Chapter 7: Haze of the Past
When I was young, I wished to be a "Hero"
As my consciousness fades.
Yet Fate decreed me to be the "villain"
My life flashes before my very eyes.
*****
A young boy sits beside a younger girl.
The young boy is around the age of 12.
Blond hair and golden eyes are the boy's most notable features, followed by his sunny expression.
The girl, on the other hand, is the complete opposite.
The girl, with black hair and purple eyes, along with her expressionless face, creates a mysterious aura around her.
A pair of day and night.
Their conversation is a total mismatch though.
"Hey, hey, Haze. Did you hear? A Hero blessed by the Lady of Stars defeated a bad demon a few hours ago."
Contrary to her expression, the excitement cannot be hidden from the girl's voice, making her appear more lively than she looked.
On the other hand, The boy smiled and said to the girl,.
"Oh really? I don't care though."
Hearing such a reply, the girl pouts, tears forming in her eyes, and says,.
"Don't be mean."
Seeing her expression, the boy heaved a sigh and said.
"Don't act like a ba- alright, alright, my bad. Don't cry now, okay?"
Upon seeing that she's actually going to cry, the boy cuts off his words and apologizes.
"I'm not sniff gonna cry sniff"
Oh boy, think. Thought the boy as he looked for a way out of this.
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
"Ah! What is this about a Hero you said?"
The girl then smiles mischievously, showing no sign of her earlier sadness.
"You wanna hear? Fine, I guess I will tell you."
This girl, I fell for it again. Thought the boy as he gave her a twitching smile.
"You see, Mom said not to go to the market plaza earlier today! But I still went; there I saw the Hero!"
"You should listen to your mother."
"If I did, then I wouldn't have seen the Hero! Anyway, then I saw this black thingy, and the Hero went swoosh and slashes that thingy! It was so cool!"
As the girl speaks, she makes a slashing gesture, complete with a swooshing sound.
The boy can't help but facepalm seeing her shrug the dangers that may have befallen her.
"You should listen to your mother" is the only thing the boy can say.
"No~pe"
Then, as if remembering something, her mischievous look changes into panic.
The girl then suddenly stands and hurriedly walks away before turning around and saying,.
"Mom said to meet her at this time, so see ya tomorrow, Haze!"
*****
The scene suddenly shifts. The boy is now sitting on a couch, inside his home. A mansion his father owned.
The walls are adorned with various paintings, though a painting stands out among them.
It is a painting of three people made by his father himself.
A man with his blond hair and golden eyes, handsome face, and mustache stands beside a woman with black hair and grey eyes, though her other features are blurred and seemingly erased.
Between them stands a little boy, no older than five, with features from the man that make him look like a mini version of himself.
The boy once asked who the woman was, having no memory of her at all. His father only answered, "Who else?"
The boy admits that his question was stupid.
As the boy looked at the painting, waiting for his father to return home, a thought occurred to him.
A demon at the market plaza?
A foreboding feeling assaults the boy.
His father is not a noble but rather a merchant.
Knock knock
A sense of relief washed over the boy, his father must be home.
Knock knock.
Wait a minute.
Knock knock
His father never knocks.
Knock knock
Knock knock
Knock knock
Bang!
The door is suddenly kicked open, and then armored men rush inside the mansion.
The boy, surprised, walked towards them with his usual smile.
"What could be the problem....good sir knights?"
Ignoring him, the knights parted, giving way to someone.
A oppressive aura suddenly weights the boy, making him feel the need to bow, to kneel.
The boy scoffs.
His father taught him to kneel only to those better than him.
Therefore
Make me.
The young boy, Haze, used all his willpower to look at the source of the aura.
There he beheld, a woman, wearing pitch black armor and even darker hair, standing on his doorstep.
Young Haze smiled at her, like he does to everyone, and said.
"Good day, my lady, how may I h-aaaagh"
Before he could finish talking, the woman kicked his face, causing him to tumble backwards.
A cold voice then echoed through the mansion.
"Wipe that grin off your face. Men, search this place and leave no stone unturned."
Haze's vision then began to blur.
The last thing he remembered were the woman's eyes, looking at her with various expressions. Hate, anger, hostility, and........guilt?
Haze knew.
He would never forget those gray eyes.