Octavia POV:

It has been about 2 years since Cass lost his family. When that happened, I was in so much pain. They were the family I never had.

My family is one that I’ve long separated from, and I have no intentions of going back. They sent assassins after me. They kidnapped the woman who cared for me. They almost killed Julius and Cass. I don’t remember anything about them, I have no desire to either.

Once Marcus, Claudia, and Julius died, all I had left was Cass and Theophania. When Cass was brought back by Livius’ soldiers, he was unconscious. This continued for weeks, I had no clue if he was ever going to wake up. I cried non-stop, Theophania and Brennos let me. I tried casting the healing magic Claudia taught me on him so many times, but it never worked.

I thought for sure he was never going to wake up. It was awful, he was my best friend, and even if I never fell in love with him, he was the person I was going to be with forever. We were never going to be apart.

So, when he woke up, I was ecstatic. In this dismal situation where everything was lost, one single thing returned to me. I latched on to this hope with every fiber of my being. When he awoke, he was depressed, so depressed he couldn’t even move. Aside from when he stumbled into the yard.

I cared for him for the next few weeks to the best of my abilities. I was hurting, but I knew that he must have been hurting much more than me. So, I set everything aside to care for him. I worked hard at making meals the same way they used to be, I paid attention to everything he did, and I tried to cheer him up whenever I had the chance to.

Then one day he snuck out of the estate. I was worried but decided to just wait for him. When he returned, the look in his eyes changed. He was no longer empty but filled with something. I wondered what it was that changed this. Did someone help him where I couldn’t?

Then he started training again. I didn’t understand this behavior. It wasn’t normal training either, he was pushing his body to the brink. All I could do was support him and help him recover.

Then he spoke to Brennos, and I heard him say that he was going to get revenge. That he was training so hard just so he could kill one man. The hatred in his voice was terrifying. I was scared to get close to him. But whenever I did, he ignored me.

‘You are a distraction.’ He would say to me, but I would practice magic with him anyway. He was never mean to me, pretty rude at times. That didn’t really affect me too much, I can get over a little rudeness.

Then he canceled the engagement. This shocked and confused me. I never really bothered to consider a future where that happened. But it did, and I was fine with that in the end. I never really cared about marriage, I just wanted to stay by his side. I thought of him as family, just like I thought of Marcus, Claudia, and Julius. The difference between him and them was that I thought the two of us would end up as something more someday.

He had also started doing dangerous monster hunts. He had been hunting monsters for a while, but this was the first time he was injured. It was bad too, if I hadn’t healed him there could have been permanent damage.

Every time he left for a monster hunt; I was filled with worry. I was worried that this time he might not come back. That this time I would be left alone. He always came back though.

When Aquila came, I was skeptical of her. Everything I thought about her turned out true. She is a manipulative evil woman. She holds no real regard for his life, only using him to achieve a goal. She pushes him too hard, leading him to fight an opponent that could have killed him. When I tried to get Cass to realize this, he just brushed me off.

Cassius killed someone. I don’t have a problem with the bounty-hunting process, but for Cass to do this is just unthinkable. When I brought it up to him, when I tried my best to make him realize he is going too far, he said something to me.

“I never asked to be stuck with you.”

I realized that I was officially pushed away for good. That we will never be the same again. I knew that he hated me. That the only person in this world that I wanted to be with thought of me as nothing more than a nuisance.

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My breathing became heavy and ragged. I couldn’t focus on anything except the thought of that. I walked away from the estate; it was all I could do. I calmed myself down, and I continued to walk through the streets.

My mind was blank, I was just trying to think of some way to recover and go back to the estate. When I did, I saw a familiar old man walk past me, towards a street near a bakery. For some reason, I followed him.

When I did, I found a familiar location. Cass and I stopped at this exact not long before he left on that fateful trip. He is the man who made wild claims about the universe. He is the one who claimed to be a wise man. Well, there is no point in not talking to him.

“H… Hey old man.”

“Hm? Ah, it’s that girl who hangs with the warrior boy.”

“Yes… that’s me.”

“You look unwell. What business do you have with a wise man?”

“Would you please listen to my story?”

