The Black Rain
The rain fell.
It was a black rain that stained everything in the world. The sky, where the sun refused to rise, was shrouded in pitch-black darkness, and the earth was dyed with death. The price of ignoring the prophets' warnings was unbearably cruel. The border that everyone believed would never fall was completely overrun in just three days. Wails of agony echoed across the mercilessly trampled land. In the heart of that place where everything had been destroyed, a woman screamed.
“Haaaaaah—!”
It was a desperate, heartrending cry filled with bitter resentment. The silver-haired woman had collapsed to her knees in a heap, cradling the upper body of a man whose chest was gushing blood in violent spurts. Around the man lay dozens of corpses—clearly those he had slain before falling.
“Why….”
A voice slipped out between her trembling lips of its own accord. It was a hoarse, worn-out rasp that almost evoked pity. Black droplets fell steadily from her rain-soaked silver hair.
“Why, Leo, you….”
Her words could not continue. The man’s hand, blackened and scorched in places, slowly rose to caress her cheek. Under normal circumstances she would have grumbled about getting soot on her face, but in this moment she could not bring herself to reject his touch.
“Aria….”
A low voice escaped the man’s stiffened lips. It was weak, the voice of someone on the verge of death.
“I’m glad… you’re safe.”
The woman’s breathing grew ragged. Her lips quivered violently as large teardrops spilled from her wide eyes, splashing onto the man’s cheek. At that moment, the man smiled. Even though the once-bright spark in his eyes had vanished, it was a faint smile that could still be clearly recognized.
“Don’t cry. You’ll ruin that pretty face….”
But as if those words had flipped a switch, the woman began to sob even harder.
“Hic, ugh… Leo, no… you can’t die.”
She hated him for cracking unfunny jokes even in a situation like this. She hated him for pretending to be calm, as if he didn’t know how her heart was shattering. This might be the last time, after all. She still hadn’t properly told him she loved him. If he left her like this, so arbitrarily… what was she supposed to do?
“Cough.”
As the man coughed, dark red blood poured from his mouth. The woman panicked, unable to think of anything to do except wipe the blood from his lips with her trembling hands. Soon even the blood on her hands was washed away by the relentless rain.
The man, as if sensing his own death, looked at her with unusually serious eyes and spoke.
“Aria….”
Even as she wept, his quiet voice rang clearly in her ears.
“Meeting you… truly made me happy….”
Warm words he had almost never said before. Honest words he would never have uttered in the past, claiming they were embarrassing. Hearing them, she realized with painful clarity that the end had truly come.
“…I love you….”
With those final words, the hand that had been stroking her cheek fell limply to the ground. The faint life that had lingered in his ruby-red eyes lost its focus completely. Clutching the now-cold body that no longer held any warmth, the woman screamed for a long, long time.
It was a day when black rain fell.
#0. [POV: Leo]
Knock, knock.
At the sound of knocking that broke the silence, Count Grace answered in a gentle voice.
“Come in.”
The firmly closed door creaked open slowly. Soon, a girl slipped through the gap.
“…….”
The moment I saw her face, I froze, unable to utter a single word.
“You called for me, Father….”
The girl who had just opened the door spotted me as well and froze mid-sentence.
“Ah, now that I think about it, you two have met a few times in the past.”
“Indeed. This lad must remember her too. You played together several times, after all.”
“…….”
Their voices barely registered. My mind had fallen into complete panic.
Why are you here?
I barely managed to swallow the words that nearly burst out.
The girl radiated a bright, floral aura like wildflowers on a spring day. Long, silky silver hair cascaded naturally over her shoulders. Fair, milk-white skin and delicate, well-balanced features. Beautiful doe-like eyes and a straight, elegant nose. A slender figure overall, yet with curves exactly where they should be. Seeing her after so long, her beauty shone even brighter.
But that wasn’t what mattered right now.
Aria Luna Grace.
I recognized her instantly. There was no way I wouldn’t.
That wretched woman.
The wretched woman who had suddenly changed her attitude five years ago and coldly cast me aside. The villainess who still lingered in a corner of my heart, tormenting me in my dreams every single night. And now that very person stood casually before me, all grown up.
Just looking at her made my blood boil.
She couldn’t have forgotten me. There was no way. Absolutely not.
So why on earth was she here?
She had said she was going abroad to study. Even when I told her I would wait, she insisted she would rather die than stay. She had declared she would never return to this place.
“Greet her, Leo.”
In the midst of my turmoil, those clear words pierced through my mind.
“She is your fiancée.”
“……Pardon?”
My gaze reflexively darted to Aria. Our eyes met naturally.
“…….”
Her ruby-red eyes, impossible to read, stared at me intently. I didn’t know about anything else, but at this particular moment, I was certain we were thinking the exact same thing.
What the hell kind of bombshell is this?
Damn it all.