Prologue 1
The sword of the Empire, the only duke of the Empire.
Altair Chernobog, stronger and more beautiful than anyone else.
She devoted her life to the empire.
She was a loyal swordswoman who foughtly blindly due to her loyalty for her master.
But if I had known that the end of my life was due to being killed by the one I cared most about, I would have never done so.
***
Weeping, hot blood poured out.
‘How come…?’
Altair thought blankly as she lowered her head to look down at the sword that had pierced through her breastplate.
‘How come, Ahin?’
Weren’t you the most loyal knight in the Empire?
Weren’t you my comrade who spared his life for the well-being and peace of the Empire?
“Why…did you do this?”
But it was only a faint groan that leaked out of my mouth.
“Well, because I’m the devil?”
Ahin said.
The red eyes, looking down at her senselessly, shook like flying creatures. Altair laughed in vain.
“Do you think… I’ll believe that nonsense?”
‘Estarrot’s illegitimate son, the devil’s son.’
That’s what the people of the country called Count Estarrot, who was born with unprecedented red eyes. Except for her.
The two were together on a drunken battlefield, but Altair never doubted his identity once.
That is due to her trust for her comrades and how much she cherishes them.
Such a noble knight, a war hero who makes sacrifices for his empire, definitely can’t be a demon.
All. It was that thick trust that didn’t waver even during the moment she met his sword.
But…
In that moment, a mysterious sound rang out in her ears.
Tears–
With the sound of something tearing up, a dark red rose from behind his back.
Wings that were covered with a thin film on a black skeleton.
Dear god. Altair was stunned as she muttered,
“You…really….”
He really was the devil. The rumors were not false.
However, she couldn’t complete the backstory.
Ahin slowly turned at her and said,
“Yes, Altair. This is who I am.”
His red eyes were blazing as he looked at her.
Then Altair, as always, couldn’t make eye contact and avoided his gaze.
“You’re doing this again. You can’t seem to look me in the eye right now…”
He muttered more to himself than me.
“Hey, I wouldn’t be scornful at all. After all, the filthy devil has been hiding his identity and hovering around you.”
“Filthy devil…”
Altair narrowed the gap between them and squeezed out her answer.
“Thinking like that, I’ve never thought about something like that…”
Regardless of what Altair has just said, Ahin just asked again.
“Tell me, Altair. What the hell should I do?”
His persistent gaze clung to her forehead, her eyes, her pale cheeks.
“What more, what else do I have to do in order to change my filthy birth?”
There was already resentment in his subsequent voice.
“To be a noble knight? To jump into danger that no one wants to go to? I’ve tried everything. And I thought that just maybe, maybe one day when you find out what I was, you’d still accept me…”
He poured out his confession, as soon as he finished, he spread his arms wide open and gestured.
“But look. This is the result of all my efforts.”
Behind his stature was a bare ruin with only pillars that were now half-broken with crumbling ruins all around them.
The imperial flag with the rosette pattern and portraits of the imperial family are nowhere to be seen. Countless corpses were scattered among the rubble, some were unrecognisable in shape, allowed to infer the tragedy and massacre that took place there.
“…”
At the moment, Altair couldn’t breathe, as if he was choking her.
I didn’t fight for this.
Neither she nor he were thrown away to fight on that harsh battlefield for this kind of an end.
What and where on earth did something go wrong to cause such an ending like this?
Altair tried to find a reason. At the time, Ahin’s voice rang out.
“Altair, you despised me…”
It was an angry but sorrow-filled voice.
“You’ve never failed to do that. So now, I’ll finish it all with this hand. I will kill you for deceiving me, and live a life fitting of the stigma that is attached to me.”
Deception.
Those words, she abruptly thought.
“Yes, maybe this is all my fault…”
Even if everyone were to label him as a demon, she still wouldn’t admit it.
Even though she had vaguely guessed his identity, she still denied it with all of her might.
That was her way of caring for him. She had wanted to protect his honour and reputation somehow.
But what she really wanted, was not such a sham.
I didn’t know that, and yet I’m foolishly-
Altair closed her eyes tightly in remorse.
‘The Devil…That was the name that had been chasing you your whole life.’
His eyes shook as he stared over her thin and slender frame and took in her words.
“But I couldn’t admit it. Estarrot, whom I had known, was a noble knight and protector of the people.
If such a person were to be called a demon, what else should we define as hypocrisy and other chisels that degrade all sorts of pretense?
Ahin, I’m your comrade and a knight, just like you…”
Altair said, looking down at his bloodstained hands.
“I wanted to protect you as much as I could…”
Ahin was silent.
However, just by looking at his tightly-clenched fists and his tightened lips, I could see that his insides were shaking.
“That’s why I’ve constantly denied that you’re the devil. I want you to be recognised for the things that you’ve accomplished by yourself…
So even if I had known who you were earlier on…”
“…”
“I still would have cherished and cared for you just as much. I would have protected you from those who tried to set you up for failure. However, this time it’s just… the method you’ve chosen is wrong…”
Cough.
She spewed out blood again before she could continue speaking.
