The King and his daughter sit elegantly on the pair of crimson velvet throne chairs, the frames elaborately decorated with oak leaf foliage. The Royal Coat of Arms of Panacea is carved on the top rails.
Today is supposed to be Hadley's coming-of-age ceremony, but the celebration ended in tragedy just an hour ago due to an incident involving possessed people. They suffered many losses; people disappeared without leaving any single trace. Not to mention the supernatural presence of the Aragons.
Possession. Demons. Disciples. So everything about the Nirvana Order is true, and the story of the Great Wizard is not a myth. Everything is real. There are demons lurking in their world, coexisting with them.
The heroes of mankind known as Aragons are for real. They are indeed saviors called by the angels who can save the lost and destroy those who are beyond saving. They are the disciples of the God of Light — holy warriors who exist to eradicate the evils that infiltrated their world.
The reality of their world.
The heavy silence inside the throne room lingers as the two royal figures stare at Ian. The young prince is kneeling on one knee on the carpeted floor a few steps away from them, his head bowed. His father summoned him immediately following the Aragons' departure. Of course, Ian had anticipated this, and his family was entitled to an explanation of what transpired during the ceremony.
Ian knows deep down that he can't keep something from someone forever, especially his family. He can't hide the fact that he is an Elysian, destined to be one of Azarios' holy warriors. Above all, he will never be able to change that reality.
He clenches his teeth. Today is the day he must confess everything. At this precise moment, he will reveal the truth that he had long buried deep within his memory. His family has the right to know. They must know what happened to the Queen now that they have awakened to reality. He realizes how selfish he has been in keeping that to himself, in telling them lies, and even in allowing his sister to suffer from the constant ache for their mother.
Hadley cried every night after their mother's disappearance, and a wave of guilt washed over Ian when he heard the pain and longing in her voice. That is why Ian must make his final decision right now.
Which path should I take?
"Speak." His father's deep voice bounces off the walls.
Ian's fists clench, his heart pounding inside his chest. The air around them gets colder by the second, making him quiver if he isn't already. He swallows, takes a deep breath, and then raises his head to meet the gazes of his most precious people.
"Father, Hadley. I deeply apologize for keeping things from you. I . . . I couldn't muster the courage to tell you about my change." He tightens his jaw, maintaining a firm face while ignoring how much his body shakes. "It happened about a month ago. I saw a Light that changed my belief. An angel called me to be Azarios's warrior."
He lowers his eyes and grits his teeth. "But I hated it. I hated it at the time, which is why I chose to bury it rather than tell anyone. Because I believed that if no one knew, I would soon forget about it." Ian pauses, his heart racing. "For I killed mother at that same moment."
The King scrambles to his feet. He looks at his kneeling son with wide eyes, contemplating him, but Ian's expression reflects his words.
The prince is telling the truth.
"What did you say?" the King asks, his voice low and trembling, a look of disbelief on his face. Tears well up in his deep blue eyes.
Ian keeps his eyes locked on his father. "Mother never really left. She was tainted, and I . . . killed her." Tears stream down his cheeks, staining the carpeted floor with his grief. "That's why I hated that Light. I hated that angel. That's why I never told anyone because I wanted to forget what had happened! I fed you lies, and I also wanted to believe in my own lies! The lie that mother only left. That I didn't take her life with my own hands."
He sobs and lowers his head as pain squeezes his chest. His shoulders tremble as strong tremor sweeps over him.
"N-no. Mother can't possibly be . . ." Hadley blurs the end of her sentence as she rises from the throne chair. Her shoulders slump as she stares in disbelief at her brother.
Ian raises his head and looks at his sister. "Hadley . . ."
"Mother is dead?" Hadley whispers as if speaking mainly to herself. "Mother won't come back. She's dead. My beloved mother."
When Hadley falls to her knees and tears stream down her cheeks, Ian's heart sinks. His chest tightens into a knot as Hadley lets out a howl of grief, squeezing the air out of his lungs. His mind flashes back to what happened at the ceremony. Lady Bella and his cousin Katherine became Cimmerian demons, and they will never reincarnate. Ten more innocent victims were tainted, and the Aragons had to purify their souls. Their bodies disappeared, just as her mother did.
They simply vanished, as if they had never existed.
"I'm so sorry," Ian says, his hoarse and cracked, tears streaming down his cheeks. Gut-wrenching sobs tear through his chest. "I'm so sorry."
