Luna stared at her mother blankly, her expression full of confusion and disbelief.

For a long, unbearable moment, she didn't even breathe.

Then slowly, tears welled in her eyes again.

For as long as she could remember, her mother had been cold.

She'd never smiled at her, never shown affection.

But Luna had always believed—deep down—that her mother loved her.

That she just didn't know how to show it.

That there was warmth inside her somewhere, waiting to come out when it mattered most.

And she had believed that this moment—this desperate, painful moment—would be the one where that hidden love would finally reveal itself.

But it didn't.

Instead, her mother stood there, distant, cold, and unmoving.

And it shattered her.

Luna's breath was unsteady. Her body trembled violently.

But she still tried, still reached out once more, whispering through the sobs believing that she could somehow get through to her mother.

"Please, Mother...Please just listen to me…"

But Leona took another step back, almost flinching away, her heart screaming inside her chest.

She couldn't. She really couldn't. If she stayed one moment longer, she would crumble entirely.

And so, with a trembling breath, she forced herself to say the words she knew would destroy them both.

"There's no need for any more words, Luna."

Her voice was quiet, but cold. Dead.

"My decision is final." She said firmly. "No matter what you say, or how much you plead, it will not change."

"The Hero will leave the village and never return and any more argument against it will lead to punishment."

The words hit like a hammer.

Luna froze completely, her body stiffening before her shoulders slowly slumped forward.

Her head hung low and all light in her eyes dimmed away, leaving behind only emptiness.

Around her, the entire village had also gone silent. No one dared move. No one dared breathe.

And seeing her niece in such a condition, Nyx's heart twisted.

She stepped forward, concern flooding her—Lulu right beside her, both ready to catch Luna if she collapsed.

But before anyone could reach her—

A whisper.

Barely audible.

"I...hate you."

Leona froze.

The words were so soft that at first she thought she had imagined them.

But then she heard them again.

"I hate you."

A little louder this time.

The crowd stirred, confused and uneasy.

But it came again.

"I hate you…"

And again.

"I hate you…"

And again.

"I hate you…"

And again.

"I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you."

"I...HATE YOU SO MUCH!"

The crowd recoiled, stunned. Some gasped; others just stood there in disbelief.

Leona's face distorted, her lips parting in shock.

"L-Luna—"

She tried to speak, but before she could take a single step toward her—

Luna finally lifted her head.

Tears streamed down her face, her expression twisted in grief, rage, and betrayal.

Until finally—

"I HATE YOU, MOTHER!"

She screamed, her voice breaking.

"I HATE YOU SO MUCH! I HATE YOU WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BODY!"

"I WISH YOU WERE NEVER MY MOTHER IN THE FIRST PLACE!"

Hearing this, the crowd gasped in collective shock.

Mothers turned their heads away, unable to bear the sight.

Children clasped their ears, as this was too scary for them.

Even the elders, those who had lived through centuries of sorrow bowed their heads.

Leona herself felt as though she might die on the spot.

Luna's words—I hate you—had already been devastating, but this final declaration, the complete rejection, was the deepest wound she had ever endured.

Her sweet, gentle Luna—the daughter she loved more than her own life, the child she had quietly cherished in her heart every single day—was renouncing her.

Telling her she had failed utterly as a mother.

And in that moment, Leona's soul shattered.

She wanted to scream.

She wanted to beg for forgiveness.

She wanted to fall to her knees and tell her daughter how sorry she was, how much she loved her, how she never wanted this.

But she couldn't. She didn't move.

Her body refused to react, her lips refused to part.

Her soul had already shattered, leaving behind a cold shell.

And to the onlookers, she appeared emotionless—calm, composed, distant as always.

But inside, she was gone.

And Luna mistook that silence for indifference.

She gave a broken laugh—a trembling, miserable sound and wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, forcing a weak smile that only made her look more pitiful.

