Silence lingered between them, heavy like a shadow over the ruins of the past. Arashi stared at Miyuki, waiting for an answer, a justification. Why hadn't she intervened? Why had she abandoned him to that hell?
Around him, his companions were still processing the revelation. Jin was the first to lose patience.
— You knew.
His voice vibrated with cold rage.
— You knew what he was going through. You knew he was tortured every day. And you did nothing.
Miyuki remained impassive, but her gaze drifted for a moment into the void, as if searching for words she couldn't find.
— Jin, wait. Ryuu placed a hand on his shoulder, but there was nothing soothing in his tone.
— No! Jin exploded. She's his mother! She should have protected him, not abandoned him!
Kaede and Mei remained silent, but their unease was palpable.
Arashi, however, did not flinch.
— Answer me.
An order.
Miyuki let out a soft sigh.
— You wouldn't understand.
Jin gritted his teeth.
— Then explain.
Miyuki took a deep breath before speaking.
— The Akeron clan was never like the others.
Everyone listened attentively.
— Every child is born with brown hair. But at the age of nine, their true nature manifests, and their hair color becomes permanent. This transformation isn't just physical… It reveals who we truly are.
Kaede murmured:
— So that's why every Akeron has a different color…
Miyuki nodded.
— Yes. The color reflects our essence, our deepest personality. It is an absolute rule.
Mei fixed her gaze on her.
— And you… Why is your hair red?
Miyuki lowered her eyes for a moment before answering softly:
— Because I loved.
A shiver ran through Arashi.
— Love?
— Yes. Love for my husband. Love for my son.
A silence settled.
— Then why did you abandon me? Arashi asked, his voice cold.
Miyuki looked him straight in the eyes.
— Because sometimes, loving also means… accepting to lose.
Jin, furious, was about to retort, but Ryuu spoke before him.
— What does that mean?
Miyuki hesitated for a moment, then continued.
— When Arashi was born, I knew he was special. But at the age of seven, everything changed.
Arashi's eyes narrowed.
— What do you mean?
Miyuki crossed her arms.
— All Akeron children change at nine. But you…
She paused.
— Your hair changed at seven.
Kaede's eyes widened.
— That's impossible…
— And yet, that's what happened.
Arashi frowned.
— And what color did they turn?
Miyuki fixed him with an intense gaze.
— Black.
A glacial silence fell over the group.
— Black? Mei repeated, troubled.
Miyuki slowly nodded.
— Black as the abyss. Black as the unknown.
She clenched her fists slightly.
— Black hair had never appeared in the Akeron clan before you. For our clan, that color represented the uncontrollable. A being whose fate could not be defined, neither by lineage nor by the laws of the world.
Ryuu understood before the others.
— They were afraid of him.
Miyuki nodded.
— Yes.
Arashi felt his anger rising.
— So they wanted to kill me.
Miyuki slightly averted her eyes.
— Yes.
Jin slammed his fist against a wall.
— Bastards!
Arashi clenched his teeth.
— And you… what did you do?
Miyuki took a deep breath.
— I did everything I could to spare you from that fate.
Arashi's gaze burned with intensity.
— But you failed.
— No.
Arashi narrowed his eyes.
— Then what?
Miyuki placed a hand over her heart.
— I made a choice.
— What choice?! Arashi snapped.
— The choice not to intervene.
Silence fell.
— What?
Miyuki explained, her voice calm but heavy with pain.
— If I had saved you, you would have remained trapped in the clan, manipulated by their traditions and fears. They would have turned you into a tool, a monster at their command.
She paused before continuing.
— I let you go so you could be free.
Arashi felt his throat tighten.
— You let me die.
Miyuki looked him straight in the eyes.
— No.
Her voice was soft but firm.
— I let you be reborn.
The silence was heavy with meaning.
Arashi wanted to hate her. But deep inside, something… wavered.