We live in the foothills of Dragon Peak.
A Cycle of Hatred
“Are all of Yun’s sisters so alike?”
“However, we can tell them apart.”
“Even so, they aren’t as alike as Nina and I are.”
“Even so, they aren’t as alike as my older sister and I are.”
“Um, Rinrin?”
With Yun and Rin silently staring at each other, everyone else was comparing the two sisters of the Mimicho Race. Mistral and Carly were also observing with keen interest, though remaining on guard.
But, wasn’t Rin’s true form different? I just had a feeling.
And, as if to confirm my doubt, Yun opened her mouth.
“To impersonate me and act like this is a petty act of revenge.”
“…It’s Older Sister’s fault.”
Along with her tone, Rin’s outline began to waver. Her presence became unstable, as if shimmering like a heat haze, threatening to dissolve into the air. Yet, from our clasped hands, Rin’s warmth and presence were strongly transmitted.
We stared at Rin as she changed. Then, her wavering form re-formed, revealing a new appearance.
She had a slender, petite build like Yun’s. Her eyes and mouth weren’t exactly identical, but they were certainly similar to Yun’s. Perhaps it was because of the constant erosion from the spirit’s power she had absorbed, but the pallor of her face was also strikingly similar.
However, there were clear differences as well. Her long hair cascading down her back was the same, but the color was different.
Pure white hair.
But this wasn’t the white hair of someone whose pigment had faded over many years, like the witch’s, but rather white hair that seemed to have had its life drained, like an old woman’s.
“…Has the corruption progressed that far already?”
“You’re the same, aren’t you, Older Sister? That’s why you’re coloring it black like that.”
Yun looked at Rin with sad eyes. Rin, in contrast, glared back with the defiant gaze of a child.
“Older Sister… If Older Sister had cooperated, we could have eradicated the Mimicho Race and the Giant Tribe by now!”
And with Rin’s words, spat out like a curse, we held our breath.
“Rin, do you still truly believe that?”
“Of course! They are the enemies of our family. The enemies of everyone in our village!”
We already knew.
We had heard about the incident that happened three hundred and fifty years ago from Yun.
The Mimicho Race living in the Great Forest and the Giants of the East had been in conflict for many years.
Depending on the era, there were times when the Mimicho Race steadfastly defended the forest, and other times when the Giants exerted their dominance.
And three hundred and fifty years ago, another Mimicho tribe existed at the eastern edge of the Great Forest.
“The Mimicho Race, who are still living in the forest without a care, betrayed us first! They colluded with the Giants and killed our forest, our friends, and our family. So why do you still try to protect the forest, Older Sister? Why do you shield the Mimicho Race?”
“…”
The desire for peace with the Giant Race wasn’t a recent development. Looking back at the past, there had been attempts at reconciliation many times.
However, things don’t always go smoothly.
The Giants wanted to invade the forest. The Mimicho Race wanted to protect it. Their conflicting desires constantly clashed, and blood continued to flow.
It was the same three hundred and fifty years ago.
Like the current Gouo, a powerful king had risen among the Giants. The Mimicho Race of the Great Forest found themselves at a disadvantage, and the forest was invaded.
If things continued like this, the emboldened Giants would have destroyed the entire forest. The Mimicho Race of that time was gripped by a sense of crisis.
However, even amidst that, there was a tribe that seemed to be searching for a path toward peace.
That was the tribe of Yun and Rin.
They wanted to somehow quell the conflict through discussion.
A desire that anyone who wished for peace would surely harbor.
But.
I doubt that the dominant Giants of that time would have listened to a proposal to resolve things through discussion.
As expected, the activities of Yun’s tribe bore no fruit.
No matter how hard they tried, Yun’s tribe was ignored by the Giants.
And then, tragedy struck.
To the Mimicho Race who were united in their fight to protect the forest, Yun’s tribe, who advocated for peace, gradually became an unwelcome existence.
If there were those who delayed during a surprise attack, insisting on a period for negotiation, or those who refused to participate in gathering warriors to strengthen their defenses, protesting that conflict was wrong, it would surely affect their unity.
And so, it seems, someone who considered Yun’s tribe a nuisance colluded with the Giants and broke the barrier of the Great Forest.
The forest managed by Yun’s tribe would be surrendered. In exchange, there would be no further invasion during this era.
Suddenly, the Bewildering Technique was dispelled, and Yun’s tribe fell into utter chaos. It was then that the Giant army surged in.
There was nothing but despair.
The Giants invaded the village without hesitation. The other tribes, when they were called for help, did not come. The members of Yun’s tribe fled through the forest, hunted down.
The only survivors were Yun and her two sisters.
“After such a betrayal, how can you act so nonchalantly? Yun, Older Sister, and Ran…”
“Rin, that is…”
“Fine, I don’t want to hear it! You’ll say it’s what the elders wanted, won’t you, like you always do!”
“As survivors of the Flying Sky Forest, we must inherit the will left behind by the elders.”
“No. The will of the elders and everyone else was revenge! I will not forgive those who betrayed us. I will eradicate the Giants who killed our companions!”
As sisters born close in age, the two shared similar features, but their expressions were opposite.
