Volume 1 Chapter 7 ACT.6 The Day the Avenger Was Born (I)
Rai Conwell witnessed the end of the world ten years ago.
And you could say that the end of that world was also the beginning of everything else.
To start, my memories begin in a world drenched in crimson.
A 7-year-old boy, living an ordinary yet somewhat happy life, felt the first pangs of life-threatening danger.
Overwhelmed by a sorrow so deep it threatened to shatter him, he barely clung to his crumbling heart, fueled by a rising tide of hatred.
That was the moment I awakened.
In such a dire situation, the being that had long lain dormant at the depths of my subconscious was forcibly stirred.
Yet, because of the intense emotions that were far too strong for a young boy to bear, I failed to merge──with Rai's consciousness, that is──and was instead confronted with a chaotic clash of identities.
In this life, there's Rai, and in the past life, there's me.
Those 2 memories, which could never intertwine, resulted in the formation of 2 distinct personalities within one body.
And in that moment of awakening, I was lost and bewildered, unable to swap consciousness with Rai.
──If I had managed to do so right then, maybe the course of our future would have turned out quite differently.
Perhaps because of that, I only grasp fragments of Rai's memories before my awakening.
And yet, I think I can safely say it was a happiness I was grateful for.
In a lush, sprawling meadow, I would run carefree with my neighborhood friends, laughing and tumbling together until we fell over in heaps of giggles.
As dusk fell, my older sister, 4 years my senior, would come to fetch Rai.
Hand in hand, we'd stroll down the path painted in the hues of sunset, and I would excitedly recount the day's adventures to her.
With a smile, my sister would always watch me, her little brother, as I animatedly shared my tales of play.
And when we finally returned home, my mother would greet us.
From the kitchen wafted the delicious aroma of my favorite stew, and I couldn't help but beam at the scent.
Seeing my smile, my mother would laugh and say how glad she was she made it, while my sister would chuckle, teasingly reminding her that I was just a simple kid.
In young Rai's world, everything sparkled vividly, overflowing with smiles.
He was surrounded by happiness now, and the future was nothing but hope.
But that day──the day that would be known in the future as the Aldra Rebellion──marked the moment when his world was forever painted in shades of red, flames, and blood.
* * *
He became aware──when "he" first awakened, the first thing that struck his eyes was red.
The color of blood.
The image of his gentle mother, lying amidst a pool of crimson.
The color of flames.
The sight of his sister, who had always worn a smile, being thrown into the fire while she screamed in agony.
Young Rai watched the end of the world unfold from a narrow gap in the shelf where his sister had shoved him, fearful eyes peering out.
During their usual dinner, something sparked in his mother; she rushed to the window and returned, face pale with terror.
Then, she began to move the furniture in front of the door, shouting at the children to escape through the back as she constructed a barricade.
Rai was left behind, unable to grasp what was happening as the situation advanced without him.
His sister, ready to flee, urged their mother to hurry.
──It was in that very moment that the barricade was effortlessly shattered in a single blow.
Splintered wood pierced deep into their mother's leg, making it impossible for her to escape.
In that instant, his sister locked eyes with one of the attackers.
The assailant smirked as he laid eyes on her.
It was as if she understood her fate in that moment.
In a desperate attempt to save even just her younger brother, she pushed Rai into the shelf, hiding him from the attacker's view.
In hindsight, her decision was nothing short of brilliant.
After all, the little Rai she'd tucked away had not been discovered by them.
──Of course, that meant he would witness all the horrors that followed.
The attackers grabbed her, securing her limbs to a chair, and piled wood around her, dousing it in oil before lighting it aflame.
Their actions were not necessary──not for killing.
In a way, it was play, mere amusement.
Indeed, as he watched his sister scream in the blazing inferno, the attackers laughed uproariously.
Outside, a man was shouting something.
"I am the messenger sent by the gods to seize this world! A hero!! This village has become the noble sacrifice of revolution! Now is the moment of revolution's spark!! The birth festival of the world's king, Aldra!!"
What must Rai have thought as he witnessed such a scene?
He felt a deep sadness, despair that threatened to consume him──but that wasn't all.
A stronger emotion churned within him.
──It was hatred.
Rai burned the faces of those who laughed beside his burning sister into his young eyes.
He'd remember them all.
──Not a single one would be forgotten. One day, I'll kill you all. I'll chase you, hound you, and burn you all.
In the midst of that burning rage, that's when "I" awoke.
* * *
──And then everything ended, and dawn arrived.
Rai was left alone in the village, devoid of life.
He stepped out of his ruined home and looked towards the outside.
His former home was gone.
There were only the charred remains of houses and the church, and the scattered remnants of villagers.
As he gazed at the scene, a distant sound of horse hooves reached him.
The sound stopped at the village entrance, replaced by the sound of metal on stone.
"────."
Rai, exhausted, turned to face the sound.
From the shadow of a broken house, the source of the sound emerged──a Black Knight.
Clad in armor the color of a night sky, with a helmet bearing a fierce, demonic visage.
And strapped to his back, a shield and a sword.
The knight slowly approached Rai, knelt before him, and met his gaze.
Then, the knight spoke to Rai.
'I'm sorry.'
His voice was raspy, yet commanding.
But beneath the gruffness, a deep sadness and regret resonated.
'If I had arrived sooner, I might have been able to save you all. I'm truly sorry.'
It was a voice choked with anguish.
Rai, hearing this, slammed his fist against the knight's helmet.
He kept punching, silently, relentlessly.
The strength of a 7-year-old boy couldn't possibly hurt the knight through the helmet.
But the one feeling pain was Rai.
Still, he gritted his teeth, tears streaming down his face as he continued to punch.
The knight, watching the young boy, felt the weight of his own sorrow.
Finally, the knight, unable to bear it any longer, embraced Rai.
'I'm so sorry, I'm really sorry──!!'
The voice was slightly wet.
Feeling the warmth through the knight's armor, Rai felt something snap.
It was the moment when the tightly wound string of tension finally unraveled──the frozen heart began to thaw.
"U, uaaaahhh──!!"
At last, Rai cried out.
He raised his voice as if to expel all the sorrow and despair lingering in his heart.
The black knight held Rai tightly, embracing him with unwavering strength.
In that village, now devoid of life, only Rai's cries echoed back, hollow and haunting.
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