Chapter 1: HOPE

The silence of the night was shattered by a torrential downpour, turning the graveyard’s dry soil into a treacherous mire. Between the weathered headstones and crumbled tombs, the scene looked like a living nightmare.

Ashen lay half-dead in the mud. Every bone in his body felt as though it were screaming in agony. Suddenly, two shadows loomed over him. Without a shred of mercy, they grabbed his cold, limp feet and began dragging him across the jagged, uneven ground.

Rocks and pebbles tore at Ashen’s back, mud filling his fresh wounds, yet he lacked the strength to even let out a whimper.

Suddenly, they stopped. One of the men looked down at him with pure loathing, coiled his strength, and delivered a devastating kick directly to Ashen’s jaw.

"Don't even think about taking your last breath in peace, you piece of trash," the man growled.

The sickening crack of bone was clearly audible over the roar of the rain. A spray of warm blood erupted from Ashen’s mouth, mingling with the black earth.

His eyes grew vacant, and he spiraled into a deep, hollow darkness—unconsciousness. The predators tossed him into a foul, ancient coffin, snatched the meager coins from his bag, and slammed the heavy lid shut, burying him alive.

Minutes later, inside that suffocating wooden box, Ashen’s eyes snapped open. The darkness around him was thick, like ink. When the realization hit that he was entombed beneath the earth, his chest felt like it would explode. He began to claw at the wood like a madman.

"Is anyone out there?! Get me out of here! Can anyone hear me?!" he shrieked, but his voice merely bounced off the coffin walls, mocking him. Broken by his own helplessness, tears began to track through the blood on his face. He whispered in a trembling breath, "I... I can't die like this, forgotten in the dirt. For God’s sake... I just need one chance."

Then, amidst his fading consciousness, a Flashback flickered—a hazy, golden memory from his childhood. A young Ashen felt safe in his mother’s lap. He had said with innocent conviction, "Mother, when I grow up, I won't marry just any girl. I will marry Goddess Alfreya herself!"

His mother, Suyi Jion, had stroked his hair and replied, "Fate and love can sometimes pull even the gods down to earth, my child. If your heart is true, she will surely be yours."

As that memory flared, Ashen’s hand moved to the old locket hanging around his neck—the symbol of Goddess Alfreya. He squeezed it so hard his nails dug into his palms, and with the very last of his soul’s strength, he cried out:

"Alfreya! If you truly exist, look at me! Will you let me rot in this darkness? Give me a chance... for my mother... for my sister! I want to write my own destiny!"

Ashen’s body suddenly went ice-cold. The blood in his veins seemed to freeze solid. With his final exhale, he simply gasped, "I don't want to die..."

In that instant, the heavens tore open. This was no ordinary lightning; a divine and terrifying blue bolt struck the grave directly. The light was so intense it seemed to pierce the very depths of the underworld. Through the supernatural silence, a heavy, echoing voice, vibrating with absolute authority, resonated

"My Ashen... did you call for me?"

CHAPTER ENDED HERE!

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