Chapter 266
Athyst didn’t waste any ti. “Thank you for eting with . I hope I’m not interrupting your day. There is sothing I need explained and I think only you are able to do that for . There has been so much going through my head. What is reality and what is a dream? What is the truth? I rembered that when I once ca to you, you told the information you had was all you could tell then. So, I assud there was more. Please, Your Majesty, tell what it is that you only know. What am I?”
Belice sighed. “It’s going to be a long story.”
“That’s ok. I have more ti than you think.” Athyst sat, waiting for Belice to continue.
Belice looked at Athyst, then carefully began.
“From the beginning, the princesses reigned over the Sehar Empire. It was because only they bore a special ability. And only one princess with that ability was born in each generation. That tradition continued, until now. The previous Empress, my mother, had twins. The first ti this had ever occurred.”
Athyst knew that Alexcent and Belice were twins already, but she let Belice continue.
“Thankfully, I still beca the empress, but honestly Alexcent had the better skill and the stronger endownt of the ability. If he had been born as a girl, he would have beco the empress instead of . This is sothing Alexcent is aware of, but he is fine with the situation and still offers his assistance from the sidelines.” Belice’s voice wavered slightly with emotion.
“I realized that as I beca happier in my life, Alexcent went the other way. The pressures of supporting and trying to live his own life were too much. I realized then that I had made him into a monster.”
And with that acknowledgent, Belice broke down crying.
***
“I think I ntioned to you once that the guilt you held was because of your children.”
“Yes, you did.” Athyst rembered the ti.
“If your guilt is because of your children, then mine is because of Alexcent. I wanted him to know what love is. I wanted him to be happy, like I was. But his fate didn’t belong in this world. Maybe that’s why he was able to ignore his emotion and beca cruel. I decided to use my ability to explore other worlds, for soone who could soothe Alexcent. One day, I heard soone’s truthful voice through the void. A voice that called to the heavens ‘I want to disappear. Like I never existed.’”
“That was !” Athyst exclaid.
“Athyst, my ability has limits. I can’t challenge the Goddess’ authority. No matter what world we speak of, only the Gods can create a soul. But I thought maybe I could take a little piece of that soul. Just one small piece, out of the many that make up a complete soul. I took the piece that suffered the most pain in your world—Heeyeon’s. Just a single piece, to give you a chance at life. And I mixed it with Athyst, whose soul was disappearing so you could be her.”
“A disappearing soul? Then what happened to real Athyst?” Athyst asked in wonder.
Belice smiled bitterly and continued, “You said your na was Heeyeon. Yes, I know who you were. I was the person who brought you into this world. The real Athyst’s life, unfortunately, ended the day you ca here. She had been destined to beco the God’s guide. I put the piece of your soul into her disappearing one.”
“That ans, even if it wasn’t Athyst, I…”
“That’s right. Even if it wasn’t Athyst, you would’ve still co into this world.”
Athyst couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“The person you are right now is neither Heeyeon nor Athyst. You’re a new person. So you don’t have to feel guilty. You didn’t run from your previous life. You were chosen to co here, and it was my duty to fulfill that choice. Actually, I think it was the Goddess’ will. So, if what I did is a sin, then it’s sothing I have to carry.”
“I was chosen?” Athyst thought for a mont at the absurd notion. The only reason why I ca here and t Alexcent was because of Belice? She couldn’t understand what made her so important. Why this all centred around her. She had so many questions.
“Then what happened to the version of that was living in my previous world?” Athyst asked.
“You already know,” Belice said, cryptically.
“What do you an?” Then she rembered her dream—her other self asking if she was happy like her other self was.
“The piece of soul that I brought was so little that it would not have even been noticed by that version of you. Your soul contains so many different versions for each aspect of your life, like when you went to work, you as a mother, you as a wife, a daughter in law, one for every different situation. It’s likely that the piece of soul that created depression was the one that I took, so you’re most likely living a happy life as a lovely wife, good mother, wise daughter in law, and a competent worker. I just took the one piece of soul that allows Heeyeon to live a satisfying life.”
Athyst didn’t know what to say. It was hard to comprehend that she was a completely different person than both Athyst and Heeyeon were. Belice could see the confusion in her eyes.
“Athyst, why did you co back here now? Is it because you were curious as to who you are? I can’t think that was the only reason.”
Athyst remained silent
“It’s because you love soone so much, you need to overco all of this, isn’t it?” She thought about the past year since she first left Alexcent. She had always wanted to go back but knew that she couldn’t. The endless thought of him had been an unbearable torture. No matter what she did, or how far she ran, he was always there.
“You’re right, I love him. I love him so much that I don’t care if I’m Heeyeon or Athyst or soone completely different. No matter where I was, I wanted to see him, to be by him, to be loved by him. In the end, it was always about him.”
Belice smiled. “That’s what’s most important. In the end, there’s nothing more important than you obeying your feelings.” The empress took hold of her hands.
Tears stread down Athyst’s cheeks. “You’re right. That was what was always important. I’m not Heeyeon or Athyst Lohikin. I’m Ash Skad.”
Reviews
All reviews (0)