I sprang awake. The sun was coming through my room’s window, which meant I slept in! I panicked, but realized I was not in the Tower. Everything in the room was white, clean and empty. Attor was right, I crossed my arms. This whole place certainly was no home of mine, which is why I shall go outside! I peeked through the hole I created with Light and saw a garden below, so I shall start there! My shadow stirred. Blanche?
“Your Majesty,” She bowed.
“What brings you here?” I noticed Blanche had pink stripes in her normal white hair and white dress. The Pink Fey must have been messing around with her. “Not that I don’t mind or anything.”
“The human heart you possess,” she leaned into me as she stared at the bag I left on the ground.
“Ah, say no more!” I scooped through the bag and pulled the squishy thing out. It was no longer beating, but still cold and fresh! Fresh as a dead guy could be, anyways. “Here!”
“As expected, Your Majesty,” Blanche caught the heart and began to shiver. “We shall now move onto our next experiment on this.”
She bowed and left me to ponder over what experiment she was thinking about performing. Perhaps Body Spiders need it to live? It should be fine, since it was her idea. Blanche was smart and much stronger than me! With that out the way, I decided to go to the garden.
The manor itself was a massive fort, of course, but its four sides surrounded a garden. Attor appeared to be withdrawn into his Spirit form, but he was sleeping inside of me. Was it because I used too much mana? I realized it was dangerous draining it to zero percent; I even slept in because of my reckless spending! I scanned the hallways using Queen’s Eyes and saw nothing but servants. Several maids ignored the Library as they cleaned various things in the hallway, making me wonder if they ever even cared for the man who was Malcom Willster suddenly disappearing.
Well, his heart and body were wherever Blanche took him, so there.
I strolled by their terrified looks and continued my way to the garden. The Spiders made excellent guides. They were scattered across this place, so I could navigate there easily! Down this hallway and to the right! I pushed open the door and the sweet aroma of the outdoors came in waves to my nose. Ah, freedom! Outside is where I belong!
I marched up to the flowers, a sea of reds and yellows awaiting me to sniff them! Ha! As I leaned over to indulge in the scent, a Status window appeared above a red flower.
— Brewing: Tier 5 Amiharehares Flower. A gentle, yet fiery spirit resides in this flower. Used for crafting Healing Potions and explosive potions.
Well, I’ll take that! I plucked one out and stuffed it inside the bag. I raised my head as a breeze pushed towards me, opening my eyes in the pleasant wind. The rows of flowers were all T5 and T6 ingredients! Gah! Even the flowers in Father’s Manor are strong! I leaned over several yellow ones. I wonder if I could use that Light spell, Flower Burst, and produce flowers similar to these. I plucked the innocent flower up and smelled it. So sweet! A shadow covered me suddenly, making me shudder. How dare a cloud ruin this moment! I was basking in the sun and enjoying a Human flower garden for the first time! I stared up at the sky, only to realize it was clear and painfully blue. That could only mean…
“Charlotte.”
That voice…!
“F-Father!” I nearly squeaked. His stern face hid his intentions, but he glanced at the flower I was holding. This is my T6 Flower! I held it closer to my chest.
“It’s a surprise. Seeing you here,” he commented. “Not tearing up the place as you used to. Your mother planted these, long ago.”
“Really,” I deftly slipped the flower away in my bag. There was several more in dazzling colors but before I knew it, I was out of space again. “They are beautiful, I suppose. The servants must be taking care of her work very diligently.”
“Precisely,” Charles said after awhile, but he had a solemn look on his face. I knew that the servants didn’t take care of this garden at all. It was magically enchanted to be perfectly preserved forever, but if I revealed I knew that it could be problematic. I heard footsteps approaching as he cleared his throat. “Speaking of servants. I am having Emma take you to the training grounds.”
“Wha—“ I stammered. Blue Hair had a deadly look in her eyes or maybe that’s how she normally looked. “What for, Father?”
