“Did you know, Adrian?” Valdrin asked, staring into the distance as though recalling something from the past.
“Do you have any idea how vast this universe is?”
Adrian remained silent.
“Your world is nothing more than a tiny speck among hundreds of galaxies and thousands of worlds.
And somewhere among those worlds lies a realm completely different from yours.”
He paused for a moment before continuing in a calm voice.
“It is a world where a person’s worth is not measured by wealth or bloodline, but by strength.
A world where different races constantly clash, and kingdoms can rise and fall within a single night.
And in that world…
only four beings rule over everything.”
Adrian frowned.
“Four?”
Valdrin nodded.
“Four Guardians.
The Guardian of the East, the Guardian of the West, the Guardian of the North, and the Guardian of the South.
They are the most powerful beings to have ever existed in that world.
With a single gesture, one of them could wipe out an entire kingdom.
With a single strike, they could reshape the map of the world.”
Silence settled between them for a moment before Valdrin continued.
“But despite their absolute power, they were also the beings most bound by the law.”
Adrian raised his eyes.
“The law?”
“Not just one law.
There were several.
But the harshest of them all was the prohibition against Guardians marrying or having families.”
Adrian’s eyes widened slightly.
“Why?”
Valdrin sighed.
“Because Guardians were created to protect everyone, not to love one person more than another.
If a Guardian had a family, they would naturally favor them.
Their judgment would become biased, and they might place their personal feelings above justice.”
He raised one finger and added, “There was another reason as well.
The power of the Guardians was never meant to be passed down to their children.
If that happened, more than one heir could inherit such power, and the world could be plunged into an endless war.”
Silence lingered for several seconds before Valdrin’s tone grew more serious.
“But one of the Guardians broke that law.”
“His name was…
Ildar.”
Valdrin closed his eyes for a moment before continuing.
“He fell in love with a woman from the human race and tried to keep their relationship hidden, but he failed.
When the other Guardians discovered the truth, they passed judgment upon him.”
“Exile…
for all eternity.”
Adrian listened without interrupting, and Valdrin continued.
“But before the sentence could be carried out, they discovered that his wife was pregnant.
So they delayed the punishment until she gave birth.
After the child was born, his wife was sentenced to death.”
Adrian clenched his fist tightly as Valdrin continued in a cold voice.
“As for Ildar, his punishment was different.
He was not executed.
Instead, he was banished to a distant world…
your world…
for all eternity.”
“The Exile Spell cannot be broken, and no being in existence can bring him back from outside that world.
Only the Guardians possess the power to return him.”
Valdrin paused before continuing.
“But his exile had one condition.”
Adrian raised his head with interest.
“What is it?”
Valdrin looked directly into his eyes.
“The Guardian must willingly agree to his own exile.”
Silence filled the room for a moment before Valdrin continued.
“That is why they did not execute his wife before obtaining his consent.
They knew that if he saw her die first, he would never agree to the exile.
there would be no power in the universe capable of forcing him to accept it.”
Valdrin took a slow breath before continuing.
“After Guardian Ildar was exiled, he did not leave that world empty-handed.
He managed to take two of the greatest treasures in existence with him—treasures that no one but the Guardians was permitted to touch.”
Adrian raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
“The first was the Water of Healing.”
Valdrin paused for a moment before adding, “A legendary water with the power to bring the dead back to life.”
Adrian’s eyes widened slightly.
“Then…
why didn’t he bring his wife back to life?”
Silence fell for a moment, and Valdrin’s expression changed before he answered calmly.
“Because his wife did not die an ordinary death.”
“After she died, they made sure to burn her body so there would be no way to restore her soul.”
Adrian lowered his head in silence as Valdrin continued.
“The second ingredient was the Forbidden Apple Tree.
It is not an ordinary tree.
Its fruit is capable of killing any living creature.
Even the Guardians themselves fear approaching it.”
Valdrin straightened in his seat before continuing.
“After his exile, Ildar fell into your world.
Around five hundred years ago, there was a king who ruled his kingdom with justice and peace.
It was during that time that Ildar appeared in this world after his exile.”
He paused for a moment before saying, “But the moment Ildar arrived, he had already lost everything—his wife, his homeland, and the life he once knew.
When someone is exiled from one world to another, their power is greatly weakened, leaving them with only a small portion of what they once possessed.”
“And yet, that small portion of his power was enough to turn the kingdom into hell.
He attacked humans without mercy and killed everyone who stood in his way.
As for the Guardians, they did not interfere at first.
