Atan

Atan

Gender	Male
Race	Human
Family	Unnamed son Mihile (adoptive son)
Affiliations	Chromile (formerly)
Enemies	Chromile Mihile Cygnus Neinheart
Status	Deceased
Voice Actors
GlobalMS	Kellen Goff^[1]^[2]

Atan is a former disciple of Chromile and the adoptive father of Mihile.

Story

Chromile's Disciple

Many years ago, Atan's only son was killed by wolves and Atan, distraught at the loss of his child, sought to find a way to revive him. After years of chasing rumors, Atan learned about the existence of a gemstone called Shinsoo's Teardrop, which had the power to grant any wish. As the jewel was protected by the Knight of Light inside their Soul Shield, Atan traveled to Ereve and became a disciple of Chromile, the Knight of Light, in the hope of becoming his successor. Despite being low-born, Atan trained fervently in order to be chosen as the next candidate to become the Knight of Light. Nevertheless, he grew furious when Chromile never once considered him and instead passed him over in favor of presenting the Soul Shield to other candidates in order to determine whether it would react to them. Realizing that he would never be chosen by Chromile, Atan attempted to steal the Soul Shield in the middle of the night. Just then, however, he was caught by Chromile, who had been expecting Atan's betrayal.

Atan asked Chromile why he had never once allowed him to even hold the Soul Shield when so many others had been permitted in order to see if it reacted to them. Chromile then told him to consider the difference between him and the others. When Atan remained silent, Chromile told him that he ought to have known the answer by then, but the fact that he still hadn't meant that he never would. He then ordered Atan to lay down his sword and return home, adding that both he and everyone else had known about Atan's obsession with the Soul Shield from the start. Chromile then told Atan that there was no light to be found in that obsession, neither in the shield nor Atan's heart, but only darkness. He added that there was a better path for Atan elsewhere before expelling him. However, Atan begged Chromile to at least let him use Shinsoo's Teardrop first, as his only wish had been to bring back his son, who had died at a young age. Though Chromile sympathized, he explained that he could not grant Atan's request, as Shinsoo's Teardrop could not and should not be used for the wish of a single individual. Chromile then declared that though he had determined that Atan was unqualified to be a knight, it had been Atan himself who had relinquished his qualifications as a person and as a father.

Confronting Chromile

Infuriated, Atan formulated a plan to steal the Soul Shield while Chromile had gone away on a trip with his family. One night, he broke into the house where they were staying when he had come across an infant Mihile sleeping in his cradle. While searching the room, however, Chromile's wife, Rikella, entered and turned on the light. Atan drew his sword and ordered her to give him the Soul Shield in exchange for Mihile's safety. Rikella reluctantly handed over the shield, but when it came into the proximity of Mihile, a great flash of light emanated from it. Furious, Atan struck down Rikella, just as Chromile rushed into the room. Atan then told Chromile that he had found it surprising that Chromile had a son, and yet he still had not been able to empathize with Atan's situation. He then threatened to kill Mihile unless Chromile extracted Shinsoo's Teardrop. Chromile attempted to reason with Atan, asking whether his son would thank him for bringing him to life at the cost of having taken someone else's. He added that though he had stopped Atan from becoming a knight, Atan himself had chosen not to be a man that his son would have been proud to call ‘father'. He then told Atan that even if he were to obtain Shinsoo's Teardrop, Atan's wish would never come true. Atan and Chromile then begun to fight, which had resulted in a scar on Atan's right eye. However, Atan noticed that Chromile had briefly paused when Mihile had begun crying, giving him the opening needed to fatally wound Chromile. In his last moments, Chromile dragged himself painfully across the floor in order to check on Mihile before passing away. Following Chromile's death, Atan took the Soul Shield, but, knowing that he could not take the jewel himself, he decided to take Mihile and raise him in the hope that he would one day become the next Knight of Light, making up a story about his son being Mihile's older brother in order to motivate him to use the gemstone. He then burned the scene of the accident in order to cover up all traces of Chromile and released trained hunting dogs around the countryside in order to keep Mihile from leaving.

Raising Mihile

Over the years, Mihile grew up training as a warrior, hoping to use Shinsoo's Teardrop to revive his 'brother'. Atan trained Mihile to become a knight, using the same lessons that Atan himself had learned from Chromile. Atan also instilled a fear of the wild dogs in the area to Mihile in order to ensure that the boy wouldn't escape the farm by explaining that his son had been killed by monsters like the wild dogs. One day, Mihile came downstairs and greeted Atan, who was pleased that Mihile had gotten up early for his training, though he warned his son not to push himself too hard. Before training, Atan reminded Mihile of the Three Sacred Rules: first, to recognize the truth and stand by it; second, to respect and defend those weaker than them; finally, to take special care to protect loved ones above all. Atan then sent Mihile to train on the Field Mice and Wild Pigs before sending him to face the Glutinous Rice Sparrows, warning him to be careful of the Stray Dogs. At the outskirts of the Rice Sparrow territory, Mihile noticed a Stray Dog in the area and decided to keep away, instead choosing to finish his training and return home. When he told Atan about the Stray Dog, his father recommended that he stay indoors for the time being. Soon after, however, Mihile noticed that the photograph of his brother had fallen out of his pocket while training. Against his father's warning, Mihile went outside to search for it.

