Now that I think of it, I never asked that red head's name. I can only remember her Topaz eyes and childish cries.
"Hey, Puppy! Puppy puppy! Woof woof! Come, come puppy!" she'd call out to me with such a happy smile.
Perhaps it was this thought that lurked in my mind that I dreamt of that day, the day she fell.
She was laughing at first, but then her laughter turned into crying and screaming, pleading for her life.
For the first time, they had put a woman in the well.
All the prisoners before, were men without pride.
Most of them were hysterical, and they all had the mark of Solsus.
I suppose there must be some sort of fetish that the Solsarians are in by branding crazy people.
This dream reminded me of the years before.
There was a man who had fell in the well. He reacted similarly to the other men who had fallen, but he never looked away.
He asked me," Are you the devil? If so, I will sell my soul to you if you help me out."
"I am not a devil," I growled in offense.
"Y-you're not?! But.. You're wearing black and you have that handsome evil look... Are you.. Are you sure?!" he yelled.
"What is up with this generation. So prejudiced. So... ugh. I. Am. Not. A. Devil," I said.
The man whimpered,"O-oh.. okay.. But surely... You're not a human..correct?"
The man kept staring at me in silence for the past five minutes, waiting for an answer.
His staring and the awkward silence irritated me," No, I'm not a human! So quit staring at me! It's creeping me out."
"Whew... then it's true," he said.
I looked back at him," What is? What are you plotting human..?"
"I.. I have a proposition.. whatever you are," he nervously blurted.
"A proposition, eh?" I laughed," Forget it, just rot in this hell hole. Like I would work for you, human- Wait... you. You're a mix. Half human, half Solsarian. Wha-what in the world. I've never heard of Solsarians joining with humans in bed. Have they gone mad...?" I blurted in confusion," Hah, so you're a mix. And you're kind has excluded you and turned against you. This sounds fun. So. What is this proposition of yours?" I asked him.
"For my life, would you sign a contract with me?" he asked me.
This was before the annoying spirit had come to visit me about the second life contract.
"Contract? For? What will I have in return?" I asked him.
"Well, what do you think of being welcomed home with all the happiness in the world..?" he asked me.
"Of course, anyone in this world would love to have that," I replied.
"Then that is my proposal. You can have all the happiness in the world in turn for this contract, my treasure," he said.
"Hah? And how would you even give me that-"
He interrupted me," My life is near its end," he showed me his bloodied wound on his stomache," I can already feel my life swiftly fading away. What is your name, whatever-you-are person?"
"I'm not 'whatever-you-are'. I am Kyuro of the Silver Moon," I boasted.
The man let out a sigh of relief and giggled," Of the Silver Moon Beasts. That lines up. Haha, thank you, Kyuro. Then, let us make a contract."
I stood up confused," Hold on! I never said I agreed-"
His eyes shone with death, sadness, and seriousness, eyes that lit brightly with determined resolve but he smiled at me with a gentle gaze of relief and hope.
"Then by the Silver Moon and the Golden Sun, my breath deceases as the flow of time binds thee, this contract bound as soon as thy treasure found. Kyuro of the Silver Moon, protect my daughter, my treasure and happiness. And in turn, I give thee what you have protected," he smiled.
"W-wait! I never agreed to this! And who said anything about taking your daughter! That's what you meant by treasure?!" I yelled back.
"Yes, my treasure. The only one left is her. If she survives, then all of this is worth it. And you better protect her!" his last comment startled me.
How did this half-ass make a onesided contract with me.
I smirked and said," Well, who knows when I will ever leave this place. How would I even recognize her if I was able to leave?"
He laughed," You'll know. Because her hair is dyed in your kind's favorite color, redwine."
All of the pieces are starting to click. Did that man know I would meet his daughter? But how?
"Kyuro!" Shia had screamed.
Ah, that's right.
It happened again. And I could not stop it.
But atleast this time was a little different.
This time. I was able to save Shia from an assassination.
In the life before, Shia had pushed me out of the way and took the impact of an arrow, peircing into his heart. He had died instantly. I could still remember the numbness of the shock I was in.
The young man I had hardly ever conversed to. The one who would always sneak snacks and food to share with me, who would goofily smile and tease me, had died in my arms, pierced with the arrow that should've ended my life. This time, I was able to save him.
I was lucky. The arrow hadn't reach my heart.
And this time. I wasn't the one cursed.
How strange for our roles to have been switched. Renka was cursed in my place, by the mysterious mistress mage in grey, that had attempted to take Shia's life.
However... Renka still took the life of our God, Saeo.
In panic, I ran to the preparations hall where Saeo would have been.
"No!" I screamed in terror.
"RENKA!!!" I yelled and ran towards him with my fists flamed in mana.
But he vanished into the smoke with the Mage.
I could still remember the sweet touch of his hands caressing my cheek, his voice echoing in my dreams, his warmth that comforted the darkest of nights.
Nostalgia fought with my anger and all I could do was cry in frustration.
Saeo was a kind God who had loved everyone equally. But there were celestials jealous of his lover, jealous of the favoritism over her.
Saeo was lying down. His robe was stained in red, not by his blood, but the blood of his lover.
I ran to his side and frantically panicked, looking for a way to revive him.
"Can a God really die?! You can't die Saeo! How could you?! How?! How could this have happen..." I cried.
"Kyuro, hehe, you're here," he smiled with that familiar look of death in his eyes and cried," If only, if only I could have protected her," he sniffled," Aw, I wish I could've at least lived a life with her. Just once."
"Saeo! Even now, you're talking nonsense," I cried," You really love her."
Tears continued to trickle down his cheek,"Yeah... she was the only one. My true Regia," he said," Haha, one day, when you meet your Regia, make sure to protect her with all your life, but at the same time, be able to live that life with her."
"What're you saying Saeo?!" I yelled.
"Kyuro.. You're one of my right hand men. Find me. Please find me," he whispered.
"What do you mean Saeo? F-find you?" I asked desperately before Death took him.
"I will be reborn for many generations to come. And when the time does come. Come find me. Gather allies, but beware, there are traitors cloaked in light and shadow. I will need your help for the many lives ahead of us. Keep this knowledge well hidden," he whispered as his life slipped away.
Echoing of footsteps in the blazing fires behind us had grown louder. My legs were still numbed with shock, but I readied myself to attack anyone who would enter the room next.
"Kyuro!" Shia yelled. I had almost forgot that he had followed me into the fire.
"We have to leave, NOW!" he told me.
"No! Not without Saeo!" I yelled.
"Saeo is dead!" he said.
"NOT WITHOUT SAEO!" I growled. My body was engulfed with my mana as my anger flowed out.
Shia and the following celestials had helped us carry back Saeo and his belated fiance.
Because of the sudden death of their God, the angered and mourning celestials prepared the funeral in haste. The funeral lasted a month.
Nothing had changed.
I couldn't change what I wanted to change.
It was my fault.
I had my second chance and fate had struck me down, speaking down to me as though to say," How dare you defy me!"
Now all I could do was wait. Follow what Saeo had instructed me.
Centuries had finally passed when I recognized a familiar red head in the market.
She was being sold as a slave.
"I thought she was going to relive her second chance, not ruin it a second time!" I said to myself.
"Kyuro, is that her?" Shia asked me.
I sighed," Yes."