《The Outlaw Princess and her Illegal Property!》 The Black Door. Kobayashi Ryunosuke, a man of the modern world, now stands wide eyed behind the corpse of a soldier, their steel sword buried to the hilt inside their back. The area is lit by crackling torches stuck into the dirt. His body feels light, lighter than it should be and yet it burdens him, his heart pounds aggressively and he feels out of breath. Meanwhile he pans around the unfamiliar area, sparse circles of robed bodies surround the wide rocky platform he''d leapt from, there appears something akin to Egyptian hieroglyphs entirely engraved upon its surface. The faint back curling smell of iron intermingles with a strange minty aroma. As the adrenaline wears off, the mixture floods his nose, causing him to reel backwards whilst pinching his nose. Ryunosuke''s back touches the platform, a viscous cold crimson sticks to his bare skin, "Is that...?" An hour earlier... Ryunosuke''s alarm clock rings soon followed by a voice calling out from downstairs, "RYUNOSUKE YOU''RE LATE!" His alarm rings again, rousing Ryunosuke from his dream. A bird''s wings flap around before landing outside by the scratched windows, with sunlight peering in through thick curtains, rays of light illuminate his bedroom. Ryunosuke lazily climbs out of bed and his gray fur blanket leans off the side, he feels a chill go up his spine before closing the AC. He stands to stretch his arms before sitting back down on the bed, he runs his fingers through his unkempt head, entangled strands of dark hair snap as they''re separated. A calendar hangs on the blue wall by the panel door, there''s a day in march circled in red, with the words ''Graduation day!'' written closely on the top left. Ryunosuke''s wooden desk is placed under the window and beside his bed, on the desk is a sectioned pen holder, a letter and his phone. He reaches over for his phone but struggles before a realization hits; his arm isn''t long enough, so he shifts closer on his bed to grab it. The bird outside''s high-pitched chirps make Ryunosuke stand up; before pulling aside the curtains, he opens the window. "Shoo, get outta here; you''re cute but a noisy ass bird." He gestures at the Shima Enaga, a round bird with soft white feathers. The bird flies off the roof in a hurry, speeding away until begins to resemble a tiny mothball. Ryunosuke watches the bird as he slowly closes the window shut; he locks it before walking towards the other side of the room. Along the way he passes by a standing mirror, he takes a moment to look at himself. Green eyes that were hardly noticeable if you weren''t standing close, dark hair that''s a little too long for school regulations and a thin body. ''I gotta start exercising more... Maybe go for a jog after graduation''s over since I''ll probably be feeling a lil'' sad by then.''Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Dust floats about in the air. Ryunosuke snatches his white school uniform from a rack and quickly shoves his arms through the top, he puts on the rest of his uniform and throws on a blue hoodie, its the last day, who cares? He flies down the stairs several steps at a time and stops in front of a mostly empty room on his way out, only a memorial shrine exists within the space. "I''m graduating today mom, I honestly can''t wait to go to college, if I get the chance to that is haha... Oh but maybe I could buy that console you never got the chance to get me." Raising a finger towards the front door, he smiles before speaking in a gentle tone, "it''ll be fine alright? Uncle has me covered for expenses after all... Well I gotta go now, I''ll be back by dinner!" Ryunosuke waits for a moment, but no reply. His hand drops back to his side. Reluctantly he walks to the exit before slipping on his brown loafers, a key box is hung near the top hinge. Ryunosuke lightly taps his feet against the floor after putting his shoes on, he grabs a key and unlocks the door, bright steaming hot sunlight floods his eyes. Ryunosuke runs across the street when a truck narrowly drives by, whisking the wind up into his face. ''Oh my god...'' His expression turns sour, ''that old man still can''t bother to watch the damn road!'' "HEY KOUGA YOU OLD COOT. ALMOST RAN ME OVER AGAIN!!" He angrily yells at the truck as it drives away, unexpectedly the truck stops and the window rolls down, an elderly man sticks his head out. "SHUT UP! I KNOW YOU DIDN''T LOOK LEFT AND RIGHT EITHER, DID YOU!" His bombastic voice, although far away, still manages to ring in Ryunosuke''s ear. "JUST GET TO SCHOOL ALREADY, YOU''RE LATE!" The "old coot" Kouga rolls back down the window and drives off. "That dementia-ridden Kouga still wants to teach me a lesson... Just who does he think he is?" Ryunosuke roughly stuffs his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. Along the way to school, he finds a pebble in the road and decides to kick it with him all the way