At the Rice Sparrow hunting grounds, he successfully found the photograph, but quickly realized that there were no sparrows around. Suddenly, a Stray Dog that was wandering nearby charged in to attack. With no other options, Mihile faced the dog and defeated it. He noted that despite how terrifying the Stray Dogs seemed, he had been able to defeat one with relative ease, making him wonder whether he had gotten stronger. He then headed back home and ran into his father. After Mihile explained what had happened, Atan forbade him from training outdoors for a while, as the Stray Dogs were becoming increasingly more commonplace and he was worried for Mihile's safety. Mihile was dejected, as his training had been suspended many times in the past because of the Stray Dogs. However, he noted that he had been able to face them this time, and so he wondered whether he could grow even stronger by training against them. He appealed to his father, reminding him how it had always been their dream for him to activate the Soul Shield and revive his older brother. He explained that he needed to face stronger enemies if he had any hope of unlocking his true power. However, Atan replied that Mihile had been fortunate enough to have only faced one Stray Dog, as he would have been in deep trouble if he had faced a pack, as the Wild Dogs so often hunted in. Mihile protested that he could handle their numbers, but Atan told him that packs were much bigger than he thought, adding that he didn't want to lose another child.

Atan then asked Mihile why he wanted to become a Knight of Light. Mihile began to reply that he wanted to bring back his older brother for his father's sake, but he then shook his head and instead replied that he wanted to do it in order to make his family happy again. Atan then asked whether Mihile thought that he would be happy if his son were to get in danger. Mihile grudgingly acknowledged his father's point, to which Atan told him that though he understood Mihile's feelings, he requested that Mihile listen to him. Mihile returned to his room, where he told himself that his father was right, even though he felt as though his father's worry was holding him back. The next day, Atan told Mihile that he would be away from home for a while. Mihile recalled how his father would often be away from home on secret business. When he asked whether he could know more, Atan laughed that he still couldn't say, though he reassured Mihile that it was all for his sake. However, he added that he had something to say before he left, explaining that he wanted to reveal the truth about how Mihile's brother had died. He explained that he had initially claimed that Mihile's brother had died in a farming accident shortly after taking the photograph that Mihile carried. However, he revealed that the truth was that his son had been killed by a monster that was similar to the wild Stray Dogs. Atan explained that he had been teaching his son how to wield a sword, despite his young age. When he had heard his son's screams, he had rushed to the scene, only to find both his son and the wild dog dead. He added that it was maddeningly frustrating that despite all his strength, he had been able to do nothing for his son. He then told Mihile that he was the most precious thing that Atan had, perhaps even more precious than getting his son back, and that the reason why he kept Mihile from leaving the house was because he was afraid of losing his child. He added that he would always put Mihile first, as he would never place his younger son in danger just to revive his older one. He then reminded Mihile to stay safe at home while he went on his mission.

Attacking Ereve

Several days later, Atan returned home and was shocked to find Mihile missing and a letter addressed to him. Upon reading it, he was outraged to learn that Mihile had met Empress Cygnus, and that he had gone to Ereve to train as the Knight of Light. Disguising himself with a hooded cloak, Atan stormed Ereve and fought through the Cygnus Knights, claiming that he had come to take back something that belonged to him. Soon after, Mihile returned to Ereve from a mission and learned that an assailant was after the Empress. He rushed to the Empress's Resting Spot, where he found a lone Neinheart standing between the assailant and Cygnus. The assailant asked what they were trying to do by taking Mihile, and whether they were planning to use the jewel within the Soul Shield to make a wish for Ereve to return to its former glory. Cygnus was surprised that Atan believed that Shinsoo's Teardrop was capable of granting wishes and assured him that they had no such designs, as all she wanted was to awaken the Knight of Light, whose duty was to protect the Empress, Ereve, and Maple World. However, Atan merely pointed his blade at her and demanded to know where Mihile was. As Atan swung his blade, Mihile rushed between them and raised the Soul Shield, which gleamed with a brilliant light. It deflected Atan's sword, throwing off his hood and revealing his face, though the Soul Shield broke in the process.

