From the distance, the sun lit up in a faint crimson hue. Watching the sun set gave her a sense of peace. She found the scene interesting and beautiful. It inspired a sense of wonder within her heart, one that made her want to question the very nature of the world.
It was such a beautiful art on a grand canvas, something her father and her people would agree on. They always had a different, simplistic view on life. Coming from a country that valued art and tranquillity, one must think the princess of said kingdom would be no different, right?
Indeed it was...
If her background did not make it obvious, then Rose Oriana of the Oriana Kingdom grew up ignorant of the existence of violence. No, it was more accurate to say the word did not appear in her diction.
Still gazing at the Sun's retreating radiance, she turned her little delicate face towards the guard. Her yellow eyes were sparkling with curiosity. The man who was sitting in front of her seemed to notice her looking at him. Gazing up from his book, which appeared to be black in colour and...
"Why does the sun turn red?"
The blonde-haired girl asked what was on her mind, displaying the antiquate royalty should have. The only thing that gave her away was the look in her eyes. Ruffling his black hair a bit, the young man sat in thought for a while. After having made up his mind, he straightened his posture, feeling the soft fabric of his seat.
"Well, the sun does that because it is slowly catching up with the moon."
This only made the young girl frown in confusion.
"Why would it chase the moon?"
"Because the moon did something bad and now the sun is angry. Red is a symbol of untamed rage, isn't that right princess?" he replied in kind.
Her eyes widened, her expression morphing into that of realisation.
"Un," she nodded at him with a smile.
Rose then happily hummed to herself, fully immersed with the view in front of her. That was before she heard the guards making noise outside.
"Where do you think you are going, buddy?" a voice tinged with caution on the other side of the window spoke.
Soon after, she heard a groan, probably from the man who spoke. The window was stained in crimson, making the girl look on in confusion.
"Is that red paint?"
The guard also looked outside. His gaze widened before he went into full alert. With a grave tone, he immediately took the princess' hand. He stormed off, heading outside before explaining the situation.
"We are under attack, but rest assured, you will be safe."
He said as he hid her behind the door. He stepped outside, but had to immediately dodge under an attack. Having caught his opponent off guard, he slashed at his stomach. Blood spurted out, drenching the guard's clothes. He did not even flinch at taking another man's life, and he would feel no remorse killing anyone who dared attack the princess.
More bandits closed in on him, putting him under a lot of pressure. His fellow allies fell one by one. These people had overwhelming power, quickly dispatching the few people who were sent to keep the princess safe.
He clashed swords with his next opponent, his hands going numb due to the impact. At this point, he did not believe he could live. He wanted to scream to the princess, telling her to flee.
He felt a sharp pain in his chest. As he took a look, he saw a sword going through his thorax. The metallic taste of blood exploding in his mouth accompanied. It was still warm, and he was losing litres with every passing second. His body grew weak, reminding him that he was about to die.
As his eyes fell on his killer's face, he saw those predatory eyes gazing at him. They held malice, as if this person was killing him for the fun of it. That look infuriated him to no end, but as he fell face-first onto the floor, he could do nothing. He was not strong enough, and it seems that his weakness was punishable with death.
With no one to stop the inevitable, the ground quickly approached toward him. The last thing he felt was pain...
Rose was frightened out of her mind. Her small frame was trembling, her young mind failing to comprehend the gravity of the situation. All she knew was that these people who were protecting her were in pain. She had not asked them to, but they fought for her anyway.
It was still a concept she was failing to understand. Why would people go so far? Why do people hurt others? Why do we have to suffer?
These were questions she asked herself, but she had no answer. For all she knew, they were keeping her safe because she was the princess. It was their duty to protect.
For the first time since she existed, she hated it. The fact that people risked their lives for hers, how she could not do anything to help, and most importantly, how helpless she was when her people needed her most.
She would become a ruler someday.
'What ruler am I if I just let my people die?'
With that final conviction, she stepped outside of the carriage, having a front row seat to the gory mess that was happening. There were bodies on the floor and the ground was dyed a deep red. She nearly hurled at the sight alone. She then noticed that there were figures standing amidst the corpses. Their clothes were diverse, not showing a semblance of any pattern.
