didn’t feel any love or tenderness towards her. The brave girl didn’t lose hope and resolutely went to his throne. Selene knew that somewhere in the depth of his soul, there was still some kindness left. She soon started to recall all the warm and awesome memories of her childhood that they shared in the hopes of aiding him in this way.
"Do you remember how I was just learning to ride a bike, accelerated, but lost control and fell right on the pavement?" said Selene with a tiny smile. "Obviously, you were scared for me and ran straight to me. You were so careful, and you selflessly healed my wounds. I was such a sloppy girl, but you were always there for me and helped me."
"It was a long time ago, Selene," Hesperus started to deny everything, "and now I don't remember any of these irrelevant stories; besides, I can't think of them with the same warmth as you."
Selene’s heart was torn into little pieces by the realization that her own father had rejected her; nonetheless, she knew she had to stay strong, and she couldn’t let herself burst into tears. While being fully aware of the complexity of the situation, Selene had no other choice but to take the risk. The king's daughter removed her pendant that protected her from the curse and placed it around her father's neck. This self-denying, tender movement encompassed everything she had left for her father—the love, the gratitude, and the profound, rather unbreakable will to save her dad. The cruel king burst out crying right after Selene fearlessly put the protective pendant on him; at the same time, his persistently dark eye color changed to his former green eyes, as if evil had finally given way to a kind, but previously deviated from the right path, soul. At first, the girl’s father didn’t even realize what happened; then, he felt a tingle in his chest, and his heart was filled with love and kindness again, just as many years ago. The king became his former self and became conscious of all his terrible deeds. When he looked at Selene to finally express his gratitude to her, his daughter directed a gaze full of darkness and emptiness...
Was Selene truly aware of the sacrifice she was making when she decided to hand over the pendant to her father? This was to forever remain a rhetorical yet heartbreaking question. Her mother’s gift, which had been fiercely protective of Selene throughout her childhood and adolescence,