Chapter 433: [Bonus Chapter]Truth Always Hurts

They stood staring at each other for a while too emotional to speak. When Sulran gently added, his gaze held a fondness for his nephew.

"We touch our foreheads with our fingers as a sign to greet others and those who are close connect their foreheads as a sign of affection they hold," Sulran touched his forehead with three of his elegant fingers and said:

"Like this," and Xiran repeated the same action.

"Thanks for telling me and teaching me. I think I have a long way to go when it comes to learning the traditions of Tromalius," now Xiran understood why his mother always joined her forehead with him. That was her way of showing her affection.

"And I will be your guide every step of the way," Sulran answered curiously looking around the strange place they stood in and Xiran understood he had no clue about cemeteries.

"It’s a place where we bury our dead," Xiran explained and stepped aside revealing the tombstone behind him. Sulran’s eyes widened as the shock of what Xiran was trying to show descended upon him.

"I am sorry but she passed away 47 years ago," the revelation hit Sulran with full force and his knees buckled making them bend and he fell on them. His toned frame trembled and a guttural scream of his agony filled the quiet surrounding of the graveyard. Tears covered his face, breaking Xiran’s heart all over again.

He scrambled towards the lamenting man and did what he knew best, he hugged him, trying to comfort Sulran’s torn heart.

Sulran held onto his nephew like a desperate man, finding solace that some remnants of his beautiful sister were alive in her son. His tears soaked Xiran’s shirt.

"How?" He finally asked in a teary voice.

"She fell ill. She missed her home and being away from it had a toll on her health," Xiran left out the part about his abusive father. He didn’t need to know how much she had to suffer at the hands of that monster.

"But it doesn’t make sense. She left Tromalius ten years ago," Sulran was bewildered and that got Xiran thinking too.

"I guess time moves at a different pace on both planets. It’s faster here and comparatively slower on Tromalius," Xiran thoughtfully answered as Sulran stumbled back to his feet. Xiran helped him.

"Can I?" He pointed to Surilla’s grave with a deep sorrow enveloping him, his broad shoulders slumped giving him the appearance of a defeated man.

"Yes, pay your respects, talk to her. I always do and like to believe she can hear me. I will give you some privacy," Xiran patted Sulran’s shoulder with his lips thinning out and silently walked away towards the ruins of the wretched mansion, which he used to call home.

Sulran walked over to his sister’s grave and sat beside it with his hand gently touching her engraved name, tears still flowing. He had so many questions but he had saved them for the future. He would ask Xiran once they were more comfortable with each other and were seated in an appropriate environment.

Xiran slowly approached the burnt mansion, whose charred remains gave it a ghastly look, skeletons of his past would always remain there and he hoped to never see them resurface.

He halted in his tracks, seeing a lonely figure standing there in a plain blue dress. She had sensed him too for her head turned and he could see her face lined with tears as she dabbed them with tissue paper, a look of utter astonishment lined her face. She instantly took a step back, fear crept up in her blue orbs.

"I was just leaving," she whimpered, lowering her head.

"Stay, you are allowed to pay your respect and grieve, Sohlia," Xiran authoritatively replied.

She sniffled before asking in an anguished tone:

"I understand you had to kill your father for what he was doing but did you have to kill Xifin too? He was your brother and after your warning, we stayed away from your city. Why did you kill the love of my life?"

Xiran deadpanned at her questions. Either she was playing dumb or she had no clue about what Xifin had done and was about to do.

"You can’t be serious. He was involved with father in every evil plan. I took away your and Xifin’s memories because you people tried to hurt and kill an innocent girl. A girl I am in love with. He later restored those memories and told that monster everything. They hunted her down and I had to erase her memories of my existence and hide her. Do you even realize how painful that was for us?" Xiran sent her a death glare and she flinched, a hint of remorse washed over her face.

He continued: "They didn’t stop, they found her, brought her here, chained her up, tortured her and made me watch every suffering she was put through. Then they rap*d me and made her watch and your Xifin, my brother tried to ra*e her in front of me."

Sohlia gasped at that revelation, her hand flew to her mouth. They had done heinous crimes together but that was something she hadn’t anticipated from Xifin.

"I begged him but he didn’t stop, so I had to use every ounce of power I possessed to break loose and save her from his clutches. I didn’t want to hurt him, he was my little brother but I knew as long as he was alive, my girl would never be safe. I did what I had to, not what I wanted."

A fresh stream of tears flowed from her saddened eyes. She knew he was telling the truth for she could see the pain reflected in those greyish orbs of his. He had taken no pleasure from this.

"Sohlia, I always treated you with respect, like a sister. I never laid a hand on you even when you crossed the line so many times. And in turn, how was I repaid? Would you forgive someone who would fall to this level?"

"I wouldn’t," she whimpered and shook her head in embarrassment. Her hands clasped in front of her. The pain and the truths had ripped open her wounded heart yet again.