Chương 1: Betrayal and the Void

The sword hung limply from his hand, and as he dragged it after him, it ground against the floor loudly. His armor, always white, pure, and unblemished, was shattered beyond repair. The mighty arms, capable of cutting apart the skies with his sword, couldn't even support it properly now. Yuto Velkyne, the hero, the favored young king of the Constellation of the Broken Star, walked in silence. His legs barely functioned, and rapidly they lost their strength, but he walked on. His body was dying.

The sword that had pierced his back poked out through his chest. As if that wasn't enough, his entire body was scorched by lightning. A superhuman mental effort was keeping him going, but he was at his limit. The ether that kept his otherwise spent body moving would soon run out. Come on... keep walking! He swallowed the blood that filled his mouth. He had already spilled too much of it. Even if it was meaningless to swallow it, as it wouldn't return to his veins, he didn't want to vomit any more blood.

He knew that if he let go, fell over, and closed his eyes, he would soon be free of this terrible pain, but that wasn't a choice he could make. There was too much despair inside him, too much rage, burning in his eyes, and they kept him from succumbing. He couldn't just give up now, if only for the sake of his partner, who had allowed him to escape. Then there was his wife, who had died a terrible death as he watched, and his daughter, who had been taken from him. He couldn't let the pain and despair overwhelm him.

If he died now, everything would lose meaning. His partner would have died a meaningless death to allow him to leave. His wife had screamed their daughter's name even as she died, and the sounds still echoed in his skull. A hiss came from the back of his hand as he dragged his sword and feet forward. It brought a rush of pain, as if his skin were being branded. Yuto bit his lip and looked down. The light of the Broken Star, the Constellation that had guided his steps and given him power, was petering out.

In fact, it was leaving him. Yuto glared at the mark on the back of his hand with hatred in his eyes. The same Constellation had turned Yuto into a hero, guided him with their light through every crisis, and protected him. But when Yuto needed help most, they failed to show up. Today could have been the happiest day in Yuto's life, but the Broken Star had chosen this day to betray him, along with Yuto's closest friend who was a brother in everything but blood. Shiro.

Just thinking about the name set Yuto's lips trembling with fury. Shiro Ristal was the name of that friend, the prince of the nearby Kingdom of Ristal. They had been like brothers since a young age, before they could even hold a coherent conversation. To Yuto, whose father, the king, passed away when Yuto was only nine, Shiro was a brother. Shiro. Shiro Ristal. Yuto ground his teeth. The name had once rolled off his tongue, infused with affectionate friendship, but now...

it made him physically tremble to even think of it. They had fought so many battles together. Where Yuto's sword could not reach, Shiro's had gone. When Yuto was in danger, Shiro had willingly braved it with him. He would never have become a "hero" without Shiro. In fact, in Callisto, the term referred to both Yuto and Shiro together. Shiro wasn't just Yuto's beloved friend. Shiro's little sister was Yuto's wife. They were undeniably family, even if they didn't share any blood.

And tonight, his brother and best friend had sunk his sword into Yuto's back. Yuto had witnessed Shiro's bright smile, which he'd known since childhood, distorted with mockery. He had watched as Shiro killed his beloved sister with no display of emotion, and grabbed his crying niece like some piece of baggage. Why? Yuto clutched his chest. The open wound left there by treachery was still spilling his hot blood. Why did you betray us?

Together they had learned to fight with the sword from a young age; together they had trained; together they had shared a bond. Yuto did not begrudge his friend his respect. They had even promised to rule their kingdoms together, and even to work toward creating a better world. You were my companion, my comrade in war. When my father passed... you pitied me. You cried for me. Yuto's father had been mysteriously murdered, and then Yuto had become king. He was only nine at the time.

It was thanks to the Ristal's aid that Velkyne did not fall apart, and Yuto was able to find his bearings as the new king. They'd been by each other's side for so many years, and fought so many battles together. Shiro could have betrayed him at any point if he had wanted to. And we were getting closer to world peace. They had defeated the Seven Eclipses, who had unleashed chaos on the world. That accomplishment had only been the beginning of a holy war, but still, it was a measurable step in the right direction.