“Hmph! You shall learn the basics of swordsmanship, like all Nobles,” he scoffed. “I have… Plans for you. Although we shall speak on those later this week. For now, Emma shall get you changed and take you to the training grounds. Do not be a nuisance to her, understood?”
A sword? I suppressed a sigh, but couldn’t hide my scowl. The last time I touched a sword was when I was leveling up my crafting Skill. I could not use any of them properly so I cast them away in random areas within the floors of the dungeons, even the ones I stole from bandits were left in chests down there. Emma’s glare took me out of my thoughts. Does he want me to die fighting this monster? Charles nodded as if he read my thoughts and departed.
“Let us go, Lady Charlotte,” the half-elf sighed. “We shall not be training for long.”
“Couldn’t we just learn Magic or Skills instead?” I muttered. The outfit she stuffed me in was not a dress, but strangely more comfortable! These mystical pants and shirt felt less constricting than a dress. Her ear twitched in annoyance, but I glared back at her.
— Clothes Identifier: Noble’s Training Suit [Rare]: Tattered from days of training, this set offers little protection. Nobles of old were forged by training, yet nowadays this Suit’s ways have seemed to be cast aside and forgotten.
“With your meager Status?” She scoffed. I will take that as a no. I could fix this suit up with Advanced Web Conjuring and boost my defenses massively, but it took a bit longer since the invisible webs came from my sides and not my fingertips. “Take this.”
Emma tossed me a wooden sword as soon as we arrived. The training ground was a wide lot of gravel and cut grass; it was a stark contrast to the beautiful and colorful garden. I groaned at the information Wisdom gave me. I found myself in trouble, as usual. Although my Status says I should be fine fighting this level 30 monster of a half-elf, I could not use the wooden sword properly. In order to use my Wand, my Status would apply the Wand Mastery Skill and ask me to equip it. With this flimsy thing, I held it up against the sunlight, no such message occurred. Instead, Wisdom griped at me.
— Wisdom’s Intervention activated. Weapon Class: Swords are not compatible with the Witch class. Switch to Ninja Class instead.
I could do that, but even my Sword Skill as a ninja were limited. I only used that class for Martial Arts and Stealth, which is really coming to be a big mistake now! Something flashed in the corner of my eyes. The wooden sword changed? No, it was…! I flinched as a vision of the Hero’s sword, Everbright, burned in my hand for a moment. The heat and its radiance caused me to nearly double over in fear, but the vision faded. Before I knew it, the wooden sword clunked on the ground out of my grip. I was definitely not over that damn Sword that ran me through the last time! I awkwardly picked the sword up.
Emma studied me for a moment.
“You’re hopeless, aren’t you?” She softened her voice.
“Not really, but I am a Lady, not some kind of warrior,” I complained. “I don’t think I can use swords even if I tried.”
“Strike at me,” Emma raised her sword in a guard. It was a lot more sophisticated than the bandits. Should I switch my class now to wield the sword properly? Everbright flickered in my mind. I hate swords! “We shall get this over with, Lady Charlotte. See if you are what you say you are.”
She spoke that with a hint of disdain, but how could she know a thing about me? I checked my Status and nearly choked. I forgot I was the opposite of what a human lady probably was!
— Charlotte, level 33
Health: 1360/1360
Spell Pages: 5/7
Stats
— Attack: F (2750/2820) (Master Rank)
— Magic Attack: F (2800/2820) (Master Rank)
— Defense: F (1300/1320) (Prestige Rank)
— Magic Defense: E (1320/1460) (Prestige Rank)
— Reflexes: D (1560/1700 Prestige Rank)
— You have 500 Skill Points!
Oh yeah! My stats were good! And that Malcom fellow gave me 500 skill points! Since they were sitting at Master Rank and Prestige Rank, I think a simple sword strike shouldn’t be a problem. Blue Hair’s Stats were all A ranked, so I should prove I’m not going down so easily!
