Emi's eyes went wide in horror, her breath got caught on her throat. Her body was trembling and she was unable to move, as if fear itself had chained her where she stood. The half-eaten corpses, the rivers of blood—she had never seen this kind of brutality before.
But Arashi wasn't the same. He had faced horror before - back when the rock-vine monster had attacked his town. But this… this was different. Even he had never seen such cruelty, such carnage. The sight shook him too but not as much as Emi. He turned to her. She hadn't even move a muscle for some moments. Her face was pale and her body was rigid with shock. Gently Arashi raised his hand and shook her by the shoulder.
"Hey, Emi!" His voice was sharp.
" Are you okay?" But no reply came from her. He shook and asked her again—once, then twice. Emi's eyes fluttered open, her breath was coming in short, uneven gasps as air slowly filled her lungs. Arashi leaned closer to her, his voice was calm but insistent. "Emi… can you hear me?" he asked, softer this time and was waiting for her to respond.
"…Yeah," she muttered. Then again, as if to convince herself, "…Yeah." Her gaze slowly returned to the ruined village. The blood-soaked ground. The torn, lifeless bodies. The eerie silence was pressing down on her.
"What do you think… What could have happened here?"
Arashi didn't look at her. His eyes stayed on the devastation.
"I don't know. But I'm sure this wasn't done by humans. Something else did this. Monsters… or demons." Emi's gaze snapped to him, her whole body was tensing with sudden attention.
"What? Monsters? Do they really exist?"Arashi's jaw tightened. "I don't know. But I've faced one before." Her eyes got widened at his words.
Before she could could say another word, a faint sound broke through the silence-a low, pained groan. Both of them turned instinctively toward it.
Before the sound reached them , a little ways off, near a shattered house, a girl lay collapsed. She looked barely thirteen or fourteen. Blood streaked her forehead; maybe she had hit her head. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. She sat up—and saw the corpses around her. The terror hit her all at once. A scream tore from her throat. The scream was high-pitched, and was raw with pain. Arashi and Emi flinched at the sound, their hearts were jolting, before rushing toward her.
But as they drew closer, the girl's eyes landed on them-and her scream tore out even louder, that was filled with panic. Her body shook violently as if the two approaching figures weren't human but were monsters themselves.
"No! No!" she cried, her voice was breaking between sobs, the words were barely holding together. She collapsed to the ground, hugging her knees tight against her chest. Her hands were fumbled against the dirt as she pushed herself backward, she was trembling and frantic to get away. She thrust her hand out, shaking, as through her open palm could shield her from death. Her eyes were filled with pure terror.
Arashi froze for a second, taken aback by the girl's reaction. Her eyes weren't just afraid—they were broken, wild, as if she couldn't even recognize what was real anymore.
"Wait—hey! We're not here to hurt you!" Arashi called, his voice was steadying as he tried to sound calm. He slowly crouched, keeping his hands open in front of her to show he had no weapons ready. But the girl only whimpered louder, curling herself tighter against the wreckage. Her whole body was shaking uncontrollably, as if the fear had rooted her to the spot. Emi stepped forward, her expression was softening as she tried to calm the girl. She crouched down as well, staying just slightly closer than Arashi, her voice was soft and calm.
"It's okay… You're safe now. We're not like them." The girl's sobs caught in her throat, she was trembling as if she couldn't force the sound out. She clunged to herself, trembling, her wide eyes were flicking frantically between the two strangers. Every glance of her seemed to be weigh her down, as if she didn't know where to turn or who to trust. But after some moment, she seemed to see them as they truly were.
Then, a sharp voice cut through the air.
"Hey! What are you doing?
Arashi and Emi turned. A man stood a few steps away, staring at them with a sharp and an unreadable look.
"You're intruders, aren't you?" he shouted. "Trying to rob this girl while the village is in ruins?"
The girl was still trembling on the ground. She looked between them and the man but she was too shaken that she couldn't speak.
Arashi raised his hands slightly. "No, you've got it wrong—we were just trying to help her."
The man's eyes narrowed. He was wearing a black suit over a white shirt, a black tie was neatly fastened at his collar. A sword was hanging at his hip, his hand was resting on the hilt. His medium-length hair swept to the side, slightly tousled, drawing attention with a sharp jawline that made him look both stern and undeniably striking.
"Then what are you even doing here?" he demanded, his tone was edging with suspicion. "This place is restricted. Only the government comes here."
Emi stayed silent, watching him carefully.
Arashi took a breath and quickly explained everything—the attack on the sea, the monster that destroyed their boat, how they had no choice but to land here.
The man's eyes grew colder. His fingers tightened slightly on his sword.
"What a convenient excuse," he said coldly.
Then, the man drew his sword from the scabbard at his hip in one swift motion and slashed toward them. Emi reacted instantly, leaping backward out of range. But Arashi was closer—too close.
He had no time to retreat, so he bent his body backward instead. His spine arched, his head tilted low, and his chest pulled away from the blade as it sliced through the air just above him. His knees flexed just enough to keep him balance, like he was leaning back in mid-air, yet his legs stayed rooted to the ground.
Then, with a sharp breath, Arashi straightened again. Without a pause, he swung his sword forward, the tip was snapping toward Arashi's throat with deadly precision. Arashi's eyes went wide. It was happening too fast-he couldn't stop it, no matter how hard he tried. But just as the blade reached near his skin, a voice pierced the air-sharp, urgent, and was full of desperation.
"Hey, stop!"
The man froze, the tip of his sword hovering just inches from Arashi's neck, every muscle of him was tensing with sudden hesitation.
Arashi turned—and saw a beautiful girl was approaching near them. Her long, dark hair tumbled in soft waves around her face, it was delicating and graceful-a bold contrast to the devastation of the village around her. Her eyes were a striking turquoise-green, calm but sharp, their glow was standing out against her fairskin. An icy blue gown draped around her, the delicate lace catching the light and shimmering as if the dress had a glow of it's own. The sun was dancing on her silver earrings as she moved, enhancing the serene dignity in her every motion.
"Hey, have you lost your mind?" Her voice was sharp and urgent as she called out to the man who was wielding the sword."They're just kids. Why are you threatening them?"
The man lowered his voice without hesitation, bowing his head in a gesture of respect.
"Forgive me, Your Highness."
Arashi and Emi's eyes went wide, and they whispered to themselves, barely able to believe what they heard .
"...Your Highness?"
The princess turned her gaze toward them. Instead of cold authority, she dipped her head slightly, and her voice was soft.
"I'm sorry."