A Subtle Change

Vienna was a woman that spent half of her life in a secluded room where the sunlight doesn't shine. Cold bricks isolated her from the rest of the world, and little insects would keep her company from when she lies awake until she falls asleep. Darkness was the first thing she sees in the morning and the last thing she sees before she closes her eyes - even in her dreams, it would embrace her.

So, it was no wonder why this woman, a demon of absolute greatness, would be fast asleep for the first time in a while because compared to that hell she was stuck with, the Noirdam Castle was a much better place.

It's a large palace hidden in a secluded mountain, decorated with beautiful, gleaming angelic figurines and adorned with the holy magic's blessing. It was a home for a man known to be the strongest Holy spell caster of his generation and a safe haven which no one could enter without his permission.

Right now, this invincible man that everybody fears and respects is looking at the face of this sleeping woman. Captivated by the ethereal sight, he found it hard to look away.

"How did you enter the barrier?" he asked, a question left unanswered. Then his eyes marveled at the face of the enchanting being he could take advantage of but preferred not to. "Such a beauty..."

He raised a finger and trailed it on her face starting with her long eyelashes, then to her well-defined eyebrows, down to her pointed nose, and ending at her luscious, reddish lips that were so soft to touch. Her skin felt right under his touch, so smooth that he's tempted to do more.

But he stopped there and pulled his hand away before he could do anything else to her frail body.

"What a woman," he says amusingly, silently watching her steady breaths. "How can you sleep so peacefully when a dangerous monster is right beside you?"

Still, nothing answered him.

He sensed a presence getting nearer, so he kept a distance and opened the door using his holy magic before the maid could even knock.

"Evelyn," he called.

"Good evening." A slender woman, about half his age, came walking in the room with shaking hands. "M-Master asked for my presence?"

"Take care of this woman. I find her quite interesting."

"Y-Yes, Master." The maid couldn't see his face – no, she didn't even want to look up, afraid of what she'll see. It was an emotion she knew all too well. After all, this wasn't the first woman that piqued her master's interest. She was also too empathetic. If she had caught a glimpse of his cruel grin, not even she would have it in her to keep her mouth shut.

Evelyn looked up when she heard his footsteps getting distant. She saw him standing in front of the window, hands tucked into his pockets as he gazed outside.

"I can feel it," he says, followed by another cryptic prophecy. "The skies are moving again tonight."

It was a full moon, so visible from where they both were standing. Surrounded by nothing but wilderness, stillness encompassed the rigid space. Even so, she still could not look away at the sight of her master's back.

His shoulder-length, jet-black hair was unusually in a loose bun, some strands decorated his temples, his face that she would not dare to see, and the back of his neck. His shoulders were slightly in a slouch showing how tired his body is – a fact that would've gone unnoticed if one wasn't as observant.

"Master…"

"Yes?" he answered, still looking outside.

Evelyn paused. "N-Nothing."

It was these moments where she could almost feel the loneliness seeping out of his body. He stood just beneath the moon, bathing in the light that would disappear by twilight, looking like a lone wolf that was both regal and proud of his stature.

And while others find this figure to be a great pride of the Empire, what Evelyn only saw was a man wounded and drenched by the blood of others – a man too hollow, too deep, and too lost in his painful bliss.