A Warm sunlight pressed against Ginro's eyelids. He groaned softly, shifting.
Grass… Wind… Birds… And- A girl.
A beautiful girl, lying asleep beside him, silver hair spread across his arm like starlight woven into silk.
Ginro jolted upright with a gasp.
"W-W-WHAT- ?!"
He scrambled backward so fast he slipped on something wet and cold.
Squelch.
He froze.
Slowly… painfully… Ginro looked down.
His hand was on the ground... but the ground was red.
"M-Muddy…? W-water…?" His voice cracked. Then the truth hit him.
Blood.
A whole pool of it.
His body trembled violently as he stared at the stained grass, the dismembered bodies around them, the metallic smell thick in the air.
"N-no… no, no- WHAT IS THIS?!"His scream tore through the morning forest.
The silver-haired girl flinched awake, eyes widening in panic before she recognized him.
She sat up shakily.
"You… you're awake…" Her voice was soft, grateful… but filled with fear.
Ginro backed away.
"W-who are you?! Why am I-w-with you?! Why is there- blood everywhere?!"
The girl gathered her courage and bowed her head slightly.
"I… my name is Seraphina. I'm the youngest princess of the Kingdom of Ardelune."
Ginro blinked and ask himself. "Princess? Her?"
Seraphina looked down at her trembling hands.
"I was escaping my kingdom," she said quietly."My family… my siblings… they all want the throne. And because I'm the youngest and the people favor me, they see me as a threat to their succession."
Her hands curled tightly in her lap.
"To them… eliminating me means one less competitor. One less obstacle." Her voice trembled. "So they want me dead."
Her voice shook.
"I fled with my guards… but bandits ambushed us. I ran… and while escaping I… I stumbled into you." She touched her chest. "And you saved me. You… protected me."
Ginro stared at her, utterly confused.
"Saved…? Me?" He shook his head. "I don't… remember anything."
Her expression softened. "Even so… thank you."
Ginro swallowed, uneasy.
Then Seraphina asked: "Who are you?"
Ginro opened his mouth. "I'm… I'm from-"
FLASH.
A memory stabbed through his skull. Chains. A cavern. Screaming angels. Darkness swallowing everything.
He clutched his head, gritting his teeth.
"Ghhh—!!"
"Are you okay?!" Seraphina rushed to him, steadying him with gentle hands.
Ginro's breath shook, but he nodded. "Y-Yeah… I think so…"
Seraphina exhaled in relief. "We should leave. This forest is surrounded by monsters. It isn't safe."
Ginro agreed quickly. "But first…"
He looked down at himself. "…I'm still naked."
Seraphina turned bright red and spun away. "Y-Yes! Please- put something on!"
Ginro grabbed the least-bloody clothes he could find from a dead bandit and put them on with a look of pure disgust. "Ugh… gross…"
Seraphina tried not to laugh at his expression. But the moment passed quickly as they began their journey back through the trees.
-After a few walks-
"Where are we going?" Ginro asked.
"My carriage," Seraphina answered. "I left some money there… enough to reach a neighboring kingdom. I'll beg for asylum if I must."
Ginro nodded.
But when they reached the place, Seraphina froze.
"No… no… no…"
The carriage was surrounded by bandits. Her guards lay dead, their armor broken. Her maids…
Her eyes filled with tears. "W-Why… why did this… happen…"
Ginro watched silently, his expression unreadable.
A bandit spotted them.
"Well, well… look who's alive!" He sneered. "The runaway princess and her pretty boy. Lucky day."
Seraphina stepped back in fear.
Ginro didn't move. Not because he was scared, But because something inside him stirred.
A boiling heat. A burning itch beneath his skin. A hunger.
Kill.
His heartbeat grew heavy, slow, primal.
Kill.
His vision blurred at the edges.
Kill them.
"Hey, pretty boy!" one of the bandits jeered."Who the hell are yo-"
He never finished.
Ginro was suddenly in front of him, faster than the man's eyes could follow.
"W-What-?!" the bandit stuttered, stumbling backward.
Ginro blinked in confusion. His hand was already raised, though he didn't remember lifting it.
The bandit snarled and slashed his blade toward him-
But Ginro's body moved on its own, driven purely by instinct.
And in a single flash, everything changed.
SHRRK-
It pierced straight through the bandit's skull- clean, merciless, unstoppable.
His body froze for a heartbeat, as if his mind struggled to understand the pain that arrived too suddenly to process. His weapon slipped from his fingers. His knees buckled. All strength drained out of him at once.
His vision blurred, narrowing into a darkening tunnel.
And in those final seconds before his consciousness faded, he saw Ginro's face. those obsidian-red eyes burning like a predator in the night, emotionless and chilling.
Then the bandit collapsed, lifeless before he hit the ground.
The other bandits froze, fear overtaking them for the briefest heartbeat. But their hesitation vanished quickly, replaced by rage and desperation. They lunged at Ginro together, screaming.
Ginro didn't move with conscious thought. He didn't need to. Instinct, raw and unrestrained, took over.
In a storm of motion, he annihilated them all. Limbs fell. Screams tore through the air, cut off in an instant. Shadows twisted around him like living armor, black tendrils guiding every strike.
Only one remained. Panic painted across his face, he grabbed the princess and pressed a blade against her throat. "Stay back, or she dies!" he shouted.
Ginro's body didn't flinch. The shadow behind him rippled, pulsing.
And then. A shard of black shadow shot forward, impaling the bandit straight through the head.
The man's eyes went wide in final terror. The last thing he saw was Ginro's glowing red eyes, staring through him.
The bandit collapsed instantly, lifeless.
Seraphina fell to her knees, trembling, silver hair tumbling over her face. She stared at the scene, her eyes wide, voice barely a whisper: "Wh-what… just… happened?"
Ginro stood silently, the black shadow pulsing gently behind him. The forest was still again, broken only by the distant rustle of leaves.
Seraphina reached out, her hand trembling as it brushed against his arm. "He… he saved me, again..." she whispered, a mix of awe, fear, and disbelief in her voice. Ginro blinked, unsure, the red glow in his eyes fading back to normal.
The forest held its breath, waiting for what would come next.