Everlasting Night reigned over the sky.
Beneath it stood a small light, endlessly training, swinging a sword again and again.
Though the air was cold and the darkness suffocating, he never stopped. His purpose was singular: to become a Sun Seeker, just like his parents. When Ash was five years old, his parents left him behind to journey toward Unseen Peak. They shared one goal alone: to return the sun to the sky.
From that day onward, Ash was raised by his grandfather.
Despite being abandoned at such a young age, Ash never hated his parents. Instead, he respected them. They possessed the courage to challenge fate itself. Though no news of them ever returned, Ash inherited their will, the burning desire to restore the sun to the heavens.
***
"Come here, my grandson."
"I'm coming, Grandfather."
Ash approached his grandfather, who lay weakly upon his bed. Age had claimed his body. He could no longer walk, his strength had faded, and wrinkles covered his skin. Yet his gaze toward Ash remained unchanged.
"Ash… you are sixteen now. Are you truly certain you wish to become a Sun Seeker?"
"My decision is firm, Grandfather. I will become a Sun Seeker, just like my parents."
"And if I were to forbid you, what would you do?"
"Then I would run away from home and climb Unseen Peak regardless."
His grandfather laughed softly upon hearing that answer.
He was reminded of Ash's parents, stubborn and unyielding, just as impossible to dissuade. Long ago, he had tried to stop them from climbing Unseen Peak as well, but they never listened. Now, their child had inherited the very same spirit.
"Alright, alright. I won't stop you, Ash. But heed this one piece of advice," his grandfather said gently. "No matter what happens on your journey, do not change. You will meet many people with many different natures. Do not lose yourself. Focus on your original purpose."
"I will remember that, Grandfather."
"Good, my grandson… I hope you will one day witness the majesty of the sun."
As those words left his lips, his eyes slowly closed. His breathing faded away.
Tears streamed down Ash's face, blurring his vision, yet his eyes never left his grandfather's lifeless body. The old man passed away with a smile, as though he had finally found peace. His final words carved themselves deeply into Ash's heart.
"Rest easy, Grandfather," Ash whispered.
"I will not change. I will bring the sun back to the sky, so no one has to live beneath eternal darkness again."
***
When people stepped outside their homes, the first thing to greet them was darkness. The second was the moon.
The moon remained forever fixed in the sky, resting at its center, as if time itself had stopped in an endless midnight. Its shape never changed. People called it the Eternal Full Moon.
Every night, Ash lay in the yard, gazing at the moon. A lit torch rested beside him, providing warmth and light. Suddenly, a voice called out.
"Hey, Ash. How are you holding up?"
Ash turned toward the sound and saw a girl with blonde hair and blue eyes, holding a torch. She wore leather armor similar to his own.
"I'm doing fine, Nashandra."
Her name was Nashandra, Ash's childhood friend. They had grown up together in the village, and like Ash, she had never once seen the sun.
Nashandra walked closer, planted her torch into the ground, and lay beside him, staring at the Eternal Full Moon.
"You know… I'm truly sorry for your loss."
"It's alright. It's been a week since my grandfather passed."
"So… what will you do now?"
"My goal hasn't changed. I'm going to the center of the continent and climbing Unseen Peak, just like my parents. What about you?"
"You already know my parents were killed by creatures of the dark," she said quietly. "Since then, I've lived with my aunt. I don't want any children in the future to experience what I did. And they say if the sun returns, the creatures of the dark will disappear from this continent. So… it seems our goals are the same."
"You know the journey could kill us, right?"
"Of course. I've heard stories of the Sun Seekers countless times from you and your grandfather."
As they lay there beneath the moon, another voice called out.
"Hey, guys."
The voice belonged to a boy their age, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was shorter than Ash, but more solidly built. The light from his torch reflected off his hair as he approached.
"What are you two talking about?"
He stepped closer to them.
"We're talking about how to bring the sun back to the sky," Nashandra replied.
"How? By becoming Sun Seekers and climbing Unseen Peak?" he scoffed. "Are you insane? That's just an old legend. There's no proof it's even real. Why not just live peacefully in this village for the rest of our lives?"
"Even if hope is uncertain," Ash said calmly.
"Even if our light is small. Even if darkness awaits us ahead, we must not surrender to fate. We must resist and rise. Those were my parents' words before they climbed Unseen Peak."
Ash sat up, his eyes still locked onto the Eternal Full Moon as he spoke.
"I know, Ash, but—"
"We only live once, Yohan," Ash interrupted. "Why should we accept a life beneath everlasting night without resistance?"
The words pierced Yohan's heart, leaving him silent.
Yohan had known Ash and Nashandra since childhood. He had witnessed Ash's life, from the day his parents vanished, to the years he lived with his grandfather, and finally to his grandfather's passing.
Since childhood, Ash had trained relentlessly beneath the eternal night, swinging his sword again and again. Despite losing everyone dear to him, he never changed. His blue eyes still burned, like a scorching blue flame, ready to devour the darkness itself.
"Will you join me in climbing Unseen Peak, Yohan?"
Ash's gaze shifted from the moon to Yohan, striking him once more.
"…Ah, damn it," Yohan sighed. "Of course I'll come. You know I'm alone in this world. You two are all I have."
"That's the Yohan I know," Ash said.
"Your job is to carry the supplies," Nashandra added.
"Damn you both," Yohan muttered.
They laughed together beneath the eternal night, just as they always had since childhood.
New lights were born once more, climbing upward to reclaim the lost light waiting at the highest peak.