from my wrist and threw it into the snow.
07:25I stopped being that.
07:27The day you forced me to kneel.
07:28Celeste rushed to speak.
07:30Evelyn,
07:30don't be rash.
07:31Adrian is just lashing out.
07:33You're still in his heart.
07:34I looked at her.
07:35Haven't you grown tired of playing the cripple in that chair?
07:37Her eyes flickered.
07:39One second later,
07:40the fragile mask was back.
07:42I clutched Noah's belongings and turned down the mountain.
07:45At the Requiem house,
07:46the urr was painfully small.
07:48The wooden lid was unvarnished.
07:50Noah had carved his own name into it.
07:52The cuts crooked and uneven.
07:53The female steward checked the register and lowered her voice.
07:56He came to ask the price before he died.
07:58He said his sister owed too much money
07:59and insisted on the cheapest option.
08:01He didn't want her to bow her head to beg anyone again.
08:04I held the urn and pressed my forehead to the wooden lid.
08:08My eyes remained completely dry.
08:12Ron stood beside me and didn't rush me.
08:15Before dawn,
08:16I returned to the Holy Mountain camp.
08:18The fire was still burning.
08:19Adrian stood beside it,
08:20as if he had waited all night.
08:22His brow furrowed when he saw the urn in my arms.
08:24What is that?
08:26My brother.
08:27A maid pushed Celeste out.
08:30She looked at the urn and said softly,
08:33Evelyn,
08:34using a fake urn to provoke Adrian
08:36is cruel to Noah, too.
08:38Adrian held out his hand.
08:39Hand it over.
08:40I stepped back.
08:40No.
08:44Celeste's wheelchair suddenly slipped forward
08:45and slammed into my knee.
08:47I crashed into the snow.
08:48The urn tumbled out of my grasp
08:50and hit the stone steps.
08:51The wooden lid cracked.
08:52Noah's ashes scattered across the cold stone.
08:55I dropped to my knees
08:56and scooped them up by the handful.
08:57The wind was too strong.
08:59Ash and snow mixed together,
09:00sifting through my fingers.
09:01The more I tried to scoop up,
09:02the more slipped away.
09:03I called his name.
09:04Only silence answered.
09:05Noah.
09:05Celeste looked down at the ash
09:06on the toes of her boots
09:07and laughed softly.
09:08Looks like he's bowing
09:09to the holy mountain at my feet.
09:10No one laughed.
09:11Even the nobles
09:12who had come to watch went pale.
09:14I looked up at Adrian.
09:16Is this the price
09:17for your so-called atonement?
09:19His face went white.
09:20His lips moved.
09:22Celeste grabbed his hand at once.
09:23Adrian, I didn't mean to.
09:24Adrian looked down at her by instinct.
09:26That one glance told me everything.
09:29For three years,
09:30he had always looked at her first.
09:32I placed what ashes
09:33I could save
09:34back into the wooden box.
09:35Only half remained.
09:37I stood with it in my arms.
09:40Adrian!
09:40He looked up.
09:41You owe Noah a life.
09:43His voice was rough.
09:45I'll find out
09:46if he really...
09:47Really?
09:47I laughed.
09:49What?
09:49You need him to die twice
09:51for you to buy it?
09:53I carried the urn
09:54toward the snowy slope.
09:55Adrian finally panicked.
09:57Evelyn, where are you going?
09:58I didn't turn around.
09:59I'm taking him away from you all.
10:01The next second,
10:02I fell down the snow-covered slope
10:04with the urn in my arms.
10:07When I woke,
10:08the stove was burning hot.
10:09The urn sat in my arms,
10:11wrapped in gauze.
10:12Like a tiny corpse,
10:13banded tight.
10:14Ron sat at the edge of the bed,
10:15cleaning my knee.
10:16It was a snow slope below,
10:17not a cliff.
10:18It's a miracle you survived.
10:19I looked down at the urn.
10:20It wasn't luck.
10:21Noah wouldn't let me die.
10:22An argument came from outside the door.
10:25Adrian was here.
10:26His cloak was covered in snow,
10:28and the old rope knot
10:29was clenched in his hand.
10:30She needs rest.
10:31Ron blocked the doorway.
10:33Only a few words.
10:35Adrian's voice was coarse.
10:36I didn't look up.
10:38He came in and stopped
10:40three steps away.
10:42Brother Oliver said
10:43you were the one
10:44who pulled me out of the snow pit
10:45three years ago.
10:46I adjusted the gas
10:47around the urn.
10:50A little too late for that now,
10:51don't you think?
10:53Evelyn, I'll investigate it again.
10:55His face paled.
10:57Don't do it for me.
10:58I looked up at him.
11:00Do it for Noah.
11:02He was still chasing the truth
11:03for me before he died.
11:07Every one of you owe him.
11:09Adrian set a silver fox cloak
11:10beside the bed.
11:11Wear this for now.
11:13I didn't even look at it.
11:15I picked up Noah's
11:16old wolfskin cloak
11:17and handed it to Ron.
11:18Can you stitch this
11:19back together for me?
11:20The lining's torn.
11:22Ron nodded and took it.
11:24Adrian looked at the old cloak.
11:25His voice almost broke.
11:28That one is worn out.
11:29Warmth isn't measured in gold.
11:32The room went silent.
11:33After a long while,
11:35he asked Horsley,
11:37What about me?
11:39I looked at the fire.
11:42You're not an old cloak.
11:44You are beyond repair.
11:47On the third day,
11:49I went through Noah's belongings.
11:51A hard-bounded ledger
11:52was wrapped in layers
11:54of waterproof leather.
11:55On the first page,
11:57he had written,
11:58My sister owes them nothing.
