Chapter137: The Family's Darkness and the War of Severed Souls
The Shadow of the Elder: A Grandmother's Treachery
The night was exceptionally heavy and suffocating, a thick, black mist slithering like a hungry serpent around the walls of the house. Diyari sat in the corner of the courtyard on the frozen earth, his body trembling like an autumn leaf. This was not merely the bite of the cold; it was the frigid malice of the sorcery sent by his grandmother—his mother's mother. The woman who should have been a cradle of peace had become the fountainhead of his agony. With her withered fingers, she tied knot after knot into Diyari's fate, seeking to turn his love for Rina into a graveyard.
Diyari: (In a low voice, choking within his throat) "Oh, Grandmother... how could you find the heart? You, who once stroked my hair and said, 'May God never let you see sorrow,' are now the creator of all my grief. Why must a mother's mother burn her own grandson's soul? Why do you weave spells so that Rina sees me as a black monster? Is this the reward for the loyalty I held for my family?"
He gazed at the window. Rina was there, moving like a restless, alien shadow. The curse ensured that every time she looked at him, a violent pain pierced her mind—as if a thousand needles were driven into her brain simultaneously.
The Confrontation: Sorcery vs. Loyalty
Suddenly, Rina threw the door open. Her white wings had taken on the hue of ash, and her eyes were a clouded silver. She screamed at Diyari, her voice trembling with manufactured hate.
Rina: "Go! Why are you here? Your grandmother is right; she screams inside my head that you are the cause of all the world's calamities! She says you bewitched me to make me weak! Diyari, I hate these voices, I hate the images that tell me you are a traitor! Why must my heart burn for someone whose entire family says is evil?"
Diyari stood up, his legs drained of strength, but his heart beating like an engine of fire. He stepped forward, but Rina instantly unleashed a blast of cold, white energy that hurled him across the dirt.
Diyari: (Weeping as he spat out blood) "Rina... listen! That woman has cursed you! My grandmother only wants to destroy us because she never tasted love herself! She wants to burn my soul because she knows I am nothing without you! These spells from my mother's side are meant to break my loyalty. But look at my wounds, look into my eyes... are these the eyes of a traitor?"
Rina clutched her ears, screaming: "Silence! Your voice is poison to my brain! Your grandmother says you tore me to pieces! Why is life so unfaithful? Why do we try to be our best, only to find ourselves as the ruins of a family war?"
The Guardian's Vow in the Deepest Sorrow
The night reached its peak. Diyari remained under the rain of sorcery. He felt the weight of trying to fix everyone while becoming the ultimate victim. He pulled an old family photograph from his pocket, stared at it for a moment, and then tore it to shreds.
"Curse the blood that bewitches its own descendant!" he cried. "Curse the heart that cannot bear the happiness of a child! Rina... I am ruined, my heart is burned to ash, but know this—I am Diyari! I am the one who never gives up! Let my grandmother send a thousand more spells, let my mother and father turn their backs on me, I will still be your shield!"
He went to the child's cradle. The infant was wailing under the pressure of the magical atmosphere. Diyari scooped the child into his arms. "Don't cry, my son... father is here. Let the world be unfaithful, let the family become enemies, but my loyalty will burn through every curse. We are broken, yes... our bodies are wounded, yes... but our spirits are still alive."
The Struggle Beyond the Dream
When Rina finally fell into an exhausted sleep, Diyari entered the room. He looked at her face, which seemed slightly more peaceful in slumber. He reached for her forehead, but the curse struck his hand like an electric shock, burning his skin. He did not withdraw. He pressed his hand harder against her brow.
"Burn me... let my body burn, but save Rina," he whispered. "Grandmother, do you see? I am willing to be consumed just to lift this fog from her mind. Why must our souls burn for someone who cannot even say 'thank you'? But I will wait... not five years, but until the end of time, until the day Rina wakes and sees who burned for her."
Morning came. Diyari was still sitting beside her, his eyes bloodshot from weeping and insomnia. Rina opened her eyes, and that familiar frost returned to her gaze.
Rina: "Why are you here? Who gave you permission? You are like a persistent, irritating shadow, Diyari! Your grandmother is right—you only want to imprison me! Get out before I bring this house down upon your head!"
Diyari rose in silence. He felt his heart had no more room for new wounds. He walked toward the door, but before leaving, he spoke: "I am going... but not to leave you. I am going to face the sorcery my grandmother weaves. I am going to prove that the loyalty of a single man is more powerful than an entire army of witches. Rina... you are life to me, even if you see me as death."
Written by: Dlin_myth