[Jow Ylliard Hayle]
"Calm down..." the old man said to me.
I sat myself down, pressing my fingers to my temples, trying to massage away the pounding in my head.
"What exactly are you?" I asked, nodding toward the crying girl beside him. "And who is she? Can she shut up already? When she kicked me earlier, she was all fiery and bold—what happened to that version of her?"
"She's having her emotional breakdown," the old man replied, eyes serious as he studied me.
I clicked my tongue.
> So what?<
"You saw the color of her string of fate, didn’t you?" he asked.
> Yeah. It was black. I don’t care about that. What matters is that you’re standing in front of me—remove the curse you gave us!<
"Eyeden, her name is Lathia Cornelia. And she just found out that she's long—"
I didn’t let him finish.
I recognized that name. Lathia Cornelia—Mayor Latiños Cornelia’s daughter. The one found dead in Lake Mist of San Juanita over three months ago.
"Wait—that Lathia Cornelia?" I shouted, unable to believe it. "The mayor’s daughter?!"
He nodded solemnly.
> So she really is dead? She’s a ghost?<
"If she’s a ghost and yet she can still be touched when seen, then she must be suffering from a curse you gave her too!" I theorized.
The old man chuckled.
"Correct," he confirmed with amusement. "She realized she was dead and spiraled into a breakdown. She thought she had been cursed to become a ghost-like being... she believed that someone singing her favorite song while playing the guitar her soul was tied to would set her free. But those ideas were fragments from her fogged memory. I created her astral projection."
"Astral projection?"
"A human soul can separate from the body and become a ball of light. She was supposed to pass on to the afterlife. But her spirit refused. And now\... we’re here."
> What the hell is this old man rambling about? He’s talking like some kind of spirit guide or celestial gatekeeper.<
"Who are you really?" I asked again.
"Let me finish explaining first," he said firmly. "Her spirit’s final will was to spend a little more time with the love of her life. She sacrificed her soul’s peace for that wish. If the man she loved fails to fulfill that wish—to sing and play her favorite song—she will turn into a vengeful spirit, and he will suffer most from her wrath."
> She’s dead… that black string of fate shows it. That color—it means the one destined for them has already passed. No wonder… that Sandugo I once saw by the bridge, with a black thread of fate… their soulmate was already gone.<
"Why would she make such a trade-off? And why would you let her?" I asked, frustration spilling into my voice. "Aren’t you supposed to be a guide or something? Why do you have the power to curse people?"
"Correction..." he said calmly. "My curse doesn’t work on everyone. I came to this world searching for someone... someone worthy to entrust with my ability to curse. Unfortunately, it only works on children—those under twenty."
"Then what did I do to deserve this curse? Do you enjoy watching people suffer?" I snapped.
He grinned wickedly. "Let me return the question—do *you* enjoy destroying people’s bodies? How many destinies have you crushed when you turned into that violent, uncontrollable beast, hungry for chaos?"
I froze.
The memories clawed back, uninvited. My chest tightened. My breath became shallow. My eyes—once steady—started to sting and blur.
"So tell me, old man," I said, voice low. "Is this curse permanent? I remember... when we met here by the riverside before. You told me I was a rare case—someone with two strings of fate."
"What are you trying to say?" he asked, plucking his guitar softly. "Say it."
"My other soulmate… she gave up her destiny with me. I severed our string of fate. It cost me my left eye." I stared straight at him.
His fingers stopped strumming. His eyes widened. His jaw slackened.
"You did that?"
"Obviously," I muttered bitterly.
He let out a long, heavy sigh.
"Eyeden Ylliard Hayle, I’ll tell you how to break your curse."
My anger flickered into hope.
"Under two conditions. First, you can’t tell Nova Mei Quinoa, Clayrin Aisfine Ezz, Amanda Vineyard, or Lean May Ronica Adolfo that we met here by the river. Second, you can’t tell them that the curse can be lifted."
> Amanda Vineyard? The Grade 11 campus crush? Like I’d ever talk to her.<
I paused to think.
> Maybe it won’t hurt to keep it from Clay... but I need to know why. What’s the point of secrecy?<
"Why do I need to keep this from them?"
"They're fine with their curses. In time, theirs will vanish on their own. Want to know why?"
I nodded, balling my fists.
"They fell in love—and they acted on that love. You, on the other hand… you found your soulmate, but you’re not in love with her. You rejected your destiny. So your curse punished you—by taking your sight."
