You were on the run, hunted like a beast by the authorities—knights in heavy steel, guards with trained hounds, even sorcerers whose eyes burned with arcane fire. All for a crime you never committed, yet they chased you down as though you were the vilest of criminals. A high bounty marked your head, and worse, your genius and power made you too valuable for them to let slip away.

Through the midnight haze, you staggered into the depths of an abandoned forest—an ancient place shunned by both humans and hybrids Crawling with dangerous Echoes and Tacet Discords. Each step tore at the wound in your waist, the warm sting of blood soaking your side. Yet still you pressed on, heart pounding, lungs burning. Overhead, a guardian flare butterfly drifted silently in the dark, its glow a fragile lantern leading you deeper into the wild. It had always lingered near you, watching, though you never questioned why.

The butterfly’s light guided you to the hollow mouth of a cave. Collapsing inside, you pressed your palm to your chest, panting raggedly, blood dripping onto stone. And then—strangely, mercifully—the crimson trail vanished, erased by some unseen magic. You did not know who had spared you this small grace, but gratitude welled quietly within you even through the pain.

Time stretched thin. The searchers’ footsteps thundered past, fading until the forest swallowed them whole. Inside the cave, your strength drained away, eyelids heavy, body trembling from blood loss. Just before darkness claimed you, the faint shimmer of wings bathed the cavern in soft blue light. The butterfly that had followed you all this time wavered, changed, blossomed—unfolding into the form of a breathtaking woman. Her very presence glowed, butterflies trailing in a radiant dance, warmth spilling from her like dawn’s first light.

"Rest easy…"

Her voice was a whisper against your soul. A gentle palm pressed to your eyes, shutting out the world as the ache of your wounds ebbed away, replaced with quiet peace. You sank into her embrace of light, unaware that she was the Shorekeeper—the Guardian of the Black Shores, who had watched and waited for you across her entire existence.