[Aaron Side Story Episode 50]
6. Beyond the void (6)
And the boy returned to Luanan.
Waves of karma rippled near the graveyard.
Aaron did something stupid again.
[Master.]
I hear you.
[Thank you Master, if you hadn’t helped me…]
As the boys approached the graveyard, their voices gradually became clearer.
‘Ah, that’s right.’
Did you gather scattered memories?
I had left it on purpose.
[Master!]
[Master!]
[Thank you.]
[For helping me…]
I didn’t want to think of it.
All memories of failure.
What do you mean by reviving the traces of things that have already ended?
Still, Aaron did this.
‘Do you think there should be?’
memories with them.
where do you need it
“Mourning.”
muttered the boy.
“memory.”
All of which have nothing to do with boys.
Because the boy had no heart.
“loss.”
The boy arrived at the graveyard.
Each of the marble tombstones had the names and lives of the disciples written on them.
The causes of illness were different for each.
to fight alongside your allies.
to not hate yourself.
to defend what is right.
they were weak
The dream was deep, but it lacked the strength and talent to achieve it.
So I went to find the boy.
“…”
The boy did not leave it alone.
Should I say I did my best?
Was it to know the pity?
‘I wanted to give.’
The power to make dreams come true for those who have the right will and will.
researched and researched.
Was it because I wanted to feel the feeling of pity?
‘no.’
Because I don’t want to be sad
If so, did the boy already know that feeling?
No matter how much the disciple died, his heart did not waver.
[No,]
the disciple in memory retorted.
[Master has a heart. You just can’t feel it.]
Aaron said the same thing.
[You’re bleeding, but you don’t feel it. Just because there is no pain doesn’t mean there is no scar.]
The boy’s gaze turned to the tombstone on the left.
The image of a disciple appeared and then disappeared.
Oh, that guy said that.
[On the contrary, Master should be more careful. Because there is no pain, you will roll your heart more carelessly.]
It was a woman who nagged me.
But in the end, she too was swallowed up by a pure dream and died.
[sorry. Master… hurt… so.]
The one who harms you is yourself, so why apologize?
As they died, they apologized to the boy.
The boy didn’t know.
[Because they didn’t understand.]
Forgotten memories come rushing in all at once.
“understanding.”
muttered the boy.
This time it was a man’s memory.
[When I am here, many thoughts come to mind. Even if it’s a useless delusion. Because time rots and overflows.]
The man said.
[When you share your feelings with others, you feel at ease. Master also listened to my story well.]
[Don’t you say empathy and understanding? You feel better when others understand your feelings.]
[I want to have my joy understood. I want you to know my sorrow. This is the human mind.]
[The reason I respect Master is that Master doesn’t listen to anyone else’s stories.]
Empathy.
[Treat others as yourself.]
[This is the mercy of the Goddess I believe in.]
Mercy.
The story of countless disciples sank into the boy’s mind.
They were all sick.
He was dying of an incurable disease.
The boy had talked a lot with them.
about life.
About death.
about being strong.
Since time was near infinity,
countless stories were shared throughout eternity.
But when the end of the story came, the boy couldn’t save anyone.
The story with them just quietly flowed into the river of oblivion.
‘Maybe I was tired.’
From the middle, I stopped accepting disciples.
Even if I received it, I immediately kicked it out.
However, a certain change left a young man named Aaron here.
‘To catch and eat him.’
to keep living.
said the boy, predicting his actions.
Because you don’t even know your own mind.
I had to figure out why I acted the way I did.
But if that wasn’t it.
‘From the beginning… it was decided.’
this ending.
The boy moved to the cabin.
There, the last disciple was waiting for the boy.
You can tell at a glance.
A red light flickered in the boy’s eyes.
It is engulfed in a dream.
it was happening
It was a predestined result the moment Aaron set foot in Luanan.
Still, the boy had to close his eyes.
A cavity in an empty heart.
Something unknown comes out through the shell.
Like a root digging into the soil, it squeezed out of the cavity and dug into it mercilessly.
