Claim Your Throne

The room was quiet, the air charged with a subtle tension as Lila absorbed the staggering truths about her life.

"Aether?" she asked, the confusion clear in her voice.

"You'll understand everything when it's time," her mother replied, her tone calm but authoritative.

"I should take over from here," she said, looking at her husband. He understood the unspoken command in her eyes, a mix of determination and a plea to protect her aching heart.

Lila watched her parents, sensing the sadness she had previously mistaken for relief.

"If you insist," her father said, giving a slow nod.

Her mother's smile was gentle, but Lila could see it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Sol's decree came with three rules," her mother began.

"The first is that the one with the sun mark must never learn magic," she said, holding up one finger.

She paused before the second rule, her reluctance visible.

"We'll talk about the second rule later," her mother continued, her smile faltering.

"The third rule is the most severe: the one with the sun mark must be given to Sol on their fourteenth birthday."

"Sacrificed? How?" Lila's voice wavered.

"Do they... kill the person? Because those men in town today seemed ready to kill me on sight."

"No, not death," her father quickly assured her.

"The men you saw are blind followers, believing they'll gain power through the sacrifice."

"If they had succeeded, Sol would have punished them, for you haven't seen fourteen winters yet."

"The one with the sun mark isn't killed," her mother clarified.

"Sol absorbs them, erasing their existence."

"We've wondered about the age limit and why he doesn't just kill them."

"Then we found a book with a note on Aether, written by the previous sun mark bearer."

"At fourteen, a god Slayer's mana core evolves, allowing it to harness Aether."

Lila understood most of what they said, but 'Aether' remained a mystery, a piece her parents hadn't explained.

"To put it simply, absorbing them at that moment makes Sol stronger than he already is," her father explained.

"You're cutting me off," her mother said, though her eyes twinkled.

"So?" he replied lightly.

"You spoke for me earlier, and I didn't say anything," he said with a chuckle.

Her mother crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks in mock annoyance.

Lila laughed, the sound brightening the somber mood.

"Acting like children," she said, still giggling.

"Is that so?" her father responded.

"Then goo goo ga ga, miss," he added, his voice playful.

Their laughter filled the room, a welcome respite from the gravity of their conversation.

"Lila," her mother called softly.

"Your father and I have faith in you," she said, her words soothing Lila's unease.

"Your mother has always been brave, but tonight, you've given her new courage," her father added, wrapping an arm around her mother's shoulders.

"Lila, the second rule..." her mother's voice was barely above a whisper.

Her father's hand found her mother's, their fingers intertwining.

"The second rule," her mother continued, "is that the sun god slayer must never be made aware of their powers."

"If they are, whoever is responsible shall face a death penalty at the hands of Sol himself."

Lila's heart raced, her mind grappling with the implications of the revelation her parents had just given her.

"Then why did you tell me!" Lila screamed, her voice trembling, the pieces falling into place with a chilling clarity.

"Because we cannot let you face your fate without knowing the full extent of who you are," her mother said, a fierce determination.

As if on cue, a brilliant light flooded the room, and a figure appeared before them.

It was a young man. He possessed white hair that glowed, illuminating the room. Skin that sparkled, and a youthful physique dressed in white baggy attire.

It was Sol, his presence overwhelming, the air around him crackling with raw power.

"Lila, run!" her father shouted, but she was frozen in place, her eyes locked on the god before her.

"I gave you a simple rule," Sol's voice boomed, echoing off the walls.

Lila's parents stood before her, a shield against the divine wrath. "We did what we must, for our daughter," her mother declared, her voice unwavering.

"I see..."

"Then I presume you'd take no offence in what I'm about to do either. I'm also just doing what I must."

Sol raised his hand, and a searing light burst forth. Lila screamed as the world turned white.

When her vision cleared, she was alone. Her parents were gone, taken by Sol's unforgiving judgment. Tears streamed down her face as she whispered, "I won't let your sacrifice be in vain."

"A year, that's all I have..." Lila rose to her feet, her face still experiencing a waterfall of tears, but also laced with a newfound resolve steeling her spine.

"And I'll take full advantage of it."

She didn't fully understand her powers, but she knew one thing for certain: she would not bow to Sol's will. The path ahead was fraught with danger, but she was the sun god slayer, and she had decided to forge her own destiny.