They believed exile would be enough to force him to start a new life far away from them.”
“But they were wrong.”
Valdrin sighed before continuing.
“Years later, they received much more dangerous news.
Ildar had used the forbidden ingredients.
He mixed the Water of Healing with a fruit from the Forbidden Apple Tree, then added a portion of his own power to them…”
“The Power of Rage.”
Adrian frowned.
“What was the result?”
Valdrin lowered his voice.
“The Soul Mirror.”
“A weapon that should never have existed in the first place.
The apple kills the body, while the Water of Healing prevents the soul from leaving, leaving it trapped between life and death.
Neither truly alive…
nor truly dead.”
“Then the Power of Rage binds those souls to the mirror and transforms them into Bimor creatures.”
Silence lingered between them for several seconds before Valdrin continued.
“But the mirror cannot take just anyone’s soul.
There is a condition.
The person must carry deep hatred in their heart, or their past must be filled with pain and rage.”
“That was why it couldn’t take the souls of young children.
They didn’t understand that kind of hatred, nor did they carry wounds deep enough to attract the mirror.”
Adrian nodded.
“Yes.
It couldn’t take their souls, so they became food…”
Valdrin answered, “Food for the Guardians.
They are not monsters that were born with the mirror.
They originally belonged to one of the strongest demon races the world had ever known…
a race that went extinct long ago.”
“But before their extinction…”
“The Guardians chose warriors from that race to become their personal guards and granted them eternal life.”
Valdrin gave a faint smile before continuing.
“Each of the four Guardians has five personal guards.
They accompany their Guardian wherever they go and obey every command they are given, no matter what it is.”
His gaze fixed on Adrian.
“And Malkar…”
Valdrin fell silent for a moment before continuing.
“When the Guardians learned that Ildar had created the Soul Mirror, they realized things had gone far beyond what they could tolerate.
One of the Guardians descended into the human world himself, and a massive battle erupted between him and Ildar.”
“In the end, the Guardian succeeded in sealing Ildar’s soul inside the Soul Mirror itself.
Then a sealing spell was placed on the mirror, and it was buried deep underground in a place no one knew existed.”
Adrian frowned.
“Then…
how did that mirror end up in our city?”
Silence lingered for several seconds before Valdrin slowly shook his head.
“I don’t know.
It was supposed to remain sealed forever.
But somehow, it appeared in your city.”
“As for how that happened…”
“I have no idea.”
Adrian remained silent for a moment before raising his head.
“And what about the Guardians’ personal guards?
Tell me about them, especially Malkar.”
Valdrin nodded calmly.
“There are strict laws in our world.
One of them forbids us from knowing the identities of the Guardians’ personal guards or seeing them unless there is an absolute necessity.
That is why I don’t know their abilities, their traits, or even how powerful they are.”
Adrian remained silent for a few moments before looking at him again.
“I don’t know why you refuse to tell me the truth about the guards while claiming you know nothing about them.
But…
I’ll let it go.”
Valdrin gave a faint smile.
“You’re smart, Adrian.
Since you figured all of this out yourself, be satisfied with what you’ve learned.
Still, don’t assume that we know everything.
There are things that remain a mystery even to us.”
Valdrin remained silent for several seconds before speaking again.
“I always believed that a soul trapped inside the Soul Mirror could never remain aware of what was good…
But as long as its body remained intact, perhaps that gave it a chance.”
“A very small chance…
but it was enough.”
Adrian then said, “My mother transferred a strange power to me.
I don’t know where it came from.”
Silence filled the room.
Valdrin narrowed his eyes and fell deep into thought.
“So…
that’s why he wanted you alive.”
Valdrin remained silent for a moment before speaking calmly.
“That power…
even though it has been tainted by the Power of Rage, it is still part of one of the Guardians’ powers, and they want it back.
It’s dangerous.”
“The angrier you become, the stronger its influence over you becomes.”
“And eventually…”
“You may completely lose control of yourself.”
Adrian remembered the black aura that had surrounded his body.
He remembered how he had lost consciousness during his fight with Malkar, and his expression tightened.
Valdrin looked directly into his eyes.
“That’s why…
you’re coming with me to our world.”
Adrian stared at him in shock.
“To your world?”
Valdrin nodded.
“Only there will you be able to learn how to control this power…”
“Before it learns how to control you.”
Hey everyone!
I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
Things are getting darker for Adrian, and there are still many secrets waiting to be revealed.
Thank you for being here and following Adrian’s journey!