— Emma of the Forbidden Village, level 30
Health: 100%
Mana Pool: 100%
Stamina: N/A
Stats
— Attack: A (1050/1200)
— Magic Attack: A (1150/1200)
— Defense: A (1000/1200)
— Magic Defense: A (900/1200)
“Okay,” I guessed, raising the sword. If she does anything back it’s cheating! “Here I come!”
If I wrapped my hands with thin web like the suit I have on, the sword will definitely stay in my grip this time! The invisible strings slowly weaved around my fingers as I gripped the sword. It was no Magic Wood, but this should do it. Studying the tall half-elf’s stance did not fill me with confidence at all! Her swordhand filled her sword’s whole hilt, while I could hold my own with both my hands. Still, I recalled my fights with the bandits. If I went toe to toe against a bigger guy and his head wasn’t reachable, then I simply had to remove his weapon before he could get my head. That is, if he wasn’t obliterated by my Spells already. Emma’s judgmental stare seemed like a tower’s height beyond her sword. If I were to prove something I would have to target her hand. Curse this tiny and weak body!
“Ha!”
My sword merely clacked against hers, before snapping. Huh? She moved her sword just in time? That’s cheating! We both watched the tip of my shattered sword fling away and flop on the gravel a small distance away from us. Is that supposed to happen? I receded my webs and checked my hands. Still there! And I was still holding onto the wooden hilt. I was proud of that! What now, Emma?
“Not bad,” she looked at her sword, before tossing it to me. “Practice that slash for an hour. Maybe you’ll get a Sword Skill and won’t be a waste the next time he forces me to train with you. Now, if you excuse me.”
Eh? I caught the sword, but that lazy servant stalked away already. Next time, she won’t be so lucky, I grinned. A familiar translucent jade mist floated in front of me. Well, good morning to you, Attor! The dragon let out a cute puff of smoke before noticing the splintered sword tip on the ground.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“You playing with sticks?” He asked.
“No, it’s just that,” I lifted the wooden sword in my hand. “I was dragged out here to train with the half-elf.”
“I have news for you,” Attor ignored me wailing around with the stick-sword. “The other night when we arrived here, someone made an attempt on your life. If it was not for the Assassin Spider, things would have been rather complicated.”
“Oh?” I grinned. How cute! That means the letter I found in the tower still is active and explains why the cute fuzzy butt leveled up. “Could it be my Father who sent him? Or perhaps my dear brother?”
“Blanche reported that the spider simply swallowed the attacker whole before they could get an answer,” Attor chuckled. “It seems that you have justification in their plans.”
“I can’t wait to see Blanche’s plan!” I chirped. “It makes me want to fly over to the forest right now! Wait, you spoke with her last night? So that’s why you’re so sleepy!”
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” Attor yawned and then disappeared into my chest again.
Get back out here! I complained, but as long as they got along I assumed it was fine! You should help her with her plans!
“Really?” Attor asked me. You emerged a little too quickly the moment I said that! I swung the sword down and tried to hit his wispy face, but he was too quick! “Are you sure you can live without me?”
“I can handle things on my own here,” I assured him. “Even if Father sends his guys after me. I welcome the challenge! Still, we will have to contact Blanche again. I’m sure she’ll approve of the extra help.”
Attor grunted, but then disappeared in my chest again. Someone’s approaching, he warned. It was my brother wielding a wooden sword in his hand. Another person was standing behind him, with a mocking smile on her face. I recognized that girl. She was the commoner clutching onto Devon! Now you’re clinging onto… this? I thought at her.
“Well, well, well!” He approached me. Does he want to die? I looked around. No guards in sight, so trouble was afoot. “My dear little Sister, trying to become stronger.”
“Hello, brother,” I greeted him. “What brings you here?”
My voice trailed off when I saw their Statuses.
