"Humans are wonderful... until they are not."
That's something my mother used to say but I never listened. Since we were all happy, there was no necessity to be suspicious of the world however, right now, I finally understand what she meant.
In my final moments, I have come to the realization that we, commoners, are nothing but puppets, ready to be thrown out at any minute by the rich and powerful.
'What a filthy world this is,' I think as my eyes wander to my left just to be greeted by the gruesome sight of my dead mother's face of despair. Her complexion looked pale while her beautiful brown eyes were wide open, trying to find any sign of peace.
Since I was young I always thought everything was simple and I never encountered any problem due to my parents' protection. I never knew how harsh the reality is, how feeble we are in front of the power of money and greed. My mother was wrong, humans are nowhere near wonderful, they are pure beasts wearing a coat of ignorance and innocence to atone for their sins.

As my breathing grows softer and my vision turns blurrier, my heart feels lighter. When Lord's Mue soldiers invaded our house I was terrified and, right after feeling a sharp pain in my abdomen, I was able to witness the slaughter. My whole family crumbled to pieces just because of the desire of one man.
"If you cannot pay then you cannot stay on my lands."
That's the excuse the Lord would say every time he would send his guards to collect some souls. Part of me still wonders how they can kill simple farmers without any signs of remorse. This season was filled with rains and the majority of our crops died, leaving us with little food and barely any money to pay our weekly fees to that nobleman.
Right before those butchers left the house I had my soul tainted with vengeance. I wanted to kill them all, leave none of them behind however, right now, in this bloody room only enlightened by the moonlight I feel nothing. I've realized how weak I am and how futile it is to fight back from a destiny that I never owned in the first place.
I can't avenge them.
I can't survive.
I'm just waiting patiently to return to the arms of my family in the afterlife.

As my tears ran dry alongside all the small pieces of hope that still gathered around the leftovers of my soul, I shivered in fear. There was something in this house, something big, monstrous, inhuman. It was as if I could feel it, everywhere around me.
"Do you wish to live?" I hear a deep voice somewhere far away, it felt frightening. Reluctantly I stay silent just to be touched, a couple of seconds later, by an extremely hot breath. Suddenly I open my eyes just to be bewitched by the brightest golden eyes I'd ever seen. The voice kept asking me the same question, over and over again while my silence was pressured by this creature.
"Yes," I replied with all my leftover strength, in a pathetic attempt to survive this unfair ending I'd gotten. Is this what they call delusion?
"Very well. Eri Lin, you shall be reborn to fulfill what they couldn't. Heal the Empire and enlighten the way for those whose path was lost. We will meet again."
As the bright golden eyes disappear from my blurry vision I feel my chest tighten painfully, almost as if someone had stabbed me with a burning sword and, without noticing, I am devoured in pure darkness.

I slowly open my eyes just to see the beautiful morning sun kissing my face. The noise of the birds was overwhelming and my head felt like it was burning. "What happened last night?" I question as my body sits straight but soon got my answer.
My mother's dead body was right next to mine, her eyes bleeding out and her mouth open, almost as if she wanted to say something. Right beside her was my baby brother's body, with a hole in the middle of his chest. Then I see my little sister sitting against the wall with all her bones broken while two knives hold her still. My older sister was nowhere to be seen.
'Did they take her?' was the first thing that came to mind however, as I slowly pushed my body upwards from the blood bath that my house had become, I see a familiar shape in the dirt right outside, illuminated by the sunlight.
"Stella," I whisper after walking closer to the figure in front of me, filled with wounds all around her body. Her dress was ripped, leaving all her intimate parts showing. My beautiful older sister was now tainted in red after enduring all those man's vicious desires.
Even though my heart was numbed from the majority of feelings, I could still feel the infuriating lust for Lord Mue's blood. I feel my fist clunch and quickly punch the floor in anger, screaming at the top of my lungs as I felt the small stones mixed in the dirt penetrate my skin. The tears start to assemble in my eyes, preparing themselves for a silent escape.
"They will pay. All of them... will pay." I say calmly as my body trembled with anger. My soul had been consumed by vengeance and somehow, thanks to whoever that was I will be able to burn Lord Mue to the ground alongside all his troops. I still have no idea how I survived or how my wounds healed but the truth is, I am alive and, right now, that is all that matters.

