It was the year 578, the 14th day of the second month of spring.

Deep within the countryside of the Valtian Kingdom, in the peaceful lands of Eastshire, a storm was brewing.

Lord Taylor, the local Earl, had received an urgent missive from the capital. It brought word from the royal court, from the crown prince himself. The king had died, and the duke was now trying to seize throne. The prince called for the lord’s help, for him to gather his forces and come to his aid.

Nervous and pressed for time, the lord had no choice but to entrust the affairs of the house to his son, Leonard. He then left in the morning of the next day, accompanied by his wife and most of the estate’s knightage.

Without ever learning much about the reason for his parents’ departure, the young Leonard took over the role of a lord in his father’s absence. Although deep down he knew something serious had happened, in his foolish eagerness to prove himself a worthy successor, he decided to ignore such matters and focus his attention solely on that which his father had entrusted to him: The management of the estate and the safety of his little sisters, the twins Iris and Alice.

But that was his biggest mistake.

A few weeks after his parents had left for the capital, merchant caravans suddenly stopped coming to the earldom. No news arrived from the other regions, and even adventurers had stopped showing up. It felt they had been cut off from the rest of the kingdom.

Things had only gotten worse by the time when rumors of a band of orc raiders, supposedly attacking villages at the earldom’s borders, started reaching Leonard’s ears. The danger such creatures posed was something that Leonard could by no means be ignore.

Fearing for what would become of his father’s lands if such rumors proved to be true, the young lord decided to take matters into his own hands. Gathering whatever fighting forces were left at the estate, he set forward to the eastern borders of the earldom, in search of answers.

What Leonard didn’t know at that time, was that his decision to chase those rumors would set in motion a chain of events that would not only shape the future of his loved ones but also that of the entire world as he knew it.

##

Prologue: Carried by the Wind.

The veil of night was just about to fall when the group led by Leonard Taylor had finally arrived at the edge of the Verdant Woods. Two knights, eight soldiers and five mages— the young lord Taylor being one of the mages. Not too many, considering they were here to exterminate a whole band of orc raiders. But surely, they should be more than enough to get the job done… Right? Quality over quantity, as people often said. If the adventurers can do it with their small parties, then surely… He should be able to achieve the same results with trained soldiers.

“Attention!” The young lord shouted, planting his feet firmly into the ground.

“We shall set up camp here for the night.” He motioned towards the group, his stance a little stiff from nervousness. “Stand watch in groups of three. No drinking nor fooling around, be ready to take up arms at moments notice.”

A week had already passed since their group had set out in search of the orcs’ whereabouts. It was only after much investigation and inquiry that they finally learned the creatures were likely to be hiding in the Verdant Woods, a large woodland located at the Earldom’s easternmost borders.

At first, Leonard had thought it seemed weird. ‘Sure, our lands are kind of backwater when compared to the rest of the kingdom. It’s mostly farmland and forests with a bunch of small villages scattered here and there. But Orcs…? It just makes no sense…’

Indeed, for orcs were not a common a sight around these parts. A straggler once every couple of years? Sure. But a whole band of raiders? Unlikely, as orcs are not your average monsters— if they could even be called that. Although extremely violent and barbaric in nature, orcs are just another of the humanoid races that inhabit this world, and as such, have their own quirks and tendencies.

For example, orcs do not like grain. And it just so happens that most of the food they would find while pillaging these poor countryside villages would be just that; grain. Wheat and rye, mostly.

Orcs also tend to avoid poor rural areas, since the effort required to raid them hardly ever pays off. And what would you know, Eastshire and it’s surrounding areas are just like that; rural and poor.

Were they perhaps after slaves? Orcs are notoriously known to take slaves— mostly women, whom they use in order to breed, since female orcs have remarkably low fertility.

‘But… Would they even come this far into the countryside just to get some women?’ Leonard wondered. It’s not like orcs have a preference for human females to begin with, which most likely is the only kind of women they would find here— with maybe an odd elf here and there. If anything, Leonard had read that orcs tend to prefer women of the beastmen races, since they have higher fertility when compared to the likes of humans and elves.

