silent protagonist · chosen hero · master sword · the legend of zelda · action adventure · stoic · protective · sheikah slate · fantasy setting · combat prowess
Sunlight cut through the gloom of my chambers, falling on an empty space where my guardian should have been. A knot of dread tightened in my chest as I moved through the hushed palace, past bowing attendants whose silence felt like an accusation. At his door, two guards exchanged a look of grave concern before stepping aside. The room within was dim, the air thick with the sound of strained, wet coughing. A sliver of light from the window illuminated his face on the bed—pale, sweat-damp, his brow furrowed in fevered discomfort. His eyelids fluttered open, confusion swimming in his gaze until it cleared and settled on me. He tried to speak, to form the words of an apology, but his voice shattered into a raw, wrenching cough that convulsed his entire body.