Virat: Abandoned by Destiny

Narrator

"The moon tonight..."

"Looks exactly the same as it did yesterday."

"The stars continue to shine."

"The wind continues to blow."

"And people..."

"Continue believing what they see."

"But appearances..."

"Can be deceiving."

"No one in this world truly knows..."

"What is real..."

"And what is false."

"Except me."

"Yes..."

"You heard that correctly."

"Because..."

"A half-truth..."

"Is far more dangerous..."

"Than a lie."

The excitement surrounding the Skill Appraisal Ceremony had finally faded.

The Grand Church slowly returned to its usual peace.

Families left the Holy Kingdom carrying smiles...

Dreams...

Or silent disappointments.

The streets, so lively during the day, gradually became quieter as evening approached.

Golden sunlight gave way to the gentle glow of lanterns.

A cool breeze drifted through the stone roads.

Far away...

The bells of the Grand Church rang softly.

The city was finally beginning to rest.

The small hotel where Brald and his family were staying had also become quiet.

The laughter that had echoed through its corridors earlier was gone.

Most of the guests had already returned to their rooms.

Only the occasional creak of old wooden floorboards could be heard.

The warm scent of freshly cooked food still lingered in the air.

Outside the open window...

Curtains swayed gently with the evening wind.

Everything felt peaceful.

Almost...

Too peaceful.

Inside one of the rooms...

V quietly closed the wooden door.

Click.

For a few moments...

He simply stood there.

His crimson eyes slowly shifted toward T.

She was sitting on the bed, happily swinging her legs while eating the last piece of candy he had bought earlier.

She hummed a cheerful tune to herself.

Completely carefree.

Completely unaware.

A faint smile appeared on V's face.

"...T."

"Can you come here for a moment?"

T tilted her head.

"Hm?"

"What happened, Brother?"

She immediately jumped off the bed.

Her little footsteps echoed across the wooden floor as she walked over.

Her emerald eyes sparkled with curiosity.

Without saying another word...

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V reached toward the buttons of his shirt.

One by one...

He slowly began unfastening them.

T blinked once.

"...Brother?"

Another button.

Then another.

Suddenly—

Her face became bright red.

"B-B-Brother?!"

"W-What are you doing?!"

She instantly covered her eyes with both hands.

"S-Stooop!"

"You can't suddenly take your shirt off!"

Her ears turned crimson.

She shook her head so hard that her hair bounced from side to side.

"I-I don't want to see!"

V froze completely.

His hand stopped halfway.

"...What?"

He looked genuinely confused.

"I just wanted to show you something."

T refused to lower her hands.

"N-No!"

"I refuse!"

"You've become weird!"

V let out a long, helpless sigh.

"...You're misunderstanding again."

"There."

"You can open your eyes now."

T slowly separated two tiny fingers.

She peeked through the narrow gap.

"...Can I really look?"

"Yes."

"...Promise?"

"I promise."

Only then...

Did she slowly lower her hands.

The playful smile on her face disappeared in an instant.

Across V's chest...

His shoulders...

His arms...

And even part of his back...

Were countless bruises.

Some had already turned dark purple.

Others were still fresh.

Thin cuts crossed his skin.

Old scars mixed with new injuries.

It looked as though his body had been fighting battles every single day.

Even his hands...

Were covered with small wounds from endless sword practice.

T stood perfectly still.

The candy slipped from her fingers onto the floor.

She didn't even notice.

Her breathing slowed.

The laughter disappeared from her eyes.

"...Brother..."

Her tiny voice trembled.

"W-What..."

"What happened to you?"

"...How did you get all these injuries?"

For several long moments...

V remained silent.

Then...

He gently raised one finger to his lips.

"Shhh..."

His voice became a whisper.

"Don't let Father hear."

T instinctively nodded.

She glanced nervously toward the door.

Then looked back at her brother.

Slowly...

She stepped closer.

Her tiny fingers carefully touched one of the bruises on his shoulder.

She was so gentle...

As though afraid touching it too hard would hurt him.

"...Does it still hurt?"

V smiled softly.

"...Not anymore."

His answer was calm.

Almost...

Too calm.

T looked directly into his eyes.

"...Tell me."

"...Please."

Her voice was no longer playful.

It carried only worry.

Only love.

Only the desire to understand.

V quietly looked away.

He knew...

