The moment Aster finished speaking, everyone in the room froze.
No one had expected those words.
Suna stared at him in disbelief.
"What do you mean by that?"
"I… don't know what I truly am"
His answer only deepened their confusion.
How could someone not know who they were?
Aster was… Aster. What else could he possibly be?
From their perspective, that was all there was to it.
But they didn't know the truth.
Sensing how tangled the situation had become, Valorant intervened.
"Continue."
Aster looked at his master.
"I never told you this. But I wasn't expelled from my village because of the demon. The real reason was… these eyes."
Anna and Suna stared at him, not understanding.
"Tell everything."
And so Aster did.
He recounted everything that had happened half a year ago—how his mother had died trying to save him, how the villagers blamed him for the demon attack and abandoned him in the forest to die, and how he eventually met Valorant.
As the girls listened, Anna's brows lifted and her eyes widened in shock. Suna covered her mouth, barely holding herself together.
Only Valorant remained motionless, his expression cold and unreadable.
Aster continued.
"When I met Master, a thought came to me. Actually… it's a question that's been tormenting me for years."
He paused briefly.
"Who am I?"
His eyes were blood-red—like those of demons or vampires.
His hair was white—rare even among aristocrats.
His mother had never spoken about any other family members.
And then there was the enormous amount of mana within his body.
Even Valorant had once said—
Such mana is said to exist only within families descended from powerful mages.
Those facts alone forced the question of his identity.
"When I was in the infirmary, Ned came to me. No—he found me. He said he knew who I was. He promised that if I brought him the book, he would tell me everything he knew about me."
He fell silent.
The girls exchanged uncertain glances.
Valorant did not take his eyes off him.
They all assumed Aster wanted to learn about his family—his lineage.
But that wasn't entirely true.
Compared to his past life…
His current family history mattered far less.
'It's… almost the truth.'
He told himself that to ease the crushing weight that always followed a lie.
'It's better they know this much. Even if I told them everything, they wouldn't believe me. It would only make things worse.'
If he had said—
"I am one of the Four Great Heroes."
Would they have believed him?
'Even if I told the truth… they wouldn't.'
Suddenly, Valorant asked,
"Why did they kidnap Anna?"
Aster wanted to say he didn't know.
But he chose honesty.
"They didn't need Anna. They needed me. She was just bait."
"What did that man tell you before he died?"
"He said he knew nothing about me. That he was only ordered to claim he would recognize who I was when he saw me."
Valorant exhaled slowly and heavily.
Then he stood and walked toward Aster.
"Stand up," he said, extending his hand.
Aster took it and rose.
"Change your clothes."
Valorant left the room.
Suna looked at him.
"Do you need help?"
"I'll manage."
"Then we won't disturb you," she said awkwardly.
Suna took Anna's hand, and the two left the room.
Once the door closed, Aster sat down on one of the beds and touched his swollen cheek.
'That hurts more than the cuts.'
***
After some time, the worst of the pain subsided.
His body felt slightly lighter.
Deciding to change clothes, he first prepared warm water and cloth to clean his wounds.
He removed his upper garments and began wiping away the cuts left by Ned's daggers.
The warmth of the cloth against torn skin burned intensely—even under the effects of the pain suppressor.
'Endure.'
He clenched his teeth to avoid crying out.
Eventually, he finished cleaning the wounds.
'Finally done.'
But not quite.
He pushed the water basin aside and looked toward the cloth resting on the bed.
"The hardest part remains."
He could have asked his master for help.
Valorant's green flames could easily heal every cut and bruise.
But Aster didn't.
He felt guilty.
And—
The distance between them felt… wider.
A knock came at the door.
"May I come in?" Anna's voice asked softly.
"Just a moment!"
Aster hurriedly put on fresh clothes.
"You can come in."
Anna entered quietly.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing. Just…" he trailed off.
It was as if he suddenly remembered something unspoken between them.
Then Anna sat on the edge of the bed and said—
"I'm sorry."
Aster blinked in confusion.
"They kidnapped you because of me."
Anna walked closer and sat beside him.
"Give me your left hand."
After a brief hesitation, he extended it.
She applied ointment carefully to his wound.
It stung slightly.
But he said nothing.
"Pass me the bandage."
He handed it to her.
She wrapped it around his arm.
"Thank you."
"For what?" Aster asked.
"For saving me," she said. "You went there because of me."
"That doesn't matter," Aster muttered.
"What matters is that you saved me. I'm not angry."
After finishing, she stood.
"Do you need help with anything else?"
Aster shook his head.
"Then rest well."
She left the room.
Aster finished binding his remaining wounds himself and lay down.
Outside, it was past midnight.
The streets were silent.
Valorant had not returned yet.
As he lay there, he remembered Ned's final words.
"Triskelion ordered me to say that," Ned had said, showing the ring. "Tonight, at midnight, they'll gather. To hear what happened. This ring… is the way to meet them."
Then—
A cough of blood.
"They… need you."
Aster lay staring at the ring in his palm.
He didn't fully believe Ned.
'Maybe he lied. Maybe it's another trap.'
But—
What if he hadn't?
If Ned had told the truth, then this might be his last chance to learn about his past.
A choice stood before him.
Wait for his memories to return on their own—
Or confront Triskelion face-to-face and learn the truth.
There was another problem.
'Even if I meet them… I doubt they'll tell me everything so easily.'
Aster stared at the ring a moment longer.
Then—
He slid it onto his finger.
'You'll never know unless you try.'