12:00It is I who owe her everything.
12:02Every page after that
12:04was an account.
12:05Celeste's Sanitarium Tribute
12:0647 gold coins.
12:08Sanctuary Rehitation Medicine
12:0912 gold coins.
12:10Winter coal for the orphanage
12:128 gold coins.
12:13Travel cost for my atonement path
12:143 silver coins.
12:16Every entry had a red bot beside it.
12:18Ron's face darkened
12:19when he saw them.
12:20These are puncture wounds
12:21from bloodletting.
12:26I kept turning the pages.
12:29The gaps got shorter and shorter.
12:327 days.
12:335 days.
12:35The last one was only 2 days
12:37before Noah died.
12:39My fingers shook so badly
12:41I could barely turn the page.
12:43So what I had knelt for these past 3 years
12:46wasn't atonements.
12:47It was blood.
12:48Drawn from my brother again and again.
12:50The last page was so messy
12:52it looked like he had been writing
12:53with his last breath.
12:54If I die
12:56my sister won't have to bow
12:57to the duke anymore.
12:58She used to be so proud
12:59she can't keep kneeling forever.
13:01I closed the ledger.
13:03My eyes ached.
13:04Drained of all tears.
13:06Ron didn't comfort me.
13:07He only pulled a yellowed paper
13:09from a hidden pocket
13:10inside the ledger.
13:11There's more.
13:12It was the original medical report
13:14from the sanctuary
13:143 years ago.
13:16The words were clear.
13:18Celeste's leg injuries
13:19were mainly caused
13:20by prolonged exposure
13:21to the cold
13:21and delayed treatment.
13:23They were not directly caused
13:24by the main rope being cut.
13:26Note,
13:26if the secondary rope
13:27tangled around her leg
13:28had not been cut
13:29the left leg
13:29would have rotted away completely.
13:31I stared at that line
13:33so I hadn't cut the lifeline.
13:35I had cut the secondary rope
13:37to save her.
13:38Noah had found the truth
13:39long ago.
13:41But he never got to see me stand.
13:45The door flew open.
13:47Adrian stood outside
13:50deathly pale.
13:51He had clearly seen
13:53the medical report too.
13:57Adrian walked in
13:58and reached for the report.
13:59I slipped it into
14:01a waterproof leather pouch.
14:05Hands off.
14:06His throat moved.
14:09Evelyn, let me see it.
14:11No.
14:13I'll believe you.
14:14I smiled.
14:16I couldn't care less
14:17what you believe.
14:18He went rigid
14:19as if the words
14:20had stabbed him.
14:22Three years ago,
14:24I cried and told him
14:25I hadn't cut the main rope.
14:29He said Celeste
14:30would never lie
14:31about her own legs.
14:33The first year,
14:34I brought in the watch records.
14:35Stopped making excuses.
14:37The second year,
14:38Noah got worse
14:39and I nailed outside
14:40the Duke's estate
14:41begging for medicine.
14:41He said the medicine
14:42would keep coming
14:43as long as I confessed.
14:45Now, at last,
14:47he said he believed me.
14:48But my brother was already
14:49half a box of ash.
14:51That night,
14:52Celeste's maid
14:53brought medicine.
14:54Celeste says she is
14:55willing to forgive you
14:56as long as you
14:58stop making a scene.
14:59Ron stopped the maid
15:00and dumped the packet
15:01onto the table.
15:02A small vasil of silver powder
15:04rolled out.
15:05Ron sniffed it
15:06and his eyes turned cold.
15:08Silence, powder.
15:09Take this
15:10and it will steal your voice
15:11for three days.
15:12The maid dropped
15:13to her knees in terror.
15:15It wasn't me!
15:16Celeste told me to bring it!
15:18I looked at the vial
15:20and smiled for the first time.
15:23She's afraid I'll talk.
15:25Then I'll scream it loud enough
15:27for the entire North to hear.
15:29The next day,
15:30I walked into the Royal Circuit Court
15:32with the blood ledger,
15:34the medical report,
15:35and a copy of the old rope knot.
15:37The clerk looked up.
15:40What are you appealing?
15:42I want the Holy Mountain
15:43avalanche case
15:44from three years ago overturned.
15:47I want a public trial
15:49before the Royal Court.
15:52When the Royal Decree
15:53for retrial came down,
15:55the Holy Mountain camp erupt.
15:57Bishop Marlod came
15:58to the watch station in person.
16:00He wore platinum white robes
16:01and carried a sanctuary scepter.
16:03Evelyn, my child,
16:05God has seen your pain.
16:08is willing to compensate you
16:10and give Noah a proper requiem.
16:12I asked him,
16:13did God see Noah sell his blood?
16:15Marlowe's expression darkened.
16:17Watch your mouth.
16:20Celeste is a noble woman of the North.
16:22She cannot be publicly humiliated.
16:25I looked at him.
16:26When I was publicly humiliated
16:27for three years,
16:28why didn't you say that?
16:29She went silent for a moment.
16:32Then his voice cooled.
16:33The orphanage supplies still pass
16:36through the sanctuary warehouse.
16:38Evelyn!
16:39A child's voice came from outside the door.
16:42The orphanage director arrived
16:43with several children.
16:45Ron stood behind them
16:46with a new supplantract in his hand.
16:48Starting today,
16:49the watch will handle
16:50the orphanage winter deliveries.
16:52The sanctuary has no right
16:53to withhold them.
16:54Marlon's face changed completely.
16:57Adrian stood in the distance.
16:58For the first time,
17:00he didn't defend the sanctuary.
17:02Celeste was pushed over.
17:03Pale-faced.
17:08Evelyn,
17:08are you really going to drag
17:10a disabled woman into public court?
