Chapter 78 Yara's Death
Isaac's mind gradually calmed down, except for practicing his swordsmanship.
He also frequently went to the temple to listen to the priests' prayers and narrations.
When he heard the stories about his father and God from the priests, he felt both curious and a little proud, after all, that was his father.
He gradually became fascinated by those myths and legends...
Because of this interest, under the priests' tutelage, he learned to read and write.
This greatly helped him in the future.
Isaac also began to pester his father, asking if this story or that story was true, and Yara would answer fluently, saying this was false, that was true, and so on...
Time flew by.
Isaac slowly grew up.
Dicttis and Perseus would make time every year to visit Canaan, like a vacation.
Whenever Perseus came,
Isaac, though knowing he couldn't win,
would still pester Perseus for a fierce, evenly matched duel.
Of course, without exception, Isaac lost.
But Isaac had a good attitude now; even in defeat, he wasn't discouraged.
Those stories and legends about the gods became his spiritual solace...
And when he was ten years old,
after his duel with Perseus,
the two lay on the grass, watching the sunset, talking about the vastness of the world.
"I'll probably pass the Silver Trial this year..."
"Become a Silver Warrior..."
Perseus, with his arm as a pillow, legs crossed, chewing on a blade of grass.
This only happened once a year in Canaan, when he was with Isaac.
He was at his most relaxed...
"Impressive, but I'll catch up to you in the future!"
"Although I'm not good at swordsmanship, and I don't have any talent…"
"But I've discovered that I'm better at reading and writing than anyone else."
"Perhaps in the future…"
"I'll become a priest or a scholar?"
Isaac spoke, his pupils reflecting the setting sun in the sky, his eyes slightly narrowed.
And just as the two were lost in their melancholy…
Old Tyr hurriedly found Isaac, his expression anxious, filled with sorrow and melancholy. He called out to Isaac, who was leisurely enjoying the sunlight on the ground:
"Isaac, Isaac…"
"Go home quickly, your father is looking for you…"
"He's about to die."
...
Since the day of the Battle of the Temple.
Ara felt a persistent heaviness in his head, accompanied by intermittent, dull ache. He knew this was likely the sign the Lord of the Ravens had spoken of—a sign that his soul was about to shatter…
In the years that followed,
his mind grew increasingly clouded each year.
It was as if he were constantly staying up all night.
In his early years, he was able to overcome the drowsiness and plan for Canaan's future… but the further he went, the more confused his thinking became, worse each year…
He even began issuing many wrong orders: good farmland was allocated for pasture; several inhabited houses were demolished; a blind man was appointed as an inspector, a mute as a mediator, a lame man as a hunter, and a priest as a bartender…
When he realized something was wrong, he ceased all work and relinquished control of Canaan to the trusted elders of Canaan.
And she, she would only be responsible for taking care of the family...
Of course, at first, when Sarah learned that Yara was giving up his duties as leader of Canaan to devote himself entirely to his family, she was quite happy. Having more time with her husband was something every loving wife hoped for...
The two also enjoyed several sweet months together. As long as they left little Isaac with Tyr, it felt like they had returned to the sweet days of their first love...
However, this happy period didn't last long. Yara found his mind becoming increasingly confused. What he had just put down... The next second, he forgot where he was. Sarah had just told him to gather some firewood, but Yara immediately fell asleep. Even worse, in the dead of night, Yara almost mistook Shiaga for Sarah…
Because of this, Sarah gradually noticed something was wrong with her husband. After Sarah repeatedly questioned him… her husband once again inadvertently revealed the truth—
"My soul is shattered; I only have ten years to live…"
When he said this, Sarah was stunned. She was a smart woman; she knew this must have been calculated from when he returned from Argos.
When she learned this, Yara probably only had a year left to live…
This was like a bolt from the blue for Sarah…
What saddened her even more was her husband's increasingly deteriorating condition and his constant self-blame.
Yara's sleep schedule began to become chaotic. He could work energetically for three or four days straight without closing his eyes, yet he could also sleep for two or three days straight, impossible to wake up.
At night, even in his sleep, he was constantly plagued by sleep talking and screams from nightmares.
One night, Ara lay awake in the darkness, repeatedly shouting about the King of Argos killing his wife, about cannibalism, children, the Nemean lion and the lamb…
It was as if all the enemies he had defeated ten years prior had become illusions, returning to his side. He even drew a dagger in the night, and had Sarah not stopped him, he nearly turned on himself.
Sarah was terrified, but there was nothing she could do…
Then, on a certain day in the tenth year…
He wrote a letter to Dicttis. The papyrus letter was carried by messengers across mountains and rivers, avoiding wild beasts and bandits, to the palace of Argos…
After reading the letter, Dicttis immediately set off for Canaan with Pan and Perseus.
Meanwhile, the messengers from Corinth and Sparta were outside the palace in Argos, negotiating important collaborations or other business requests...
However, Dicttis turned them all down, disregarding everything, boarded his chariot, and rode at breakneck speed to Canaan, solely to see the uncrowned king of Canaan...
The letter read:
"Dictis, my friend..."
"I foresee the day I will ascend to heaven..."
"In thirteen days..."
"Come to Canaan, I have something to tell you..."
"—Your dearest friend, Ara."
When they arrived in Canaan, it was the twelfth day.
Canaan remained peaceful.
Ara had not told many people about this.
At Ara's door...
Dicttis and Pan, seeing their old friend's appearance, wept...
He was dressed in white, like a mourning robe or a priest's gown, his long hair casually draped over his shoulders, his beard and hair completely white. Although his skin wasn't particularly aged, he looked like a frail old man...
Yara's face was kind and gentle, his arms slightly outstretched.
His white robe, like angel wings, carried a touch of holiness.
He smiled, standing at the door to greet his old friend.
As if awaiting death.
He was clearly human, walking towards death...
But in a daze, he seemed like a god among men.
Half in the human world.
And the other half in heaven.
...