The Superior Rebirth: A Hero's Awakening

The Departure

Xavier stood frozen, like a statue caught in time. Alcmena's voice cut through the night air again, sharper this time, laced with disappointment and frustration.

"Answer me, Xavier! Where do you think you're going?"

He kept his head down, his gaze locked on the ground, refusing to meet Alcmena's piercing eyes—or Anastasia's concerned ones. Silence clung to him like chains, his left hand trembling as he clenched it into a fist.

Anastasia, sensing the growing tension, attempted to diffuse the situation, stepping between them. "Lord Alcmena, perhaps we should—"

But before she could finish, Xavier murmured under his breath, his voice laced with something dark, something painful.

"And why would you care...?"

Alcmena's brows furrowed. "What?" His confusion was quickly replaced by stern authority. "Xavier, what kind of tone is that? You know I'm doing this for your safety. You think I don't know? That I wasn't aware of your plan to meet Adam and run away from your home? You can't hide anything from me. We share the same mind."

Anastasia's head snapped toward Xavier, her voice laced with disbelief and worry. "WHAT?! Young Master, you were planning on running away?!"

Still, Xavier said nothing. The weight of his choice pressed on his chest like an iron shackle.

Alcmena sighed, his voice softening. "Xavier, please don't do this. I care about you deeply, more than you know. I—"

"IF YOU TRULY CARED ABOUT ME, YOU WOULDN'T BE IN MY WAY OF FINDING WHAT I LOST!"

His words echoed through the silent night, raw and unfiltered.

Alcmena blinked, momentarily stunned. "What are you talking about?"

Anastasia dismounted from Alcmena's back, cautiously stepping toward Xavier. Her voice was gentle, but edged with concern. "What do you mean, Young Master? What have you lost?"

Xavier's breath hitched as he wiped at the tears threatening to fall. His voice cracked as he whispered, "Everything... I lost everything."

A thick silence fell over them.

"My father—he was my world. And he died... because of me."

Alcmena and Anastasia stiffened, their expressions shifting from stern to stricken. The night wind howled between them, carrying the weight of Xavier's words.

He dropped to his knees, his body trembling. "I always knew I wasn't truly one of them. That I wasn't related by blood. That I was just... a stranger playing guest in a world that wasn't mine. But I wanted to be with them! I wanted to belong!"

Alcmena's voice was thick with sorrow. "Xavier, your father's death wasn't your fault. You can't carry that burden alone."

Anastasia attempted a smile, trying to cut through the suffocating grief. "Lord Alcmena's right! You shouldn't blame yourself for everything bad that happens."

Her voice softened. "And Young Master... don't say that you don't belong here. Because you do."

Xavier squeezed his eyes shut. "But... I don't."

"I've always had this unshakable feeling that deep down, I was the reason he died. That if I weren't born, none of this would have happened. That Big Brother, Big Sis, Grandpa, Uncle Thomas, Aunt Charlotte... none of them would've had to suffer losing the person they loved."

Gazing at his hands, his words became quieter, yet filled with something desperate. "I thought... I thought if I could find out about my past, about where I came from, maybe the nightmares would stop. Maybe I could finally find a place where I belong. Maybe... I could finally escape from Percival."