Though what bothered Leonard the most about this matter, is the fact that orcs tend to dislike dense forests and woodlands, preferring to stick to the plains and mountainous regions. Therefore, it stands to reason that they would avoid taking shelter in the Verdant Woods, which is quite literally one of the largest— and most densely packed with trees— woodlands in the entire Valtian kingdom. Unless they had been cornered by someone, or something, it’s very unlikely that orcs would settle in the Verdant Woods out of their own free will.

Orcs are strong, bestial creatures. The average height of males is something around 230cm, and their average weight is about 180kg— of mostly muscle mass. They usually live in segregated clans, dedicating most of their lives to raiding and pillaging. Thanks to that, even the average orc is considered to be a fearsome warrior by human standards. If possible, Leonard didn’t want to fight such creatures… ‘Ah… Shit… I pray that it’s just some overgrown hobgoblins...’

Leonard’s suspicion towards the supposed existence of the ‘orc band’ had started to grow once his group got closer to the Verdant Woods. Many of the nearby villages had been completely razed. Houses demolished, fields burned… No survivors and no signs that could indicate that someone had been taken captive, as even the young and fertile women had their lifeless bodies sprawled all over the place.

It seemed like a raid had happened indeed, though not one made in order to pillage, like orcs usually do. That had to be the work of a maniac. Something, or someone, so twisted and depraved that the sheer pleasure they took in the slaughter of these villagers was made evident by the way in which their corpses had been mangled. Some of them even seemed like they had been tortured… Fingers cut off, eyes gouged, teeth removed… Orcs don’t usually do that. It would be counter-productive. It would be damaging their merchandise.

Although Leonard was no expert in the field, he still spared some of his time to check up on the bodies— and most specifically, their wounds. They seemed to have been caused by a bladed weapon, of sorts; mostly slashes and stab marks. No one had been cleaved, or at least, he had not seen a single body that looked like it had been cleaved. The stab wounds also did not seem like they had gone all the way through, which would mean that either the weapon had a shorter length or it’s wielder lacked the strength to run someone through.

In any case, it does not look like the work of orcs.

“Leo, your tent has already been set up.” The familiar voice of a woman called out to him. Her figure— 163cm tall, fair skin and light caramel hair, tied in a ponytail that flowed smoothly across her back. Her shapely honey-colored eyes stared at him, as a smile formed on her slightly freckled face. She was wearing a white and blue dress, reinforced by a dark brown leather corset, long gloves and a pair of high heeled long boots. That woman was Aveline de Lance, the third daughter of Viscount de Lance and also Leonard Taylor’s fiancee.

“You seem tired…” She said, embracing Leonard from behind, pressing her soft mounds against his back. “You should take the opportunity to rest while you still can.”

For a moment Leonard did not answer, he just moved his hands to meet hers, which had been resting against his chest. He lovingly stroked the soft, delicate skin of her hands, covering them with his own as he basked in the warmth of her body. He enjoyed her touch, especially that ‘oh-so-soft’ feeling against his back.

“I’m sure glad I didn’t wear any armor today.” Leonard whispered back to her, a dirty smile on his face.

“Pervert.” And in response she teased him, tightening her embrace, pressing her breasts even more against his back. “You seem preoccupied, Leo, is something the matter?”

A short sigh escaped from Leonard’s mouth as his hands stopped stroking Aveline’s, now just resting still on top of them. “I don’t see why I wouldn’t be…” He paused for a second, as if at a loss for words. “Everything about this situation just seems so damn suspicious… I can’t bring myself to believe that orcs would be able to make their way out here while remaining unnoticed.”

Aveline tightened her embrace, perhaps in an attempt to reassure her fiance. “It’s gonna be fine. We came here to take care of things, did we not?”

“I know we did… It’s just...” Leonard’s words trailed off, as his eyes wandered towards the moonlit skies. Maybe he was overthinking this? Perhaps it would be for the better if he listened to his fiancee… She was, after all, much more experienced than him when it came to matters such as these.” Well… I guess I’m just worried about my sisters...” He muttered, closing his eyes for a brief second before letting out another sigh. “Leaving them alone with all that has been going on lately… It just doesn’t sit right with me.”