17:14I walked up to her.
17:18No.
17:20I'm going to make a liar stand.
17:24On the day of the public trial,
17:26nearly every noble in the North
17:28came to the sanctuary.
17:29They had watched me kneel
17:30on the ice steps,
17:31watched me bleed,
17:32watched me apologize to Celeste.
17:35Now they sat in the gallery,
17:37too afraid to meet my eyes.
17:39Celeste sat in her wheelchair,
17:40draped in white.
17:41She still looked like a suffering icon.
17:43Adrian sat in the Duke's seat,
17:45pale and silent.
17:47After the clerk read the case,
17:48The first witness was Hark,
17:50the rope maker.
17:51He picked up the old knot,
17:52glanced at it,
17:53and said,
17:54This is a secondary rope.
17:56Bishop Marlowe frowned at once.
17:58Are you sure?
18:00Hark gave a cold laugh.
18:03I've made ropes for the watch for 20 years.
18:06Main ropes have gray cores.
18:09Secondary ropes have red cores.
18:11This one has a red core.
18:13A murmur swept through the hall.
18:15Hark pointed to the cut end.
18:17Clean cut.
18:18It severed the wrap section,
18:19not the load-bearing section.
18:20If a secondary rope tangled around someone's leg
18:23and wasn't cut,
18:24the injury would get worse faster.
18:26Celeste went pale.
18:27She said softly,
18:29I don't know anything about ropes.
18:30I only know that when I woke up,
18:32my legs were gone.
18:33I looked at her.
18:35You don't know ropes,
18:36but you must remember
18:37who cut my safety rope first
18:39in that snow pit three years ago.
18:41The sanctuary fell dead silent.
18:44Adrian's head snapped up.
18:48When old brother Oliver was helped inside,
18:51snow was tapping against the stained glass windows.
18:54He was the first person
18:55to reach the snow pit three years ago.
18:57He was also the only witness
18:59the Duke's estate hadn't silenced.
19:01Bishop Marlin said coldly,
19:04Oliver is old.
19:05His memory may not be reliable.
19:07Oliver pulled a damp,
19:09stained rescue log from his robe.
19:12That is why I wrote it down.
19:14The clerk took the log
19:16and read the entry word by word.
19:18First survivor out, Evelyn.
19:21First rescuer, Adrian.
19:23Second rescue target, Celeste.
19:26Oliver spoke slowly.
19:28When I arrived,
19:30the main rope around Evelyn's waist
19:32had already been cut halfway through.
19:35If she hadn't wedged her ice axe
19:37into the crevice,
19:38the snow flow would have swept her away.
19:41The wine glass in Adrian's hand
19:43shattered on the floor.
19:45He looked at Celeste.
19:47You said she cut your rope.
19:49Celeste burst into tears.
19:54I was terrified.
19:56Maybe I remembered it wrong.
19:58I cut her off.
19:59You didn't remember it wrong.
20:03The first thing you did after waking up
20:05was put the blame on me.
20:06I turned to Adrian,
20:08and you never even asked me.
20:10His throat worked.
20:12But no sound came out.
20:15Oliver took out a small gold clasp.
20:19I found this in the fibers of Evelyn's main rope.
20:23looks like a pin from a prayer glove.
20:26Every eye in the room turned to Celeste's hands.
20:29Her white prayer glove was missing a clasp.
20:34Celeste instinctively hid her hands under the blanket.
20:37Too late,
20:38Adrian stared at her hands,
20:39his voice shaking.
20:42Why?
20:43Celeste shook her head.
20:44It wasn't me!
20:48Adrian,
20:49believe me,
20:50I didn't do it.
20:51I took out the scrap of paper
20:52Noah had left behind.
20:54The ink had bled in the snow,
20:55but a few words were still clear.
20:57Gold clasp,
20:58main rope,
20:59glove.
20:59Noah was still investigating this
21:01before he died.
21:02He was sick
21:03and feverish,
21:04but he dragged himself
21:05through the Holy Mountain's
21:06old storage rooms,
21:07the watch archives,
21:08and the underground blood shops.
21:09I handed the blood ledger
21:11to the clerk.
21:12Read it.
21:12The clerk opened it,
21:13his voice growing quieter
21:15with every line.
21:16Celeste's sanitarium tribute,
21:1747 gold coins.
21:18Underground bloodletting,
21:19Noah,
21:20400 milliliters.
21:21Sanctuary rehabilitation medicine,
21:2312 gold coins.
21:24Underground bloodletting,
21:25Noah,
21:26450 milliliters.
21:28Orphanage coal,
21:298 gold coins.
21:30Underground bloodletting,
21:31Noah,
21:31500 milliliters.
21:33Someone in the gallery gasped.
21:34The orphanage director
21:35covered her mouth
21:36and started crying.
21:37Celeste sprung.
21:38He volunteered!
21:39I nodded.
21:40Yes.
21:41He volunteered to keep me alive.
21:45And you?
21:46You chose to deceive
21:48the entire north
21:49for three years.
21:51Adrian closed his eyes
21:52and swayed.
21:58He finally understood.
22:01Every coin he called
22:02atonement money
22:03was stained
22:03with Noah's blood.
22:06Bishop Marlow
22:07shot to his feet.
22:08A dead man's ledger
22:10cannot be used
22:11as sanctuary evidence.
22:12The royal judge
22:14looked at him coldly.
22:15But it can be used
22:16as a lead
22:17in financial fraud.
22:19Seal the sanctuary
22:20Santorium's account books.
22:22Marlone's face changed.
22:23Celeste panicked too.
22:25She reached for Adrian's sleeve,
22:27but he moved away.
22:29For the first time
22:30in three years,
22:31he did not help her.
