'For a man who was blind all his life, darkness is all he has ever seen.
The entire world is hidden behind a veil that cannot be lifted no matter what he did. For that blind man who didn't know how to dream, the salvation he could ever hope for was to see the light.
Because for him, the light was nothing but a faded myth.
As the blind man continued to live his life, he was eventually used to the darkness surrounding him.
But then one day, a miracle happened.
The salvation the blind man wanted but didn't need. One he didn't know he had yearned for a long time until the moment he was confronted by it.
The faded myth was no longer just a fantasy. Now that the light that shone through the darkest curse to have ever existed found him, he was no longer blind.
"I see" said the blind man.
The man could see the light that filled his life with color, so much so that he was overcome with a desire to hold onto the light forever.
However, basked in the momentary salvation there was a truth the once blind man had forgotten.
In a world that held monsters and miracles alike, nothing was permanent.
For one who had been granted the sight of light. The worst punishment he could ever fear is to have the light that revealed the world to be taken away.
It was only after losing the light did the blind man know there existed a pain worse than death.
Alone and back in the void, the blind man was never the same again.
He lived on, longing for the light to return to his reach...'
And so goes, 'The Tale of the Blind man' I had once heard when I was a child.
In a sense, I was no different from the blind man. For my world was also behind an invisible veil, like a glass wall that separated me from the rest of existence.
Stranded alone in a prison of my own making, all I could ever do was adapt to this world riddled with monsters hidden on every corner.
It wasn't a surprise I was cursed as it was bound to happen one way or another. Every life has its end.
Right then like a wild card in the gamble of life, Angelica came in.
What had appeared to be the end of one life, turned out to be the beginning of another.
With Angelica, every day was a new beginning.
Anger, laughter, desire... I learned newfound emotions in me that I didn't even know existed.
The cursed chains that imprisoned me broke down to show a beautiful fantasy. Although it was still a prison, it was now ours.
However, just like the blind man's momentary salvation was stripped away, Angelica disappeared. And with her was gone, the light that held me together.
The red sky that once covered my prison, the sunset that stayed frozen like an immortal memory was left with a blank dark canvas of darkness.
Like the brief moment of light that appeared before the sky faded into the night, the beautiful sunset reminded me of the two of us. The period of time we spent together had ended, leaving nothing but darkness in its wake when she disappeared.
Back in the void, I was left alone like the blind man bearing a pain that was worse than death.
'Do you feel the same, Angelica?' I wondered, staring into the abyss.
Months went by in the snap of a finger.
With the change of seasons, came an array of changes.
The war between the Frosts and Esdels had come to an end. The tension among the masses of the capital had subsided.
While peace was once again restored in Volos, the fruitless efforts to break the Havu curse had resumed.
Somewhere along the way, life in the Frost estate had returned to how it was before Angelica came along. The cold walls of the Frost estate had become colder.
Like she was just a daydream they had waken up from, the people eventually forgot about Angelica in the passage of time.
That was, aside from a few she left an impression on. They were the people who served her, the people saved by her, and the man she left blinded in the void.
While others moved on with their daily lives, to them Angelica lived on in their memories.
As for me the urge to break free from the bonds was growing stronger by the day. I wanted to regain control of myself, now that I have reasons more than there'll ever be.
However, in reality, I was waiting.
Despite the pain that pierced my heart, I was preparing for the seasons to change.
Because it was this transition in weather that will bring forth the one person who can break my bounds.
"This is Lady Layton. She comes from the Layton Barony"
When the Theodore priests summoned the familiar name I hadn't heard for a long time. I knew the time had finally come.
"She is here to treat His Grace"
If everything else happened just as Angelica had predicted, then the time has come to remove my shackles for good.
As the holy power engulfed slowly engulfed me, one by one I started to regain control of my body.
"!"
Suddenly I found myself on the shores of Napal yet again. The soft breeze that swept across my cheek was different from the cold air of the night.
The brief moment ended soon as I was overcome by the voices of my surroundings.
"I can't believe it worked!"
"He's really waking up!"
"The curse is gone... It's a miracle!"
Still, even if it was only there for a fraction of a second, at that moment I knew I was not alone.
Now, after being under the Havu curse for nearly a year, I opened my eyes.
And the first words that came through my lips were not about the Saintess, not about the curse or even the war between the Frosts and Esdels but...
"Where is she?"
I rose up with my eyes fixed on the blank canvas on the wall. It was the same question I had been asking myself ever since that night of the carriage attack.
"Your Grace?"
Instead of answering, Nathaniel stumbled forward, looking like he couldn't believe his own eyes. He then immediately corrected his posture and asked back with a confused tone,
"Where is... who?"
Ignoring the group of astonished strangers and the curious eyes that followed my movements, I walked over to the other side of the room.
"My wife"
Placing my hand on the wall underneath the canvas, I called out the name I had desperately wanted to say for the very first time,
"Angelica"