A couple of days have passed and I've managed to bury my family on our humble farm. Without having any neighbors or friends to rely on I have been feeding on the stored leftovers from our beloved crops. The guards haven't appeared again and, to be honest, that is the best option for me. Right now there is no way I can fight them. I don't have any strength, I can't even wield a sword or shoot an arrow however I was always the brightest in the family.
Father used to say that he would give all his money just for me to go learn at Davian, one of the few areas that would teach noblewomen. No matter how much money we saved, that was never a true possibility for us. I think that was one of the main reasons that made him enlist in the army. "Great deeds deserve great rewards."
That is one of the ideals that the Emperor keeps on marking in our minds.
As I go back inside the house and sit down on one of the wooden chairs I start to consider my possibilities. I can't stay on this farm, the stench of blood doesn't come off, no matter how many times I wipe it. I don't have anywhere else to go since I am supposed to be dead. If they find out I am alive they will kill me, that's for sure.
"It's so quiet" I whisper as I lay my back on the chair. By this time my baby brother would be screaming for Stella's attention while my little sister and mother would be cooking lunch. Sadly I continuously find my eyes wandering around the house while my mind plays tricks on me.
They are not here anymore but I still find my soul searching for them. My special family, the people I loved the most will never embrace me again. "I'm sorry father, I couldn't keep my promise," I say softly while I bring my hands towards my head, pulling my long brown hair backward.
I thought about what I could do, what strategy to take, what road to walk through, and, after hours of wondering, it finally hit me.
"I'll be right under their noses," I say while my lips start portraying a smile harboring chaos and destruction.
That's it. I will work for that Lord Mue and learn everything I can while I wait for the perfect opportunity to end his pathetic and miserable life. This was the best course of action I could take. To be fair, I am not certain about the outcome of this greedy play.
One of my attributes is my gut and my rationality, even though, I don't know anything about the world. I can write a few basic words and read simple texts however I always wanted to learn more because, at the end of the day, the more you know, the more dangerous you are. So I will use and abuse Lord Mue's domain until it is time to erase his existence from this world.

A fourteen-year-old girl working at his mansion might be extremely dangerous so I have to be smarter than all of them. I need to have the upper hand, otherwise, I won't last. Since I've always lived carefree I never felt the necessity to play on the safe side even though, I knew the risks.
I pick up a cloth bag that my mom had made and place some food there alongside some clothes from my father. Afterward, I take a bath in the cold river close to the crops and get dressed in man's clothing. My hair gets tied up in a ponytail and right after I grab my mother's cloak I leave the farm.
Part of me doesn't think this will be enough to disguise myself. Even though it was nighttime and there was only a handful of guards there. Still, they are men and I've seen how perverted their delusions can be.
Every time I walked around town with my sister Stella she would be constantly approached by travelers, merchants, and nobility members. Her mind was always on another world, she never cared about titles or getting married, even though our father constantly pushed her to find a suitable partner. Her beauty was rare so, even though our family was from a poor standing, she had several wedding requests from older nobility men or even ascending members in the aristocracy.
When I had Stella their attention would shift towards her however now I am alone. A young woman alone in a place swarming with men. That is why I need to be strong enough to defend myself and smart enough to avoid fights. I must be like the air, I'm always there but no one will notice me until a typhoon happens.

That bloody night will be always marked in my heart. The pain I felt, the despair I witnessed and the vengeance carved on my insides keeps burning bright. I will do whatever it takes to avenge my siblings and my mother. Their souls were too pure for this world and I won't forgive those who have tainted them with crimson tears.
Today, Eri Lin died and now I'm officially a ghost. A wandering soul without any names, without any ties to any human in this world. Without anything to lose and with one objective in mind. I won't fail.

