Renee’s breathing was starting to become too excruciating to bear. Each intake felt like someone had dipped their hands in alcohol and clawed their way through the insides of her lungs.

She trembled violently as she grabbed the hilt of the sword sticking out from her chest. Then upon taking a deep breath, she pulled it out as swiftly as she could. Her brain exploded from the blinding whiteness. She wanted to vomit.

Perhaps the gods and goddesses above had taken pity on her pathetic state, or maybe she had used up all her lifetime's worth luck, because much to her surprise, the prince had narrowly missed her heart by an inch of a hair. Renee was also thankful that no one knew a dragon’s anatomy because the sword’s tip had landed right in her diaphragm, thus also avoiding puncturing her lungs.

However, despite already taking out the sword, right now the problem was the fact that she was losing blood rapidly from the gaping hole in her torso.

She had to take it out. After all, the sword was laced in poison. If she didn’t die from the poison, she’ll probably die from blood loss.

“He must have wanted me dead… " Renee laughed bitterly.

“AHHHH!” she hissed as she turned on her back to find a more comfortable position.

Earlier, she had flown as far as her damaged body could take her and once she was too fatigued to continue, she sought refuge in a cave located within the dense southern forest of Calendula. Luckily, there shouldn’t be many merchants going in and out right now since it’s still winter. But she still had to be cautious- there’s no doubt that Elias would eventually send out troops to find her after they settled the fire situation. She knew more than enough about his terrifying predatory nature- to Elias, she was just a beast, not his ex-fiancee, and her mindless rampage earlier was the trigger that permanently changed his view of her.

However, inside that enormous body of hers, she was still Renee Annalise Vellamere. Despite still being in her dragon form, her mind was as clear as day. Before this, when she lost herself to the madness, it felt like she was drowning in a dark abyss. She didn't know who she was or what she was doing. Could it have been the Elias was the one that brought back her when he stabbed her?

‘Ironic’ she smiled wryly.

Renee felt herself getting wearier and wearier as her eyelids felt like iron weights were attached to them. Her life was slowly draining out like her blood- she was dying.

From the corner of her blurry vision, she could see her blood traveling down towards a nearby cave stream, staining the crystal clear water a deep ominous red.

“Perhaps it’s better if I die… ” she murmured weakly.

That way, no one else can be hurt because of her. That way, she didn't have to face the reality that she was all alone in a world that feared her existence...

"... This is for the best"

And so she accepted her fate. The agony and torment fading away as Renee’s vision darkened.

---

“Older brother! Wait for me!”

“I told you to go back home, didn’t I? Why are you still following me?”

“But, everyone else is busy so no one can take care of me back in the village”

“Ahhh fine! But stay close to me. Do not wander away from my sight or else I’m dragging you back, ok?”

“Yay!”

Amidst the stillness of the forest and the sound of snow crunching, two voices spoke animatedly in the forest- one belonging to a young boy with silver hair and the other belonging to a young man with lilac hair. A typical person would have dismissed these two as simply wanderers passing through, however, if someone had sharp senses, they would see that there was something distinctively different about the way they carried themselves.

Both wore a brown cloak that covered them from head to toe, hence making it difficult to see their true identity. But that wasn't the strange part- no, the strange part was the way they're acting. Their body language and the way they weaved through the trees easily indicated that they knew their way around the forest like they have been there plenty of times before.

It was strange. Nobody should know the off beaten paths of the southern forests- even well-seasoned merchants passing through would never deviate from the main roads. After all, the southern forest was home to several mid-level beasts, and if you didn't bring trained guards or mercenaries with you ... well, it's basically like putting a giant "Eat me!" sign on yourself.

So why were these two making it seem like it was their backyard?

“Hey brother, why did you suddenly wanna go to the forest?” the young boy asked, his greyish eyes widened adorably.

“Hmm? W- well, I was sent on an errand”

“Liar. You just wanted to escape master’s lessons today”

“Brat! If you knew then why’d you even ask?”

The young boy grinned childishly, his pearly whites showing.

“I just wanted to see what excuses you’d say”

“You cheeky bastard!”

The young man pinched the boy’s cheeks causing him to yelp in pain. Why is it that he was always teased by the younger ones? Isn’t he, as the older person, supposed to be the one doing the teasing?

And then suddenly, the young man stopped in his tracks. Looking at how his older brother’s face had suddenly stiffened, the boy also tensed up and immediately placed his guard up.

“What is it?”

“I smell blood”

It was very faint and easily missable, but the young man possesses an excellent sense of smell- it was the best in the village actually. There was no mistaking the metallic smell of blood that had permeated the winter air. The boy spoke up first.

“Should we check it out?”

“No, you stay here. It might be an enemy”

The boy pulled on his brother’s arm, his face determined.

“But, what if it’s not? What if it's someone from the village? You know that no one else would be in these parts of the woods. Besides, I’m the only one between the both of us who knows how to treat an injury”

The young man sighed deeply, a mixture of complicated emotions flashed across his face. His younger brother was indeed the only apprentice healer in their village. However, he was also worried the other party might be an enemy and attack them if they were still conscious- or worst, it might be a trap... But then again, it also might be someone from their village who had come back from a job and was attacked on their way home.

After deliberating it for a bit, he sighed.

“Fine! But you cannot come out from behind me unless it’s safe. Any signs of danger and you run straight back to the village, ok?”

The young boy smiled, nodding his head vigorously and patting his sling bag filled with bandages and medicine. It was a good thing he had brought it along with him when he saw his brother sneaking out earlier.