— You agreed to all of this! — Dereck exclaimed, agitated.

— But I don’t think it’s right. We should stay in the village; we know what’s about to happen! It’s too much cruelty for a place that welcomed us with open arms — Tate complained.

— We need to inform the king as soon as possible! We won’t stand a chance against what’s coming. And we don’t even know if the necklaces really work!

— Do you really think he would lie about that? What would he gain from it?

— Do you truly trust that monster? Do you think he cares if we live or die? We’re here only because we’re strong and cold. You know that.

— Even so... a village like this... — Tate sighed, noticing Beta watching them from his window.

— Forget the kid. How many times have you been through similar situations?

— It’s just that... with this particular kid... I don’t know. I just think we shouldn’t do this. We should stay and fight!

— You’re acting like a child, damn it! Get it through your head we came on a mission, found what we were looking for, and now we’re going back to report. Villages or kingdoms along the way mean nothing. That’s exactly why we don’t get attached.

— We leave the day after tomorrow, right? — he asked irritably, clenching his fists.

— Yes — Dereck replied arrogantly.

Going upstairs, Dereck headed to the room he shared with Ferry, while Tate tried to hold back his anger. Deep down, the blond knew his partner wasn’t wrong. This was, indeed, an information-gathering mission. Villages and towns were supposed to be just milestones on the way. At least, that’s how it should be.

— I’m going to make sure that kid is ready to fight — he murmured to himself. — Even if only for a few minutes... I’ll make it happen — he said, discreetly nodding to Beta with a slight smile.

At Liz’s house, the girl arrived completely soaked from the rain. Her mother waited sitting at the kitchen table, fingers intertwined and a stern expression on her face.

— Didn’t you see this whole storm? Where were you? — she asked harshly, standing up firmly.

— I-I was in the forest, with the girls — Liz replied, stepping back.

— That psychopath was with you? — her mother came closer.

— N-no... — Liz pressed her back against the wall, with nowhere else to go.

— Even so... — the woman sighed before violently pulling her daughter’s hair.

Liz screamed and struggled, knocking over objects as she was dragged toward the basement. A space muffled by magical enchantments that silenced every sound, preventing any neighbor from hearing the horrors committed there.

In the basement, Liz was stripped and tied to a wooden table. Her mother, cold and cruel, dealt brutal blows to her ribs, causing fractures. The girl’s screams mixed with tears, saliva, and blood, but nothing seemed to move the woman.

Whenever the assaults stopped, Liz was forced to drink healing potions that restored her organs and tissues — only for the cycle of pain to start again with her body as sensitive as before. The physical healing was accompanied by an even harsher psychological torment.

And that wasn’t the only punishment. Liz had been whipped until her skin opened, forced to plunge her face into anthills of demonic species, poisoned, humiliated, and subjected to various forms of torture. The healing potions only perpetuated the suffering, restarting the pain in the body still bearing trauma.

Her mother, sadistic and merciless, poured salt into the open wounds. She seemed to take pleasure in every scream of pain from her daughter. Despite her age, Liz only wished for a chance to escape. She wanted to tell Jonathan or any adventurer everything. She wanted justice. Even if it meant her mother dying in the worst possible way.

The absence of love and the excess of cruelty created a silent hatred inside the child. A grudge that grew, shaping something dark — something that, unknowingly, would end up defining her destiny in the days to come.

‡