The capital had always felt alive, but for some reason, today it felt unnatural.
Aethon walked down the stone paved road of his family's estate, the familiar sight of the sprawling city opening before him. Morning light gleamed against rooftops and banners, painting the capital in hues of gold and red. From a distance, it almost looked like nothing had happened. As if the battle that had torn through its heart had been nothing more than a dream.
But Aethon remembered.
He remembered the sight of buildings that were destroyed, their rubble that spilled across the cobblestones like roads, the dead lifeless bodies that littered the streets, and the hollow cries that had filled the night. He remembered the stench of smoke and blood. Yet now… it was gone. It was as if it was a nightmare for him and only him. He never hear of a funeral that should have been held for the deceased. Nothing.
The streets that stretched ahead of him were clean and orderly, as if time itself had erased the scars. Merchants called out their prices at their stalls, children ran through narrow alleys laughing and screaming, guards in polished armor stood casually at their posts. People bustled about, carrying baskets of fruit, clay pots, fabrics dyed bright colors. The smell of roasted bread and spices filled the air.
It was too normal. Too pristine.
Aethon's boots began to echoe against the stone as he descended into the main street, he slowly began to narrow his eyes has he made his way through the streets. He expected to see broken walls that were patched hastily with wood, fires still being put out or ruins that were awaiting repair. But there was none of that. The wounds of the city were gone.
It was as if the attack had never happened.
His jaw tightened. This wasn't healing, it was erasure.
He made his way slowly through the crowd, scanning faces. No one looked shaken. No one spoke in hushed tones of loss. They smiled, bargained and moved about as if the world hadn't nearly collapsed just days ago. The laughter in the air felt almost cruel.
What's going on here? he thought,the feeling of unease began curling in his chest.
Just in that moment, another thought raced through his head.
Hienz.
The old man's sharp eyes, his gruff words, the weight of the girl leaning against him. when did he last seen them? When Luna spoke with him, she didn't mention anything about both of them. They had been there amidst the chaos. They had survived. He quickly stopped, turned around and ran back to the estate.
Aethon stopped infront of a guard that was standing outside his houses estate. His expression was dark. "You there. Do you know where a man called Hienz is? The old man who fought beside me. I told him to come here, and I have him my sigil. He a had a girl with him."
The guard looked at him blankly for a moment, then his eyes lit with recognition. "Who are you?." Has the guard asked that, his facial expression changed abit. "Aethon?! Soryy about that. I never recognize you with that crimson eye."
The answer prickled at him. "eh? Ah, yeah I woke up and it was just... Kinda there you know. But back to my main question?"
"Yes. Hienz told me you'd ask." The guard's tone was calm, almost rehearsed. "He said to tell you he is grateful for what you have done… and that he has left."
Aethon stared, silent. "…Left?"
The guard nodded firmly. "That's all he said. He didn't give a destination. Just gratitude. And then he vanished."
The weight of the words sank into Aethon's chest, heavy and unsatisfying. Gratitude. Left. Nothing more?
He stepped back, his gaze falling to the ground. Why would Hienz leave without saying anything more? Without waiting? Without even… explaining?
He clenched his fists. There had to be more to it. The man didn't seem like someone who would walk away without reason. The girl especially—she had looked frail. Where would they even go?
The question gnawed at him, spinning in his head.
Then while he was thinking this, another question popped up in his head. "Wait...whyam I bothered to worry about someone I just met? I only knew him for not even an hour. The small girl is one thing... But why do I care about... Heinz??"
As he was thinking this, a light tap on his shoulder pulled him from his thoughts.
He turned around sharply, his instinct on edge.
Standing there was Mai, her hair tied back, strands falling loose around her face. Her eyes softened the moment his met hers, though there was a shadow of exhaustion in them.
"You look like you've seen a ghost," she said, giving a small smile.
Aethon exhaled slowly, tension loosening just slightly. "Imighthave."
She tilted her head to her right and said to Aethon, : "I heard you saved a girl from an entity...and judging from your face... It's still stuck in your mind?"
