Chapter Text
He is dead and his kingdom is destroyed.
There are mirrors in front of me, with a familiar warmth. One of the mirrors nearby cracks. A familiar face shatters into pieces.
His legacy still lingers in his dark kingdom. His followers will always remember his oath that built this wall, which protected them for years until the King fell.
One day, the last mirror in the great hall cracked. One day, a drop of blood fell on the throne. It said, "He has fallen." That day, thunder rumbled for the first time in a long time.
It hadn't rained here for a long time, just today. With his fall, things got worse. The seer's last words appeared on the palace walls.
He is dead and his kingdom is destroyed.
But he couldn't die that easily. But in the mirrors, she saw familiar faces.
Every time the clock struck midnight, there was the sound of footsteps in the hall.
One of them never believed he was dead. Even the phrase on the wall behind his throne.
It couldn't be true.
It couldn't happen.
That's impossible, isn't it?
You promised you'd come back alive, Welt. You promised.
The last mirror broke on the same day.
Today. It was a decade of death. His portrait was covered with a dark cloth. People thought he was no hero.
Heroes don't do evil, and villains don't do good.
A hero can't burn down the world for one man. And a villain can't kill a man for the world.
Where do these attitudes come from?
Why does a hero have to be selfish to make himself seem great?
And why a villain must be modest to appear unassuming?
And why did his men think so much of him?
They only cared about destroying others. Why didn't anyone see the hero for who he was?
"I didn't want to be the bad guy, but I'd rather save my loved ones.", "I'd rather kill them in the name of peace than make them victims of "heroism"."
In the name of world.
W and World.
A world he created and protected.
Nothing lasts forever.
His world fell apart. Revolutions and fires. Protests and hatred.
His whole black state is full of hatred. Hatred for him. The man they once called "World" is now a hero.
But only when he did something wrong.
Save her from destruction? Burning the Earth and him.
He saved her life and died.
"Nothing's free." An old man gave him a bag of stones.
"You can't hide your sin. Your future is dark, but you can choose what you want to be. You already know your choice."
He agreed: the future should be left to the future. The old man left almost immediately after their conversation.
He wanted to change everything, but knew it was useless. He tried anyway, except that the crows had been flying over his head for a long time.
And under his feet were rats ready to bury him.
No one knew he had made his choice. No one knew he'd chosen against them all. He felt disappointment in humanity and in himself after that night. No one knew their king would become their enemy.
Only himself.
That night was hard. They had to retreat or no one would have survived. Ein remembers the night vaguely. Her eyes blurred when she tried to remember.
She remembered the huge fires, gunfire, screams and sharp pain. She remembered warm hands that wouldn't let her go until the last moment. She couldn't see the rescuer's face, but she was sure it was him. He was called Reason in his kingdom. He caused change for the better and for the worse. He was the reason why hunger disappeared and why high-ranking people were on a par with ordinary people. He was life and death. Death never left his side since the beginning of history.
They called them - Honkai.
They called them - Herrshers.
They called them - death.
But whether it was so, and whether those whom Velt so protected thought so, was another matter. Did she think so? Maybe. But her opinion began to crumble when a black raven flew into the window, when she saw the black ring on its paw, where one edge was forever light blue. But her judgement was shaken the moment she saw the beautiful handwriting with her name on the ring.
Her judgement was shaken when six of the fourteen Apostles were joined by another dark lord.
He was called "Reason" and she was scared when they first met.
He was different. Maybe even the best person. Maybe she imagined it and he was only like that with her.
Maybe she knew something she shouldn't have. Maybe he hadn't changed.
Or maybe he loved her and was still willing to hurt others.
Maybe it took her a few seconds to realise she was right. Welt was dead, but he was still alive.
She didn't want to ask.
She didn't want to know what happened. He wouldn't tell her.
They sat in silence in the forest, hidden from humans, watching the clouds and the sun move among the trees.
"We have nothing to talk about."
Everyone was reluctant to believe it. Even if it wasn't true. Maybe they had a lot to talk about. They missed each other.
His kingdom was destroyed. He burned her.
Day after day, it got worse.
Looting, devastation, hunger, fear.
Everything was the same.
Nothing good had ever happened. As if tomorrow would be another execution for disobedience.
They didn't want to talk about disobedience. But they did. They were sure they were right. And only they watched the state burn out in the flames of war.
Someone wanted to end it, but Einstein wouldn't let them. "He didn't die so we could go to war against ourselves again."
And for what? Why did Joyce die?
People never stopped asking questions. Only two people knew the answer.
Every night between midnight and 1 a.m., they met in the same place, saying nothing, looking at each other, and then back up at the sky.
Each time they met, something changed, but not much. Maybe she just didn't like the former ruler. Maybe the people were right and he deserved to die.
Each day brought more doubts, but they hadn't grown close. Maybe that's what she thought. Maybe that's what happened.
He forgot her. Maybe he didn't know who he was. It was now the incarnation of Honkai. Something dangerous and attractive.
Maybe she was right.
"My Welt is dead."
She believed he hadn't changed.. Every day she saw the opposite..
Six months have passed
They never saw each other again..
The Herrschers started another war. One of them had been missing since the beginning..
He didn't exist. And looking at the records that show he ever existed. No one remembered him.
N-O-B-O-D-Y.
Except for her.
But how could that be true?
She saw the image every night, asking for forgiveness..
Was it all just a dream?
She often dreamed that he was helping her, saving her, in the scorched earth where only the two of them were left alive.
She lay on the ground, looking into his eyes with hope.
But could she have spent so many years believing in a man who didn't exist?
But had she written these strange poems of love on old paper?
Had she been saved? Was she alone in the woods?
But... Did she see someone who isn't real?
Was she really that crazy after the first war?
Was the last part of her life just a dream?
It's strange. She looks at the ring the raven gave her. She got it, so it's real.
There was no proof it existed.
Now..
The clock struck 4:21 and the alarm sounded.. Military alert..