The big, muscular knight grabbed the frail-looking woman as she struggled to break free.
"Let me go! Father, Your Majesty, please, don't banish me! I'm your daughter!"
Her shrill voice echoed through the castle's meeting room.
But it was useless. The knight was far stronger than she was.
And the man she called father only stared down at her coldly from his throne.
Through the two doors that were about to close,
the woman caught sight of her beloved younger sister standing beside their father, wearing a smug smile—
which instantly shifted into an innocent expression.
"Oh, Father, sister is a monster… but she's still family. Don't banish her from the kingdom! If you do, I'll feel terrible guilt."
"Don't feel guilty, my dear daughter. Without you, we would never have known that a monster was hiding among us.
She's no different from the beastmen out there!"
The target of their conversation finally stopped yelling.
She coughed, her breath shortening. A glistening tear slipped down her cheek.
She heard every word spoken by the two people she once loved—
turned out, they were wolves in sheep's clothing.
Her scheming younger sister…
and her arrogant father.
"They're no longer my family," she hissed through her tears.
"Stop talking, Prin—miss Fiora. Save your strength. This journey won't be easy," said the knight.
Of course it wouldn't.
Fiora, the eldest daughter of King Garlan of the Pelestria Kingdom, had been banished to the Forest of Death—
the border between human and beastman territory.
No human lived there. No one knew what kind of beastmen lurked inside.
And for as long as anyone could remember, no human had ever returned alive.
In reality, Fiora had been sentenced to death.
It took three days for the carriage to reach the border. During the entire journey, she didn't utter a single word.
She seemed ready for her fate. Ready for death.
When the border gate opened, the view beyond stretched into a thick, wide forest.
"This is as far as we can escort you, Miss Fiora. You'll have to walk on your own."
Without waiting for Fiora's reply, the knight stepped back and closed the gate.
Left alone, Fiora stood between the sealed gate behind her and the Forest of Death ahead.
There was no other path.
And she had known since three days ago that this would be her only ending.
Her only path… was to die.
"I survived falling off a cliff without a wound or a scratch. Let's see how this forest plans to kill me."
She stepped forward like a fearless hero, though her lifeless eyes said otherwise.
Right now, all she wanted was death.
"After everything I sacrificed for the kingdom, the people, the royal family…
and they still threw me away. I'm nothing but trash. I don't deserve to live," she murmured.
No tears. No cries.
Even without injuries, her body ached. Pain from her mind seeped into every part of her being.
Soon, the bright sky darkened beneath a thick canopy of leaves.
Only thin streaks of light slipped through, guiding her path.
Still, she walked aimlessly, deeper and deeper into the forest.
Her dirty white gown contrasted with her dark red hair, yet somehow blended unnaturally with the forest around her,
as if she belonged there.
After countless steps, the smell of damp earth shifted into a foul, rotten odor.
"Hik!" she gasped, instinctively covering her nose.
She was suffocating, yet she didn't stop.
"Is there a toxic swamp nearby?" she guessed.
That was when she noticed the remains, scattered bones lying beneath the trees.
The toxic air had killed them before they even realized it. It wasn't beastmen that hunted humans here.
But she didn't turn back. She wanted to die.
And she wasn't like other humans. She wouldn't die this easily.
Even while suffocating, she pushed forward.
Before long, she reached the toxic swamp.
"I made it. Your toxic gas means nothing to me. Can you kill me now?"
The moment she stepped into the swamp, her feet blistered and peeled.
She gritted her teeth.
"It hurts…" she whispered.
Despite the pain, her legs moved forward, step after step.
Unlike the carcasses around her, her limbs didn't melt.
Because she was different. She had a special power,
regeneration.
"Let me die!" she screamed through the agony.
Her regeneration worked on everything, her skin, her organs.
Her lungs would never decay from the poisonous gas.
Even though the toxin was trapped inside her, it only made her uncomfortable. Her body would not fail.
Without realizing it, she crossed the swamp.
The moment she reached solid ground, she collapsed. Nothing had permanently harmed her, but the pain was unbearable.
"Am I not allowed to die?" she wept.
No answer came. This part of the forest was empty except for toxic trees and small poisonous lizards.
She cried again. Though it was difficult, with the toxic gas still trapped in her lungs.
She could barely breathe, yet she still could. She hovered somewhere between life and death.
In the end, she forced herself to leave the swamp, searching for clean air and herbs that could expel the toxin from her system.
Fortunately, she found some herbs, ground them up, and consumed them.
But since she hadn't eaten anything, she immediately vomited, black liquid spilling from her mouth.
Slowly, breathing became easier.
Surprisingly, food was easy to find here: berries, wild potatoes, edible mushrooms.
After eating, she only felt slight discomfort.
Only then could she think clearly again.
"I won't try to die anymore. It hurts so much… and I can't even die after all that pain."
"Fine. Without them, I can live… for myself. Not for anyone else. Just for me!"
ROAR! A roar thundered from the sky.
She looked up to see a creature with a lion's head and an eagle's body diving straight toward her.
"I literally just said I want to live!" she screamed in despair.
Knowing the pain she'd face if caught, she dodged with quick, barely noticeable movements.
"Roarr!" The creature clearly didn't like its prey escaping.
It swooped toward Fiora again.
This time, its claws grabbed her.
"Help!" she screamed, though she knew no one was around. "I don't want to feel pain anymore!"
Shoosh! Brukk!
Something leaped out and slammed into the creature's body.
The beast fell—
and Fiora's body was flung to the ground.
The impact was brutal. She felt her bones crack.
They would heal soon… but the pain was too much, especially after she had just promised herself she wouldn't feel pain again.
Her consciousness slipped away.
The last thing she saw… was a handsome, majestic man with golden hair.
...