"Why did you kill her...?"
The boy's voice was barely a whisper.
A tear rolled down his cheek as he stared at the demon standing before him.
"It was the only way," the demon said quietly, his face heavy with sorrow.
The boy clenched his fists.
His breathing became ragged. His eyes burned with hatred.
"There's another way," he said.
The demon said nothing.
"I know there is!"
The boy raised his sword.
"It's to kill you!"
His voice broke into a furious scream.
"I'll kill every one of you!"
He charged.
The demon lowered his gaze.
"I'm sorry, young one."
In an instant, he vanished.
The boy felt a sudden chill behind him.
Before he could turn—
A blade flashed.
His head fell to the ground.
The demon stood motionless behind him, sword still in hand.
"Rest in hell, young warrior."
Ten Years Earlier
My name is Dark Oorgari.
I am a half-demon.
And I was raised by the Melorune Church.
From the moment people learned what I was, they were afraid of me.
They looked at my horns, my eyes, my strange appearance, and saw a monster.
Some believed I had inherited the evil of my demon blood. Others whispered that one day I would lose control and become a demon capable of slaughtering everyone around me.
No one ever bothered to ask me what I wanted.
No one wanted to get close enough to find out.
The Church was different.
They took me in when I had nowhere else to go. They gave me food, a place to sleep, and work to keep me occupied.
In return, I helped around the church.
I cleaned.
I carried supplies.
I repaired whatever needed repairing.
It wasn't exactly an exciting life, but it was the only life I knew.
There was only one person who treated me like I was normal.
The Priest.
He taught me about the world beyond the church walls. He taught me about history, kingdoms, magic, and the teachings of their god.
I listened to him, even though I never truly believed in God.
I never told him that.
He probably would have given me another three-hour lecture.
The Priest also warned me constantly about my demon blood.
"Dark," he would say, "you must be careful. Demons are dangerous creatures. Never allow that part of yourself to control you."
But I never understood why he believed that.
Demons weren't necessarily evil.
At least, that was what I believed.
Having demon blood didn't make me evil any more than having human blood made someone good.
One day, I would prove that to everyone.
But first, I needed to learn more about the world.
And that opportunity came sooner than I expected.
One afternoon, the Priest asked me to watch over the church library while he attended to some business.
I happily agreed.
There was only one problem.
I was terrible at sitting still.
After nearly an hour of doing nothing, I started looking through the shelves.
That's when I found a book about magic.
I opened it.
Then another.
And another.
Before I knew it, I had completely forgotten about my duties.
The world inside those books was incredible.
Spells.
Mana.
Ancient civilizations.
Magical creatures.
There was so much I didn't know.
I became so absorbed that I didn't hear the library door open.
"What are you reading?"
I nearly fell out of my chair.
I looked up.
The Priest stood in the doorway, staring at the book in my hands.
"I—I was just—"
He looked at the book.
Then he smiled.
"Do you want to learn more about magic?"
My eyes widened.
"Yes!"
He laughed.
"I thought so."
The following morning, the Priest woke me before sunrise.
"Dark. Get up."
I pulled the blanket over my head.
"Five more minutes..."
"You're going to be late."
"Late for what?"
"Your new school."
I immediately sat up.
"My what?"
The Priest smiled.
"I enrolled you in Anthrorned Academy."
I stared at him.
"A magic academy?"
"Yes."
My heart practically jumped out of my chest.
"You're serious?"
"Very."
The academy was located in a village called Annuct, several hours away from the church.
I had never traveled that far before.
In fact, I had barely left the area surrounding the church at all.
I spent the next hour frantically packing anything I thought I might need.
Clothes.
Food.
A few books.
And, for some reason, three spoons.
I wasn't entirely sure why I packed the spoons.
They seemed important at the time.
When I finally finished, the Priest walked over and hugged me.
"Come back one day," he said. "Come back when you're strong."
I smiled.
"I will. I'll do my best."
Then I grinned.
"Just hope the girls aren't too cute. I might get distracted."
The Priest laughed.
"So that's what you're worried about?"
"It's a serious concern."
We both laughed.
Eventually, it was time to leave.
I stood at the church entrance and looked back one last time.
The place had been my home for as long as I could remember.
It was strange knowing I wouldn't be sleeping there tonight.
