Arthur had scolded him for being reckless the moment he returned home, but Ank had not argued or tried to defend himself.
Even he could not understand why he had rushed toward the mountains the moment he heard that someone was in danger.
If he were the old Ank, he would never have risked his life for a stranger.
He would have simply ignored the situation and continued with his own work.
The lives of strangers had never concerned him unless their existence somehow affected his plans.
But this time, he had acted without thinking.
Something else surprised Ank even more.
A fourteen-year-old girl had scolded him, and the most ironic part was that he had not even been able to stop her.
The First Waestor , The First Emperor of the Universe, the being who had once silenced gods with a single glance, had remained quiet while a fourteen-year-old girl lectured him about being reckless.
Now, lying silently on the bed, Ank found himself thinking about the mysterious woman named Seraphina.
He felt as though he had met her before.
Yet no matter how hard he tried, he could not remember where.
“Ank, what happened to you?” He had already checked his memories again and again.
There were no gaps, no missing pieces, and no signs that any of his memories had been erased.
“So why is this happening?” Ank muttered to himself while staring at the ceiling.
“First, the blue-haired girl.
Whenever I try to remember her, my head starts hurting.
And now, this mysterious woman.” Ank slowly closed his eyes.
“Ank, you have to remember them.” He tried once more.
The moment he focused on their faces, a sharp pain suddenly exploded inside his head.
Ank immediately grabbed his head with both hands as the pain continued increasing, becoming more unbearable with every passing second.
Still, he refused to stop trying.
He desperately searched through his memories, hoping to find even the smallest clue that could explain why those two women felt so familiar to him.
Yet the harder he searched, the stronger the pain became.
In the end, exhaustion finally overcame him, and Ank slowly fell asleep.
Far outside the village, Seraphina and Marek were travelling back toward the mountains.
The forest surrounding them remained peaceful, and only the sound of their footsteps could be heard as they moved between the trees.
Marek glanced toward Seraphina.
“Seraphina, why were you so rude to Ank?
I think he’s a good boy.” Seraphina completely ignored him and continued walking.
Marek waited for an answer, but none came.
The two continued travelling through the forest until they eventually reached the mountain once again.
The atmosphere around the mountain had changed considerably since the previous night.
The smaller monsters had disappeared, and an unnatural silence had settled over the entire area.
Seraphina suddenly stopped walking.
“Marek, are you going to fight it or not?” Marek sighed before shaking his head.
“I’ll pass.
I don’t want my hands covered in blood today.” Seraphina rolled her eyes.
“Marek, you’re too soft for the First Prince of the Empire.” Marek immediately became irritated and pointed a finger at her.
“And you’re too violent for the First Princess of the Empire.” “You…” Seraphina glared at him.
Before Marek could say anything else, Seraphina suddenly rushed deeper into the forest.
She was still wearing her hooded cloak, and as she moved through the trees, two crimson twin swords appeared in her hands.
The blades reflected the faint sunlight passing through the leaves.
“Marek, do you know why I don’t like that boy?” Seraphina suddenly asked while continuing forward.
“Why?” Marek asked curiously.
“Because he is weak.” Her voice became colder.
“He knows he is weak, and he knows very well that he could die.
Yet he still charged toward an entire pack of wolves just to save a child.” Seraphina tightened her grip around the handles of her swords.
“I don’t like people like that.” Before Marek could reply, a deafening roar suddenly echoed throughout the forest.
The ground trembled beneath their feet, and the surrounding trees shook violently as countless birds immediately flew into the sky.
The roar grew louder until a giant wolf slowly emerged from the shadows.
Its height rivaled that of a tree, and its enormous body was completely covered in thick gray fur.
A massive horn protruded from the center of its forehead, while its claws were large enough to tear apart solid stone.
The moment the beast saw Seraphina, it immediately lunged toward her.
Seraphina effortlessly dodged the attack.
The wolf’s massive claws struck the ground.
Boom!
The earth shattered beneath the impact, sending rocks and dirt flying through the forest.
Marek remained standing at a distance with his arms crossed.
“Looks like it’s angry.” Seraphina gracefully landed in front of the monster before slowly turning toward it.
A dangerous smile appeared on her face.
“You know, wolf, I’m already angry because of one boy, and you happened to appear at the perfect time.” The beast roared again.
Dark energy suddenly erupted from its enormous body as its Mortal Blessing activated.
The surrounding ground trembled beneath its power, and a heavy pressure spread throughout the forest.
Yet Seraphina remained completely calm.
“Twin Sword King Blessing.” The two crimson swords in her hands immediately began glowing with a brilliant red light.
Then she threw both swords.
The twin blades cut through the air at terrifying speed, piercing through the wind itself as they flew directly toward the enormous wolf.
Before the monster could react, both swords struck its head.
Everything became completely silent.
Then the wolf’s head exploded.
Blood scattered throughout the forest as its massive body collapsed onto the ground.
The impact shook the earth beneath them, but Seraphina did not even look at the corpse.
She casually recalled her twin swords before turning around and walking toward Marek.
“Let’s go.
We’ve already wasted enough time here, and we need to report back to the Emperor.” Marek nodded and began following her.
However, something still bothered him.
“Seraphina.” She continued walking.
“What?” “What you said earlier…” Marek hesitated.
“Are you really angry with that boy?” “Yes.” Seraphina answered immediately.
Marek blinked in confusion.
“What?
How?” He quickly moved closer to her.
“You only met him once.
He’s just a weak boy.” This time, Seraphina did not respond immediately.
Instead, she became completely silent.
A strange expression appeared beneath her hood as she struggled with a feeling she could neither understand nor explain.
The moment she had seen Ank’s face, something inside her had changed.
A strange feeling had appeared in her heart, one that refused to disappear no matter how much she tried to ignore it.
It felt as though she had known Ank for a very long time, as though he was someone important whom she should remember.
Yet she had never met him before.
At least, that was what she believed.
And that feeling irritated her.
Why was she feeling this way?
Why did Ank’s face seem so familiar?
And most importantly, what was the relationship between them?
Neither Ank nor Seraphina knew that something was silently watching them.
Far beyond the stars and far beyond the reach of the gods, a figure covered in endless white light stood in complete silence.
Her face could not be seen, and her presence could not be felt by any being in existence, as though reality itself refused to acknowledge that she existed.
Yet somehow, she was there.
She silently watched Ank before slowly turning her attention toward Seraphina.
A faint smile appeared on her face, but it was not a smile of amusement or joy.
It was a smile of recognition.
As though she had witnessed this exact scene before.
“So the Universe still chooses this path…” Her gaze slowly returned to Ank.
“Ank…” The way she spoke his name was filled with affection and sorrow, as though she had waited an eternity just to say it again.
Her smile deepened slightly, but then something dark suddenly flashed through her eyes.
The surrounding space trembled.
“No one will hurt you this time.” Her voice became colder.
“Not them.
Not fate.
And especially not her.” The warmth in her voice completely disappeared, leaving behind nothing but terrifying determination.
A strange silence followed her words, as though even the Universe itself had become quiet and was listening to her promise.
“I will make sure of it.
This time, you will find the happiness that was stolen from you.” The endless white light surrounding her body slowly scattered into countless glowing particles.
One by one, the particles disappeared into the endless void until her figure could no longer be seen.
Yet her final whisper remained behind.
It was soft and gentle, but every word carried a promise that could not be broken.
“A mother does not make the same mistake twice.” Then she vanished completely..