In the history of the city of Iciclaris, the records state that on the day in which King Leroy attacked the city, that the Captain of the Knights sacrificed herself in order to singlehandedly defeat the evil king and his army.
What was not recorded was the fact that the husband of the Captain- Jorris- betrayed the village and acted as a spy for the King of Envy.
Misticia took over the Knights as the newly promoted Captain, following the death of her heroic comrade.
The reason why Jorris was not recorded among the history was because of the words of Misticia on that day.
"Ella died in order to atone for the sins of her husband.... she took on the men who were led here on her own, and to the end she still cared for her husband..... even if he was a filthy traitor and nothing more than a spy.... it would be disrespectful to the wishes of the Captain to make this fact known. Therefore.... this will be kept a secret among the people who are here."
Misticia ordered the knights on the wall that day not to speak a word of the betrayal of Jorris.
Many of the knights gritted their teeth at this order, infuriated that Jorris would not go down as a traitor- however more infuriated than anyone was Misticia herself.
Ella was a lifelong friend of Misticia, and yet as soon as Jorris had appeared, that friend was lost.
She did not lose her own knightly way or code of honor, nor did she decline in leadership as a result of Jorris entering her life, however there was something different about her which Misticia could never quite come to terms with from the moment Ella met her husband.
"Would you like to attend a banquet with the rest of the knights? Everyone will be attending, and it would certainly be lonely without you, Captain."
"Ah, forgive me Misticia, but I have plans tonight."
"Plans with that man again?"
"Mmm.... yes, that is correct."
"I see. Then I will give everyone your regards."
"Please do."
Misticia felt distanced from her comrade as soon as Jorris had appeared in her life, and that distance never closed. When she bore her two children, that gap continued to grow even further.
'But even so, she never gave up her own duty as a knight. And for that.... I forgive her. I only wish that I could have spent more time with her when she was alive.'
Misticia left the wall that day, bittersweet feelings consuming her.
Yet there was another emotion which lay deep within her heart, that she suppressed with all her might.
Anger.
Hatred.
She could not forgive Jorris.
If he had merely taken Ella from her and acted as a good and loyal husband and father, that would be one thing.
It would be the case that Misticia's own jealousy was misguided, and that instead she should have been happy for her comrade rather than distanced and jealous.
However, Jorris had deceived her.
He arrived years ago in this city, seduced her, played her like a fiddle, and even became the father of her children- only to betray her and the people of this city in the end.
And even in her last moments, Ella had not only forgiven her husband, but taken responsibility for his actions.
She paid with her life.
In the mind of Misticia, it was the fault of Jorris that Ella had died. It was his fault that Leroy had shown up on that day after a long term plot had come to fruition.
What Misticia did not realize was that there was no such long term plot.
Jorris was in no way involved in the attack which Leroy made on the village of Iciclaris, and yet in the minds of the Knights he was the sole cause of it.
'He deserved to die.'
'It seems that he couldn't live with himself after realizing his own sins....'
'Serves him right.... but there is no recompense here. Even if he is dead.... that will not bring back the Captain.'
Filled with remorse at the death of their Captain and hatred towards the man who worked as their Vice Captain, the Knights continued on in their endeavors with heavy heart.
Misticia took over as the Captain of the Knights, and the two children were taken into her custody where they lived in her own personal barracks.
They were soon sent to the Academy to learn, and grew up alongside Misticia's own child, Melissa.
'It is my duty to take care of the children who she left behind. I will do that much for her.'
On the day in which Misticia went to take the two children into her own home, she informed them with heavy heart of the deaths of their own parents.
Knocking on the door of the home, Misticia was met by the two children.
"Hm? Mother and father are not here if you came for them."
Answering the door with confused faces, the children stood before Misticia.
On looking at the first child- Evelyn- Misticia was filled with grief.
'She is the very image of her mother....'
And on looking at the second child, Misticia was filled with hatred.
'And she is the very image of that corrupted traitor.'
The two girls looked just like one another with the only differences being the type of elemental which they were.
Evelyn was a being of pure ice. To even say that she was related to a flame elemental would cause great confusion upon witnessing her appearance, which showed not the slightest bit of flame or molten rock.
Envidia was a being made from molten rock. No flames surrounded her body aside from her own zig zagged ponytail, which made up her hair. Because she lacked a large amount of flames around her body, she didn't resemble her father perfectly, yet she was similar enough to the point that irritation was aroused within Misticia just by seeing her.
"I.... have something to tell you two. May I come in and sit down?"
The two girls nodded, heading over to sit on a couch where Misticia looked down with a solemn expression.
"I don't know where to even start. I don't know how to tell you this. There is no good way to say it, so I will say it bluntly."
Misticia looked up at the two girls, who were confused, and spoke without reserve.
