Fate of the Accursed (Nanatsu no Taizai SI/OC)

[GM Ambition]

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Well then, carry on.

(X)

He had no reason to stay in that damned place.

It only brought him pain and sadness. It was best to run, no matter if the heavy rain would leave his clothes drenched. The cold and mushy feeling of his clothes was nothing compared to the pain he had to endure back at his supposed home.

A home is a place where someone feels safe, protected, away from any threats. It was a place where someone would feel love and welcomed with open arms by their parents, it's not meant to be a place where a child would be willing to escape like a hungry dog on a tight leash.

The kingdom usually has high morale, with hardworking but happy citizens who loved their families and cared for them every day, seeing a crying child running away from their home was an oddity.

That was because those facts were cruel lies. There are all types of people in Liones, from good altruistic people to cold selfish monsters. He had to endure the latter. But people will always turn a blind eye to someone else's suffering.

The brunette kid ran as fast as his little feet allowed him to, across an empty hallway up to the main district.

His eyes widened as he set his sights on the unspeakable horrors. Dozens of people are sleeping on the floor. It unsettled the kid how those people looked so comfortable sleeping on the floor while creepily staring at the sun without burning their eyes.

Why were there people sleeping outside? It would be normal for anyone sane to keep away from these brutal scenes. But the kid felt drawn to them instead, not because of a sadistic instinct, but out of curiosity and hope that the scene before him was not real and not a nightmare.

As soon as he closed the distance, the awful truth began to dawn upon him. Nothing here was a fluke, it was all real.

Just like his mother told him. The permanent sleeping spell called Death.

It affects everyone and can come at any time. A true nightmare for the unprepared.

The kid's legs began to lose all their strength and he fell on his knees by the sheer amount of shock from the haunting experience. His face twisted in pure unadulterated fear.

It was a scene that wasn't meant to be seen by humans.

"The Seven Deadly Sins did this; they are criminals of the kingdom!"

"They did something so horrible? Unbelievable…"

Even in great fear, the words the villagers said didn't remain unheard by the kid. Did the Seven Deadly Sins massacre dozens of people in cold blood? With no reason or motive at all?

Why? They were supposed to be heroes, not murderers! They couldn't have done this. He refused to believe it.

But the frightened kid could not let his protests be heard. His blurry vision made him lose focus, his shallow breaths did not allow him to formulate words, his shaky legs limited his movement—

The kid could not think properly anymore. His dulled senses only allowed him to have one thought on his mind–to run away–from everything.

He stormed off to the empty main gate, guarded by no one. All the guards that were supposed to patrol the gate were busy tending to the commotion on the main square.

The little kid ran past the main gate to the outskirts of the kingdom–where no kid should venture. He ignored the signs of warning.

Do not enter!

Warning! Danger ahead. Proceed at your own discretion.

He didn't notice that the plain open fields started to turn into a big green forest. His area of vision started to become limited as he proceeded deeper inside the forest. The trees became bigger. The air became heavier.

The entrance of this forest was unavailable by order of the Holy Knights of Liones. It was said that once someone enters the forest, they don't ever come back. Thieves and spelunkers tested their luck inside this forest and they have yet to be found.

But the child ran in blind, only guided by his survival instincts.

Once he regained his focus, he finally noticed his surroundings–which he did not like one bit.

He was in the heart of the woods. No man's land.

The boy froze. He felt an odd but intoxicating smell that went up to his nostrils. It wasn't a plant, poison, or a spore. The origin of the smell didn't come from a plant.

It was pure, dark energy.

The effects of the smell of dark energy vary between people. It all depends on how much sorrow one soul carries. If their soul is pure and carries no negative feelings, that energy becomes a foul stench that drives them away. However, a soul that carries negative thoughts will find this smell pleasant, as if they have stepped into a flower garden.

For the kid, he was hypnotized by how enticing that scent smelled… it intoxicated him. He was so entranced with the aroma that the kid didn't notice how his feet carried him towards the cave entrance. He felt no fear. No reluctance.

He knew this because of the visible red mist that surrounded the area, which all came from a little cave in front of him. His mind and common sense told him that he shouldn't follow the trail. There was a reason no one dared to come to this forest.

It felt so good...

So powerful…

He saw that the light went out as he entered the cave. All he could see was darkness. No fresh air outside, no green plants. The only thing to reach his senses within the dark cave was the mere sound of dripping water, the sounds of his feet cracking the skeletons of the deceased. Skeletons of the people who tried to find what lies at the end of the cave.

He couldn't see the number of skeletons that were inside the cave, but he could judge that there were at least 50 of them as he kept stepping on them.

He felt that a strong force wrapped around his heart. Its intentions became clear as day.

There was no turning back. He must see this through to the end, or he will die. Such was the curse of this cave.

He could understand that so many people died in this cave because they tried to flee out of fear.

Maybe those people still had something left to lose?

Hours passed, and the scent remained the same. Any man that wanders that long into the dark would easily go insane… but not this child. The dark energy dulled his senses and made him lose focus on his surroundings. He was walking blind, with only but one trail to follow. He had to follow the red mist to see where its trail ends, whether it leads to a treasure or a trap, he didn't care.

He increased his pace as the smell of the mist started to grow stronger. He felt relieved knowing that after all that walk, he finally found a lead. It led him all the way into a lone room.

