Born into the home of a judge and a bureaucrat, discipline was beaten into his bones from the start. Yet that perfection came at a price.
The boy was robbed of any sense of socialization. He grew up in an empty house full of principles that did nothing to prepare him for the real world.
His awkward nature caused tension with his peers, and more daunting, his need for correction and perfection made him insufferable to everyone around him.
The sense of loneliness burrowed into him, growing into a crippling anxiety that made him tremble before others. The idea of speaking without knowing what response might come should have been thrilling, but to him, it was pure torture.
Yet deep down, he longed to know everything, see everything, and perhaps become everything. Were his friends truly his own? Could he even call them friends? These would have been interesting questions if he'd had any friends to begin with.
But thrust into this cursed world, with anxiety consuming him each day, his need for correction meant nothing. He'd been too cautious, too calculated to ever step out of line.
***
Halo woke up to the quietness of the triad lands with nothing echoing in the distance but silence and the annoying buzz of insects.
The sun was slowly rising to the horizon, and as much as he hated it, he'd slept longer than he anticipated.
He moved through the castle's halls, torso bare, searching for Light or perhaps Liam. Running into either of them would be an excuse enough for conversation. But the castle was eerily quiet.
Initially, he feared they were fighting Crawlers, but that wasn't the case. He would have received a stat notification for Light's growth if they were. Since there were none, it was obvious the Crawlers were just nowhere to be found.
But during his search, he reached a logical conclusion. He'd seen Liam at the moat outside the castle yesterday, so it was possible he'd be waiting there. As for Light, he was certain that bastard was deliberately avoiding him.
The moment he exited the castle, to his left, by the moat, crouched Liam, as he had expected.
Liam was lost in his own daze, playing with his shadow crows.
Halo sighed. He was going to take this opportunity to begin the friendship between them. The earlier the better.
Liam severed the god of darkness just like the hero did, and though their abilities and morals were different, his appearance and his surname weren't something Halo could let go so lightly.
He was going to capitalize on this opportunity.
Before long, Halo joined Liam and crouched beside him, and even his movements weren't enough to get Liam's attention until Halo spoke.
"You seem pretty busy…"
Liam's head snapped in Halo's direction in shock, and he began massaging his forehead.
"Sorry, Halo. I got distracted. My crows were out scouting for Sinners."
Halo turned to him with a genuine shock.
"Wait… you can actually see through your crows' eyes?"
Liam gently gave him a nod. "Yeah. That's how I spotted you yesterday and started leading you here."
Halo rested his chin in his hand, partially lost in thought.
He thought their abilities were similar, considering he could make clones of everything slain by him and Liam could make crows from darkness. But it seemed like he was wrong.
"I'm still learning to control it… but the system says my crows can absorb pieces of the True Abilities of whatever corpse they feast on."
Liam sighed, his eyes struggling to maintain eye contact.
"I don't have the energy for that. Sure, I can make as many crows as I want… but every flap of their wings takes something out of me."
Halo's gaze narrowed slightly as he watched Liam. The system had never explicitly asked him to take the abilities of his clones, but he was certain the description suggested something similar.
Still, he had only one clone, and it was his shadow. There was no point in thinking about it.
Something entirely held him captive.
Halo considered all the questions he could ask to let Liam talk to him about his life. Was Liam truly related to the hero?
"Hey, Liam, this might sound strange, but… do you have a brother or relative? I can't shake the feeling I've seen you somewhere."
Liam's gaze shot frantically to the floor. Halo immediately moved to help, afraid something terrible had happened, but as it turned out, he was merely terrified of the question.
"No. No, I don't have a brother. I don't have anyone."
Halo stared deep into Liam's eyes, desperately watching the loneliness swimming in their depressed depths.
Things were more confusing than he'd anticipated. If Liam had no siblings, that meant he was the hero, unless the other Asterion was someone he'd never met as a child.
However, something entirely had Halo frozen for a moment.
The loneliness in Liam's eyes called to him, and he couldn't help himself. But even in his bleakest moment, he made sure to keep his words carefully measured.
"Any parents?"
Liam's expression remained grim, but even so, Halo found countless gratitude for his performance.
"Huh… my parents? I don't know if I had any."
This confirmed his certainty about Liam's identity. It was as though the future had already been changed. The hero's most precious person was his mother. But Liam didn't even have one.
Liam smiled awkwardly. "They're alive, my parents. But I almost wish they weren't. They'll never know I'm dead, or that I've become part of another world."
Liam's voice cracked on each of his words.
Halo didn't remember much about his parents, but he knew that despite their love, there were times he'd been left alone. That loneliness had been daunting, something he'd come to fear.
But watching as Liam sniffled, sweat streaming down his brow and legs trembling in his boots, he couldn't help but reach a conclusion he hadn't expected this soon.
"Sorry about that… can we be friends? I mean, beyond partnership or companionship."
Liam's eyes shot toward Halo, his mouth parting slightly. Even from a glance alone, Halo could tell his heart had dropped into his stomach.
"What?… what do you mean? Why me?"
Halo smirked. "Yes, you. I don't know why, but you seem pretty cool to me."
The moment the words escaped Halo, he found Liam wrapped him in a tight embrace.
"Yes, Halo. Yes. I will be your friend."
Halo smirked and pulled Liam out of the hug.
Two birds, one stone. This would get him closer to Liam and help those two become friends at the same time.
The loneliness he saw in Liam's eyes mirrored what he'd seen in himself long ago, before he ever became an assassin. That's what had made him a monster. And though this world was entirely different from the real one, he wouldn't wish his detached state on anyone.
After a brief moment, considering how dense the atmosphere had become, Halo wanted to shift their attention elsewhere.
"Can we duel? As a token of our friendship?"