22:33The second witness
22:34was Mara,
22:35Celeste's personal maid.
22:37She knelt
22:37before the public bench,
22:39a slap mark
22:39still on her face.
22:40I don't want to push
22:42her wheelchair anymore.
22:43Celeste's face twisted.
22:45Don't you dare, Mara.
22:46With shaking hands,
22:48Mara pulled a pair
22:49of soft-sewed shoes
22:50from her cloth bag.
22:51The soles were badly worn.
22:54Celeste walks at night.
22:56She practices
22:57by holding the bed frame
22:59because she's afraid
23:00her muscles will waste away
23:01and people will find out.
23:04Every time
23:05before the Duke visits,
23:07she soaks her legs
23:08in ice water
23:09to make them
23:10look purple
23:11and pitiful.
23:12The whole hall exploded.
23:14Someone stood up
23:15and cursed her
23:16as a liar.
23:17Celeste couldn't
23:18keep pretending.
23:19I only wanted
23:21Adrian to look at me!
23:26She turned on me,
23:27her eyes full of hate.
23:32Why do you
23:33get to have everything?
23:34The Duke's engagement!
23:36The Watch's honor!
23:38Noah's love!
23:40Even legs that walk!
23:44You had all of it!
23:47I looked at her.
23:50So you destroyed my life?
23:52She lunged from the wheelchair,
23:54trying to snatch
23:55the shoes from Mara.
23:56Everyone saw it.
23:58Her feet were planted
23:59firmly on the ground.
24:01Celeste was standing.
24:04The sanctuary went so quiet
24:07I could hear snow falling.
24:08Celeste froze.
24:10One second later,
24:11she dropped back
24:12into the wheelchair.
24:13I was just scared.
24:14I'm not healed!
24:15It hurts so much!
24:17Then let a medic
24:17examine you right here.
24:18Ron said coldly.
24:20Celeste's face went white.
24:21Absolutely not!
24:22Adrian looked at her
24:23like he had finally woken
24:24from a nightmare.
24:28You can walk.
24:30You could always walk.
24:32Celeste grabbed his hand.
24:33I didn't mean to lie to you!
24:34I was afraid you would leave me!
24:36Adrian pulled his hand free,
24:38inch by inch.
24:42So you made me force Evelyn
24:44to kneel for three years.
24:47Celeste laughed.
24:48There was nothing holy
24:50left in that smile.
24:51You chose to believe me.
24:54All I had to do was cry
24:55and you found her guilty.
24:58Adrian,
25:00why are you pretending
25:01to be awake now?
25:02Her words hit him like a knife.
25:04He stumbled back.
25:06Bishop Marlow ordered the guards
25:08to take Celeste away,
25:09but she screamed.
25:10Marlon, don't act clean!
25:12The sanatorium tribute tripled!
25:13How much did the sanctuary pocket?
25:17You knew my legs
25:18could recover, didn't you?
25:20The bishop's face
25:21went ashen.
25:22The royal judge
25:24struck the silver gavel.
25:26Seal the sanctuary.
25:29Inspect every ledger.
25:31Now!
25:32Before Celeste was dragged away,
25:33she stared at me
25:34with pure hatred.
25:35So what if you won, Evelyn?
25:37Noah isn't coming back!
25:38I closed my eyes.
25:40When I opened them,
25:41I said,
25:42that is why you deserve to pay.
25:46On the day the royal court
25:48gave its verdict,
25:49the holy mountain
25:50saw its heaviest snow
25:51in three years.
25:52The judge read slowly,
25:54Evelyn's cutting
25:54of the secondary rope
25:56was an emergency rescue.
25:57She is innocent.
25:58Celeste fabricated
25:59her disability,
26:00defraudged tribute money,
26:01and framed a member
26:02of the watch.
26:03She will be handed over
26:04for trial.
26:04Bishop Marlach is implicated,
26:05his holy office is suspended,
26:07and sanctuary property
26:08will be sealed.
26:09Each word landed
26:09like a chip of ice
26:10breaking loose
26:11inside my knees.
26:13The orphanage children
26:14cried together.
26:16The director held my hand,
26:17too choked to speak.
26:18Adrian stood in the gallery
26:19with red eyes,
26:20but he didn't dare
26:21come near me.
26:22To save face,
26:23a sanctuary representative
26:24came over
26:25carrying a silver crown.
26:26Miss Evelyn,
26:27the sanctuary grants you
26:29forgiveness and glory.
26:30I looked at the silver crown
26:32and laughed.
26:33Forgiveness?
26:33I'm innocent.
26:34I don't need forgiveness.
26:36The representative's face
26:37turned ugly.
26:38I turned and walked down
26:40from the public bench.
26:41Behind me,
26:42Adrian finally spoke.
26:44Evelyn.
26:47I didn't stop.
26:48He chased me outside
26:49and knelt in the snow
26:50before the sanctuary.
26:52I'm sorry.
26:52Snow hittled in his hair.
26:54He had once been so proud
26:55that even looking down
26:56at people felt like charity.
26:58Now he was kneeling
26:59before me.
27:00I'll atone.
27:01I'll do anything you ask.
27:03I looked down at him.
27:05Kneeling is an atonement.
27:06facing the consequences is
27:08his voice trembled.
27:09Then our engagement.
27:10It ended three years ago
27:12when you told me
27:12to lick her boots.
27:15Celeste refused to give up.
27:17Before she was taken to trial,
27:19she bribed a prison guard
27:20to set fire
27:21to the orphanage warehouse.
27:23I was handing out
27:24winter boots to the children
27:25when flames rose
27:26from the granary.
27:28Thick smoke
27:29flooded the hallway.