The room had a different structure than the rest of the cave. It was open enough that it was easy to fit a castle inside. Unusual for a regular cave to have that much space. It made the child think that this spacious area was manmade.

Then he saw it.

He saw what lay at the end of the room.

A gray altar, surrounded by unintelligible runes that seemed to move in circles. It had a withered human skeleton beside it. It seemed like they died prostrating, as the skeleton was kneeling with his arms wide open.

An unholy artifact lay on top of the altar, and it was the source of the red mist that dragged the child in–only this time it didn't have the small red mist on it. Instead, the mist leaked like a waterfall. The intoxicating smell enveloped the entirety of the room and he could hear faint sounds that emanated from the altar.

It sounded as soothing as a lullaby as if it itched him to get closer.

Anyone with an innocent soul that sees that much dark power would vomit out of disgust, or run away while they can. Not him, he knew what he signed up for and surrendered himself to the power that was being offered to him as soon as he entered the cave.

He knew that he wanted to seek help.

He wanted help to overcome his sadness.

He wanted help to save the one he loves the most before it's too late.

He would do anything to achieve this… no matter the cost.

And the power that he needed lied at the end of the room.

It was a gray halberd, but there was something odd in its design. The polearm and the tip were all colored in gray, like if the weapon itself was petrified. The child didn't keep contemplating the design much longer and tried to grab the weapon.

It was heavy. Too heavy. With the child's little arms, it was no surprise that the weapon didn't even budge. He tried to grab the weapon by the tip, only to wince as he cut himself a little. A small drop of blood dropped into the halberd.

A red shockwave pushed him away hard enough that he lost his balance and fell backward. As soon as he regained his focus, the child's eyes widened.

The halberd floated like it was being possessed by an unknown force. It leaked its red mist like a hurricane, which prompted the child to cover his eyes. The weapon then tilted in a horizontal way, as it lowered itself to the child's eye level.

Oferă-ți sufletul

It lunged forward.

He blinked once. Then twice. He lowered his head to see what struck him, only to see that his torso bled profusely. Dark, crimson-colored blood. His blood. The halberd had already pierced his heart. With his strength waning, he tried to move his arms to remove the weapon from his body, only for them to twitch. They were unresponsive.

Unable to move, he blacked out.

(X)

The woman brushed her lustrous silver hair in a delicate manner and looked at herself in the mirror. Princess Elizabeth was sweating profusely. She had a hard time finding the right moment to relax.

The gargantuan castle of Liones, home of the most powerful political figures that consisted of the King and his three daughters. Built on top of a mountain, it resembled the power that it represented all over the kingdom. A symbol of order.

A crumbling order this past couple of years.

The true events that occurred ten years ago in Liones remained secret from the rest of the population. The only known information consists that the Seven Deadly Sins murdered the Great Holy Knight Zaratras and massacred dozens of people on their way out.

Not like Princess Elizabeth believed in such lies.

The silliness of the thought was mind-blowing, it made her want to scratch her head in an effort to understand why people reacted the way they did all those years back. How are common folk so credulous with everything? Do they live in such terrible conditions that make them dependent on lies?

Her thoughts were interrupted as soon as she heard a loud knock at her door. She hummed and went for the doorknob. She gave a slight twist on the knob and stopped.

"W-Who's there?"

No response. Great.

She could decide not to open the door, but that would mean a lack of manners! As an important person in the kingdom and as her father's daughter, she will be as respectful as possible.

Elizabeth sighed and went for the knob one more time. If worse comes to worst, she could always yell for help.

She opened the door for a tiny bit and took a peek outside.

"EEP~"

She let out a yelp as she was gently shoved away by the man who just barged into her room. As soon as she recovered from the shock, she could take a good look at what just happened.

It was a young man, who looked no more than 20. With one head taller than Elizabeth and a robust physique, anyone that's not a Holy Knight will find themselves running away from him. He had blue-tinted hair and brown eyes. He wore heavy black armor with golden lines and two huge pauldrons on each side.

All that set of armor made the man look very intimidating. However, he didn't scare the princess, because she knew this knight. He only startled Elizabeth because of his sudden entrance.

"E-Elliot, what are you doing?" she asked, giving a confused look to the man. She received no response from him. The man–now known as Elliot–went towards Elizabeth's commode where she keeps her tray full of water. He didn't even acknowledge the princess's presence and chugged the entire jar of water without asking.

That's crossing the line.

If this happened five years ago, Elizabeth would have left him to do what he wanted. She would have even gone to look for more water to calm Elliot down.

Not anymore.

Elizabeth crossed her arms and let out an intentional cough. "Elliot, would you please calm down and talk to me? Drinking all my water doesn't tell me anything other than you are being rude."

Elliot froze and turned his sight to the princess. He placed the jar back on the tray. "Sorry, it's been a long day." He gulped. "Listen… something bad is going to happen, something very bad."

"I figured that out when you barged into my room, didn't greet me- shoved me even, and drank all my water," Elizabeth said with the most innocent grin she could muster.

"I said I'm sorry. Apparently, that's not enough to satisfy you." Elliot said as he rubbed his palm across his face. "Anyway, we have a bigger problem than your water."

Elizabeth's grin died out. She frowned.

"So, this isn't a joke? Then let's take a seat, I'll hear everything you have to say." She said, her tone soft.

The two went to the couch and took a seat. Elizabeth first, Elliot second. No one uttered a word as the princess waited for the bluenette to speak, whenever he felt ready.

