The moon hung high above the quiet forest, casting long silver shadows between the trees. A soft breeze rustled the leaves, carrying the scent of damp earth and distant wildflowers. The holy city was far behind them now, nothing but a memory swallowed by the night.
Xesre walked without a clear destination, his cloak brushing softly against the undergrowth. His sharp blue eyes scanned the path ahead, though his mind was elsewhere—always elsewhere.
No matter where I go, it's the same.I can't outrun it. I can't change it.
His footsteps were light and precise, each movement instinctively calculated to leave no sound. To him, traveling was easier alone. People complicated things. People brought emotions—and he had enough of those trapped inside his head already.
But Sakura Mizuki didn't see it that way.
She had followed him again.Quietly, carefully, keeping to the edges of the path.
Wrapped in her cloak, her golden eyes glimmered faintly under the moonlight. She didn't fully understand why she was doing this, only that something about him pulled her in. His presence felt… lonely. Like a song trapped in a cave, echoing with no one to hear it.
He's reckless, wandering alone like this.…No, that's not it. He's just used to it.
She tightened her grip on the edges of her cloak and followed.
Hours passed in silence. Eventually, Xesre stopped in a clearing. The moonlight pooled around him like liquid silver. He stared up at the stars for a long time, his expression unreadable.
I hate nights like this, he thought.Too quiet. Too many memories…
Then, slowly, he sat down against a tree trunk. His cloak slid slightly, revealing faint golden streaks on his wrists—old scars, healed but not forgotten. His fingers trembled faintly as he held a small dagger made from hardened mana, its transparent edge catching the moonlight.
For a long moment, he just stared at it.
And then—without hesitation—he pressed it against his chest.
Sakura's breath caught in her throat.
"W–Wait!" she whispered urgently, but too softly to reach him.
Before she could move, the dagger pierced his skin. Not deep enough to kill—just enough to hurt. His face didn't even flinch. He looked almost… relieved.
If only pain could drown out everything else…
His pupils sharpened, his breathing quickened, but his movements were calm. He dragged the blade slowly, methodically—trying to feel something real. Trying to remind himself he was still alive.
Sakura rushed forward, but then she stopped.Something inside her froze.
For a brief second, his eyes changed.
They weren't just sharp—they were wild, fractured, as if something buried deep inside him was clawing to the surface. She could feel it from where she stood—the presence of someone else, something else, watching from behind his gaze.
But then it was gone.
He blinked slowly, the dagger clattering weakly onto the grass beside him. His chest rose and fell shakily.
Why… won't it ever stop?The memories… they just keep coming.
His vision blurred. His breath turned shallow. And then—everything went black.
When Sakura reached him, he had already passed out, slumped against the tree like a broken doll.
She knelt beside him, her hands hovering uncertainly. The scent of iron filled the air. His blood shimmered faintly in the moonlight, golden against the night.
"Why… are you like this?" she whispered softly.
Her heart ached in a way she didn't expect. She had seen broken people before. She had healed wounded bodies and fractured spirits. But this—this boy—felt different.
It was as if the universe itself had turned its cruelty into a person.
She didn't know it yet, but this moment—seeing his fragility up close—would change everything between them.