Yun’s eyes were filled with sadness.
Rin’s teeth were clenched in anger.
Yun had undoubtedly tried countless times to change Rin’s mind. However, Rin’s heart, consumed by vengeance, still held sway over her emotions even after three hundred and fifty years.
I understand Rin’s feelings.
If my companions or family were killed, I too would be consumed by vengeance. I would absolutely want to exact revenge.
However, seeing the commotion in the Great Forest this time, I also felt that it might be a futile endeavor.
Rin, who sought to fulfill three-hundred-and-fifty-year-old revenge, had now become the primary victim of the Mimicho Race of the Dawn Treacherous Forest. Not only that, but many other Mimicho warriors and Giant soldiers who had invaded the Great Forest had already become casualties.
The people of the Dawn Treacherous Forest were exhausted from their journey, grieving the loss of their companions and driven from their homes, but others were surely now eager to seek revenge and retaliate.
Indeed, pursuers had been dispatched for Yun, who was branded a traitor, and they were now closing in on the Yorttenitos Kingdom’s forts.
I believe that repaying vengeance with vengeance only gives birth to new hatred and vengeful desires, doesn’t it?
“Sadness and hatred are passed down in a chain. So, I think we need to break that somewhere.”
Rin responded to my muttering with a scoff.
“That’s why I’m trying to break it. If I eradicate the Mimicho Race and the Giant Tribe, no new hatred will be born. My hatred will also disappear.”
Certainly, that is one way to break the chain. But that is absolutely unacceptable!
“I don’t want results that are obtained by sacrificing something. I won’t condone people who wish for such an outcome.”
“Then what do you intend to do? Will mere pretty words make my vengeful heart disappear?”
“It probably won’t disappear…”
As Rin said, the superficial words I spoke would not resonate with Rin’s heart. If such words could shake her vengeful heart, Yun would have long since extinguished it.
But I couldn’t help but say them.
Because if no one spoke up and wished for it, the feelings would not be conveyed.
Action speaks louder than words. First, I must show my own way of being, and then I must act to convince them with my words.
“Rin’s hateful heart can only be extinguished by Rin herself. But I will continue to say it. What you are doing is wrong. It is absolutely wrong!”
Just as Rin refused to listen to my words, I could not accept Rin’s words either.
“Then what will you do? How will Elnea stop me?”
Rin looked at me with provocative, challenging eyes. Her gaze, filled with strong will, seemed to say, “Try it if you can.”
“Will you stop me by force right here? Or will you tell the truth of the matter to others and hunt me down? Whichever it is, I will ultimately be the sacrifice. Isn’t that not a solution without sacrifice, as Elnea claims?”
“Yes. If that’s the method, then I would be lying with my own words.”
“Then what will you do?”
To prevent further sacrifices due to Rin’s revenge. Furthermore, not to choose a solution that makes Rin a sacrifice. And yet, to eliminate the hatred and fighting spirit of the Mimicho Race and Giants, who are likely still glaring at each other.
How can I bring about a peaceful conclusion?
Just as I was about to open my mouth.
Yun moved first.
Rin and I were still holding hands. Upon that, Yun gently placed her small hand.
“Elnea should proceed on the path that Elnea believes in. However, there is no need to include me and Rin. This is because both Rin and I have little time left.”
The taboo of the Mimicho Race. Those who consumed spirits and absorbed their power would eventually disappear from this world.
Rin, like Yun, had broken the Mimicho Race’s taboo.
No, Rin ate the spirits first.
It was Rin who attacked the spirits guarding the jewels of the Bewildering Technique in various places and ate half of them. Yun, it seemed, ate the remaining half of the spirits that Rin had left behind.
These two had absorbed the same spirits in the same quantity. And both of them had used their power this far.
They had no time left.
“Elnea, let go of my hand. It is my duty as the eldest daughter to guide the fallen Rin.”
“Older Sister will stop me? Impossible. Because I ate more spirits than you!”
“What!”
Didn’t Yun and Rin absorb the same spirits in the same amount?!
I had thought Rin deliberately left half the spirits, so Yun could eat them. If she was going to act in secret impersonating Yun, it would be easier not to be distinguished if they had the same abilities.
However, I had forgotten that they might have eaten other spirits in nature.
But Yun, acting as if she had known about Rin’s shocking confession all along, urged me again to let go of her hand.
I could not argue with Yun’s resolve and let go.
“Is that okay, Elnea?”
Mistral and everyone else were looking at me.
They were all saying it. That something that goes against my oath of not sacrificing anyone was about to happen.
“I don’t need Older Sister anymore!”
“Is that so? Then I shall disappear. However, I shall take my unfilial second daughter with me.”
Rin, released from my hand, slowly stood up. Then, she gradually began to create distance with Yun.
The auras of Yun and Rin began to swell.
If this continued, these sisters would begin to fight for their very existence.
“I will absolutely not give up. So, everyone, please cooperate!”
I am greedy.
I will definitely achieve what I set out to do.
The two sisters facing each other, and my companions uniting.
The sun set, and the night darkness spread endlessly, enveloping the Great Forest.
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