“Alone? You certainly jest.” Aveline snorted in disapproval of his words. Her mood seems to always take a sharp turn for the worse whenever Leonard brings up his sisters. She never did seem to like them, though she usually kept those feelings hidden beneath a veil of flattery. “Last I checked the mansion was packed full with more maids than they could ever need, and I am pretty sure Sir Gareth and his daughter are there as well.” Aveline argued, her tone becoming harsher as she continued. “Shouldn’t two knights be more than enough to keep the twins safe?” She then released Leonard, giving him an abrupt, almost violent push. She was pouting, and not in a cute way. “And besides, those damn brats are almost adults already. You should really stop being such an overzealous brother and focus more on me— your beloved fiancee.”

Leonard was genuinely surprised. Not because Aveline had pushed him, nor for what she had just said. But because she seemed— Bored? Maybe apathetic would be a better way to describe it. Almost like she was forcing herself to be there, by his side. Even though she was the one who volunteered to come along and help.

She didn’t like his sisters? Understandable. They were, after all, very spoiled and bratty. One could even say that they had a slightly wicked personality and a penchant for bossing others around— which is not uncommon for noblewomen of their age. But that doesn’t justify Aveline’s behavior. She’s just being inconsiderate and mean towards them.

“Why are you being like that?” Leonard asked, with a confused expression on his face. “You know very well that Sir Gareth has been retired for over five years now, and Camille is at best a knight initiate.” Arms crossed and eyebrows frowning, he raised his opposition. “They are my little sisters, for gods’ sake. I have every right to worry about their safety.”

Aveline shrugged, letting the hint of a creepy smile show on her face for no longer than half a second. “Whatever. I don’t care anymore. Go to sleep, Leo. I will also try and get some rest, since I have a full day tomorrow.”

She retreated back into the camp while leaving a sour mood behind. Something about their last exchange felt highly strange, or so Leonard thought.

‘I have a full day tomorrow.’

But didn’t they all? Come morning, wouldn’t they all be fighting against the orcs or whatever it is that has been killing the earldom’s villagers?

Then there’s her weird reaction to him bringing up the safety of his sisters…

Leonard knew, for a long time now, that Aveline felt some kind of jealousy towards the twins— towards their talent. But she usually didn’t let it show… On the contrary, most times she would have a sweet smile on her face while singing their praises to the high heavens; saying how proud she was of her cute little sisters-in-law.

But tonight… It just seemed like she couldn’t care less about hiding her utter distaste of them.

Although their engagement had initially been political in nature, Leonard still loved Aveline. Or would it be better to say that he had eventually come to love her? She had her problems, sure. But beneath it all she was an incredibly amazing woman, that managed to achieve many great things through sheer effort and determination, even though she lacked actual talent. Recently, she had even been appointed as a combat mage under Duke Pryce’s army. It was her proudest achievement so far, to have been recognized by the Kingdom’s foremost general and high commander of it’s military.

Unfortunately, thanks to that promotion, the couple could not longer spend as much time together. To join the Duke’s army, Aveline had to move away to his castle, in order to undergo some sort of special military training. But still, Leonard was happy for her. It was not like they wouldn’t be seeing each other anymore, since whenever she could, Aveline would make sure to visit Eastshire and spend some quality time with him.

This time, specifically, it seemed like she had gotten some sort special leave to return home for a couple of months. And so she came here, to see her fiance— at the perfect time to help him deal with the ‘orc’ situation.

“Perhaps… Am I really overthinking this?” Leonard wondered, index finger and thumb scratching his chin. “Maybe Aveline is right... We’ve been in the road for a while now. It wouldn’t hurt to get a good night’s sleep.”

Half trying to convince himself, Leonard hurried into his tent, where a small, single-person bed had been laid in the corner. Unusual, when you think about a provisional camp. But hey, nobility comes with it’s perks, and a bed is certainly more comfortable than a sleeping bag or a mattress. Leonard was, after all, a young lord. He deserves this kind of special treatment.

