It was her only option. With people chasing after her in the distance and a deep wound that hindered her movements, she had no choice but to voyage into the Forbidden Forest in hopes of evading them. She took a breath and covered her body with her cloak, hoping to blend in with her surroundings, but even that almost brought her to her knees as she groaned out in pain. Cursing, she trudged forward into a forest of grotesque trees while holding her abdomen as blood trickled down her hands leaving a path. She needed to find somewhere to hide and recover, but she was out of options, her mana had been depleted and she had no allies. She knew then that she wouldn't make it out alive. As she came to this realization, she felt warm hot tears slide down her face. She didn't want to die; she had lost everything and now she was losing her life. How much more could he take from her? Her birthright, her title, her friends? She lost everything, and then the fact struck her, she never had anything in the first place. She stopped and slowly turned around while her face contorted into a wicked grin. If she was going to die anyway, she was going to do it kicking. She pulled down her hood and her face was revealed. White hair that was shoulder length was tied into a bun, and crimson eyes shone like jewels. Her porcelain skin had scars from years of abuse as a child, and half her face was covered in an ugly scar that one would gasp at.
Clenching her fist, she waited in silence for her pursuers to arrive. As expected, a few moments later she heard hurried footsteps. Then two people slowly showed themselves to her. A girl with gray hair and blue eyes looked at her with a look of contempt and fear while the girl's companion looked at her warily. They knew she was dangerous and this fact excited her. As she started laughing the gray-haired girl backed away timidly like a dog with all bark and no bite. She continued to laugh and slowly turned her head towards the girl. "Are you afraid… dear sister?" Her sister then grit her teeth and warily let a look of disgust permeate through her murky blue eyes. She pulled on the hand of her companion and then turned her attention back to the girl. Her expression of disgust slowly turned into one of pity that made the girl sick. The girl hated being pitied and her sister knew that the most. As she turned her head away from her sister, she grit her teeth and drowned in anguish. Her sister subtly felt the girl's change and slowly reached out her hand like she was taming a wild beast. The girl glared and she flinched while slowly pulling her hand away.
"T-Tana," her sister said softly. The girl's whole body visibly flinched at the sudden use of her nickname. Not used to the foreign name that came out of her lips, her sister unknowingly stuttered. They had always addressed each other formerly despite being sisters. Tana looked into her sister's eyes and saw a new emotion directed towards her, warmth. Surprised by her sister's facial expression, she frowned. They were never on good terms and she had never received warmth from her family, so this confused her. While thinking of this, she suddenly felt bile rise up through her throat, and she felt the metallic taste of blood. She began to violently cough and a piercing pain sharply spread through her body. Her sister's eyes widened and she tried to rush to Tana's side but her companion held her back and aimed a look of distrust towards the girl's seemingly injured gait. Gasping, the girl barely managed to utter a few words. "My injury is real. I'm sure you saw the blood?" She coldly grinned and looked into the eyes of the person accompanying her sister. Wary golden eyes stared back at her. It was like they stared through her soul and felt her pain.
The golden-eyed man then proceeded to hand her a teleportation scroll. Tana's eyes widened as she regained her composure. "Why are you helping me?" she asked while staring at the man in surprise. He silently pointed towards her sister who looked towards their exchange with wide eyes. The girl silently chuckled and barely managed to hold back a groan of pain as she turned her attention back to her abdomen. She sighed and focused on slowing her ragged breaths. She was in no condition to teleport; being disoriented by her surroundings would just worsen her declining condition and the soldiers would eventually find her. Wanted posters with her exact description would be posted all over the Empire by now, and to make matters worse, an incentive for her head would only bring her to her knees faster. She smiled bitterly at her dire situation and adorned herself with a look of defiance. She knew she was going to die and she had prepared herself for it, but the real thing made her shudder. Instead of dying while kicking, she decided to do it on her own terms. She looked at her sister with a look of remorse then released the rest of her mana.
Realizing the sudden shift in the atmosphere, her sister ran and caught Tana in her arms. Tears welled in her eyes as she looked down at Tana's lifeless body and took in her features. Her thin and delicate figure suggested that she had not eaten for days and her sunken eyes were deprived of sleep. Her body struggled to keep itself afloat as it began to tremble like a naked tree in a snowstorm. Her eyes quickly lost their luster as she barely managed to whisper her last words. "B-Be…careful of…d-duke." At her shocking last words, her sister donned a look of confusion but then Tana's death struck her painfully. Like she had just taken a fatal blow to the gut, she began to sob wildly and let out shrill cries. In madness, she began to shake Tana's corpse wildly and pinch her cheeks to search for any sign of life, but her attempts seemed to be futile. She hugged Tana's corpse in a tight embrace as it slowly lost its warmth. Her sister then felt a sharp pang of regret for their strained relationship and prayed. A low sound could barely be heard from her lips. "If we're sisters in our next lives, I'll be a better sister."