As I walked through the magically green fields I felt this tingling sensation running through my veins. I guess this was a warning from the darkest place in my mind, I wasn't ready yet. I walk towards the river and notice my big brown eyes and blushed cheeks. My light pink lips and my long dark brown eyelashes. I am quite aware I am not the most beautiful woman, I don't even reach my sister's footing however I need to become undesirable.
Disguising as a man is not enough because once I reach Lord Mue's mansion I will, most likely, be discovered and start working as a maid so I need to be pretty enough to stay but ugly enough queasy the men. It is a high possibility that they will abuse me if they think I have the minimum requirements to be pretty and I can't let that happen.
Before reaching the main villa I had collected several fruits, mushrooms, and herbs to create handmade cosmetics. I saved them all separately in small bags to use later on.

I would say that Gueren is a breath of fresh air but, in fact, it is a city with large shoulders bearing a heavy burden. There is a large gap between the people that live here and the outcasts, like me. At the same time, within the commoners that lived here, there was a distinction depending on one's wealth and status. Nevertheless, there existed an absolute truth, no matter how rich you are, you have to obey Lord Mue and his soldiers if you don't want to face milady death.
'Disgusting,' I thought as I walked through the busy market streets where people equaled to cockroaches, running around without a goal in mind, searching for something that was never here in the first place.
"Would you like to buy an apple? I sell the best ones around here! You won't regret it young man" says a weird man after approaching me and grabbing me by the arm. His smile was filled with despair and, just by looking at the apple, I could notice his lie.
"I'm allergic to apples, I'm sorry" I shove my arm away and keep on walking forward. There is no reason for me to stay in this town. I'm not like these people, I have a goal and I am not going to stop until I reach it.
Still, the man's approach was beneficial. He didn't realize I was a woman so that might become very useful in the future when I leave the Lord's mansion. It was also a wise choice because, besides that merchant, no one else tried to approach me.

Big gates with two strong soldiers guarding the red mansion right behind it. Just by glancing at it, one could feel the intimidation from the property since it portraited the wealth of Lord Mue.
"Halt! State your business commoner" in unison, both guards screamed and placed their spears in front of the entrance as I slowly approached.
I remove my hood and bow down to them, paying my unfelt respects.
"I am a traveler, I've lost all my money, I barely have anything left. I would like to work for the kind Lord Mue." I say just to hear the chuckles of the soldiers.
"And what can a commoner like you do?" one of them asks while the other one replies, in a sarcastic tone, with "Maybe you can pick up some vegetables, sadly Lord Mue doesn't need farmers"
"I can help with the household chores" I state as I clutch my fists onto my knees in frustration. I shouldn't have revealed my gender but they won't take me in as a soldier so I have no choice. I have to work as a maid, that is the only to have access to this mansion and him.
"Why would a woman be using men's clothes?" says one of the guards "Lift your face".
I slowly straighten up and look into the guards. Their faces filled with perversion turned into disgust in a mere couple of seconds.
Before walking towards the gate I took precautions: I applied starch on my face from a windmill on the way and created several fake blemishes with mud. With dry dirt, I made myself look like I hadn't slept for ages and, applied a bright red color on my eyelid from strawberry juices.
"Girl you don't need to disguise yourself as a man, no one will touch you no matter how you dress." says the left guard while the other one keeps looking down on me, without saying anything.
"What's going on here lads?" my eyes start following the man that possessed this new voice. As he grew closer and closer I noticed who he was and my blood started to boil. Preemptively I placed my hands behind my back while they were shaking in anger. Head of the Guard, Lu Feng, the first son of Lord Mue.
Everyone in this land knows of him and his achievements. Rumors say he was the one that killed the last Lord of this land and his family for Lord Mue to gain control over it. People in town also say that if you look him in the eyes for more than a couple of seconds you will end up feeling the emptiness of his soul, that's how he earned the nickname of the "Ice Knight".
"This thing says that wants to work for Lord Mue" they repeat in unison while turning their backs on me to face their superior right before bowing their heads.
"What can you do woman?" he asks me while evaluating me from head to toe with his cold blue eyes. As he glared at me he thought, 'Such a small girl yet incredibly cunning'.
"Everything from cooking to cleaning sir. Anything I might not know I can learn." I say as I bow down my head.
"Very well. Let her in." as he finishes speaking I lift my head and after the gates were open I walk inside the mansion. "We lost several maids recently so we need more. You won't disappoint me right?" I feel a sharp frozen blade pierce through my chest as his eyes stare into mine, glazing me coldly. This was a threat and he had made his point quite clear.