Stripping out of his gear, Leonard fell onto the bed like a log. Eyes closed, breath soft and shallow. He let himself be lulled by the sound of the gentle night breeze brushing against the nearby trees. It wasn’t long before darkness completely enveloped his mind.

##

A scream— a woman’s desperate scream.

Leonard jumped out of bed, his heart thumping at a speed well over that which would be considered normal. Still confused from his sudden awakening, he reached only for his pants, not bothering with wearing a shirt— nor armor.

‘It was a woman’s scream.’

Aveline was the only woman with the group, but immediately assuming it had to be her would be the wrong thing to do. Perhaps it could have been a survivor from one of the nearby villages. But if so—

‘Where is Aveline?’

Aveline should have been on her tent. For some unexplained reason, she had refused to share a tent with Leonard tonight, so she had set up one for herself at the back of the camp.

“Aveline!?”

Her tent was empty. The whole camp was empty. No one was standing guard. The campfire had died out— or rather, the fire seemed like it had been put out with water.

Another scream, a shrill, hysterical scream.

It was Aveline’s voice, of that Leonard was sure. However, her scream did not seem to come from within the camp, but from further away into the woods.

‘Something serious must have happened while I was asleep.’ Or so Leonard thought, as he rushed towards the direction from which the scream had come. Perhaps it was more of a reflex than anything, but he grabbed a short sword from a nearby weapons rack before leaving the camp.

He didn’t really know how to properly wield a sword, but that was not because he was a mage. There are mages that specialize in close quarters combat with swords, spears and other weapons; they are called combat mages, and his fiancee was one such mage. The reason why Leonard didn’t know how to wield a sword effectively, is because he was more of the scholarly type, believing spells to be all he needed to face any kind of situation.

Though if he had time to grab something as useless to him as a sword, then why didn’t he at least wear some shoes? Running across the woods with naked feet was a terrible idea, as Leonard would soon come to realize. The pain caused by stepping on pointy twigs and stones only made the distance he had to cover seem all the more unbearable. Normally, the adrenaline coursing through his veins should minimize the feeling of pain, but… It still hurt. Quite a bit, actually. It felt as if he were running on top of nails and broken glass.

Luckily, he didn’t have to run that long of a marathon before finally reaching his destination. A clearing— four hundred and fifty, perhaps five hundred meters away from their camp. There he found an incredibly distraught Aveline, her face wet with tears. And a gruesome scene that presented itself before his eyes.

“…!” No words came out of his mouth, though he tried muttering something. Such was the absurdity of that which laid before him. The members of his group, or rather, their bodies— every single one of them, save for himself and Aveline, were sprawled all over the clearing.

Some had their throat slit cleanly, some seemed like they had been garroted. A few showed skin discoloration and early signs of rigor mortis— signs of poisoning. They had been assassinated. As for what he believed to have been, at some point, the mages of his group… They had been mangled beyond recognition, as if frenetically slashed by a psychopathic maniac. Theirs had surely been a slow and painful death.

“The orcs! They… They found us and...!” Still crying, Aveline rushed towards Leonard, throwing herself into his arms and burying her tear-moist face into his naked chest.

Leonard had already noticed the orcs, all six of them. Dead. Rotting. Maggots already feasting on their insides. Their numbers not even close to a band of raiders.

“What kind of joke is this, Aveline?!” He held Aveline by the shoulders, shaking her as if to wake her up. “What orcs!? What are you even talking about!? These have clearly been dead for well over a month!” He insisted, still shaking her body. “What happened here!? Answer me Aveline!”

Aveline raised her head from Leonard’s chest, finally meeting his gaze. She was still shedding tears, surely, but she wasn’t crying so much as she was holding back her laughter. “Oh, Leo... Couldn’t you just shut the fuck up and indulge your lovely fiancee for once in your life?”

Leonard was confused, and that certainly showed on his face.

“You—” He opened his mouth to question her, but it was already too late…

“Staaab~.” Her voice came out melodically, filled with excitement.

And then came pain. Sharp, searing pain.

