—–
Cassandra avenged her sister, as she enjoyed torturing and hearing the screams of agony that Lady Cassiopeia cried while having her body played the same way she did with Cassandra’s sister. She burned her face with a candle, she cut down her legs, she took out each of her hands fingers one by one, she scooped out one of her eyes and then burned the other with acid, she cut down her entire and beautiful hair, and burned her head… And she left her entire body covered in wounds, bleeding and dying.
However, Cassandra couldn’t let her die slowly, there was a chance she would live, so at the end, she gave a knife to her sister, and the little Ruby was guided by her hand to stab the woman that did all the things to her in the throat, multiple times… Despite being weakened, a strength surged from within her heart, as the little girl repeatedly stabbed the woman, as tears came out of her single blind eye.
Lady Cassiopeia died agonizingly, crying, even, but the sisters had no mercy, and after being done, they grabbed all the valuable things they could possibly find, packed them into a special spatial storage bag the woman had, and escaped after setting the entire manor on fire.
The two sisters escaped in the middle of the commotion, deep into the forest… Cassandra continued walking and walking while carrying her little sister, for days, weeks, and months, using the money and other things they got, they got food and new clothes, while Cassandra tried to find a way to heal her sister.
However, in this world, magic that could regenerate limbs or such enormous scars as the girl had was very rare… and incredibly expensive as well. Over time, although Ruby ate and felt better sometimes, there was a strange sickness that caught her, and the little girl began to slowly weaken.
After almost a year since they escaped, Ruby had difficulties breathing, and her physique was growing thinner despite eating every day… Her body continued looking skeletal, and Cassandra didn’t knew what was happening to her.
One day, she brought her to a doctor, who was horrified by her appearance, but told Cassandra what she had… the Doctor was a man with a “Medic” Talent, but even his expensive concoctions and abilities were of no use.
“This… girl… She’s poisoned.” He said.
“P-Poisoned?” Asked Cassandra.
“This is the poison of a Venomous Colopentra, a giant Spider monster… It once swarmed the Duchy hundreds of years ago, and was slain, however, its venom is so intense that it has no cure. It attacks the body slowly, making it grow weaker and thinner, it doesn’t kill right away, it often takes almost a year… In such ancient times, it was called the Slow Agony…” Muttered the Doctor.
“No… No! Y-You can’t do anything?! But it is such an old venom!” Cried Cassandra.
“No, there are no cures, all this money you’ve given me, it can buy the most expensive potions in the market, but anything that can heal the venom is nowhere to be found, her limbs cannot be regenerated either with potions, somebody with the talent for healing must help you in that regard… But recovering a limb is more expensive than all the money you have.”
“…”
“I’m sorry girl…”
Cassandra looked at her sister who was resting in the bed, barely managing to breathe, and having a difficult time even hearing or managing to feel her sister through touch.
“She’s… she will die in a few days from now, at most, three days.” Said the medic. “Why don’t you leave her here and have her… pass away peacefully?”
“No… But… Ruby! Ruby!!!” Cried Cassandra.
Apparently, Lady Cassiopeia had not gone out without cursing her one last time… She had poisoned her sister while torturing her, using this ancient venom to bring her a slow and painful death.
Cassandra stayed with her sister through these last three days, without going anywhere, without eating, and without even going to the bathroom, she only drank some water, and that was it.
She stayed with her, hugging her and touching her hands lacking fingers, kissing her scarred cheeks and caressing her scarred head, whispering to her little sister that everything would be okay, that she would always… stay at her side.
“Big sis…”
“R-Ruby, don’t speak… You must save your strength…”
“Big sis… A-Although these days were painful… you were… always… with me… I am happy… to be your sister…”
“Ah… R-Ruby!”
Cassandra began to cry desperately while hugging her sister, as her warm tears covered her sister’s shoulders.
“Don’t leave me, Ruby! Please, I-I don’t know what else I would do without you!”
“S-Sister…”
“You’re my reason to live! You’re my world! D-Don’t go… Please…”
“Big shish… I’m… so… tired…”
“Ruby!”
“I love… you… Please… find… happiness…”
“Ah…!”
Ruby gently smiled back at her sister, as she kissed her cheek, after that, she suddenly stopped breathing, and her heart slowly stopped beating. The breath of life slowly dissipated from her, as she laid motionless, and her body slowly started to get colder.
She was dead.
“A-Ah…! Aaaahhh! Rubyyyy! RUBYYYYYY!!!”
Cassandra cried desperately that night, as she saw her sister pass out… But despite her painful life, she smiled at the end, and kissed her cheek. Despite having gone through all these things, Ruby stayed as a happy girl till the end… But Cassandra had changed already, she was a murderous woman, sadistic even, and with the last bit of humanity that died with Ruby, the only thing that was left was… a monster.
Tormented by monsters, she had no other choice than become one herself to survive and protect her sister. But at the end, it was all so pointless… At the end, Ruby died, and… And… Cassandra could not do anything about it.
Hopeless, heartbroken, and bitter, she slowly grew up into a dark and cold-hearted woman, working as a tailor by using her ability, and taking down any bastards that she saw fit.
Eventually, as she sought ways to grow stronger despite being so talentless, she found a man with a black robe, and a strange tattoo on his right hand.
“You seek the power of the demons, yes? What are you willing to do to be embraced by them, woman?”
“…Anything.”
She had lost everything, and therefore, she had nothing to lose now.
“Excellent.”
—–