"Your father betrayed our people, acting as a spy for an army which came to this city in order to attack it. Your mother fought valiantly against this army... and has died in order to stop them."
The two girls looked to one another as their expressions became blank.
They had just been told that their own parents were dead.
It must be noted that these girls were only a mere 10 years old, and for an elemental this was an extremely young age- not even old enough to go to school.
For these girls to be told such a thing at this age, they didn't know how to react.
Tears came to the eyes of Evelyn, freezing before they dropped to the ground.
Misticia watched with sadness, doing her best to stop herself from crying as well.
However, it was the expression of Envidia which disturbed her more than anything.
"I see. That sucks."
Without even the slightest hint of emotion, Envidia made this statement.
"What will happen to us?", she asked.
As the young girl asked this, not blinking an eye at hearing the words of her parents death, Misticia blew a gasket.
It took everything within her to stop her from jumping up and killing the child before her on the spot.
'You... you little..... you...'
Glaring with hatred at Envidia, Misticia whispered words which came to the ear of the girl.
"You're just like your father.... not caring an ounce about the people around you...."
On hearing this statement, Envidia's eyes became wide.
There was an excessive amount of bloodlust within the statement of the woman before her, and Envidia flinched back in fear in the face of such bloodlust.
'W.... why is this woman looking at me like that?'
Not understanding why she was being targeted with such hatred, Envidia was filled with fear.
Calming herself slightly, Misticia then spoke in serious tone.
"I know this is sudden, but I will be taking the two of you to live under my household from now on. In order to repay your mother for all she has done for us, we of the order of knights will ensure that you two are taken care of."
With this statement, Misticia stood up, motioning for the two to follow.
"Come with me."
Envidia and Evelyn followed the woman, both filled with completely different emotions.
Evelyn who was overcome with grief at the death of her parents and Envidia who was overcome with the fear of the woman before her.
The two followed the woman, and began to live their new lives.
----
Years passed.
Envidia and Evelyn were placed in the Academy to obtain a basic education.
Having been raised in the care of the Knights and alongside Melissa, Envidia felt out of place all her life.
Evelyn and Melissa were loved by the Knights.
They were given the positions of the 'future captain and vice captain', and raised in such a manner that when they were older they would be able to inherit such positions.
The two were trained in swordsmanship, and spent much of their time with the other knights.
Envidia on the other hand, never felt at home.
The knights would glare at her as she walked by.
Misticia- the woman who had raised her like a mother- seemed to despise her.
Even when she began to attend school, she didn't feel at home.
She was ostracized.
One day in particular, the constant mental battering which Envidia experienced exceeded it's limits.
This day went down in the history of the city of Iciclaris as the day in which the Queen of Hell appeared.
----
Envidia sat outside in the training grounds, sitting on a bench by herself.
The girl's flames were excessively weak, just barely lighting the molten rock which composed her body.
Sitting on this bench alone, she watched two girls her age from afar.
One was an elemental of ice, with the same hairstyle and similar looks to Envidia. This was her twin sister, Evelyn.
This girl held a sword in her hand. The metal handle was tipped by a blade of ice in which she had created from her own magical abilities, and she was currently squaring off against one of the knights.
"You're doing great, Evelyn! You remind me just of your mother! Without a doubt, you'll be our Captain one day!!"
The man praised the girl as he parried her swings, as if he were a father teaching a daughter.
Another girl made from mist was currently squaring off against a different man in the training ground just next to where Evelyn trained. This girl was Melissa, the daughter of Misticia- the woman who acted as a mother for Envidia and her sister ever since their parents died.
Staring at the two from afar as they trained with their respective partners, Envidia merely sighed.
'Why can't I train as well?'
The girl rested her chin on her hand with a bored look.
As she sat on this bench, a Knight happened to pass by.
With a dirty glare and a 'tch!', the man walked past, clearly voicing his own disgust.
'Tch to you too, dude.'
With an annoyed expression, Envidia thought to herself.
'As always, dirty looks and verbal disgust. Ah... why do they hate me so much? Just because I'm related to my father? Just because my father was a traitor?'
Jumping off the bench, Envidia stepped forward with a bored expression.
'Sigh...'
Letting out a sigh, Envidia watched as the Knights praised her sister and Melissa from afar.
'Why can't they praise me as well? Why is it always them? Because they work hard? No. They never even gave me a chance.'
The two other girls finished their exercises, grabbing their bags and getting ready to head to the Academy before waving off a number of the guards.
Envidia allowed the two to go ahead of her, sneaking behind them from afar so as to not draw any attention to herself.
Following the two from behind, the three walked to school separately. Evelyn and Melissa talked, laughed, and as they walked through the city of ice more and more girls joined the group.
