Chapter 73: Demons behind the sunset

"I don't know for sure, but he is still alive. The whole situation is very strange as if he is in some sort of deep sleep. He has no visible injury in him, but I can't feel his consciousness at all. I tried diving inside, but some boundary force kept me out. All we can do is keep him safe and sound and wait for him to wake up." She turned around and as she looked at the door for a second before continuing."

"We need to ask Lily what happened… Maybe she can give some information about what happened."

Granny shook her head.

"She is shaken, tired and just saw her brother unconsciously fall forward. We should let her calm down and let her rest today. We can ask her tomorrow morning after breakfast."

"We need to know what happened! I know how she is, but we can't leave Aiden like this!" Number 3 argued.

"I know, but you have to understand how she feels! Let her rest at least tonight before you interrogate her! You can't possibly exp-" Granny couldn't finish as the door suddenly opened as the tear-stained Lily entered the room. Looking at her brother sleeping on his bed, she looked at Number 3 with determination visible in her eyes.

"It's alright Granny, I'm okay. I need to, no I WANT to help brother. I couldn't rest knowing that I could have the slightest chance to wake him up."

Granny looked at Lily with a troubled expression as she walked closer. Caressing her head, she gently asked.

"Are you sure, dearie? It is alright if we do this tomorrow morning. Aiden is safe now, nothing will happen overnight."

"I'm sure Granny. I want to do this." Then she faced Number 3. "Ask away Master."

Number 3 sighed, and with a gentle smile on her face, she patted Lily's head as she walked by her. She stopped at the door as she addressed her without looking back. 

"Thank you, Lily. Let's leave so he can rest and hopefully recover. We can talk at the table."

As she finished, she left the room. She silently sat down at the dining table and closed her eyes as she waited for them to arrive.

Lily followed along and sat opposite of her. Although she wasn't crying anymore, her smeared tears were still visible on her face. As Granny rightly guessed, she was pretty shaken by everything that happened today, but she still wanted to do her best to help her brother recover, so she forced herself to remain strong. 

She was no longer a child, she had to be strong for him. For her beloved brother.

For a good minute nothing happened, Number 3 kept her eyes closed and remained motionless while Lily kept staring at her with determination in her eyes. Granny didn't follow them, she sat down at the edge of Aiden's bed. 

She was looking at him with her usual gentle smile, and with a long sigh, while gently caressing his legs she whispered into the air.

"Poor boy, what could have happened to you…" Looking at his sleeping face, her smile still on her face, a small golden flicker flashed through her tired eyes for the first time in many years. 

With the golden glow faintly sparkling in her eyes, she whispered. While she was very silent, her voice still carried a new depth to it, similar to how Aiden's was when he was using his innate ability…

"You have to wake up boy, you can't leave us just as I finally found you… You have to understand, I have been searching for centuries, I have already given up hope before you suddenly appeared in front of us! You carry our heritage, you have to be her son, you have to know where she is!"

---

*13th Day of Sarenith, Year 575, The Slums, Capital City Elsaid*

The tip of the sun was about to slip below the huge, crude stone walls that surrounded the capital city, protecting the residents from the dangers. 

The brown tattered cloaked young man was sitting at the rooftop of a house, mused as the orange glow receded below where heaven and earth collided. 

He couldn't help but think back to the past….

*Year 565, Royal Palace, Capital City Elsaid*

Through teary eyes an aging old man, dressed in royal garb watched as the sun fell behind the horizon, painting the sky shades of red and pink. He thanked the gods that this had come and finally gone. All the pain they suffered, all the hurt they've felt. Everything. Gone.

"Do you see the colors, son?" The man asked the silver-haired young boy beside him in his most comforting voice. "They are symbols. Each of them showing you the good tomorrow could bring forth." 

"Yes, father, I understand." As he looked at the sunset, the boy replied to his father with a respectful tone although the tiny bit of resentment wasn't missed by his father.

The man simply smiled and kept musing at the beautiful scenery in front of them. He wanted to tell his son that soon these colors will be hidden within the black despair of night, a symbol of the suffering that tomorrow is going to bring. Instead, he kept silent. It's better to suffer alone, he told himself.

After a while, the old man gave the boy a fond pat on his shoulders causing the boy to turn and look at him. 

With a gentle voice, the old man said.

"Listen, son. I know you feel that everything is unfair, but as my first-born, you have to be more responsible than the others. One day, when I'm gone, you will be the king and everyone will listen to your every word, every action you will take.

If they see you falter, or you become weak, the hyenas hiding in the shadows will take that chance and mercilessly slaughter you down and take everything you hold dear to your heart.

You may not understand what happened today, but just know that everything I do is for the benefit of the people, and for the future of this country. Know that I love your brothers and sister just as much as I do you, but I also have to keep in mind what is best for the future no matter how much it hurts me."

The boy looked at his father with the generic polite smile on his face. Although he was smiling, his eyes betrayed him. All the anger, the resentment was like sparks in them. He was taught to always be respectful to the king, this man, his father. While he didn't understand what he was trying to teach, he knew it was related to the happenings of today.

Today, after breakfast, a group of nobles came and after a closed-door discussion, they left with his crying two brothers and his sister. He rushed to his father asking where they were taking them, only to be slapped and told to shut up and never ask this question again.

"I know you may hate me for what I have done today, and I can only hope that one day you will understand everything son…" the man muttered mostly to himself as he gazed at the last orange rays diving below the horizon.

*Back to the present...*

As the young man kept gazing at the sunset, a small tear escaped the corner of his left eye. As he used his hand to pick it up. Looking at it, he clenched it into a fist and raised it towards the setting sun. With a shaky and taut voice, he whispered into the sunset.

"I will find all of you, no matter how long it takes. That old bastard no longer has any control over me."

As the sun finally receded below the horizon, he stood up and jumped down from the rooftops. Soon, his figure vanished amidst the dark alleyways.

---

Alfred Leon was sitting in his office on the top floor of the Academy's main tower. He was currently flipping through a big pile of documents, occasionally scribbling down his signature.

After around the twentieth page, he sat back on his chair and sighed audibly. He put his chubby arms on his face as he rested his eyes. 

"Argh, I hate this shit so much! Why do I have to spend days going through this shit!" he cursed in an annoyed tone.

Suddenly a knock could be heard outside his office, and a trembling female voice called for him.

"Sir, is everything all right?" 

Hearing his assistant's voice, her alluring figure came to mind. As the lecherous thought surfaced in his mind, his lust suppressed his tiredness, and with a devious smile on his face, he called out for her. The annoying paperwork can wait.

"Angelica, please come inside, I have some work for you!" 

With tears in her eyes, Angelica could do nothing but push down the handle and resign to her fate as she stepped inside and closed the doors behind her...