Chapter 20: Through The Past

Returning to reality, Elastor told Eva all of Zed's past, he continued:

"He suffered that mental trauma for ten years, ten years of loneliness with just me and The Knight to be with. Ten years of drunkenness and shunned by everyone. That's why Zed became cold, grumpy, and depressed. If that night not existed, Zed would have been a great knight and tried to atone for his sins."

Eva was so shocked by the story of Zed, she burst into tears and said:

"He killed his brother, regretting it for the rest of his life, and endured the pain himself. Why is it so sad?"

Suddenly there was a cry on the bed, Elastor and Julia looked and knew that the one crying was Julia. Julia cried while sleeping, she said:

"It's sad, Zed doesn't deserve that pain."

Elastor said:

"Well, maybe everyone already knows."

Eva replied:

"But does Zed even think about, you know... Suicide."

Elastor said:

"Really? Of course not, Zed must live to fulfill Edengaz's wish, he sacrificed so that Zed could live. And now Zed will have to go on a journey to redeem from his past sins, our journey."

Eva replied:

"So that's why Zed didn't want to join the journey in the first place? He didn't want to return to Sandx kingdom, didn't want to see Lamalia again after all these years of suffering."

Elastor said:

"He's been brave enough to embark on this journey, maybe it's time for Zed to face his past."

Eva replied:

"Where is Zed now?"

Elastor said:

"Prince Edengaz's grave. It's in his vineyard."

Eva replied:

"I want to go see him."

Elastor said:

"You should go see him after that story, talk for a bit."

Eva nodded and went to find Zed. Now Zed was sitting in front of Edengaz's grave, he remembered their old memories. Zed said:

"You know, I've got a shop like what I wanted. I got to drink Elf too, it's delicious you know. Your little sister has grown up too, she beat the crap out of me. Hahaha, how nice to see you again."

Zed poured wine on Edengaz's grave, he said:

"Drink, let's drink like the old days."

Zed crushed the wine bottle and made his blood flow. Zed drew a roaring tiger symbol in a corner of Edengaz's grave to honor him. Zed stood up and said:

"I tried to change, but..."

Zed clenched his fist to make the wound bleed more, he burst into tears and said:

"I couldn't do it, I tried but these sins won't leave me. It's the same night every night, the nights of carnage and killing with the name Horseman of Death. I can't take it anymore."

Lamalia went to see Zed, she said:

"Zed?"

Zed turned to look at Lamalia, he replied:

"Lamalia, I'm sorry. Sorry about that night."

Zed hugged Lamalia and cried, Lamalia said:

"I'm also sorry I wasn't there when you needed me."

Eva went to see Zed in the vineyard and found him and Lamalia hugging. She thought to herself:

"Maybe I should let them have some alone time."

After the party was over, everyone went home to rest. Lamalia went to bed first and Zed sat on the roof of the castle and watched the stars. Zed was silent and remembered the old memories. The Knight lay beside Zed to recharge the darkness and was petted and brushed by him. Zed said:

"The stars are still as beautiful. The Knight, do you see it?"

The Knight replied:

"Yes master. It's always beautiful."

Eva climbed to the roof of the castle to meet Zed, she approached and said:

"Zed, are you here? I've been looking for you."

Zed replied:

"Hey, I'm sitting here."

Eva went to Zed and sat next to him, she said:

"I thought you were drunk so you got lost. Who knew you were sitting here, what are you doing up here?"

Zed replied:

"Ah, The Knight is absorbing the darkness, I sit here to rest and drink."

"Okay, hmm..."

"What do you want to talk to me about?"

"Nothing, I just want to sit next to you."

They were silent and looked at the stars. Eva said:

"The stars are so beautiful."

Zed replied:

"Yeah."

"You don't say much at Sandx, do you?"

"I don't talk much, only when I need to argue with you."

"Hey!"

"Just kidding, but it's true that I don't want to say much here."

"So, have you gone to meet your best friend here?"

"Yeah, he's fine."

"Really? Where is he? I want to see him."

"It's hard to say but I went to see his grave."

"Oh, I'm really sorry."

"It's okay, you don't know anything so it's okay."