"Hey Evelyn!!! Hey Melissa!!!"
"How are you two doing!?"
A crowd of girls gathered around the two. They were clearly popular.
Envidia made sure to stay far enough back so as to not be noticed, merely looking at the group from afar.
'Why do they all gather around her? Because she's going to be the Captain someday? Because Melissa will be the Vice Captain someday?'
Glaring with evil eyes, Envidia looked upon the group with disgust.
'Why do you get everything?'
----
"Ah.... it looks like someone removed one of the desks from this classroom.... how troublesome.... ah, will someone please volunteer to stand throughout the class? Envidia, how about you?"
"No thanks."
"That was not a suggestion. It was an order. Now stand."
The laughter of the class filled the ears of Envidia as she was singled out among the group.
As soon as she stood up, entering the class was her sister and the group of friends she walked with. The teacher seemed to beam with delight upon seeing them, or more particularly on seeing her sister.
Walking over to the corner to stand, Envidia crossed her arms as her sister took the seat which she was previously sitting in.
'Why do you get that seat? Because you're going to become the Captain one day? Because everyone respects you?'
"Envidia, did I say you could lean on the walls? Please stand up straight."
"Am I being punished for something?"
"That's the second time you've talked back to me today. So yes, now you will be punished for something."
Envidia felt the smirking glares of the rest of the class. Her sister didn't so much as peek back, not even making an attempt to care.
'Hah hah. Very funny.'
Standing up straight, Envidia watched as class begun.
"Envidia. I see that you aren't properly taking notes. That's another strike on today's behavioral record. My goodness.... do they even teach you flame elementals any manners where you're from?"
"I'm not from Volaciophus, teacher. I'm from Iciclaris."
"And now you're telling lies again? My goodness... just how on earth did a troublemaker like you get into this city in the first place? It must be out of the kindness of their hearts that the Knights put forth the effort to care for you. At any rate, quit lazing about and start taking your notes."
"In case you forgot, I am currently standing and without a desk. Do you expect me to take notes in the air?", Envidia snapped.
"It is your own fault that you are standing. I expect you to figure things out."
With a sigh, Envidia grabbed her notebook from her bag which was on the ground beside her, and started writing notes while standing.
Halfway through class, Envidia pricked herself with the pen.
"Ah...."
A spurt of lava bursted out of her fingertip, seeping through the pages and dripping onto the icy floor, creating a small hole.
"Envidia!!! Destroying your notes as a symbol of rebellion to the instructions I gave you, and even destroying school property at that!? This is unbelievable. I'm going to be sending you to detention later today."
"I see."
'That makes it the third time this week.'
"I see!? No, you clearly don't see!! You don't see that each and every one of the other students- including your sister- sits patiently and learns without issue. However you alone cause these issues, time and time again!!!"
"Do you not perhaps think that you are singling me out because I'm a flame elemental?"
"Preposterous!!! Look at all the different types of elementals we have here as students. Water, ice, wind, electricity, mist. Among all of them, not a single one is as disobedient as you. Accusing me of treating you worse because you are a flame elemental? Hah! I think instead that you have been performing such rebellious acts for exactly that reason!! It is you who have singled yourself out, not me!"
With a hmph the teacher turned back to the board, continuing her lecture as Envidia rolled her eyes.
'Ah ah.... why does sister get acknowledged as the good kid? Why am I the one who's getting singled out? I didn't do anything that she didn't do. Is it because she's going to become the Captain? Hahaha... I'm getting sick of this.'
Later that day, Envidia found herself in detention, doing wall sits.
"If you lower yourself then I'll add another minute for each time you do so!!! I'll whip you back into shape even if I have to beat you into it! You may have been born with a corrupted nature, but you are living in the city of Ice so I will fix that!"
Envidia endured the painful exercise, cringing and continuing to lament her own situation.
'Ah.... why do I have to go through this? I'm the only one, right? I'm the only one who gets this treatment. Everyone else comes and goes. They don't get told to give anything up. They don't get anything taken from them. They all get everything they want, and I don't even get the shit off their platters.'
After hours of torment, Envidia was let go by the teacher.
"And don't you dare make me do this again tomorrow!!"
Envidia bit her flaming tongue, not allowing herself to make a retort lest the teacher change her mind and make her do a hundred more exercises.
Walking away in silence, she could hear the teacher as she audibly voiced her own disgust.
"Good for nothing....."
It was as she was walking home that day, her eyes tired from the long hours as the sun set, that Envidia was ambushed.
Surrounding her were three girls. Taking a look at them, they were the ones who had flocked to praise her sister and Melissa that morning.
"You waited this long for me? How thoughtful. I might cry.", Envidia stated, void of emotion.
"Hahaha.... oh, we're going to make you cry alright."