there, though he doesn''t get far from home when Kouga''s words flash in his mind, "wait I''m late?" He checks the time on his phone, he is already five minutes late. "Shoot." Ryunosuke dashes at a record breaking speed, whilst kicking a pebble that is. He runs through narrow winding roads and tight alleyways until he reaches the gates of his school. It is spring season and cherry blossom trees are blooming across Japan, including Ryunosuke''s school. Here they are lined up along the short brick walls beside the iron gate, scores of sakura petals litter the ground, various shades of pink streak across the plain white sky. The front of the school is empty, the students would''ve definitely been gathered inside the hall by now. Unfortunately Ryunosuke is unable to appreciate the beautiful scene, as he is too busy panting whilst laid back on the floor. "Hah... Hah..." ''Now I''m not sure if I wanna still go on that jog haha...'' After resting on the ground for a moment, he swiftly gets back on his feet and readies himself. Ryunosuke firmly grasps the straps of his bag, proceeding to step onto his toes for a moment to gather himself, the contents of his bag shift around upon settling back on the floor. He struts towards the gate, leaving the pebble behind him. Ryunosuke places a foot past the gate, when a blast of wind sends him flying backwards, ''what the?!'' He lands on his bag. Ryunosuke feels something start to push him, the air itself appears to be pushing him towards something, in the distance a black foreboding door appears out of thin air in front of him, "that wasn''t there before..." It stands on its own without hinges or a panel. An intricate pattern is scrawled on the door''s wooden material, as if white vines are growing across it, starting from its four corners and in the center of them an odd stone rune with a symbol on it. Ryunosuke looks around, there isn''t a person in sight. He tries to quickly analyze the situation, soon he realises that only things within a short perimeter of the door were being pushed, so he immediately tries to get up and run. However the wind picks up, it pushes him whilst he is still helpless on his back, instinctively he rams his fingers into the dirt, immense pain emanates from them as blood gushes out from their tips and flies into the door. The wind begins to push harder... No... He isn''t being pushed but rather, he''s getting sucked in. The door was now slightly ajar and dragging everything into it like a black hole, the petals, his blood and even the air around them. Ryunosuke soon feels himself losing consciousness, his strength is rapidly running out, he knows that he can''t hold on much longer. The rune began to dimly shine black, with a white outline accentuating its shape. "HELP... ME...!! YOSHIO! MASARU! JUN!" His voice is dry, pain rips through his throat after screaming as loudly as he could. "I-is... anyone there...?" Ryunosuke tastes blood in his mouth, ''crap... Did my larynx break...?'' In the same moment, he loses all consciousness as his body gets violently ripped from the ground, causing his fingers to dislocate. He awakens for a moment when a pebble hits him in the face. He feels time slow down as his body flies towards the door, ''well fuck me...'' He looks behind at the door, watching it slowly creak open. Suddenly it feels as if everything has stopped, like time has paused. Sakura petals are suspended in the air along with small pebbles to rocks and blades of grass. The door fully opens, revealing a dark void filled with bright lights, the rune goes through the door and remains in place, now glaring intensely at him. ''Is that space? Am I... being sent into space by aliens? But why? And what is that thing in the middle...?'' Ryunosuke closes his eyes as he phases through the rune and fully enters the door, he can''t move even a single part of his body. To his complete horror, this isn''t space. He begins to fall, fast. At a speed one would not picture the human body being capable of handling. He soon arrives before a white orb, it slowly expands until it swallows him whole, at that moment he loses all consciousness once again. "Welcome Kobayashi Ryunosuke, to the god forsaken country of Imram." On the Other Side. Imram, one hour before the activation. A beautiful dark haired princess with dazzling ruby eyes watches from under a white canopy, behind her a group of men dressed neatly in brown robes with rope tied around their waists, they frantically flip through book after book and record after record on a long wooden table. She wears a frilly red V-neck dress with puffy shoulders, her standing posture is elegant, she keeps her back straight and her hands together infront. The table is lit by a bright overhanging lantern, connected to one of the canopy''s iron beams which supports its roof. Several boxes that previously contained many books, tomes and records are kept hidden beneath the table. A silver knight trots