— Charles II Bohun, level 14
— Human Noble [Rare], level 14
— Danger Class: C Rank Adventurer
Buffs: Human Noble, Powerful Friends, Noble and Arrogant, Noble’s Growth
Charles II, formerly Elliot Lacasta, is the next in line for the title of Duke. His ties to his old family have been completely erased in service to the Bohuns. His status as a Noble, however, still is honored.
— Laura of Tiltoast, level 11
— Classes
Human [Common], level 10
Human Cleric [Rare], level 1
— Danger Class: E Rank Adventurer
Buffs: Powerful Friends, Noble’s Protection, Noble and Arrogant, Healthy
Debuffs: Mage Crusher
Your Statuses are found wanting, I heard him blabbing on but I was distracted in how weak they were. I suppose, these lower life forms all have been around the same level range. The adults in charge of here seemed to possess the highest strength, while the underlings were around level 15. The servants were useless. I wondered what the Danger Class’s ranges were, since I have been seeing that on every Status so far.
— Wisdom’s Intervention activated. The Danger Class of an individual is classified by their overall level and Classes, scanned from an old Adventurer Guild Handbook found in the Demon Realm. Exceptions can be made, as an example one may become a higher Danger Class based on the rarity of their Evolution Value and if they have officially been recognized as that Danger Class by the Guild. Therefore, the Forbidden Skill has listed Humans Danger Classes in levels similar to Skill Grades:
F Rank: Levels 6-8
E Rank: Level 9-10
D Rank: Level 11-13
C Rank: Level 14-15
B Rank: Level 16-19
A Rank: Level 20-29
S Rank: Level 30+
It is worth mentioning S+ Rank only applies to both Humans and Non-Humans above level 40.
I guessed that the letters were simply a good way of telling how weak you are, dear C ranked brother! Still, I recalled no such manual in the Demon Realm. Perhaps, it was recovered from one of the annihilated adventurer parties that the Human armies hired and stuffed in the Dark Castle’s Grand Library.
“Are you even listening to me?” Charles finally realized my eyes were wandering. “I’m saying give it up, you talentless trash!”
“Yeah, you bastard child!” Laura chimed in, but her mean talk faded quickly when I glared at her. I wondered if those buffs of his was adding resistance against the debuffs my Skills would normally give them.
“Is that so?” I said. I did not disagree with his claim on needing pointers. I am pretty worthless with a sword.
“Let me show you, dear sister, how outclassed you are!” He activated a Skill which made his sword glow. Pretty! The colors it glowed were beautiful! Focus, Attor warned me, but interrupted me before I could ask why. Don’t make a move. “Triple Slash!”
— Hostile Skill: Triple Slash [Epic] used.
I quickly reinforced myself with more webs. Oh Geer’Sha, that was out of habit! Charles’s blade struck my arms, body and knocked the sword out of my hand. Drop and don’t move, Attor continued warning me. Why? I trusted him, so I let out an unconvincing moan.
“Oh no, so painful, much hurt, ow,” I mumbled monotonously and crouched on the ground. “Please stop.”
“Triple Slash! Triple Slash! Ha! The last time we played swords I could only use Double Strike!”-
Laura’s laughing sang over the raining blows, but my suit was getting worn out from them. Hey Attor, I thought to him. Why can’t I kill these two again? Before he could respond, an arc of light floated above me before Charles’s sword swung at me again. Magic? Not my own, though, so who did it belong to?
“Enough.”
The mana arc burst into a physical aura, disintegrating the wooden sword into golden bubbles. Light magic? Charles tossed the broken handle and lept back and folded his arms with a disapproving glare. I didn’t realize I flinched from the energy’s presence, but I was thankful Attor told me to duck! I poked my head back up and saw the shadow of the interfering stranger. What’s the big deal, you mysterious Magical Caster? You could’ve killed me! I looked up at the radiant shield and saw none other than my sister, Elaine, standing between Charles and I.