"Wow, Mother…" She clapped her hands softly, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Wow. I thought maybe, just maybe you'd flinch when I said something like that. Maybe even show a little shock."

"But you didn't...You're still cold as ever."

The crowd flinched at the sound of her laugh—it wasn't happy. It was hollow.

"You truly are a block of ice." Luna said, her smile trembling. "Just like everyone says. Even when your own daughter says she hates you, you don't even move. Not a blink, not a tear, not a twitch."

Her voice rose, louder and sharper.

"That's really amazing, you know? Impeccable, even! You really deserve to be our matriarch—so calm, so emotionless, so perfectly detached from everyone around you! It suits your position perfectly."

Leona's lips parted slightly, but no words came out.

"And now that I think about it…" Luna went on, her tone breaking between laughter and sobs. "I don't even think I'm your daughter. Maybe I never was."

The crowd gasped.

"I must have been some random baby you found one day." She said, her eyes wide with pain. "And out of pity, you decided to keep me around for a while. But then you got bored, so you stopped caring, and just...ignored me."

Leona's knees nearly buckled, while Luna brushed back her hair, her expression empty, almost numb.

"Anyway." She said coldly. "What I said earlier still stands. I don't consider you my mother anymore. You and I..." She pressed her palm against her chest. "...we have no relation. From now on, I'll pretend you don't exist."

Her voice broke slightly as she added,

"I'll stop calling you 'Mother' as well. You're just Leona, the Matriarch. Not my mother. Never again."

Lulu's ears twitched, her breath catching in her throat.

"Luna, what are you saying? She's our—"

But before she could say anything more, Luna gently took Lulu's hand in hers, holding it tight.

"You feel it too, don't you, Lulu?" She said softly, her voice trembling. "That pain? That emptiness? You know exactly what I'm talking about."

Lulu's lips quivered. "Luna, I—"

"Don't deny it." Luna interrupted. "I know you're hurting too. You've always been braver than me, but I know deep down you wanted her love as much as I did."

"And since it's quite obvious that we won't get any of that from her... "

She turned back toward Leona, her tone colder than ever.

"...I think it's about time we put our distance from her."

While Lulu was absolutely devestated by what her sister was saying, Luna took a deep breath like she was gathering all the courage in the world before finally looking at her mother and saying her final words.

"Thank you for feeding us and giving us a home all our lives....I'll never forget that."

"But from this moment onward, you and I have no connection left. I'm cutting all ties with you and we're simply common villager and Matriarch from now on."

"Not..mother and daughter."

The words fell like stones, heavy and final.

And before anyone could react, Luna took one last look at her mother—her gaze empty, lifeless and turned away.

Lulu looked back at their mother, her eyes wide with disbelief, tears streaming down her cheeks.

But Luna kept pulling, her grip firm and unrelenting before the two went into the crowd, leaving Leona standing there completely still, her body trembling.

Nyx stood a few paces away, her face pale, her eyes full of sorrow.

The scene had shattered her. Watching her nieces walk away like that, hearing their words—it was too much even for her hardened heart.

But then, her sorrow darkened.

Her gaze shifted slowly toward Julius.

Her playful eyes turned razor-sharp, filled with a cold, murderous rage.

She stared at him as if imagining every slow, painful way she could end him.

But she forced herself to look away, rubbing her forehead with a weary hand.

She hadn't expected things to unravel like this.

No one had.

Meanwhile, Luna didn't care about anything anymore.

Her face, once so full of innocence and warmth, was now hard and determined. There was no trace of the crying child from moments ago.

She marched right through the crowd toward Luca, who stood silently among the stunned elves.

And when she reached him, she smiled.

A wild, trembling, almost manic smile.

"Don't listen to her, Luca." She said loudly, her voice trembling but strong. "You don't have to go anywhere! You can stay here as long as you want!"

Everyone froze.

"You have me, and Lulu, and even Auntie Nyx on your side!" Luna continued fiercely. "And look around you—everyone here wants you to stay! No one agrees with her! No one!"