uphill towards the red princess, flattening the grass wherever he stepped. The male soldier clad in gallant steel armor raises the visor on his helmet, revealing a striking appearance underneath, "your highness! We have finished the final preparations, we merely await your order." His cheekbones are raised high and his jawline angular, an odd polished texture reflects light off of it. The princess speaks in a polite tone, her voice low and tender, "please, lower your visor, your jaw is blinding me." Upon hearing this the man quickly covers his face. "My sincerest apologies your highness, I didn''t mean to." He shuffles backwards to create more distance, "is this far enough your highness?" The man gestures to his visor, it seems to be bothering him. "You may lift it." She answers with a confident tone. The soldier lifts his visor once again, this time there is no light bouncing off his jawline. "We await your order, your highne-" The princess lifts her hand and the soldier stops, "I do not require formalities anymore Aelrion, after this is all over I shall be an outlaw." "Very well then, if that is what you wish." The princess walks up to Aelrion''s left and lightly lays a hand on his left shoulder pad. "You''re a good man Aelrion, I need more soldiers like you who do what they''re told, especially now more than ever." "Let us pray this dragon will listen to us, otherwise it will wreak havoc across Imram, perhaps even the entire continent." The princess releases his shoulder and walks to the edge of the hill overlooking a tall, wide and circular stone platform with symbols of runes engraved into its very surface. The full moon shines brightly overhead. "What do you mean, it''ll wreak havoc across Imram Lyrielle? You didn''t tell me this." Lyrielle solemnly turns her head to look at Aelrion. "I''m sorry, Aelrion, this was the only I knew you''d help me." She turns forward. While Lyrielle is still facing the activation site, Aelrion walks up behind her until he is inches away, his face is stern as he raises his arm and points towards a dark road behind him. The road enters the forest. "I have a family in Imram Lyrielle! A FAMILY! Tell me you''re joking, please." Aelrion''s voice shakes as he hesitantly places his hand on the handle of his sword, the noise attracts the attention of the robed figures behind them. Lyrielle raises her hand up behind her back and lowers her pinky, they all exchange glances before walking away. "Why are you being silent Lyrielle...? And tell me where those men are going!" Without looking at Aelrion she replies, "to activate the summoning ritual." "I served you for so long, allowed you to hold my newborn daughter, sacrificed half my life for the good name of the royal Aleazea family and this is how you repay me?!" Aelrion''s heart pounds, his expression remains severe as the creases on his face tighten. "LYRIELLE!" This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. He reaches for his sword and mere moments away from unsheathing it, Lyrielle yells his name. "Aelrion! your family will be safe so long as the summoning succeeds and the dragon listens to me." Aelrion feels his grip on his sword lighten slightly, "can I trust you with this?" His face begins to relax. "You''re my most trusted knight Aelrion, you know that. I wouldn''t let you down, ever. Matter of fact I have a tool to make the dragon obey me, even if it doesn''t comply." Upon hearing this, Aelrion releases the grip on his sword and steps back. "Why didn''t you tell me sooner?" "Could you fetch it for me? It''s in one of the boxes under the table." Lyrielle gestures towards the canopy behind them. "I must go watch over the preparations." He walks over towards the canopy but keeps an eye on Lyrielle as she walks towards the site. ''I shouldn''t have brought him.'' Lyrielle keeps a steady pace as she descends the grassy hill, ''my own weakness may lead to my demise, but nonetheless I will at least succeed in summoning the great dragon Iommendai.'' "I''ll get to accomplish this mission thanks to your gullibleness Aelrion, I have that to thank you for." Lyrielle crosses her arms as she watches the robed figures place and light up torches around the circular platform. "Get into positions everyone!" She yells. Aelrion sifts through each box but finds that they''re all empty...? "Don''t tell me she...!" Aelrion runs out of the canopy and sees that torches have been set up near and the robed figures now form a perimeter around it, Aelrion immediately unsheathes his sword and charges downhill. Lyrielle quickly notices Aelrion, she gives the order, "start the ritual now!" One of the robed figures stands over a crevice in the earth which connects to the platform, they hold out a knife to their wrist. They squat down closer to the crevice and slit their wrist, blood splatters on the grass. The red liquid falls into the hole and begins to travel through the crevice, quickly spreading into