“Tch, Elaine,” he spat. “I was just training the bastard—“
He and the commoner shrank as the energy became more intense.
“Begone,” Elaine’s fist manifested a blade of Light magic, causing the two troublemakers to flee. I cowered as the shield faded. Did she want to finish me off instead of letting them do it? She turned to me, while I stared at her Status on the ground. Level 20? Still immune to Charlotte? Come on! A hand floated before my vision before I went mad from seeing more of her Skills. “Are you alright? Take my hand.”
I tentatively took it and I felt myself tugged into an embrace. Eh? Elaine was warm and full of Light. She was too bright to look at, so I stood awkwardly until she let me go. I dusted myself off, but she took my hand again.
“I apologize I was too late to save you from them,” she said. You’re too bright, lady! I looked at the ground. Maybe it was her armor that she had on or the bright Spells she used. “Again. Come with me.”
I gulped. Well, I’m in for it now. My Doom has my hand and she’s leading me straight to death! We walked along silently away from the training grounds. Elaine seemed gentle, but I refrained from looking at her Status since it made me feel nauseous. The shade of a tree covered us. It wasn’t even a Magic Tree. I waited for a memory to stir, but nothing happened.
“Do you remember this tree?” She sat down and leaned against its trunk, but chuckled and let go of my hand. “This is where we first met. I’m so glad I get to see you.”
I didn’t know what to say, but I joined her and sat down, hoping the beating of my own heart was undetectable. Calm down, Charlotte. The worst thing she can do is annihilate you.
“Once again, forgive me, Charlotte,” she sounded like she was begging. Why? “I wasn’t there for you when you needed me the most. I was too weak to keep them from pushing you.”
“You don’t need to apologize to me,” I muttered. My guard was slipping in her radiance, but a part of me still feared her. Was this pull towards her warmth a Passive Skill? “You’re one of the good humans.”
“A good… human?” Elaine looked like she almost broke into tears, but shook out of it and stood up to face me. Uh oh, I said the wrong thing didn’t I? That one rule struck my mind: Don’t say someone isn’t human! She gave a defeated huff, but acquiesced. “No, I deserve the insult. I will be on a journey soon, Sister. I will become like the Lords of Old and prove to you I am every bit of what a Human should be. What a Noble should strive to be. I swear I shall become stronger and change this broken Family’s fate. I will prove to you and Lady Bohun I can change our Omen for good. One day I will be as strong as that stranger…”
She held a hand over her heart and turned. I watched her walk away with determination, while relief flooded me and the dread lifted. Gah! I’m alive!
“Are you alright, Charlotte?” Attor asked me. He looked apprehensive himself, peering around as if there was a larger predator lurking somewhere still. “She’s gone, isn’t she?”
“I’d die for her,” I blurted.
“What?”
“She’s so cool, I’m jealous Attor!” I whined. “Did you see how she swore some type of vow and walked away heroically in the sun? Did you see that!”
“You do realize what you’re saying, right?”
“I know, I can’t stop!” I swooned. That Passive Skill of hers was dangerous and extremely awesome!
“I think you need to stay out here for awhile just in case you run into her again.”
I rambled to Attor about how cool she was for an hour, picking flowers that were around. After I slapped my head, I felt like myself again. Perhaps, a small part of me could use her since she was powerful and I did not have many allies in this manor. She seemed like she did not want to slay me. I stopped and picked a violet one’s petals apart idly. Hopefully one of these could create a potion that cures Debuffs, but if it was from the Hero I probably would not be able to do anything about it at all. I don’t recall retrieving my bag in my stupor, but it was with me. That tree, I looked back. Something was beckoning me to it. It was a plain green tree, shedding leaves in the weak breeze. As I approached it, a notification played in my head and the leaves froze in the middle of their fall. Oh, I looked at my arm slowly turning into a transparent blue shade. Another one of those Memories were calling me.
— Wild Skill: Astral Projection created a Memory. Skill activated.
