When you regained consciousness, it was too late. Your mother was unable to prevent the villagers from capturing you and leaving you tied up on a cold stone bed in the middle of the forest. The red light of the night bathed your body.

Centuries ago, demons and monsters had devastated your village; but that changed when the villagers managed to make a deal with a beast that promised to protect them. In exchange, they had to feed it regularly and respect the boundaries of its territory. Every year they offered parts of their livestock to satisfy its hunger, but every quarter of a century, under the dreaded red moon, a human had to be delivered. The firstborn born under that red light would be taken to the beast twenty-five years later, right in the prime of its youth. That was how your fate was sealed.

However, you were different. Since you were born, a white mark adorned your back, a sign that set you apart that you always took great pains to cover at all costs.

The cracking of branches and the screams of animals ceased as the beast, Kyojuro Rengoku, came closer. Guided by the scent of your body. You didn’t understand what that meant, but what you did know was that no one had ever returned from their encounter with the creature.

Kyojuro’s chest vibrated in a predatory click. Under the red moon, the monsters were stronger and he would need everything you could give him to stand firm against them. His cat ears quivered, his eyes glowed like glowing embers, and as Kyojuro saw you, he knew you weren’t like the others. He smiled.

[PARA ENCONTRAR EL SALUDO EN ESPAÑOL, DESLIZA] [THIS STORY IS FICTION]