Shiora — once known as the land where light and darkness danced in harmony — was burning.
Because of Elyka, the Queen of Darkness, who broke a centuries-old pact and wished to destroy everything.
Naraka, chosen by the Goddess of Light, had everything she created turned to ashes.
All of her children, everyone, everything in her kingdom was being erased.
And now, the greatest threat — Elyka — was slowly approaching the kingdom, along with her son Serekhka, who held power strong enough to oppose even the brightest light.
Naraka, the only one of her children still alive, tried her best to stall them. But she failed.
Watching from above in a safe place, Naraka speaks with the human Shinrei, Nujah, about going outside.
But Naraka says no.
"Inside, we have a better chance to win. They know it too. That's why they're trying to draw me out."
Nujah shouts seriously.
But Naraka, serious and unshaken, answers without changing her expression:
"If I take even a single step outside, the last light that remains here will also fade."
She insists, "We must defeat them from within."
Listening closely, Nujah sees Maria — the last surviving child — and suddenly flies to her.
He uses telepathy from a distance to Naraka:
> "I'm sorry. But I can't watch her die in front of me."
Naraka responds angrily but reluctantly:
> "Fine… Don't you dare die."
As Serekhka approaches Maria, who has collapsed, his blade—infused with Elyka's blood and drawn from the depths of darkness—swings down.
> "See you soon, princess," he says. "Don't be sad. I'll send your brothers and mother to join you soon."
Before he can stab her, a lightning-fast wooden blade knocks Serekhka backward.
Nujah arrives just in time.
> "There's an exit behind me. Go, now."
He uses a control spell to make Maria flee safely, unable to resist.
Nujah smiles calmly and says to Serekhka:
> "The exit is the other way, my friend."
Recalling his blade with his right hand, Serekhka, laughing as he recovers, mocks:
> "So Naraka chose you, her useless adopted son? After I sliced up her real children one by one?"
> "Even if you carry the First Tree — the source of life in this universe — I carry all of my mother's power, human."
Nujah, in a slightly regretful voice:
> "So strong, yet you still talk too much. I suppose you got that from your father.
…Ah, right. You didn't have one. Barbecued by my mother, wasn't he?"
He smiles and strikes a pose with his blade.
Serekhka's face shifts from calm beast to rabid dog.
He lunges at Nujah.
First strike — missed.
Second — parried.
Third — dodged by a tilt of the head.
Nujah never blinked. His feet barely moved. He floated — not like a warrior, but like a memory untouchable by time.
Serekhka growled.
He screamed.
He raged.
> Ten strikes.
Thirteen.
Fifteen.
None touched Nujah.
The blade of darkness shattered rocks. Trees turned to ash. The wind itself tore apart — but Nujah remained whole.
His expression never changed.
> "This is the difference," he finally said, "between anger and control."
Serekhka roared—
But then the air shimmered.
Something whispered.
Something… wrong.
---
Nujah's vision blurred. The battlefield twisted. Shadows multiplied.
Suddenly — pain.
A clean strike pierced his side.
He gasped.
Elyka, standing in the distance, eyes glowing cold.
> "You were doing so well," she said, "Let's see how you handle the real game."
She waved her hand. Nujah's body was lifted by invisible force —
— and thrown across the battlefield, crashing toward Naraka and Maria's last location.
But just before impact—
> He vanished again.
He had redirected him — away. Far away.
Nujah stood, bloodied but unbroken.
Serekhka charged — again.
Nine attacks. Nine monstrous steps.
> One — blocked.
Two — evaded.
Three — parried.
Four — Nujah countered.
Five — missed.
Six — Serekhka's shoulder clipped.
Seven — clash of blades.
Eight — Nujah staggered.
Nine — heart aimed.
But just before the final blow—
Naraka appeared, healing Nujah mid-combat.
A golden pulse of light wrapped around his wounds.
Suddenly, Elyka appeared behind them — furious.
> "Don't you die," she yelled to Naraka.
"I'll handle this lunatic myself."
And then — it happened.
In an instant, Elyka and Serekhka switched places.
It was too fast for even Naraka to react.
Serekhka, now at full strength, lunged at Naraka.
Elyka, empowered by god-blood, grabbed Nujah mid-air — and began draining his soul.
Naraka rushed to block Serekhka's strike — shattering her own barrier in the process.
She fought with everything — blade, magic, will.
But even she couldn't fully stop Serekhka's relentless fury.
Then — a miracle.
A crimson, rose-shaped sword, forged from both divine and human blood, fell from above.
It pierced straight into Elyka's chest — weakening her grip on Nujah's spirit.
Nujah, sensing the opening, screamed:
> "NOW!"
He unleashed his soul — diving into Serekhka's body.
A storm of spirits clashed inside.
> "Die already, you cursed mistake!" Nujah roared.
> "You think you can control me? I am the curse," Serekhka spat.
But Serekhka's strength overwhelmed him.
Even with Naraka's healing...
Even with Elyka weakened...
Nujah's soul began to crack.
His voice trembled.
> "I'm sorry… Mother…"
And with that —
his soul shattered,
scattered like glass across the stars.
His soul fragments scatter into the universe.
Seeing this, Naraka calmly accepts the outcome.
No anger. No sorrow. Only silence. She lays down, fully accepting that it was all her fault.
Serekhka, no longer mocking, pays his respects.
Elyka, too weak to stand due to the rose sword inside her, yells:
> "Serekhka! Pull it out and end her already!"
As he approaches Naraka, the universe lets out a sound.
Serekhka looks up, and sees the light of creation cracking.
A high-pitched sound follows — so intense, even he and Elyka fall to the ground.
The scream becomes a chant.
Everyone — including Shiora's remaining soldiers — collapses.
