Prologue— The night of Aurélie's banquet

LARISSA AURÉLIE FARSULEIA

I was awakened by the sound of the balcony door's window smashing. As the drowsiness wore off of me, I sat up from the adrenaline rush and immediately checked my surroundings; there were shards of glass everywhere and blood spray from the sharp bits. At first, I thought a burglar broke inside and I subconsciously stared at my vanity first before anything else, in hopes of seeing the drawers open, but they weren’t.

If the person that broke inside of my room had no intentions of stealing, what does he plan to do? I thought to myself.

I was about to get out of my comforter when I felt a cold, sharp blade at my neck. I did not dare to move, I couldn't even swallow the large lump on the back of my throat in fear that this person might slice down my throat. I felt like my heart was about to burst, I couldn’t hear anything else except my own heart, beating loudly. We stayed in that position for God knows how long. 

“W-who are you? What do you want from me?” I asked in a careful tone. 

“If I were you, I’d be pleading for my life rather than asking questions that wouldn’t save me.”

He was right, I’m playing with life and death yet the first thing I asked him was his name. With nothing more left to say, I stayed like that, waiting for him to cut my throat or whatever he had in mind. I shut my eyes closed when I felt the slightest movement of the blade, as if I accepted my faith—but death decided to play with me more. 

The blade disappeared from my neck and was soon replaced by my hand fumbling over it. I catched my breath from holding it too long. I thought he decided to spare my life, but he did not stop there. He brushed off my walnut brown hair gently to the side and positioned the dagger to my nape—the engraved Farsuleia crest glowed. 

Shit.

The stranger let out a faded chuckle. “Still not pleading?”

If this continues, I’ll die right here, my family’s blessings will be weakened. My mind was a mess, I wasn’t able to speak, it felt like a strong pair of hands was choking me. My mouth stayed open until I managed to say something.

“I-I’m still a child!” 

After a short silence, I heard him move slightly then asked, “How old are you?” 

“I just turned thirteen on this day.”

I said ‘this day’ on purpose, in case he’d get second thoughts on killing me. The room was once again filled with silence. I prayed silently to all the spirits that I can think of to help me escape this life-and-death situation and make it out of here alive. 

“I can’t kill you, that wouldn’t make me any better than your family.” 

As if my prayers were heard, the blade then disappeared from my nape. The fear hasn’t left my body though he showed mercy. I grope my nape, feeling if there has been a cut from the blade. I let out a deep, shaky breath in relief that it was still clean. I didn’t know how I managed to survive after he aimed for my crest. 

The stranger slipped away from my bed and stood in front of me, revealing himself. He isn’t an adult, his figure gives it away.  I think he’s near my age, possibly two years older than me. Though he was wearing a cloak and his mouth was covered, his eyes stood out the most amongst the dark colours—a pair of golden eyes. 

He leaned towards me and spoke in a cold tone, “Listen to me carefully, child. Just because I didn’t kill you today doesn’t mean you’ll get away. I will return, and finish you, Aurélie.”

And with that being said, he walked away and was about to make his way out of my room, stepping towards the broken glass shards of my door.

“I won’t let you make that happen.”

Oh no, I wasn’t supposed to say that out loud! My eyes widened and quickly lowered my head, trying to avoid his look before he could even turn around. I didn’t know where I got the courage to challenge him. He literally has the upper hand, he seemed so skilled with a dagger. As for me? I can't control my powers as I please. 

I slowly raised my head as I heard the footsteps closer, my hands grasping onto the quilt. He kneeled down at eye-level and furrowed his brow. Instead of getting angry, he smiled in amusement.  

“The way you behaved earlier, was that an act?” His tone was dangerous. The stranger slowly crawled back into my bed and I slid back a little. I watched as his hand reached out something from his back. And the second I knew, he raised his dagger to the air, aiming for me. 

He didn’t even give me time to move! My fight-or-flight instinct kicked in and I unconsciously hit him with my power: dark arts. Things can get dangerous if I use my powers—other than the fact I can’t control it, maybe in one strike, you’d probably be dead. 

My spell hit him in the chest. The force was so strong that he landed on his back against the wall behind his back where he stood earlier.  He collapsed to the floor along with the paintings that were affected from the blow. Practically unconscious, but managed to cling to one of the chairs for support as he used all his remaining strength to stand up. It was visible that he was fighting the curse, he was trembling in pain. A large thud was made when he collapsed again to the floor.

I was scared. I did not know what to do, I can’t bear to stand and witness him suffering. I didn’t even notice that there was already a tear rolling down my cheek from the great amount of guilt and fear I felt. 

Did I really kill another person?

With careful steps, I walked slowly towards him, hands trembling. I knelt down and caressed his face, still hoping for a sign of life. I noticed him blinking and gradually recovering consciousness. From his sudden movement, I retreated my hands from his cheek. The stranger blinked rapidly, his eyes barely adjusting as he forced himself to look at the figure in front of him.

“...You—”

I immediately covered his mouth. As soon as we locked eyes, my emerald-like eyes glowed and saw how his pupils dilated, his eyes widening. I let the seconds pass as I gathered mana enough to erase his memories. 

“You saw nothing. You did not break in inside the Farsuleia manor and you do not know anyone named Aurélie.” 

His gaze softened as if he went numb. I removed my hand from his mouth and he regained enough strength to stand as if nothing ever happened. I stood up as I watched him make his way out of the balcony without a word. 

I clutched the hem of my evening gown and fell down on my knee. I let the tears streamed down my face, full of regret and guilt.

I took a moment to collect myself before taking a sharp breath. My gaze was fixed on the pitch-black night sky. After a while, my eyes slowly opened, shimmering in the moonlight.

“How many more people have to suffer…because of me?”