Mihile was shocked to see his father, but Atan merely smiled warmly and congratulated Mihile for awakening his power. He then told Mihile to use his new power and extract Shinsoo's Teardrop from within the Soul Shield so that he could wish upon it to revive his brother. However, Mihile angrily confronted him about all the people he had hurt during his siege on Ereve. An irritated Atan asked Mihile how he could care about the lives of strangers over his own brother. Reminding Mihile about the reason why he had become a Knight of Light in the first place, Atan asked him to extract the jewel, claiming that he was very proud of him. When Mihile hesitated, however, Atan expressed his disappointment in Mihile, claiming that he had always trusted Mihile to see their mission through before wondering what the people of Ereve had done to him. As Cygnus and Neinheart urged Mihile not to hand the jewel over, Atan reminded him about the Three Sacred Rules and asked which of them was the most important, to which Mihile grudgingly replied that it was to protect loved ones above all. Neinheart interrupted and reminded Mihile that Shinsoo's Teardrop was meant to protect Ereve, not to just give away to anyone, but an angry Atan stopped him and explained that he wasn't merely ‘anyone', adding that Mihile considered him more important than anyone else. He then told Mihile that Neinheart and Cygnus were trying to break their family apart and urged him to protect his loved ones above all else. Realizing that his father was right, Mihile reluctantly extracted Shinsoo's Teardrop from within the Soul Shield. As Neinheart attempted to stop him, Atan slashed him with his sword, causing Neinheart to collapse in pain.

Cygnus begged Mihile to reconsider, to which Mihile suddenly recalled the Second Sacred Rule, which was to always defend the weak. He pointed out that Atan had attacked the Cygnus Knights, Neinheart, and even the Empress, despite them all being weaker than him, and asked him how he could justify it. Atan replied that their weakness was merely a plot for sympathy, explaining that they wanted to brainwash Mihile into using his power for their own gain. He then reminded Mihile of the First Sacred Rule, to recognize and stand by the truth, causing Mihile to realize that the Empress' claim that the Knight of Light's duty was to protect her seemed too convenient for it not to be a lie. Believing that his father was right, Mihile handed over Shinsoo's Teardrop to Atan, despite his sense of uneasiness. Atan then prayed to the Goddess to revive his only son, but when the jewel refused to heed his wish, he grew angry and demanded to know why all his pain and efforts weren't enough. As Atan collapsed in disbelief, Mihile rushed over to check on his father. However, Atan furiously told Mihile to get out of his sight, and to never call him ‘father' again, claiming that only one boy ever had the right to call him ‘father', and that it wasn't the son of a worthless knight. Upon seeing Mihile's confusion, Atan laughed that he had raised a loyal and foolish child, and that it had been worth taking Mihile into the remote mountains to bring up. Suddenly, a wounded Piyo elder arrived and recognized the unhooded Atan as the student whom Chromile had expelled, adding that Chromile had been right to do so. However, Atan challenged her claim before turning to Mihile and revealing the truth about how he had killed Mihile's family and raised him to revive his true son.

Having told his story, a defeated Atan told Mihile that he had wasted decades of his life and had spilled gallons of blood over a useless rock. The Piyo elder called Atan a monster, but Neinheart replied that Atan was even lower than that, having murdered an innocent family and kidnapped their child. However, Atan replied that the blame lay not with him, but with the one who had made up the story of Shinsoo's Teardrop being able to grant wishes. Atan looked around and noticed Kidan, calling him a poor head of security whose entire force couldn't even stop one person, and Neinheart, whom he called a bookworm who could barely lift a book. However, he claimed that the blame lay with none but Cygnus. Though he acknowledged that she herself had not started the story, he nevertheless believed that she should have known, and that it was time to harvest the seeds that her ancestors had sown. He then added that if she believed it to be unfair, then she could blame her ancestors when she met them in the afterlife. Before he could strike, however, Mihile rushed in front of Cygnus and parried Atan's blow. He asked Atan whether the story was true, to which Atan pointed out the First Sacred Rule to always recognize the truth. He then mockingly claimed that his story had been a lie, and that Mihile really was his dear son. Upon seeing Mihile's face, Atan laughed and called him a weakling, pointing out how Mihile would believe anything when shown any affection at all. Atan then ordered Mihile to leave his sight, but Mihile refused and fought back against him. As their battle continued, Atan was surprised to find that Mihile was glowing with light, despite the Soul Shield being broken. Mihile slowly drove Atan back to the edge of a cliff, where he suddenly fell off. To his shock, however, Mihile grabbed his hand to stop him from falling. A confused Atan demanded to know why Mihile had saved him, even after killing his family and lying to him, to which Mihile called him ‘father', claiming that Atan was the only family that he had. He explained that though he would never trust him or even look at him again, he would never let Atan die in front of him. Atan was overwhelmed by the fact that the child whom he had never considered a son would still save him. He then wondered whether Chromile had been right all those years ago about him being an unworthy father. Filled with remorse, he let go of Mihile's hand and allowed himself to plummet to his death, hoping that he could be with his son at last.