Her body was close to collapsing at any moment, but her mind was as light as it can be.
Altair smiled faintly.
‘I should have said and done this earlier, why have I been hesitating and avoiding this until now?’
But the time she had been given was too short.
Blood kept spewing from where she had been pierced as she faded in and out of consciousness. Her vision was gradually blurring.
She tried hard to hold onto the strings keeping her alive.
“So, Ahin. If we were to have a next life and meet, then I’ll accept you as you are.”
“…What did you just say?”
Only then did he move his dry lips to talk.
His eyes, distorted in pain, were soaked in a beautiful scarlet light.
It was heartbreaking and pitiful.
The very image that wholly convinced her that he can’t possibly be a demon.
Altair smiled at him, even this small gesture was breaking her.
And at that moment, she looked straight into his red eyes. For the first and last time ever since she got to know him.
“Ah…”
Ahin groaned softly.
My hands shook with an emotion that might’ve been joy or resentment.
This was the moment I had longed for all my life. The moment has come at last.
I was going to tell you what it says.
Me too, I also want you to-
But fate has always been tough on her.
Thud. Her hands ran down his cheeks, staining it with blood.
At the same time, her warm pulsating heart also froze.
Ahin hurriedly hugged her falling body.
Pressing his chin on her head, his bloody hand squeezed a handful of her platinum hair and moved it to the side as he muttered.
“I shouldn’t have met you. If it weren’t for you, I would have chosen to live completely as a demon instead…”
***
Walking through long corridors.
Faded frames covered the walls on both sides of the hall.
‘I must’ve died when I was with Ahin. So, is this the afterlife?’
There were no windows in the corridor, however due to there being a dim light, Altair was able to catch a glimpse of the picture in the frame.
From a distance, they were only faint outlines, but they increased in depth as she progressed.
Soon, she stood in front of a frame, at once, the details on the picture returned to their original lighting and vitality at an alarming rate.
The scene reflected in the first frame was of a party hall overflowing with gold.
A spacious hall made of antique marble, with a huge and colourful chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Below it, nobles were dancing in pairs in rhythm with the music played by a cheerful band.
‘This is the birthday of the seventh Imperial Princess. I had first met him there…’
As if water had seeped into the paper, she was suddenly brought back as a seventeen year girl who stood there.
She was dazzlingly beautiful in a rice pure white dress, with her platinum blonde hair delicately styled with a sapphire decoration.
The party hall was filled with young aristocrats who were interested in her and were dying to talk and ask her for a dance. However, she was preoccupied with other thoughts.
Ahin Estarrot…
Count Estarrot’s son, who has been rumoured to be the blood of the devil since childhood.
The day when a grand party was held to make the birth of the empirical princess was also the same day where he made his social debutante.
Altair did not believe in groundless rumours, but was instead looking forward to meeting him for a slightly different reason.
‘It would be nice if I could invite him to the training hall of the mansion…’
More than anything else, she was curious as to his talent. Considering he broke the record for being the youngest Swordmaster.
At that time, the two of them were regarded as being the most promising knights in the empire, so I wanted to confirm his skills, as I secretly regarded both of us as being rivals.
Soon after, a crowd gathered at the entrance of the hall to catch a glimpse of the Countess, who was wrapped in a veil, as news of Estarrot’s entrance rang out.
“You have red eyes, right…?”
“It’s a colour that’s not in the Estarrot family, nor is it in the entire Empire. It must be the devil’s child.”
“But why…”
“Then there are no other successors, right? A family with such a long history is not allowed to adopt.”
“But we don’t even know if he’s the biological father in the first place. How do you know that the Countess didn’t have an affair?”
“Then again, he also resembles the Count a lot. Everything, except for those ominous red eyes…”
With all those rumours going around in the crowd, Altair Chernobog couldn’t help but hesitantly look at the entrance of the venue instead.
Soon, the young nobles were gathered around the entrance.
“Oh, Duke of Chernobog! Your Highness, have you heard of the rumour?”
“What rumour are you talking about?”
She asked, in a rather stiff manner.
Then, an esteemed daughter with red hair, who seems to be the head of the group, shook her heart-shaped fan and laughed.
“By the way, you’re welcome. For not being interested in these rumours. It’s just that the Count of Estarrot who is entering right now…is the real devil.”
The young aristocrat woman whispered the last word in a low voice.
Then, the brunette aristocrat, who was standing beside her with champagne, followed up with.
“That’s not all. I heard that people of ages aren’t able to keep their sanity….How interesting is that? We’re looking forward to it too.”
“Ha…, do you really believe something like that?”
Altair, who became offended, retorted.
Then, another aristocrat who was listening to the conversation opened her mouth.
“If you see him, I’m sure you’ll change your mind. I saw him before. He definitely has a really evil side. It was a lot different than just looking at a handsome guy.”
Then, Ahin Estarrot and his father Count Estarrot entered.
Many females turned their heads at the entrance, albeit there were too many people in the crowd that only their hairs could be seen.
The brunette aristocrat continued, handing the champagne glass over to the servant.
“Why don’t you see it for yourself? That’s where he is at.”