Chapter 173: The First Letter and the Roots of an Eternal Hatred
A lethal and stagnant cold swirled in the air of the room, as if time had stood still in this place for centuries. Rina, with her trembling hands, lifted an old, yellowed piece of paper from one of the velvet trunks. This was not just a simple paper; this was her mother's first letter—a letter sealed with her mother's death and her father's blood to keep it hidden from the Grandmother's sight. Diyari stood beside her, his breath tightening, for he knew that the truth hidden within these lines could dismantle all the beliefs the Grandmother had planted in his mind. Rina opened the letter slowly; a faint scent of dried flowers spread from between the pages, a scent that for a second transported Rina back to her mother's warm embrace before everything turned to ash.
Rina began to read, the voice echoing within her: "My only daughter, Rina... if this letter is in your hands, know that the light of truth has been able to triumph over darkness. I know how full of questions you are now; I know how the Grandmother (Diyari's grandmother) turned your life into a hell full of vengeance. But you must know that her hatred did not start with you; rather, it is a hatred rooted in a sinister ambition that has consumed the blood of this family for generations." Rina felt a warm tear fall on her cheek, but she did not take her eyes off the lines.
The letter stated: "The Grandmother, who was previously seen as the protector of this land, could never endure the fact that the light only settles within pure hearts. When your father (the true descendant of light) chose me, the Grandmother saw it as us 'defiling' the sacred power with simple human love. She wanted the light to be used only as a weapon, not as a radiance for life. Her hatred for us began the day she realized that the love between your father and me had created a power she could never control. She hated us because we were free, and she was imprisoned in her own prison of authoritarianism."
Rina looked at Diyari, whose eyes were filled with shock. The letter had a specific section that described Diyari's grandmother in detail: "That woman, who is Diyari's grandmother, was not just a black sorceress, but a monster who believed that the greatest magic could only be achieved through pain. She hated me because I bestowed the light upon you without asking her permission. She wanted to raise you as a soulless machine and use Diyari (her own grandson) as a sacrifice to unify the two poles (light and darkness) within her own body. She hated us because we knew the great secret: that when the light dies, it rises stronger within the heart of another generation."
Rina continued reading, her hands trembling more: "Rina, the Grandmother had planned for you to destroy your father and me without knowing who we were. She wanted you to be the killer of your own parents so that your soul would completely break and you would become her slave. She hated the purity she saw in your eyes. Every time she looked at you, she saw her own defeat. She knew that you would one day become the fire that burns her false palace. Therefore, my daughter, never feel that you were deserving of those pains. Her hatred was a sign of your greatness, and a sign of her smallness and cowardice against the power she did not possess."
Diyari fell to his knees, clutching his head, and said in a choked voice: "So all those years... she raised me like a dog just to sacrifice me at the right time to steal your power? She didn't even have mercy on her own blood." Rina took Diyari's hand and finished the letter for him: "Diyari is a victim just like you, Rina. The Grandmother hates anything she cannot chain. She hates Diyari because he will be the sanctuary where your light finds peace. She knew your love would be her end, so she dedicated her whole life to planting hatred between you."
The letter ended with these lines: "In the end, my daughter, know that love is the only magic the Grandmother fears. She hates us because we can live without magic, but without magic, she is only an insignificant shadow. Protect this letter, and know that your parents died with pride, for they knew your light would one day turn truth into the weapon of victory. Do not let that woman's hatred become a part of you. You are the daughter of light, not the daughter of vengeance." Rina pressed the letter tightly to her chest, feeling the cold walls of that room melting from the warmth of her tears.
Rina looked around; those old trunks were no longer terrifying, but had become witnesses to a truth the Grandmother had tried to hide for a century. Diyari's grandmother, the woman who presented herself as a merciless goddess, was in reality just a woman full of envy and fear. Envy of the light that was never meant for her, and fear of the love that could topple her power. Rina understood that all the wars and killings the Grandmother had started in the name of "Red Vengeance" were merely a veil to hide the massive defeat she had suffered against Rina's parents.
Diyari stood up and looked at Rina with eyes full of determination. "Now we know, Rina. Nothing is hidden anymore. The Grandmother did not just destroy our lives; she wanted to distort our history. But this letter... this is the most powerful magic I have ever seen. This is the magic of truth." Rina smiled a bitter smile and said: "She wanted me to grow up with hatred, but my mother left me the key to freedom. The Grandmother lost, Diyari. The day she decided to hate us was the day she signed her own downfall."
In that cold room, they felt a kind of warmth unlike any fire. It was the warmth of discovering their identity. Rina realized that the "sorceress" the whole world feared was just a broken human who wanted to break everyone like herself. But Rina and Diyari, despite all the pain they suffered, had not broken. They were like the crystals that become diamonds under immense pressure. The first letter was only a beginning to understanding why this world became so bloody, and how they can live from now on without the shadow of that sinister woman.
Rina carefully placed the letter back into the trunk, but this time not in silence, but with a promise; a promise never to let any hatred, even the Grandmother's hatred, dictate their path in life. They walked toward the door of the room, while Rina's mother's voice still echoed in her mind: "Light only grows within love." This became the new motto of their lives. The collapse of the throne was complete, and now it was time for the truths to be pulled out of the darkness one by one. Diyari's grandmother had written a black history, but Rina and Diyari were ready to write a new and pure page in the history of this land with white light.
Written by: Dlin_myth