Viktor nodded as he asked, "Not exactly, but how did you know this vision had to do with my memories?"
Seraphina realized he didn't know about what the Soul Palace was and explained it to him, making Viktor raise his brows as he heard her explanation, not expecting such a thing to exist within him.
But this made him realize why so many people claimed that they could see their entire lives flash before their eyes right before they died. Of course, these stories came from people who miraculously came back to life.
"So you only saw fragments of your memories?" Seraphina asked.
"Yes. But what does that mean? You said the Soul Palace would contain all our memories unless the soul itself gets destroyed. Then why am I not remembering things fully instead of seeing fragments from here and there?" Viktor found this quite baffling and frustrating since it always left him with more questions and a certain uneasiness in his chest.
Seraphina placed her hands on her lips as if she found it quite shocking to hear that. After a moment of contemplation, she said, "It could only mean one thing then. Your soul…it must not be whole."
"Eh? What do you mean by that?" Viktor didn't know why but this didn't sound like a good thing.
"Since your soul is not whole, your soul palace would be fragmented. That is why you are unable to fully regain your memories. But what worries me is why your soul is in such a state," Seraphina felt her heart thudding in worry since she never expected his soul to be not whole.
She found it shocking that he was alive despite his soul's condition being like that. She felt that his immortality probably had something to do with this.
"Can you let me see if your soul is really fine?" Seraphina asked, unable to suppress the uneasiness she was feeling. However, she wanted to ask his permission since letting oneself vulnerable to let someone else peer into their soul was a very delicate and sensitive matter.
It would be no different than lowering all guards and letting the other person do anything to them, even causing irreparable damage.
However, Viktor trusted Seraphina and, without hesitation, nodded as she placed her hand on his chest.
He also wanted to let her go through his memories and learn everything about him now that she was a part of his soul.
Seraphina placed her hand on Viktor's chest as her expression fell into deep focus. Her soul energy seeped into his entire being, making Viktor feel as if he was being cleansed from within.
He literally felt like his soul was being embraced by Seraphina's warm and pure energy. It was as if he could feel her within his every cell.
But despite feeling so vulnerable, he wasn't feeling uncomfortable at all. The only thing that concerned him was what Seraphina would think of him after seeing his past on Earth.
He had done things he wasn't proud of and wasn't sure how someone like Seraphina would react to them.
However, strangely enough, he could feel what Seraphina was feeling.
Seraphina's brows furrowed as her lips subtly quivered. She had seen glimpses of his past, and that itself was enough to make her feel that he was a very pitiful man when she first saw him.
She didn't want to pry into his memories, but Viktor insisted that she should learn more about him and so she didn't refuse. She was also curious to see if she could help him learn about his origins after going through the fragmented memories he received as visions.
But now, after going through his memories on Earth, she felt her heart clench, not expecting his life to have been so sad and depressing.
It was filled with so much pain and blood she couldn't help but wonder how he pushed on without falling apart.
Any other person would have fallen apart after going through all this. This only made her feel awed by how strong his will and mind were.
But this also made her realize that he was carrying all this pain inside him for all these years, making her understand why he chose to sleep for more than 1000 years. It was better to feel nothing than endure it.
She felt so much regret for not meeting him earlier. Otherwise, she could have helped him during the times he needed her the most. However, now that the past was done, she decided to make sure his present and future would be bright as ever.
And when she peered through his fragmented memories, she was surprised yet again by the things she saw. She couldn't even tell how long ago all these events were taking place since she was sure that whatever she was seeing took place ages ago to the point it definitely predated her predecessor.
She also realized why Viktor took a liking to the name 'Azu' and felt it all coming together. But she was puzzled when she found herself unable to see a few moments of a certain fragmented memory. It was as if she was being blocked out, just like how she couldn't peer even deeper into his soul to know why his soul was not whole. It was as if his soul had some kind of self-protection spell that discouraged anybody from going further.
Viktor eagerly looked on as he saw Seraphina remove her hand from his chest, hoping that she knew what was going on.
"Azu…"
But to his surprise, she suddenly hugged him firmly as tears trickled down her eyes, making Viktor sigh as he hugged her back and patted her head, "Don't feel so sad by thinking about my past. It is my past, after all. I have put it all behind me," Viktor gently whispered, though his eyes flickered with certain heavy emotions.
Seraphina didn't have to say anything for Viktor to feel what she was feeling.
The two stayed like that for a while, as if to console each other, before Seraphina cleared her throat as she said, "Y-Your soul…I could only feel half of it."
Viktor's eyes widened as he heard her words.