Eight years ago, Elizabeth appointed Elliot as her personal bodyguard and both of them slowly molded themselves into what they are now. Before, Elliot was cold, bitter, and antisocial. He always wanted to be alone and think for himself.

Thanks to Elizabeth's stubbornness and optimism, the knight opened up more and became more sociable. He's still a pain to deal with, but at least he no longer pushes everyone away.

The same applied to Elizabeth, when she met Elliot, she had to resort to extreme measures to break him off his shell. She realized that she was smarter than she thought and became bolder and braver as time went on.

Elizabeth owed him a lot for it.

"It's Hendrickson and Dreyfus. They're organizing a coup against the King, alongside every single Holy Knight at their disposal… myself included. My orders were to capture you at night, but I think Hendrickson has other plans." Elliot explained as he bit his lower lip. "...He might kill everyone in your family."

The princess's posture stiffened. Her face turned as pale as snow. "No way, that's terrible! And are you here t-to capture me?"

"Imagine putting that amount of trust on your personal knight." Elliot chuckled while he stretched himself. Elizabeth relaxed her posture. She knew she could trust her friend, but she was taken aback by that sudden revelation that she forgot about that fact for a minute.

"I'm not here to capture you, or we wouldn't have this conversation in the first place. I just came here to warn you about this threat so you can prepare to do something about it. If you want to do something about it, that is."

"Thank you, Elliot," Elizabeth said, grinning at her friend. "You know… you don't have to seem so relaxed. You're tapping your foot very fast after all."

He leaned backward, hands behind his neck. His face features seemed so relaxed, but as he tapped his foot fast, Elizabeth knew how stressed his friend felt. The best part is that Elliot knew he was doing this, but he couldn't do anything to stop it. "Which means that I'm waiting for your answer. What are you going to do now?"

"I… don't know, to be honest. I haven't even had time to think." Elizabeth said while rubbing her temples. This information is giving her an everlasting headache.

The knight sighed and stood up from the couch. He then made his way towards the exit. "I'll fetch you more water."

"N-No, bring me something else!" Elizabeth yelled, startling the knight. The bluenette turned his gaze towards her. "What's that red liquid that you drink when you feel stressed?"

"Wine? You're still too young for that, princess-" Elliot tried to get his point across, but the words died on his throat. She gave him a stern gaze, meaning that she wouldn't take a no for an answer. He chuckled, ready to run for his life. "Right, wine, coming right up!"

She sighed as she tried to process this new piece of information. How can the Holy Knights organize a coup against their own king? Why did they declare martial law right now? They seemed desperate, that much was certain. Rumor has it that the Holy Knights want to start another Holy War, a tragic event that involved a huge battle between the Goddess and Demon clan, the three other clans were caught in the crossfire.

If the Holy knights wanted to start another war… then she must do something about it before it's too late.

Elizabeth has always thought of herself as the underdog of the kingdom. She always tried to help her father on political matters when he couldn't resolve them on his own, after all, he is getting old and it's not fair to give him a great amount of workload.

That's not enough to help the kingdom in its current reputation. She knew she didn't push herself hard enough to make a change, even if Elliot always tried to tell her otherwise.

If the kingdom remains on going this path… then only time will tell when war with Camelot breaks out.

She can't let any more innocent people suffer from the selfishness of the Holy Knights. The name of Liones symbolized chivalry and the kingdom has always been like that for centuries. Now that name means nothing, only desperation, and cruelty.

She must do something more, even if she has to take extreme measures to make a change. Her eyes widened; she may just have the right solution to bring back the kingdom to its former glory.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard the door opening. Elliot returned with a large keg on his shoulder. Elizabeth's jaw dropped at the sight of the huge barrel. This was way too much!

Elliot on the other hand didn't look to be struggling while carrying that barrel and looked at the princess with a deadpan stare.

"Don't ask."

Elizabeth didn't say anything and just watched as the knight placed the barrel next to the couch. He broke the barrel lid open–an exaggeration on his part, but the princess remained silent as she watched his friend's amusing antics.

He pulled out a ladle and a wine glass from his pocket. He served the red liquid on the glass and slid it across the table.

She took the glass and drank–more like chugged–its contents. Her face grimaced as she felt the initial taste of the liquor, which tasted like drinking the worst medicine in existence. She wanted to spit out the wine but ended up swallowing as she did not want to taint her dress of red.

She expected the taste to be worse as she swallowed the wine, only to be surprised by the pleasant aftertaste.

She let out a pleasant smile and placed the wine glass back onto the table.

"How is it?" Elliot snickered as he grabbed his gut and tried his best not to lose balance. Elizabeth blinked.

"It was bitter?" she said tasting the aftertaste in her mouth. "But not as bad as I thought it would be so… why are you laughing?"

Elliot wiped the tears from his eyes and took a deep breath. "Well, I'm glad that your first taste of wine wasn't as awful as I thought it was going to be... Buuuuut, wine shouldn't be chugged, Elizabeth, drink it slowly."

She pouted and went towards the barrel. She took the ladle and served herself another glass of wine, though less than the last one.

She took a sip. A very small sip.

"Like this?"

"…You'll get the hang of it." Elliot shook his head. "Anyway, did you figure out what to do? It's not like you have all the time in the world."

"I-I think I might have. Do you know about the Seven Deadly Sins? The supposed criminals that were exiled from the kingdom?" she explained, getting the attention of the knight.