‘pain.’
It is not bodily pain.
A feeling I’ve never felt before in my life.
said the boy.
“Why did you lose to the shadow?”
even though I knew the outcome.
“You said you could win.”
I couldn’t stand it.
“You promised me.”
the boy thought.
‘expectation.’
maybe it’s different
If it’s this guy, he might be able to overcome his dreams.
‘Why did you think that way?’
I couldn’t tell.
Wasn’t it the boy who forced him to do the unreasonable thing?
“I didn’t lose.”
said Aaron.
he didn’t support
He fought to the end and did not lose the light of his heart.
I kept what was called hope.
“As Master said, at first I tried to fight the shadow and win.”
said Aaron.
At first I tried to fight.
I tried to protect something precious with my own strength.
But I gave up knowing that it wouldn’t work.
‘…’
the boy noticed.
At that moment, Aaron collapsed.
Even with the help of others, Aaron’s illness cannot be cured.
If you don’t overcome adversity with your own strength, the trauma will continue to eat away at your heart.
‘That’s why I told you to train your strength.’
Don’t borrow someone else’s hand.
You can’t escape that nightmare unless you do it yourself.
I’m not asking you to do everything alone.
If it helps even a little, if you do it somehow.
‘I could have been saved.’
said Aaron.
“When I thought about it, it didn’t make much of a difference even if I fought and won. I am weak as it is. I did not have the power to turn things around.”
Aaron forgot why he wanted to be strong and just stared at his teacher with red eyes.
“The bowl of the heart that holds karma has cracked. That’s how I judged Master’s condition. If so, you can change the bowl.”
change the bowl
Obviously, that was the way the boy knew from before.
If you use it, the boy will be able to come back to life.
“I see.”
entrust one’s dreams to others
It’s a very convenient and easy way.
The boy spread his right hand.
An ink-colored spear appeared out of nowhere and was caught in my hand.
Aaron smiled, not knowing what he was saying.
‘I knew.’
this conclusion.
‘I had a premonition.’
that you become like this
‘That’s why I made up my mind.’
Let’s do this from the beginning.
Kang!
Aaron managed to block the sudden swing of the spear.
“Master!”
Aaron makes a surprised face.
“It’s a pity.”
The boy smiled and disappeared.
A fight between spears and spears continues.
It seemed that he had trained quite a bit, and his skill at repelling attacks was fierce.
“Stop it!”
Aaron exclaimed.
“I am satisfied. I was able to keep it! Not helpless this time!”
The disciple shouted in a fit of fuss.
“I have achieved my dream. I no longer need this power!”
stupid guy
If I had focused on the battle a little more during the time to shout excitedly, it wouldn’t have ended like this.
full of gaps.
The boy dug into Aaron and ricocheted his silver spear.
At the same time, the karma is spread out and tied like a net.
Aaron was incapacitated without any counterattack.
“Stop… let it go.”
lying down.
Aaron said with trembling eyes.
‘Tsk.’
The boy clicked his tongue.
Being a disciple has never fulfilled a teacher’s expectations.
stupid guy
The boy covered Aaron’s eyes with his palm.
An intangible shadow burrowed into the young man’s heart.
It stirs and mixes the mind, causing confusion and delusions in memories.
Aaron, who had lost his senses, stood up after a few minutes.
“I just came to my senses.”
said the boy.
Hostility crept into Aaron’s eyes.
“Are you ready? Do you know how?”
“know. One dies and one remains.”
A silver spear was raised in Aaron’s hand again.
obvious murder.
What is reflected in those eyes is not the figure of the teacher.
It was an enemy he had to deal with.
“Looks like it worked out well.”
The boy smiled and raised his face to the window.
Where can I see my skills?
The battle between the boy and Aaron has begun.
There was not a single hesitation in Aaron’s spear.
Kwajik.
The boy’s flesh and gore crumbled and scattered.
‘It hurts.’
Aaron has no hesitation.
The spear flashed and pierced every corner of the boy’s body.
