Section Sixty · Only a Storm Can Topple a Great Tree
--City of Sin.
Deep within the City of Sin, the Lord of Cinder Yhorm held court.
Yhorm had not been a native of the City of Sin. Long, long ago, he had once been a hero who freely roamed the earth.
Hero... What was a hero?
Yhorm did not know now, and Yhorm of the past had not known either.
Upon his throne, the lonely Lord of Cinder sank into memories of the past.
He still remembered how, many years ago, the giant warrior had first left his homeland and traveled across the earth. In those days, the First Flame still burned brightly. The vastness of the world was far beyond anything people of the present could imagine. Beyond one mountain stood another, and beyond that mountain stretched a boundless sea. And after crossing that sea, one would find another limitless, expansive land.
The young giant warrior yearned for adventure.
The young giant warrior hoped for peace and tranquility throughout the world.
Carrying a great shield and a battle-axe, the young giant warrior met many companions along the way.
By the time the giant warrior was no longer young, he returned to this land, which had long since become unfamiliar, laden with honors, flowers, and applause.
People called him a hero. They said he had defeated the cunning sea beasts, driven away the thunder-calling birds, slain the maddened venomous dragons, and subdued the kingdom of the rotting dead.
People called him a hero and praised him. They composed all kinds of beautiful songs to sing his praises.
But the giant warrior did not understand what it meant to be a hero. He never had.
He did not understand. He truly did not. Yet even if he did not understand,