Anna's village.

  It was located on the border between the Empire and the Kingdom, near the edge of the Great Dark Jade Forest, inhabited by all manner of demi-human races.

  For a frontier village in the Nexia Empire, its population was anything but exceptional: ninety-eight souls, distributed among fifteen families. The village lived off the resources of the forest and agriculture. Aside from the doctors and herbalists who came to collect herbs, the only visitors to the village were the annual tax collectors and adventurers. Time seemed to have stood still for the few residents of this village.

  The first thing Amy Nichtigkeit did after leaving the house was head to the fields. She was on guard duty that day. Last year's battle against the Ashen Kingdom had taken many of the village's men, so now it was up to her, a fifteen-year-old girl armed with a hoe, to defend the crops. Of course, she wasn't doing it alone, but that day she seemed to be the only one who had arrived early.

  What a silence…

  She shifted her gaze toward the center of the village. Fear often wafted through the narrow streets. She then moved her head in the direction of a dense stand of trees bordering Anna's village. The possibility of monsters, or rather demi-humans, attacking the area in search of food was quite high. The proximity to the Dark Jade Forest was more of a misfortune than an advantage. They could feed on its fruits, sure, but dangers always lurked. The forest was enormous, covering almost a third of the entire Nexia Empire, which was saying something, considering it was the largest human nation in the vicinity.

  Of course, the government had always tried to conquer the Dark Jade to obtain its resources, but every attempt at an armed attack had failed miserably. First and foremost, due to the internal strife between the various noble families, an event that led to the birth of many small armies in constant conflict with each other. Certainly numerous, but too weak to defeat the enemy, namely the demi-humans. They could also be called "Therianthropes", but that was a more academic term, so the girl was unaware of is existence.

  Amy had no idea what species inhabited the forest. She had heard of orcs and goblins, but that colossal mass of trees was certainly full of who knows how many creatures ready to devour her as soon as they had the chance.

  She shuddered at the very thought. She couldn't imagine being eaten by an orc. Not that being devoured by a goblin was any better, but...

  I might be able to handle some goblins…

  Goblins were smaller and weaker than humans, and Amy couldn't have named a weaker demi-humans race. However, those little green creatures were skilled at using rudimentary weapons and had a hunting instinct far superior to that of humans. Simply put, with equal skill, a goblin could defeat a human twice his size.

  The demi-humans were a problem, but Anna's village didn't have the resources to build even a small fence, let alone a defense wall. Taxes increased year after year, but not the poor villagers' earnings.

  I know the villages in the Holy Kingdom are fortified. They also have problems with the demi-humans, but they're definitely better at handling them than we are.

  Amy sighed. She had long since realized that the Empire wasn't much compared to other nations. She couldn't read or write, but she knew how to listen to the stories of the various adventurers who stopped by the village for refreshments. Some sang the praises of the Imperial Capital Noxastatus, dubbed an "Ancient Metropolis", others spoke of their intention to move to the Bashad Federation, a collection of many Kingdoms located to the north of the Empire, beyond the great Freliord Mountain Range.

  At least they know what to do with their lives. Lucky them...

  In truth, Amy didn't know what the future held. She had no education, magical talent or special abilities. Marrying a handsome young man and raising a family, while remaining a housewife, would have been enough. Not very exciting, true, but what could she expect?

  Better to wash dishes than face monsters…

  Thanks to her work in the fields, Amy had acquired a certain physical strength, but she would never have dreamed of giving it all up to become an adventurer. She had nothing against the profession, but she didn't see it as an easy way to make money either. And then, even if she'd wanted to embark on an adventure, what role would she have taken on at a party? That of a girl with a hoe?

  But let's not joke, for goodness sake!

  As Amy pondered how foolish it would be for her to become an adventurer, she heard a sound and turned to look. Tension filled the air, and seeds of fear began to sprout in her heart.

  Demi-humans?

  Her ears seemed to pick up something like the sound of cracking wood, while her nose detected the unmistakable smell of burning. And then...

  "Fire? Fire!"

  She immediately left her guard post and headed toward the gigantic column of smoke that had emerged from the center of the village. It was then that she heard something not far away.

  "A…Scream?"

  It sounded like a strangled bird, but it couldn't have been a bird's call.

  A shiver ran down Amy's spine. Impossible; tere had to be a mistake. It couldn't have been a human voice. She tried to banish the discomfort she felt with those thoughts, but then they vanished as she remembered the pillar of fire.

  It's probably just a small fire. Someone must have been silly and set fire to some wood. It's just a minor accident, nothing serious...I'm sure of it.