It took quite a lot of pain and effort to restore the body that was broken and torn without mercy.
“shut up!”
Suddenly, Aaron shouted.
It’s like arguing with someone imaginary.
The boy couldn’t help but smile.
‘Oh yeah.’
every time the body breaks.
Every time blood and bone are cut and torn.
Behind the bodily pain another sensation arises.
‘sadness.’
The situation that had to be like this.
‘And also.’
Still, I feel that it is not too late.
‘hope.’
pop!
The boy’s body was shattered and scattered.
sick.
It hurt terribly.
But I laughed.
A smile came out of nowhere.
‘It was something like this.’
The neck was torn.
The upper body is pierced.
My leg was cut off.
Blood and flesh splattered.
I feel it every time
Amidst the pain, unknown sensations bloomed.
It does not originate from the body.
‘Is this the heart?’
The gray canvas is being filled with colorful colors.
pleasure. sadness. Ando. hope. despair. In addition, all kinds of colors that cannot be expressed in words were mixed and shimmered.
I could understand.
Only now can I empathize with them.
Why did you feel sorry for yourself?
what the boy should have said to them.
“are you okay.”
said the boy.
“Everything is fine.”
the boy thought.
‘I want to live.’
I don’t want to die yet.
I want to continue my own life.
I wanted to feel and know more.
I finally left the monster and became a human.
How could I have to die?
‘hate.’
Colleagues came to mind.
I didn’t want to be forgotten.
It’s like no one knows and disappears.
Isn’t it worse than death?
‘Oh, that’s true.’
I don’t know what a human being is.
The boy gathered his strength as he straightened the spear.
Aaron also began to focus the shadow on the tip of the spear, probably knowing the boy’s intentions.
‘End with this.’
A decision will be made only once.
The boy looked at his hand.
was trembling.
‘Are you afraid?’
because i don’t want to die
I want to continue living.
‘Was the heart this fragile?’
Like dandelion seeds that disappear when blown, they sway and stumble in the timeless wind.
The boy spurred on the ground.
Aaron also sprinted and approached.
Two windows colliding.
The boy gazed at the scene dazzlingly.
At first glance, it seems taut, but the balance is breaking.
Dominance has already been divided.
who will win
The boy decided to believe.
A disciple exists to surpass the master.
That guy was misunderstood until the very end.
Aaron, who had been avoiding the risk of karma while wearing thick armor in his heart, and Aaron, who had fought to the end while accepting it head-on.
You said you couldn’t be stronger than me, but that was just a pitiful misunderstanding.
The battle between the righteous and the evil.
who is stronger Who will be stronger in the future. So, the result was pre-determined.
that’s why
it comes
The darkness of Aaron’s silver spear, which shattered the red shadow, rushed to pierce the boy’s heart.
and.
“…”
The boy narrowed his eyes.
Blood flowed from the silver spear pierced in his chest.
Kwajik!
As the spear blade twisted, a shadow pierced through and began to erode the boy’s existence.
“that’s interesting.”
said the boy.
“The mind is really strange. is not it?”
“…”
“I want to live. I really don’t want to die. I hate dying and I hate being forgotten even more. It’s really terrible.”
I can understand.
The boy was finally able to accept this ending.
Jureuk.
Blood flowed from the boy’s mouth.
“Huh, that’s right.”
“…”
“This feeling…it’s a pity.”
Aaron met the boy’s gaze.
The red aura was disappearing from his eyes.
Aaron was in the process of consuming the boy’s existence and evolving into a more perfect karma.
“…”
I can’t hear it.
No matter what I say, it doesn’t go to Aaron’s ears.
At best, it will sound like a curse.
Still, the boy said.
“Aaron.”
That was the boy’s heart.
“Don’t forget your current resolution.”
“…”
“Aspire to a heart of mercy while longing for a pure dream.”
“…”
“I will bless you.”
The boy closed his eyes.
I hear it.
I heard the voices of the departed disciples calling for their master.
‘okay.’
the boy replied.
could keep
The last one could have done it.