First part of the Royalty and Loyalty series, presented by Xenoyr...

  I was always seen as a failure in my family. Always ending up second while my brother, Sachiel Eria, was second to none. Since Greatfather Azrael saved me from the ghost town that Nymeria became. Didn’t eat anything, didn’t drink anything for a long time.

  You would often think that Testharia is a planet of gold and marble, inhabited by the greatest “alien” race in the entire Milky Way. I used to believe that for a long time too, however no “alien” race, nor species, let alone a whole planet is perfect.

  Why was my town left behind while we were experiencing a severe famine? If Testharians are so peaceful and caring of others, then why were we the lost men in need?

  I could ask those questions for the rest of my life and never find out.

  It's stupid to think about it now that I'm in a high position now. I've got my family, I'm royalty and I have loyalty for my family.

  But why can't I shake this uneasy feeling that my family is... just another product of negligence? Like I said; Nothing is perfect, but why can't we make an imperfect thing perfect?

  To put it in simple terms... I come from the worst of the worst. I'm not even royal in blood, but Greatfather Azrael adopted me.

  It's a little hard to explain, but it all began when my severely abusive mother conceived me on 2173, on the 4th galactic month on the 22nd day. This town was unfortunate enough alongside other towns around the planet to be full of starving people. In Nymeria, poverty was at an all time high. 62 thousand people were jobless while 85% of a population of 200 thousand or so were living on just a loaf of bread and unfiltered water everyday.

  As a result, I grew up in a very abusive household. I had a brother who was much better than me, but that didn't stop him from doing nothing about the abuse that I faced. Aged 4 to 12, I was severely malnourished and often beaten by my parents.

  I guess one thing that allowed me to live through and never give up was because of a blessing... or a curse. I possessed a Soul, which allowed me to become a Soul-Wielder, and utilize a Soul-Spec. The chances of this happening is almost null. I don't know how many Soul-Wielders there are in a galaxy inhabited by quintillions or even septillions of people of different species.

  One day, I decided to show my parents what I was capable of. I told them about my Soul-Spec, but they thought it was a joke. No one in Nymeria suddenly gets powers.

  "Souls are reserved for the fortunate."

  What a dumb, fucking lie.

  What am I then? A mistake?

  "Go back to bed."

  My mother said, as she continued to tend to my brother's wounds. My brother got injured when he came home, and our parents were concerned about his injuries.

  "I'm not lying, mother. I swear!"

  I yelled back at her while I showed her my small, micro sized Warhammer that I created from my Soul-Spec. The proof is right there, how could you not believe it?

  Oh.

  That's right.

  When has mother believed in me at all? I'm a mistake in her eyes. My brother is the star of the show while I'm... I don't even know what I am. Apparently, this "Soul" thing is a phenomenon known all over the galaxy, and only a select people have it. By select, I mean about a million or tens of million of people in a galaxy inhabited by quintillions or even septillions.

  I was angry and I just wanted to get out of this household. I wanted to leave my parents who didn't believe in a single world I said, treated me like shit and acted as if I was a ghost in their haunted house.

  -

  A couple years later, our town would be ravaged by a severe blizzard that rarely happens on Testharia. Food rations were reduced, the unemployment rate skyrocketed, and poverty grew immensely. The blizzard wiped out almost all crops that were being grown in the city of Nymeria. Our town wasn't the only town that was suffering from the blizzard, but it was one of the worst affected. It's funny that the second my town finally grows out of poverty and we have more food than before, a blizzard strikes.

  It's like a curse that follows this town around.

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  I grew up with no food, no shelter, and a family who treated me like nothing. At 13, I was just walking around the snowy town, looking for shelter from the cold weather. The winter air was biting at my skin, the wind was piercing my fragile body, and my teeth were chattering.

  I thought I was going to die there. I thought I was going to die as a nameless, homeless, jobless individual with no future. That's why I decided to just lay down on the snow, and let myself get buried in it. My last words were a curse upon my parents for treating me like garbage.

  "You'll all die."

  Those were the last words I said before I fell unconscious, thinking about my miserable life. I let myself go, taking in the coldness of the snow to heart for the last time in my life. The snow, a product of the aftermath that constantly hit my face. The air, so cold that it felt as if it was sucking my body's warmth out. The wind, so cold that it felt like it was stabbing my face.

  But I didn't mind.

  After all, what's worse than being an empty shell in a somewhat full world?

  ...

  ...

  "Snow isn't cold for you?"

  I hear a voice. It sounded like a girl, but it was muffled. I opened my eyes to see someone hovering over me. A young girl who seemed to be the same age as me. She had long, blonde hair that flowed down to her waist, beautiful blue eyes, and she seemed to be wearing some kind of dress.