“Sure… I have all the time in the world.”

I told him everything that was happening with Cass. He just listened, soaking in every single word I said.

“What do you want young Octavia?”

“I want to be together. I want to be there for him like he was for me.”

“That boy is slowly becoming a monster. I can see it. Do you truly think he can be saved? Do you truly think that you can save him?”

“I… I’m not sure. I wanted to learn from you. If I can, I want to know how.”

“I see… then let me tell you a story of my own. But first, let me get something.”

He reached into a bag, filled to the brim with coins and expensive jewels. He then walked away for a few minutes leaving me there. Then returned with food and drinks. I had some bread with goat milk and cheese.

“There was a young man from a kingdom far to the north. That boy was normal at first, but he soon proved to have an extreme degree of talent for magic. His life began to revolve around magic, every day would be spent perfecting it as much as possible.

He was distant from his family. But he still loved them and thought highly of them. His parents were farmers, and his older brother was a distinguished knight with a loving wife.

He entered the College of Magic at the age of 14, the youngest person to ever be admitted. His talent was outstanding. He was at the top of his class even at such a young age. Court magicians from around the world were sending him letters, offering the most prestigious apprenticeships.

He accepted an offer to visit the royal family in the country where he attended school at the age of 19. When he ate dinner with the family, he became infatuated with the princess. The princess reciprocated the love, and they met up secretly in the night. They made passionate love, then ran away together.

Dispatched royal knights stood no chance against the boy. He ran away to the countryside of the nation. There he got entangled with criminals; they respected him. Stuck with no food or any other supplies he robbed convoys. Once in a righteous quest for true love, he became a common bandit.

He killed more and more men. He took what he wanted and when he wanted. The princess tried to stop his madness but to no avail. When she ran away, he was devastated. He sought revenge against the kingdom which made him out to be some demon.

When on his revenge quest, a lone knight ambushed him. That knight fought helplessly as the boy toyed with him, reveling in the superiority he felt.

Out of nowhere, the knight unexpectedly claimed the upper hand. He bested the mad wizard and pointed his blade at the boy’s throat. Yet he did not claim the boy’s head. Instead, he threw his helmet to the ground and hugged the boy,

‘Please stop this. I know you are better than this. Take this and run away to where I have directed on the map. I love you, my brother, always.’ The knight handed his brother a bag of gold and directions to a rival nation.

When other knights found where the two were. They initially commended the boy’s brother. But he soon turned his blade on the other knights.

‘Run brother!’ he shouted.

The boy did so. The brother sacrificed himself, and gave up his fortune, all because in the deepest part of his heart, he believed in his brother. Despite the monster the boy became, he still believed in him.

That boy changed his life after this. Now, he wanders the southern territories, falsely claiming to be a wise man.”

The old man finished talking. He looked nostalgic and depressed. He opened his mouth once more,

“Your friend can be saved. If you treat him with empathy, always believe in him, and never give up, someday he can change. You can save him, Octavia.”

Ah, he must be right. I am deciding now, I will never give up on Cass!

“How do I help him? What should I do sir?” I ask.

“The first thing you need to change is yourself. Without him, you are weak. You rely on that boy too much emotionally. In order to save him, you need to become strong, not just without him, but in spite of him.”

I need to become strong. I am practicing magic… but nowhere near as much or as hard as Cass. Plus, I don’t have a teacher.

“Not just physically strong, but emotionally so. My brother had an unbending spirit. Even when he was a weaker fighter than me, he could still win because of this. An incomplete person trying to support another incomplete person will only breed fragility and toxicity. You must become whole.”

I understand, I need to get better with magic and become a strong-willed person too. To do this… I suppose I will ask him what I am thinking,

“Sir! Please become my teacher!”

He looks shocked at this as if it was entirely unexpected. Ah, he must think that I would be disillusioned by that story. He ponders for a moment,

“Ok. I will train you into a great magician. I swear it, young Octavia.”

“Thank you, sir!”

I will always remember how Cassius was there for me. I swear I will be there for him too. No matter who he becomes, even if he is an entirely different person. I will support him, that is my greatest wish.