Thud—
An empty space of nothingness.
Whoosh—
A soul reduced to rags drifts within.
Tick-tock—
How much time has passed in this state?
Ponder—
How long have I spent here?
Shrug—
I can’t say for sure, but it’s clear that an eternity has gone by. It’s been ages since I’ve felt the pain of my soul wearing down.
Flash—
But when did I get trapped in this ungraspable space?
Ding—
I never thought about it until now.
Shut it—
I didn’t want to know, nor did I want to find out.
Breathe—
I just wished for the pain of my soul to end.
Snap—
But now, that’s not the case.
Tick—
After countless eons have passed, I’ve grown accustomed to pain beyond description, and the spark of my soul has reignited.
Burble—
Now, in this empty space, a distorted figure emerges, and at this very moment, I must think clearly.
Focus—
I must recall my past and firmly grasp my existence.
But—
But I couldn’t remember.
Nothing—
Just like this void of nothingness, nothing defines my existence.
Yet—
I didn’t give up.
Clinch—
I stubbornly held on.
Think—
Continuously trying to recall.
Rub—
Could my desperate yearning have reached that distant distortion?
Crack—
With a jolt that shook my soul, my memories began to surface one by one.
Remember—
I was human.
Eyes—
Born as the daughter of a poor rancher, I was human.
Yet—
I was anything but ordinary.
Heroic—
I was extraordinary.
With a sword—
A sword? A spear? A shield? My fists?
Skills—
I had the talent to master everything except magic.
Clang—
But I was broke.
Alone—
I had no status, no background.
Just—
All my family owned was an old ranch.
So—
Therefore, I gave up my dream of being a knight.
Mercenary—
I became a mercenary to earn money.
Rough start—
At first, I faced groundless discrimination just for being female, but I was proud. I didn’t feel intimidated at all.
Boom—
Instead, I puffed out my chest and glared.
Talent—
Backed by overwhelming talent, I could crush anyone who looked down on me.
Smirk—
But, being human, I couldn’t completely ignore those things.
Burden—
The power I couldn’t possess crushed me.
Grip—
The invisible hand tightened around me.
Struggle—
No matter how hard I struggled or kicked, I couldn’t break free.
Mad—
So I decided to become a madwoman.
Untouchable—
So mad that no one could lay a finger on me.
Scary—
So scary that they couldn’t even dare to speak my name.
Slice—
I cut the wrist of the guy who touched my chest.
Jail—
One month in jail.
Tug—
I ripped out the tongue of the guy who harassed me.
Three months—
I tore apart the lower half of the guy who violated me when I was drunk.
Two months—
I smashed the heads of those who tried to drug and rape me.
Not guilty—
I did it with no crime.
Chop—
I cut off the limbs of an aristocrat who held my family hostage and hung them at the empire’s gates.
Execution—
Then came the escape.
Crash—
Thus, from a small village to a small city.
March—
From a small city to a big city.
Grow—
From a big city to the imperial capital.
Skid stop—
I came to a sudden halt in the capital’s back alleys.
Freeze—
I had no choice but to stop.
Insane—
I saw someone even crazier than me.
First glance—
Her first impression was that of a wild beast.
Blondie—
Dull, frizzy blond hair.
Sharp—
Piercing eyes. Jade-green pupils.
Smirk—
A hint of a devilish grin. Rough banter.
Tall—
She was tall, with a sturdy body and long limbs.
But—
Unlike me, she was born to stand out.
Whack—
She had completely lost her marbles.
Intense—
And above all else, a fierce craving for victory.
Snap—
Thus, I, who had been pretending to be insane, faced the real madwoman.
It began—
It was then that life as a mercenary took on color amidst the monochrome world I had been fleeing.
Crash—
Our first encounter was a bit rough.
Show off—
While I was intoxicated by my newfound madness, she said to me,
“What are you looking at, you bitch!”
Punch—
Without hesitation, I slapped her face.
Night—
And so our fight continued from the time the sun was high until the next dawn.
Yet—
No winner was declared.
Clamp—
We were overpowered by thirty-three guards.
Drag—
Exhausted, we were dragged to the imperial prison without a proper fight.
Days—
Three days later, we emerged from jail, entering the bar said to be the best in the back alleys.
Crack—
And that’s how we became comrades.
Teacher—
We became each other’s teachers and students.
Besties—
We became friends.
Chaotic—
Our relationship wasn’t peaceful.
Fight—
We fought, claiming it looked like a beggar was holding a fork.
Establish—
We fought over pajamas that looked like a hooker’s.
Snore—
We fought about how I looked when I woke up.
Brotherly—
We threw punches and sometimes even stabbed each other with small knives.
