Two silhouettes with short hair and white robes ran down an old path partially covered in snow. Very soon they would reach the snowy mountains where their target was supposedly hiding.
"Did you see what happened to Mrs. Astrid?" A woman with long white hair asked, moving at the same pace as her partner.
The middle-aged man nodded, "Yeah. It's a great misfortune that the evil spirit possessed this particular young man's body, giving the evil spirit a reason and opportunity for revenge to enjoy her suffering."
"Agh... With a face like that, she definitely can't become an heir... Mistress might even kick her out of the family. I doubt she will tolerate the fact that her daughter has become ugly." The woman frowned slightly, then she fixed her hair to look more attractive.
In the Einrich Family - the head of the family was a woman, and in general, they had more influence than men. However, in order to have power, women had to be not only strong but also beautiful, otherwise, their status became lower than that of men. Thus, every woman in the Einrich Family, always and everywhere looked after themselves, even if they were by themselves.
"Whatever. We have a mission to accomplish." The man shook his head, "However... Where could they be headed?"
At the same moment, from one of the mountains spread the fierce roar of a beast.
Then, the mountain shook as if from an explosion or a powerful lightning strike.
The man and the woman looked at each other and quickly ran forward.
Snow was not as big a problem for them as it was for Evan, Klaus, and Hana since they were magicians.
...
Klaus pointed his rapier at the cub with a great frown.
"What the hell are you talking about? Are you naive enough to think he can survive on his own?"
Evan shrugged, "Well, you're right. 99/100 of the time he'll die, but... if he survives, it'll be really interesting when he comes back. What will he be like? What will he be able to accomplish? And will he take revenge on us?"
Klaus got a strange look, not realizing whether Evan was serious or not, but the answer was obvious.
"Shit... Becoming your partner was a mistake. In half a day you already made two potential enemies that will come after you in the future... You like to take risks, right?" Klaus said irritably but lowered his rapier.
Hana breathed a sigh of relief. If there was any hope that the cub could survive - she was completely fine with that.
As if understanding them, the cub jabbed its nose into its mother's body one last time and ran away, into the depths of the cave or perhaps even into the brutal blizzard.
"Fine, now it's time to warm up. Also, who likes raw meat?" Evan smirked, about to cut the hide off the bear.
Klaus shook his head, "Don't be silly, it's dangerous, better wait for the blizzard to abate. There are enough dry trees here to build a fire and roast meat, but later."
Evan shrugged, "Whatever you say. I don't know this area, so I'll trust you."
Suddenly, Hana dropped to her knees, abruptly and loudly, as if her legs had failed.
"Are you okay?!" Klaus exclaimed worriedly, bending over to her.
However, Hana didn't answer, she only slowly grabbed her head as if trying to avoid something painful.
Her veins swelled, coming from her eye, but not the visible one, but the one that was hidden behind long bangs.
Evan stopped, looking at Hana curiously. He guessed at first glance that she was hiding something, but he didn't know what.
"AAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHH!!!!"
Hana roared like a true beast or rather a demon, definitely not the voice of a human girl.
Her hair whipped upward, revealing a second eye. It was black with three red pupils at once from which came bloody veins and a crimson aura lightly covering Hana's entire body.
Klaus bit his lip until it was bloody, clenching his fists tightly. He had seen this scene many times before, so he knew there was nothing he could do to help Hana.
Evan, on the other hand, watched the scene with wide-eyed wonderment. The only way he could describe it was - creepy.
"Agh... Agh... Agh..." Hana breathed heavily, finally coming to her senses, then she looked worriedly at Klaus.
"This way... two mages are coming this way... I sensed their auras... They'll be here in ten minutes..." Hana struggled to utter, breathing intermittently.
"Fuck. They must have realized someone escaped through the back gate! We have to get out of here!" Klaus exclaimed, packing for the exit.
However, a long sword with a wide blade appeared in front of his chest and stopped him.
"Wait. Why should we run away?" Evan said coldly.
Klaus waved his hand, "It's two mages! Even if we had two working catalysts our chances of winning would be tiny, but now..." Klaus glanced at his rapier, "We don't have any..."
Evan looked at Hana, "I don't know what it was, but thanks to Hana we know about them, but they don't. Even if they're magicians and we're commoners, the catalysts should cut through their skin, shouldn't they?"
"Yeah... A normal sword is unlikely to be able to decapitate a mage, but yours or my rapier... It's possible." Klaus nodded with a deep gaze.
"Fine, in that case, let's make a trap. Three of us, two of them, we are outnumbered." Evan suggested.
Klaus turned to Hana, "But... Hana can't fight. Not with magicians..."
Evan's grin spread across his face, "Oh, she won't have to fight. In fact, she'll be a major part of our plan."
...
The two silhouettes approached the cave entrance, finally hiding from the violent blizzard.
"Damn... That was pretty intense." The man muttered, looking at his reddened palms.
"Yeah, the blizzard only intensified, but we don't need to worry about it anymore. Go ahead, if there's someone here, it's probably an evil spirit." The woman waved her hand.
After walking a few meters, approaching the passage they were dumbfounded - terrified of the massive bear, but very soon they realized that the beast was dead.
"Phew, wouldn't want to fight him." The man wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"Come on. It was an ordinary bear, not a magical beast. Most likely an evil spirit did it, but... where did it go?"
There were two main paths in front of them, not very many, but it also meant that if they made a mistake they would definitely miss the evil spirit.
Step. Step. Another Step.
A girl with black hair and bare feet stepped hesitantly out of the passage. Her gaze was blank and weak.
"Agh...?" She noticed the two magicians and fearfully ran away as if she were hiding something.
"Wait!" The man exclaimed, throwing out his hand, but the girl was unstoppable.
"Don't just stand there! We have to catch up with her!" The woman exclaimed sternly, tearing forward and reaching the passage in seconds.
There was only darkness in the distance, but they were not afraid since they had no opponents there, so without hesitation they headed deep into the pathway.
Unfortunately for them, they didn't notice two silhouettes hanging directly above them.
Evan and Klaus, holding the hilt of their weapons thrust into the walls, pressed their feet firmly against the cold stone.
Their eyes, like freezing blades in the darkness, were fixed on their imminent victims - whose fates were doomed as soon as they entered the cave.