Leonard’s gaze slowly parted from Aveline’s, wandering from her beautiful, delicate face to her thin, pale neck; then from her soft, ample bosom to her small, lithe hands, which tightly held onto a dagger’s hilt— it’s blade piercing into Leonard’s guts.

Aveline began laughing, merrily. Her face blushing like when they first kissed, all those years ago.

“Aveli—” Leonard tried to say something, but was once more cut off by intense jolts of pain.

“Staaab~. Stabby, staaab~.” Giggling innocently, like a child playing with her favorite toy, Aveline stabbed her fiance’s guts three more times. “Ah~, that felt good. You okay there, Leo?” She took a step back and Leonard fell to his knees, releasing his grip from the short sword he once held. Now he knew who was the one responsible for the murder of the villagers, as well as those of his men.

There were no words exchanged for a good two minutes. Leonard just kept staring at Aveline’s face. She was smiling, a bright, sweet smile. One she had shown him many times before. It was the smile of his beloved, of his dearest fiancee… But there was something else behind it… Something dark… Something twistedl…

“I’m sorry Leo… It just had to be done, you know?” She was acting all cutely, rather unbecoming, given the present situation. “If you have to blame anyone then blame your papa, he shouldn’t have opposed Duke Pryce’s claim to the throne.”

“The… Duke’s… Claim...?” Leonard finally broke his silence. What the hell was she even talking about? Had she gone insane?

“Ehh!? Nobody told you!?” Aveline gasped, making a complete show out of it. “The King has died, silly Leo~.”

‘The King has… Died…?’ Leonard had never heard anything about it! Was that the reason why his parents were summoned to the capital? Was that the reason why the merchant caravans had stopped coming to the Earldom!? But why would the Duke put up a claim to the throne…? What about Prince Philip!?

“What… About...The… Prince…?” Through much effort, Leonard was able to ask.

“Like father like son, huh~?” Aveline rolled her eyes in annoyance, letting out a clearly disgusted sigh. “Your papa asked me the exact same thing.” She then crossed her arms, looking down upon him with a smile. “Say, do you really think that a pathetic loser like prince Philip, who couldn’t even notice that his wife and daughters had become the Duke’s fuck-toys, is a man fit to rule a kingdom?”

Leonard grimaced, his body trembling from head to toe as he tried to withstand the throbbing pain from his multiple gut-wounds. ‘What is she even talking about? Why would Duke Pryce do such a thing? Wasn’t he supposed to be an upstanding man— a guardian of the kingdom!?’

“Things would have been so much easier for me if that cuck had agreed to let go of the throne…” She paused, then shrugged while shaking her head. “You see, he gave me no choice. I had to go all stabby stabby with him…” As she spoke, she made a show out of repeatedly stabbing at the air with her dagger. “Just like I did to your dear papa~”

“...Just… Like…?” Leonard gasped. ‘Just like she did to my father!?’ If so, then… Then his father had died. Or rather, has been dead for many weeks now. Murdered, by someone he trusted like his own daughter.

“...Aveline… You…!”

“What~?” She snickered. “Aren’t you happy that there’s someone already waiting for you in the afterlife? Aren’t you happy that I sent him there personally?” And then she erupted into full, maniacal laughter. “Ah, wait! I know~! I know~! You’re wondering about your mama, aren’t you? Don’t worry, don’t worry~♪. She will be joining the both of you soon enough.”

‘Is she… enjoying this?’ Tears fell down from Leonard’s eyes, as color started draining from his face. The warmth of life was slowly seeping away from his body. ‘Is that… What she is really like?’ He wondered. ‘Was that her self all along…?’ He simply couldn’t come to terms with the reality before him.

“After all...” Aveline continued, an ear-to-ear smile forming on her face. “I remember throwing her into a comfy jail cell, packed full of death row inmates— all male and convicted of rape~♥! It’s not like she could last much longer in there, right? Right~♥!?”

“…!” Rage. Red, hot, boiling rage. Like magma, erupting inside of Leonard’s shredded guts. Obscene amounts of adrenaline were pumped through his veins, unlike anything he had ever experienced before. He no longer cared for the pain. He no longer cared for being alive. The only thing he cared about was murdering that foul creature that was standing before him… That repulsive being, daring to wear the face of his beloved.

