This… this was all born of his ignorance. This was all born of his naivete. If he had not ignored what his brother was going through, perhaps none of this would have occurred. He watched as the demon raged on, fighting at speeds he never thought possible. As he looked now, it no longer even resembled his brother.

The mangled hands and demonic dead eyes. Tears constantly formed around his skin like torn clothing being adorned by the creature within. It was clear that by now the only way to atone for his sins was to die.

—

“Hey bro…. Are you alright? You look tired.”

Oren smiled faintly and nodded. “I’m okay.” His words were soft and meak, like a candle’s flames seconds away from extinguishing under a torrent of wind. It had been 3 days since they had last gone out. His eyes now looked like that of a zombie, gazing at horizons far beyond the sunset.

Zari’s worry was slowly peeking, but he’d stifle those concerns and instead take his brother’s words as truth.Youthful stupidity. “You know… the Hero ranked Adventurers are arriving around tomorrow right?” He attempted to alleviate his brother’s lack of energy.

“Yeah…” The response was just as dead as it was before.

“I bet Gagan looks really strong!! I heard he can pick up an entire island by himself!” He enthusiastically mused about Gagan and his rumored exploits. Yet, he was met with the same blank look.

“Yeah…”

“And - and let's not forget Paska!! The iron defense that cannot be touched.”

Before, these kinds of stories would get his brother all excited and he would tell all sorts of accounts he’s heard of. But now, all that he was met with was this dull, dry agreement. “Yeah…”

The words held no meaning beyond the sound of the vowels.

“.... Brother… what’s wrong?”

“Do you not want to see Gagan? Is he really a mean guy? I don’t think they’d let adventurers like that roam ar-”

“Hey Zari…”

“...?”

“---- let’s run away… from here.”

“Huh? W-why? Then we wouldn’t be able to eat all the delicious food that Owen cooks for us. Where would we sleep? – W-what about all the wraiths.”

Oren’s fists tightened along with his heart. “Zari… listen to me.”

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“You have to leave with me… we can make it out of here.”

“Brother…. What are you talking about?”

Oren looked over at his brother for the first time with strained distraught eyes. The same eyes met his with horror. His stress was causing his younger brother to become afraid. He quickly recoiled as he saw his reflection in Zari.

“N-...never mind.” He defeatedly placed a hand atop his younger brother’s head. Who was this plan for anyways? He began to doubt the interest that this whole escape he had been yearning for was for.

After-all, he would need Zari if he were to even try and escape himself. After-all, he had no claim to the inheritance or access to the family’s money. Such was the fate of his disgraceful existence.

“Sorry… Zari. Forget all of this.” He walked away silently. His heart felt heavier than any of the giant cobbled stones that comprised the estate.

As he had arrived at the doorsteps of his room, he had been so crushed he hadn’t realized Owen stood before him with his hands crossed. “So I take it he did not agree to the departure?”

Oren nodded. “What now Owen…. I’m… scared.” The fear for what kind of person his own brother would turn into was definitely a great fear. One that he would not dare think about. A man that would become just like his father was the last fate he had hoped of his brother.

“Don’t worry.” Believing the fear to be for his own survival, Owen assured the older brother. “I’ve gathered enough of my funds for you to survive at least for 6 months on your own. I’ve also gathered upon old allies. Though they’ve gone and left the adventurer’s life, they are indeed very powerful people. They should at least take you over to the capital. From there, you should be able to arrive at any destination of your choosing.”

Oren nodded. “Now, you mustn’t speak a word of this. Your father will see to it that you face even worse punishment than before. I suspect he might even kill you.”

Oren went to his room that day and sat up in contemplation. There was not a single thing that would grant him comfort. At the very least, tomorrow, he will accompany his brother one last time to go see the time of his life and see the behemoth Gagan.”

There was quite an unsettling feeling that was within him that did not feel quite like finality. He wasn’t sure what this feeling was, but the uncertainty saw to it that he remained awake for the remainder of the night.

Until his door opened.

The sun had not even risen yet. Owen had appeared in the doorframe. “I’m afraid this plan has failed immensely. Your father is aware of your attempt to flee. Young master, please do leave the premises at once.”

There was a sense of urgency in his voice, an almost foreboding warning that Oren knew he could not ignore. It was a tone that gave the connotation of imminent death. “H-how did he—-?”

“Young Master Zari seems to be quite worried on your behalf. Forgive the child’s ignorance.”

Oren nodded and grimmly got up from his bed. The sun’s faint light shone brightly across the horizon as it was slowly beginning to rise. “I don’t suppose you have the money with you do you?”

“I’m afraid not, Oren. However, don’t worry of it. The group will take care of you. You can find them in the belhor caves at the forest’s end. It’ll be quite the walk from here, but you should make it by evening.”

“I see… “

“They can always collect their items later.”

He grabbed Oren by the hand and scurried off to the lowest level of the building. It was built in three segments with the grand entry being at the main hall. However, there lay even more spirals all the way down the mountain’s side. These spirals saw to it that an exit was always prepared should the situation call for it.

Now the only problem was if Lord Ozun would have already predicted his escape route and be prepared to intercept him. He would of course know that the child was going to flee from the front back entrances. This would only make this path the easiest predictable route to intercept. There was not much time to think about it. They would just have to hope its the right choice.

The long corridors and winding stairs in this part of the castle had not been lit in over 4 years. The memories they dredged up seemed to guarantee its emptiness. Owen quickly halted the young master and sped ahead to ascertain the path’s safety.

Much to his relief, the great lord Ozun was not present. He breathed a sigh and motioned for Oren to come. “When you depart, head west from the southernmost part of the city. You should meet the river of toil and from there follow the stream to the caverns. Please… I’m sorry our departure had to end abruptly like this, but there is simply not enough time. Don’t worry about Zari. We will make sure he is in good health and remains as bright as he always is.”

“I see.. Thank you, Owen… both you and Rogl have been the only guidance in my life… for that I thank you. Please tell Zari-”

Owen quickly hushed him and ushered him out “-Bahh, I know! I know! I will make sure he knows. His brother loves him very much.”

Owen promptly closed the exits and began to cautiously make his way back as Oren made his escape.

Unbeknownst to him, these actions were going to change everything. It was not the departure or the escape. If Zari had simply accompanied his little brother, nothing would have occurred. However, fate had other plans for this village. Perhaps it was a recompense for Lord Ozun’s foul deeds. Or perhaps the aura of bad luck simply followed the young Master Oren Ozun.

Whichever the case, this world was bound to turn upside down.