Chapter 8 — The Moment of Fate (Revised)
Midnight
Cold wind and heavy air
The willow branches bent, looking as if they were weighed down by their own heaviness.
Arya stood by the cabin, her gaze fixed on the dark trees.
The trees rustled, as if something was moving deep in the darkness.
She traced her fingers over the wolf's fang necklace, now slightly dull, just like the beating of her heart filled with doubt.
Donati should have returned, just like he always said.
"I'll come back, Arya."
But his footsteps had not come.
Only the sound of the wind, which grew sharper with every passing moment.
Arya decides to venture into the forest.
Her steps were slow and cautious, as though she knew something awaited her in the heart of this dark night.
With every step forward, she felt more weight pressing down on her.
The trees slowly closed in, and the darkness spread its claws everywhere.
Until she arrived.
Donati's body…
Lying on the ground, shattered.
Wounded, covered in blood.
His eyes half-open, with a small smile that seemed to have never left his lips.
In his hand, a crushed flower stained with blood.
Arya froze behind a tree, her gaze locked on Donati's body.
An oppressive silence filled the air.
She didn't want to believe it.
She rubbed her eyes, as if trying to make sure she hadn't misseen it, but when she looked again, it was all real.
His body, broken and bloody, lay there in front of her.
A few seconds passed, as though time itself had stopped.
Her hand reached toward the body.
But not toward him. Toward the ground.
Wasn't this world just like that?
Wasn't this fate?
In that moment…
From the shadows, a woman, lifeless and distant, appeared.
Her face was blurred and indifferent, like an invisible ghost, but her gaze was fixed on Arya.
Arya couldn't make out the woman's eyes, but she felt that the woman had seen everything, even before Arya could comprehend it.
The woman, with lifeless eyes, simply watched Arya.
Her lips did not move, but a soft voice echoed in Arya's mind,
"It's begun…"
Arya felt as though everything within her was suddenly visible.
"This is just the beginning."
Heavy, incomprehensible words lingered in her ears, as if her history was being written in that very moment.
Immediately, her hand went to Donati's body.
She touched the blood and the wounds, but felt nothing.
It was as though she existed in a different world, one where nothing but this single moment mattered.
Her head lowered, her teeth gritted.
"You… you promised… no… you couldn't have gone…"
Emotions, tangled—rage, sorrow, doubt, disbelief—boiled within her.
For a moment, tears began to fall, but something within her wouldn't allow her to break completely.
Instead, a burning fire surged inside her chest.
Arya stood up.
Her eyes were filled with fury and coldness.
"I'll take revenge… even if I have to go to hell."
And the lifeless woman still stood in the distance,
Silent, still watching, still numb.
Arya turned and walked back toward the cabin, as if nothing had changed.
Despite all the fury and pain within her, it seemed she still didn't realize that this moment was the beginning of fate.