Chapter 3: Titanheart Chronicles
I was back ho.
The air slled like old wood and boiled roots.
We were eating dinner—a single loaf of bread split three ways.
It was stale. Hard enough to knock soone out if you threw it right.
My mom chewed slowly. My dad didn't even look up. He just stared at the wall, like it owed him money.
"...So," I mumbled, breaking the silence. "I used up all the paper in the house."
My dad blinked. "What?"
"I was wondering if I could get more. Just a little. For drawing."
He slamd the table so hard, the bread bounced.
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR DAMN MIND?! Do you even know how expensive paper is?! You think it grows on trees?!"
"...Actually, it does—"
"Don't get smart with !"
My mom sighed. "Honey, calm down—"
"No! He wants money for paper! Paper!! Like we're nobles!"
"Wait, wait, wait!!" I shot up from my seat, arms waving. "Just let show you!"
I rushed to the corner, grabbed the thick stack of parchnt I'd hidden behind the firewood.
My baby. My masterpiece.
Titanheart Chronicles – Chapter 1.
Drawn from sun-up to sundown with Chat-GTP controlling my hand.
Panel by panel. Line by line.
I placed it on the table with both hands, like I was offering a sacred relic.
"...I made this."
My dad squinted. "What is this? Scribbles?"
"It's called... manga. It's a story told through drawings."
He snorted. "So you wasted paper on pictures? When did you even learn how to draw?!"
"Just read it."
He grumbled sothing under his breath but took the first page anyway.
I watched.
Quiet. Still.
He read about the walled cities.
About humanity living in fear.
About Erien, a young boy yearning for freedom.
And how, one day, the walls were breached...
And Erien's mother was eaten alive while he scread.
The room was silent.
Then—
A drop hit the parchnt.
Then another.
My dad...
He was crying.
His hand trembled as he clutched the final page.
"Wh...what is this...?" he whispered.
My mom leaned in, eyes wide. "Dear gods..."
"It's only Chapter 1," I said softly.
"I'm going to finish it. I'm going to share it with the world.
And I'm going to beco rich."
[Estimated parental emotional impact: 100%. Mission Success.]
Then suddenly, my dad slamd the table again—but this ti, with desperation.
"Then what happens next?!" he barked."Do they fight back? What's in the basent? What happens to Erien?! WHERE'S THE REST?!"
I smirked."...You'll have to wait for Chapter 2."
"But I NEED Chapter 2!!" he shouted, scrambling for his pouch. "Here—here, take it! All of it!!"
He threw every coin he had on the table—four silvers, seven coppers—more than I'd ever seen in one place.
"For paper," he said, breathing heavily. "Buy all the paper you need. Just—just finish the story."
I was frozen."...Dad?"
He didn't answer. He was still staring at the last page, lips trembling.
Then my mom, curiosity in her eyes, slowly pulled the stack toward her.
"Let see what this is all about..."
She flipped to the first page.Started reading.Quiet at first. Then slower... slower still.When she reached the scene of Erien's mom getting devoured, she covered her mouth.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
"This poor child..." she whispered."...This is unlike anything I've ever read."
I looked at both of them.Their faces, red and stunned. Their hands, shaking.
A smile tugged at my lips.
This was it.This was the start.The first two mbers of the Titanheart Chronicles fandom...Were my parents.
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