In the middle of a dense forest, the twin brothers stood face to face. Cristofer wore a cold gaze, hiding his guilt.
Meanwhile, Daniel kept his hands hidden inside his robe, searching for the pair of small axes he had concealed to kill his brother by surprise.
But just seconds before using his weapons, Daniel stopped his movements when he saw Cristofer raise his hand, pointing his palm at his face.
"Heal," Cristofer said firmly.
{{Life Magic: Restoration}}
At that moment, a greenish glow surrounded Daniel's body. The scars he bore began to fade, returning his skin to a state he had only known when he was a baby.
The fifteen-year-old boy watched his calloused hands, hardened by labor, turn soft like those of a noble. When he touched his face, he couldn't feel the uneven edges of his scars, and so he failed to recognize his own face.
"What? Why did you do that?… Restoration magic is expensive, especially since it's purely cosmetic… Why?" Daniel said as he looked at his brother in disbelief.
Cristofer smiled faintly as he stepped closer to his twin, opened his arms, and gave him a warm embrace.
"I did it because those scars are my fault… and I didn't want you to ever look like that again," Cristofer whispered into his brother's ear.
Daniel didn't know how to react to such a kind act, one that seemed to prove the affection his brother had kept for him all those years.
After a few moments of silence, Daniel closed his eyes and raised his arms, wrapping them around his brother's body to return the embrace.
"I'm sorry… I'm sorry, brother… I'm sorry…" Cristofer said, beginning to cry in anguish and regret.
Hearing his brother's apology, Daniel could do nothing but break down in tears along with him.
A memory came to Daniel's mind. He remembered how he and his brother had slept clinging to each other during one winter, when their father had thrown them out of the house for breaking a plate and forced them to sleep at the doorstep like dogs.
"It's okay… it's not your fault… it was all because of… because of… him…" Through tears, Daniel tried to find forgiveness for his brother, a forgiveness he himself wanted to find so he wouldn't have to live with that hatred toward his twin.
"I should have never left… The cult members are much worse than our father… They treated me well when they saw my traits… They even paid for a full body restoration… But then…" Cristofer struggled to speak as his lips trembled.
"They forced me to take care of people they imprisoned so I'd grow attached to them… and then, during the interrogations, I had to heal and heal to keep them from dying from the torture… I… I should have never left… I'm sorry…" Cristofer said before biting his lip hard.
"Calm down… it's okay, brother…" Daniel tried to comfort him, struggling to calm his own tears.
"Daniel… please… don't abandon me… forgive me, please, help me escape," Cristofer said before closing his eyes.
"I will… I will, Cristofer…" the boy nodded, closing his eyes.
"You promise, Daniel?"
"I promise, Cris…" Daniel smiled faintly as he opened his eyes. "It's okay… we'll figure out what to do—"
A sensation cut Daniel's words short, a sharp, painful feeling in his back as he felt his clothes grow wet.
Cristofer stepped away from his brother, tears spilling with every step, for at that moment a ceremonial dagger had pierced Daniel's back. It was made of white crystal that slowly began to turn black.
"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… forgive me… but this is the only way I can leave this place without being hunted like a dog…" Cristofer said before wiping away his tears and looking painfully at his twin, who had dropped to his knees.
Daniel's gaze was shattered, like the eyes of a child who had lost his innocence.
"They'll soon notice I'm not in the dining hall and they'll come looking for me… When they arrive… I think you already know what will happen…" Cristofer said as he began removing his clothes.
Daniel was unable to comprehend anything happening in front of him, but when his gaze had completely emptied, Cristofer picked up a rock and, with a precise blow to his head, knocked him unconscious on the ground.
.
.
.
When Daniel came to, he was wearing his brother's clothes, as if he were just another member of the cult. Meanwhile, his brother was sitting on a rock in front of him.
"You're still alive… I'm really glad… sorry I'm not healing you, but if I do, I'm sure you'll kill me… Though maybe it'd be better if you died so you wouldn't become a slave to those bastards…" Cristofer said as he looked at the black dagger in his hands.
"But if I do that, I'd lose my restoration spell… Its rule is never to kill anyone… and I'm sorry, but I can't lose it, it's far too valuable…" Cristofer, now dressed as Daniel, stood up and covered his face with his hood.
"By the way, I saw you brought your axes… I guess we both had a similar idea… What a pair, huh?" Cristofer gave one last look at his brother, who lay on the ground bleeding out, shedding the last tears he had left.
Cristofer lowered his gaze and, turning his back on his brother, walked away from the place.
However, Daniel, despite his condition, forced himself to stand through sheer willpower—not the will to save himself, nor to escape, but to drag Cristofer down with him.
At that moment, a system message appeared before him like a transparent parchment.
Congratulations! You have awakened your first individual trait!
Traits:
- - Avenger of the Betrayed D
- - (Undefined)
- - (Undefined)
The boy ignored the message, but without realizing it, he used his power to start walking, blood spilling with every step. His skin began to pale as his life faded away, but his hatred would not let him close his eyes.
{{Warrior Art: Analgesic x10}}
{{Warrior Art: Fury}}
His strength returned in an instant and his vision cleared. He caught up to Cristofer and threw himself at him, slamming him to the ground. Cristofer, being only a Healer, couldn't respond to a single blow against a Daniel unleashed in fury.
"What a pair… YES… a pair that'll go to hell together!" the betrayed boy shouted as he grabbed a stone with the intent to kill his brother. But at that moment, another system message appeared.
Contract Breach Alert!
Desist or suffer the consequences.
You are currently under a blood contract that states you must "Assist in Cristofer's escape."
Daniel saw the message and still continued his attack, but just centimeters before striking Cristofer to kill him, he felt a pain that tore through his soul—a pain beyond flesh, a pain that brought him crashing down as he writhed in agonized screams.
He endured barely five seconds of that pain before it finally knocked him unconscious.
.
.
.
When Daniel opened his eyes again, he was being carried by cult members straight toward the temple.
Everything was blurry, and he couldn't make out what was happening. He could only hear worried shouts about his blood loss, until a single voice silenced all the others.
"I suppose this is the boy. Very well, leave him to me. I'll take care of healing my new vessel," said a masked man missing one arm, looking at Daniel from beside his stretcher.