The wanderer & The seeker

As the princess’s entourage departed, the entire Hyctria family and their servants bowed deeply, bidding a formal farewell. The dust kicked up by the horses slowly settled, and the village once again fell into silence.

After the royal party had left, Andromeda turned to Nikos, her expression heavy with silent disappointment. Her eyes, usually warm with maternal love, now held a mixture of sorrow and disappointmen. It was as if all the hopes she had placed in Nikos had crumbled before her, leaving her unsure of the son she had raised.

Nikos opened his mouth to explain, to defend himself, but before he could speak, Alexander stepped forward and placed a firm hand on his shoulder. “Well done, Nikos,” Alexander said, his voice steady, but filled with satisfaction. “No, you did excellently, my son. You did exactly what was needed and proved your worth.”

He paused for a moment, his gaze drifting as if lost in thought, then released Nikos’ shoulder. He opened his palms, studying them for a few moments before a sudden, laugh escaped him. “Hahaha! With your brilliance and the backing of Aesop, the mentor of the First Knight, you’ll have everything you need to reach the top—the pinnacle of power and strength! You will seize the throne of power from the symbols of safety and strength.”

His eyes gleamed with ambition as he continued, “Keep striving, Nikos. You’re destined for greatness, and I’ll support you with everything I have.”

Nikos’ mind swirled with confusion as his father’s words echoed in his ears. “My pursuit? he thought, his brows furrowing in bewilderment. This isn’t my pursuit. When did I ever say I wanted to become that?”

Andromeda, watching silently, shook her head in visible exhaustion. Without saying a word, she turned and made her way toward the house.

Behind the tree, Cyrus stood frozen, his mind unable to process what he had just heard. Nikos’words echoed in his head, but everything that followed was nothing more than distant noise, as if the world around him had faded.

The one person who treated me as an equal… Cyrus thought, the painful realization hitting him like a wave. The one person who treated me as a friend, who accepted me, who I trusted more than anyone… His thoughts tumbled over one another, the anguish growing with each passing moment. The one person I wanted to trust, the one person I loved more than anyone, the one who comforted me, laughed with me, played with me, the one I looked up to, the one I aspired to be like…

And now, it was as though the ground beneath him had shattered. The person he had admired most, the one constant in his life, had revealed himself to be nothing more than a hypocrite.

Around Cyrus, his emotions raged in utter chaos. The space felt suffocating, unbearably overwhelming. Sorrow was the loudest, screaming and thrashing, hitting itself in a fit of grief and anger, crying out, “Liar, traitor, hypocrite!”

Fear, in stark contrast, was a trembling figure, curled up on the ground, clutching his knees tightly. His sobs were quiet but relentless, his entire body shaking with confusion as he muttered incoherently, “Alone… nightmare… illusion…”

Hatred stood rigidly in front of the tree, his muscles taut, veins bulging with barely contained rage. His teeth were clenched violently, his eyes fixed on Nikos with an intensity that seemed ready to explode.

And then, standing right next to Cyrus, was a shadowy entity, cloaked in the darkness of the tree. He remained silent, his gaze unwavering as it locked onto Nikos. After a moment, he glanced at Cyrus, and in a calm voice, he said, “Every action has its consequences.”

With those words, he returned his gaze to Nikos, watching silently.

Cyrus didn’t recognize the shadowy entity standing beside him, unlike the familiar emotions that surrounded him. The others, Sorrow, Fear, and Hatred, had always been a part of him. But this figure was different—unfamiliar.

On the other side, Doubt leaned heavily on Cyrus’ shoulder, his voice dripping with irritation as he pointed accusingly at Nikos. “Didn’t I tell you? He’s nothing but a damned liar, pretending to be perfect. But no, you never listen, you ignorant fool.”

Cyrus didn’t respond. After a few seconds, he quietly brushed off Doubt’s hand and began walking away, heading back toward the backyard, mumbling something inaudible to himself.

Doubt, nearly stumbling as he regained his balance, furrowed his brows in anger. He had had enough of Cyrus’ constant retreat, his endless avoidance. With a flash of frustration, Doubt marched toward him, grabbed him forcefully by the shoulder, and yanked him back.

