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Duke Alistar held his unconscious daughter tightly in his arms.
His gaze fell upon her battered body—bruised, scarred, her clothes torn, and red lines marking her skin like the imprints of invisible chains…
Something inside him shattered.
Anger…
Regret…
A wave of self-loathing that almost strangled him.
"I neglected her… my only daughter… how could I have let this happen?"
Though he had been blessed with another child before—
the abyss had stolen that joy from him.
And now… it had tried to take his daughter as well, seeking control over her.
He clenched his teeth so tightly that the sound escaped before he could stop it:
"I swear… I will never let her suffer again. Even if I have to tear the abyss apart with my own hands."
(Author's note: Where were you when the hero of my story fell into their trap?)
Duchess Evelyn was no better.
She trembled violently, as if something within her had completely fractured.
Her face was a mix of anger, madness, and grief, her trembling hand resting against her daughter's cheek.
She blamed herself…
just as her husband did.
When Alistar handed his daughter to her, he spoke in a low voice, heavy with anguish:
"The situation has grown dire… the abyss moves faster than we do… and we're lagging behind with every step. We don't even know where to begin."
The duchess looked at him silently.
Then she gently guided his hand, bringing him to kneel beside her.
She placed their daughter's head in her lap and gripped his hand firmly, as if holding him together.
She spoke in a calm yet resolute voice:
"We have to act, Alistar. They've already moved… targeting the children of kings, dukes, and nobles from other continents. Some have perished, some have disappeared, but many survived…"
She paused briefly, then continued:
"But their main focus was the Hero of Light.
When the church revealed he had awakened at the age of thirteen… that alone was a miracle."
Her gaze softened as she looked at their daughter:
"The abyss tried countless times to kill him… but his father always stood watch, destroying all their agents and monsters."
Alistar said nothing. He knew the truth.
Yet the words that burned in his chest were these:
"If we hadn't gone to check Eliara's room… would we have arrived in time?
Would we have discovered anything at all?"
He couldn't answer.
After a heavy silence, he spoke in a steady voice:
"Take her home… stay with her until I return.
I must visit a certain continent."
The duchess raised her head, concern etched across her face:
"Which continent?"
He turned to the fading darkness of the shattered barrier and answered:
"Tsukinori – The Continent of the Quiet Moon."
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Elsewhere… far away in a strange black void
A thirteen-year-old boy sat, his body broken, his spirit torn apart.
He was suspended in a black void, with neither ground nor sky beneath him.
Before him stood a mysterious figure, shrouded in shadows.
Its gaze studied him intently… then its golden eyes narrowed, as if slicing through the very darkness itself.
In a voice that resonated across the void, it spoke:
[What will you do now… O transgressor of fate?]
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