Darian was pulled by his sister through the small, rundown house until they reached the old wooden table in the middle of the room.
There, two dark pairs of eyes stared at him. He stopped, feeling like a thunderbolt had shot through his body under that woman's steady gaze.
She was still really young — his mom had her first kid before turning twenty. She was beautiful and slender, with long black hair tied into a single braid that hung down her back. Her big, watchful eyes missed nothing.
She smiled when she saw him, but Darian knew — there was a lot of pain behind that smile. And a deep, quiet exhaustion he knew all too well.
He was the oldest. He knew more than the others.
There were so many nights he'd wake up and find her standing silently at the window, staring at the stars while crying. She never complained. Never said a word. She lived for her kids — alone, without family, without the husband she loved, who had died.
And Darian, because he knew the future, also knew the other reasons behind her suffering. She worked for a powerful family, and the young bastard heir of that house was probably trying to harass her all the time.
She was stunning, but she would never bend. His mother was stubborn as stone, strong as steel. She always told him:
"Live for what's sacred to you. The things no one can take away. Your honor, your dignity. Doesn't matter what others think or say — without that… you're nothing but a mediocre person."
Darian knew that if one day she were cornered, she'd rather die than submit.
And in the end... that's exactly what happened.
Seeing those eyes again... alive, warm, smiling at him — it was too much.
He stood frozen. His lips trembled. His throat went dry. No words came out.
All his thoughts just collapsed.
"Oh?"
She narrowed her eyes when she saw the strange look on his face. She stood up and walked over, then cupped his face with both hands, making him look at her.
"What is it, my boy? You feeling sick again?"
The worry in her voice was real, intense. Back then, Darian was always sick and afraid — all because of the curse he carried. And that just added even more weight to what she was already dealing with.
Even so... she always smiled. Always gave everything she had.
"No…" he said, swallowing hard. "I just… had a dream. A long, strange dream."
She watched him for a few seconds, worried. Darian took a deep breath, then focused completely on her. He wanted to burn that face into his memory — like he could keep it with him forever.
"A dream, huh?" She nodded slowly, but her eyes were still studying him. Then suddenly, something in his gaze made her expression shift.
"You look different… super focused, like you've made up your mind about something."
He sighed and looked away for a second. "It was a really long dream…"
"Ahh… you dreamed about a girl, didn't you?" she cut in suddenly, teasing. Darian's eyes went wide, and she let out a soft laugh.
"You're trying to act more reliable now… my boy's growing up, huh?"
"Ha! Darian? Growing up? No way!" Lucy cut in from the side, offended. "He just reads and plays games all day! He's gonna be a kid forever."
Their mom laughed, looking at both of them with affection.
"Boys never grow up, that's true. But one day… they do become reliable. They learn when it's time to mess around and when it's time to get serious. You've got to learn the difference, Lucy — and not let their games fool you."
Lucy huffed and crossed her arms, clearly not buying it.
She'd learned a lot living between two brothers — one just minutes younger than her, and the other years older. To her, both of them were eternal kids. Always joking around with her, never to be taken seriously. But deep down… she actually enjoyed their company. Even if she thought they'd never truly grow up.
Light footsteps echoed. The two girls turned toward the hallway leading to the kitchen.
Then Lucy's twin brother showed up. Lucius was a little boy with light green hair, a bit long, reaching his shoulders. His eyes were calm and soft.
He was the cook of the house, even though he was still really young. The reason? Their mom was terrible at it. Her cooking was unbelievably bad... so bad that Darian had to start cooking for them as soon as he could.
But he was never that dedicated to it — cooking needed practice and finesse, and he was always more focused on reading than actually practicing.
Eventually, Lucius started helping him, and pretty quickly it became obvious the kid was a natural.
He called out to Darian, who rushed over to help him. He came back holding a deep pot with a soup that smelled amazing.
Everyone ate... yeah, this was all an illusion, but Darian savored every bite like it was real... it all felt absurdly real.
After the meal, Lucy and Lucius started sharing, all excited, the latest news they'd heard.
Lucy was all fired up about a new High Human who had just been revealed by the Empire. She pointed out he was around Darian's age, but way more handsome.
He was so talented that one of the Empire's top Clans — the Temple Wardens — got into a fight with a bunch of smaller clans trying to recruit him. In the end, the new guy said he'd only decide after the High Human competition.
The three of them talked about the High Humans with stars in their eyes. To normal people, those guys were like gods — everybody loved talking about them. All the powerful ones were like celebrities, and even the weaker ones were still super respected.
Everybody dreamed of having a connection with someone like that... mostly because it meant living safely and peacefully in the Imperial cities.
Those cities were where the High Humans and the people close to them lived. They were closed off, and regular people couldn't even get near them. Inside, it was paradise — no danger, no hunger, and all the tech and knowledge you could dream of was available.
That was where Earth's humanity had found peace. But only a tiny part of the population got to live there. The rest... just struggled to survive. And sadly, there was absolutely nothing they could do about it.
Rebel? Against the High Humans?
The truth was that technology and artificial intelligence had reached a point where regular folks had zero value; machines could replace everything. So if you didn't obey, you were just eliminated. Any rebellion in the past ended in brutal massacres.
...
Hours passed, and soon it was late into the night.
Everyone went to bed.
Under his mother's curious and watchful eyes, Darian walked back to his room.
He pulled the dagger from his belt and set it down on the floor next to his bed. Then he lay down in silence...
His eyes closed peacefully. He already knew exactly what was going to happen next...
His chest was calm, and his mind was light. These were, without a doubt, the calmest and happiest hours he'd had in a long time — he couldn't even remember the last time the four of them sat and talked together like that.
It didn't take long before he felt soft footsteps approaching.
When he opened his eyes...
He saw the illusion of his mother and two siblings standing around his bed.
All of them had empty eyes and cold expressions.
In their hands were black daggers — just like the one Darian had received.
The test made it clear what he was supposed to do. But Darian had already made his choice...
Fuck the test.
The illusion reacted right away to his refusal. The three of them moved to force him to fight back.
This test was win or die. If he refused to win, he'd die right there.
But...
He just looked at the three of them one last time and closed his eyes.
Even if it was just an illusion, even if he was throwing away a chance to grow stronger, even if it meant dying in exchange — he'd never be willing to hurt them.
Why did he want to get stronger? To survive, sure. But surviving alone, isolated, like some emperor locked in his divine tower — that meant nothing.
*Pierce! Pierce!*
The sound of daggers stabbing echoed. Darian felt a few sharp jolts of pain in his body... and then, his consciousness faded...
***
His eyes opened.
In front of him was a small, brightly lit hall.
Darian turned... and saw the door he'd come through to start the test slowly closing. It was like he'd just stepped inside and taken his first steps.
A white light appeared before his eyes, forming a screen with glowing text.
[Heaven Stage: The Heart's Crucible has been completed!]
[Congratulations, you've cleared the entire trial left by God Chromaraic.]