Crown of Thorns

CHAPTER 76 – The Warrior’s Story

Team: Cuties, WilsonWilson, Stephanie

“Did you find a name for me?”

“Estevan.”

“You really did?”

“…”

“Estevan… Es-, tevan… wWhat does it mean?”

“It means the crown of victory. I’ll call you Evan for short.”

Nyx, the woman who named him Evan after he had lost his name, was different from the witch in the fairy tale.

She was friendly and fragile. Instead of blaming the humans, who had made her suffer so, she still warmly loved them warmly. That was the thing about her that Evan couldn’t understand at all. It was hard to believe. IAnd it was really strange to see that Nyx, who had been turned into a wicked witch and was unfairly trapped in a tower for so long, to be that forgiving when he himself had dreamed of the day he’d have revenge on the people who harmed him and his family.

“Do the people know? That the witch they fear believes in God and blesses the humans who have caused her great pain?”

She was but a kind and warm woman. A woman who, at first glanceencounter, appears to be calm, composed, and cold. But in reality, she had tolerated everyone’s faults and generously shared her peace and affection. That was the real identity of the woman whom people called a witch.

TAnd the more time they spent together, the more he felt that Nyx and himself were similar to each other. Yes, he was definitely not a monster. He moved in and out of the Witch’s Forest because he had keener senses and a healthier body than others. But he was just an ordinary boy who acted childish to his mother and butted heads with his brother. It was none other than the world which had made him into a monster.

“The witch is not Nyx. We’re not monsters. It’s the world. You know that, right?”

He was sure that this was how Nyx came to be a witch, too.

Evan wanted to get Nyx back to her original appearance. She was very mysterious and pretty when she said that his white hair and red eyes were beautiful. Even in the dark tower, her black eyes that glowed silently as if they had stars in them, her black eyelashes that huang long over them, and her black hair that floweds down to her waist were dazzlingly beautiful. He thought that her real appearance was trapped under all those scars, hiding her great beauty, resembling the night sky and shining gracefully.

He couldn’t wait to clear out all of her horribly painful scars.

“I’ll start by teaching you about the power you possess. Light is largely divided into healing, purification, and attack. I’m going to teach you to purify and attack so that you can protect yourself even if you run into a monster.”

“Let’s start with healing first.”

“Why?”

“…I get a lot of wounds, don’t I? And I want to get rid of these scars.”

Evan showed his arm to Nyx. He couldn’t bear to outright tell her that he wanted to remove her scars since he was sure that she’d reject him.

He tried to control the light better, hiding his inner thoughts. After all the scars were gone, the image of a beautiful woman with black hair and eyes seemed to smile at him with gratitude. He was neither interested in becoming a warrior nor in saving the world, but he wanted to punish those who had hurt him and his family, and he wanted to make her laugh, so he tried hard.

TAnd the witch would stay in the tower until he turned into a warrior, and she would always watch him until he achieved what she wanted.

Nyx used to always go somewhere. She left the tower too easily. The world didn’t lock Nyx up, but rather, she trapped herself in the tower, so anxiety weighed on his whole body when she disappeared. He was afraid that she might never come back at some point, and that he would be alone again. He always wanted her to be in the tower. To never go anywhere.

From the beginning, she was so hazy and unattainable that it wouldn’t be strange for her to disappear at any time, leaving him alone in an empty tower. Feeling like she was but a dream, and that there was no one in there, to begin with. That he was mistaken. Or that he, eventually, went crazy and created a fantasy.

So every time Nyx came back, both joy and sadness overwhelmed him. He was flooded with both relief and anxiety. He wanted to be angry about why she kept going out, but he also wanted to cry because he was thankful that she came back. He wanted to hold onto her so tightly that she never went anywhere, but he couldn’t say anything for fear that she might run away. He was a real mess.

So once, he grabbed onto her clothes without realizing it while she was sleeping.

It was when she told him the story of an old language that disappeared while reading a fairy tale book. Nyx’s calming voice was very clear. In addition to her calm tone, it felt very comfortable and sweet to listen to her soft voice that he just drifted into sleep.