  She kept telling herself it was all a misunderstanding, that nothing serious had happened. Probably one of the men on duty in the shed had drunk a little too much and accidentally set fire to some grain. That was all. Surely it would all end in laughter and a shout out to Amy, who had abandoned her guard post due to a false alarm...

  She didn't believe it either.

  The girl ran towards the source of the scream with her heart pounding, because it was coming from the direction of her house. Amy clutched the hoe and continued forward. Although she nearly tripped over her long skirt, she managed to keep her balance by a stroke of luck. The sound echoed through the air once more. Amy's heart skipped a beat when she heard it again. There was no longer any doubt: it was a human scream. She ran, ran and ran at a loss for breath.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  -Amy couldn't remember going faster than that in her life. She was running so fast her legs were hurting.

  The neighing of horses. The screams of people, and the shouts. These sounds became clearer and clearer. In the distance, Amy saw an unknown man in silver armor brandishing his sword at a villager. The poor man fell to the ground with a scream of pain, like a puppet whose strings had been cut, and a swift sword strike dealt her a fatal blow.

  "Lulian?"

  There were no strangers in a small village like that. Everyone was close like family and knew each other so well that there were no secrets within the community. Therefore, Amy knew exactly who had been killed before her eyes. Mr. Lulian was a somewhat grumpy man, but kind and loving. He hadn't done anything wrong and certainly didn't deserve to die like that. Amy wanted to stop to help, but in the end she gritted her teeth and kept running. She ran as fast as she could, finally arriving at her house.

  "Dad! Mom! Nemi! Loyd!"

  Amy opened the door while calling out to her family. She found four familiar faces with unfamiliar looks of fear. They were frozen. However, when Amy opened the door and entered, their faces softened, the fear replaced by relief.

  "Amy! Are you okay?"

  Her father held her in his strong, vigorous and resistant arms for work in the fields.

  "Ahhh, Amy..."

  Her mother's gentle arms held her.

  "Amy's back, so we'd better run away too!"

  The Nichtigkeit family was in grave danger. They had stayed home because they feared leaving Amy behind, and thus had missed their best chance to escape. But all hope was not lost.

  They decided to take advantage of the chaos outside to head to the home of Luiza, the late Lulian's wife. She was a charitable and kind woman, a firm believer in the Dark Jade Forest's protective deity: Verdugo, the Strong Wind Dragon. They managed to reach Luiza's house, the one furthest from the village, near the edge of the forest.

  Amy's father pounded desperately on the door, shouting at the top of his lungs. It would attract attention, but it was better than being exposed. Amy, meanwhile, observed the village in the distance. It was burning and countless corpses could be seen in the streets. However, some soldiers seemed to have taken prisoners and were taking them somewhere.

  Do they kill randomly?

  Her thoughts were interrupted by Luiza, who let the Nichtigkeit family in, then closed the door and barred it with a wooden board. Being so close to the forest, her house was the most protected. It had a small iron gate and a thick door. It wasn't much, but it would keep the knights away for a while.

  "Luiza! What the hell is going on?"

  Amy's father asked, wiping sweat from his forehead.

  "I don't know! Those knights came out of nowhere! I only know that they carry the banner of the Ashen Kingdom on their armors and shields!"

  The Ashen Kingdom was a neighbor of the Nexian Empire, and the two states had often clashed in war. However, this was the first time the Kingdom's forces had reached the border villages. Normally, clashes occurred near the Fortified City of Arel. From what Amy knew, the Empire and the Kingdom faced each other once a year at the Plains of Vit or the Plains of Mort, two arid and unusable areas. It was said that, especially in the latter, the death toll had been so high over the years that it had favored the spontaneous birth of undead, such as zombies.

  "Those bastards from the Kingdom! They attack us in a moment of peace?! Why?!"

  Amy's father roared, punching the wall.

  "Calm down, please! We need to figure out what to do!"

  "Luiza. Where is your husband?"

  Amy's mother asked. Luiza looked gloomy, but tried to stay calm.

  "He went out. He went to get help, yes... He'll be back soon."

  Amy knew the truth, but she decided not to say anything. It would only cause trouble if she told Luiza that she would never see her husband alive again.

  "We need a plan, now!"

  Amy's father shouted, visibly agitated.

  "First of all, we need to settle down and think!"

  Luiza approached to calm the man, while Amy hugged her sister and brother. They were five and six years old respectively, and were already experiencing the atrocities of war firsthand.

  Is there no justice in this world?

