Arthas—or rather, the man who was once Rudolf.
For a very long time, he had been trapped in a realm of darkness and nothingness.
It was darkness and nothingness in the most literal sense.
There was no light, nor was there any sign of life.
In this pitch-black world, he was entirely alone.
Like a tiny boat drifting on a vast, boundless ocean, he stood solitary in that darkness, unable to glimpse even a single shred of light.
He did not remember his name, nor did he know where he came from.
Everything about him had long since slipped through his fingers like shifting sand.
It was as if he had been abandoned by the world, trapped there in utter isolation.
He had once tried to escape this dark world, but no matter where he ran, only darkness met his eyes.
This place seemed to have no boundaries.
Eventually, he gave up.
Abandoning all hope, he sat on the ground, curling into a tight ball with his head resting on his knees.
He huddled there, shivering in the endless silence and darkness.
He felt neither hunger nor thirst.
He could only feel the despair, agony, and loneliness rising in his heart over and over again...
This torment went on for who knew how long.
A year?
Ten years?
A century?
A millennium?
Or ten thousand years?
He did not know.
For there was no concept of time in this place.
Only eternal nothingness.
Even death was a luxury to him.
How he wished to escape this darkness and see the world outside.
Even if... only for a fleeting instant.
But that was impossible.
All he could do was repeatedly break down, weep, run, and beat himself.
Even though he felt no pain.
Amidst this absolute void, he gradually grew numb.
He became as quiet as the world around him.
It was as if... he had completely merged with it.
Until one moment, a faint yet incredibly warm light abruptly pierced through this dark world.
It shone down upon him.
He raised his head and stared at the light.
It was the very first time he had seen light in this boundless darkness.
Though the light was weak, it seemed to illuminate his entire world!
Subconsciously, he reached out his hand.
He wanted to... grab that light!
He wanted to... leave this dark world!
As his hand drew closer to the light, a call seemed to echo in his ears.
“Resurrect! My SSR!”
Along with that call, the light flared even brighter!
He did not know what those words meant, but in that instant, a realization suddenly dawned upon him: as long as he grabbed that light, he could leave this place!
He was ecstatic.
Hurriedly standing up, he gathered all his strength and leapt high into the air.
He wanted to grab that light!
But...
Though the light was right before his eyes, he couldn't grasp it no matter what!
Anxious, he clawed at it desperately!
Yet every time, he fell just a little short.
Until, slowly, the light faded away before his eyes...
He could only watch helplessly as the world plunged back into darkness.
He... had failed.
Dejected, he felt he had missed his only chance to escape this place.
He sat back down on the ground in despair, preparing to welcome the endless loneliness and isolation once more, just as he always had.
After all, he was used to it.
But he quickly realized that he could no longer do it.
He, who had once adapted to the darkness and could numbly accept everything, could no longer tolerate this void after having glimpsed the light.
He wanted to leave!
He stood up and let out a roar toward the dark sky, venting a fury that had built up for who knew how long!
He wanted light! He wanted to leave this place!
Perhaps the heavens had heard his cry.
The light appeared once more.
He saw hope!
This time, he was prepared. He leapt up, jumping even higher than before.
He wanted to grab that light and escape this darkness!
But... it was still not enough.
The light vanished again.
When darkness enveloped the world once more,
he broke down.
He roared, howled, and beat himself!
He believed it was all his own fault.
He felt that if only he could jump higher, just a little higher, he would have been able to grab the light!
Perhaps in response to his howling,
the light appeared yet again!
This time, he put every ounce of his strength into jumping upward!
He jumped higher than ever before, drawing closer to the light than he ever had!
He could even feel the warmth of the light at his fingertips!
Yet, he still failed to grasp it.
He had failed.
But this time, he did not give up. He began to leap, leap, and leap again, solely to ensure he would catch the light the next time it appeared!
As expected, the light appeared once more!
He went for it!
He failed.
Although he still didn't catch it this time, he had jumped even higher than before!
And so...
the light appeared again and again, and he leapt high into the air time after time, trying to grasp it.
He jumped higher and higher.
Close, closer!
He was getting closer and closer to the light!
Until at a certain moment, his ear caught that familiar voice once more.
“No kid cries every day, and no one loses the gacha every day!”
“My SSR, come on out!”
In that instant, endless light illuminated the entire darkness.
He exerted all his strength and leapt high once more!
At that moment, the light seemed to transform into a pair of pure white wings, attaching themselves to his back.
He was flying!
He flew high up!
Flying toward the direction of the light, toward the way out of this boundless darkness.
The world before his eyes grew brighter and brighter!
Until... he opened his eyes.
Before him was no longer that dark world, but the interior of a strange building.
At the same time, his body was extremely stiff.
It felt as though he had been frozen.
Although he didn't understand what being frozen actually meant, driven by an intense desire, he exerted a sudden burst of force, successfully breaking free from his constraints and taking full control of his body.
He sat up from the ground.
And then, he saw the one who had rescued him from the endless darkness...
“An angel.”
What a holy and magnificent existence she was!
The light seemed to form a pair of pure white wings behind her back.
Her brilliant golden eyes were filled with joy and disbelief.
Feeling that deep sense of affinity,
he understood that she was the one who had ignited his flame of life, allowing him to come into this world.
And so, obeying his physical instincts and the call from the depths of his soul,
he uttered those two words.
“Ma... ma...”
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