WINTER was shocked.

The ball of golden flame just didn't show his family the memories of his past life. The Sun God also showed them the pieces of memories of other people involved in that tragedy. No wonder his parents and brother looked as shocked as he was.

But he had to say that his father had it worst.

Dad looks so pale.

"It was me, wasn't it?" Julian asked in a cracked voice, finally breaking the silence that ensued after the memories of the past were shown to them like a play. "The child who came to Lady Morganna… the child where the emperor got the Holy Scepter from…" He clutched his chest tight, pain evident in his eyes. "I was the reason why you were killed by His Majesty in the past, Winter."

"It's not your fault, Brother," Winter said while shaking his head. "You were just used by Aku Moonchester in the past." He clicked his tongue, then he looked up at the ceiling. "Grandpa, why didn't you show Julian's memories?"

"'Grandpa?'"

He turned to his mother and nodded before he explained. "Mommy, the Sun God told me to call him 'Grandpa.'"

His mommy's face didn't change. For some reason, her calmness was scaring him. It was as if she was bottling up her feelings, and she would explode anytime "It's a shame that we don't have the luxury to dwell on that fact," she said without emotions, then she changed the topic. "Anyway, the fact that Aku Moonchester was able to draw the Holy Scepter from the "child" that he mentioned is a hint that we can also take out the scepter inside Julian without killing him. The emperor also mentioned that he was able to create a new host for it using the Great Fire Tree." She turned to Julian and her face softened up a bit. "Isn't that great, Julian? We're headed to the Great Fire Tree. We can figure out how to save you then."

"Mother, I'm confused," Julian said, his face and voice both filled with pain. "I don't remember the life that I saw. After I was killed in my past life, the one where I was the second child, the next thing I know is I was already in the care of Brother Flint's parents."

"Calm down, son," their mother said, then she caressed Julian's face. "It doesn't matter whether you remember it or not. It's all in the past anyway. The important thing is now we know that there's a way to separate the Holy Scepter from your body."

"Mother…"

"Mommy is right, Brother," Winter said, causing Julian to turn to him. "Please don't feel guilty. You weren't the one who stabbed me with the Holy Scepter…"

He trailed-off when he noticed that Julian suddenly went pale.

Ah, his brother probably remembered the scene of his death.

"Sorry, Brother," he said guiltily. "I shouldn't have said that."

"Don't apologize, Winter," Julian said. "You're the victim here."

He was about to say something when he heard a loud thump. When he turned to the source of noise, he saw that the chair fell on the floor when his father stood up.

His Dad looked at him with pain and guilt in his eyes. "I'm sorry," his father said while looking at him, his brother, and his mother. "I really am."

Before anyone could console him, he bolted out of the room.

"Father…"

"Dad!"

"Let him be," their mother said, then she stood up. "Kids, stay here. I will send Roarke and Jameson here to guard you."

"Mother…"

"Mommy…"

Their mother finally smiled. It wasn't her usual bright smile, but it was enough to comfort them. "Winter, Julian, I'm okay. I really am. My past life helped me become the person that I am now, so I don't really mind even if that one ended tragically. But most importantly…" She put her left hand on Julian's head and the right one on Winter's. "None of it was your fault, my precious little cinnamon rolls."

***

KIHO threw up.

This was the first time that he threw up after so long. He had killed many people and gods in all the lifetimes that he had. But the image of his own son blowing up in front of him…

He threw up again.

Thank goodness he was able to bolt out of the room before his stomach acted up. To make sure that his wife and children wouldn't hear him vomit, he went to the bathroom at the end of the hallway in the first floor.

"Do you have an upset stomach?"

Kiho flinched when he heard Tilly's voice. When he looked at the mirror, he saw his wife leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest. Ah, she was one of the few people who could sneak up on him like that. "I'm fine," he said. He was relieved that Tilly came when he just finished the mess he made in the sink. "Tilly, can you please give me a moment?"

Without waiting for her response, he began to wash his face. The water was cold but of course, it didn't bother him. He was used to that.

"No," Tilly said firmly. "We need to talk now."

Instead of answering, he just finished washing his face first. Then, he grabbed the face towel hanging on the wall before he turned around to face his wife.