As the days of the year went by, she gathered books on magic and trained herself. Despite being young, she was extremely talented and gifted with magic power. Her growth was outstanding, placing her on levels that rivaled the strongest mages in her time.

Here's the edited version with proper dialogue tags:

Finally, the day came. Lila and Sol stood on a mountain, facing each other with determination. The early morning mist hung around them, and the mountain was silent except for the crunch of their footsteps on the frosty ground.

Sol moved closer to Lila, his voice carrying through the still air. "I'll give you a chance to surrender, human," he said.

He continued, his tone laced with condescension, "Your struggle will result in nothing but futility. A man cannot kill a god."

Lila's response was fierce, her words cutting through the cold. "I'm tired of this. You don't get to decide how one lives his or her life," she retorted. "Or when it ends! My parents... Their death... They died so I could put an end to this. I won't let their lives waste."

As the sun rose, casting a warm glow on Sol's white hair, they began to fight. Lila was quick, her movements sharp, but Sol responded with equal force. Their battle echoed in the stillness of the mountain.

The world became their battlefield as Lila directed their battle away from her planet. They exchanged blows and explosions that echoed off the surface of the lifeless planets they descended on.

Sol, in a moment of introspection, thought, "I can't believe she's actually this strong at such a young age. Strong enough to challenge almost everything I have."

But as the battle wore on, Lila faltered under Sol's relentless assault. Her movements grew sluggish, her breaths ragged, and her spirit waned. She stumbled and took a blow from Sol, sending her crashing into a nearby planet.

Standing over her, Sol declared, "Like I said, your struggle will end in futility."

Lila, struggling to lift herself, groaned, "So this is how it ends for me? Even my best wasn't enough." She exhaled heavily, then defiantly proclaimed, "No! I still have power inside me. Around me..."

In that moment of near defeat, Lila tapped into a wellspring of power she never knew she possessed. She focused on her breath, envisioning the Aether as a radiant light, growing brighter with each inhale.

With a sudden inhalation, Lila's eyes snapped open, glowing with an ethereal light.

Sol stepped back, his confidence shaken. "No... No!" he exclaimed.

Lila rose, her every movement imbued with the power of Aether. She had found harmony with the universe, and with it, she unleashed a final attack that Sol could not withstand.

She released Ragnarok, an energy wave similar to Sol's light magic. "Impossible!" Sol shouted. "I won't let you win! I won't let another god slayer triumph again!"

But he couldn't withstand it. Ragnarok destroyed everything in its path, and it left the sun god in a near death situation, marking his defeat.

****

The images faded and Reinhart raised his gaze back to the woman in front of him.

"So that's where it all started..." Reinhart said to himself.

"But what exactly was I supposed to gain from this?" He queried

Reinhart got on his feet, while looking down at Lila who was still sitting, "How is this story supposed to help my current situation?"

"Listen Reinhart," she said, her tone soothing like a mother trying to calm her child.

"Do you think the power that led to to destruction of that galaxy was your actual power?" Lila asked.

She paused a bit and chuckled, "That was just something your body pulled by breaking it's limits."

"You haven't awakened aether..." She nodded her head in a negative affirmation.

"Your core has already evolved, placing you on a level where you can perceive and assimilate this ethereal energy"

"You restrict your perception to this world... "

"Aether is not something you gain by just gathering and refining lots of mana."

Lila got up on her feet and began to walk around Reinhart again, slowly, with both her arms behind her back "The secret to awakening Aether lays in the surrender to the energy that binds all things, in the harmony between the self and the universe."

Her voice became more serious, switching from that of a calm mother to a firm disciplinarian.

"To awaken Aether, one must reach into the depths of their being, to a place untouched by fear or doubt. It is there that the pure essence of life, the Aether, resides," she explained.

"Aether exists on a higher plane of existence. It's the air that the gods breathe," she added.

She stopped moving and fixed her gaze on Reinhart. He looked at her, locking his eyes with hers.

"A king does not beg for his throne, Reinhart. He simply opens the door to his throne room and sits on it."

"A king does not fear his power, he exercises it!"

"The same applies here..."

"Reinhart," she called him, as she began to walk towards him, her voice remaining firm.

She halted her movements at point blank range, still looking Reinhart in the eyes, "Exercise your power."

"Claim your throne."