He gave a short nod. "Ahh...you could saythat."
They then began to walk side by side through the street. Mai's presence was grounding, her calm energy cutting through the buzzing noise around them.
"Ihelped during the southern attack," she said after a moment. "When the entity appeared, chaos spread fast. Families were trapped in the burning alleys. I guided as many as I could out."
Aethon looked at her, noting the faint tremble in her hand before she tucked it behind her back. "You put yourself at risk."
Mai shrugged softly. "We all did." Her gaze turned from facing forward to her left. "But it wasn't me who stopped it."
Aethon looked at her after she said this. "Then who?"
"Luna," Mai said.
At the sound of his sister's name, Aethon's eyes sharpened.
"She was there. Calm, composed, like she'd been waiting for it. When the entity surged forward, she chained it. Not with steel, but with something else." Mai's lips pressed together as she recalled it. "Chains woven from mana. I've never seen anything like it. They wrapped around the entity and dragged it to the ground, its strength crushed until it dissolved. It's dark blue flamed head turned back to a small black flame after the chains were put on."
Aethon slowed his steps, her words echoing in his mind. Mana dampening chains?
Mai glanced at him, but said nothing more.
As they walked, her eyes flicked toward his face, lingering a little too long. Aethon noticed and turned to her. "What is it?"
She hesitated, her lips parting before closing again. Finally, she spoke softly, "Youreye."
Aethon froze.
Mai's gaze was locked on his left eye, the one now burning crimson. She blinked, her brows knitting. "When did it change?"
His chest tightened. He turned away slightly, his expression hardening. "Awhile ago,but I only saw it had changed when I finally wokeupthis monring."
There was a silence, heavy and strange. Mai's breath caught, and she turned her back to him, looking away towards the crowd. Her movements were tense, guarded, though she tried to make them appear casual.
Aethon frowned, staring at her turned figure and said, : "What are you afraid of?"
The air shifted. Cold.
A whisper slithered into his ear, faint but clear.
Weak.
Aethon's head snapped to the side. The voice was sharp, unfamiliar, cutting through the noise of the street. His pulse spiked, his eyes darting through the crowd.
But there was no one there.
He swallowed, heart thundering.
Then the voice came again, louder, violent.
WEAK!
It screamed inside his skull, drilling into his ears like molten iron. He stumbled, his hands clutching his head, his crimson eye flaring. The world began to spun.
The voice wasn't alone now. Whispers multiplied, coiling around him, like a snake. They were indistinguishable and suffocating.
Failure.
You couldn't save them.
Just a child playing hero.
Blood will drown you.
The words overlapped, feeding on his silence, growing louder with every heartbeat. Aethon's vision swam with phantoms, shadows crawling across the edges of the crowd, faces melting into eyeless masks, mouths gaping in silent laughter.
"Who's there?!" he shouted, his voice was loud.
The people in the street paid no mind. Their laughter, their bargaining, their footsteps, they all carried on, unaffected.
Aethon's chest heaved as he turned frantically, eyes searching every shadow, every corner, every face. The voices burrowed deeper.
Weak. Worthless. Fragile.
We see you.
You will break.
His breath quickened, his fingers curling into fists. He stared, unblinking, into the crowd. Nothing. No one.
The world was normal. But inside him, nothing was normal.
When he finally turned back towards Mai, ready to ask if she had heard it too...
She was gone.
His stomach dropped.
"Mai?" he called, spinning in place. His voice carried over the noise of the crowd, desperate.
No answer.
She had been right there with him. And now she was gone. No trace. No sign.
He stood alone, the bustling street closing in around him.
The laughter of children rang in his ears like mockery. The merchants' calls stretched too long, warped into noise. The city's bright colors seemed sickly under the crimson flare in his vision.
Aethon's crimson eye burned as he stared into the emptiness where Mai had stood.
The whisper lingered in the back of his mind, softer now, but unyielding.
Weak.