Light of Death

[Jun Liang, promise me you'll stay alive no matter what.]

Light signifies hope. But that moment, that glimpse of it, just brought despair to a young man. Light is a sign of life. However, death was knocking on that man's door as that speed of light passed through his body, eating away his life.

Even his name, Liang, means bright and clear light, the opposite of the dim world he had been living in all his life. So why did that light mean death to him instead of salvation as of the moment?

He was always yearning for light. Living his entire life in darkness, agony was the whole definition of his existence. The young man dreamed of seeing the world.

No matter how cruel that world is to him, he wanted to take just one look. Just what kind of ugly sight would he see where pain and suffering lurked around? What sort of empty and cold world transcends hate and grievances just by being alive?

Even then, he thought he wanted to see her face. The face of the woman who offered her hand to pull him out of that hell hole. He trusted her, even though he didn't even know the meaning of that word. One touch of that momentary kindness made him want to fight for her.

She wanted to be free, so he cleared all the obstacles that were chaining her down. She wanted to attain power to change the world, so he slayed those powerful monsters that deemed her weak.

So why is that same woman smiling coldly at him right now? Why did she shoot that Starlight bow in his direction? Did she aim at the wrong person?

As she watched him fall onto the bottomless cliff of eternity, he realized the politeness and nervousness in her voice back then didn't come from reverence. She never revered him a single bit. This woman was simply scared of him. Her eyes emitted fear, like she was staring at a monster. That thought almost paralyzed his whole being.

Before the light of the arrow struck his body, the mask that covered his eyes broke into pieces. The light reflected from his eyes colored those milky white irises, enabling him to have a sense of sight for the last time.

The young man remembered that he had wished for it. He wanted to see the light even once at death's door. Shining as bright as the sun, the woman blinded him again with her deceiving light. As divine as it may have been, it was really empty and ugly.