  Who is she?

  "Who are you...?"

  I asked her as I looked up at her. Her presence felt warm and comforting. Something that I never felt from anyone at all. This was the first time someone aside from my brother has spoken to me... in a normal manner. She sat down next to me and poked me.

  "..."

  I fell silent after that. I felt nothing. I felt no warmth. I felt no safety. I felt no euphoria, nor melancholy.

  "How does it feel like...? Laying down on the snow? Feeling the cold air?"

  The girl asked me as she laid down next to me. I looked over to see her smile. Her smile was something that I never saw before. A pure smile, like it was one of happiness.

  "... Nothing."

  "Nothing? Snow's enough to make your nose runny, your lips chapped, and your body shiver."

  Why care?

  Why care how it feels? Snow is nothing but cold. It holds no value, no meaning. It's just snow. It's not like snow can change people's lives...

  ... I'm forgetting something.

  "So it doesn't feel good? To lay down on the snow?"

  The girl asked me as she looked up at the sky. I could tell that she wanted to know how it felt. I've never been asked about my opinion before. Not even by my brother, who's always concerned for me.

  "Snow's always cold and makes you sick, so it was funny to see you lay down on the snow with no expression on your face."

  I looked at her and stared into her eyes. Those beautiful blue eyes of hers. Her smile...

  "What do you mean funny?"

  "Well, you looked like you were having fun."

  Fun?

  "Laying down in the snow isn't fun."

  "Really? Then why did you do it?"

  "I..."

  Why did I do it?

  I feel so incredibly empty and hollow that I could stand and stare mindlessly for years. I don't think I'm even capable of smiling or laughing at all. I've lost my will to live, and I hate my life so much...

  Fun, huh? What the hell is fun anyway? You're telling me that I have fun right now? Nonsense. I've never experienced fun in my life. This... "Soul" that I have, this power that I thought I could use for the better of society... something I thought that I could save my town with...

  It was never fun.

  I bet this girl has fun everyday. I bet she laughs everyday and smiles everyday. I bet she has friends and family who care about her...

  While I was lamenting on my life and how great it would be if I wasn't born with a Soul-Spec, the girl laid down next to me. That was enough for me to snap out of it. I thought this girl hated the coldness and the snow.

  "... What are you doing?" I turn to the girl for the first time.

  "Isn't this fun?" The girl asked me, as she smiled at me.

  "No, it's not."

  I turned away from the girl and covered my face. I hate smiling, laughing, and living. It's just a reminder that I'm alive. Why does she want to have fun with me? Does she think I'm her friend?

  "I hate it."

  "Why?"

  "Because I have no purpose to live. I might as well just die."

  "You have no purpose to live? Do you think so?"

  "What else would I be thinking? My family hates me, my town's in poverty, and I have a power that I can't even use to help others. I can only make miniscule weapons. That's not enough to help the town."

  "Your power can do more than that. If you just train and master it, I'm sure you'll be able to help your town."

  "And how would I train it? I'm sure no one here has a Soul, or knows how to train a Soul."

  "I don't know, but I'm sure you'll find a way."

  "You don't know anything, do you?"

  "I guess not."

  "Then don't assume things..."

  I looked back at the girl again. She was staring at the sky. Her smile disappeared. Why is she looking at the sky? It's not like we can do anything. We're stuck in this town until the blizzard dies down.

  "I think you should be grateful of the things you already have, rather than dwell on the things you don't have. I don't know about your family, nor about this town anymore... But I do know one thing."

  "... What do you know?"

  "... I sense something in you. It's a power that I can't quite describe, but... I'm sure you'll be able to make something out of it."

  "If you don't know anything, then don't say anything. All you're doing is making me more frustrated."

  "Gods, do you not have any sense of hope?" The girl stood up, chuckling.

  Hope?

  Hope.

  That's right. I had hope. Hope for the future. Hope for my town. Hope for my family. Hope for my happiness.

  But I lost all hope after the blizzard struck. My town was hit with a disaster, and it seemed as if we would never come out of poverty.

  Hope, huh?

  "Hope? How can I still have hope when there is none?"

  The girl giggled. "Who said YOU would have hope?" The girl would then walk towards me and punch me on the chest. It wasn't a light punch, but judging on her expression, she didn't mean to hit me hard.

  "It's what's inside there that has hope. Your Soul."

  My Soul?

  "My Soul? But my Soul isn't anything special."

  "It's not about what it does or what it means, it's about what you'll do with it."

  "... What will I do with it?"

  ...

  "Who... even are you?" I finally asked the question again.

  "Me? My name's Roselka..."

  "Roselka Eria."