So why? Why did you do it? Bright red flames had swallowed Velkyne up tonight. Shiro Ristal, brother, companion, and hero, had brought his own army as well as that of the Valisthera Empire and trampled Velkyne. None of it makes any sense. The peace we had was hard-earned. So why... Trust in Shiro still lingered in a part of Yuto's mind despite what had happened. He didn't want to admit it. Perhaps there was a reason behind it, something unavoidable that forced Shiro's hand.

Or maybe all of this was just a terrible dream. How else could he explain it? His closest and most trusted friend had struck him when he was feeling happier than he'd ever been, and even Yuto's Constellation, the Broken Star, had had a part in it. That was absurd. It couldn't be real.

"Haha."

"Hahahaha!" Mocking laughter echoed in Yuto's hazy mind as he tried to deny his reality. There was more than one voice—dozens of them, all laughing at him inside his head.

"Hahahaha!" They wouldn't stop. His head felt like it would explode. His brain was cooking in the magma that filled his skull. The legs that had continued to walk despite the fatal wound came to a stop, then trembled. Yuto had enjoyed the Constellations' favor, and everyone had praised him, but this loud, eerie laughter was too much.

"Ugh...!" He sank to his knees. His heart felt like it would explode, and his vision spun. It meant nothing that he was a hero. To the Constellations, he was just another human being. He didn't want to admit it, but right now it was impossible to deny. This was not a bad dream. The clear, taunting jeers in his head told him the truth. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"A hero?" Beings in the sky, far beyond the realm of human understanding, whispered to him now.

"Who do you think turned you into one?"

"Hahaha! A hero? You? You're just a failure."

"You achieved nothing in the end. Even this tragic defeat is for our entertainment." His heart beat faster. Yuto clutched his head. He was starting to realize who these voices belonged to, and it made his heart sink with despair: the Constellations themselves. The very beings who created this world, lighthouses of humanity in the darkness, were deriding him now. Yuto set his teeth.

"Shut... up!" He had not always known. Like everyone else, he had worshiped the benign Constellations, and with their help, fought the evil which threatened the world with chaos. It made the dreadful revelation, when it came, all the more terrible. The Constellations did not always want what was best for the world, or for humanity. Just as good and evil existed among humans, so there were well-meaning Constellations and malevolent ones. His father had realized this, and for that sin, he had been killed.

As it turned out, the enemy he had sought so desperately floated high above him, in the heavens. The world was a game to them, and their amusement was their only concern. The histories of kingdoms, the lives of humans, were nothing but entertaining performances. When Shiro and Yuto swore to make the world a peaceful place, their oath included freeing it from the Constellations' evil grip.

"Your efforts accomplished nothing."

"You failed!"

"That is your fate."

"You can struggle, but you'll always be alone." Shiro had let Yuto down and abandoned their oath. The Broken Star, who had been his guide, left him when Yuto needed help most. The awe-inspiring accomplishment of taking down every one of the Seven Eclipses, the righteous goal of freeing the world of the influence of the vile Constellations, was reduced to nothing.

"Do you see it now? Your entire life was a play, a performance to please us."

"You became a hero because we wanted it."

"And you're dying now because we're tired of you." Yuto laughed as he sat on his knees. The blood welled up in his throat and dripped to the floor when he laughed.

"I see it now." It was all theatrics, directed and written by them. The only person in the dark had been Yuto. Yuto Velkyne was the fool, the protagonist of a story that wasn't real, who thought every action was of his own volition. Soon, the play would end amid the Constellations' laughter, and so would his life. That was how it was designed. Yuto was furious, but despair gripped him.

"Ha... Hahaha!" The realization set in that thirty-five years of his life, his entire life, was reduced to a toy. They only laughed louder. They were enjoying the climax.

"No, no." A warm voice pierced the taunts filling his skull.

"Yuto Velkyne, hero of Callisto, not all the Constellations want to see you dead." The laughter vanished, and so did Yuto's pain.

"Not everyone enjoys this tragedy. You devoted yourself to making the world a better place, and you have the right to be happy." Soon, another voice chimed in. The blood flowing from his chest wound began to slow down.

"You want revenge against the traitor who took everything from you. You can have it. You're still alive, after all. But that won't be enough. You need power, more of it, if you want to strike back." Snickering resounded. Then something appeared in front of Yuto. [The "Dream Weaver" suggests a new ending.] [The "Silent Archivist" supports your happiness.] [The "Explorer of Gold" whispers of an opportunity for revenge.] Yuto's eyes trembled, and a thunderous voice filled his mind.