When he opened his eyes, the tower was dim and Nyx sat next to Evan and fell asleep leaning against the wall. It was the first time he saw her sleeping face, so he crouched in front of her for a long time. He hurriedly brought a blanket and covered her.

She was no different from ordinary people when sleeping soundly. Her eyes were closed, her breathing was quiet, and every time her heart thumped, her chest rose heaved up and down. When he reached out his hand and grabbed the hem of the clothes, he felt the touch of her skin under the fabric on the palm of his hand. She was no fantasy, she’s definitely a living woman in front of me, Evan thought.

“Don’t go. Don’t go anywhere. Stay here. Don’t leave me alone.”

He’s always wanted to say this. His voice that she couldn’t hear carried through the quiet tower. Please don’t leave me alone. I’m scared. I’m afraid you’ll suddenly disappear all of a sudden, and the fear of being alone again is driving me crazy.

The more time he spent with Nyx, the more he was filled with small happiness, and, ironically, the more anxious he felt. As if he were standing on a tower built with clouds. He didn’t know when and how it was going to collapse. Evan clasping the hem of Nyx’s clothing with his hand was a silent cry that he never wanted to be parted from her.

Nyx was a woman comparable to the night. No matter how much he wanted to hold onto her, he couldn’t help but say goodbye when the sun rose. Or a shadow he always saw around and thought it’d always be with him, but he couldn’t hold on to it.

Nyx, who looked at Evan affectionately and spoke warmly of, took care of him like a mother and sometimes hugged him like a woman, but she was always a few steps away, making Evan shudder with anxiety. Lingering so far away as if she were about to leave. His craving for her somehow burned, setting him on fire.

Soon after, Nyx woke up. The black eyes, which glowed softly in the moonlight, were truly mysteriously transparent and beautiful. He couldn’t take his own eyes off them. Her beauty was obstructed by a scar., Iit looked so painful that it made him frown. Anger flared up. The thought that the world was what made him so nervous about her existence tore away at him.

“I’m going to build up my strength and…”

I’ll pay back all those who made her like this. aAnd I will bring back Nyx’s beauty and her peaceful life.

Evan thoughtasked, swallowing the bitter thoughts.

“Don’t you want revenge on the humans who made you like this? Don’t you hate the world? It did nothing but hurt and deserted you.”

“Whatever you do, you can’t get revenge. As the broken plate cannot return to its original form, the wounds that have already occurred do not heal. No, they will heal, but they will leave a scar. A scar that may become hazy but will never be erased.”

“But…”

“SAnd sometimes living is a punishment worse than hell. It’s just a matter of waiting to see. They’ll pay for it eventually.”

After saying so, she quickly got up and Evan hurriedly grabbed her hand.

Afraid she’ll disappear again.

“Where are you going?”

“To prepare your meal.”

Still, Evan couldn’t let go of her hand. His insides were all in a mess. Don’t go, stay here. I’m anxious— I’m afraid you’ll leave me. Just as you’ve collected me so easily, you might throw me away all the same. If I become useless, you might kick me out like an old sock.

He liked Nyx’s warmth. And he hoped that she’d always look at him with such warm eyes.

But he knew. tThat humans do not do good deeds for no reason. Only two people, his mother, and brother, ever showered him with affection without expecting anything in return. Nyx was no different, either., bBecause she wanted something from him from the get-go and kept him by her side for that reason.

ASo as long as he could be useful to her, Evan believed that she would stay with him as long as she could. But he still couldn’t figure out what she wanted. There was no way to know what Nyx really wanted.

Why did she make him into a warrior? What can she get from it? The questions that had begun to fester in his mind were never solved.

“You raised me and wanted me to grow up so I can save the world just as you’ve told me?”

“You have to be a warrior and save the world. You have to cover up the Darkness and become the fountain from which a new hope can sprout. You have to be the sun that will save people. That’s why I’m teaching you all this.”

“So if I do what you want, will you stay with me?”

“Yes.”

In any case, she would stay by his side until he achieved her purpose, and he had to do his best to become a warrior.

But that didn’t mean he wanted to be a warrior and save the world. When the world gets better, the witch no longer has to be in the tower. She obviously locked herself away in there by her own volition. Evan thought it was because she hated the world, just like he did.

–––