  "Luiza is right!"

  Amy's mother intervened.

  "We have to find shelter!"

  "And where? In the forest?!"

  "Yes! We can hide there, then seek help in a nearby village after the knights have left!"

  Amy's father didn't like Luiza's idea at all, but they didn't have anything better at the time.

  "Come on, then! We can use the back exit to…"

  A loud "Thud" froze everyone in place. It felt like something very heavy had just hit the door. Amy hoped with all her heart that she'd dreamed it because of her anxiety, but when she saw her father also turn toward the door, it was then that she realized the truth: they were about to enter.

  They didn't even have time to move when the door was knocked down by a large trunk. The soldiers had cut down a nearby tree and were using it as a crude battering ram.

  "I told you someone was hiding here!"

  One of the knights shouted, making his way through the remains of the broken door. He was fully armored, his breastplate clearly displaying the image of a two-headed griffin: the symbol of the Ashen Kingdom. He held a long, bloody sword in his hand.

  Amy could feel the man's cold eyes on her through the slits in his helmet, as if he was counting how many people were in the living room. It frightened her.

  The knight tightened his grip on the gauntlet holding his sword, and a creaking sound came from where metal scraped against metal. And then, just as he was about to enter the house...

  "Stop! Please!"

  Luiza stood in front of the man, raising her hands in surrender.

  "Why are you doing this?"

  She asked, glancing quickly at the window next to Amy, as if to urge her to open it and run away.

  "It's none of your business, old lady!"

  "We are a peaceful village! We surrender! Don't do anything to us..."

  "Be quiet, commoner!"

  With a furious cry, the knight swung his sword at Luiza, driving it into her shoulder. The woman barely had time to utter a cry before her lifeless body fell at her assassin's feet. Amy screamed and covered her siblings' faces. She had to stop herself from vomiting.

  "Now let's think about the others. The girl is cute! Maybe I could have some fun with her before-"

  "Don't you dare touch her!"

  The knight was attacked by Amy's father, who started a fight. Unexpectedly, the armored man seemed to have difficulty holding his attacker back, as if he was unaccustomed to fighting. His companions had to arrive to help him out.

  "Amy! This way!"

  The girl's mother opened the window next to them and, taking advantage of the distraction caused by her husband, let her children out of the house.

  "Run! Run and never look back!"

  Amy's father screamed, before being silenced by a sword blow. Seeing her father's lifeless body on the floor, Amy let out a desperate cry.

  "Amy! Run!"

  "Mom! No! I won't abandon you!"

  "Do as I say! Run! Run!"

  Amy watched her mother remain inside the house, closing the window and effectively trapping herself in the living room with the knights. It was only a matter of time before one of the attackers' stained blades pierced her chest, ending her feeble resistance. H

  owever, as the woman's body fell to the ground, it struck a small table with a lit lantern on it. The village was too poor to afford magical lighting, so they still used fire-powered lanterns. Once they shattered on the ground, the flames from the lantern set the house ablaze.

  "Damn it! Damn brats! Capture them! Capture them! Capture them!"

  The knight who had expressed desire for Amy began waving his sword like a five-year-old. His companions grabbed him and carried him out of the house. The man was so furious he would have let himself be crushed by the burning rubble of the house just to curse like a baby.

  "What are you still doing here?! Get them, or rather…Kill them! I don't want that stupid girl anymore!"

  "Are you sure, Lord Reven?"

  One of his attendants asked him. He wanted to prevent his boss from changing his mind after the damage had been done.

  "Yes! I'm tired of this cesspit! I'll find a better girl at the first brothel I go to! Kill her, so we can move on to the next phase of the plan!"

  Hearing this, Amy grabbed her siblings' hands and ran toward the forest in long strides. Guilt and hesitation gnawed at her heart, but finally she realized they had to flee into the Great Dark Jade Forest. The neighing of horses, the cries of rage, the clanging of steel and the stench of burning flesh—all these sounds assailed Amy's ears and nose. Why was this happening to them? What had they done to deserve this? She couldn't find a reasonable answer. Amy ran with all her strength through the trees, hearing the heavy metallic clank of the riders behind her. The violent pounding of her heart kept the adrenaline pumping, taming the fear that threatened to freeze her body. The small hands she held in hers also spurred her on.

  —Her sister and her brother.

  Her parents were dead, nothing could change that, but that didn't necessarily mean their lives were over. If they could survive the onslaught, they could start over, just the three of them. Amy gripped her siblings' hands and quickened her pace, preparing to face what would decide their future.