The Author's POV

[Ashton City Community Orphanage]

The dimly lit candles within the chapel flickered continuously, casting an eerie glow over the interior.

The alternating orange and black hues of the room created an unsettling atmosphere, one that was heightened by the silence within.

The only sound that could be heard was the gentle whistling of the wind outside, which seemed to creep in through the cracks and crevices of the old building.

Clank―!

As the minutes ticked by, the silence was suddenly broken by a loud clank. A certain door within the chapel burst open, and a nun rushed out from it.

"Oh, no,no,no... no..."

She had a panicked expression on her face, her eyes wide with fear.

"No… no, how can it be?"

There was a certain madness in her face as she muttered to herself in a voice barely above a whisper. Her words were barely coherent, as if she were speaking to someone who wasn't there.

"It must be a mistake."

The nun's pace quickened as she moved across the chapel, her feet making little noise on the stone floor.

"No... no... no..."

Her gaze was fixed on a certain statue, and as she drew closer, her expression grew even more desperate. With trembling hands, she clasped her hands together and fell to her knees.

Thump!

"Protector."

She whispered, her voice barely audible.

Her eyes burned with reverence as she looked up at the statue, which towered over her from above.

The statue was her faith, the embodiment of all that she held sacred. And yet, just moments before, she had felt her faith shaken.

She wasn't sure why, but the feeling had been so strong that she couldn't ignore it.

Believing that she had sinned in some way, she rushed toward the statue in order to amend her mistake.

Crack―! It was right when she was about to pray that a sharp sound shattered the quiet of the chapel.

The nun's gaze shot to the statue, her eyes widening in horror.

Cracks had formed on the outer shell of the statue, spiderwebbing out in all directions. The sight froze the nun, whose expression paled considerably.

"P..Protector," she whispered, her hoarse voice echoing within the empty chapel. Her eyes shook slightly as she felt her throat become dry, all semblance of energy leaving her aged body.

Crack! Crack!

More cracks formed on the statue, further shocking the nun, who simply gazed at the statue in utter shock.

She found herself unable to move, and by the time a minute had passed, the statue was littered with cracks.

"I..it can't be..."

With each crack that formed on the statue, the more the nun's expression changed. It was as if the statue were a living being, and the nun could sense its pain.

Wobble.

"No!"

She cried out, rushing toward the statue. She could feel that it was soon going to fall.

"No!"

She hugged the statue, trying her best to stop it from falling. She was desperate. The statue represented her faith, her beliefs, and her very being. If it broke apart, so would she.

She couldn't allow it to happen!

But...

"N,no!"

was a crack like the many others that had littered the statue, but once this crack formed, the entire

"No!!"

Rumble―!

thousand different pieces crumbled down, unable to remain in

"Nooooo!"

watching the statue before her

of rock directly crashed onto her, burying her beneath the rubble.

hand, which

that would never

'Ohm' 'Ohm' 'Ohm'

were the size of a marble, and

orbs hovered above the shattered remains of the statue, their

energy as if they were

blue light intensifying with each rotation. They moved faster and faster, creating a vortex of energy that crackled with

with tension, as

lay buried under the rubble, but even in death, she seemed to be aware of the strange

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

like shooting stars. They passed through the walls of the chapel as if

the chapel

out, leaving the chapel

engulfed the chapel. As the orbs disappeared, a deep rumbling sound filled the air, and the ground beneath the chapel began to

louder and more insistent. The

and debris rained down upon the shattered remains of

Crash―!

The chapel collapsed.

***

[Union Tower, Top floor]

as he flipped through the papers that lay scattered in front of

Flip―! Flip―!

the pages as he studied each one with a languid gaze. There was no hint

"Hm?"

usually calm and hazy, flicked toward

feet, he approached the window and looked out at the sky. A large crack had appeared, and

"What's going on?"

murmured to himself, his

to discern what was

wave of…

body freeze in place

on the shore of the ocean, watching as a powerful wave came crashing down on

But this was different.

wave seemed to be unable to affect the

Swoosh―!

mana splashed everywhere, washing over the earth like a giant

could feel himself getting closer and closer to the threshold of , just one step away from the pinnacle

nowhere, a blue orb appeared in front of

hurtled towards him with a speed that he couldn't react to, and before he could even attempt to dodge, it slammed into his forehead with a

"Ukh."

head recoiling backward as he

the air, the space around him began to shift and

he thought he had long

"Haaaa... Haaaa..."

air, his breath coming in ragged gasps as

feelings began to rise up within him. His expression changed rapidly, alternating between a smile, a frown, and tears that

seconds, he went through a myriad of emotions before finally settling on a smile that was

gazed at his hands, feeling a sense of exhilaration that

body trembled, and so did his mouth as he silently mumbled to

"I...I'm free."

***

[Apartment ― 1576]

"Hmm."

expression on Liam's face, they would be

"Hmmmm."

jaw. It seemed as though the more time

"Hmmmmmmmmm."