Sinful

⚔︎ Prologue ⚔︎

The Kingdom of Rowan had quite the reputation.

From the dark red that lined every building to the black tiles that made up the roads, the atmosphere that the empire presented was beautiful yet intimidating, which made tourists feel uneasy. The Kingdom was a popular topic in other neighboring cities, constantly being the source of entertainment for those who liked to indulge in rumors and drama. The lies that spread were expected as emotions hinder judgment, especially when one feels threatened.

And that is exactly what the Kingdom of Rowan was.

A threat.

Despite the hard surface, it was a place of solitude and happiness for the people who called it home, business was flourishing amongst the kingdom and Townspeople were spoiled with riches due to the royal family's combative successes. This kind of life was not easy to come by, the townspeople knew this and cherished every second of their new, exquisite lifestyle.

The Kingdom of Rowan used to be one of humiliation and defeat, with their weak armies and grimy foundations, the streets crawled with people begging for food, money, and physical aid, all respect for them was lost. The King that ruled at the time, King Trevino, ruled with little care about the wellbeing of his own people, he only cared about power which was something unattainable to him in his 30 years of leadership. He foolishly ordered attacks after attacks on innocent villages and kingdoms that had done no wrong, he was blinded by bloodshed, unknowingly craving the stench of war. The King planned unnecessary battles, hoping his army would succeed as he hid like a coward, sending his own people to their impending doom. After years of his foolishness, his army slowly died out, leaving him no choice but to enlist any male he could find to fight for his Kingdom, out of desperation, he enlisted young boys who were vulnerable and unable to voice their own choices. His soldiers were mere children, they should have been playing games with their friends instead of executing massacres.

Two decades after he came into power, the King became tired and irritated, enraged at the fact that he could not win simple battles. The day he sent his army to attack The Kingdom of Vandenberg, only one soldier came back from the battle, the child stumbled towards the King in sadness and defeat, blood staining his skin and the floor he walked on. The King was not known to show remorse or guilt, but the second that child lifted his head, a pit formed in his stomach when he realized how cruel the war had been to his people, to children. He reached out to gently touch the young boy's face, examining the gash that was now in the place of where one of his eyes used to be.

That boy was only 8 years old.

The king decided to take matters into his own hands, if his own army could not succeed, then he would have to do it himself. He charged into the Kingdom of Vandenberg, swinging his sword wildly in a murderous rage, determined to get revenge for his army's defeat. He was quickly met with hundreds of guards the minute he stepped onto their territory, he looked at them with nothing but murder in his eyes, prepared to make them bleed for the deaths of his people.  How dare they do that to a child? Even in his fleeting last moments, he still refused to take the blame for the catastrophes he had caused. Within seconds of swinging his sword, he was blindsided with a sharp swing to his neck from a guard behind him, finishing him off quickly.

The death of King Trevino did not shock the Kingdom of Rowan, they knew his careless behavior would catch up to him eventually, yet they felt hopeless. Their home had been run to the ground by a bloodthirsty tyrant and the only person able to take the throne was his ten year old son, who was much too young for a king. The few weeks after King Trevino's death was eery and unsettling. The townspeople hid in fear that a neighboring kingdom would come to conquer the land that was now unprotected and without a leader. Most people packed up their belongings and left, hoping to possibly get refuge somewhere else, believing that venturing out to the unknown would be safer than staying in a place that was a ticking time bomb, ready to explode at any minute. Exactly four weeks after the death of the king, the invasion had begun. The Kingdom of Vandenberg was the first to attempt at capturing the city, they expected an easy fight and exuded cockiness as their army approached the distraught land, unaware of what was to come. They closed in on the city, preparing to execute their plan when a bone chilling sound filled the air, the sound radiated through the soldiers bodies as if bolts of electricity sprouted from their veins. The entirety of the troops fell still, suddenly unable to move from where they stood. Cries of protest and confusion were heard amongst the large force while their bodies remained frozen and helpless. The King of Vandenberg remained quiet in a silent rage, he had witnessed this once before and knew that this would be their doom.