the runes all around the platform. Simultaneously they begin to emit a dim dark light. Aelrion nears the perimeter, intending to disrupt the ritual, but is forced onto his back by a sudden shockwave that blows away the wind in every direction. Aelrion marches onward, ''if I can just get inside the circle they made...!'' Every step he takes requires more effort than the last. He notices Lyrielle in the corner of his eye, and in his unbridled rage, he chooses to follow his heart instead of doing what he must. A black portal opens in the center of the platform when he finally makes it inside. "LYRIELLEEE!! YOU BASTARD!!!" He gets into a stance before pointing his sword forward and charging at her, passing by several hooded figures with their arms outstretched towards the platform, the smell of mint and iron begins to fill the air. Lyrielle who was in awe of the power of the dragon, gets brought back to reality. A knight far larger than her, clad in some of Imram''s finest armor and boasting the greatest weaponry blacksmithing could offer, was now booking it towards her, ready to run his sword clean through. A bead of sweat flows down her face and she gulps as she prepares to engage Aelrion, Lyrielle raises her right hand, closes her eyes and breathes in. When she opens her eyes, four glowing orange magic circles form from her palm, they are layered on top of each other. Lyrielle''s wicked persona drops for a moment, ''forgive me Aelrion...!'' Tears run down her face as she grabs her wrist with her left hand and fires off four blasts of fire from her palm, they go off one after another. Blood begins to pour out of the portal. Aelrion is forced to slow his charge, as balls of fire soar through the air towards him. He cleaves through the initial two and the split parts go flying past him, setting the ground ablaze. The third hits him square on the left shoulder, knocking him off balance, but he still manages to heave himself rightwards, dodging the fourth. Lyrielle feels like bursting into tears but she bites down on her lower lip, causing blood to come out. She raises her right arm and points forward with her left hand, as she gathers her mana into a single point, a lance made of fire begins to form above her head. With her left hand she unleashes another torrent of flames which blocks Aelrion''s vision, the heat begins to affect him through his steel armor. ''I have to end this now!'' Aelrion charges through the fire and makes it through, but it was too late. He couldn''t even react in time as the fire lance melts right through the breastplate of his cuirass and gets lodged inside him, unable to completely pierce through. Feeling the fire begin to cook him from the inside out and the steam scald his eyes, Aelrion tries to contain the pain within his mind. In her panic, Lyrielle closes her right hand and the lance shrinks as it creates a violent burst of flames, sending Aelrion''s sword flying up to the platform, the fire quickly engulfs Aelrion. Lyrielle looks on in horror of what she has done, she drops to her knees and begins sobbing on the floor, every robed figure turns their heads up to the sky, a bright blue mist shoots out from under their hoods. At the same moment, blood stops flowing out of the portal and a body falls through. Suddenly sakura petals burst out of the portal in every direction, landing all over the platform and the area around it. The lance in Aelrion''s chest instantly extinguishes along with the fire burning him, becoming nothing but embers floating towards the sky, he feels his wounds begin to reverse. The portal disappears. Soon his body is returned to its normal condition, however there is still a large hole in the front of his armor and a large portion of it has turned into molten steel. Aelrion carefully removes his armor whilst Lyrielle is still too stunned to realise he was fine. Underneath his armor he wore a leather aketon on his torso, a coif for his head and had chausses over linen pants. He takes off his coif and drops it on the floor, he notices behind Lyrielle the hooded figures have fallen to the floor but he disregards it, he had more pressing matters. He begins to walk towards Lyrielle. Origins. Ryunosuke can''t see anything, he wants to open his eyes but they won''t comply. ''Where am I?'' He hears a loud object clanging beside his head, ''something''s happening around me? Am I in the hospital?'' He figures it was all a dream; the door, falling through the space within it and a voice. ''I must''ve fallen unconscious due to heatstroke when I was laying on the ground, yea, that''s it...!'' Suddenly his eyes are open, he takes a sharp breath when he sees the night sky filled with stars, ''I''m still in that space?'' His eyes are frightened as he tries to move his body, to his relief he can at least shift around but he feels bare. "AELRION STOP! Get away from me...!" Ryunosuke hears a woman screaming to his right and as if on instinct, he