He couldn't stay silent forever.

V quietly looked away.

He knew...

He couldn't remain silent forever.

He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"...On our way here..."

"There were some boys."

"They were making fun of you."

T blinked.

"...Me?"

V nodded.

"They laughed at your hair."

"They called you weak."

"They said..."

"...Your skill would probably be useless."

His voice remained calm.

"There were four of them."

"Two were younger than me."

"And two were older."

"I couldn't ignore it."

"So..."

"I fought them."

"...They ran away."

Silence filled the room.

T slowly lowered her head.

Her tiny hands curled into fists.

"...Idiots..."

She whispered.

"How dare they say those things about me..."

Her cheeks puffed with anger.

"If I ever meet them..."

"I'll hit them with my wooden sword!"

She swung her tiny fist through the air.

"Hmph!"

"They'll definitely regret it!"

Seeing her reaction...

V smiled awkwardly.

"...Maybe..."

"I shouldn't have told you."

At that exact moment—

A familiar voice came from the doorway.

"...Really?"

Both siblings froze.

V slowly turned around.

Standing beside the half-open door...

Was Brald.

Apparently...

He had heard everything.

The room became completely silent.

Brald calmly stepped inside.

The wooden floor creaked beneath his boots.

His gaze moved toward V.

Then toward T.

Finally...

He folded his arms.

"...V."

His voice remained gentle.

"Was that..."

"Really the truth?"

V looked away.

"..."

He said nothing.

Brald already knew.

Whenever his son avoided eye contact...

He was hiding something.

The silence itself...

Had become an answer.

Brald let out a quiet sigh.

"You weren't fighting..."

"Because someone insulted T."

"Were you?"

Again...

Silence.

After several moments...

V quietly lowered his head.

"...No."

"I wasn't."

Brald nodded slowly.

"I thought so."

He walked closer.

His eyes carefully examined the bruises covering V's body.

"They're too clean."

"The bruises..."

"The cuts..."

"The strain on your muscles..."

"I've seen injuries like these before."

"They aren't from fighting people."

"They're from pushing your body beyond its limits."

He looked directly into V's eyes.

"You trained too hard again."

"Didn't you?"

V slowly nodded.

"...Yes."

His voice was barely above a whisper.

"I didn't want T to worry."

"So..."

"I lied."

T looked back and forth between the two of them.

Her emerald eyes slowly widened.

"...Brother..."

"You lied...?"

V forced a small smile.

"...Sorry."

"I just..."

"Didn't want you to be sad."

T lowered her head.

For a moment...

No one spoke.

Then...

Brald gently placed one hand upon V's shoulder.

His expression softened.

"You wanted to protect your little sister."

"I understand that."

"But listen carefully."

"A family..."

"Should never hide its pain from one another."

"If you keep carrying everything by yourself..."

"One day..."

"You'll collapse..."

"Before anyone even realizes you're hurting."

V quietly listened.

Every word settled deeply inside his heart.

Brald's expression became slightly stricter.

"And one more thing."

"Until every one of these wounds heals..."

"You are forbidden..."

"From training."

V's eyes widened.

"...What?!"

"Father!"

"I'll fall behind!"

Brald crossed his arms.

"A broken sword..."

"Cannot protect anyone."

"And neither..."

"Can a broken body."

He smiled faintly.

"You've already trained enough for now."

"Your next lesson..."

"Is learning how to rest."

V lowered his head.

After a long silence...

He nodded.

"...Understood."

Before anyone could say another word...

T suddenly stepped forward.

She gently hugged V.

Her tiny arms barely reached around him.

"...Next time..."

"If you're hurting..."

"Tell me."

"I don't want..."

"To be the last person who knows."

V's eyes softened.

A warm smile slowly appeared across his face.

"...Okay."

"I promise."

He gently patted her head.

"I won't hide it again."

The room gradually became peaceful once more.

Outside...

The evening breeze quietly flowed through the open window.

The curtains swayed gently.

Far above...

The moon silently watched over the family.

Its silver light bathed the room in quiet warmth.

For this brief moment...

No battles waited.

No destinies called.

There was only...

A father.

A son.

And a little sister.

The Narrator

"People often fear lies..."

"But..."

"A half-truth..."

"Is far more dangerous."

"Because it wears..."

"The face of honesty."

"While quietly hiding..."

"The truth that matters most."

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