Blind Legacy of Time

Arden and Sira walked through the dark streets of the village, the howl of the wind echoing in their ears. Night had fallen; the streets were littered with the traces of assassins broken arrows, charred stones. Sira walked silently beside Arden, playing with the small knife in her hand. Her blue eyes, even in the darkness, shone like a glimmer of hope. As Arden looked at her, he realized that her innocence was breaking through the solitude he'd felt for the past four years for the first time, the desire to protect someone felt this strong.

"Sira," Arden said, his voice a whisper cutting through the night. "You mentioned the shadow last night… Can you tell me more?" Sira hesitated for a moment, then lowered her head. "It had red eyes," she said, her voice trembling. "I saw them when it took my family… and now I feel it watching me." Arden's face hardened. Karlin's amber eyes flashed in his mind could the shadow be connected to her? His blind eye began to burn again, but this time he ignored the pain.

When they reached the village square, an old chapel caught their attention. The door was ajar, a dim light spilling out from within. Sira, with a shy smile, said, "This… this is where I stay, at the church." Arden glanced at the chapel door. "Then let's go inside," he said. "Maybe we'll find a trace of the shadow."

The interior of the chapel was cold; the stone walls seemed to echo with ancient prayers. Sira pointed to a small bed in the corner. "This is my spot," she said, a hint of sadness in her voice. Arden surveyed the surroundings on the wall, there was a burned mark, just like the one on the tree in the forest. "Sira," he said, his tone serious. "This mark… was the shadow here?" Sira nodded, fear in her eyes. "Yes… I feel it at night. Sometimes I sing lullabies, and it goes away."

Arden felt Sira's fear. "I'll protect you," he said, his voice firm with resolve. A small flame flickered from his fingers, dancing in the dim light of the chapel. Sira, watching the flames, said, "Your flames… they're like they're alive," her eyes filled with awe. Arden smiled faintly. "They're a part of me… but sometimes they don't listen, naughty children."

Just then, the chapel door creaked open. Arden remained calm and waited. Sira gripped her knife tightly and clung to Arden's arm in fear. A shadow appeared at the door its red eyes glowing in the darkness. Sira whispered, "It… it's here!" Arden's blind eye burned like fire, but his face stayed calm. The shadow advanced slowly into the chapel, its steps silent yet threatening. Sira stared at Arden, frozen in place.

The shadow moved to attack, approaching Arden fully. Its red eyes scanned his face in the darkness. Sira, trembling, pleaded, "Arden, do something!" But Arden waited for the shadow to come right up to him, standing still. As the shadow raised its dagger to strike Arden's neck, Arden removed his eye patch and turned to face the shadow. His eyes shaped with a yellow aura, and as the words, "The order of the world and the universe is my decision existence depends on my will, and what should cease finds itself frozen," left his mouth, time stopped. Arden's limit was only 16 seconds, so he had to act fast. First, he took the dagger from the shadow's hand, then ripped off its mask and threw it to the ground. He moved Sira a short distance away, then wrapped a fiery rope around the shadow's neck. Then his time-stopping duration ended.

When time flowed again, Sira was in shock, unsure of what had happened. "How did I get here?" she wondered aloud, her eyes finding Arden. Meanwhile, Arden subdued the shadow and began questioning it mockingly. "Well, shadow, who are you?" he said, his voice carrying a challenge. The shadow stood silently, its red eyes fixed on him, its mask gone, revealing a vague face in the darkness. Sira, trembling, approached Arden. "It… it's not speaking," she said in a shaky voice.

Arden tightened the fiery rope around the shadow's neck. "If you don't speak, this rope will snap shut and sever your head," he said, his eyes blazing with anger. The shadow paused, then whispered hoarsely, "God's shadow…" Arden's face hardened. "You believe in that guy, huh, peanut?" he asked, his voice mocking. The shadow looked at Arden, too terrified to speak.

Sira, looking at Arden, pleaded, "Don't kill it… please," her eyes filled with a desperate plea. Arden looked at Sira's innocence and instantly tightened the fiery rope. The shadow's head fell to the ground; blood gushed from the severed neck. "Sometimes you need to know your place, Sira," he said. Sira's eyes welled up, and she began to vomit; the memory of her family's death flashed in her mind, and she turned to Arden, screaming, "Why, why!?" Arden went to Sira's side, gently stroking her head, and said with compassion in his voice, "Even though I killed the man who murdered your family, you're still unhappy, fair lady." Sira lifted her head and looked at Arden but couldn't respond. What could she do anyway? She couldn't comprehend what had happened, how he had defeated the shadow so quickly. Smiling at Arden, she said with a determined voice, "Will you take me with you?" Arden took the shadow's mask and attached it to his belt, then turned to Sira and nodded, "If you want to come, I won't stop you."