Chapter 14: The Chosen One

  Two years before the current timeline

  "Lost and abandoned, I am a soul severed from faith, seeking meaning again and again in you... you give purpose to my life?"

  "Child, the world awaits diviervention. 'He' will soon grace us. Keep faith in the Almighty."

  Sve Market, City of Ihled, Sternfall Dynasty

  Reign of Williams Sternfall IV

  Freya ti, Present Time

  Lines of people stood bound by thick s around their necks, their dignity stripped away, left with only the barest cs. In this market, identity held no meaning—only the price tags and es written in Heraphant distinguished one from another.

  Aristocrats wandered between shops, examining their potential purchases with calg eyes. Ten Kata marked the standard price for a child of ten years. Female prisoners anded higher prices, their value determined by age and appearance.

  "This one appears somewhat u, but the price seems reasonable," remarked a man in his forties, adjusting his monocle beh his tailored tall bck hat.

  "Indeed, sir. You have an excellent eye," the shopkeeper fawned. "She has just reached her eighteenth year, so it will cost two additional atana above the base price."

  "I'll take her," the man decred without hesitation. His imperious gaze briefly shifted from the shopkeeper to the young girl, assessing her worth like cattle at au.

  A servant stepped forward to hahe transa. Few ers paid above base priless they were wealthy merts or nobles with coffers to spare.

  Though the United Governance had officially abolished sve trading uhe Mortal Rights Law (10089 L.C.), only twenty nations had adopted the practice. Enfort remained rgely impossible due to various global factors. The deployment of military forces across seas solely to protect sves exceeded the UG's practical capabilities. The fifteen UG-affiliated nations could only enforce these ws within their own borders.

  The market housed establishments ranging from year-round vendors with extensive iory to smaller shops with merely one or ttives. Along the pitch-bck road stood exclusive houses reserved for those of noble birth, anding prices from five to twenty-five kata. Throughout the Freya ti, these establishments were known as "Veneria alis."

  At night a man in a loose white robe, ched carelessly around his stocky frame, dragged a dark-skinned boy, his build unusually mature for his age forward. The boy's golden eyes remained vat—this marked his twenty-fifth suter this month alone.

  "Let's try something different today, dear Clotho," the man said, his grip tightening around the boy's waist. "If I didn't have to maintain appearances before the nobles, I'd have chosen you over my wife long ago. You cost less than she did, after all."

  The boy remained expressionless as his tormentor tinued, his dignity and fate having been stolen long ago, like tless others in this cruel market. His eyes fixed on the clock, his mind waiting for his owner's pleasure to be satisfied.

  As the clock's hands moved slowly, distant memories surfaced in the young boy's mind. It was stormy weather when a tempest blew away his life.

  Clotho remembered his childhood friend Hasina, the most beautiful girl in his eyes. His very first kiss, his mother's warm smile, his father's pints. A vilge that always weled people from anywhere.

  Two Years Ago

  Tempa was a try between the borders of the Sternfall Kingdom and the Meritocratic State of Intellex. It was a very small nation. Sternfall had retly decred war against the nation to capitalize orade routes between Intellex and itself, as Intellex offered huge ercial opportunities with its prestigious National Uy drawing admissions from noble families each year.

  Williams Sternfall IV despised the small try that stood betweewo mighty nations. Tempa's king tried to iate tless times but failed due to the current monarch's attitude. In the year 11999 L.C., Sternfall deployed a sizable army to quer Tempa. The UG remained ral, their attention divided among various global matters. Sineither Tempa nor Sternfall were affiliated nations or posed any threat to the Unified Gover, they turned a blio this small-scale war.

  In a small vilge he Tempa forest lived a happy family of three. A woman in her early thirties called out to a running youth.

  "Clotho, your father will soourn. Don't wander around the forest too much with Hasina. e ba an hour or so."

  The boy stopped and replied, "Mom, I'll be back before lunch. You worry too much."

  "You always say that, but when you go around with your little girlfriend, you seem tet time," she replied with a teasing tone.

  Clotho's fastantly turned red. "She's not my girlfriend! I don't like her a bit—in fact, I actually hate her. She's a bully!" His voice rose as if to deny any possibility of it being true.