The light vanished immediately this time, and I was standing right where I think the Memory took me. What is that Skill anyways? Could Wisdom activate in here? I waited a moment, but nothing happened. I heard something from behind the tree. A small frame was huddled over, sniffing. I moved to investigate, but it was odd floating around like this. I’ll have to ask Attor about this later, I let my mind wander, but the light flashed once more and revealed the ground beneath me.
Blood? It trailed all the way to the small crying individual. I knew who it was. Charlotte, I approached her. She looked like she got beaten! Her outfit was torn up, revealing reddened stains and bruises beneath. Her face made mine twitch, most likely because it was mine currently. I was used to seeing damaged bodies all over the place, strewn along battles. This sorrow and anguish was something that carved trails within her heart, yet the body could not heal them.
“Charlotte?” Someone called out in the blackness, but the Memory’s light did not reveal who it was.
“No more,” Charlotte whispered. She spoke through quivering blackened lips, clutching her bloody hands together. “I can’t take anymore of this. No more! Why does it have to be me? Who will stop this for me? Who?”
She slammed her fists down, spraying more blood across the dirt. Charlotte stared up at the tree and let out a silent scream. I felt my chest and experienced nothing. Her suffering was due to her so-called family’s mistreatment and yet my heart did not move. How am I supposed to feel? As a demon, betrayal is normal! Tell me, Charlotte! Tell me what you want.
I stared up at the thin branches with Charlotte. The light grew much brighter off at the side of my vision, taking me out of my trance. The girl was standing, showing more slash marks along her skin. I see, Charles II beat her with his Skills, presumably with that girl and the Prince.
“I want them all to pay,” Charlotte growled. That anger and desire for revenge made me smile. I liked desperation, but I realized the light was also shining upon her. “You will all die horribly, thrice-fold for my blood and suffering.”
The light pooled into a malformed portal, but Charlotte was not afraid of it. She was communicating with something from beyond. She repeated her prayer for the fall of this House, when she fell silent. I glanced at the portal when a massive index finger pointed at her through it, releasing a small purple droplet that launched into her. Charlotte collapsed back down on the puddle of her blood. Eh? What is that? I floated over to it, but the portal was small enough to only reveal the tree-sized index finger. The Demon God hasn’t been seen in centuries and this thing was not it.
I AM THE WISHBRINGER. THE ALL BORN. YOUR WISH SHALL BE GRANTED. YOUR WORTHLESS LIFE FOR THESE WORTHLESS LIVES.
An evil laughter boomed from the portal as the finger withdrew. The Wishbringer, I pondered over what that thing is. Could this be the Omen Elaine was speaking about? Charlotte looked like she was struggling, but instead of a pitiful look she had a determined grin. Whatever that purple droplet gave her, it seemed to change her entire demeanor. I liked that, but I feel guilty about not feeling any sorrow or bitterness against the Bohuns. I will see what I can do to make that wish come true when I find my Stones, I determined. Perhaps that should fulfill her wish and she could rest, I owe her that. I clenched my fists as the Memory sent my spirit back to my body with a chilly blast of Mana.
— Wild Skill: Astral Projection has ended.
“Charlotte?” Attor asked me. I shuddered and coughed.
“What?” I felt the cold slip away immediately, but I started to walk back to the side of the Manor where I could see the hole in my room’s wall.
“You just were in deep thought, it seemed.”
“Ah, I was,” I lied. Well, technically I was not actually lying! Attor scoffed. “Eh? So you know what I just witnessed. For that reason, I’ve had enough of the outdoors. Skill: Metamorphosis.”
The sun was setting anyways as I transformed into my Crow form. Hopefully I don’t shoot myself through the wall and make another opening. Schemes await! I cawed the evilest screech I could with this little bird form. Even the wall shall not stop me! I crashed another hole inside of it, but I was laughing until I heard the alert of my Messenger Spider.