"Yes, I did hear about those… criminals," Elliot grimaced and took a deep breath. "What about them?"

"Well, since the books of the library that tell the stories of the Seven Deadly Sins were burned down. I had to use the old ones you gave me years ago. I read them from the first to last volume three times. With all of the heroic deeds they have done, it seems ridiculous that they would murder Lord Zaratras out of the blue." Elizabeth said. She stood up in front of Elliot. "Don't you think there's more to this story than what we currently know?"

Elliot sighed in relief. "Thank god that I wasn't the only one to figure it out. The Holy Knights are adamant, so they will believe anything at face value. Even my own apprentices–whom I taught to not believe anything without absolute proof." Elliot sighed; eyes glued on the ground. "I wish we could do something about it, but I don't have enough evidence to prove their innocence…"

Elizabeth grinned. "This is when my plan comes to motion, there's still a way to prove their innocence."

Elliot's eyes widened. His attention was fully on Elizabeth. "I'm listening?"

"Before I tell you my plan, you need to listen to this. I have proof that the knights won't immediately kill us. My father barely has any power over the Holy Knights ever since the supposed massacre of the Seven Deadly Sins happened. They don't respect him anymore. The only reason he's still sitting on the throne it's because our ally, Camelot, wouldn't tolerate allying with a kingdom with no king. Not only that, if they find out that the Holy knights killed the king, war will be inevitable. They place chivalry above everything else."

Elliot gawked, amazed by the princess's deduction. "That's… a pretty damn good analysis. When did you even learn this?"

Elizabeth let out an awkward laugh. "W-Well, I have to know something about politics if I'm the king's daughter. Father is getting old, so someone has to do something to help him."

"And I'm sure he appreciates your hard work." Elliot nodded. "You still haven't answered my question, what's your endgame?"

"I'm getting there, so pay attention and hear me out," Elizabeth said. She went towards her end table and opened her drawer. She took out a quill and a piece of paper.

"First, we should try and find every member of the Seven Deadly Sins, convince them to join us. We'll have to go through every single possible lead that we have about them. After we have gathered every single member, we will set up an ambush against Hendrickson in order to capture him. That way, he will have no choice but to reveal the cave where he keeps his dark creatures and show his true colors to the people of Liones. That way, we can remind people about the heroes that the Sins were!"

"…I'm surprised you managed to keep a straight face after I told you about my master's activities. You even had the courage to talk to him like a normal person." Elliot muttered, rubbing his hand over his chin.

"I-I was actually terrified. I tried to keep it mostly to myself, I broke down as soon as he left because I thought he was going to kill me with that cold gaze alone!" Elizabeth said, shivering at the memories when she talked about the shady Great Holy Knight.

"Keep your friends close but your enemies closer, huh? Wise. Hendrickson is very observant and would have probably questioned you if you avoided him… which in turn it could have screwed me as well." Elliot said. He then turned back to the list Elizabeth made. He took the quill from her hands. "Hm, you know… we can forget about that ambush plan. Hendrickson never leaves the kingdom by any means necessary, he's the type of person that prefers to stay behind lines and let his lackeys do the dirty work." Elliot explained as he shook his head.

Elizabeth opened her mouth, only to close it again as Elliot raised his hand. "It's not like we needed an ambush in the first place. With the power of the Sins on your side, they can just storm the front gates."

Elizabeth crossed her arms. She readied herself to speak again.

"If they can do that, why haven't they returned?"

"I think they don't want to return. While they can probably take the country back by themselves, they can't do so without proving their innocence. The people would never feel safe if they have criminals as their knights, and I'm sure the Sins wouldn't feel comfortable either knowing that people fear them. So, unless we prove their innocence, this plan is bound to fail."

"But if my plan works and we do manage to prove their innocence…"

"Then we all live happily ever after," Elliot said in a low tone. Elizabeth frowned, she could smell the sarcasm of the knight from miles away, but didn't comment further on the matter. She knew she had a very high risk of failure, with a very low rate of success.

Not like she had the time to think of another plan. She had to work with what she has on the table.

"Then it's settled, we should gather sins in order to take back the kingdom."

"One can only hope," Elliot said, rubbing his hand over his neck. He turned to Elizabeth. "Elizabeth, there's something you need to know…"

She blinked. "Elliot?"

"You see…" Elliot struggled to say the right words and it worried the princess. She knew that his awkward pauses meant that nothing good was coming.

"Elizabeth, you know they have my mother locked up in the dungeons. I can't simply become a traitor and help you or else Hendrickson won't think twice about executing her."

She froze.

Elizabeth had forgotten about what kept Elliot under Hendrickson's thumb. His mother.

His argument made sense, if Hendrickson lost Elliot as a knight, then he wouldn't need to have her locked up in the dungeon. Elizabeth doubted the captain had the decency to let the woman serve her sentence. He will not think twice about putting her down.

She bit her tongue. She can't go to find the Sins blind! She needs leads. Strong leads. While she knew not everything could be handed on a silver platter, she still needed a clue.

"But we can rescue her once we have gathered the Sins!" Elizabeth pleaded. "We ask one of them to rescue your mother as soon as possible. They can easily get her out of the dungeons!"