  "Is that so, Clotho?" a girl asked, standing beside him.

  "Ha...Hasina?" Clotho fell to the ground as if he'd seen a ghost.

  "Did you hear that, Hasina? Clotho doesn't like you—in fact, he hates you," Clotho's mom said, enjoying the se perhaps too much.

  "I...I didn't mean it that way."

  "So do you like me?"

  "Like...? Ah, no, I..." Clotho grew increasingly flustered until he finally ran toward the forest.

  A smile appeared on Hasina's face.

  "Hasina, take care of my foolish son. He's already seventeen and still acts like a ten-year-old child. Oh, and don't fet t him back before lunch—his father is ing home."

  "Sure, aunty. I'll bring Clotho back safely."

  "Oh, Hasina, you're so muature than my useless son. I hope you marry him quickly. How is Isabel?"

  "Mom is doing fine nowadays. My father hasn't returned from the war, so mother seems to worry too much these days," Hasina said with a solemn look.

  "Don't worry, he'll be back soon. I retly heard some good news—our king has personally requested help from the UG reserve military. So this war might end very soon," Clotho's mom tried to cheer her up.

  "I hope so..."

  Hasina was a clever girl, praised for both her beauty and intelligen the vilge. She was the only one who had cleared the Intellex National Uy entrance exam. But due to her family's poor dition, she couldn't attend. In her darkest times, only a certain foolish boy from this vilge could cheer her up, and she had fallen for him sihat day.

  After walking some distance, Hasina slowed her pace to observe a dark-skinned boy with beautiful golden eyes and seaweed-like blue hair. It was said that golden eyes and dark skin were characteristics of a warrior race with four arms that lived in the Lupus ti. But no one knew for sure, as it was almost impossible for on people to travel between tis.

  "Clotho?" Hasina asked, feigning surprise.

  "Ah...Ha...Hasina..."

  "What is it?" Hasina asked ily, feeling particurly devilish that day.

  "Ah...mom...that...this..."

  "I 't uand you clearly, Clotho. What are y to say?"

  Why do I feel like she's bullying me again? Clotho thought.

  "That thing...as I said earlier...it's not true," Clotho barely finished his st words in a low voice.

  "Earlier? I 't remember. What did you say again?" Hasina asked with a fused look.

  Clotho grew increasingly flustered. "I...like..."

  Hasina cut him off. "Oh yes, I remember—you said you actually dislike me. I thought we were friends, but I didn't know I was such a bother to you. I should just stay alone—"

  "What are you talking about? I like you... I like you more than anyone!" Clotho shouted.

  "Really?" Hasina smiled and asked.

  Clotho suddenly recalled what he'd just said. "No...I mean not that way...I mean it's—"

  Stupid Clotho. Why did you backtrack? Just hold me already. I'm getting so impatient with your child-like attitude, Hasina thought.

  She suddenly moved closer to Clotho and touched his lips with hers briefly, like a peck that sted mere seds.

  "Huh?"

  "What? Do you have anything to say?"

  "No, I mean...was that..."

  "We're getting te. We have to head into the forest to meet up with the others. Let's get going."

  "O...okay."

  Was that a kiss just now? Did she just kiss me? The thought ed Clotho's mind.

  What did you do, Hasina? Are you stupid? How could you just kiss Clotho without his sent? You really are unbearable. But...that felt so good. My heart is still pounding like crazy. I o calm down. Otherwise, Clotho will notice my face. I don't want to face him right now, Hasina thought to herself.

  They walked through the rest of the forest silently, avoiding each aze, to meet up with their friends.

  The vilge was small, so most kids knew each other. They had all grown up together. After walking through the forest, they reached the end where two more boys waited for them.

  "You're te, Clotho," said a bck-haired boy adano, who usually worked in his father's fields.

  "Hasina, why did you meet Clotho before us? I told you to wait for me," Marco said sfully, expressing his disfort at seeing Clotho and Hasina together.

  "I don't need your permission to do anything," Hasina replied dismissively, as if Marco wasn't worth arguing with.

  "You and I live very close. You're ag like you didn't visit me just yesterday."