27:30Amy was trapped
27:31in the attic.
27:32Her cries
27:33swallowed by the fire.
27:35Ron started to run in.
27:36But I snatched
27:37the rope from him.
27:39I'll go.
27:40He frowned.
27:42Your knees won't hold.
27:44I had already
27:45tied the knot.
27:47They held three years ago.
27:49They'll hold now.
27:53I climbed the outer wall,
27:55flames licking
27:56the edge of my cloak.
27:58Amy was curled
27:59by the window sealed,
28:00her face covered in soot.
28:05Evelyn, I'm scared.
28:07Look at me.
28:09I clipped the rope
28:10around her waist.
28:11The rope will bring you home.
28:14The beam collapsed
28:15as I grabbed her
28:16and slid down
28:17the outer wall.
28:20When I landed,
28:22the old wound in my knee
28:23tore open again.
28:24Blood soaked
28:25through my skirt.
28:26In the distance,
28:27Celeste tried to flee
28:28under a cloak.
28:29The children pointed
28:30at her and shouted.
28:31It was her!
28:33She ran so fast!
28:35When the royal guards
28:36caught her,
28:37she couldn't pretend
28:38to be crippled anymore.
28:39They dragged her back
28:41and she screamed at me
28:42like a madwoman.
28:43Why won't you just die?
28:45I held Amy
28:46and whispered,
28:49Because Noah wanted me
28:50to live.
28:51This time,
28:52no one spoke up
28:52for Celeste.
28:53The court sentenced
28:54her to life
28:55at hard labor.
28:56I heard she was still
28:57screaming Adrian's name
28:59when they took her away.
29:00But Adrian did not
29:01go to see her.
29:02He was in the ruins
29:03of the orphanage,
29:04moving charred veems
29:05with his bare hands.
29:08After the fire,
29:09I never went back
29:10to the Duke's estate.
29:11I used the recovered
29:12tribute money
29:13to build the watch keep
29:14beside the old watch station.
29:15It sheltered
29:16the orphanage children
29:17and trained young guides
29:18in avalanche rescue.
29:20Ron handled medicine.
29:21I taught rope work.
29:23In the first class,
29:24Amy raised her hand.
29:26Evelyn,
29:27can a rope
29:28actually kill people?
29:29I picked up
29:30the old knot.
29:32The core was dark red,
29:34the cut end
29:34worn fuzzy by time.
29:36Ropes don't kill,
29:37people do.
29:38The children
29:39nodded seriously.
29:40I taught them
29:41how to check the core,
29:42tie double knots,
29:43and listen to the snowpack.
29:44If anyone got it wrong,
29:46they unrid it
29:47and start it over.
29:48Because on a snowy mountain,
29:49one wrong knot
29:50can cost a life.
29:53Adrian sent
29:54three carts of timber
29:55and medicine.
29:56No signature.
29:57The director asked
29:58if I wanted
29:59to return them.
30:00I shook my head.
30:02The children need them,
30:03but the receipt only says
30:05the supplies were received.
30:06No gratitude.
30:09No replies.
30:11No forgiveness.
30:12Ron looked at me.
30:14You really don't want
30:15to know how he is?
30:17I trimmed a loose thread
30:18from the mended old cloak.
30:21No.
30:22Knowing would tie me
30:23back to him.
30:24I didn't want to be bound
30:25to anyone anymore.
30:28That evening,
30:29I buried Noah's urn
30:31on the slope
30:31behind the watch keep.
30:34The headstone was small.
30:37I carved only one sentence
30:39on it.
30:41Sister stood up.
30:44Adrian resigned
30:45from his royal military post.
30:47The Duke of the North
30:49became the lowest ranked
30:50snowline volunteer
30:51in the Holy Mountain Watch.
30:53No attendance.
30:54No badge.
30:56No noble privilege.
30:58Every morning,
30:59he moved supplies
31:00with the team,
31:01repaired rope posts,
31:02and cleared snow trails.
31:05One by one,
31:07he sent the nobles
31:08who had bet on
31:08my invisa relation
31:09at the ice steps
31:10to volunteer
31:11at the watch keep.
31:12On Bella's first day,
31:14she wore velvet gloves.
31:15Half a day later,
31:17coal ash
31:17had buried their color.
31:19She stood before me
31:20with her head lowered.
31:22Evelyn,
31:23I'm sorry for what
31:25I said back then.
31:26I handed her an axe.
31:28I heard you.
31:29The firewood
31:30still needs chopping.
31:31She paused,
31:33then took it.
31:35She used to bet
31:36gold coins
31:36on whether I would kneel.
31:39Now she chopped wood
31:41until her palms split,
31:42and no one
31:43cried pain for her.
31:44Adrian stood
31:45far outside the yard
31:46and did not come closer.
31:48When Ron came back
31:49from patrol,
31:49he mentioned,
31:54He checks the safety rope
31:55three times
31:56before every mission now.
31:58The new recruits
31:59think he's annoying.
32:00He says the rope
32:01can't be wrong again.
32:02My hands paused
32:04for one second.
32:06Then I kept tying
32:08Amy's scarf.
32:09People who were too late
32:10could still learn
32:11to do things right,
32:12but that didn't erase
32:13the past.
32:14That night,
32:15a new rope knot
32:16appeared at the watch keep's gate.
32:18It was clumsy.
32:20I didn't throw it away.
32:22I hung it in the classroom
32:24and put a label under it.
32:25Wrong example.
32:26Must be relearned.
32:29Years passed.
32:30The children of the watch keep
32:32grew taller.
32:33Amy could run across
32:34the snowy slope
32:35with a first aid kit
32:36bigger than she was.