"She'll be long dead by that time…" Elliot growled through gritted teeth. "Listen, you know I wouldn't forgive myself if my mother died because of my fault. Worse, I can't put everything on the line on a plan that we're not 100 percent sure it's going to work." He took a deep breath and sighed. A ghost of a smile appeared on his face. "Don't worry, your secret is safe with me, it's not like Hendrickson knows about this plan. As far as he knows, I'm just your personal knight who has the duty to protect you."

"B-But-"

"I won't go with you, and that's final!" Elliot shouted. His scream echoed across the room and it startled the princess, so much that it made her eyes well up. The knight panicked as his head swung like a swivel. He tried to touch Elizabeth's shoulder. "H-Hey, come on, don't make this harder than it already is. You're making me feel like a cunt…"

She chuckled and elbowed her friend. Even when she's emotional, she can recognize the use of foul language anywhere. After drying up the tears, she spoke.

"N-No, don't worry, I understand I was only being stubborn, so I'm not going to force you. Still, it would have been nice if I had someone who knows Britannia as much as you do."

"I can still give you leads. Give me some time to plan and I'll come back later to tell you where you need to go. After that, I'll try to help you out as much as I can without getting directly involved, but don't expect too much out of it." Elliot stated and stood. He headed back to the front door. "…If that's everything you want to tell me, then I should get back to my duties."

"Wait, Elliot!" Elizabeth shouted, which gained the attention of her friend. "Sorry for all the trouble."

Elliot looked to the side and sighed.

"Good luck, Elizabeth."

(X)

Elliot opened his eyes and immediately wanted to go back to sleep. He slept off in guard duty. Again.

He expected to have the same routine, as usual, to wake up in his guard post, be scolded by Dreyfus in the process, go out on whatever secret mission Hendrickson had prepared for him. What he didn't expect was to wake up on a barren wasteland. Dead, sandy dunes that would make any weak-willed individual shiver in fear.

Over the course of the years, Elliot has been a participant in countless skirmishes, assassinations, and all-out wars. Solitude did not scare him at all. That's how much Hendrickson had changed him.

He walked forward and inspected every corner of the landscape. To his knowledge, this landscape was the product of a dream. Elliot's major problem is the fact that this is a lucid dream–more like a lucid nightmare. He didn't expect that his first experience with lucid dreams would be on an empty battlefield.

He stopped. He heard a noise.

Elliot startled as he heard a loud clang behind him. It sounded like a weapon dropped right behind him. He turned around to see the source of the disturbance. His eyes narrowed.

Crimson red mist with a humanoid shape, it had two sharp ruby eyes that emitted a strange glow. With no tangible body, so the knight could deduce that this mist resembled a specter of unknown origins.

The lone figure sat cross-legged, with its hand resting on his head. No sign of the weapon or a metallic object that could have made the recent sound.

The knight gulped as he felt the intense atmosphere strangling him. It felt like he was being watched from the start, which unnerved him.

"There is nothing to be scared of, it's not like I'm going to bite you~," The wraith said mischievously. "I've been waiting for you, Elliot."

Elliot blinked once. Then twice. "Do I know you…?"

"Oh yes, you know me quite well." The wraith chuckled. "In fact, our souls have been bound for a whole ten years. And hopefully with many more to come~"

The bluenette tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"You don't know?" The wraith questioned. He then waved it off. "No matter, you will know my identity sooner or later. Right now, I need your help."

"My help? Normally, I wouldn't think a thing or two about helping local folk. Thing is, I don't know you, your entire existence screams shady, and there is a high chance that you might not even be real." Elliot said with his hand cupped to his chin. "So, I'm failing to see why I should help you?"

"Oh, I am real. Very real."

Elliot crossed his arms. "Prove it."

Elliot couldn't see the expression of the specter but he could swear it smirked at him, like seeing a spoiled child who needs to be put in his place.

"This year Elizabeth's turned sixteen, right? Hehe, they always grow up so fast. It's hard to believe that it has already passed 3000 years since it happened. I must be going crazy if I felt those centuries passing that fast—"

Elliot yawned and sat down cross-legged himself. He didn't need to pay attention to the wraith if it kept babbling useless stories like that. He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard a loud cough on his left ear. He turned to the source of the sound.

Its eerie glowing eyes were closed. Way too close. Elliot gasped and leapt backward.

He didn't even feel the wraith move from its previous spot.

"I strayed myself from the topic, right? Yeah, I can't help but reminiscence about the old times. Don't worry about this. This is only an old man with too much on his mind."

"Get to the point already, I take it you didn't drag me here tell me stories of whatever you were in the past?" Elliot growled. "Your past doesn't matter to me, so tell me what do you want, or I'll—"

All of sudden, Elliot fell to his knees. His veins started to pop out of his forehead and his face started to turn red. He grabbed his neck and started to breathe rapidly. It's not like oxygen suddenly vanished from the landscape, in fact, he could still feel the air of the windy dunes. It's only that he felt the gravity around him increased tenfold and it became more complicated to get more air. Much more complicated.

He used his remaining strength to look at the spirit. Its eyes were narrowed. Its left hand rose above and emitted a strange red glow.

"You don't give orders here, child…" The wraith stated. The light on its hand became dimmer, which allowed the bluenette to breathe but not move. "This year is Elizabeth's last."

Elliot froze. His eyes widened. He couldn't mean…

The wraith snorted. "It's exactly what you're thinking, Elliot. She's going to inevitably die due to the curse that was placed on her."

