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WILLIAM went out of the headquarters to ease his mind. He went to their garden, where his tree stood in the middle. He froze when he saw a glowing light by the tree, blinding his eyes. He wondered if it was a goddess that descended from the sky. When the light ceased, a familiar amber-haired woman appeared, her hair flowing like vines.
“Solene?”
She looked at him, her cheeks flushing. “L-Lord William? What are you doing here?”
“I can ask you the same thing.” He said.
“W-Well… I was practicing my magic. You know that I train every midnight, right? But this place seems like a wonderful place to train my magic, so I thought I could change some scenery.” Her eyes softened upon seeing him, who radiated melancholic features on his face. “What about you? Why aren’t you asleep? You should rest so you can recover faster.”
William walked to her, sitting against the tree bark. “I can’t. My mind won’t let me sleep. It’s been like this for one year.”
“Is something bothering you?” Solene sat beside him, putting her face on her knees as she looked at him. “You seem very troubled.”
His eyes dropped, curling himself to a ball. Seeing him so desolated made Solene’s heart heavy, without even knowing why he was currently like this. For her, William always appeared like a confident, ideal, and perfect person—who was kind, strong, and unwavering. He faced situations with a positive look in his face that Solene often wondered if anything could ever trouble him. But this moment, she remembered that William was also human, who could feel emotions too.
His purple orbs laid on Solene. “Is it alright if… I’m not really certain if I should confide in someone. I have never told anyone my thoughts before, even my closest friend.”
“If you’re holding yourself back because of your position, don’t mind it!” She said. “See, we’re both not wearing uniforms. Right now, you are not my captain and I am not your member. I’m your friend. I’m your confidant. And I can assure you, Lord William, your secrets are perfectly safe with me.”
William breathed as he looked above. Birds flew to the tree where they nestled in it.
“I am having constant nightmares, ever since the end of the Elves Incident.” He looked at her. “Do you want to know why Master Julius is in that state now, why he suddenly turned into a kid?”
Solene’s forehead creased. “Why is that?”
It took five whole seconds before he answered. “Because I was the reason.”
He hesitated to continue, worried what Solene might think of him afterwards. Would she loathe him like the others? Would she treat him the same?
“Ever since I was young, I already knew that there was someone else inhabiting this body of mine. Gradually, as I grew up, I saw the memories of him. His name was Patry, an elf. We understood each other’s pain and experiences. We were very close, even before I met Master Julius. Patry seemed like a twin brother to me. And so, I let him have my body just so he could fulfill his mission. He assumed the role of his role-model, Licht, and built the Eye of the Midnight Sun to eradicate the humans. Do you understand, Solene?” He touched his mask. “I get nightmares of the citizens getting attacked. They were killed in front of my eyes. I wanted to protect them, I knew it was wrong, but I couldn’t. I had to watch. Master Julius was very dear to me too. He was the one who gave me this mask. He saw potential in my power and motivated me to come where I am now.”
