Iris and Alexa froze where they stood on the floor, their eyes fixed on Ethios.
He was leaning against the wall, tears streaming down his face. He might have been just a child, but he understood their conversation.
Ethios had learned far more than he ever should have known.
And seeing his parents fight like that—
it was a sight he never wished to witness.
Alexa slowly rose to her feet. She stepped toward Ethios with gentle movements, her arms reaching out to him.
"Ethios... don't worry. Everything's fine."
She tried to comfort him somehow.
But he was too shocked to even accept his mother's embrace.
Ethios darted away, slipping past her arms.
Alexa's hands trembled for a brief moment before she looked back at her son.
His legs were shaking visibly, tears finally falling from his eyes. The image of his parents blurred through the flood of tears.
Then he turned and ran—fleeing toward his room.
The words of his parents echoed endlessly in his mind, each second replaying them louder.
He couldn't accept either of their philosophies.
His father was willing to sacrifice him for the sake of people he didn't even know.
His mother was willing to sacrifice the entire world just to keep him safe.
All Ethios wanted... was to live a normal life.
A life where no one had to die because of him.
He reached for the doorknob, turned it, and slipped inside his room, locking the door behind him.
The only sound left in the wing was the faint click of the lock.
His parents stood still in the corridor, saying nothing for several long minutes.
Then—
Alexa decided to go check on her son.
She took one step forward, but Iris caught her hand from behind, stopping her.
Alexa turned to him, fury burning in her eyes.
Iris met her gaze with calm determination.
"I'm sorry, Alexa... but I'll be filing a request to put you on trial."
Alexa's expression twisted into disdain.
A trial? Who cared about that now?
All she wanted was to know if her son was all right—
after all he had seen and heard.
She pulled her hand free with force and hurried to Ethios's room.
Iris did nothing but watch her leave. He turned away quietly and walked out of the wing.
Alexa stood before Ethios's door. She tried to open it, even though she knew it was locked. Of course...
She couldn't enter.
She could have easily forced her way in—through magic or sheer strength—
but she refused to make Ethios accept her by force.
She wanted him to understand why she had done everything she did.
Her voice came softly, muffled through the wooden door.
"Ethios... please. Open the door, my son. It's not what you think."
She waited for a response, but none came.
Things would only get harder from now on.
Alexa leaned her back against the door, sliding slowly down until she sat on the floor.
Mother and son, leaning on opposite sides of the same door.
She opened her mouth to speak,
but Ethios spoke first.
"I don't want to live like this..."
Those words pierced Alexa's heart like a poisoned blade.
They were the last thing she ever wanted to hear from the one who meant everything to her.
Ethios continued from inside his room.
"I don't want to die for people I don't know...
and I don't want thousands to die for me.
Tell me, Mother...
how do you expect me to live peacefully, knowing that countless people are dying so I can live comfortably in this palace?"
Ethios hugged himself tightly, his muscles trembling.
His voice cracked as he spoke.
"It feels comforting when you say you'll protect me no matter what... but I don't want to be the reason for destruction.I never asked you to protect me that way..."
He broke down crying.
There was so much he wanted to say, but the tears choked him, stealing his words one after another.
His parents' philosophies clashed violently inside his heart.
Then came his mother's voice again from the other side of the door—soft, filled with pain.
"I'm sorry, Ethios.I know this isn't the life you wanted to live.
But sometimes... we don't get to choose the life we want.
I tried with all my strength to keep you away from these truths—
and I failed."
Silence lingered between them for a few seconds.
Then Alexa spoke again.
"You'll live a long life, Ethios.You'll meet people you'll love dearly.
And when that time comes, you'll understand why I've done all of this for you—
even if it meant the deaths of thousands.
You're not a harbinger of destruction, Ethios.
It's the cruel laws of this world—
laws that have never known fairness—
that made you look like one."
Ethios didn't fully understand her words,
but he began to grasp her feelings.
Alexa spoke once more.
"You hate being the cause of sacrifice...
but if you choose to hide here and cry,
those sacrifices will all be for nothing.
If you lock yourself away,
then every life lost for your sake will have been wasted.
So, Ethios...
you must rise—
and show the world that their deaths were not in vain."
Ethios's eyes widened.
For a moment, his tears stopped.
His mother had given him a reason to move forward.
He grew a little stronger with each word she spoke.
"Right now, the world sees you as the cause of war. But I see you as the one who will end it.
That's why I sacrificed thousands for you, my son.They died so that you might live—
until the day you can save millions.
So you must work, and strive,
and become worthy of the blood that bought your life."
Neither of them spoke after that.
Alexa hadn't lied in a single word.
Every sentence was filled with truth.
She truly saw in Ethios the hero who would one day bring peace to the Highbloods.
That belief had lessened the guilt she carried for the lives she had taken for his sake.
There was nothing left to say.
Alexa rose slowly to her feet, taking a step away from the door—
ready to give Ethios the space he needed.
Then she froze.
The sound of the door opening came from behind her.
Ethios stood there, looking at her.
His tears had stopped, and his expression was firm now—determined.
"Then make me that hero you see in me, Mother."
A smile stretched across Alexa's face from ear to ear.
Yes...
One day, Ethios would become that hero.