"Please understand. This was a test, and a necessary one. It was the best way to change your fate." Yuto flinched and shivered. He knew that voice. It was the Broken Star, who had blessed him so many times. [The "Broken Star" offers his aid to you again.] Yuto inhaled, watching the offers in front of him. He knew all of these names, "Broken Star" most of all. He moved a shaky hand toward the messages, while the voices in his head waited in silence. They seemed genuinely interested in how he would react.

But that was all. He sensed only expectation for further entertainment, not any sympathy or understanding for the broken and betrayed Yuto. He gritted his teeth and swung his fist. The first to shatter was the offer from the Broken Star. Then he destroyed the others as well.

"Right to the end..." he said. The pain was coming back now. The blood started pouring out of his chest again.

"You... treat me like a fool," Yuto spat, getting unsteadily to his feet, clutching his bleeding chest, and dragging his sword behind him. Then he started walking again. The voices that spoke non-stop inside his mind stopped all at once. All he could hear now was the grinding of his blade against the floor, the dragging of his feet, and the splash of each step through his blood. Are they gone now? he wondered.

"... Hahaha!"

"... Hahahaha! Haha!"

"See? I told you it wouldn't fool him!"

"So you're not a total idiot, then!" The mocking voices were back, dozens of them mixing and creating an awful din. They seemed to expand outside his skull and reverberate off the underground corridor's walls. He felt dizzy.

"What an obstinate human being! You haven't let go of your pride, even now?"

"What if we actually meant what we said?" They chattered noisily, but he ignored them and walked on. Their offers had been contradictory and not aligned with what he really wanted anyway. It wasn't revenge he truly desired right now. He wanted his dead wife back, as well as his partner, and he wanted to save his daughter. The Broken Star's words disgusted him. For the best? In order to change my fate? A test meant for my own good? I'd rather... His legs faltered again as he forced them to move.

It was not because of the Constellations; his body was so weak he really couldn't walk anymore. He was almost blind now, and the laughter in his head was growing faint. If I had just one more chance... he thought. At that very moment, something swallowed up the annoying voices. Something was influencing the world around him. He could no longer sense the Constellations. Yuto's world grew unstable.

"Impossible!" The Constellations were screaming in the distance.

"What! The Void? But how?" A darkness rushed in from the other end of the passageway and surrounded him. Dark tentacles rose from the floor and twitched bizarrely around him. This darkness had rid Yuto of the laughter and the mocking stares. Its tendrils were faint, maybe not of this world. The limbs approached him now. They seemed to flicker like static, and a different type of message, clearly different from those of the Constellations earlier, came into view. [The Void is watching you.] Yuto's dying heart beat faintly. Yuto stood there, staring at the swaying appendages. They had no eyes, but strangely enough, Yuto felt them watching him. There was no ridicule or excitement in that gaze, just silence.

"You..." Yuto blurted out. A swaying tendril moved toward his chest and dabbed the wound.

"Oh..." The moment it made contact, Yuto instinctively realized the kind of being he was dealing with. This being was far stronger than the Constellations who had been making a racket in his head, strong enough to silence them in the blink of an eye. They did not make any ridiculous offers. They simply arrived and let their presence do the talking. Yuto grew sure of something. Whoever this was, they had the power to undo the horrible damage that had been done.

They did not make any suggestions, but if Yuto desired it and accepted them, they could easily make Yuto's wishes into reality. Yuto set his teeth, then dropped his sword. He gripped the limb with his sword hand and shoved it into his wound.

"I don't know who you are," he said. The blood coming from his chest turned black, and so did the blood coming out of his mouth. The darkness was spreading in Yuto's eyes, too. He glared at the tendril. The darkness that filled the corridor seemed to be closing in on him.

"But I don't care." The appendage squirmed inside his chest. The darkness consumed his dying body and shattered soul.

"It doesn't matter." The darkness condensed around him, then began to bubble, but it did not speak. It just watched Yuto silently. Yuto twisted his lips, covered with black blood.

"All I know is this. I need you." He gripped the appendage tighter, then shoved it all the way in, down to the root. The darkness wolfed him down.