It's a midsummer afternoon. Rays of sunlight feel scorching. The heat is unbearable.
Amethyst manages to stay focused, wiping his sweaty forehead on his sleeve.
"Master, do you need a break?" His butler speaks, returned by his weary gaze.
"No." Amethyst shakes his head, raises his bow, and adjusts his posture. He draws the bowstring, aiming at the red center of the target. One of his eyes closes, and another squints at the excessive sunlight. He releases the bowstring, darting the arrow hit the target just a tad away from the red center. "Tsk." He clicks his tongue on the roof of his mouth, his eyelashes wet due to relentless sweating. His butler offers him a bottle of water which he empties in one go shortly after.
"Oh, my master, your burning cheeks need a soak in cool water so badly." The man jeers with an obnoxious smirk.
"Quit it, Lucifer!" grunts the younger man, tossing the latter a dead glare as he was about to splash a whole bucket of water at him. Lucifer laughs teasingly, amused by seeing his master trying to wipe off the blushes on his cheeks. Amethyst was blushing because of the crazily hot weather. Nothing more, nothing less. He shoves his face into a small towel that Lucifer passed him, deciding to give himself a short break.
Amethyst grinds his teeth, combing his fingers into his messy bang to get it back in order. "No pain, no gain." He regains his determination. His butler watches him from afar, a beam of light flashing on his slightly smiling face as the stubborn teenager reminds him of his former master.
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Hantornius Amethyst, leader of the Hantornius clan- a clan in charge of leading wandering souls to the after death, determining whether they should go to Heaven, Hell, or continue their lives as a human. His father- the former leader of the clan, was well-known for his arbitrariness. Serving that person was the most torturous thing to Lucifer since his former master usually got away from work to wander around the three worlds. It seems to be another torture to Lucifer that his arbitrariness passed down perfectly on his dear son. To be fair, Amethyst is the result of his unholy spree in the human world. That child should not and would not have been born if his father did not "sacrifice" himself to keep his child alive. By sacrificing, he meant to "retire" from his work and pass it on to his son instead.
His mother- a mortal, who was too weary of raising a child that never grew up, collapsed into a thousand winters' slumber, leaving the naive child weeping by her remains. Little Amethyst thought she was just having a long nap, waggling his mother's arm to wake her up. He wanted his mother to give him a soft smile as she always did, wanted her to rock him to sleep, and wanted her to fight away his fears with tender pats on his head. He yearned for that, yet his desires were never satisfied...
The house's main door was thrust open, causing a jarring thud.
"Pathetic." Lucifer blurted as he winced at the old women's remains, returned by the child's glare.
"Uncle, when will my mom wake up?" Little Amethyst asked with widened, doe eyes.
"She's dead," Lucifer responded instantly, voice sounding monotonic. "-and stop calling me uncle. Do I look that old!?" He continued.
Back then, little Amethyst, who had a mind of a four years old, could not understand the sorrow of death.
"That means she'd never wake up to play with you again, numbskull," Lucifer said to the confused face of the child. He rolled his eyes, deciding to tuck the child by the side of his hip. "You'll come with me," he declared.
Little Amethyst wept as Lucifer looked exactly like those scary monsters in his mom's stories.
"Agh, ugly devil. Please d-do not eat m-me!" He stuttered, his vision blurred by tears.
"Ugly devil!?" Lucifer grumbled, almost dropping the child halfway. Little Amethyst deafened the devil's ears as he tightened his arm around the child, nearly grinding him apart.
"Ouch! Shush. I'll be gentle, brat."
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"Pfft-" Amethyst hisses, trying to hide his embarrassment as he reminisces about such things. He presses the pad of his hand flat on his forehead, hoping his countenance is not too evident to the man afar to observe. As years and years pass, his memories of his parents are no longer coherent and persistent. Whenever he wants to remind himself of his parents' appearance, he simply looks at the mirror. His father gave him his curly reddish-brown hair, his arrogant gaze, and his stubborn heart; whereas his mother gave him her wise, obsidian-black eyes and the pale skin of hers.
"How could they fit?" he thinks.
Back to the present, Amethyst settles himself up after he thinks he has had enough break (only seven minutes, to be exact). He tugs his training bow, raises it, and adjusts his posture again. The sunlight is now less blinding, thanks to a big cloud covering it. Since his eyes are no longer tired of excessive sunlight, he looks more confident. He draws the bowstring, squinting one eye closed, aiming at the target. The bow bends into a C shape as he plucks the bowstring to its tensest.
Thud.
Amethyst releases the bowstring halfway, for he feels his heart has skipped one beat. Magically, the arrow pierces perfectly in the red center of the target. Amethyst does not bother to cheer about the unforeseen success. He senses something else, something that swirls in his guts, making his heart batter in madness. Just a moment after, he feels a harsh urge hit the dead of his mind, causing him to whip his head back and glance at the entrance to the forest.
"Alright. That's enough for today. You must be spent, sweetheart." Lucifer claps his hands, the corner of his mouth curving into a huge loathly grin. Amethyst's temper grows explosive as his butler bursts into laughter.
"What a lovely word, Lucifer," Amethyst smiles sourly, preparing to throw a monumental bite-back. "I bet you wanna breathe in the air full of your burning ashes so badly. Dig up your buried manners, jerk." Amethyst taunts, tossing his opponent a threatening glare. Lucifer trembles as he struggles to cease his laughter.
"Tsk," Amethyst clicks his tongue. His mind comes back to its previous state after the irritating interruption. Genuinely, Amethyst is not quite an intuitive person; he finds listening to his intuition meaningless, even. But this time, his hunch grows invasive, taking complete hold of his mind. His guts persistently urge him to dash into the forest as if something in the forest appeals to him. Constant heart thumps hint him the way. His mind is so full of thoughts, yet so blank at the same time.
"I'll linger for an extra moment." He sighs, apprising the man afar to return home first. Lucifer nods in response, starting to pack things up. The curious teenager wanders to the wood as the man's silhouette fades from his sight.
The air is much cooler under leafy foliage, causing the little man's frown face to relax. Gentle breezes trailing through his clammy hair just add to that. Amethyst swallows what has been stuck in his throat for a long time, inhaling a grasping amount of air, for it pleases him with the feeling of fluttering in his guts.
The farther he gets, the stronger the sense is. He perceives the ridicule of his act; he lets his intuition guide him, regardless. In the brick of insanity, the hasty teenage rush his feet past the thorn vines even as those wound him unkindly. His feet halt in the middle of the wood, leaving him gasping for air. He settles himself up, trying to tug his sanity back, for he eventually notices the pricking aches on his legs. Finally, all the pain on the way there gets rewarded with the addictive feeling of satisfaction.
"One more step. Just one more," Amethyst mumbles...
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Einurdice- English version
Fantasy*Credits: - Writer: @haivanhaiyen - Cowriter/Translator/Cover designer: Elsolvia Lisa *Summary: A dimension consisting of three separated yet associated worlds: the human world- the land of the mortals, nothing much special; the netherworld- the ab...