Mytri lay face down on the ground, sobbing silently, "Why… I'm useless… What is my strength for… when I couldn't even protect… The person I loved the most,"
He lay on a dune of pulverized stone. On the edge of the crater, four people approached.
Three elven guards flanked the entrance, their bodies entirely encased in a strange, vein-like armor of deep green. It wasn't painted; the pattern was textured, as if the metal had grown around them.
Between them stood Nimloth, unmistakable with her long white hair and startling pink eyes that shone like polished rose quartz. The living armor of the guards made her seem all the more ethereal, a single pale blossom against a wall of dark ivy.
Truly a queen of elves.
"What is the meaning of this?" She said as she looked ahead of her, seeing the destruction. Total annihilation of the land, as far as her eyes could see, only destruction emerged. Only a small line on the horizon, only far there were the trees.
She looked to the right and saw a rift, a newly formed rift stretching far towards the ancient tree's castle wall. Her eyes widely opened, the destruction of the forest she could ignore, but the ancient walls were annihilated, an enormous crack in the wall.
Nimloth looked back at the crater and saw him, Mytri. "Mytri? Was it you?" She jumped down and ran towards there despite the knights shouting "Please, my queen don't go there!"
They themselves were terrified by what had happened here, trembling and sweating profusely.
she fell to her knees and shook him by his shoulders " Mytri! What h-had happened here!" Her voice trembled and cracked.
"I'm sorry. It's all my fault,"
"No! stand up! Tell me, I am not mad, please explain!"
"He's dead," Mytri said in a hollow, empty voice.
"Mytri!" Nimloth shouted atop her lungs, "Who's dead!? Please don't say such things!"
"He"
"Mytri! Who's he! Please speak up clearly, you are scaring me!" Nimloth shouted
"Lue"
Nimloth fell silent as her mouth grew agape, she covered it with her hand and looked slowly at Mytri, "No… How?" She mumbled under her nose.
Mytri slowly stood back up, looking right at the clouds. Clouds that covered the sun. "My little sun… my little sun is gone…"
His face was a silent ruin. His eyes, red-rimmed and vacant, spilled tears that traced clean paths through the dust and grime on his cheeks. His mouth was slack, jaw trembling faintly, as if his body had forgotten how to hold itself together.
Mytri looked to the left, at the destruction and said plainly, "I'm sorry, Nimloth. I've destroyed part of your capital. I'll face the consequences"
"No… I don't care that you did it! WHO DID IT! WHO KILLED YOUR SON?" Nimloth said
"I don't know"
Nimloth shot right up and hugged Mytri tightly saying "I am so sorry. I am so sorry for you. I am so sorry for your loss, ", She stepped back and looked him straight in the eyes, as she herself had her eyes filled with tears, "Tell me everything. I'll find this monster myself."
"Right… necromancer. skull necklace. bones instead of body. a cloak obscuring his whole body. That's all"
Mytri turned right and slowly walked away from Nimloth "I'm sorry. I need to rest,"
Nimloth watched him as he walked away from him, she bit down on her lip and shouted "I will do whatever I can to locate him. I will find him!"
"right… do as you wish," Mytri said as he waved with the back of his hand, while hunching his back forward.
"A … What will I tell Merry?" Mytri muttered under his nose.
"Right… I'm a failure.
***
Mytri slowly walked through the adventure guild. The always full and crowded guild was now empty and no one in sight beside Merry.
"Merry had silky long brown hair and deep green eyes. That's all I could remember at that time.
I think I said more to her but all I remember saying was "I'm sorry. Lue is dead" and turned back to my home.
I heard her falling to her knees and profusely crying, to the point that I couldn't hear my steps.
I walked home and sat on my sofa and just… sat there. I didn't eat nor drink for the entirety of the month, which was twenty five days. I hated my body at that time, not eating, not even drinking could kill me.
So I began to drink alcohol, heavens, a lot of alcohol. For convenience I moved to my room and just… Existed there.
I was so wasted that I could barely see not to think of speaking or walking.
I think Nimloth came saying "There was no progress yet… But I'll find that monster" don't remember when she came.
And as well as Merry, saying I think "I don't hate you," Or something like that.
And after two or three years I developed total immunity to alcohol. So I couldn't even be wasted anymore
That's all there is to the story of how I failed as a Master and a Father," Mytri said.
In the quiet of the forest, beneath the sheltering branches of a great oak tree, birds chirped softly and leaves rustled in the breeze. Mytri sat cross-legged before Lue's grave, his gaze distant and thoughtful, while Luna curled contentedly in his lap.
Mytri slowly looked down at Luna and his breath stopped immediately as he saw her, "Luna… Why are you… crying?"
Luna watched the tomb with her deep, empty hollow eyes. Her eyes were filled with tears, slowly throttling down on each side. Her silent cry turned loud. She gripped Mytris' shirt and wept. 'I'm… I'm s-sorry! I was bad, I shouldn't have acted that way! Please… Don't hate me!"
"I was ungrateful! You lost your son that way and I asked you to be like your son! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! Please don't hate me!"
Mytri slowly looked at her, his mouth agape. He hugged Luna tightly. "Luna, what are you saying? I would never hate you. You are my precious disciple, and I care about you. I said what I said because I was terrified of losing you. I will train you harder from now on, so that you'll be able to do whatever you want in life."
Tears welled in Luna's eyes and spilled down her cheeks as she buried her face in his chest. "I care about you too!"
She coughed blood onto his chest and continued, "I will! I will keep training, no matter what! I promise you. I will become like you so that you won't have to worry. That's a promise!"
Mytri gently pressed her head to his chest and smiled. "I see… I trust you."