"I-I don't understand! What is the curse you're speaking off?!" Elliot yelled through gritted teeth.

"You see; your precious friend is not what she seems. An innocent harmless princess? Yeah right, I can't believe that out of all things, she had to reincarnate like that." The wraith laughed in a mocking manner.

Elliot punched the floor which caused a shockwave that created a small tremble in the sand. "You are lying. You want me to believe that she's an evil person?"

"I never did say that she's evil, nor that she's a person…" The wraith sighed. Elliot opened his mouth to speak but didn't say anything as the wraith's hand started to glow again. "Details you don't need to know. What you need to know is that Elizabeth is going to inevitably die, but if you do what I say… she might live through this."

The wraith lowered his hand, allowing Elliot to move.

The knight coughed and turned a firm look towards the specter. Elliot tried to deduce its intention, but he couldn't, it had done well to hide what he wanted through his sharp and silvery tongue.

If Elliot had been as naïve as he was before, then he would have been this wraith's servant the moment it spoke to him. He knows he can't trust him, but if this information is true, then Elliot wouldn't forgive himself if Elizabeth died because of his lack of action.

He had to be cautious. He gulped.

"Suppose you're telling the truth-"

"And I am…"

"-What do I need to do in order to lift this curse?"

The wraith cupped its chin. "Well, you would have to defeat its main source- which is the Demon King, but I understand that is suicide at your current state." It chuckled. "However, there is still another way to do it. The magic that was cast on Elizabeth is extremely old, it's a knowledge that has been lost over millenniums. There's someone in the ruins of Edinburgh that can help us with recovering this knowledge."

Elliot rolled his eyes. "I don't believe you. Elizabeth is a normal girl; she isn't anything special. Surely she can't be cursed." he shook his head. "No, I don't believe any word you just said."

"You would rather see actual proof than believe my words?" The wraith asked with a hint of amusement. It chuckled. "I like you, Elliot. Very well, you want proof? You will get it. You know about the Eye of the Limbo, right?"

"Of course, Holy Knights use it to detect dark mages. The eye highlights anyone who has their soul corrupted by the side effects of using black magic. A highly valuable source that became useless as time passed." Elliot mused. He gasped. "Don't tell me… you want me to find one of those eyes to see if Elizabeth is cursed, right?"

"It can't hurt to see it for yourself." The wraith said as a matter of fact.

"All the mages are working for the kingdom, while the deviant ones were executed by Hendrickson like dogs. After that, the eye became useless and was stored away in Baste Prison." Elliot shook his head. "I can't leave Liones, that would be treason."

The wraith sighed. "Be that as it may, it would be a shame that you didn't help Elizabeth… such a beautiful lass." It laughed. Elliot could feel the sarcasm from a mile away–and it disgusted him. "You know, not only do I know how you can help Elizabeth to lift her curse, but I also know the being sealed in Edinburgh can help with yours as well~"

Elliot's blood ran cold. He started to sweat bullets. If the wraith was telling the truth, then he can too be saved. That statement alone filled him with a vain sense of hope.

But no, that's not possible. For all he knows, this being might be playing him.

"You lie."

The wraith let out a crazed laugh that echoed across the landscape. This being is not well in the head, that much Elliot was certain. Its eyes stared back at Elliot.

"If I was lying, I would have been far cruder with my wording. Depending on your decision, you'll either spend the rest of your life with a burden that harms others or you could try to save both yourself and Elizabeth." The wraith said, its hands up in the air. "You have the power to save her! Actually, anyone who possesses this knowledge can help her. I thought that you as his friend had that duty… a shame really."

Elliot growled. He turned his back away from the spirit. "Just get me out."

It snorted. "Very well, should you change your mind… come see me. We'll have much more to discuss~" It said. "I will eagerly await to see how far you are willing to go for your friend…"

The wraith snapped its fingers.

(X)

King Bartra Liones had visions about an upcoming Holy War. He knew that the consequences of a conflict of such magnitude would bring disaster, and thus, he resorted to more pacifistic means.

What the King envisioned were fewer battles which would equal less blood–an utopian and naive dream inside his head. He only thought about the positives of his decision and–despite Elizabeth's warnings–ignored the negatives.

The Holy Knights didn't have the king's same line of thought. Less payment equals less resolve which in the end leads to less reason to train and fight. When the king found out the volatile knights didn't like his pacifistic ideas, it was too late.

The knights were preparing a coup to overthrow the King. Before he knew it, Veronica and Margaret turned themselves voluntarily to the Holy Knights, much to the king's regret. The only one that remained loyal to him was Elizabeth.

Thanks to Elizabeth's intel, he knew the coup would take place at midnight. That means that Elizabeth had ten minutes to escape from Liones, or else she would be arrested.

He wanted to go with his daughter, but his sickness made that task difficult. He prayed that Elizabeth would find her way in the wilds.

Bartra gritted his teeth, the thought of sending his baby girl into the cruel, outside world scared him to death.

No time to think now, Elizabeth needed to get out of the kingdom now. The two took shelter inside the throne room.

"Father, what should we do?" Elizabeth asked, nudging her father's robe. "I know I said that the rebellion will take place at midnight, but anything can happen. For all we know, they could barge in at any second. We have to run!"

"If you run through the front door, the Holy Knights will catch you easily, Elizabeth," Bartra said, rubbing his temples. He turned to his daughter. "Do you have any ideas?"