Her eyes burned with passion as she looked at him.

"So stay, Luca. Stay here with us. You don't need her permission. Ignore her words. Stay with us!"

Her words echoed with conviction and several elves nodded hesitantly, murmuring in agreement.

"She's right." Someone whispered. "The Hero should stay."

"We can't lose him." Another said. "He's done nothing wrong!"

Soon, the murmurs grew louder, spreading through the crowd until almost every villager was looking at Luca hopefully.

No one supported Leona now.

They believed Luca completely.

They wanted the Hero to stay.

And in response, everyone waited for him to nod, to say that he'd stay, to smile that calm, kind smile that always reassured them.

Even Luna, tears still clinging to her lashes, looked at him with desperate hope.

Lulu stood beside her, clutching her arm tightly with the same belief.

But then—

Luca finally spoke.

His voice was quiet at first, almost tired.

"No..." He said simply.

Everyone blinked in confusion and Luna's hopeful smile froze.

"What…?"

Luca lifted his head. His expression was cold now, completely different from the man they had seen smiling and laughing just moments ago.

"No." He repeated. "I don't think I'll do that."

A chill spread through the clearing.

"I think." He said, his tone calm but cutting. "I'm going to leave this village. Just like Leona said."

The silence that followed was deafening.

"W-What…?" Luna whispered, shaking her head in disbelief. "No, you—you can't mean that…"

But Luca went on, his tone desolate and distant.

"The thing is, I've been trying my best here. Doing everything I can to help your people. Acting peaceful, being patient, holding back even when I was treated like an enemy."

"I kept going—for the Grand Matriarch's sake."

He sighed, his expression growing colder.

"But I've had enough. A man can only take so much persecution before he breaks."

He glanced at Leona briefly, then back at the crowd.

"No matter what I do, you people keep pushing me back. Again and again. And frankly…" He shook his head. "…I don't have time for this bullshit anymore."

Gasps rang out through the elves.

"I'm done." He said firmly. "I don't want to stay in a village that doesn't value me. I don't want to be where I'm not wanted."

The crowd was speechless.

They had expected anger from Leona—but from Luca?

Never.

He had always been so cheerful, so patient, so understanding.

But now, hearing him say those words—it was like watching the sun go out.

And yet, deep down, many of them couldn't even blame him.

He had been treated unfairly, over and over, and he still stayed.

Any other man would have walked away long ago, but he still decided to stay and help them out.

But now...his breaking point had finally reached and they could only blame themselves for his decision.

But even still Luna couldn't accept it. Her lips trembled, as she took a step forward.

"L-Luca, please wait. Don't—"

But Luca simply sighed and gave her a faint, tired smile.

"It's unfortunate. I really did want to spend more time with you all. You're good people, and I like every one of you. But since circumstances have turned out this way…"

He exhaled slowly.

"I have no choice but to leave."

He then turned his back to them, looking toward the forest before finally saying in a lonely tone,

"Maybe...I'll find another village."

"One that actually appreciates my presence."

And with that, he began to walk away.

The village watched in petrified silence.

This was supposed to be a night of celebration—healing complete, hope restored.

But now their Matriarch had driven away their savior.

And the savior himself was leaving.

The light they had felt moments ago—the future they had dared to imagine—vanished into shadow.

Luna and Lulu both stood rooted in place.

They had trusted Luca completely.

Believed in him with everything.

But now he was walking away and they couldn't even blame him.

They had pushed too far and they were facing the consequence of it.

Both of them honestly wanted to call out, to chase after him—but they couldn't.

They were too ashamed, too broken.

And above all, they knew...he had every right to go.

Lulu clutched Luna's hand, her voice small as she asked,

"If he goes...who'll give me lollipops anymore…?"

And to this she could only show her sister a weak smile, as she clutched her hand tighter and watched as their only hope vanished into the forest.

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