Chương 1: Felicity Prinz

Felicity Prinz was twenty-two years old. Her long black hair fell straight over her shoulders, framing a face with hard features and light gray eyes that were cold and alert. She was about one meter seventy tall, with a lean and defined physique tempered by travel and combat. She wore a black haori that fell to her thighs, loose white trousers and dark sandals. At her waist, housed in two leather holsters, she carried two swords: one with a white and gold hilt, the other a deep purple, shorter but faster.

She was galloping on the back of her white horse through the swamps. The night was freezing and a thick fog enveloped everything, making visibility almost zero. For Felicity, already penalized by astigmatism, that landscape was a succession of indistinct shadows and deceptive reflections. Suddenly the horse slowed down, then stopped completely, neighing nervously. Felicity strained her gaze ahead. The stagnant water rippled. A gigantic crocodile emerged from the swamps, more than ten meters long.

Its skin had an unnatural golden tone that weakly reflected the moonlight. The horse, seized by panic, threw Felicity off and fled into the fog. She rolled in the mud, but got up immediately, calm, slowly drawing both swords. The monster stared at her with the eyes of a pure predator. Then it lunged toward her with impressive speed. Felicity did not hesitate. She threw both swords with deadly precision, stabbing them into the creature's eyes.

Before the enormous body could collapse on her, she jumped onto its head, ripped out the blades and, with a lightning movement, slashed its throat. The crocodile let out a final gurgle of pain, then remained motionless. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Felicity climbed down from the corpse, cleaned the swords with a cloth and sheathed them carefully.

"Your skin will earn me a little something, you bastard" she murmured, observing the dead beast. The next morning she reached a village fortified with wooden palisades. At the entrance, a short, fat toll collector blocked her way.

"Fifteen crowns to enter" he said.

"Ten for you, five for the horse".

"The king keeps raising the prices" commented Felicity, taking the coins from a small pouch.

"The war is emptying the kingdom's coffers. If we want to win, we all have to make an effort". Felicity tossed him the fifteen crowns.

"As you say". She entered the village. It was crowded and chaotic: people moving in every direction, merchants shouting their offers, children running between the stalls stealing food, shouts and laughter mixing in the air. She tied the horse and took the crocodile skin with her, then entered a shop. She laid it on the counter. A man with long hair and a very thick beard examined it carefully.

"You skinned it really badly. For a woman, you have butcher's hands".

"How much can you give me?" Felicity cut short.

"No more than a hundred crowns". She picked the skin back up.

"You're crazy". She headed toward the exit.

"Wait! One hundred and fifty crowns. That's the maximum I can offer you. With the war going on, we're all starving and in this village I'm the only one who can pay you this much". Felicity thought for a moment, then left the skin on the counter. She took the one hundred and fifty crowns and returned to the horse. She was looking for an inn when she heard screams.

She followed the noise and found herself in front of a crowd: dozens of men and women armed with stones surrounded a girl with brown hair and large, light brown eyes. A man in a priest's robe raised his arms.

"This woman has sinned before the eyes of God. She kissed and lay with a man who was not her husband. According to the laws of the Kingdom, she must be punished by stoning. Let her husband throw the first stone". The husband grabbed a rock. He looked at her. She returned his gaze, trembling.

"Take this, whore!" he shouted, hitting her in the head. Felicity got off the horse.

"Hold on a moment". Everyone turned. The priest approached her.

"We are in the middle of an execution, miss. Step aside".

"I intend to stop it" Felicity replied.

"I'd prefer to do it without spilling blood. But it's not a problem if necessary". The husband drew a dagger and came toward her.

"Get lost, bitch, or you'll join her". Felicity stared at him. Then, in an instant, she drew the sword with the purple hilt and slit his throat. Blood sprayed onto the cobblestones. The crowd screamed and scattered, fleeing in panic. Even the priest ran away. Felicity approached the girl on the ground and held out her hand.

"If you don't want to die, come with me". The young woman wiped the blood from her forehead and grabbed her hand. They mounted the horse and fled the village, leaving behind screams, fear and silence.