A soft feeling overtook Shuu’s mind and body as he floated in space. But no matter how empty he was, the feeling of ’wanting to go back’ did not ease up, especially even more so when he felt a hand touching his back and encouraging him to keep moving forward.

He knew that none of it was happening for real. All these feelings and encouragement were in his head. But he still felt like he had to hold on to that feeling in order to not lose himself.

Shuu’s body was moving through that space until it finally reached a familiar-looking place. He could feel the power in the golden palace trying to break down his spirit as it pressed around him, but Shuu kept his head up as he faced that power.

"Welcome to my castle, young one. Are you lost? If so, then would you like me to guide you?"

Goddess Astoria’s voice was soft and helpful. Hearing it filled Shuu with nostalgia, and memories quickly travelled through his mind. He wanted to examine them, but they were too fast for him to hold on to.

Moreover, it was hard for Shuu to be able to tell what was a real memory and what was not.

"Kid, I can feel that you are struggling with something internal. You don’t have to hold on to your pain. You can share it with me, and I promise you that I will try my best to help you."

The goddess sounded so patient that Shuu was actually fooled by her personality this time. But the part of him that was still conscious reminded Shuu that he was in a false place made up of the goddess’s power, and she had called him here because she wanted something from him.

The goddess reached for Shuu’s face, and he took a step back. A complicated look overtook the goddess’s face before she increased the output of her power. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Shuu could feel it pressing around him in a way he had never felt before. He felt like he was about to be crushed under all that power.

But surprisingly, it did not hurt as much as he expected it to. It was almost like some kind of power was preventing him from any fatal energy.

’Something is bubbling up inside me. I can feel something...if I reach for it-’

A golden flow started to surround Shuu, but with that glow came memories he did not want to see.

He could see hands reaching for his face, wanting to touch him again. But he looked up at Goddess Astoria with an almost glare, which made her pull her hand back with a soft, shocked look on her face.

"I am sorry, but I don’t think I need your help. I am not sure why I ended up here, but if it is because of you, then can I ask you to send me back now? I am not sure if I am supposed to be here or not."

Shuu told the female before he took a step back from the goddess. He could tell that the goddess was beyond shocked at his audacity. Her expression was changing rapidly before it settled into a bitter smile.

"Why does this keep happening? What do I need to do to make you understand that you only have a future by my side? Maybe if I erase you, then you will understand. If I cannot have you, then won’t it be better if you don’t become a danger to me-?"

The goddess seemed to have lost her mind. Her power was breaking the space apart, and Shuu quickly started running back.

He was not sure what would happen to him if he was caught in this collapse, but he was sure that it would not be anything nice, at least.

"Let yourself be buried here, my dear. That way, no one will have to worry about you ever again."

The goddess’s words echoed around Shuu like an ominous shadow. But he was not foolish enough to fall for them. He kept running and running, but this place had no end. It seemed like an endless tunnel with no way out.

At this rate, Shuu was going to get buried here for good.

’Kaiden-! I wish he would come...’

As soon as Shuu wished this, he realized just how reliant on Kaiden he had become. No matter what kind of situation he was facing, his first thought was to get Kaiden to help.

But somehow, that made him feel bittersweet. He felt like he was taking advantage of Kaiden when he should not be doing that. He had his own pride as well.

’I...don’t want to depend on Kaiden to save me every time. I want to be able to stand up on my own feet as well. I need power of my own.’

The feeling started to bubble inside Shuu. The memories of the past that had started to resurface made him frustrated. He could recall himself being a proud warrior who could take care of anything on his own.

Shuu did not care whether they were false memories planted by someone or whether it was his own emotions that were forcing him to move. But he wanted to challenge these memories and prove that they were real.

He wanted to have his own power and show the world that he had his own power as well.

’But, do you really deserve this power? You have never handled power before, and you do not even recall why you lost your power in the first place. What if you are not able to handle all the power and end up hurting everyone? Is it worth the risk?’

Was it worth the risk? Of course not. But...Shuu felt like he had matured enough to accept that after he was done trying with those powers.

"I don’t recall what happened in my past or why those powers got sealed, but I am not my past self. I am much weaker physically, but I am much stronger mentally. So, since I am not the same person, I want to try again."