Their bodies begin turning into gold, except for Elyka.
Serekhka, confused, finds his sword useless.
Elyka, terrified, snaps her fingers and erases her own existence.
Serekhka, covered in gold, utters his final words:
> "This isn't the end."
Naraka, now smiling eerily, stands and sees that all enemies approaching from the dark side have turned to gold.
She laughs maniacally — until she sees Nujah's fragments floating in the air.
She drops everything and focuses only on him.
She gathers the pieces and begins fusing his soul using the last of her power.
The next day, the surviving soldiers come to her with reports, but she dismisses them:
> "Not now. Search for all survivors. Use everything left in the kingdom. Report back tomorrow."
They bow:
> "It's good to see you alive, our Queen."
Even death can't restore a soul once it's burned —
But Naraka, chosen by Shiora and born with unmatched skill, can rebuild one with 98% success from even the tiniest fragment.
But because this soul belonged to a Shinrei, and it burned — even the smallest mistake could erase it forever.
One day later, with help from mages, elves, giants, and dwarves, 25% of the kingdom was already restored.
They rushed to tell Naraka.
Upon entering the room, they saw Nujah — fully healed, but now with a third eye.
The dwarf fainted in fear.
Naraka tried to shield him but stood aside as Nujah woke.
> "Wasn't that a little harsh?" he said.
Naraka hugged him immediately.
Ten minutes of silence followed.
Then Nujah said:
> "I'm glad to see you too… Mom."
"Now explain why I have a cursed eye on my forehead."
Naraka handed him water before he could speak —
> "Drink this first."
> After he drank it all, Naraka sat beside him with her half-shattered body.
> "I'm sorry," Nujah said, holding her hand.
Strangely, he felt no pain anymore. In fact, he felt stronger — thousands of times stronger.
Nujah healed all his wounds instantly — even the scars.
Nujah stared at himself in awe.
Naraka explained:
> "That's Serekhka's eye."
Nujah wanted to scream but listened instead.
Naraka continued seriously:
> "In my first war with Elyka, I was actually killed. But since I was the first to strike while everyone else was paralyzed with fear, my soldiers, out of shame, rushed in screaming."
> "9,775 died that day. But 20 survivors managed to seal her.
Because of that sacrifice, Shiora chose me as Champion of Light… and Goddess of this universe."
Nujah said:
> "I already know that. The real question is… how did I come back?"
Naraka answered:
> "You gave your life for me. And for Shiora.
Shiora saw that and used all her hidden light to seal everything — except Serekhka."
> "To kill him is one thing. To seal him is another.
His body is now sealed within me — in gold.
Shiora offered a solution: if you agreed to become the vessel of Serekhka's darkness… they would help me restore all our children."
> "They saw no one more worthy than you."
Nujah trembled but stayed calm.
> "What mission?"
> "They want to put you to sleep… forever."
"To ensure no one can ever use Serekhka's power again."
Tears ran down her face, but her tone didn't break.
> "Will my brothers… my daughter… and you be safe?" Nujah asked.
> "Yes. Elyka's only hope was to find someone with Serekhka's strength again."
Nujah nodded.
> "So… everyone's dead?"
Naraka couldn't speak — she just nodded.
Nujah stood up, kissed her hand, and said:
> "As the last Shinrei, I accept this final duty."
> "Don't you want to see Mitra or the others one last time?" she asked.
> "If I see them… I won't have the strength to do this."
They both fell silent.
She led him to the snowy garden beneath the throne.
As they neared the sacred lake, Nujah
> "Funny… We used to dream of dragging Serekhka here. I never imagined I'd be walking in his place."
Naraka didn't respond. She kept walking beside him in silence.
> "Come on, Mom. Let's have one last fun conversation before the end," Nujah said, forcing a half-smile as they neared the frozen garden beneath the throne.
Naraka finally stopped, her breath visible in the cold.
> "What do you want to talk about, Nujah?"
He looked up at the falling snow.
> "Anything. Just not about pain. Not about duty. Not even about Serekhka."
He paused, then added with a quieter voice:
> "Maybe… tell me something from when I was still a child."
Naraka closed her eyes.
She remembered.
A moment not of war, not of training — but peace.
> "You once cried for three hours because a bird fell from its nest," she said, her voice softening.
Nujah chuckled weakly.
> "That bird lived, right?"
> "No. But you buried it under the oldest tree. Gave it a name. Held a ceremony."
He didn't reply. His lips trembled slightly.
--
They stood in silence for a while.
And then — Nujah stepped forward, towards the machine built for eternal slumber.
The frozen mist clung to his breath. Each step echoed like a farewell.
> "Take care of my brothers, my daughter… and of yourself," he said, voice low and steady. "That's my last wish."
Naraka didn't answer with words.
She only nodded — because anything more would break her.
Nujah turned his back for the last time.
He approached the center — the sacred pool sealed beneath the machine.
The water was still. Quiet. Endless.
Without hesitation, he stepped in.
His body didn't sink — it was pulled.
Gently… deeply… silently…
Drawn to the very bottom,
Where no dream could reach,
No voice could echo.
The light of his soul dimmed under the water,
And with a final shimmer,
He disappeared into the abyss.
Naraka's fingers trembled as she reached for the six sacred keys.
One by one, she placed them into the machine:
The Lock of Thought.
The Lock of Movement.
The Lock of Memory.
The Lock of Sleep.
The Lock of Immortality.
And at last —
The Lock of Peace.
With a deep rumble, the mechanism sealed.
The water turned golden — still glowing with the warmth of his presence.
But he was gone.
Tears fell from her eyes, one after another,
Not with pain —
But with a silence only a mother could understand.
And the snow kept falling.
Soft. Endless. Cold.
Like time itself pausing to mourn.
---