Hadley gets to her feet, and what she does next stuns her brother. She dashes over to him and wraps her arms around him, causing him to slump to the ground from the impact. He widens his eyes in shocked silence. He expected Hadley to slap him or worse, stab him with piercing words that he knows he deserves, but instead he received a warm embrace.
Sister . . .
Hadley's body wracks with sobs and tears as she buries her face in Ian's chest.
"Hadley . . . " Ian's voice trails off.
"I'm sorry you had to go through that alone, Ian. I'm sorry you had to witness mother disappear," Hadley says between sobs as she hugs him tight. "I'm not sure what happened, but watching someone disappear especially mother . . . That must be hard for you."
She pulls away and glares at him. "But how could you keep it to yourself? I wish you had told me. I can't believe my little brother had to go through that alone." Her eyes well up with tears once more. She caresses Ian's cheek, her touch warming her lonely heart. "You are so brave, Ian."
Overwhelming emotion floods Ian's insides, and he can't help but crumble in Hadley's arms.
I'm not brave, he thinks. He is barely hanging on to his sanity as he continues to feed himself lies. Things around him have changed yet again, and he knows they will continue to change until he recognizes the truth within himself. It's time for him to face the realities of their world. It's time for him to accept the change.
It's time for me to decide which path I will take.
Ian gathers himself and moves away from his sister. He stands up and wipes his tears away with his gloved hands before looking at his father.
"Father, the world we live in is no longer the same. It was never the same world we thought it was. We live among demons who want nothing more than to plunge this world into darkness. They will taint souls, just as what happened . . . to them." He grits his teeth, remembering the lives that vanished before his eyes. "They will destroy the innocence of humanity."
He takes a deep, sharp breath. His expression hardens. "So that's why I've made my decision, father, Hadley. As someone chosen by an angel, I will not disappoint Azarios. I will proudly bear his mark and choose the path he wants for me." His eyes darken as he looks them in the eyes. "I will not let anyone disappear again, especially you, my family. I will save those who need to be saved and destroy those who must be destroyed. I will do my part to keep humanity pure."
Hadley's mouth drops open in disbelief as she stares at him. "Y-you're leaving?"
Pain grips Ian's chest. He nods, not meeting her gaze. "I'm sorry, but this is my fate, and I don't want any of you to end up like mother, so I will accept the responsibility Azarios has bestowed upon me and become the savior I'm supposed to be."
Hadley lowers her head and looks at the ground. She balls her trembling hands into fists.
"Son," the King utters in a soft voice, his eyes glistening as he looks at Ian.
"When an angel appeared at that time, it told me that my soul is compatible with a Blessing, so it provided me with this," Ian says, showing them the necklace he's wearing. The silver cross pendant gleams in the light of the crystal chandelier that hangs above him. "This necklace can be become a weapon to fight the demons. It can save a soul. It saved mother's soul."
When he recalls how Raia scolded him, a gentle smile forms on his lips and his eyes twinkle. "When that girl from the Order told I had freed mother, I was so upset. Because I didn't know anything, I told her that their belief was absurd and that everything about their organization was cruel. I insisted that I had done nothing to help mother and had only killed her. But it is only now that I realized she was right. Demons exist, and they don't just live among us; they live within us. The people we know today may not be the same people we meet tomorrow."
He puts his hand on his chest and looks deeper into his father's eyes. "That is why I, Ian Johan Grimaldi, Crown Prince of Panacea Kingdom, will abdicate the throne and join the Nirvana Order. I will become an official disciple who will put an end to the darkness."
The throne room falls silent. After a few moments, the King finally speaks.
"You will leave today? You're not going to wait until you turn sixteen next month?" The king's voice is filled with sadness and hope as if he is pleading with his son not to leave.
Ian shakes his head. "Evil doesn't waste their time, father, so I shouldn't either. Thus I'd like to arrange a meeting with the Church for tomorrow."
Silence falls once again save for their pounding hearts and soft breathing. The king then lifts his head and smiles at Ian. A teardrop falls from his eyes.
Hadley rises to her feet and squeezes Ian's hand. She tries to smile, but her eyes speak betray her real feelings. Her cheeks are smeared with tears.
Ian exhales, and a wide smile spreads across his face. The smile expresses both gratitude and sadness. Thinking of leaving his family and starting a new life makes his chest feels tight. But he's no longer afraid of change. He's no longer afraid to follow the Light. He closes his eyes and sighs.
I'm now ready.