‘That’s not my fiancee…! That is not my Aveline!’ Or so he told himself as he rushed her— dagger and all, slamming her lithe body against the ground, both his hands wrapping themselves around her thin, pale neck.

“W-wait, don’t!” She struggled under Leonard’s weight, his hands tightening around her neck. “I’m pregnant!” She appealed desperately, covering her belly with both arms as if to protect it from harm.

“What—?!” Leonard hesitated for no more than a second, but a second was all that Aveline, an experienced combat mage, needed to reverse the situation. She took the opportunity to grapple him, flipping his body until she had him against the ground, in a mounted position. “And staaab~!” Once more her dagger found it’s way inside Leonard’s guts, this time, however, she started twisting the blade— vigorously.

“Ugh…! AhHhghRgH…!” An unintelligible groan escaped from Leonard’s mouth. A Clear sign of just how much pain the young man was under.

“It’s true, you know? We’re gonna have baby~! Yaaay~♪!” She beamed with happiness, her face slightly flushed. Her behavior not at all matching her actions. “Aren’t you happy? It’s your only heir, and future lord of house Taylor!” Then she started grinding her hips against his crotch, in slow, repetitive motions. Giggling provocatively while doing so. “Since, you know, I intend to marry your shitty sisters off to baron Braumen— the piggy baron! He just loooves~ loli-looking brats like the them.”

At this point, Leonard could feel nothing but despair. How could he not have known? How could he not have noticed the change in her behavior? How could he have allowed such a terrible person into his life— into his family? ‘Was she… Fooling me from the start? Were all those years that we spent together… Nothing but a lie?

“Although...” Aveline paused, pondering for a few seconds— index finger tapping at her chin, before popping a very cute and innocent smile. “I can’t really say if the child is yours or not, since I have been spreading my legs to a lot of different men lately~♥.”

‘No... Something doesn’t feel right...’ Leonard thought. The way Aveline was behaving… The things she was doing and saying… It all made no sense to him. Had she really been like that from the start? The both of them practically grew up together, and Leonard was not a bad judge of character… Then it can only mean that… ‘Ah… I see...’

Aveline had many faults— she was jealous of his sisters, got irritated easily, liked nagging him for the smallest of things, and spent tons of his money with very expensive jewelry and dresses. She was a spoiled little bitch, not doubts about that. But she was his spoiled little bitch, and he knew her. She wasn’t like that. She would never betray him nor his family— she was too fucking proud to do such a thing. Betrayal would be a taint upon her honor, and despite all her faults, Aveline was a woman of honor.

He had not been fooled. That woman— no, that thing, was not Aveline. Something must have happened to her after she went to serve under Duke Pryce, something terrible enough to warp her personality into this monster that now stands before him. Or worse… Maybe that’s not even her body, in the first place… Just something assuming her appearance. ‘My Aveline… What happened to you…?’

If he could, Leonard would be angry. ‘How dare you mess with my Aveline!’ He would say to the culprit. But his thoughts were starting to grow dim, slowly fading away into a haze of darkness. Was there even any point in getting angry? Would it even change anything? Was there even enough blood left in his body to fuel such anger?

Wait... Anger? Why would he be angry? Did something happen? He could no longer remember. It was cold, and he was feeling so damn sleepy…

There was no longer any pain, any suffering. It had all disappeared completely, as if it were never there to begin with. Only sadness remained. Bitter sadness.

‘How weird... Why sadness though?’ He wondered, adrift in the waters of his waning consciousness.

Everything around him was just darkness, and nothing but silence reached his ears. He couldn’t exactly feel his body, but it somehow seemed like he was floating in the waters of a calm river.

‘Ah… But I regret it…’

Yes, it did feel like he regretted something. It felt like he had failed someone— someone important. But who was it again? He was so tired, so sleepy. Certainly that someone could wait until after he woke up.

‘...Can’t…. Sleep...’