"It means a lot for you to visit his grave, you two must be very close."

"Yeah, he's my sworn brother, we used to fight side by side, we drank together and... Maybe I shouldn't have continued."

"I see, you were sad when he passed away, weren't you."

"Yeah, I don't think after all these years he passed without me there."

"Yeah, my condolences to you."

"Thanks. When do we move on?"

"We'll be leaving soon, the next kingdom is Newlaphaine kingdom. Queen Eculida is a gentle, gorgeous and kind person, she'll definitely help us."

"Good for you then."

"I really like Sandx people, they are very gentle, kind, although a bit loud, but very cheerful."

"Hmm, really? You should see them when there's a war, how chaotic."

"Wow, you know a lot. Can I ask if King Zenhector and Lamalia used to know you?"

"No, never. They just think I'm too strong."

"I see King Zenhector and Lamalia know you very well."

"Don't worry about them, I'll talk to Lamalia tomorrow."

"Yeah, you should reconcile something with her. You two really hate each other."

"Yeah."

"Have you ever joined the army? Your old armor had the military sun emblem on it."

"I used to, then I left because of mission failure."

"Have you ever fought in a great battle? You are very talented in combat."

"Never, I served in the military so short."

"I don't know how great and epic the battles are in the books. But they all cost the lives of many people."

"Winners make history, losers become villains. No one is really right or really wrong. Only war never changes. If you wage war against Urizen, please remember and honor those who sacrificed their lives to fight for your cause."

"I know, I've always considered heroes and fallen soldiers as a symbol of courage and honor. They fought until the end for their cause."

Eva rested her head on Zed's shoulder, she said:

"I don't want these peaceful moments to end, it's so slow and so quiet, no one bothers or anything."

Zed replied:

"Then after the journey you will have it."

"What will you do when the journey is over?"

"Going back to a normal life, sometimes going on a little adventure, but still drinking."

"I understand you too well. Hahaha."

Eva said calmly:

"You're so warm, Zed, even though you're always cold."

Eva fell asleep on Zed's shoulder, he looked at her and said:

"One day you will know how important those moments are, don't waste them, cherish them. Don't fail Eva, this journey I have earned all my trust for you. No matter what happens, I will protect you. If I fall, you will have to stand up and fight, so be brave Eva. You are the last hope."

Zed took Eva to her bedroom and he went back to his own. Zed lay on the bed with sleeping Elastor beside him. Elastor said while sleeping:

"Come out, there are over a hundred rooms in this castle and you choose mine."

Zed replied:

"But your room is my favorite. So good night."

Elastor sighed and said:

"Damn it."

Zed and Elastor slept together, sometimes Zed accidentally punched Elastor in the face but fortunately he was asleep so he didn't feel anything. The next morning in the royal dining room, everyone had breakfast there. As for Zed, it seems that he drank a lot and only ate a few slices of bread. Eva looked at him and said:

"Zed, you should eat something, don't drink wine in the morning."

Zed said nothing and kept drinking. Eva brought a plate of breakfast to Zed, as did Lamalia. They put breakfast on the table for Zed at the same time. Eva and Lamalia surprised each other, Lamalia said:

"I just wanted to give him some food."

Eva replied:

"Me too."

Eva took the bottle of wine from Zed's hand and said:

"Let's have breakfast."

Lamalia gave Zed a spoonful of food and said:

"Eat."

Zed replied:

"Ok, Ok. I can eat by myself, you two don't need to treat me like a baby."

Zed took his fork and ate breakfast. Elastor and Julia were eating, they looked at Eva and Lamalia and said:

"What the hell?"

Eva said to Lamalia:

"Ah, oh that's right. You said you were going to take me out in the city, right?"

Lamia replied:

"Yeah, then let's go. But not this dress, let's go change."

Eva and Lamalia went to change. Zed waited for them to leave, then took a bottle of wine from the table and continued drinking. Elastor and Julia thought in solitude:

"So what are we supposed to do?"

Eva and Lamalia changed into comfortable clothes and wore face coverings. Eva said:

"Hey, why are we wearing face masks?"