But—
She was also in the same dangerous business, so after a few drinks, we could laugh off everything.
Grow—
Thus, we spent a long time together, amassing the wealth and fame we had only dreamed of.
Crack—
Then one day, a great war broke out.
Boom—
A sudden chaotic war started by the insane races, for no apparent reason.
But—
Even at that time, wars were a common occurrence. However, this new war was unlike anything we had experienced before.
Powers—
An unknown force called “Unique Abilities” manifested in all beings on the land.
Change—
This became the primary cause of a shift in the scales of battle.
Fire—
The landlord’s daughter spewed flames.
Sword—
The young man from downstairs wielded a sword qi.
Quiet—
The usually silent uncle controlled gravity.
Roots—
The flower shop girl commanded the roots of trees.
Boy—
The annoying kid became known for his steel.
Twisted—
A boy who claimed to be a wizard was struck by lightning.
Waitress—
The sign girl claimed to see the future, while a mute kid wielded a perfectly accurate slingshot.
Chaos—
In that chaos,
New world—
In a world that had drastically changed,
Rest—
We who hadn’t awakened our unique abilities couldn’t sleep peacefully. We couldn’t wash in warm water. We couldn’t light a fire and chat.
Fight—
We picked up swords instead of forks.
Armor—
We donned armor instead of pajamas.
Blood—
We faced bloodied faces instead of fresh morning ones.
Yet—
We weren’t downcast.
Hard—
We struggled, yes, but we found joy.
Fun—
We felt happiness. We enjoyed ourselves.
Support—
Because there was a partner to support each other.
Trust—
Because there were friends we could trust and rely on.
Continue—
We continued forward without breaking.
Thus—
So we moved onward.
After time—
Eventually, change came even to my friend.
Ability—
Her awakened unique ability was—
Victory—
Victory.
Assured—
Victory that would undoubtedly be achieved.
At any cost—
Victory that came at any cost.
Twisted—
A twisted victory.
Humans—
The humans who had been pushed to the back of the war could finally raise their heads again, led by her.
Yet—
But the war was already staring at its end.
Destruction—
Ravaged fortresses.
Wings—
Crushed wings.
Purified—
Purified magic.
Burnt—
Burnt forests.
Left—
What remained were beastmen crying out with their primal calls.
Above—
And dragons watching over everything from above.
And—
And the humans who stood with the Sword of Victory.
Crack—
The beastmen reached for the heights of the sky, but they couldn’t tear the dragon’s skin.
Yet—
Humans didn’t reach for the sky, but they could slice through the dragon’s hide.
Thus—
Hence, the two races forged a pact.
And—
They skinned the dragon.
Tear—
Ripped off its wings and tore its mouth apart.
Finally—
In the end, they severed its neck.
But—
That wasn’t the end.
New foes—
Immediately after slaying the dragon, monsters emerged from the depths of chaos.
Call—
They called themselves the “Monster of the End.”
Fire—
Those who claimed to be the Monster of the End reignited the flames in a world that had briefly known peace.
But—
Yet the pact for peace did not burn out.
Humans—
Humans didn’t break.
Sword—
The Sword of Victory didn’t shatter.
Thanks to—
The sword, having sharpened through countless experiences and battlefields, overcame even their overwhelming power.
Spring—
It slashed through the biting cold of winter and sought out the vibrant spring.
Moon—
It brought down the blood-stained red moon to let a new sun rise.
Flames—
It extinguished the hellfire that burned through the world, blooming not in gray ashes, but in brilliant flowers.
Tree—
The massive ash tree bore tremendous scars.
And—
Then—
Boom—
An entity known as the “Observer” made its appearance.
Wings—
Wings that covered the sky.
Breath—
A breath that could melt the earth.
Gaze—
Eyes you couldn’t even dare to look up to.
Magic—
A tongue that could dispel all magic and weave it at will, and skin that couldn’t be cut.
Ancient—
An ancient dragon, Sirinius.
Intense—
That being gazed at my friend.
Powerful—
My friend glared back at it.
Laugh—
Then, just like any other day, she chuckled madly and raised her head.
Straighten—
She squared her shoulders and took a step forward.
Finger—
She raised her middle finger high.
Sword—
She drew her sword.
Distance—
As she walked further away, I too drew my sword.
Heavy—
A rough, heavy sword.
Useless—
A sword with zero practicality.
Only—
Just for show.
Great sword—
The great sword I carried to show off, different from the sleek blade she wielded, was drawn at her side.
Finger up—
I raised my finger and played the part of the madwoman.
Beside her—
I hoped to stay beside her forever.
That moment—
In that moment, change came upon me too.