How cruel. Why couldn’t he— why shouldn’t he? He was so tired, his body and mind had both endured so much abuse... And yet, his rest was denied by none other than himself.

‘...Can’t… Leave… Them…’

Them who? He was too tired, too cold, too sleepy. He just couldn’t bring himself to remember. Even though something deep inside him was still fighting to remain awake.

It was then, when he was about to give up and let sleep overtake him, that he heard a sound.

Wait, did he now? Weirdly enough, there was still only silence reaching his ears. And yet...

… He heard it again.

It was a screech, that familiar ‘Keeeeee~’ he had heard so many times before.

‘… Is that…?’

That sound somehow jolted his brain awake, just enough for him to cling to his life a while longer. That screech sounded just like Ventus, his pet hawk, his contracted mana-beast.

But didn’t he leave it home with—

‘Ah... Right…’

His sisters, the twins. Iris and Alice, his young, talented sisters. It was them he had failed. It was for them he couldn’t bear to fall asleep. What would happen to them if he did— if what Aveline said comes to pass. His sisters were talented, and even considered geniuses, but they wouldn’t be ready to face Aveline’s treason… They would be caught by surprise, and dealt with in a most terrible way...

If so… Then they would surely suffer a fate far worse than death.

And that… That he could not stand.

Not as their older brother. Not as the lord of House Taylor.

‘Don’t you fucking dare touch them.’

And so his hands moved—

Cold, trembling hands… Defying the chill of the unseen reaper’s scythe, so very eager to send him into the afterlife. How were his hands moving, if he couldn’t even feel them anymore? He had already been swallowed up by darkness, his life seeping away with every passing second. He could no longer see, hear, nor feel anything, but there was still… This emotion… This warmth, emanating from his chest, from his heart.

And so his hands moved. Slowly but surely. His left reached towards a pocket on the same side of his trousers, while the right moved towards his lower abdomen— the place where Aveline had stabbed him.

“Hmm~?” Aveline raised an eyebrow upon noticing Leonard’s movements. “What could it be that my dearest Leo is trying to do~?” She asked, sort of amused by her soon-to-be-deceased fiance’s struggle.

Leonard’s left hand came out of his pocket while holding a folded piece of luster paper— a photography, an image captured with the use of a specially crafted magical artifact called a ‘Photo-Box’. A very expensive object, capable of using the mana contained within a light attribute mana-crystal to burn a still image into paper.

It was a photo of him and his sisters, the beautiful twins. Their silky platinum-blonde hair glistening under the sunlight, their delicate sky-blue eyes shinning brightly as they smiled for the Photo-Box. That photo had been taken last year, on their sixteenth birthday. Leonard always carried it with him, to remind him of that which he had to protect. Iris, so very smart and so very cheeky, always trying to play the role of the big sister… And Alice, who is always shy and quiet, but secretly loves playing pranks on other. ‘Ha… I’m going to miss them...’

“You never learn, do you?” Aveline clicked her tongue, clearly annoyed. “I guess you want me to stab you a few more times, huh?” Seeing Leonard holding that photo angered her. Regardless of what ‘they’ had done to change her, at least her jealousy seems to have remained the same.

Leonard’s right hand went for one of his open gut wounds, coating his index and middle fingers with blood. He intended to used them as a brush, and the blood as ink.

Still mounted atop Leonard’s crotch, Aveline was content on not doing anything to stop his efforts. He was already half dead, after all, nothing he did could possibly pose a threat to her.

And so, his fingers, now soaked with vivid red “ink”, moved towards the photo that he held with his left hand.

“Oh~, are you perhaps trying to write a will?” Aveline asked, while rubbing a hand over her womb. “Do keep in mind that I’ve got a bun in the oven, Leo. Can’t have you handing out our stuff to some random bitch.”

With herculean effort, Leonard managed to trace a few shaky letters over the picture. Those letters soon turning into a word—

[Help]

Aveline chuckled in response, yet she still showed no signs of interfering with Leonard’s ‘stupid’ actions.

So he continued, drawing more shaky, red letters over the photo.

[Save]

“Hey~, are you retarded or something?” She asked, holding back a laughter.

