Arks was still wandering through the hall, as if searching for something within the crowd—something he himself couldn’t quite name. Suddenly, a familiar yet strange feeling washed over him; a sensation so strong he could almost smell it in the air. He turned sharply, his gaze landing on a little girl who, like him, seemed to be drifting aimlessly through the hall.

Something inside him drew him towards Astia, but this time, he sensed something was amiss. His eyes locked onto Astia, and in that very moment, he saw her start to move towards a group of noble children. But midway there, Astia abruptly stopped. Her movements looked unnatural; it was as if her body could no longer move easily. Arks watched more intently and realized Astia’s movements had become stiff and restricted, as though an unseen force was pulling her towards an unknown destination.

Astia's strange movements made his heart race faster than before. He took a few quick steps forward, but with each step, it felt like something unseen was holding him back. That same eerie, ominous feeling he had experienced earlier returned, now mixed with worry for Astia.

Astia continued to move with difficulty, her steps guided towards an unknown place. It was as if she couldn’t control herself; her body was being pulled forward, but her eyes seemed empty of understanding or will. Watching this scene, Arks became more convinced that a hidden force was at play.

As Arks got closer to Astia, the surrounding gazes also turned to this scene. The nobles, who always watched Arks with curiosity and sometimes fear, were now watching him again. Whispers rippled through the hall: "Those strange things again!", "Is something happening?", "This kid always brings trouble...", "You know what’s scarier than him? That girl is a real curse."

But Arks, ignoring these looks and whispers, walked towards the girl with longer, faster strides.

Suddenly, Astia stopped moving and seemed to snap back to herself. Her eyes regained a natural look, and her breathing calmed. For Arks, this sudden change was both strange and surprising. But before he could even process what had just happened, a strong, unknown sensation on the upper floor of the hall drew his attention.

Arks lifted his head and looked up to the second floor; a place where sacred and ominous power flowed through the space like an invisible wave. As this feeling intensified, a long dart shot out with incredible speed from up there, heading straight for Astia. Arks, who despised his power and always tried to avoid using it, knew he had no choice but to use it now.

With unimaginable speed, he unleashed his dark aura and shadows. The shadows wrapped around Astia like a thick shield, just as the dart was about to reach her. Arks tried with all his might to stop the projectile. The dark shadows possessed a unique power; a power that wasn't even hidden from the eyes of others. The nobles, who had always imagined Arks as a powerful monster, watched this scene with surprise and awe.

The shield that Arks had created with his dark power successfully stopped the dart. A moment of heavy silence fell over the hall, and all eyes were fixed on Arks—someone who was now seen, once again, not just as a noble’s son, but as an indescribable force.

Relieved that Astia was safe, Arks calmly gathered the dark shadows from around her. The shadows vanished in complete silence, as if they had never existed. But Arks’s gaze remained on Astia, even as the crowd around him, who had quickly rushed towards the little girl, obscured his view.

The nobles, who had all witnessed Arks’s dark power, now cast curious, fearful, and even admiring glances towards him. These gazes, which always felt like a heavy burden on Arks’s shoulders, felt even more unbearable this time. Whispers echoed through the hall: "What exactly is that kid?", "His power is beyond imagination…", but Arks had no desire to hear any of it.

Feeling like he could no longer endure the atmosphere, he quickly left the grand hall. His footsteps, silent but full of anxiety, led him towards the royal gardens. The cool night air offered him some relief, and the scent of fresh garden flowers, like a refuge from the noise and heavy gazes of the hall, embraced him.

Arks stood in heavy silence in the midst of the garden, trying to organize his thoughts about what had just happened. The ominous shadows and the power he had used brought him back to his constant question: "What am I really?"

Just as Arks stood in the silence of the royal garden, something powerful and mysterious passed overhead. This bad, heavy feeling made Arks’s heart race again and his mind became troubled. The power was so fast that Arks only had a moment to focus, but that moment was enough for him to understand the truth: this power belonged to a person, not to a portal or some other source. He also realized that the deadly dart had been fired by a saintess, making it even more imperative to pursue her.

Without a moment's hesitation, Arks summoned his dark shadows. As a powerful and complex force, these shadows always granted Arks abilities beyond imagination. Using his shadows, his speed reached a point where he could match the speed of that saintess, step for step. Their movements were both fast and synchronized; two different forces, chasing each other.