32:37Thick calluses
32:38formed on my knees,
32:40and they ached
32:40on snowy days.
32:42But I no longer kneel.
32:43Noah's wolfskin cloak
32:44had been mended many times.
32:46The edges had faded
32:46from washing,
32:47but it was still warm.
32:48In the autumn
32:49of the fifth year,
32:52Adrian came.
32:53He stood outside
32:54the courtyard gate
32:55instead of barging in
32:57like he used to.
32:58The wind had worn
32:59his cloak thin.
33:00He had lost weight,
33:01and the Highland sun
33:02had burned red marks
33:03into his face.
33:04The old rope knot
33:05was wrapped
33:06around his wrist.
33:08He looked at the cloak
33:09on my shoulders,
33:10his voice soft.
33:13Still the same one?
33:14It's been fixed.
33:16I nodded.
33:17He was quiet
33:18for a long time.
33:19What about us?
33:20I looked at him.
33:21There was no hatred
33:22in my heart.
33:23No love either.
33:24Only a piece
33:25from very far away.
33:27We are not a cloak.
33:28We are beyond repair.
33:31His eyes reddened,
33:32but he did not
33:33take another step.
33:34Amy ran out of the house
33:35and grabbed my hand.
33:38Evelyn!
33:39Dr. Ron says
33:40dinner is waiting!
33:41She pulled me back inside.
33:43At the door,
33:43I heard Adrian whisper.
33:46I understand.
33:49This time,
33:50he didn't call my name.
33:51He didn't follow me.
33:54The snowstorm behind me
33:56was heavy,
33:56but I didn't look back.
34:00Winter came early that year.
34:02The north slope
34:03of the Holy Mountain
34:04showed signs
34:05of a major snowpack collapse.
34:08The watch broadcast
34:09an evacuation warning
34:10to every traveler.
34:12But by evening,
34:14a herder's family
34:15had lost contact.
34:17Their seven-year-old son
34:18was with them.
34:21Ron set out
34:22with the medical team.
34:24Adrian was on
34:25the rescue list too.
34:27Before leaving,
34:28he unwinded the old knot
34:29from his wrist
34:30and tied it back
34:31beside his safety harness.
34:33His peatmate asked,
34:35You're still carrying that?
34:38To remind me,
34:40he said.
34:42That night,
34:43the first wounded
34:43were brought to the watchkeep.
34:45Three herders,
34:46mild frostbite.
34:48The second group
34:48brought the child.
34:50His lips were frozen
34:51purple-black,
34:52and he was clutching
34:53a piece of rope.
34:55I banded his fingers.
34:57An uncle pushed me over.
34:59He trembled as he spoke.
35:01Who?
35:02I asked.
35:05Broken screams
35:06burst from the radio.
35:07Second collapse
35:07at the cliff!
35:08Safety rope
35:09can't hold the weight!
35:10Only one of them
35:11can cross!
35:11Report your location!
35:12Ron grabbed the radio.
35:13The wind nearly
35:15shred the channel.
35:16Then I heard
35:16Adrian's voice,
35:17calm.
35:18Pull the kid up first.
35:20His teammate shouted,
35:21Adrian, don't cut it!
35:22The next second,
35:23the roar of the avalanche
35:25swallowed everything.
35:28The watchkeep
35:29went dead silent.
35:30The child lay
35:31on the emergency bed,
35:33sobbing so hard
35:33he could barely breathe.
35:35That uncle cut the rope
35:36on himself with a knife.
35:37He pushed me over.
35:39He said something,
35:40but the wind was too loud.
35:41I couldn't hear.
35:42I covered him
35:43with a blanket.
35:46Sleep?
35:47You survived.
35:51That's what he wanted to say.
35:54Ron looked at me
35:55like he wanted to speak,
35:56then stopped.
35:57I lowered my head
35:58and kept treating
35:59the frostbite.
36:00The gauze
36:01wrapped around
36:02the child's fingers
36:03without one crooked turn.
36:05But only I knew
36:06my reflection
36:07in the bassin
36:07was shaking.
36:09Three years ago,
36:10I had cut
36:11a secondary rope too.
36:12I had pushed
36:13Celestie towards life.
36:14Then I was judged
36:15for three years.
36:16Now Adrian had stood
36:17inside the same choice.
36:19The realization
36:19finally dawned on him.
36:21The search lasted
36:21two days.
36:22At dawn on the third day,
36:24the watch found him
36:24below the snow slope.
36:25The old knot
36:26was still wrapped
36:27around his wrist.
36:27The tail of the rope
36:28had frozen into the ice.
36:30When Ron came to tell me,
36:31I was teaching the children
36:32to tie a double knot.
36:34He stood at the classroom door
36:36and didn't come in.
36:37After class,
36:38he said,
36:38It's confirmed.
36:40I nodded.
36:42Do you want me to take you
36:43to see him off?
36:44Amy ran over,
36:45holding up a crooked knot.
36:47Evelyn,
36:47did I do it right?
36:48I knelt
36:49and tightened the left side
36:50for her.
36:50This part is loose.
36:51Wrap it once more.
36:52Amy ran back.
36:54I looked out the window
36:55at the holy mountain.
36:57The mountain will lay him to rest.
37:01Adrian's belongings
37:02were sent to the watch keep.
37:03No love letters,
37:04no long confession,
37:05only a donation contract
37:07and a short note.
37:08The contract gave most
37:09of his northern supply lines
37:10to the watch keep.
37:11The note held one sentence.
37:13May every rope learn
37:14to save a life
37:15before it's too late.
37:16Amy leaned over the table
37:17and asked in a whisper,
37:19Was he a good person
37:20or a bad one?
37:22I looked at the old knot.
37:25After a long while,
37:26I said,
37:27He did terrible things.
