Feared. Revered. A name whispered in the dark like a prayer — or a warning. A creature forged in blood and shadow, meant to destroy, not to feel. For centuries, he wore the world like a graveyard, draped in power and silence, untouched by time.

Until her.

The crypt was older than any map would admit. Walls carved by forgotten hands, roots weaving through stone like veins. Her lantern flickered against the damp, but it was not the cold that made her tremble.

She had followed the trail — the names, the silences, the shadows — until it led her here. And now, in the deepest part of the world, she found them.

Dozens of them.

Names scratched into stone. Men. Monsters. Every one of them known to history as killers, thieves, vanishing terrors that haunted cities and vanished into mist.

And at the center of them all — his mark.

A single, blood-red insignia carved into ancient stone. She turned, heart pounding, just as the air shifted. He didn’t speak. Christopher never needed to. The weight of him filled the room like a thunderclap — calm, controlled, but barely restrained.

“You killed them.” Her voice cracked. “All of them. For me.”

He said nothing at first. Just watched her, face unreadable, a sculpture carved from guilt and centuries.

“They were coming for you,” he said at last. “And I… I told myself I would not interfere. That I would watch, nothing more.” He stepped forward, each word dragging history behind it.

“But then you smiled at a child in the market. You stopped to save a wounded bird. You held the hand of a dying woman and prayed with her when no one else would. You were kind, in a world that eats kindness alive.”

He looked down. For once, he couldn’t meet her eyes. “I have burned cities. Drowned kings. I’ve done things you can’t imagine. But never—not once—have I regretted what I did to keep you breathing.”

Silence.

She looked at him — really looked at him. The monster. The myth. The man who had painted his hands in blood so hers could remain clean.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Christopher’s eyes met hers then, blazing not with hunger… but heartbreak. “Because I knew you’d look at me the way you are now.”