picks up the sword beside him and runs towards her voice. Upon reaching the edge of the platform, he doesn''t hesitate to leap down. A man dressed in knight''s clothing is approaching her silently as a woman dressed in red tries to crawl away, a pile of melted armor on the ground behind him. Unable to speak, Ryunosuke screams in his head, ''NO! STOP IT!'' The woman looks up at Ryunosuke, causing the man to turn his head as a sword plunges into his back. Ryunosuke experiences every part of it, every inch of steel making its way through the man''s flesh, he feels it through the handle, he hears a faint squelching followed by blood spurting out through both ends. "Aelrion NO!" The woman screams again and clutches her mouth. Aelrion''s blood splatters around him as his body hits the floor face first, Ryunosuke maintains a tight grip on the sword and twists it ninety degrees sideways, Ryunosuke hears even more squelching and now feels the sword pushing against the man''s insides. "L-Lyrielle..." He extends an arm towards her but it falls to the floor. "Akemi... Dad''s not coming home today... so make sure you go to bed early, alright?" The woman in front stares at Aelrion in complete shock. The man''s voice turns hoarse as he coughs up blood. "Emi... I hope you burn the letters I sent... I love you both, I always will..." With those parting words he takes his last breath, his eyes turning lifeless. "AELRION!" She quickly crawls up to his body and caresses his head in her hands. With tears falling from her eyes, Lyrielle looks up at Ryunosuke, a hostile expression plastered all over her face. Ryunosuke realises he now controls his body, he immediately lets go of the sword and takes a step back, he starts to hyperventilate, his breathing out of rhythm and frantic. His eyes go wide as he continues to walk backwards, his eyes fixated on the man''s corpse. He begins to look around the grassy expanse, several robed bodies surround the platform, even closely to his left and right there are two laying on the ground. Ryunosuke''s body begins to shake uncontrollably. There appears to be a faint mist in the air. A putrid smell enters his nose, the adrenaline finally wearing off, he begins to back away further until his back touches the platform''s stone surface. Ryunosuke tries to look at his back, he feels something cold and sticky on it, "is that blood...?" Whilst Ryunosuke is processing everything, Lyrielle realises something is wrong and runs away towards the hill, back to the canopy. She rummages through countless pieces of paper containing information about the ritual before settling on one, "the final stage, this is the one." She begins to read aloud at a fast pace. "...once the dragon is summoned, all who contributed their mana shall have their souls vaporized, turning into a blue gas that leaves through the eyes and mouth..." "...if the summoning succeeds, this gas will smell cool. If it ends in failure, all souls will still be vaporized but the gas will smell of burnt wood..." Slams her hands on the table, causing several pages to fly off the sides. ''Does this mean the summoning was a success...?'' Lyrielle walks out of the canopy and looks down at Ryunosuke, who''s still in the same spot. ''Aelrion...'' She feels tears welling in her eyes and falls to her knees again, Lyrielle turns her head upwards as tears stream down her face. She yells into the faraway sky, "I''m sorry...! Aelrion please! I''m so sorry...!" Lyrielle''s voice cracks at the end of each phrase, she clutches her chest tightly, her heart pangs with every beat. Lyrielle slowly falls onto her side, grass tickles her face and her eyes begin to close as she hears grassy footsteps grow louder, they eventually stop beside her. "I''m sorry Lyrielle..." Lyrielle doesn''t hear the rest of the words before falling into slumber. Ryunosuke looks at Lyrielle lying on the ground, she continues to cry whilst clutching onto patches of grass in both hands, his eyes are visibly tired but he picks Lyrielle up and brings her over to the canopy. Soft grassy steps echo as ants traverse the ground with bits of food, the faint blue mist in the distance dissipates and Using his legs, he pushes eight wooden boxes together to create a makeshift bed beside the table and gently lays Lyrielle down. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. He quickly pulls another box over and sits down as well. As he watches over Lyrielle, he soon realises that he''s stark naked, his body laid bare for the world to see. His face flushes red as he frantically searches the canopy for clothing but finds none. ''The robes!'' Taking another glance at Lyrielle from behind his shoulder, Ryunosuke swiftly runs down the hill. He soon reaches one of the robed bodies and takes off the hood, revealing a gruesome scene. The man''s eyes have been burnt to a crisp within their sockets and a chilling cyan mist leaks out from where his eyes were, as well as from his mouth, as if it were drool. His head appears to have shrunk, along with the rest of his body as Ryunosuke disrobes them. Their face is contorted as if screaming, to Ryunosuke it resembles a painting, ''The Scream'' He moves carefully so as to not come in contact with the body''s skin, he feels a tingle go up his spine when he sees that below the robe there was nothing covering the body. Ryunosuke closes his eyes and in a swift motion he pulls the robe out through the legs. He turns aside, just enough so he can still see the body in his peripheral vision. He struggles to find the right words. ''That is... Just... Horrific. I''m not touching that.'' A cold wind breezes by, the crackling torches flames waver, Ryunosuke shivers before slipping on the robe. Aelrion''s body lays nearby, his skin is pale and cold, his empty eyes still barely open. "I''m sorry, Aelrion was it...?" Ryunosuke walks over to Aelrion and squats down whilst pinching his nose. Over Aelrion''s body he claps his hands together in prayer, he then gently closes Aelrion''s eyes. Ryunosuke looks at the steel sword stuck upright inside him, he stands up and quickly pulls it out then lays the sword beside Aelrion. Clasping his hands again and closing his eyes, Ryunosuke talks to Aelrion, "I don''t know if this is what you''d want to hear but... If you have a family somewhere, I''ll try my best to take care of them." A drop of water falls on his head, Ryunosuke looks up, a droplet falls perfectly in his left eye. It soon begins to pour, the mist is now completely gone and every torch is put out, the platform now a mere shadow in the darkness. Ryunosuke flips over his hood and slowly returns to the canopy, its polyester roof waves around in the distance. He treads uphill with great caution, the ground has quickly turned to mud and his vision is significantly decreased, he focuses on the faraway swinging lantern. ''One step, two, three. One, two, three...'' He repeats in his head, as he walks towards a light through the total darkness that surrounds him. Eventually he reaches the canopy, Ryunosuke sighs loudly and takes shelter under it. Although the canopy is large, rain still makes it inside, all the papers on the table are soggy by now and Lyrielle is drenched. He quietly curses the sky under his breath. He ponders his next action for a while before deciding what to do, ''guess there''s no other choice...'' He swipes all the papers off the table and picks up the cloth. He places it in a pile on the table and begins to take Lyrielle''s clothes off, ''how do you even take this dress off...? Ugh it''s soggy, this feels so wrong...'' Soon Ryunosuke manages to take it off and strips her down to her undergarments. With only one eye open he picks up the cloth. As gently as he can, Ryunosuke wraps the cloth around Lyrielle and covers her body, ''can''t block the face, she might suffocate.'' With all his remaining strength, he pushes the eight boxes along with Lyrielle, under the table. After tucking her in, he sits down on the box he''d pulled out earlier, although water now pooled on top. Ryunosuke stares at the platform, he bends his back forward and places his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped and fingers entangled with each other. ''I killed someone... But they were going to do something to Lyrielle right...?'' He lowers his head, now facing the ground beneath him. ''Am I gonna go to jail? Wait, where even am I? I can''t see a thing...'' He looks up and around. Noticing something in the air, he squints his eyes and makes out a figure, "what the fuck, is that a person flying?" The shadow disappears after a raindrop flies into his left eye again. ''Goddammit...'' He rubs his eye. Ryunosuke recalls the feeling of the sword in his hands as he fell onto Aelrion, ''seriously... Where am I?'' Pulling the box closer to the table, he crosses his arms on it and lays his head down, soon drifting off to sleep. Lyrielle twitches under the table, she tugs on the cloth, pulling it tighter around her body. "Aelrion... Mom..." After an hour the rain ceases, a couple hours later the day reaches dawn and the sun starts to rise, the moist ground soon dries. Lyrielle blinks her eyes open, still feeling too weak to move, she''s laying on her right side and looks out at the platform. She realises someone is sleeping above her. Kobayashi Ryunosuke, Welcome to Imram! Lyrielle realises there''s someone sleeping above her upon seeing a pair of legs under her. She tries to move but her body is too exhausted to even shift her position. ''I have to do something fast!'' She gathers what little mana she has into her right hand, it begins to glow orange with runic symbols appearing all over it. With a grunt, she punches upwards with all her strength. The table flies upwards towards the roof of the canopy, breaking apart its metal supports and causing the canopy to collapse. By the head, Ryunosuke gets sent along