> Fell in love? This old man’s wrong. Clayrin Aisfine is aromantic! She’s not in love with anyone.<
"But I loved Jovenyl before. So why is my punishment worse than theirs?"
"You didn’t love Jovenyl. That’s all there is to it. Someone who isn’t destined for you can never truly be loved by you. You might admire them, even cherish them. But love? No. That emotion can’t be forced. Nowadays, people mistake infatuation for love."
His words pierced through my chest like bullets.
I stared down at the patch of grass in front of me, haunted by the things I’d done for Jovenyl—things I once thought meant love, but now only raised questions.
> That’s right… my suffering these last five months wasn’t about losing someone I loved. It was about forcing something fake, something selfish. I tried to steal someone else’s destined person. I clung to her like an excuse… until I stumbled onto the one meant for me. How pathetic. And now, I'm using Clayrin as another excuse, another placeholder.<
"The solution to your curse is simple. I bet you can’t use your ability right now, can you? You’re in a critical state, Eyeden. You don’t know who your other soulmate is. But you’re *feeling* something, aren’t you? Make one wrong move—fall for the wrong person—and you’ll go blind in your remaining eye. If that happens, your curse will win. And it’ll be permanent. My advice? Learn what love really is. Figure out your feelings. I have high hopes for you."
With that, he stood.
He walked over to Lathia Cornelia, gently helping her to her feet.
"What—" I breathed as I watched their feet begin to glow, their bodies slowly vanishing in a vertical shimmer of light.
"Wait! I still have so many questions!"
"We’ll meet again, Eyeden. And when we do... I’ll know how your battle with the curse ends."
"Hold it! Remove this curse now—just like how easily you gave it to me! You can’t just hand out suffering and disappear like some cosmic prankster! Who gave *you* the right to toy with us?!"
I charged toward him.
He smiled and waved.
Before I could touch them, he and Lathia vanished completely.
"Damn it!!" I yelled, punching the grass over and over.
> In the end... I still didn’t find out what that old man really is.<
---
I couldn’t sleep that night.
How could I lift the curse when I couldn’t even see the person I was destined for?
My chest felt heavy. My eyes throbbed.
I arrived early at the classroom. The door was still locked. I was the first student from our section to arrive.
I gripped the doorknob, turned it, and pushed it open.
I don’t know what got into me, but I kicked a few armchairs that weren’t aligned.
"Who the hell was on cleaning duty? This room’s a mess!" I snapped.
I rearranged them with frustration, slamming each one into line.
Once done, I glanced toward the classroom window—
—and my heart skipped.
There stood Clayrin, smiling as she watched me.
"Such a hardworking boy," she teased.
"Shut up," I grumbled.
She laughed and stepped into the room. Her bag hung across her chest as she fished something out from inside it—a pack of Combi biscuits, which she handed to me.
"What’s this for?" I asked.
"Your prize," she said with a raised brow. "Yiee... did the wind whisper to your heart or something?"
"Tsk. No. Go back to your room before someone sees us and gives me hell..."
She smacked me hard on the shoulder.
"Stop thinking about NPCs."
> Did she just call people NPCs?<
She started glowing again in my sight. Her eyes sparkled. Her lips looked soft, almost too glossy.
> If I touch those, would they feel soft… or warm?<
She pinched me.
"You’ve zoned out on me like, three times now! You’re worse than anime characters who monologue too much."
I squirmed away from her fingers.
"No touching? What a diva," she complained.
I looked away.
> You're so damn bright… My heart's racing like it’s running out of breath.<
"By the way, about what you said to Ruffa—she declared me her number one enemy after I told her you don’t want her near you."
My mouth fell open.
"So she’s gonna mess with you now?"
"Probably. She’ll definitely start spreading rumors."
"Are you worried?"
She shook her head and smirked.
"I’m excited to see how good of a storyteller she is. If her fake news isn’t dramatic, I’m calling her a bad director."
"Clay, don’t treat serious situations like jokes."
"Like what? Why won’t you look at me? Do I have something on my face?"
I turned away even more.
"I’m just tired. Didn’t sleep well," I muttered.
"Yeah, I can tell. Your eyebags are massive. I thought you stayed up watching hentai or something."
"Idiot..." I mumbled, heading to my seat and burying myself behind my desk. "See you around."
"Hmph... you're such a boring person to hang out with," she said.
I didn’t look up. I just heard her footsteps retreating—fading against the classroom floor.
When silence finally returned, I glanced toward the door.
Clayrin Aisfine Ezz was gone.
To be continued.