"Father... it's me, your son!"
"My son, boy? What are you raving about?" He let out a sharp, mocking laugh before adding, "Well, I can hardly remember how many sons I have. I've fathered many from various women—broken promises of marriage and the like—then I simply moved on. Regardless, it's nice to see one of them, but I have no time now... Farewell."
I screamed in agony, "You're leaving me now? After everything you've caused me?"
He replied with absolute coldness, "And what exactly did I cause you? Answer me! I wasn't even in your life when you were born, so I haven't ruined a thing."
"You ruined my entire childhood!" I shrieked, the words burning my throat. "Because of you, my mother became a monster who beat me every day, screaming: 'Your father left me because of you, I wish you were never born!' Because of you, children fled from me like I was a leper because I am the 'son of a criminal.' Because of you, everyone you ever hurt took their revenge on me, thinking they were achieving justice! What was my fault? I did nothing, yet everyone hates me... and it's all because of you!"
He looked at me with eyes devoid of a single shred of empathy and said, "And what is required of me, boy? Am I supposed to cry and embrace you now? Listen—whatever happened to you is of no concern to me. All I care about is my own life, and you should do the same."
He threw those cruel words and departed, fleeing from his burdens only to drop their full weight onto my shoulders. Is this what a father is? Damn him... and why does this keep happening despite my desperate attempts to fix my life?
Scene II: The Wisdom of Master Lao
A faint voice called to me, and my vision blurred. I opened my eyes to find Iyn waking me up. I sat up and wiped my face, only to find my hand wet with tears I hadn't even felt. I got up, ate, and set off to train with Master Lao.
I was training like a madman, striking the air as if venting deep-seated rage with every move. The Master noticed my agitation and halted the session, saying with calm wisdom: "When the mind is filled with the noise of thoughts, focus becomes an impossibility. Tell me, boy, what storm is raging in your mind?"
I replied evasively, "It's nothing, Master. Just old memories forgotten by time."
The Master smiled knowingly. "Forgotten? I see them playing before your eyes right now; they never leave you. Speak what is in your heart."
I sighed deeply and asked, "Master, what does one do when the whole world stands against him?"
The Master answered simply, "Surrender. How can you defeat an entire world?"
I—Andre—smiled bitterly, then frowned. "No, that's not a solution, but it's a question that tears me apart."
"And why do you feel that way?" he asked.
"Because the world insists on testing me in the harshest ways," I replied. "Even when I fail, the tests return to crush me again, and each time they are more cruel than the last."
Master Lao fell silent for a moment, then spoke in a steady voice:
"Many have faced tests that drive men mad, but the survivors did only one thing: they bound their wounds tightly and walked the path to its end. This is what you must do, Andre. Fate is written while you are young so that you may walk upon it, but it does not grant you a single path—it offers choices. Whichever choice you make, you must follow it to its conclusion. So, postpone your mental battles until you are ready for them."
I looked at him firmly and said, "Shall we continue training then?"
He nodded. "Yes, but your next exercise is for me to beat you across your entire body until your bones harden. Are you ready?"
Before he could finish his sentence, I was already slinking away, trying to escape. But he caught me like a hawk swooping on its prey, sighing, "Can't you handle a few blows from your master? Alas, the youth of this generation!"
Scene III: The Legend of "Falk" and the Black Stone
Elsewhere, far from this clamor, the Lord of Death watched a phantom standing near the camps of the Earth Clan before it vanished.
The Lord of Death sighed sorrowfully. "It seems the head of the snake is planning a devastating war."
His deputy asked incredulously, "My Lord, he does not like to ignite wars. What would he gain from it?"
He replied, "That demon is different from the rest. Ordinary demons seek the ruin and death of humans. As for him... he doesn't want them alive, and he doesn't want them dead."
The deputy asked in confusion, "I don't understand!"
The Lord of Death smiled coldly and began to narrate:
"You want to understand? Listen then. Long ago, a king ruled a great empire. One day, a man was sentenced to death for stealing the kingdom's treasury. Curiously, this thief didn't steal in secret; he carried the gold in carts and paraded through the streets, boasting of his crime until he was caught. Do you know what he did on the gallows? He turned the entire kingdom against its king."
The deputy asked in shock, "How?"
"Simple," he replied. "He shouted to the crowds: 'Do you blame me for stealing the kingdom's wealth, while the one who rules you commits a far more hideous sin?' The King angrily asked what that sin was, and the man replied without hesitation: 'Your sin is hiding the Black Demon Jewels in your palace and feeding them with human blood!'"
Shock paralyzed the crowd. The King drew his sword and decapitated the man instantly. But just when everyone thought it was over, they watched in horror as the corpse's hand reached out to pick up a Black Stone, reattaching the head to the body. The man held up the stone and said, 'I took this from your palace, Your Majesty... what is your explanation?'"
The King stood speechless. The demon then revealed his true form: 'Do you want more proof? I have known you for a long time, King, since the very first Black Stone I gifted you. I am a demon, not a human!' He threw off his cloak, revealing his horns with a diabolical grin.
The King ordered a search of the palace, and when the cursed stones were found, the guards dragged both the King and the demon to the gallows. The King screamed his innocence, but no one listened; the perfect image of their beloved King had shattered, replaced by the face of a traitor. Both were executed, and a bloody chaos consumed the kingdom."
The Lord of Death concluded, "Falk never sought anything but amusement. Reviving people, killing them, and seeing the expressions of despair on their faces... that is his fuel. He does not kill his victims, nor does he let them live; he keeps them suspended between the two to savor their agony. In short... he is the Dark Horse among all the pieces."
Though the King had not actually taken those stones, there was no escape; for what he faced was the very source of evil itself.