37:29Later,
37:30he remembered.
37:31Amy asked again,
37:33So did you forgive him?
37:35I tied her scarf.
37:38Some things don't end
37:39with sorry or forgiveness.
37:41She brinked.
37:43Then when do they end?
37:44I looked at the lamp
37:45before Noah's grave.
37:48When the living
37:49finally untethered themselves
37:50from the past,
37:51that night,
37:52I put the old knot
37:53into the teaching box.
37:56The label read,
37:57Old rescue rope,
37:59not for use,
38:00warning sample only.
38:02Ron stood by the door.
38:04Is that the end?
38:05I closed the lid.
38:07For him, yes.
38:08For me,
38:09it ended long ago.
38:13Snow tapped
38:14against the window.
38:14The stove burned warm.
38:17That night,
38:18I dreamed of Noah
38:19for the first time.
38:20He stood at the foot
38:21of the holy mountain,
38:23smiling and waving at me.
38:25No sickness,
38:27no blood shop,
38:28no ice steps.
38:31Years later,
38:32the watch keep
38:33became the most important
38:34snow line outpost
38:35in the north.
38:36Some of the orphanage children
38:37became guides,
38:38some became medics,
38:39some became rope makers.
38:41Amy grew into
38:42the finest female knight
38:43among them.
38:43Her safety knots
38:44were prettier than mine.
38:46Every year,
38:46on the first snow,
38:47I took them
38:48to the training ground,
38:49checked the rope core,
38:50confirmed the load,
38:51learned to hear the mountain
38:52before an avalanche.
38:53The new children
38:54always asked me,
38:55Why do we talk about
38:56the tall rope
38:57before every class?
39:02I picked up the old knot
39:04from the teaching box.
39:05The dark red core
39:06had faded to a pale shade
39:10because the same rope
39:11can lead to different endings
39:13in different hands.
39:15Some people use it to lie,
39:17some use it to judge,
39:20and some finally learn
39:22to use it to save.
39:24The children listened
39:25in silence.
39:26I went on.
39:28But remember,
39:29a rope has only
39:30one true purpose.
39:32Amy stood at the front
39:33and answered for them all.
39:34To save people!
39:36The wind blew down
39:37from the holy mountain.
39:38The white flowers
39:39before Noah's grave
39:40swayed gently.
39:42I pulled my patched
39:43wolfskin cloak
39:44tighter around me.
39:45Winter on the plateau
39:46was still cold,
39:48but the cloak Noah gave me
39:49was still warm.
39:52Later,
39:53the Northern Court
39:54wrote the wrongful conviction
39:55from three years ago
39:56into the watch's new rules.
39:58No noble may privately judge
40:01an avalanche case.
40:03All rescue rope evidence
40:04must be reviewed
40:05by a third-party rope maker.
40:08No sanctuary member,
40:09noble,
40:10or member of the watch
40:11may withhold medicine,
40:12supplies,
40:13or orphanage goods
40:13in the name of atonement.
40:15Those rules were carved
40:16into the stone wall
40:17of the watchkeep's main hall.
40:19Every new member
40:20had to read them aloud
40:21before joining.
40:22Someone asked me
40:23whether this late justice
40:24still felt too light.
40:26I said yes.
40:28It could not save Noah.
40:31It could not give me back
40:32the three years
40:33I spent kneeling,
40:34but it could save
40:35the people who came after us.
40:37That was enough.
40:38Ron stood beside me
40:39and handed me
40:40a cup of hot berry wine.
40:42The North Slope
40:42is stable this year.
40:43The children can do
40:44two fewer patrols.
40:45I glanced at him.
40:48Are you pleading for them?
40:49Or trying to slack off?
40:51He laughed.
40:53Both.
40:54A Amy shouted
40:55from the training field,
40:56Evelyn,
40:57come see my new team!
40:59I walked outside.
41:01Sunlight hit the snow
41:02bright enough to sting.
41:05I thought of Noah
41:06years ago
41:07carving his own name
41:08into the cheapest
41:09wooden box
41:10at the repurium house.
41:12He must have been terrified.
41:18But he still saved
41:19his last bit of courage
41:20for me.
41:28Noah, look.
41:31Your sister really
41:33never knelt again.
41:38On the winter solstice,
41:39the watch keep
41:40held a rope-giving ceremony
41:41for the new members.
41:43Each child received
41:44a safety rope
41:45of their own.
41:45Not a gift from nobles.
41:47Not charity
41:48from the sanctuary.
41:49It was a right
41:50they earned
41:50by learning to inspect,
41:51tie,
41:52and care for it themselves.
41:53Amy handed the first rope
41:54to a little boy.
41:55He was the herder's son
41:57Adrian had pushed back
41:58from the cliff years ago.
41:59He had grown taller
42:01and his eyes were bright.
42:03When he saw the old knot
42:04in the teaching box,
42:05he said,
42:06I remember that, uncle.
42:09Everyone went quiet.
42:11The boy lowered his voice.
42:14I remembered later.
42:18The wind was loud,
42:19but before he pushed me,
42:21I think he said,
42:26he looked at me.
42:28Tell her I didn't cut
42:29the wrong one this time.
42:31Wind blew in through the door.
42:33The stove flame flickered.
42:35I didn't cry.
42:37I only placed my hand
42:38on the old knot.
42:39After a long time,
42:40I said,
42:42then it's good he knew.
42:44The boy asked,
42:46did you want to hear that?
42:48I shook my head.
42:53It doesn't matter anymore.
42:55What mattered
42:56was that the person
42:57he saved
42:58was standing here.
43:00What mattered
43:01was that the child
43:02held a new rope.
