Finding Truth

《22》

Shiro stood in front of a statue of a woman in the castle grounds. He's seen this statue a lot of times already. But he still has no idea who this woman was nor her history. But somehow... she felt... familiar...

"Shiro?" A voice called out to him. He turned back to look at the person, it was his father. "What are you doing out so early?"

It was still a few hours until sunrise, and just two more days before they set for the human kingdom.

Shiro was against going there, he knew the true nature of the king and he didn't want to put anyone he cares about in any more danger. But even the Èxi and his uncles all agreed in going.

They kept saying everything will be fine and that Muzan won't try to use any traps under the gaze of his people. But Shiro couldn't believe that. Muzan will do anything to get what he wants. Even if it includes using a trap to kill his enemy.

"Who's that woman?" Shiro asked, motioning to the statue.

"Hm... that... is..." Sanemi sighed as he took Shiro to sit down on a bench close to the statue. "That's the first demon, in other words, she's like our great-great-great-grandmother or something."

"Ah, I heard of that story." Shiro said as he remembered reading something in the Holy Garden's library. "The goddess punished her for a crime and cursed her entire bloodline. She was one of her subjects and was loyal to her, but her heart was ruined and tainted."

"So that's what the humans are telling their people." Sanemi spat. He glared at the ground. Shiro asked what he meant. "She is not a subject. She's one of the goddess childrens. She was the one who ruled the night sky. Her name was lost in history... but her story was not."

"There was one more...?" Shiro asked in surprise. "But weren't there only three of them? Fire and the sun. Water and the tides. Destiny and life."

"I'll tell you the story which the humans hid from their people for millions of years," Sanemi said in a strict tone, glancing over his son. "The goddess had four children. The youngest was her, the one who rules the night sky and the stars. She was dedicated to her mother and served her people. But..."

He sighed as he remembered the story his mother always told him. He would hear this story being told to his younger siblings. It reminded him of his own story.

"She met and fell for a human." He said. Shiro could feel a sense of familiarity to this story. "But as you know, she had her priorities and having any affairs or any kind of relationship with the mortals are forbidden. So.. when the goddess found out... she killed the human."

"Then what happened?" Shiro asked, completely emerged in the story.

"She was heartbroken and she did something forbidden." His eyes softened as he looked at the eyes of his ancestor. "She tried to revive the dead." Shiro gasped, even he knew the price to pay for that. "The goddess found out about this and cursed her and her worshipers. She used her power to have horns break their skin in the most painful way. She used her own hand to split their eyes. She made their teeth fall off and have new, sharper ones to grow painfully. After that... the goddess divided the world and she banished her daughter to one side while the rest of the untainted ones remained on another. That is her story."

Shiro was horrified to hear the story. He never heard this side of history when he grew up. The stories were so happy and uplifting, heroes defeating the demons. Everything was nothing but a way to control and silence the truth.

"Then.. what happened to the other children..?" Shiro asked, wanting to know more of the story.

"Well... this part of history is not written anywhere. Only the descendant of her and the descendants of the ones who rule the water and tides knows." He said with a smirk, placing a finger on his lips. "So you better not tell this story to anyone that isn't part of the royal family."