Lamia replied:

"Ah, I don't want to be noticed. Let's just hang out in secret."

Eva said:

"Let's go."

Eva and Lamalia exited the castle together and entered the residential area. This place was very poor but the people lived very happily with what they had. Eva and Lamalia led each other through the narrow streets, they climbed to the roofs and jumped from house to house. They jumped down to a busy market place and ran deep inside. People were selling beautiful things from cloth, pottery, desert-grown fruit, and food. Lamalia bought Eva a bag of cool fruit and the two of them ate it together. Eva's first time eating a street food and it was delicious. Eva and Lamalia play together with children, they have a lot of fun together with many games such as hide and seek, wooden gyrus and chase. That day Eva was enjoying herself, playing happily with everyone. For the first time, she was exposed to the simple but happy things of the people. Eva and Lamalia traveled around and got to see the deepest parts of the city. In the evening they sat on the wall and watched the sunset. Eva smiled and said:

"Wow, today was tiring but fun."

Lamia replied:

"You look like you're enjoying it for the first time."

"Yes, since I was a child, I have only lived in the castle, the daily life of the people I can only observe through a glass window."

"That's sad, you must be lonely in the castle."

"No, I have Julia, the blue haired girl who followed us. We've always played together since childhood."

"Wow, it's nice to have such a friend. And who's the Elf friend?"

"His name is Elastor Magnum, he lives in the forest and often goes to Zed's house to buy things. Zed and he are very close."

"Well, good for him"

"I see everyone's happy but..."

"I understand, maybe outside of the royal family and aristocracy, the people are very poor. Because most of the men are soldiers, the women stay at home just doing housework, weaving or farming. But dirt here is very rare, most of the dirt we have is obtained from oases We can't grow crops in the sand. It is very difficult to trade with other kingdoms because it is difficult to traverse the Sandx desert. Most people in the city are self-sufficient"

"Does King Zenhector have a policy yet?"

"I also tried telling my father but he was only focused on fighting the rebellious nomadic tribes."

"So there must be a way to help the poor."

"Only when the rebellious tribes are defeated, but then there may be internal problems in the city between the rich and the poor."

"That's why he asked Zed, his strength is enough to destroy those tribes."

"Right."

"If I can, I will talk with king Zenhector about that."

"Really?"

"Yes, I will. I can not let them be like that."

"Then I will support you too."

"Thanks you."

Eva and Lamalia sat in silence for a while, Eva said:

"Lamalia, do you still love Zed?"

Lamia replied:

"Why do you ask that?"

"I understand about Zed's past. He and she were passionately in love, even about to get married. But after that night, he and Zed no longer contacted or met. Over many years do you still love Zed this year?"

"Yes, I still love Zed. Even though it's been a long time since I've said I hate him. I was waiting for Zed to return one day but he didn't. Ten years later Zed was really come back but not the old Zed anymore. I can't imagine how much the obsession has haunted Zed. Now I just wish he would overcome the past to be stronger."

"I know, there will come a time when Zed will return."

"So when will you continue your journey?"

"After our weapons are repaired, then we will proceed to the Newlaphaine kingdom."

"Good luck then."

"Thank you. The time in Sandx kingdom was great."

"Yeah you welcome. Let's go back to the castle now."

Lamalia and Eva went back to the castle. Thanks to Lamalia, Eva had been caring and understanding with the lives of the poor. Under the Iron Forge, Avator was trying hard to forge the broken blade of the Dante sword. There were over were hundreds of replacement blades that were thrown away because they couldn't match the sword, this time being the last material that Avator had. He hammered down hard when suddenly the last replacement blade broke right away, and Avator said nervously:

"No way, this is our strongest and lightest metal."

Zed stood in front of Avator, he replied:

"What? What does that mean?"

Avator said:

"Proves we've run out of minerals, materials, and metals to forge your sword. Now it will forever be a broken sword like this."

"It sucks, so how do I fight?"

"I don't know but this sword is no longer repairable, it rejects all substitute metals."

Zed picked up the Dante sword and said:

"It's followed me through many battles. I won't throw it away anyway."

