Everything around him was dark… no light, no sound, no life.
Only a black void stretching endlessly, like a still sea of shadows, where his faint breaths and the echo of his footsteps, leaving no trace, stilled.
Sarotto sat on the ground, his head in his hands, his chest rising and falling slowly and heavily. The darkness whispered in his ears, carrying familiar sounds: screams, moans, and the explosion of the ruins that had shattered everything. And every time he tried to banish them from his mind, they returned, stronger, clearer, more brutal.
Before his eyes, the scene replayed itself for the thousandth time: Eliza being stabbed by her sister, dying in his hands. He saw himself helpless, reaching out to save her, but his hand never reached her. And every time the scene ended, it began again…
He whispered, his voice hoarse and barely audible, "If only I had been faster… if only I had been stronger… this wouldn't have happened."
He slowly raised his head, his weary eyes staring into the void. His gaze held a mixture of sorrow, regret, and hatred—not for others, but for himself. "It's my fault… I brought this fate upon everyone. If only I had been stronger… if only I had arrived a minute before the accident…"
He squeezed his eyes shut, tears streaming down his cheeks, disappearing before they could touch the ground. He wanted to scream, but no sound came out. He wanted to escape, but there was no way out in this place, only darkness embracing his soul and swallowing it whole.
Suddenly… a familiar voice pierced the silence, deep, quiet, yet carrying the weight of eternity in its tone. "How long will you stay here, Saruto?"
He opened his eyes and turned slowly. There, a few steps away, stood Void, his body shimmering with threads of black. His bright eyes watched him without emotion, as if seeing what he himself could not. "Void…" Saruto said in a barely audible whisper.
Then he turned away again. "Leave me alone… I don't want to see anyone."
Void approached slowly, his footsteps echoing in the void. He sat down beside him, resting his elbows on his knees, and said in a low but firm tone, "You think isolating yourself here will bring back what's lost?"
Saruto didn't reply. His eyes stared blankly ahead, his fingers trembling. Finally, he said in a broken voice, "It's my fault, Void… If I had been stronger… I might have saved her. She would still be alive."
Void gave a faint, almost mocking smile. "Strength? How many times have I told you that strength alone isn't enough?"
Then he looked at him intently, as if piercing his very soul, and added, "What happened wasn't weakness, it was your heart… You didn't fail because you weren't strong enough. Fate opposed your will. Accept reality, Saruto, and move on with your life."
Saruto clenched his fists tightly, sparks flying from his fingertips. He shouted as he stood up, his voice laced with anger and pain. "Enough! Don't justify my mistakes! If I had been stronger, I could have defeated the two kings quickly and saved her from her fate!"
Foyed took a step closer and said with an eerie calm, "And then what? You'll stay here, repeating the scene forever? You'll keep tormenting yourself with regret instead of rising up?"
Then he raised his hand and pointed to the darkness around them, which began to move like slow, black waves, reflecting faces and events from Saruto's past. "This is the Saruto I know, the one who doesn't give up in the face of adversity and always rises, no matter how many times he falls."
Void sat down again and said in a low voice, but one that held a subtle warmth, "My question is simple… Will you go back or stay here?"
Saruto remained silent, his head bowed, tears still streaming down his face. Then he whispered haltingly, "I can't… I don't deserve to go back anymore."
This time, Void smiled sadly and clasped his hands. "And I say… you weren't made to give up. There are still people waiting for you, out there."
He paused for a moment, then added more sharply, "But the decision in the end isn't mine, or theirs… it's yours. Either you stay here and die slowly in your shadow, or you rise up and face the truth to reclaim the self you've lost."
Void stepped back a few paces, his body beginning to dissolve into the darkness like smoke. Before he vanished, he spoke his last words, which echoed for a long time in the void: "Remember, Saruto… whatever happens, I'm always by your side, brother."
Saruto remained standing there, alone, as the darkness around him began to stir slowly, as if his own soul were awakening from its slumber.
He closed his eyes, and the cursed scene returned before him once more.