"You're feeling guilty, aren't you?" Tilly asked with a raised brow. "You feel bad that you weren't able to protect our family in the past."

His jaw clenched, but he still remained quiet.

"Why though?" she asked. "I already told you how my first life as 'Lady Prescott' has ended, Kiho."

"You didn't tell me that Winter blew up in front of me," he said in an angry tone. But he wasn't angry at Tilly. He was angry at himself and he knew that his wife was aware of it. "Tilly, I let our son get killed. At such a young age, he sacrificed himself to take down the Moonchesters because I was useless."

"Well, that's true."

Okay, he was gutted.

Tilly wasn't wrong, but even though he didn't have the right to, he still got hurt that she agreed with him so easily.

She can be brutally honest sometimes.

"But I'm not one to talk," Tilly said with a bitter smile on her face. "I wasn't even able to stop Nia from toying with me even though we both lost our memories. The spirit guardian who betrayed me in the past even stole my husband and son from me. Worst of all, I was killed thinking that I wasn't loved."

He bit his lower lip hard until he tasted his own blood.

Dammit, the tragedy of the past was caused by my blasted parents. I should get my shit together in this lifetime, then kill Kyro and Yumi before they hurt my family.

"Don't let it get to you, Kiho," his wife said. "We can't change the past even if we sulk. We should be grateful that we were given a chance to make things right in this lifetime. Pull yourself together and focus on the current problem. We can breathe a little now that we know there's a way to draw the Holy Scepter from Julian without killing our son. The next thing we should do is to finish the war here and return to the Royal Capital. The faster we get to the Great Fire Tree, the faster we could end the divine war."

He didn't want to feel this but he suddenly felt envious of his wife.

Tilly had always been this kind of person: brave, smart, and upright. She always got things right. Even back when she was Soleil Rosenberg, she rarely made mistakes. And even if she did, she could clean up after her mess without asking for somebody's help.

On the other hand, he brought her nothing but tragedy.

That realization made him feel sick to the stomach again.

"Tilly."

"Hmm?"

"Winchell is back and I believe that he's more capable of protecting you and the children than me," he said with clenched fists. Of course, saying those things hurt him. But he had to set aside his personal feelings. "I think Winchell and your Keepers should accompany you and the kids to the Great Fire Tree instead of me."

His wife scowled, then she raised a brow at him. "And what will you do if I agree to that?"

"I will head to Kyro and Yumi," he said with clenched teeth. "I will kill them."

"You can't do that."

Wow, that hurt coming from his wife. "Tilly, I know that I have failed you so many times already. But do you not trust me anymore?"

"It's not that I don't trust you," she argued. "But if Kyro and Yumi were that easy for you to kill, then why couldn't you have done it when you were still Kalel Nystrom?"

He couldn't give a retort to that.

"Kiho, calm down and think things through," his wife said in a patient voice. "We'll figure this out together, remember?"

"That's what I thought too before," Kiho said with a sad smile on his face. "But Tilly, I think I'm just a burden to you and our children. I still believe that it would be better for me to head to Kyro and Yumi while you head to the Great Fire Tree with Winchell."

"Do you really mean that, Kiho Nystrom?" Tilly asked in a very cold voice that gave him chills. "I will only give you one chance to give me an answer, Black Serpent."

***

JULIAN didn't know what to say to Winter now that he was alone with his brother in the room.

This is awkward.

"What are you thinking, Brother Julian?"

"Oh, nothing," Julian said with an awkward smile on his face. "I'm just thinking that I shouldn't have been born in this era."

"Brother," Winter scolded him firmly. "We are all happy that you're here with us."

He was about to say something when all of a sudden, they heard a loud explosion from below.

Both him and his brother immediately stood up and ran to the windows. Much to their shock, they saw their father on the snow-covered ground while coughing blood. They thought they were under attack when all of a sudden, their mother appeared.

Their mother had her flaming black wings open, and the bloodlust coming from her was directed at their father.

"Oh, god," Winter said loudly. "Are Mom and Dad fighting?"

Julian gulped, then he nodded. "And it looks like Mother wants to kill Father."

***

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