In the vast perpetual darkness, little Myah could be seen crying all alone.
It's a world that devoid of light and hope, a night sky without the stars. In this place, there was only despair and desolations.
"Why...why?"
"Why does everyone keep hurting Myah again?"
"..."
"Ah! again?" Myah wondered, feeling confused.
Countless negative emotions began formulating, taking the form of numerous metal chains clashing against each other and slowly tearing Myah's body apart, wanting to consume him.
"No, no..." Myah pleaded as he tries to free himself, but the metal chains become even tighter, rendering all efforts meaningless. It has only been a moment, but more than half of his body already crumbled and turn to dust.
"I... I only wanted to be happy..."
At that instant, when little Myah was engulfed by negative emotion and is on the verge of completely fading away, he felt unwilling—slowly losing his sense of self.
A feeling of regret, which was entirely new for him, suddenly come in waves like the deluge river flowing in the mountain pass. Yet, those waves lessened, and the sweet smile and good memories with his mother emerged in its stead.
Maybe it was a miracle.
A faint ripple spread in the never-changing darkness, similar to when one dropped a stone into a lake's calm surface.
Crack! Cracking!*
Right then, a crack appeared out of thin air in front of the fading Myah, and it looks like a delicate mirror being fractured. His eyes widened as he saw what was going on.
The crack grew larger and larger until a gentle golden light sneaks through the small gap.
Then, it shattered entirely as a graceful and beautiful figure of a human teen with waving silver hair gently walked out from the cracked space.
His presence was like a ray of sunshine, showering on little Myah's seed of hope in this tormented predicament.
Like a white lotus, pure and untainted, the teen was ethereal and pretty, like a goddess walking in the mortal world. He stared at Myah with a pair of greyish eyes that were charming but devoid of any emotion.
Once the golden light illuminates his being, Myah begged the unknown teen with watery eyes.
"Please help Myah."
Step by step, he was slowly walking closer, the teen benevolently tracing Myah's young face before clasping their forehead together.
With a cold and indifferent voice, he whispered in a foreign dialect.
As they both looking at each other, the young Myah's mind was in turmoil. Those foreign words were something that he couldn't comprehend at this moment.
After the teen finish muttering, Myah watches on in confusion as the teen revealed a toothy smile this time, like a cheerful friend. His beautiful face was no longer cold and rigid.
"There will always be a moment when you will felt that your life has ended. But don't give up. Be brave and remember to keep moving forward with unyielding hope, for we are one." The teen notices the change within himself, yet he still smiles.
He grew shadowy, and cracks appeared on his body as it slowly broke down and withered away into tiny light sparkles before floating toward Myah.
They were fusing and restoring little Myah's soul, making it whole again.
Although already disappeared, the teen's final words still manage to echo in the young Myah's mind.
'Sparkle it once more, the forgotten light...our story is just starting.'
__
With a loud thud sound, Myah's body dropped onto the hard floor like a broken doll.
It has been thirty minutes, and the extraction process was over. Thoran has successfully removed the Demon Sealing Eyes.
"Oho? It was unexpected, but you still manage to stay alive. It's quite commendable, child." Closing a small and delicate jade box in his hand, Thoran commented when he looks at the unconscious Myah lying powerless on the floor.
Thoran was surprised, for he didn't expect Myah actually to make it.
After all, in the Braveheart Clan's record, rarely would anyone survive after having the Demon Sealing Eyes extracted from them. Once removed, the said person's soul would crumble and forever be imprisoned inside the extracted eyes, never to be reincarnated.
'Did I made a mistake somewhere?' He wondered but then shaking his head. "No, everything was smooth the entire time; you are quite fortunate to be alive with the odds of one out of ten, but that didn't matter now."
While still in a good mood, Thoran didn't trouble himself with that thought any longer. He reached out his hand to touch the void, and an invisible power lifted the weakly breathing Myah off the cold floor before heading toward the Ceremonial Hall's exit.
The thick door was pushed open, and Thoran walked outside.
There would always be much attention and revered gazes from the clansmen wherever he goes as the Clan Leader.
Seeing Myah's body floating behind Thoran without moving, many were curious, but they didn't think much of it.
To gossiping behind the Clan Leader's back within his presence is taboo.
They weren't that stupid!
William, who was waiting outside of the Ceremonial Hall, hurriedly ran over on his feet. He bowed toward Thoran before receiving the unconscious Myah.
Thoran didn't say anything. He only gave William a deep look in the eyes as he tossed Myah over. Then, with a kind smile, Thoran once again patted William on the shoulder and walked away.
William stood rooted on the spot.
How could he not understand? He instantly understood the hidden meaning behind that seemingly casual gaze.
Not daring to waste any time, William quickly left for the outside of the Capital city with Myah in one arm. He summoned his War Soul, the Flaming Lion, and started heading toward the depth of the forest.
The flickering fire at the Flaming Lion's paws melted the thick snow on the ground, leaving a trail of burning ashes.
Soon, traces of man's civilization have long gone and were replaced with hardened white snow upon the many towering old trees stretched as far as the eyes could see.
In this bitter coldness, William stopped on top of a ravine. He took a moment to look at his son once more.
It was unknown if Myah was conscious or not, but at this moment, he held onto the sleeve of his father's coat with his immature hand, making a mysterious light flickered in William's eyes.
"Ha..." Stroking his temples with the other free hand, William laughed coldly and despised himself. "I can't believe that I have a rather mixed feeling right now after everything."
"But regardless, in one way or another, you still manage to pave the way for your father's rise. Be proud, for you have proved worthy of being my son."
William flings off the tiny hand that clings onto his sleeve without much hesitation, dropping Myah down to the current raging river below. He turns and left.
In the distance, not far away, a dark shadow under a tree suddenly trembles and also disappeared. It traverses through the forest and heading back to the Capital city.