43:04What mattered
43:05was that the mistake
43:07had not been passed down.
43:11The rope-giving ceremony
43:13went on.
43:17One by one,
43:19the children
43:20raised their safety ropes
43:21and recited
43:22the watch oath.
43:25I stood at the front
43:26and watched heavy snow
43:27fall outside the window.
43:31This time,
43:33the snow was not punishment.
43:37It was a beginning.
43:41News of Celesta
43:42came many years later.
43:44She died in the most remote
43:45penal monastery in the north.
43:47Mara later became
43:47the watchkeep's
43:48logistics officer.
43:49She told me Celesta's
43:51last words were that
43:51she had only wanted
43:52to win once.
43:54I felt nothing
43:55when I heard it.
43:58Should we tell the children?
44:00I shook my head.
44:03She doesn't deserve
44:04to be the end of the story.
44:06The real ending
44:07should not belong
44:07to the liar.
44:09It should belong
44:10to the people
44:10who were saved.
44:11To the people
44:12who stood again.
44:14To every rope
44:15tied the right way.
44:17That spring,
44:19the watchkeep expanded.
44:20We raised a stone monument
44:22in the center
44:22of the new training ground.
44:24Adrian's name
44:25was not on it.
44:26Neither was Celesta's.
44:29Only Noah's.
44:33Without his frail life
44:34guarding the truth
44:35for me,
44:36the north would not
44:37have the watchkeep today.
44:39would Noah be happy?
44:41On the day
44:41the monument was unwealed,
44:43Amy asked.
44:45I looked at the name
44:46on the stone.
44:47Yes.
44:50He was always most afraid
44:52I would bow my head.
44:53Now so many people
44:55are looking up
44:55at his name.
44:56He must be proud.
44:58The children laughed.
45:00I laughed too.
45:02Wind swept across
45:03the snow field
45:03and sunlight fell
45:04on the stone.
45:05In that moment,
45:06I finally felt
45:07that Noah
45:07had truly come home.
45:10Many years later,
45:12I still sometimes dreamed
45:13of the 10,000th ice step.
45:15In the dream,
45:16Adrian stood above me.
45:17Celise sat in her wheelchair
45:18and the nobles
45:20raised their glasses
45:20to place bets.
45:22They told me to kneel.
45:23They told me to confess.
45:25They told me to lick
45:26the snow from her boots.
45:28But in the dream,
45:30I never knelt again.
45:32I turned and walked
45:33down the ice steps.
45:35Noah stood below
45:36in his old coat,
45:38waving at me.
45:40Sister, let's go.
45:42When I woke,
45:42the sky was still dark.
45:44Ron was already
45:45in the yard
45:45checking the sleds.
45:46Amy and her new team
45:47were preparing
45:48for their first
45:48solo mountain patrol.
45:50I put on the wolfkin cloak
45:51and went outside.
45:52Ron saw me and smiled.
45:54It's windy today.
45:55You don't have to
45:56see them off yourself.
45:57I'm only checking
45:58their knots.
45:59Amy lifted the buckle
46:00at her waist.
46:02Checked three times.
46:03I walked over
46:04and tightened it
46:05one more time.
46:07She sighed.
46:08Evelyn,
46:09you're even more nagging
46:10than Dr. Ron.
46:11I laughed.
46:12The mountain won't judge us
46:13for double checking.
46:17Before team set out,
46:18everyone turned back
46:19to look at me.
46:22Remember,
46:23ropes are not
46:24for proving guilt.
46:25I said,
46:26they are not
46:26for binding people.
46:27They are for pulling
46:28people out of the snow.
46:31understood.
46:33They walked
46:33into the morning light.
46:35I stood at the door
46:36and watched their figures
46:37shrink into the distance.
46:38This time,
46:39I wasn't afraid.
46:42Snow fell on the holy mountain
46:44year after year.
46:45Some people turned my story
46:46into a northern ballad
46:47saying I rose from
46:4810,000 ice steps
46:48and built the watch keep.
46:50They like to talk about
46:50injustice,
46:51trials,
46:52revenge,
46:53and late regret.
46:54But that isn't what
46:55I wanted to remember most.
46:56What I remembered
46:58was the line
46:58Noah stitched
46:59inside my cloak.
47:00Sis,
47:01it's freezing on the holy mountain.
47:02Make sure you come back alive.
47:05I came back alive.
47:07And I brought back
47:08many children.
47:10Many ropes.
47:12Many people
47:13who would never
47:14have to kneel again.
47:17At dusk,
47:18I went to light a lamp
47:19at Noah's grave.
47:20Amy had become
47:21captain of the watch.
47:23Not far away,
47:24she was teaching
47:25new children
47:26to tie knots.
47:27A child asked,
47:28What is this knot called?
47:30Amy said,
47:32The Way Home Knot.
47:37I paused
47:37and looked back at her.
47:39She winked.
47:40I named it!
47:41I smiled
47:42and didn't correct her.
47:44Maybe every rope
47:45tied the right way
47:46should be called
47:46a Way Home Knot
47:47in the end.
47:48Wind brushed
47:49over the headstone.
47:50The old threads
47:50of my wolfkin cloak
47:51swayed.
47:52I pressed them down
47:53with my hand.
47:54This cloak was very old.
47:55but I would keep
47:56mending it
47:56because some things
47:57can be stitched
47:58back together
47:58and some things
47:59simply can't.
48:00What can be mended,
48:01I cherish.
48:02What cannot,
48:02I let go.
48:03Winter on the holy mountain
48:04was still cold.
48:08But this time,
48:09I stood in the snowstorm
48:11waiting for no one's forgiveness.
48:14I was innocent.
48:16I was finally free.
48:18I was finally free.
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