Chained Hearts: From Slavery to Sovereignty
Chapter 78: Five years had passed

Chapter 78: Chapter 78: Five years had passed

The morning sunlight fell through the window, carrying warmth and peace. The sun illuminated the very corner of the small room, swallowing the darkness completely.

With the morning light, Cassian also felt the darkness in his heart being swallowed, leaving him with a peaceful mind and the calmness of water.

He looked outside the window with a calm expression. There was no immaturity, no trace of the shyness of a teenage boy on his face. His youthful features had turned into the sharp, defined features of a young man.

He was no longer the cheerful sunshine who could smile even at his lowest. Instead, that had been replaced by a tough young man.

Cassian’s gaze lingered on the vast landscape outside his room.

It had been five years since that day. He had buried those memories deep in his heart, but still, his heart was not calm. That face... he still remembered it like it was just yesterday.

A dull pain spread in his chest, and his mind drifted to its never-ending thoughts.

Was he sad? Did he regret not believing him? Did he even know that a servant had been beaten to death? Or did he try to find him?

So many questions, but no answers. Cassian clenched his eyes shut; he did not want to remember it all.

He wanted to leave the past behind, but it wasn’t leaving him.

That morning five years ago, when he woke up in a strange place, remained etched in his mind. A dull ache lingered in his chest, not from the physical wounds but from the betrayal that had nearly consumed him.

He had been rescued by someone—a stranger whose name he still did not know. The man had found him in the graveyard, broken and bloodied, left to die.

This stranger had carried him back to this kingdom and nursed him back to health. For ten long days, Cassian drifted between life and death in a coma. When he finally opened his eyes, the reality struck him like a blow.

The stranger’s voice had been kind yet firm. "You are alive. That’s enough for now." But Cassian couldn’t speak. He could only cry, the tears falling freely as if his soul was pouring out all its pain.

He had thought, over and over again: What did I do wrong to deserve this punishment? The stranger had stayed silent, simply placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, a gesture that said more than words ever could.

Even now, years later, Cassian could not forget that moment—the feeling of being broken yet somehow still alive.

He opened his eyes and shook off the memory, pulling himself back to the present.

He didn’t hate him, nor her. It was just that destiny was not in their control. They all fell apart, and no one was to blame for it.

At one time, they were his greatest family—the ones who had shown him the happiness and closeness of friendship, and something more... something he had never dreamed of.

But now, nothing remained but the ashes of those dreams, left behind without even a proper goodbye.

It was his only regret that he was not able to see them one last time.

Maybe he had meant nothing in their lives, but for him, they were his world.

Now, so much time had passed, and he had paid his dues. He owed them nothing from the day he was left dying in the graveyard, with vultures constantly picking at him with their sharp beaks.

He wondered if they met again, would they be strangers?

"Leader Hayes! Everyone has..."

A young boy opened the door and called out loudly but stopped himself when he saw his leader lost in thought. He sighed and thought to himself: The leader is still thinking about the past.

"Hmm! Coming!" Cassian replied in a neutral voice, with no fluctuation of emotion.

"Yes... yes!" the boy saluted and ran off with lightning speed.

Cassian made his way to the training ground, glancing at the trainees who practiced under his leadership.

"Bad news! Leader Hayes is not in a good mood..." the boy from earlier shouted to the others.

"Ahh!" Dejected voices rang out simultaneously as the other candidates heard his words.

"Seriously, Orion! It’s time for the order’s gathering, and everyone is so busy. And if Leader Hayes is also busy, where did he get the time to torture us this morning?"

"Other teams are probably still sleeping under thick blankets!"

"AHH!" the boy cried out loudly.

"If you want to sleep so badly... you’re free to go. Who stopped you?"

A voice rang out from behind him, making his spine stiffen. He shuddered and turned around.

His father would probably kick him out of the house if he dared to go back. After all, his father had pulled so many strings behind the scenes just to get him trained under the guidance of Leader Hayes.

Cassian’s sharp eyes lingered on the boy for a moment longer than necessary, his expression unreadable.

The boy stiffened under his leader’s gaze, knowing that the smallest misstep could earn him extra rounds of punishment.

"Arya," Cassian said, his voice calm but firm, "since you’re so full of energy, how about running a few laps around the field? That should help clear your thoughts."

"L-Laps?" Arya stammered, his face turning pale.

"Twenty," Cassian added, his tone still neutral. He stepped forward and addressed the rest of the candidates, his presence commanding respect despite his understated demeanor. "And for the rest of you—if you have time to complain, you have time to work harder."

The groans that followed were muffled but not absent. Cassian ignored them, his focus shifting to the training session ahead.

"Form up!" he ordered, his voice carrying across the field.

The Trainees scrambled into position, their earlier complaints vanishing as they faced their leader’s unyielding gaze. Cassian stood at the front, his hands clasped behind his back.

"You’ve been given this opportunity because someone believes you have the potential to make a difference," he began, his tone steady. "Don’t waste it. The world outside these walls isn’t forgiving, and neither am I."

His words drowned any more resistance and any remaining defiance. He didn’t raise his voice; he didn’t need to. The weight of his presence was enough.

The Kingdom of Morthagar also known as Sword Master was no place for the weak. Only the best survived here, and Cassian had fought his way to the top with nothing but his will and his blade.

The memory of those early days still lingered in his mind.