📖 EDITION 18 — "THE THREE WHO STOOD BESIDE HIM"
Season 1
Opening Scene
The Council Library was silent.
The mysterious book opened by itself.
The page was completely black.
Then...
Three pairs of eyes slowly appeared within the darkness.
Blue.
Crimson.
Silver.
The Dreamer took a step back.
Dreamer
"Who are they...?"
The Writer looked at the page without blinking.
His expression became serious.
Writer
"The only three..."
"...who never abandoned him."
The page burst into light.
Years Ago...
The young boy wandered alone through the streets of the Council City.
Versions walked past him.
Some ignored him.
Some whispered.
Some simply looked away.
He smiled anyway.
Even though...
No one smiled back.
That night...
He sat alone beneath an ancient tree.
The same tree where he always came whenever he felt forgotten.
A voice suddenly spoke.
???
"You smile..."
"...even when your heart is breaking."
The young boy looked up.
Standing beneath the moonlight...
Was a young man dressed in a black suit.
Golden hair.
Cold blue eyes.
A calm smile.
Young Boy
"Who are you?"
The man bowed politely.
Johan Liebert
"My name..."
"...is Johan."
He sat beside the boy.
Neither spoke for several minutes.
Only the wind filled the silence.
Johan
"You help everyone."
The boy nodded.
Johan
"And who helps you?"
The boy remained silent.
For the first time...
Someone had asked him that question.
Johan smiled gently.
Johan
"I understand."
The boy looked surprised.
Young Boy
"You do?"
Johan
"I know what it's like..."
"...to be surrounded by people..."
"...and still feel completely alone."
The boy smiled.
A real smile.
Young Boy
"Thank you..."
Johan
"No."
Johan stood.
Johan
"Thank you..."
"...for proving kindness still exists."
He disappeared into the darkness.
Days Later...
The young boy was sent on another mission.
This time...
Everything went wrong.
A monstrous beast attacked.
Several young Versions panicked.
They fled.
The boy stayed behind.
Trying to protect everyone.
He was thrown against a cliff.
His arm was broken.
The beast slowly approached.
Suddenly—
BOOM!!
A gigantic axe crashed into the creature.
The monster fell.
A massive warrior stepped forward.
Tall.
Scarred.
Covered in black armor.
His eyes burned with determination.
Warrior
"You fight alone?"
The young boy nodded.
The warrior laughed.
Warrior
"Not anymore."
He extended his hand.
Warrior
"My name is..."
Malice
"Malice."
The young boy accepted his hand.
Together...
They defeated the beast.
As the battle ended...
Malice looked toward the Council City.
Malice
"They'll praise the victory..."
"...and forget who earned it."
The boy lowered his head.
Young Boy
"They're not bad people."
Malice looked directly into his eyes.
Malice
"No."
He paused.
Malice
"But they don't deserve you."
Silence.
The Last One
Weeks later...
The young boy wandered through the forgotten ruins beneath the Council.
A place no Version visited.
Broken statues filled the darkness.
Old memories lingered in the air.
He heard quiet sobbing.
Following the sound...
He discovered someone sitting alone.
Wrapped in torn cloth.
Their face hidden behind a cracked porcelain mask.
Young Boy
"Are you okay?"
The figure looked up.
One glowing silver eye stared back.
Masked Figure
"...You aren't afraid?"
The boy smiled.
Young Boy
"Should I be?"
The figure slowly removed part of the mask.
Scars covered one side of their face.
Masked Figure
"Everyone else was."
The boy sat beside them.
Young Boy
"Scars don't make someone a monster."
Silence.
For the first time in years...
The masked figure smiled.
Masked Figure
"My name..."
"...doesn't matter anymore."
He looked at the broken mask in his hands.
Masked Figure
"They only call me..."
The Shattered One
"The Shattered One."
The young boy quietly nodded.
Young Boy
"Then..."
"I'm happy to meet you."
Tears slowly rolled down beneath the cracked mask.
No one had ever said those words to him before.
The Four
Days became months.
Months became years.
The young boy.
Johan.
Malice.
The Shattered One.
They trained together.
Laughed together.
Shared meals together.
Protected one another.
For the first time...
The young boy had something he had never possessed.
A family.
One evening...
The four sat beneath the ancient tree.
Watching the sunset.
Johan
"If one day..."
"The world turns against you..."
Malice finished the sentence.
Malice
"We won't."
The Shattered One quietly nodded.
Shattered One
"Never."
The young boy looked at each of them.
His eyes filled with tears.
Young Boy
"I've never had friends before."
Johan smiled.
Johan
"You still don't."
The boy blinked.
Johan placed a hand on his shoulder.
Johan
"You have brothers."
The four looked toward the horizon together.
None of them knew...
That this peaceful moment...
Would be the last.
Back in the present...
The memory slowly faded.
The Dreamer wiped his eyes.
Dreamer
"So..."
"Even Nemesis once knew happiness."
The Writer closed the book.
Writer
"Yes."
He looked toward the final page.
Writer
"And now..."
"...comes the day he lost it."
The last page slowly revealed a single sentence.
"The greatest betrayals are committed by those we trust the most."
The page turned black.
END OF EDITION 18
đź“– CONTINUATION
EDITION 19 — "THE DAY THE WORLD TURNED AWAY"
"One decision... one judgment... one betrayal. The day the boy died was the day Nemesis was born."