The endless chase between Arks and the saintess led them to the middle of a desolate forest; a place everyone avoided. This dark and damp forest, with its dangerous swamps and grounds covered in deadly slime, created a cold and merciless environment. The smell of dampness and decay filled the air, and the heavy silence of the forest, like a mournful curtain, enveloped the entire space.

Arks, no longer sensing the saintess’s sacred power, paused for a moment in the middle of the forest. His mind was still consumed by questions about where this power came from and what intentions lay behind it. Suddenly, he was attacked from behind. A white, dazzling light, with terrifying speed, rushed towards him; a light that was the embodiment of the saintess’s sacred power.

But Arks’s dark shadows, which always served him as a powerful shield, came to his aid once again. The shadows instantly wrapped around Arks, preventing the light from hitting him.

Arks’s shadows swirled around him like a living, seething wave, and with every attack of the saintess’s light, they surged forward. The white, sacred light, each time hitting the shadows with pure energy, flashed like brilliant lightning in the forest's darkness, and sounds of collision and explosion echoed through the heavy silence of the forest.

The shadows, with flexibility and strength, turned into long, twisting whips directed towards the saintess’s light, trying to stop it. With each strike, the sound of their impact echoed like a celestial roar in the dark forest. But the light, with a different kind of power, scattered parts of the shadows with each dazzling explosion, and pushed forward.

Arks, standing amidst this battlefield, used his shadows to organize more precise attacks. He had managed to surround part of the light with thicker shadows, but the saintess’s power was so immense that it found a way to advance at every moment.

Light and shadow, like two opposing forces, were locked in a ruthless battle. Every movement of light shook the darkness, and every surge of shadow brought the light closer to destruction. The damp, slimy ground of the forest trembled from these colliding energies, and the swamps beneath rumbled from their depths.

The battle continued, but Arks gradually realized that the light, despite its appearance, was more purposeful than just trying to destroy the shadows. It seemed the saintess’s light was searching for something else; something Arks still didn’t understand.

A sudden flash of light completely distracted Arks. Before even his shadows could react, a sudden, heavy blow struck the back of his head. He lost his balance and fell to the ground. Intense pain shot through his head, but he had little time to understand it. When Arks lifted his head, what he saw froze his entire body: a sharp sword hovered above him, moonlight creating a clear, cold shine on its blade.

The dark shadows that were always like a shield around Arks, could do nothing in that moment. It was as if the power of that sword had restrained them. The sword blade descended threateningly towards Arks’s face, and heavy silence enveloped the environment; a silence that even silenced the sounds of the forest.

A man in a long cloak, whose golden eyes were visible from beneath the hood, stood over Arks. These eyes, in contrast with the darkness of the forest, shone brightly and amplified the sense of danger and threat. The man had a sinister smile on his lips, a smile that conveyed nothing but cruelty and power. In a calm, piercing voice, he murmured under his breath: "You are very strong."

The sword, just as it moved towards Arks, shattered by an unseen force, its pieces scattering in the air. The cloaked man was violently thrown backwards, crashing forcefully into one of the damp forest trees. Dazed and surprised, he lifted his head to look at the person who had deflected the attack.

Someone stood over Arks; an aura of power and dignity enveloped him. His hair, under the soft moonlight, shone golden, as if the moon itself had gifted him all its light. When he brushed his hair aside, his crystal red eyes were revealed; eyes that burned like fire in the darkness and made the surrounding air cold and heavy.

The cloaked man, whose entire being trembled from these powerful eyes, froze completely. His movements ceased, as if a power beyond his imagination had completely restrained his will. Arks, who had fallen to the ground, could no longer resist because of the force of the blow he had received. His mind darkened and he quickly drifted into unconsciousness.

In this heavy silence and tense atmosphere, the unknown figure standing over Arks clearly demonstrated that he was not only superior in power to the cloaked man, but also had a specific purpose for being there.

This figure was undoubtedly Arks himself.

The cloaked man, whose golden eyes were still visible from under his hood, used his lights with incredible speed and disappeared into the brilliant flames. No trace of his presence remained, he was completely gone from that place, as if he had never been there.

But before he completely moved away from the desolate forest, he whispered calm and hateful words under his breath; words that echoed bitterly in the air: "You're a Carnilimos! Damn you all."

This was the last thing left of him, and this sentence revealed a hidden secret and anger that was perhaps related to a dark past. A heavy atmosphere prevailed over the forest, while the new figure, with his crystal red eyes and powerful presence, stood over Arks, carefully watching the place where the cloaked man had vanished.