A Retelling of Night

Prologue

Once a time, there was a gigantic nine-headed snake monster that bought upon destruction wherever it went. It was gluttonous and ate whatever it chanced upon. The lands where it travelled in search of prey would turn into bogs and become poisoned causing the land to be inhabitable.

His presence was no longer tolerated, thus ZhuRong, the God of Fire was assigned to kill the beast, yet, however how mighty he may be, ZhuRong couldn't kill the great snake. The battle lasted for a hundred days, and seeing that he was undefeatable, ZhuRong grabbing a chance of distraction, managed to trap the great XiangLiu underground and placed him into great slumber so that his powers were kept in check.

Weakened by the battle, he couldn't sustain the seal and handed it over to the locals who were living in the area. "The seal must not be broken or else, XiangLiu will once more return to wreak havoc to the lands," warned ZhuRong as he passed the seal onto the nearest maiden.

"All of you shall protect her till the end of her life and the one who will succeed the maiden. May her heart remain pure and free from evil, for that too shall break the seal," instructed ZhuRong.

All the humans seemed afraid, and the deity spoke, "Take care of her, and the lands which she resides shall be blessed. Heur descendants will grow rich with wealth," said ZhuRong before he took off from the lands and never to be seen again.

He might have gone to recover his strength, or he might have died. No one will know for sure as his presence was no longer sighted by the world.

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In the capital's heart, she resides as the current Holy Maiden, her solitary silhouette on the floor, greeting the breaking dawn. Each new day's arrival carries a burden she silently bears, longing for the sun's rise to cease. As the sunbeams paint the sky, a hand extends, gently resting upon her shoulder.

"Guang Er, you are not alone," the voice reassured, tenderly breaking the solitude she sought.

"Will we?" Her gaze met his, the morning light casting a soft glow on his face. His youthful countenance had yielded to time, marking his features with gentle creases and a strand of silver amidst his hair. He was meant to be only a few years older than her, yet because of her, he was forced into a more weathered and mature figure.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, her voice heavy with guilt, yet he returned it with a smile while his arms outstretched – an unspoken invitation. Tears couldn't stop flowing from the corners of her eyes as she nestled within the haven of his embrace.

Words weren't needed. They carried the weight of their actions in the quiet rhythms of their hearts, a silent understanding they both knew and relied so much on which allowed them to bear every single day.

With the rising of the sun, memories flooded back, vivid, and poignant, breathing life into a narrative that began a decade ago. A Retelling of Night begins where it all started, in the heart of the State of Zhu—the Capital—a place where power, wealth and authority flourishes and where people lost more of themselves as they got closer to it.

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