One of the bandits approached her with a malicious smug, his sword held in hand.
"Come with us little girl. We won't hurt you."
As Rose moved back — a natural reaction for any toddler — she stumbled, falling on her rear. Just when she thought she was a goner, a few voices cried out in the background. The brown-haired man who was looming over turned around. His scowl indicated that he did not like the intrusion.
His eyes nearly popped out in disbelief as he watched the battle from afar.
Two people wearing paper bags over their heads. Their short statures suggested they were still young, probably the same age as their target. They were cutting through his men, each of their strikes precise and lethal.
A voice rang out, filled with emotion:
"My dear bandits, what goods are you after today?"
The leader was irked by that cheeky tone in his voice. There was also a second one, who was quietly reaping the lives of those present. He ran toward one of his comrades, slashing his blade vertically. He was able to block the attack, but then the masked kid threw a punch to the man's ribs.
The sound of something brittle cracking made him flinch, same could be said for the attacker. Even so, he drove his sword through his opponent. Quickly ending him and moving forward to the next.
The kid who had spoken was just as skilled, weaving through the crowd with grace, slicing the bandits and ending their lives.
In a matter of moments, his fellow comrades were dead. This mission even expanded a bit of their resources, but they had failed in the end.
His teeth clenched, charging forward with reckless abandon.
"You shall die today, you maggots! I don't care if you are still sucking your mother's tits or not!"
The two children stood calmly, waiting for their opponent to do the first strike. Dodging a horizontal slash, both of them spun around their attacker. The black-eyed boy switched the blade with his left hand, holding it in a reverse grip. The other young toddler was already behind him, thrusting his sword forward.
Blood erupted from both sides, the man standing there — shocked to the core. He slowly turned his head to look at red, monotonous eyes. Those eyes flickered in hesitation, but the pain intensified once they gained clarity.
The sword was driven through his chest and waist. He also took a look at the boy, whose eyes were distant. He was standing beside him, looking in the direction the two boys once were. Holding the sword in a reverse grip, he pushed it further before unsheathing his sword from his body.
Immediately after, both of them stepped back. For one second, he thought it was all over, but his head was crushed underfoot.
As he gazed up, he saw golden eyes staring at him. They were wide open, yet they felt like eyes of a feral beast. The eyes of a killer caught in a trance.
"You killed too many people. Now I will punish you for each life you took, even if I have never killed a person before."
He said as he lifted his foot before bringing it down with inhuman force.
"This is for the man you killed."
Stomp
"And that one."
Stomp
"And that one."
Stomp
"And the last one."
Stomp
Hearing the demon say that it was just one more victim left gave him a bit of hope. He thought the misery would cease.
"And another." That he widened his eyes at those words.
Stomp
"You deserve this one."
Stomp
"You aren't dead yet."
Stomp
"Die."
Stomp
Now he just wanted to die, but his vitality was still running. He referred ever using those pills.
He kept repeating like a broken toy, his voice was that of a dead person. His hands were shaking, but he kept stomping the man to death even if it took a toll on his morality.
"Oh, this one is also for the poor girl you had to traumatize."
Just as he was about to do it again, Cid pulled him away from the man.
"I think that's enough self-torture, don't you think?"
"He still needs to die though."
Cid raised his sword, looking at the man who was unmoving. His aura suggested that he was still alive, another feature he discovered as they fought.
"I'll shoulder the mental burden."
And with that, the boss was dead.
"Thanks, bro. You really did me a favour there." Shin said with a tired expression.
He silently walked away to a nearby tree, took the makeshift, paper bag mask off and finally hurling all the food he ate that day. Cid stood by his side, gently patting his back and assuring him it would be better.
He had experienced the same things when he first beat up a few bandits to the point where they were barely recognisable and bloody. He also discovered one thing about his friend today. He had a strong will, being able to hold it all in while progressively making it worse, but...
Breaking only made him dangerous, and he had to experience this due to all of them.
'Myself included. I guess I have to let him reevaluate his path.'
Meanwhile, Rose just stared at them — bewildered and dumbfounded. She could not form any coherent words.