CHAPTER 120: CHAPTER 119: SOUND OF PAST

Soon, they left the estate and Two guards walking behind, Millie carrying supplies, Ellory’s maid holding a small umbrella just in case and all four siblings walking side by side. But this time, the mood was different.

Ellory didn’t bounce with joy like before. She walked beside Axelius, her arms still crossed as she sighed loudly now and then to make sure everyone knew she was not impressed.

Cyruz leaned close to Cedric and whispered, "Why does she look like she lost her puppy?"

Cedric shook his head. "You ruined her date."

"Date?!" Cyruz hissed. "That was a date?!"

"It was in her head," Cedric replied,

Up front, Ellory finally uncrossed her arms and looked up at Axelius.

"Brother, next time it should just be the two of us. Promise?"

Axelius gave a small nod. "I’ll try."

And with that, Ellory smiled again—just a little—enough to make her day start fresh once more.

The town waited ahead, and even if it wasn’t how she pictured it, she would still make the most of it... maybe even tease her brothers along the way.

As they stepped into the gates of Virewyn Town

, their cloaks pulled up to cover their faces, and their hoods worn carefully so no one would recognize them too easily. The maids and guards with them were also dressed plainly, looking like any normal travelers so they wouldn’t stand out. Even Axelius wore a light gray hood that shadowed most of his face, his long coat falling past his boots like any young noble on a stroll.

The town buzzed with soft chatter and market noise, but something caught their attention almost right away.

Just past the narrow stone arch and near the town’s large open square, a crowd had started to form around the old marble fountain, the one with two winged lions and a shallow pool where townsfolk sometimes tossed copper coins for good luck.

Without speaking, they walked over too, curious like everyone else. They weaved through the people, who were murmuring and whispering with interest, eyes all focused on the same spot.

There, standing alone near the edge of the fountain, was a young girl—perhaps the same age as Axelius. She wore a black silk cloak, smooth and shimmering under the sun, and her hood was pulled down just enough that her hair couldn’t be seen clearly. Her pale fingers held something strange, something that made the whole crowd quiet just to listen.

It was an instrument no one had ever seen before.

Shaped like a small wooden body with strings and a bow held gently in her right hand, the girl raised the instrument to her shoulder, placed her chin upon it, and began to play.

And the moment the sound came out, the square fell into complete silence.

The crowd, which had been full of talk and footsteps, turned still like statues. The sound was beautiful—soft and warm like a lullaby, but strong enough to carry through the air like wind over a field. It was like the sky had become music, and even the breeze seemed to stop just to listen.

Ellory, standing close beside Axelius, slowly reached out and hugged his arm, her eyes wide as the notes floated through the air.

"...the best sound I’ve ever heard," she whispered softly,

Even Cyruz and Cedric, who usually looked unimpressed, stared with parted lips, their eyes locked on the girl and the strange object in her hands.

No one in Virewyn had ever seen something like that instrument.

As the bow moved back and forth, it was as if the world around them shifted slightly—colors felt brighter, hearts felt lighter, and for a moment, time didn’t move. The sunlight seemed to glow around the girl, and her cloak moved like it was dancing with the music itself.

Axelius’s golden eyes narrowed.

"...It’s her," he said under his breath. "The mystery girl."

From his shoulder, "How come there’s a violin here?" Owen muttered.

But Axelius didn’t answer.

Because all at once, a memory hit him—so sharp and clear that it nearly knocked the air out of his lungs.

He was small. Maybe three years old. The world around him was dark and broken, but the sky had just started to turn orange from the setting sun. He remembered sitting on a rooftop—cracked, dirty, but high enough that the wind touched his cheeks. In the distance were ruined buildings and the soft groan of a world still crawling with undead.

His mother was there. The one who held him, fed him, carried him on her back while running through danger.

She smiled that tired, beautiful smile as she set him down and pulled something from the cloth bag on her shoulder. It was the same shape. That same smooth wood. A violin.

"You see this, Hiro?" she had said, her voice soft as she knelt in front of him. "I found it earlier when we went out. It was just lying in that old music store near Sector 3."

His mother smiled again, her fingers brushing the strings gently. "I was a violinist once, before all of this. I had a dream. I wanted to be famous one day, play on the biggest stages. But then the world ended. I met your dad... and we had you."

The sun behind her made her hair glow like a halo. She lifted the violin to her chin, just like the girl at the fountain was doing now.

"Hiroshi, my baby... I want you to remember this sound," she said softly. "No matter what happens, even if you grow up without me... remember this."

Then she played.

It was not perfect. It was not smooth due to violin not in best state But to the young boy, it was the sound of home, of love, of the only warmth left in a world full of death.

Now, standing in the square of Virewyn, Axelius felt like he had returned to that moment.

His chest ached.

The girl at the fountain kept playing, the last note ringing through the square like a whisper from another world.

And in that one moment, Axelius as if saw his mother again making the sweetest smile. He ever seen.