with the table as several dirty pages on the ground get blown into the air. Lyrielle panics as the canopy falls down on itself and she gets covered by the white polyester roof. In her panic she falls off the boxes and hits the hard ground, causing her to flinch in pain. She struggles to find an exit from the mess she created, ''my punch shouldn''t have been that strong! What happened to me?!'' Lyrielle crawls until eventualy finding the edge of the mess and dragging herself out. Upon standing up, she realises her clothes have been replaced by the table cloth from the table. "Wha-!" Lyrielle quickly becomes quiet when a sound comes from the fallen canopy, ''no, don''t tell me it''s that man... I don''t have any mana left to fight him.'' Getting into a fighting stance, she prepares to engage to unknown foe as she tip toes closer. Meanwhile Ryunosuke struggles to process what happened, ''did the canopy collapse while I was sleeping...!'' He quickly crawls in one direction, along the way avoiding metal beams and wooden boxes. Upon seeing the outside light peering underneath, he hastens his pace and sticks his head out sideways. A heavy punch connects with the right side of his face as he watches the sun rising in the east, it pins him to the ground and a jagged rock pokes the side of his left eye, threatening to gouge it out. "Relax! Relax! I''m not hostile!" He desperately yells out. Lyrielle keeps pushing on his head, "who are you!" She grabs the rock and points it the center at his face. "Kobayashi Ryunosuke! That''s my name I swear! I don''t know where I am but I''m sorry anyway!" "Kobayashi Ryunosuke...? You''re lying! Tell me your real name or I''ll poke your eyes out..." She begins to rub the rock against his forehead. "Don''t test me!" Ryunosuke recalls hearing his second year teacher saying the same line, when a student was disobeying them, that student later got put in detention for a month. Sounding even more desperate he continues, "I''m not lying!!" ''Hmm...'' Lyrielle''s face scrounges as she ponders his answer. Reluctantly she lightens her grip. "Thank you very much!" Ryunosuke climbs out and pats himself down before looking up at Lyrielle. "Y-you! The one that killed Aelrion...!" Ryunosuke recalls the name of the man he''d killed earlier than morning. "Woah woah woah, hold on!" He sticks his arms out towards Lyriells and waves his hands frantically. Lyrielle charges mana beyond her limit and points her palm at Ryunosuke, but before being able to proceed, she loses strength and falls to her knees. Ryunosuke watches as Lyrielle falls, ''what do I do...?'' Lyrielle pushes her hands against the ground and vainly attempts to stand. Ryunosuke speaks gently, "don''t push yourself..." "I don''t need your concern! You..." She''s interrupted as she falls to her knees again, "you killed Aelrion...!" Ryunosuke notices her gritted teeth, injured lip, bruised knees and a bump on her head, ''she must''ve caused the canopy to collapse.'' "I''m sorry." He bows his head forward as far as he can, "should I dogeza instead?" Lyrielle looks at him clearly puzzled, "dogeza...?" "Like this." He gets down on his knees and sits backwards on his legs, he then places his hands together in front and shouts, "I''M SORRY!" As he lowers his head forwards. Lyrielle flinches when he yells, her face still visibly confused. "Okay I get it! That''s enough...!" A lonely tear goes down her face, she quickly wipes it away before breathing in. ''I shouldn''t be mad at him.'' She looks at Ryunosuke, a solemn expression on her face. ''By that point Aelrion would''ve already died by my hand if he hadn''t miraculously recovered..." Lyrielle looks up at the bright blue sky, "I forgive you okay? I was trying to kill him before you did... Yea... I wasn''t even trying to hide it at the end." Ryunosuke lifts his head and watches Lyrielle recount her experience that morning. "I''m sure he realised too, one of us had to die at that moment, I wouldn''t be susprised if I go to hell." "You did what you had to, right?" Lyrielle looks down at Ryunosuke, her white hair flowing about in the wind. Ryunosuke sits cross legged in front of Lyrielle as she responds, "no. I didn''t. I didn''t have to bring Aelrion with me, didn''t have to let it end the way it did. I could''ve easily avoided it." "In that case... Why didn''t you?" Lyrielle turns her gaze to the ground and caresses her bruises, "my own weakness, I suppose. Hah, I''m not prepared for this at all... Am I?" Her voice progressively becomes quieter, the silence of the moment imprints itself in Ryunosuke''s mind. A cool early morning breeze blows past, grass rustles around them as the sun shines to the right, casting Lyrielle''s shadow to his left. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. The vivid green trees behind her sway slowly and a flock of gray birds fly overhead, he feels the right side of his face get slightly hotter than the left. ''She looks as if she''s given up.'' Ryunosuke stands up and walks to Lyrielle, he squats down before her as she raises her eyes to lock with his. "I like to think that... As long as I do my best, then I can be satisfied with the result, you know... Knowing that I did my best." "So maybe even if you''re not prepared for whatever it is you''re doing, I think you should just go for it before you miss your chance." Lyrielle continues to stare into his eyes, Ryunosuke doesn''t move but feels a blush coming on. "Better to regret the mistakes you make, than regret not having made them at all. That''s what I think, as long as what you''re doing isn''t bad of course." He speaks sweetly to her, "do you pity me?" She asks. "I don''t think so, I''m sure you''re much more capable than me at least." ''My knees ache...'' He lightly pushes against his knees to stand back up. "Where are you going?" Lyrielle asks. "Nowhere really, heck I don''t even know where I am or why I''m here." Lyrielle chuckles upon hearing his answer, she wipes her eyes with one hand whilst patting the ground with the other, "why don''t you sit with me?" Ryunosuke immediately looks downwards at Lyrielle, "why?" Her expression turns sour at his response, "just do it." ''Well I guess I do need a proper rest...'' He clears away a patch of grass as Lyrielle retracts her hand. "You said your was Koriyashishi Ryonoske?" Ryunosuke turns his head to Lyrielle, "my name is what now?" "Am I wrong?" He laughs at the seriousness of her tone, "it''s Kobayashi..." Lyrielle follows after him, "Kobayashi..." "Ryunosuke..." Once again she follows up, "Ryunosuke. Got it, I''m sorry for getting your name wrong." He gestures to her by flailing his right hand up and down. "It''s alright, just don''t get it wrong from now on." Lyrielle snuggles up in the cloth and faces Ryunosuke. "You''re probably the dragon I was trying to summon along with those fanatics... You know." Their eyes lock again. "By fanatics do you mean..." He tugs on the brown robe he''s wearing. "Mhmm, them." Ryunosuke shudders as he remembers the ghastly husks of the fanatics. "What''s wrong?" She asks curiously. "Please don''t remind me of them ever again." He rubs his forearms nervously, "oh... I''ll try not to." "Thanks, anyway, what do you mean by I''m the dragon you were summoning? I''m a human man, human." "I don''t know about where you came from, but humans here don''t have white hair." She replies nonchalantly and with the same tone Ryunosuke remarks, "but your hair is white too." "My hair is what?" Lyrielle reaches behind her head and pulls her hair forward, it''s now turned stark white. Lyrielle stares at her hair in shock as Ryunosuke watches her. "T-the records didn''t mention anything like this..." Her voice shakes as she speaks. "I''m actually quite happy, I''ve always liked anime and manga characters with white hair, the color compliments your pretty red eyes." Ryunosuke continues to watch as Lyrielle fiddles with her hair, ''she reminds me of Himari whilst she was alive.'' He smiles warmly and turns forward, before him the grass expanse stretches to the horizon, ''it''s beatiful...'' Lyrielle looks up at Ryunosuke who gazes off into the distance. She sees sunlight on the tip of his nose and his white hair flowing softly. Ryunosuke leans back on his arms, fully taking in the environment around him, he inhales loudly before exhaling just as loud. Lyrielle tugs on the wrist of his robe, ''I have a lot of questions for you, uh... Ryunosuke." Hearing Lyrielle call him by his first name reminds him of Himari again, "hit me, we''ve got lots of time." "I don''t think so, I sense a group of powerful mages approaching." Ryunosuke stands up straight, a chill goes up his back. "D-do we have to fight them...?" He looks down at Lyrielle. "I''m out of mana." She throws up her hands as if surrendering, "looks like you''ll have to do something about it." His expression turns to one of disbelief. "I have to fight...?" "I lost agaisnt Aelrion because I still don''t have what it takes to save Imram alone." Her tone drops as she speaks of Aelrion. "But! Stuff like this is almost everyday life for people like me." Cold sweat begins to form on his face. "By stuff like this, I mean constant assassins, mages, warriors and the like being sent to kill me, that''s why I had Aelrion." "This all started when one of those fanatics got captured and leaked my plan to summon a great dragon, which is illegal for obvious reasons." Lyrielle waves her hands around whilst talking, she then rudely points her index finger at him. "Your job is to protect me now, you''re under my command, that makes me an outlaw and you, my illegal property." "Kobayashi Ryunosuke, welcome to Imram!" Lyrielle begins to laugh. Ryunosuke turns his head up and looks into the dense forest, he makes out four shapes in the distance. He smirks, the corners of his lips crooked. ''You''ve got to be fucking joking, seriously...?''