Inside Relia's mind…
Everything was frozen.
No more sound. No more pain. No more walls, no more flames, no more steel. The world had vanished.
Relia floated in a vast, silent space, bathed in a faint golden light. In front of her, suspended in darkness, a screen took form. Like a fragile projection deep within her memory.
The image slowly came into focus. Blurry at first. Then clear.
A man appeared.
In his fifties. Slightly overweight, yet visibly strong. His face was gentle, almost soothing. Clean-shaven. His hair formed a ring around his bald head — a crown of brown hair circling the sides, the top entirely bare.
He looked at her. Then smiled.
"Hello, my dear Relia… it's Dad."
His voice echoed through the void, like a warm, trembling whisper.
"This message… is made possible thanks to something called a 'message syringe.' I don't know if you've ever heard of it. It's an old invention. A magical needle that hides a message deep inside the mind… and only reveals itself at the brink of death."
His eyes dropped for a moment.
"I hope, my daughter… that this moment has only come after a long and beautiful life. But if it has… that means I've been dead for quite some time. You know, I wasn't immortal," he said with a soft smile.
He took a long breath.
"So… let me tell you your true story."
He closed his eyes, a deep crease of pain forming across his brow.
"Ever since you were little, you were told that you were taken in by an elven family. That you had survived an attack by one of the Seven Calamities. That your village was burned down, your people slaughtered..."
Silence.
"That was a lie."
His face tightened.
"And I regret with all my heart what I'm about to say."
He straightened slightly, despite the shame.
"It wasn't the Calamities. It was… us."
Relia felt something crack inside her. But she couldn't look away.
"The current king ordered us to find an elven village. To forge an alliance. Your race's light magic is the most powerful weapon against Calamities. But your people refused. They said they wanted to remain neutral. They said no..."
He paused.
"So the king gave a new order: wipe them out. Make an example."
He lowered his gaze. His fists clenched.
"We poisoned their food. Just enough to paralyze them. And as their strength faded… we attacked."
The silence grew heavier. Images now crossed the screen: burning homes, terrified faces, voiceless screams.
"We slaughtered them. Burned their houses. Killed their women. Their children."
His voice trembled.
"And in the midst of all that… I found you."
The image changed. A baby Relia. Silent. Eyes wide open, not crying—just watching.
"You were strangely calm for a baby. You stared at me. As if you already understood everything. I picked you up in my arms."
He wiped a tear from his cheek.
"But my superiors took you away. And a few days later… the king summoned me. He had decided: you would be raised as a human. Trained. Forged into Chronos's ultimate weapon."
Valemir raised his eyes, and this time they were deeply human.
"And he gave that mission… to me."
"At first… I resisted. My wife — your adoptive mother — couldn't bear the idea of raising a non-human child. But… the years went by."
He smiled faintly.
"You grew up. You were brilliant. Brave. Quiet. And before we even realized it… you became our daughter."
A tear rolled down his cheek.
"I love you, my dear Relia."
"Long after your mother passed… you were still there. And with each passing day, the guilt ate away at me. I never had the courage to tell you the truth. That's why I left this message."
He took another long breath.
"I hope you're not hearing it too soon. Maybe in sixty years… or two hundred… who knows how long elves can live, huh?" he said, scratching his head with a half-smile, half-sorrowful look.
He tilted his head slightly.
"I'm sorry."
"Sorry that human greed tore you from your true parents."
"Sorry I didn't have the strength to love you honestly from the very start."
"But I hope… that one day, in another world… you'll be able to forgive me."
He reached out, as if to gently touch her cheek.
"Goodbye, Relia."
The image faded slowly.
And silence returned.