'When will this war end, love?' Her tired eyes whispered to my soul.

Staring at her pristine eyes caused me to tremble. '...I know I'll be back for her, but I don't know if I'd survive this. Why do I have to go through this? Why do I have to face it? I hate that place. I loathe the cold and empty darkness. Why is fate against me all the time? But for her, I would sigh. I love her more than anything. Why can't I love her more than anything in this world? But for her, I would... sigh, I love her more than anything that this world can ever offer.'

With a heavy heart, I whispered, "Only when our hearts eclipse once more, when you see the through me as I've seen through you, will this war find its end."

----

'...I'm tired, when will I see her again?'

I gazed at my hands.

"These hands are stained and bloodied, my once sharp vision is now clouded by darkness. Will I, shrouded in this abyss, still be deserving of her?"

I took a step forward and gazed at the battlefield. The ground was painted red with blood, forming a river. Corpses were strewn everywhere, and many familiar faces were found amidst these lifeless bodies. Numerous houses were ablaze, with fire roaring and wreaking havoc everywhere.

This lone knight stood atop a pile of his enemies' corpses. He had many foreign objects on his body: stabbed by a sword, hit by arrows, and impaled by a spear.

'Ah, my warbound brethren are dead. There's only me left, huh?" He took a pause and then continued, "I didn't even notice that there's still a sword in my hand." He couldn't help but let out a small, wry chuckle.

He gazed at the great sword.

"My partner, you—the one who earned me the title 'The Sharpest'—could not weather every battle, but don't abandon me now. Please, not you too." The sword shone as if acknowledging his thoughts.

In an instant, someone came. A shining white armor that could blind your eyes appeared beside the knight. His face was familiar, more like his own but twisted with a grin.

He uttered with great pleasure on his face, "Well, well, well, who do we have here? 'The Sharpest Sword of the Empire.' What a grand title, but oh, how the mighty have fallen? So, so sad."

"Ybrik, why are you here? To laugh at my miserable fate, perhaps?" The knight uttered calmy.

"Oh no, my creator, I am your other self. Isn't it a virtue to see the end of my other half? And yes, I find extreme pleasure in your current appearance. Heheheheheh." Ybrik, the shining knight, laughed maniacally after uttering this.

"Damn you, I'll end your life. If it weren't for your meddling, none of this would've unfolded. She would still be safe in my embrace." The knight's voice thundered with intense rage, a lingering bitterness from their shared history resurfacing as he confronted Ybrik.

"My, oh my, if you're blaming me, then you're blaming yourself. Hehehe, don't forget, you were the one who caused it, not me—your other half. If it weren't for your stupid choices to split me or kill me inside you, to have the do-or-die mentality, you could've had it all: power, wealth, fame, even her. Your ending of your rebellious nature ended her, NOT ME. So don't fucking blame me for that," he delivered with pure frustration.

"Your act of splitting me from yourself rendered you a spineless coward—devoid of ambition and any prospect of a future. You disgust me on numerous levels. Few would believe that I am your other half. But then again, what more can one expect from you—a coward, and from me—a madman? HAHAHAHA," Ybrik's laughter echoed loudly, a mockery of the very world he inhabited.

"Much like you, I also cherished her deeply. Yet, you, being a fool as you are, couldn't resist taking action. You just had to tread that irreversible path.” Ybrik smiled mockingly to the knight.

“Even at the height of my power, I couldn't alter her course towards her inevitable fate," he spoke calmly. Just by remembering her made him calm, as if he were painting a picture of a starry sky, and she was the light of each of those worlds. Beyond the vastness of space, she was the only light he could see and would ever see..