“You damn coward,” Doubt hissed, his voice sharp and biting. “Don’t run away now. Face the truth!” With a rough spin, he turned Cyrus around, forcing him to face him.

Cyrus’s face was contorted in anguish, every part of it—his eyebrows, lips, cheeks, and chin—tight with tension. His eyes brimmed with tears as his breath came in heavy, labored gasps. He muttered incessantly, the words tumbling from his lips in a broken, weary stream: “Hypocrite, traitor, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, liar, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, damn hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, wretched hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, filthy hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, liar, hypocrite, hypocrite, traitor, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, filthy hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, damned hypocrite, traitor, hypocrite, hypocrite, wretched hypocrite, liar, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite…”

Within moments, Doubt collapsed to the ground, his hands shaking as he burst into uncontrollable laughter. His laughter rang out wildly, as though he had just heard the most absurd joke imaginable. Tears streamed down his face as he slapped his knee.

The chaos of Cyrus’s emotions had reached a boiling point, and now even Doubt—his constant critic—could do nothing but laugh at the absurdity of it all.

Everyone’s attention snapped to Doubt, whose hysterical laughter filled the space. Then their gazes shifted to Cyrus. The moment their eyes settled on his tear-streaked face, the emotions around him unraveled further.

Sorrow yanked at his hair even harder, wailing with every ounce of strength left in him. Fear clutched his knees tighter, curling up into a smaller, trembling ball. Hatred, standing rigid, ground his teeth so fiercely it seemed they might crack.

Tears still streamed down Cyrus’s face as he muttered in anguish, “Huh?… What’s so funny?”

Doubt’s laughter finally subsided, and he clutched his chest, gasping for breath. “You,” he said, wiping the tears from his eyes. “You’re the funny one, and nothing else. You’re a pathetic, worthless wretch who has nothing and will never have anything. Just a pitiful failure.” He paused, his lips twitching into a smirk. “Looking at you alone makes me sick, but… pfff… hahaha!” He couldn’t contain himself, breaking into laughter again. “Sorry, sorry, but that face of yours is so disgraceful that I just can’t control myself.”

Cyrus blinked through his tears, barely able to process the words. “Huh?”

Doubt wiped the tears of laughter from his eyes, his grin still lingering. “If you don’t understand,”he said, gesturing around, “look around you. Look at your emotions. Look at your truth.”

Cyrus, still trembling, slowly turned his gaze toward the figures around him. Fear, Anger, Curiosity, Sorrow, Joy, Hate, and Pride stood around him. But none of them would meet his eyes. They shifted uncomfortably, avoiding his gaze as though they couldn’t bear to look at him.

In that moment, a chilling realization hit him like a weight on his chest. Not only had the world, but even these entities were now looking at him with pity.

A hollow laugh escaped his lips, barely a whisper. “So even I pity myself,” he said

In the midst of Cyrus’s spiraling thoughts, Doubt snapped his fingers right in front of his face. “Cyrus.”

Startled, Cyrus fell to the ground, his heart racing. He hadn’t even sensed Doubt’s approach.

Doubt, his grin widening with each passing second, slowly stepped closer. “Cyrus, can’t you hear me? Are you deaf now? Come on, leave something for others, don’t take everything for yourself like that. Hahaha! Alright, enough of that. Tell me, what will you do now?” With each step, Doubt’s smile grew larger, more twisted, as he repeated over and over, “Cyrus, Cyrus, Cyrus, Cyrus.”

Cyrus, frozen in place, was overwhelmed with terror. His mind raced, but all he could hear was the grinding of his own teeth, drowning out everything else. His body refused to move.

When Doubt finally reached him, extending his hand with that grotesque grin, Cyrus’s fear reached its breaking point. He screamed, swatting Doubt’s hand away with all the strength he could muster. Without a second thought, he scrambled to his feet and ran, fleeing from Doubt as fast as his legs could carry him.

In that instant, Cyrus had completely broken down.