Without a thought, she embraced Draven. Her face filled his chest as her arms wrapped around him. She was unsure why she did such a thing, but upon looking at Draven’s reaction, she knew that it was not wrong. He brushed her hair aside, and began to feel his heart race. This girl had remained by his side through the most deplorable of acts…

“Draven, tell me the truth. Why did you do all those terrible things? How could you?”

“Cornella…” His heart was splintering. He wanted to break free from the role of the merciless villain he was becoming.

“Cornella… That wasn’t me. I did not actually do those horrid-!”

Cornella fell to the ground. Her head rolled, and landed face up- staring into Draven’s soul. Blood splattered as the walls were dyed red. Draven’s body shook as he stared at the scene.

“Wh…” Words could not be formed as his voice shook. Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out.

“I warned you, Sir Draven. An actor must play his role flawlessly, and deviation from the script is to be punished.”

Memories of the voice swarmed Draven’s shaken mind.

“Lagniappe… Lagniappe! Why?!”

“Because you are the antagonist, Sir Draven. It is your duty to perform according to the truth of your sole- the fate of the universe relies on it.”

“You killed Cornella… for some bullshit like that?!”

“No, Sir Draven. I did not kill Cornella.”

It was at this very moment that Draven looked at his right hand. The burn marks, which had never completely healed, was covered in fresh blood. Draven covered his mouth as he fell to his knees. His body shook as he hunched over.

“Sir Draven, I implore you to take my words to heart- you are a villain, and there is no use fighting it. It is merely your fate.”

Draven weakly responded after a few more moments.

“You… You’re wrong… I’m not evil… I didn’t kill Cornella… I would never…”

Draven felt a hand on his shoulder as Lagniappe’s voice filled his ear in a whisper.

“Oh? Is that so? Then do tell me, Sir Draven… The answer to my question.”

Draven looked emptily at Cornella’s severed head. Her brown eyes were still open, and her mouth had a slight smile. It was her expression at Draven’s words before her death. Lagniappe’s question was the nail in the coffin for the wavering Draven.

“Why are you so hungry that you’re shaking right now?”

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“Have you heard? The Night Guard is apparently recruiting for the first time in decades…” A red nosed man, face flushed from alcohol, spoke too loudly inside the tavern. The strong rustic atmosphere was only emphasized further by the stinging cold wind which partially blew through the cracks of the wooden walls. The snowfall was so abundant that it had piled against the door, making it hard to open. There was no point clearing it as it would simply return in a matter of minutes. The drunken man continued rambling toward his two friends at his table while the barkeeper was asleep behind the counter.

“They say (hic)… they say the fortress is somewhere around here, too…”

The man to his left, who had a dagger lazily laying on the table as he propped his head up with his hands in an effort to not fall asleep, returned conversation.

“I heard, I heard… That old bastard Leaf was trying to get me to join the other day (hic)… I told him (hic)… I told him, why the hell would I go and hunt vampires? The mead is good here, the pay is fine for the work… (hic)… I mean, don’t get me wrong… I could kill a vampire or two, I’m not (hic)… I’m not scared or nothin’… But why would I risk my life to hunt vampires? No, thanks… Anyway, why are they even recruiting again? Aren’t vampires on the verge of extinction? And other than a stray here and there, they are almost all away from human civilization…”

The red-nosed man leaned close enough for his breath to sting his friend’s face before speaking.

“Weeellll… The thing is, I heard something interesting the other day from my friend in the Kingdom down South…”

“Yeah? It better not be another story about a woman…”

“No, no, you idiot…(hic)… Apparently, a Royal Vampire has been ruining villages and gaining influence… Now, the Holy Empire is funding the Night Guard to hunt it down and deal with the vampires for good… (hic)…”

At this moment, a cloaked man that had been sitting at the corner of the tavern finished his pitcher in a couple gulps. He slammed the pitcher on the table as he pushed his seat out to stand. The bartender, who had awoken from the noise, was surprised to see an abnormally massive man. While his head and body were shrouded in the dark cloak, so his frame was hard to discern, it was clear that he was no ordinary person.

“Hey… (hic)…You got a pretty good body, are you some kind of gladiator or somethin’?” The red-nosed man couldn’t help but casually speak to the man.

“What’s your name, traveler? I haven’t seen you around before.” The bartender was curious as well. The massive man walked over to the table of drunks before pulling down his hood. The men couldn’t help but feel somewhat threatened by the towering giant, especially after seeing his face.

While it couldn’t be considered ugly, it was certainly a warrior’s profile. A couple of small scars covered his face, and his whiskers were dark and full. His black hair, which was tied back, reached his shoulders. His voice, which was akin to a growl, finally spoke.

“Amarok. I’m not from around here, I just needed something to warm myself before continuing.” After speaking, he took the dagger from the table. Both men tightened. Before they could protest, he lifted the dagger to the back of his neck. He cut off the ponytail and placed the dagger back onto the table. Without another word, he effortlessly opened the snow-stopped door and left.

The three men looked at each other in confusion for a few seconds before the bartender made a realization.

“Ah… he didn’t pay…”

The other two men laughed.

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