Elizabeth blushed; an awkward smile appeared on her face. "W-well, about that—"

They both jumped from their spot as they heard a gentle knock on the door.

"They're here already?!" Bartra yelled through gritted teeth. "That's impossible, I thought you still had time…"

"No way…" Elizabeth covered her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Open the door King Bartra, or thou shalt face death as the tip of my spear pierces thy heart. 'Tis death thou seek?"

This is it. Bartra felt as if death stood at the front door, and he couldn't do anything about it. The Holy Knight just declared his full malicious intent. His ominous voice had a potent effect that sent shivers to the king's spine. It made him sweat bullets. A lump formed on his throat.

As his focus remained on the door, Elizabeth made her way down from the throne and ran towards the door. She removed the plank.

Bartra's eyes widened. "Elizabeth, what do you think you're doing?!"

The door opened.

The King closed his eyes and braced himself for the worst. What will come next? A spear to his heart? Getting flogged until he dies?

No suffering came to him, in fact, nothing out of ordinary had happened. The King took a deep breath and opened his eyes.

His daughter Elizabeth hugged a mysterious, blue-haired man with red eyes. The suit of armor he wore resembled that of a Holy Knight. He expected a hostile attitude from the man but it seemed that he was very well acquainted with his daughter. He even had the courtesy to help the princess put the plank back where it belonged.

Bartra leaned forward. As the king, he had every right to eavesdrop.

"How was my villain monologue?" The man smirked as he puffed his chest.

Elizabeth chuckled and pat the man's back. "…You'll get the hang of it."

Those words were enough to shatter the man's confidence as his shoulders slumped. Bartra sighed, even in this life or death situation, those two still had the energy to joke around.

Teenagers these days…

"Elliot, what are you doing here?" Elizabeth asked as she crossed her arms. "I thought that you were going to buy us some time before the Holy Knights came here?"

Diamond Rank Holy Knight Elliot. The King has heard nasty rumors about the cruelness this man displays in battle. It turns out those rumors were false and were used to dehumanize him, at least that was what Elizabeth told him. Bartra believed his daughter's words more than any other squire.

"There has been a change of plans," Elliot coughed. Bartra narrowed his eyes. "So… to clear any of your doubts. No, I'm not here to capture you, nor kill you in any aspect."

That statement alone made the king relax his posture. Sure, the knight could still be lying at him, but to what end? Bartra decided that there was no immediate danger.

Elliot widened his eyes and stiffened. "Oh, I'm sorry my king. I should address you with more respect. My apologies." he apologized as he bowed at Bartra.

"It's okay, Elliot," Bartra assured. He then leaned forward. "So, if you're not here to capture us, then what are you doing here?"

"I'm here to break you out of course," Elliot responded. Bartra flinched.

"E-Elliot, do you have any idea what you're saying?" Elizabeth said as she grabbed the knight's shoulders. "If Hendrickson finds out about this… your mother will—"

"I know… which is why I have a selfish request for the king," Elliot said, looking to the side.

"Elliot, look me in the eyes when you are addressing me," Bartra commanded. Elliot gulped and gave a firm look to the king. "You are a close friend of my daughter and you are making a huge sacrifice by busting her out of the kingdom. State your request."

"Very well…" The knight trembled. "My King, I'm afraid that your sickness won't allow you to get far out in the wilds–"

"I know that,"

Elizabeth gasped and looked at his father. "Father? What do you mean?"

"Elizabeth, you know I can't go out there with you. My body doesn't allow it anymore."

Elizabeth ran to her father and buried her head on his chest. Bartra could feel his robes were starting to get wet but paid no heed to it. He had more important matters to focus on.

"B-But, I don't want to leave you…" Elizabeth stuttered, her hands trembled. "I knew you were sick, but I had hope that if we found one of the Sins… then I would rest easy knowing that you were in good hands."

"It's okay daughter, I'm not going to die here," Bartra said as he patted his daughter's head. "Go, find the Sins, bring an end to the Holy Knight's oppression. People claim that kindness is a weakness, but I see it as a weapon- your strongest weapon. Use it wisely, and you will manage to bring the Sins back together. Got it?"

Elizabeth dried up her tears. "Y-Yes…"

Bartra nodded. That was all he needed to hear. He then turned to Elliot.

"State your request, Elliot."

The knight nodded. "My King, your premonitions have proven to be very accurate over the course of the years. They have never failed once, so…" He tried to let the words out, but the words died on his throat. He gritted his teeth.

Bartra tapped his fingers on the throne. "Elliot. Speak."

Elliot's lips trembled. He kneeled even further with his head on the floor. This kneeling position was the one that men and women use to plead.

"My mother is currently arrested inside the dungeons. Once I escape with Elizabeth, then Hendrickson will definitely execute her on the spot. So please… make up a story so that she would be saved, any story! Just make sure they don't harm her."

Bartra closed his eyes as he processed the information. Odd as requests go but not impossible to accomplish. Still…

"You are asking me to lie," Bartra stated, his tone forceful. Elizabeth glared daggers at him. He opened his eyes. "Consider it done."

Elliot raised his head, eyes widened. "Just like that?"

"You have done so much for my daughter; it would be cruel of me to deny you of your wish. However, I have one request of my own. Protect Elizabeth at all costs."

Elliot nodded. "Anything."

