Smoke still lingered in the air after the clash. Ryota lay unconscious, and Ren stood firm, eyes fixed on Darius, who was breathing heavily, one arm freshly formed from ice magic. The battlefield was quiet—too quiet.
Darius took a slow step back, eyes locked on Ren. But inside, his thoughts were far from the present.
Why am I even doing this...?
Memories began flooding back—sharp, cold, and painful—like ice shards slicing through his mind.
28 Years Ago
Snowflakes gently fell outside a small house near the kingdom. Inside, a child named Darius trembled under his father's shadow. Orin—a knight respected for his ice magic—stood tall, fury glowing in his cold eyes.
"You're so weak! It's embarrassing!" he shouted, grabbing Darius's small shoulders tightly. "You're my son, and yet you can't even control the ice magic you inherited from me?!"
"I-I'm trying..." Darius stuttered, his voice cracking.
SLAP!
Blood trickled down the corner of his lips.
"Orin, stop! He's just a child!" cried Eris, Darius's mother, rushing to shield him.
But Orin turned with rage, grabbing her by the neck. "It's your fault. You gave birth to this disgrace!"
He hurled her aside. Her body crashed into the stone well behind the house, a sickening thud echoing as she groaned in pain. Without another glance, Orin stormed out.
Darius crawled to his mother, holding her trembling form. Tears streamed down his face, freezing as they fell.
"Mom... I'm sorry… I'll get stronger…"
That night, the cold wasn't just outside. It had entered his heart.
Orin's hatred only grew. Wanting a powerful legacy, he married a woman with fire magic, hoping for a child with a multiple magic elementls. He abandoned Eris and Darius throwing them out like garbage.
With no home, no food, and no warmth, they wandered—mother and son, alone in the harsh snow.
Then came the storm.
A violent ice storm roared through the land. They took shelter behind a collapsed wall, skin turning pale from the cold.
Eris held Darius close, her body shaking. "Stay strong... my son..." she whispered faintly, voice fading with every word.
"Mom… please…"
She tried to say something more. But she couldn't.
She died in his arms, frozen tears on her face.
That moment—Darius broke.
Later, a woman arrived.
Her footsteps left no trace on the snow. Her eyes shimmered like frost, and her presence made the world fall silent.
She knelt beside him.
"Oh… what a poor child," she said gently.
She took him to her palace of ice—her domain.
Her name was Eva Frost. The Frost Queen.
Darius told her everything. She listened quietly, her expression unreadable.
Then she asked, "Do you want to kill your father?"
He nodded.
She smiled. "Good."
Eva and Darius went to Orin's place. Eva happily tortured him. Darius watched, silent and cold. When the time came, she handed him a blade.
"Now. End it."
He looked into his father's eyes. For the first time,Orin looked afraid. That fear brought Darius a dark satisfaction.
And he ended it.
He killed the man who had made his life hell.
She helped him get his revenge. From that moment, Darius became her servant. But they didn't talk much. They shared no deep bond. She gave him orders—he followed them.
He respected her deeply, not out of affection, but because she gave him what no one else had: purpose.
Still… sometimes he wondered:
Does she even remember me?
He learned more about her only by being near her. She was powerful, feared, distant—and strangely, uninterested in the king's affairs.
She didn't care about the king's goals, yet she followed most of his commands.
Why? he often thought. Why does someone like her obey a king she doesn't even respect?
Six years ago, she suddenly started following the king. Before that, Darius knew nothing about her past, or her reasons.
But none of that mattered.
She helped him in his darkest time.
She gave him revenge.
She gave him strength.
For that, he had decided long ago—
I will follow her.
No matter what.
Even if I am just another tool for her... I will serve her until the end.
That's why…
He looked at Ren again, his eyes burning with cold fury.
That's why I won't lose. Not until I've fulfilled her will. I'll fight until I'm dead. I'll use every bit of my strength… every drop of my magic…
Because I owe her that much.