Zed put away his sword and said:

"Thank you, Avator, you've worked really hard. What about the other people's weapons?"

Avator replied:

"I'm still repairing and upgrading them. It's a bit difficult, but I'm sure they'll be stronger than before."

Zed said:

"This job is thanks to you."

Zed had left the Iron Forge and gone to dinner. As for Elastor and Julia, they were fighting in the Arena of Champions to become stronger. They leaned back against each other while surrounded by many gladiators. Elastor said:

"How are you?"

Julia replied:

"Still fine."

Elastor raised his sword and said:

"Then let's end them."

Julia raised her gloves and replied:

"We're still too weak, we have to get stronger to be able to fight alongside everyone."

Elastor and Julia shouted and separated to continue fighting. That night everyone sat down for dinner, Zed this time ate more and Eva and Lamalia were very pleased. Suddenly a soldier hurried in and said:

"Your Majesty, the rogue nomadic tribes are attacking the wall."

Zenhector replied:

"Raise your troops and hold their ground in front of the city gates. And Zed, you must destroy them all."

Zed said:

"I know what I need to do."

Elastor replied:

"Then we'll fight too."

Crusadia team and Lamalia left the table and went out to fight the enemy. Zenhector jumped out of the window and landed on the ground and he ran quickly towards the wall. While they were leaving the castle, suddenly Alata appeared in front of them, he killed many soldiers on the way. Alata looked at Elastor and said:

"Elastor, I'm here to see you."

Elastor replied:

"You followed me here? Damn it."

Alata said:

"And I have many other friends, too."

Four of Alata's assassins stepped out and surrounded them. Zed said:

"I want to separate."

Everyone ran in four different directions except for Elastor. The four assassins all chased after them. Elastor confronted Alata, he said:

'You really are persistent."

Elastor summoned The Star. Alata summoned The Ghost and said:

"I'll kill you after everything you've done to me."

Elastor replied:

"What the hell do I care about you?"

Alata summoned his weapon, the Shadow Spear Horror (It was a spear with a large blade and two extra blades on both sides, a long stem and a good bend). Elastor and Alata rush to fight each other. Zed and the big assassin who followed him stopped at the training ground, he looked at him and said:

"Hmm, you look like you want to confront me."

He replied:

"We're not that easily defeated, Lord Reaper has made us the number one warriors."

He tore off his cloak to reveal a large, lean body with the skin and horns of a rhinoceros beetle. He said:

"I am Samot, the Reaper's strongest assassin. It's a pleasure to face you."

Zed summoned The Knight and the broken Dante sword and said:

"It's ugly for you to look like that."

Zed rushes to confront Samot. Eva and the female assassin chasing her stopped in a corridor, she said:

"Let's fight."

The female assassin replied:

"Unfortunately for you. The narrow place is my strong point."

She tore off her cloak and revealed the arms, legs and back of a mantis, she said:

"I am Sherma, the Reaper's fourth strongest assassin. There's nothing I can't cut through."

Eva replied:

"Oh no."

Eva quickly ran with Sherma frantically chasing after and slashing at her repeatedly. Julia and the female assassin who chased her stopped at the dining room, she picked up a chair and said:

"Come here, I'm not afraid of you."

The female assassin tore off her cloak and revealed the wings and tail of a bee, she said:

"I'm Renoa, the Reaper's third strongest assassin and there's nothing you can do about it."

Julia replied:

"Really?"

Julia threw a chair at Renoa but she dodged it. Julia quickly crawled down the table and Renoa charged at her. Lamalia turned around and confronted the assassin chasing her, she summoned Strike claws and said:

"Hmm, looks like it'll be easy for me."

He tore off his cloak to reveal the paws of a locust, he said:

"I am Oma, the Reaper's second strongest assassin."

Lamia replied:

"And I'm the one who will defeat you."

Lamalia lunged at him and Oma jumped up and kicked her. The battle of the five of them began. As for Zenhector, he was dealing with a lot of nomadic warriors roaming the walls. Zenhector said angrily:

"Where's Zed?"

The rebellious nomad warriors shot fire arrows through the wall into the house. Zenhector jumped off the wall and fought them.