Elizabeth smiled and went to help her friend back up. The King gave the knight a look of pity, the rumors that are around him declare him a sadistic monster who has no remorse for anyone in a battle. Bartra sees none of that, he only sees a child who is desperate to save the family he loves.

It made him wonder why Hendrickson kept Elliot under a tight leash.

He shook his head, there was no time to wonder about nonsense. There were more important matters at hand.

"Just something before you go…" Bartra said, eyes scanning the room. "How do you plan to get out of the castle?"

Bartra knows the castle best, and there was no exit other than the main door. If they want to escape, they'll have to get past an entire army of Holy Knights, which was impossible with just one man.

"Oh, that's easy."

The King raised an eyebrow, perhaps Elliot could handle the army of Holy Knights? He wasn't called Hendrickson's strongest student for anything.

Elliot ran towards the back of the throne, Elizabeth followed him. Bartra frowned. Was he planning to break the wall? That would be a loud but effective plan on his part. Elliot caressed the wall until he reached a peculiar sunken brick. He pressed and sank even further.

A secret passage opened before them. The King's mouth gaped.

He realized that all of this time, Elizabeth and Elliot had access to the throne from the start, even in top-secret meetings!

Veins started to pop on Bartra's forehead. His face turned red as a tomato.

"Elizabeth…" Bartra uttered, his tone low. "Would you mind explaining this?"

"U-Um…" Elizabeth blushed as she twiddled her thumbs. She gulped. "W-Well, I kind of asked Elliot and Howzer to build me a tunnel so I could be up to date with what's going on inside the kingdom…"

Elliot leaned to Elizabeth's ear. "I think we should go now, he's kinda pissed with you…" Elliot flinched in the king's glare. He then dragged Elizabeth with him. "Yep, time to go!"

"Yes!" Elizabeth followed. Both teens stormed off. "Please be careful father!"

"WAIT!" The king snapped but it was too late. They were long gone deep into the tunnel. The passage closed, leaving only Bartra inside the room.

"Teenagers…" Bartra sighed but let out a satisfied smile. They could go without alerting the knights and that's all he wanted in the end. Now, the chances that both of them get out of the kingdom are high.

He heard a lot of footsteps were closing in behind the door. They slammed it down. A great number of Holy Knights were waiting for him outside but only one started to walk towards him. A man with white hair.

The Great Holy Knight, Hendrickson. His dead eyes glared at the king's own.

"King Bartra Liones. You are under arrest in the name of The Holy Knights."

(X)

Elliot managed to get Elizabeth out of the castle in one piece. The secret passage led from the throne room down to the bottom of the mountain. At midnight, no one dares to venture out, so there won't be any witnesses to snitch them to the Holy Knights.

They arrived at the main stable. A small bald man slept on a chair.

"Oh, we are taking a horse?" Elizabeth whispered. She didn't want to wake up the man.

"Mhm. Something like that…" Elliot muttered and walked closer to the man. He flicked the man's forehead hard enough that he fell off his chair.

"What the devil…?!" The man snarled. He readied his fist but yielded at the sight of Elliot. "Y-You're Holy Knight Elliot and Princess Elizabeth!"

Elliot kneeled to the man's eye level. "Yeah, now you're going to keep your mouth shut until we make a run for it. Are. We. Clear?"

Elliot tossed a fat pouch to the man. He opened it.

That man's face blanched and he drooled. His snarl replaced that of a gentle smile.

People are sure to get kind when you give them money.

"Oh, but why didn't you say so from the start Sir Elliot. Please, do make yourself at home."

He nodded and motioned Elizabeth to enter. As they both entered the stable, Elizabeth ran towards the variety of horses, through white thoroughbreds to black stallions. She smiled ear to ear, petting each of these creatures.

"These horses are amazing Elliot! Which horse should we take?"

"Mm? None of those." Elliot waved off his hand and went further on the stable. He heard Elizabeth sigh in disappointment, but she only had to wait and see…

Elliot opened the door to the back of the stable, where he found his trusty companion.

A grey giant stingray, which occupied half of the backyard. It had blue spots all over its skin, sharp fangs on its mouth, and yellow glowing eyes.

Elizabeth's mouth gaped when she saw the giant creature. She started to tremble and let out an awkward chuckle.

"Elizabeth, meet Laurence," Elliot said nonchalantly. He petted the stingray's head. "Who's a cute little stingray, yes you are!"

The stingray jumped in joy and started to nuzzle its owner.

Elizabeth gulped. "D-Do stingrays even run?!"

"This one flies." Elliot nodded. He then started to climb on the stingray's back. He offered a hand to Elizabeth. "Now, come quickly, we have to run while the rest of the Holy Knights are distracted."

Elizabeth took his hand and climbed on top of the creature.

"How do they even fly- WAAAAAAAH!"

They both took flight with the flying ray at incredible speed. Elliot sighed in relief–while ignoring Elizabeth's screams– and bathed himself in the breeze of fresh air. He always loved to fly. Before he knew it, they were already far away from the Liones.

The next destination will be Baste Prison.

If there's a chance that the spirit inside his dream told him the truth, then Elizabeth is fated to die. Elliot cannot let that happen, by any means. He will find a way to save her.

If that means that Elizabeth would have to see his true self, so be it. If that means that he would have to defy fate, so be it.

He won't let Elizabeth's curse consume her, and Elliot won't let himself be consumed by his own. Whatever it takes.

(X)

More chapters will be coming soon. Excelsior!