At a fief at the outskirts of Equestria Empire.

Drip. Drip. Drip–

Squeeze.

Drip. Drip–

Sequencee then gently laid the wet cloth on Anna’s forehead.

“Thank you dear.”

“Mom, your temperature is not going down.”

“Ah, don’t worry about that,” she waved to tell him that it was alright.

“...”

Sequence could tell that the way she performed the gesture was notably more sluggish than her usual self.

“I’ll be back in shape after a few days of rest. You’re all grown up so I trust that you know how to take care of yourself alright?”

“Mom. Why did you go and challenge Astroth?”

Many people thought of Anna as an SS-rank mercenary despite her S-rank status. Numerous complaints have been filed to guilds in regards to why she hadn’t been promoted when the truth was– she was the one who revoked the promotion on purpose. In her own words: “I don’t want to get caught up in politics. It’s troublesome.”

Those that are privy would regard her as the SS-rank mercenary who was too lazy to rank up while many others will remain forever under the dark about the matter. The number of SS-rank mercenaries could be counted in one hand, while there were no more than twenty S-ranks on the entire continent.

“Ah? I wanted to grow stronger,” Anna chuckled.

“Why?” Sequencee’s expression grew wary.

Astroth was the Majesty black dragon who lay dormant inside its lair for the past eon. Many believed that this dragon acted as the counterbalance of the world. Should something shake the foundations of the continent, it would awaken to bring balance through calamity. Anna taking her chances to fight something like an extra last boss was ludicrous. Then again she came out alive.

A discomfort spread in his heart seeing how the black patches remained stuck to her skin even now. The only high priest in the hospital in the fief they stayed had tried numerous attempts to heal the wound but to no avail. The best he could do was cast prophylactic spells to prevent any secondary condition from affecting her.

“Well, that’s because I want to end the conflict between the demon and humans. A world where you can live peacefully without prejudice my dear.”

“...” Sequencee didn’t know how to reply to that.

She lifted her hands, her callus-riddled fingers reached up to touch his horns..

“Ouch,” Sequencee yelp.

“Opps, my bad.”

.. His horn that had been cut to the stump.

Sequencee was the product of a demon and a human. He didn’t know who his father was. Each time he asked about it, Anna would tell him to grow stronger before he could be granted the chance to meet him. ’

Sequencee was a million percent sure his father was a high demon chilling at the demon empire somewhere, just what kind of demon, he didn’t know.

As a half demon living on human land, he would be regarded a heretic the moment people recognized his real identity.

“Alright mom. Get some rest, please recover well, okay?”

“Ufu.. didn’t I anger you? I’m sorry~”

“No. No. It’s not that I just– go to bed.”

“I understand. Take care too my dear.”

“You too mom.”

Sequencee sighed and carried the bucket of water with him as he walked towards the exit. Upon touching the handle, he looked back at the canopy bed where his mom laid.

‘Please don’t die.’

Sequencee didn’t understand why her mother needed to push herself to grow stronger. Sure, it was nice to tag along during the more laid back journeys, but the kinds that risked her life? Sequencee didn’t want her to do that– but what could he do? His mother was just that stubborn.

[Illusion Magic: Universal Haze]

The horn on his head disappeared.

He walked out of the room.

===

The location they were living at was a manor located at Estia Barony, a farmland fief. It was Anna’s retirement home, a nesting place to take care of her only child– which she had basically conceived out of nowhere.

Who the father of the child remains a mystery to most. Some even say Anna’s child was born from a spirit as Sequencee’s face resemble his mother’s.

Sequencee was sitting on top of his bed with a few dozen colourful beads floating around him. He squinted his eyes at a grimoire before him.

Each bead encompassed a magic element. Wind, fire, lightning, lava, nature, spatial..

Mastering the fundamentals was something his mother often drilled into him.

So to take advantage of his unusual constitution as a demi-human, he was training in all elements at once. He decided long ago that he would become a sage. Someone who is capable of using every type of magic imaginable.

DONG. DONG. DONG–

“Huh?”

The church bells rang out and kept ringing.

‘An emergency?’

A loud crash caused an explosion, so strong he could feel the ground shake. The chandelier above trembled intensely.

Sequencee quickly dashed out of his room, noting how the maids were in a panic. All of them were gazing out the window.

‘What’s going on?’

Sequencee had a bad feeling about this. Seeing the purple glow outside, he ran to his mom’s room– but when he got there he realized that she was already gone.

“No mom, wait for me!” it came to him that she had left to fight.

Sequencee hurriedly charged towards the entrance. As someone who has suffered through the numerous adventures alongside her, it was distressing to not be her side-kick in battle.

The butler of the house tried to stop him.

“But my mom is out fighting!”

“You must not Young Lord. It’s your mother’s order.”

“Please. You know my mother isn’t well.”

“...”

“So that's an ‘okay’ right?”

“It’s a lie to say that I am not worried..”

“Yes!”

Sequencee slipped past the butler even before he even got the green light. His first order of action was to head to the ga..

“What in the..”

The entire city was alit in raging purple flames. Sequencee shuddered as the calamity unfolded in front of him.

‘Didn’t the emergency bell just ring– there’s no way..’

The beating of his heart grew more intense as the bad premonition grew increasingly severe.

‘How many people died..’

From within the ominous flames, Sequencee could make out the monsters' silhouettes– demon hounds, red orges, lava golems..

They numbered in the thousands.

A gale shook the atmosphere.

As if a massive cyclone had just struck down the land, Sequencee crossed his arms and braced himself.

“Guh–”

Even with magic to support his back, he was being shoved back, his shoes digging the ground, leaving trails in the dirt. Trees and plants were blown away, windows shattered as screams reverberated.

The flames whipped into the sky, the world lit up like the nightmare of the Last Era. Everything painted in purple, clear for him to see. The charred remains of ash, charcoal, soot and embers amidst the chaos of desperation.

And in the center of it all–

“MOM!!”

He noticed her figure.

Then.

A purple flash of light flashed in the sky– no, it tore space and time itself.

The wind of the entire world seemed to stop, paying tribute to the loss of their ruler.

Something fell, and continued falling. Meanwhile, another figure remained afloat in the air– turning its head to him.

Sequencee’s entire body froze, an entity whose strength measured beyond anything he had ever encountered–

“Child.”

The somnolent voice echoed.

“You are a disgrace to your father.”

Slowly.. slowly.. the entity descended.

“Hikhh?!” Sequencee fell on his butt.

He felt the suffocating air squeeze his lungs, the nightmare never wished would happen–

The entity covered from head to toe in jet black armor, eerie purple flames poured from the gaps in between the place.

There was a red piece of flesh being held gently his arm–

It was Anna’s heart.

‘T-that’s?!’

“By the edict of The Sovereign, I shall not lay a hand on his children.”

‘W-What? The S-Sovereign.. child..?”

“May this be the last I see you, child of a half blood.”

The dark knight floated high into the sky, blood red cape swayed in the wind. In the next instant, it disappeared.

Along with all sounds.

“A-Ah..”

It was the beginning of his journey.

– His true journey.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!”