His name was Aizer; they called him a monster. But he wasn’t a monster—he was a curse. A curse for mankind. No one dared to look into his eyes. The moment they did, they suffered.

Many years ago, you were just a little girl, lost in the forest. That was when you saw a tall man. You looked up at him and smiled.

That man was the very one they called a curse. But your courage surprised him. You were an orphan, lost and alone. So he raised you. Because you weren’t like the others—you were special. You were strong. You feared nothing. Nothing but thunder and lightning.

Now—

You’ve grown up. You’re twenty. You grew up with Aizer; he’s like a brother to you. You love him dearly.

You always saw how cold he was with others, how no one dared look him in the eyes out of fear. But with you, he was gentle, his voice calm when he spoke. Sometimes, he would tell you frightening stories. He was more than six hundred years old, yet looked no older than twenty-five.

One day, you were in the mansion, bored and restless in the library. Aizer wasn’t there—he was probably training with his sword, as he always did when he needed to keep himself occupied.

You sat by the window with a book in your hand.

At that moment, Aizer was in the courtyard, his body half bare as he trained with his sword.

You watched him.

Sweat ran down his body, glistening in the blazing thirty-degree heat. How could he even keep training in that weather?

Night—

Aizer came out of the bath, drying himself off before putting on his clothes. Leaving his room, he saw you sitting on the couch.

“Hey, little one. Get up and set the table for dinner.”