In a small, sterile, white-walled office, two eccentric scientists—one male, one female—observed a young girl with sleek black hair confined within a machine resembling an MRI.
"Miss Ravona, fascinating. No matter how many times I witness this, the purity of her mana is unparalleled, unlike anything I've ever seen in a human," remarked the bespectacled man to the woman at the computer.
"You are mistaken about something," she paused, taking a breath, visibly relieved from the strain of their work. She continued with a smile, "She is anything but human."
"Is that so?"
As he prepared to continue, the door swung open, startling both scientists; it was an unusual occurrence for someone to enter without notice. Their surprise intensified upon seeing a disheveled, half-dead girl standing at the threshold.
"Oh, you poor thing. How did you end up here?" the woman inquired, her voice a hushed whisper. "Look from which room she escaped. We can't have our resource moving around like this, can we?"
The man stepped forward with a gentle smile, offering assistance, "I'll take you to your rightful home. It's dangerous out here. Come wit... H...ME...aahgh!!!"
Before he could reach the girl, a red, energy emanated, severing his hand.
"My hand! My hand! Aaghh!" he screamed in pain, desperately appealing to Ravona for help. However, she remained bewildered by the unexpected turn of events. Soon, her questions found answers.
"Your hand, you say? You're lamenting over something so trivial. Take responsibility for what you've been doing here and perish."
The little girl's appearance transformed; her blonde hair turned crimson, and ruby-like eyes glimmered with bloodlust as she ruthlessly crushed the screaming man's head.
"You no 5990 ? But how? We sent you to the upper floor. What happened?"
"5990? Is that what you think is my name? Do you, devil in human skin, even care about us children? You adopted us on false hope."
Her rage manifested, unleashing an overwhelming surge of bloodlust and mana that swept the surroundings away.
"No!! I remember. I remember your name. What was it?" She smoothly retreated to her desk, fixing her gaze on the girl. Swift and silent, she seized an operating knife, thrusting it through the girl's throat with a burst of mana.
"HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT, YOU LITTLE PIECE OF SH**T? DO YOU THINK I'LL BOTHER WITH THE NAME OF A MEAGER EXISTENCE HERE ONLY FOR EXPERIMENTS? YOU OVERESTIMATED YOURSELF, SO NOW DIE."
"How revolting to the last breath." The girl transformed into a red, misty fog and materialized behind Ravona. Not in fear but due to her severed legs, Ravona collapsed.
"No!! I don't want to die. My leg, my leg! I'll do anything, please stop. It hurts!! Aughgg, it hurts!!!" She pleaded for mercy, tears streaming, crawling desperately toward the door, attempting to evade the inevitable.
"How repulsively unpleasant. Consider it an honor to hear my name with that tainted ear of yours. I am Aritoria. In my realm, they dub me the 'Demon of the Scarlet Night.' Take pride; your demise comes at my hand, so perish."
With the conclusion of her words, Aritoria meticulously dismembered her into minute fragments, invisible to the naked eye. Subsequently, she incinerated the remaining remains into ash and discreetly disposed of them in the corner dustbin, erasing any traces of the gruesome act.
Even though her enemy had been annihilated, satisfaction eluded her; the lingering fury at her own perceived weakness still festered within.
"Wait, what am I doing? This isn't me." She looked around in shock and vomited, vividly recalling the recent battle. It was apparent that someone unaccustomed to violence, like a child who had never killed a rat, would react this way. She attempted to calm herself down.
"This power is dangerous. I can lose myself if this continues. The overwhelming memories won't cease when I use her power. She was a merciless and most feared noble in her realm. Her desires are hard to control; her pride..."
As she contemplated, her gaze fell upon a poor, frail black-haired girl she had encountered on the first day at the Demon Academy of Rulxa. She removed the girl from the machine; she looked like a corpse, having never had a proper meal, her mind shattered.
"Hey? Are you okay?"
It was futile; her mind was shattered completely. She wondered how long this girl had endured these experiments. If it weren't for the essence of Aritoria, she might have suffered the same fate.
The black girl's eyes were open but hollow; she stared at the ceiling with no movement whatsoever.
"This is horrible..."
With eyes filled with pity, she looked at the living corpse of a girl who had lost both her mind and will.
"I can see the overflowing pure mana clearly in her body that I sensed back then, but I can't really get any help from this corpse. Is there any way to heal her mind?"
"There is."
Startled by a voice, she looked around but found nothing. As she was about to declare herself mentally, the voice spoke again.
"Kid, why do you think you are sick?"
She heard the voice again, and this time, she freaked out, yelling into the air.
"Who are you? Show yourself!"
Silence followed, and she accepted that she might be going crazy. Suddenly, the voice responded.
"There is a way to heal someone's mind, but for that, you'll have to learn how to control the mind realm."
"Mind realm? What?" she bluntly replied. "Who are you? Tell me first."
There was silence for a moment.
"It won't do. Well, stay strong, child. I'll show you who I am."
With the end of her words, her vision turned dark and was replaced by a scarlet dusk, or so she thought. In reality, it was a red moon in the sky, blood-like flooring beneath, and a castle before her eyes.
"What is this?" As she stood there in shock, the voice spoke again. "Come inside, child."
Before she could move, she found herself teleported in front of a throne.
The red moonlight illuminated the opulent palace and throne, but the most captivating sight was a woman with silver hair, red ruby-like eyes, and skin as white as milk. Her feminine striking features captivated both men and women alike. Seated on the throne, holding a wine glass with the allure of nobility, her cold gaze fell upon her.
"You wanted to see me, right? And know who I am?"
She didn't emit bloodlust or mana, but the pressure from her was enough to suffocate. The girl replied with utmost sincerity and humility, wary of offending her noble pride.
"Yes, miss. Please forgive any rudeness of this lowly soul."
"Hahahaha," she burst into laughter, recomposing her expression. "Indeed, you are an interesting one. So let me introduce myself."
She rose from her throne, facing the glimmering moonlight, and said with a heavenly smile.
"I am the first princess of the Blodian Kingdom, the Demon of the Scarlet Night.
MY NAME IS ARITORIA, ARITORIA BLODIAN.
Remember it because it was you who gained my soul memories and power."