Darkness stretched endlessly around me.
Cold.
Silent.
Empty.
Yet within that endless void, her voice still reached me clearly.
"Did you really forget our promise, dear Shiro?"
My body trembled weakly against the darkness.
"Does my death mean so little to you?"
"…No," I whispered painfully. "I could never forget."
The void shifted violently around me.
"I'm not that insensitive…"
But the darkness only laughed.
Cruel.
Mocking.
Familiar.
---
Back in reality, my body tossed restlessly atop the bed inside one of the royal guest chambers.
Everyone remained nearby.
Yura sat closest, her bandaged stomach still recovering from the demonic arrow. Shina leaned quietly beside her while Hera and Hetra remained near the window whispering nervously among themselves.
Even the king stayed.
Though now—
his once regal posture looked exhausted and fragile.
Kyoko rested against my chest in her small form, quietly watching over me.
Yet none of them could hear the war happening inside my mind.
"…I won't forgive them," I muttered weakly in my sleep. "I won't let another girl into my heart…"
Tears slipped down my face despite myself.
Then the voice returned.
"She used you."
My chest tightened painfully.
"She only wanted your help."
The darkness twisted again.
Images surfaced.
Earth.
School rooftops.
Hallways.
Laughter.
Cruel laughter.
"He seriously thought she liked him?"
"How pathetic."
"He's way too easy to manipulate."
Faces blurred together into one endless nightmare.
Yae.
The girls who mocked me.
My cousin's broken smile.
Every betrayal stacked together until my chest felt hollow.
Weak.
Disposable.
Unwanted.
A gentle hand suddenly touched mine.
And my eyes snapped open instantly.
I jerked backward instinctively, breathing heavily while tears still burned across my face.
The room fell silent.
Kyoko floated upward immediately.
"Master… are you alright?"
Her voice carried genuine concern.
That alone calmed me slightly.
I wiped my face quickly before forcing a weak smile.
"I'm fine."
Lie.
Terrible lie.
But easier than explaining the truth.
Kyoko landed softly in my palms, nuzzling against my fingers gently while her dragon eyes studied me carefully.
Then Satre spoke quietly.
"Shiro… what was that power yesterday?"
The room's atmosphere shifted instantly.
Everyone looked at me.
Waiting.
Worried.
Afraid.
And honestly?
That fear irritated me more than it should have.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I replied coldly while standing from the bed.
Lie again.
"I remember nothing."
Satre's eyes narrowed slightly.
"You destroyed a Demon General with your bare hands."
"Sounds exaggerated."
"Shiro."
I looked away immediately while grabbing my clothes.
"Whatever happened," I muttered, "it clearly ended once the battle was over. So stop looking at me like I'm dangerous."
No one answered.
Which somehow hurt more.
Then—
BOOM.
The door burst open violently.
Royal guards flooded the room instantly with weapons drawn.
"You are under arrest!"
The lead knight pointed his sword directly toward me while hatred twisted across his face.
"For the destruction of the castle and the murder of the first prince!"
Silence.
Then something inside me cracked slightly.
Again.
"…Excuse me?" I asked softly.
Dark mana flickered around my fingers instinctively.
The knight stepped backward despite himself.
"You are clearly corrupted by demonic influence!"
Corrupted.
That word hit harder than it should have.
The darkness inside me stirred violently.
My smile vanished completely.
"Would you," I asked quietly, "like me to kill everyone in this room?"
The pressure exploding from my body instantly forced several guards to their knees.
The lead knight trembled violently.
Good.
Fear was appropriate.
Hera stepped forward immediately.
"Father, stop this!" she shouted toward the king. "He SAVED us!"
But the king's face twisted with fury.
"That thing is not human!"
The room froze instantly.
"You saw what he became!"
Every word sharpened the darkness inside me further.
"He corrupted my kingdom! My children!"
And that—
that finally pushed me over the edge.
I moved instantly.
The king barely had time to react before my hand slammed against his face and lifted him effortlessly from the floor.
Everyone gasped.
"Don't," I growled coldly, "you EVER accuse me of corrupting anyone."
Dark purple mana flooded the room violently.
"If I wanted this kingdom gone…"
The walls cracked.
"…there wouldn't be anything left to save."
Then I threw him aside effortlessly.
