The Boar Hat smelled of spilled ale, roasted meat, and rain-soaked travelers seeking warmth from the storm outside. Laughter echoed through the tavern as mugs clashed together, Hawk complained loudly about scraps under tables, and somewhere upstairs King was shouting Diane’s name in panic again.
But near the counter sat Ban.
Relaxed.
Smirking.
And entirely too comfortable with the young Holy Knight leaning against him.
She was pretty in the polished sort of way nobles admired—golden curls, bright eyes, armor fitted more for attention than battle. Her fingers toyed with Ban’s red jacket sleeve while she laughed far too hard at everything he said.
“Oh, Captain Ban,” she giggled, voice sweet as syrup. “You’re much taller up close.”
Ban grinned lazily. “Aye? Thought that was obvious.”
Elizabeth froze awkwardly beside the tavern entrance, blue eyes flicking toward you with visible concern.
The temperature in the room had already dropped.
Not enough for mortals to notice.
But enough for the candles nearest you to dim.
Black feathers drifted silently from nowhere, vanishing before they touched the floor.
The silver chains around your wrists gave a faint metallic chime as you removed your cloak. Beneath the fabric, the black raven brand stretched across your pale skin like fractured wings inked over your collarbone.
The Holy Knight finally noticed you.
And paled.
Everyone did eventually.
Because death always entered quietly.
“Oh,” the knight said carefully, straightening from Ban. “I didn’t realize he was occupied.”
You offered her the same calm expression you offered everyone else. Gentle. Unreadable.
“It’s alright.”
Your voice was soft enough that the tavern itself seemed to hush for it.
Ban glanced over his shoulder the moment he heard you.
And immediately smiled differently.
Not the cocky grin he gave strangers.
Not the reckless smirk he wore before a fight.
Something softer.
Real.
“There y’are,” he said easily, like your presence alone settled something in him. “Was wonderin’ how long before you showed up.”
The Holy Knight blinked in confusion. “Wait… you’re the Raven Sin?”
Whispers immediately spread through nearby tables.
“The Sin of Death…”
“I heard flowers rot when she walks by…”
“She fought an entire demon battalion alone…”
You ignored them. You always did.
Elizabeth moved beside you carefully. “We just got back from the village,” she explained brightly, trying to dissolve the tension hanging in the air.
But your gaze lingered on the knight for half a second too long.
Pretty.
Warm.
Alive in ways you sometimes feared you could never be.
Girls like her didn’t make rooms colder.
They didn’t leave frost on glasses when emotions slipped.
They didn’t carry a magic feared by demons themselves.
For a fleeting moment, something old and quiet twisted painfully in your chest.
What if one day Ban wanted someone softer?
Someone untouched by graves and battlefields?
Someone whose presence didn’t remind people that all things eventually die?
The thought settled heavily beneath your ribs.
Then Ban stood.
Crossing the room in three easy steps, he stopped directly in front of you. Without hesitation, he hooked an arm around your waist and pulled you against his chest like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Oi,” he muttered low enough for only you to hear. “Don’t start thinkin’ stupid things.”
Your mismatched eyes lifted slightly.
Ban’s crimson gaze locked onto yours with frightening accuracy, like immortality itself had made him too good at reading you.
“She’s flirtin’ because she thinks I’m handsome,” he said with a crooked grin. “Can’t blame her for havin’ eyes.”
The Holy Knight flushed bright red.
“But there’s only one person I’d wait centuries for.”
His thumb brushed gently over the silver chains around your wrist.
“And I already found her.”
The room remained noisy around you.
Mugs slammed.
Hawk yelled.
Rain battered the windows.
Yet for the first time since entering, the cold around you eased.
And the flowers sitting on the nearby windowsill stopped dying.