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I have a different take on this for this book. I know a lot might be expecting a chasing arc to happen, so

SPOILERS AND LONG POST






Personally, I don’t think Ebony Castle ever needed a “chasing arc” in the usual tropey sense. You know, those long, drawn-out stretches where the ML spends chapters groveling and suffering to win their love interest back. This story simply isn’t built that way.

I can understand why some readers, especially early on, might feel frustrated with Tristan. At first, he doesn’t come across as enthusiastic about helping Eden at all, and it’s true, he isn’t. He’s a stranger to Eden, he’s straight, and he’s still recovering from years of accumulated stress and medical issues tied to his noble heritage. He’s sick of everything, burned out to the core, and has chosen isolation as his only escape. This context isn’t fully revealed right away, so in the early chapters, it’s easy for readers to see only Eden’s pain and conclude Tristan should “do more.” I think that’s partly why some people crave a chasing arc. Because without Tristan’s backstory upfront, it’s harder to grasp the weight he’s already carrying.

But even without knowing all that, imagine suddenly becoming the key to a stranger’s survival, knowing you’ll have to commit to helping them for a lifetime, with sexual intimacy involved when you’ve never been attracted to men before. That’s not an easy switch to flip.

But fom the moment Tristan realized he had feelings for Eden, back in the mansion, dating in London, even before the breakup, he’d already given up everything for him. Yes, part of it was for Eden’s treatment, but even without that, Tristan was already selflessly in love. He sacrificed his desire to stay off the grid, stepped back into the public eye, and took on the weight of his noble title and CEO responsibilities, the very things that had exhausted and sickened him long before Chapter 1. All because he chose Eden. So he could be close enough for Eden to reach him when needed. So he could fully support Eden’s piano career. So he could be there for him and really be a part of his life. From the moment he fell in love, Eden was his reason to live.

After the breakup and a two-year time skip, Tristan’s feelings hadn’t faded. But by then, they’d each found their place, Eden thriving as a pianist, free of treatment, and Tristan finally living somewhere no one knows, with the peace he’d wanted since the beginning. He didn’t “chase” Eden at that point because he believed Eden belonged in the spotlight, a world Tristan could never step into without disrupting it, and he was happy just hearing of Eden making a name for himself with his piano. It’s how they met in the first place: Eden determined to heal so he could take on the classical music world, and Tristan really did everything to make that happen.

So Tristan goes on with the peace and quiet he'd finally found. He did not chase Eden further not because he’d stopped loving him, but because he knew his own presence, bound to a chaotic, burdensome world, could only hold Eden back. And yet, he couldn’t completely let go either. He left small clues to his whereabouts, something Eden could follow if he ever wished to. In the end, Eden did. And that I could say is another thing he's given again to Eden: giving the choice for their future.

To me, that’s not lack of effort at all, it’s maturity. Life isn’t always glitter and grand gestures. Sometimes love is in the quiet choices, the sacrifices that don’t need an audience. If you look closely, both of them really did sacrificed a lot for each other. There are moments where you can almost feel the exhaustion in them, worn down by the extent of what they were willing to do for the other.

I’m glad the author didn’t put them through more suffering by forcing in the typical chasing arc you'd often expect. I was honestly satisfied without it. Ebony Castle isn’t just about that genre at all! It’s about two people who truly loved each other, but also had their own struggles, goals, and reasons to walk separate paths for a time. Eventually in the Epilogue, they still chose each other, and for me, that's like a cherry on top of an already great narrative.

Of course people will always have different opinions, but this is my two cents. My fingers are tired, and I'm gonna go shut up now

For anyone who hasn’t seen it yet, there’s a special Christmas chapter by the artist, and it’s canon.

It gives a nice short peek of a future Christmas scene from the novel, a few chapters ahead of the webtoon (after a bit of development between the MC and ML, so spoilers)

She drew this before the webtoon’s official launch, and publicly posted here and her other socmed:
https://www.postype.com/@onhase/post/18297012

She did mention she might make it private anytime, so check it out while it’s still up!

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