"Take care of yourself, Dark."
"I will."
And with that, I left.
Several hours later, I began to regret everything.
"Why did I think walking was a good idea...?"
I stopped beneath a large tree, breathing heavily.
The Priest had offered to arrange a ride for me.
Of course, I had refused.
I thought walking would be an adventure.
It wasn't.
It was torture.
I dropped my bag beside me and collapsed into the shade.
"Should've taken the ride..."
I stared up at the sky.
For the first time in my life, I was truly outside the Church's reach.
The thought made me smile.
Then—
Something flashed in the distance.
I immediately sat up.
"What was that?"
A moment later, the sound of wheels approached.
A carriage emerged from the road ahead.
A woman was sitting at the front, guiding two horses.
She noticed me and slowed down.
"Hey!"
I stood.
The woman looked me over.
"What are you doing out here?"
"Resting."
"On this road?"
"...Yes?"
She frowned.
"This is a dangerous road."
"Oh."
I scratched the back of my head.
"Well, I don't really have a ride. I walked all the way from Melorune Church, so I thought I'd rest for a bit."
The woman stared at me.
"You walked here?"
"Yeah."
"Why?"
"Because I don't have a horse."
She sighed.
"Get in."
"Huh?"
"I said get in. I'll take you where you're going."
"Oh, no, that's okay. I can walk."
She gave me a look.
"Get. In."
"...Okay."
I quickly grabbed my bag.
"Thank you, Lady. I'm Dark, by the way."
The woman smiled.
"Dark?"
She chuckled.
"That's quite the name."
"My parents didn't exactly have a sense of humor."
She laughed.
"Tera. Nice to meet you."
I climbed into the carriage.
After we started moving, Tera glanced at me.
"So, Dark. Where are you headed?"
"Annuct Village."
Her eyebrows rose.
"Annuct?"
"Yeah."
"You know what lies along this road, right?"
I shook my head.
Tera's expression became serious.
"Demon assassins."
I froze.
"...What?"
"Demon assassins. This road has had attacks for years."
I slowly looked behind us.
"Are you joking?"
Tera burst out laughing.
"You should've seen your face."
"That wasn't funny!"
"It was a little funny."
I sighed.
"Anyway, I'm going to Annuct because the Church enrolled me in a magic academy."
"A magic academy?"
"Anth... Anthrorned?"
"Anthrorned Academy?"
"Yes! That one."
Tera smiled.
"I teach there."
My eyes widened.
"You're a teacher?"
"That's right."
"So we're going to the same place?"
"Looks like it."
I grinned.
"That's great!"
Tera laughed.
"Don't get too excited. I'm still your teacher."
"I haven't even started yet."
"And you're already causing trouble."
"I am not!"
She laughed again.
For the first time since leaving the Church, the journey didn't feel so lonely.
Hours passed.
The road eventually began to slope downward.
Tera pointed ahead.
"There."
I leaned forward.
Beyond the trees, I could see the rooftops of Annuct Village.
My eyes widened.
"That's it?"
"That's Annuct."
I stared at it in amazement.
It was the largest settlement I had ever seen.
People moved through the streets.
Merchants pushed carts.
Children ran between buildings.
Smoke rose gently from chimneys.
It was nothing like the quiet world I had known at the Church.
I couldn't stop smiling.
Then—
BOOM!
A deafening explosion shook the carriage.
The horses screamed.
I nearly fell out of my seat.
"What was that?!"
Tera grabbed the reins.
"Hold on!"
Another explosion erupted in the distance.
A massive plume of black smoke rose above the village.
Then came the flames.
Buildings were burning.
People were running through the streets.
Screams carried across the valley.
My smile disappeared.
I stared at the village in disbelief.
"Tera..."
She had gone completely still.
Her eyes were fixed on the burning village.
"That's impossible..."
Another explosion tore through the village.
Tera immediately pulled the carriage to a stop.
I could barely breathe.
"What... what's happening?"
Tera's expression hardened.
Then she reached for the weapon beneath her seat.
"Dark."
"What?"
"Stay here."
She stepped down from the carriage.
I looked toward the burning village.
Through the smoke, I saw them.
Figures moving among the flames.
Horns.
Claws.
Dark bodies.
My heart began pounding.
Demons.
Annuct Village was under attack.