  "Stop twisting your words...it was with my mo—"

  "Okay, okay, stop fighting now," Tadano interfered.

  Why did Hasina visit Marco? The question arose in Clotho's mind.

  "Clotho, don't think like stupid people like them. I told you before that they're a bad influen you."

  "You bitch, what did you just say?" Marco pushed Tadano aside and stepped toward Hasina.

  Hasina didn't flinch. She smirked and said, "That's why I hate men like you who 't feel fortable uhey're in trol of something. I remember your father used to beat your mother every day..."

  Hearing these insults from the woman he loved, Marco couldn't trol himself. He tried to sp Hasina with full force, but his hand stopped mid-air.

  "I think that's enough..." Clotho said with a serious expression.

  Clotho hysically very strong. He could pull a Botia fish on his own, which weighed around 300 kilos. At 6 feet tall, he was an imposing figure in the vilge.

  "What do you think you're doing, Clotho? So you'll even face your friend for a mere bitch? You and I were friends even before she came introup. Did you fet?" Marco shouted in frustration.

  Hasina looked at her man with sadness.

  Clotho...

  "I am your friend, so I'll let you go unharmed this time. But don't try to touch my woman," Clotho said while pulling Hasina closer.

  Seeing this se, Marco's eyes turned blood-red. If he had a on, he would have killed Clotho instantly.

  I will not let this go. Just you fug wait. You little fud this bitch. I'm going to kill you both, Marco thought.

  Tadano looked at the se and sighed.

  "I khis would happen one day. The moment Hasina came troup, I knew Marco was always chasing her...but I hought you had this in you, Clotho...you really scared me too," Tadano ughed.

  "Sorry..." Clotho said apologetically.

  "Clotho, you shouldn't grab there. Try pg your hands higher up," Hasina said with a teasing smile.

  "Huh?" Notig his hands in an inappropriate position on Hasina, Clotho tried to pull away, but his hands were stopped by the much weaker hands of the girl in front of him. It was as if she were saying, 'If you let me go, I will take your head off.'

  Clotho nervously looked at Hasina a his hands rest on her waist.

  "Ahem..." Tadano coughed slightly to remind the couple of his presence.

  "Okay, today is enough adventure for me. I o return to the field. You guys ...hang out on your own for today," Tadano walked away nontly, as if nothing in this world ed him.

  As soon as Tada, Hasina pushed Clotho onto the grass in the middle of the forest. She looked like a ferocious beast instead of the intelligent girl she was known to be.

  "How dare you try to let go of your hands from me?"

  "But..."

  "You dare question your wife?"

  "Wife? When did I get married?"

  As soon as he said that, he felt somethi on his lips, caught off guard during his protests. His defenses were broken in one go. No 300-kilo fish could do that to him. He closed his eyes to match the pace of the certai sitting on his chest.

  "I'm home, honey," a dark-skinned man said with a tired voice.

  "Max, you're finally back. I warned Clotho to return before lunch. That boy is getting irresponsible day by day."

  "Don't worry, hohat girl is with him, right? He'll be fine," Max said while taking his seat.

  His wife handed him a gss of water. After gulping down the whole gss, the man said, "I think we should return to Lupus."

  His wife paused upon hearing these words.

  "Max, you know it's not possible."

  "I know, but I have these uneasy feelings about this whole war. I heard that UG is ign the issues in Freya currently. Aurelius and Swanflok both could help, but if they joihis war, other nations within Freya would not stay quiet. It's not looking good for Tempa on the frontline."

  "Is it really that bad...?" Clotho's mother asked, clear in her eyes. As she was just going to ask her husband something she heard a kno their door.

  Knoobsp;

  Clotho may have e back

  She was just about to open the door when her husband Max stopped her. Grabbing her mouth and pullio the side of their door as if to hide from something.

  What is Max doing ?

  “I se…don't you also Ahe st of blood”

  Both their goldeurned sharp. They felt like an animal that was hidden and waiting for their prey to step forward.

  “Which race do you think reign supreme iire world currently ?”

  A voice came from the middle of the house even though they never ope themselves. At that moment both of them thought of the same thing.

  An Essentia.