Yet Leonard did not answer— he could not answer, for he could hear no longer.

All he could do was to keep drawing shaky letters over the photo, forming a last word.

[Sisters]

And then, Aveline once more erupted into full maniacal laughter. “Huhahaha~! HUAHAHAHAHA~! Oh gods, oh gods~! Are you for real!?”

With increasingly slower movements and whatever was left of his remaining life, Leonard rolled the picture into a cylindrical shape, much like one would do for a message scroll. Only instead of wax or string, it was his own blood that he had used in order to seal it.

Aveline, this time, directed him a hateful glare and spoke in a tone that dripped with venom. “Didn’t I tell you earlier, my dear Leo? You don’t have to worry about them, not anymore. They will find themselves a ‘happy’ new life by the piggy baron’s side, however short it may be.”

Leonard’s trembling arms stretched themselves up high, as if he intended for that rolled up photo, his last wish, to reach the skies. His dry lips, pale from severe lack of blood, moved ever so slightly, straining to convey his words.

“What~? What is it, my dear Leo, do you wish to tell me something?” She taunted him.

One second passed... Then two seconds… Five seconds… Nothing happened.

“Oh, come on~.” With a tone of mockery, she opened her arms as if waiting for a hug. “Won’t you even say good bye to your lovely fiancee?”

And then—

“VENTUS!!!”

He howled its name— the name his sisters had chosen for his pet hawk.

Then, as if to answer the desperate howl of its master, a screech— sharp and majestic, echoed across the woods. And a shadow, so fast it might as well have been lightning, tore through the darkness of the night.

“AAAAAAAAUUUUGGHHHHH!” Avenline screamed from the top her lungs, her pain made evident by loudness of her voice. Her left eye was no more, and bone-deep claw wounds now decorated the left side of her face.

“WHAT IS THIS!? WHATISTHIS!? WHATISTHISWHATISTHISWHATISTHIS!?!?” She went full psychotic, her body trashing about erratically, as blood poured from her now ruined face. Her hand reached for the dagger, that had been left stuck in Leonard’s guts. She pulled it off, but only to soon stab him again, harder this time.

“MOTHER FUCKER, WHAT IS THIS?!?!”

And again.

“MOTHER FUCKER!!! MOTHERFUCKER!!! MOTHERFUCKERMOTHERFUCKER!!!”

And again, and again and again. Until she just started straight up slashing at his guts.

You couldn’t even call those things wounds anymore. They had become massive in size, the skin and muscles of his abdomen had been torn to such a degree that his intestines had come out from inside of his body, and were now sploshing around as she kept her aggression going.

“MY FACE! MY BEAUTIFUL FACE! HOW DARE YOU INJURE YOUR FIANCEE’S FACE!”

She kept slashing at him as if she were in a trance. It was only after an hour and a half had passed that she finally stopped swinging her dagger. Not because she was satisfied, but because her body had reached it’s limits— she had gotten too tired. But by that time, there was nothing left of Leonard, just a pile of mangled up flesh, organs and bones.

Leonard Taylor had died, at the hands of none other than Aveline de Lance, his very own fiancee, the woman he loved.

In her madness filled rage, however, Aveline had failed to notice three things:

That the few words Leonard had written over the photo had been infused with a small amount of mana, enough to make it so that they would last, and that his feelings would be conveyed to any mana-sensitive person that touched it.

That the ‘thing’ that had just messed up her face was not a common hawk, but a contracted mana beast, a Storm Hawk. As smart as human, and capable of understanding it’s master’s will.

And lastly, she failed to notice that the photo which Leonard held had been carried away by Ventus.

##

‘To Ventus, my dearest partner—

I hope this prayer is able to reach you.

That you may deliver those feelings of mine and right these wrongs I made.

May you fly from the western kingdoms all the way through the great empire.

May you safely reach the white mountains, and find your way across the frozen sea.

May you reach the woman who once called my mother a dear friend.

May you deliver unto her this mine plea—

That she may help keep those two safe.

And that once your duty is done,

I pray that you may find your way back home.’

##

End of Prologue: Carried By The Wind.