He crashed violently into the wall.
Hera screamed.
The guards froze completely.
And honestly?
Part of me wanted them to attack.
I wanted a reason.
Any reason.
Instead—
I turned and leapt directly through the window.
Kyoko followed instantly.
The moment I landed on her back, she expanded into her full dragon form and launched us skyward.
Arrows chased us immediately from below.
Pathetic.
I shattered them effortlessly with wind magic before turning back toward the kingdom beneath us.
The massive Spirit Tree glowed beautifully beneath the night sky.
Beautiful.
Fragile.
Untrustworthy.
My fists clenched tightly.
"They used me again," I whispered bitterly.
Kyoko remained silent.
Good.
Because right now—
I didn't want comfort.
I wanted destruction.
Dark mana gathered violently around my body while the sky above the kingdom darkened unnaturally.
Black flames began forming within the clouds.
"Master…" Kyoko whispered nervously.
But I was too angry to stop.
"Oh flames born from hatred and ruin," I chanted coldly, "descend and burn away the weak…"
The clouds split apart.
Black fire rained downward toward the kingdom below.
"Hells Amaturia."
The first explosion shook the forest violently.
Screams echoed upward immediately.
The flames consumed buildings instantly.
Spirit lights vanished.
The beautiful kingdom burned beneath me.
And somehow—
watching it burn made my chest feel emptier instead of better.
"There will be no afterlife for traitors," I whispered coldly while staring downward. "Even your souls will burn."
Kyoko looked back toward me quietly.
"…Master," she said softly, "I don't think heroes do things like this."
I laughed bitterly.
"Good."
The black flames reflected in my eyes.
"Because I was never a hero."
Silence followed.
Then quietly—
"I was just a stupid man trying to do good."
Far below, I noticed Satre's protective barrier surrounding Hera, Hetra, Yura, and Shina while they escaped the burning castle.
Relief flickered through me briefly.
Then bitterness buried it again.
"I'm not staying with them anymore."
Kyoko's wings beat slower afterward.
"But they love you."
Love.
That word disgusted me right now.
I looked away from her.
"Love doesn't exist," I muttered coldly. "People either use you… or get used."
The black flames finally faded afterward.
And together, we disappeared into the night sky.
---
Roughly thirty minutes later, we landed outside our manor in Lakeway.
Quiet.
Empty.
Safe.
Kyoko returned to her smaller form and climbed onto my shoulder silently while I activated invisibility magic around us both.
I slipped into my room through the window without making a sound.
Good.
No one noticed.
Perfect.
I quickly gathered supplies while calling quietly:
"Sangui. Outside."
But before I could leave—
the door creaked open slowly.
My body froze instantly.
Iwa stepped into the room calmly.
And somehow—
her eyes locked directly onto mine despite the invisibility spell.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
"If you plan to leave before Lady Satre returns," Iwa said calmly, "I've been instructed to stop you."
My eye twitched.
Of course Satre planned ahead.
Annoyingly intelligent woman.
I slowly backed toward the window.
Then—
light exploded across the room.
AAAAAGH!
Pain ripped through my body instantly.
I collapsed hard onto one knee while light magic burned against my skin violently.
"How?!" I gasped painfully. "How did you even SEE me?!"
"Mistress Satre warned us," Iwa replied calmly. "And Lady Satre is rarely wrong."
Wonderful.
Absolutely wonderful.
Another blast of light slammed into me before I could recover.
My limbs immediately weakened.
Everything hurt.
Dark magic made me resistant to darkness.
But light?
Light destroyed me.
I tried forcing myself upward again.
Another blast hit me directly in the chest.
My vision blurred instantly.
"I'm really starting to dislike your family…" I groaned weakly.
Then darkness swallowed me again.
---
The void returned.
Cold.
Silent.
Endless.
But this time—
a warm golden light appeared far away.
Soft.
Gentle.
Motherly.
I ran toward it desperately.
But no matter how fast I moved—
it remained distant.
Unreachable.
Then the voice came.
Soft enough to calm the entire darkness around me.
"Shiro."
I stopped instantly.
"You are loved."
Warmth spread through the void slowly.
"This world is yours to shape… if you can save it."
The golden light flickered softly afterward.
And for the first time in a long while—
the darkness inside me hesitated.