The midday liveliness of Umbrium had all but vanished as the sun began to set. No longer was the blacksmith's furnace roaring, nor were the merchants and customers haggling their prices; the shop owners had all set out to close for the evening and return home to their families. Only an occasional passing conversation was heard and the welcoming scent of supper wafted through the autumn air.

It was the usual scene; the village headman made his final rounds of the evening, lighting the braziers for the night and bidding good work to those who’ve accomplished their tasks for the day. The night watchmen all prepared themselves for their oncoming shift.

“There’s still those two kids outside the village, right?” one of the men asked.

“Hmm?” The headman turned around in response to the question, “Yes, the Kanidae girl and that boy Ymir are still out there. Make sure they make it back safely.”

“Of course. These parts of Solatellus are spry with beasts after the sun falls.”

“Very good.” He returned to his route, “Keep up the hard work!”

At the foot of Mt. Zenith, in the westernmost frontiers of the Solatellusian Empire, lay a modest village. This village, Umbrium, was the furthest from the Imperial metropolis of Aurora, and the closest to the border of Nocterra, the Shadow Realm, where various clans of demonic species resided.

Umbrium consisted of about 150 or so shops and homes, mostly built with timber frames and thatched roofs; this was a common lay of the land for the rural areas of Solatellus. As it stood on the outskirts of the Empire, common amenities were scarce and the denizens of the village had to hunt and gather for most of their sustenance.

Beyond the village limits, there were two teens lounging beneath a maple tree. A fair-skinned young man in his late teens, with a sharp jawline, and neck-length hair that was naturally split into an opposing black and white. The other, a young woman who was blessed with a natural beauty like none other in the village, was a demi-human wolf. The two rested side-by-side, Ymir and Rena Kanidae.

They both sat in silence as if lost in thought. The boy, in reality, was entranced by the astonishing charm of the girl sitting beside him. Although she had been his life-long friend, he still looked at her as not a friend, but a woman.   

Rena was the first to break the silence.

“Hey...”

Ymir lifted his face to meet hers, brushing the fringes of his hair away with his hand. The reflection of her emerald-green eyes pooled in his crimson irises to create a warm amber hue.

“Do you believe in fate?

Ymir pondered on the sudden question, “Hmm... I can’t say for sure. We don’t really have enough evidence to prove it either way, right? However, I did hear of an old saying that goes something like, ‘The stars incline us, they do not bind us.’ I’d like to think that would be the case at least.”

She thought over his answer for a bit, then nodded. “Mhm, I think I like the thought of that.” She stopped for a second in contemplation of what to ask next, “Do you want to leave this place?”

He looked at her quizzically while she twirled a strand of her golden-brown hair before responding, “Since before you were born, your parents took care of me as if I was one of their own. I’ll always be grateful for that; however, there are answers I need to find and I don’t think I’ll be able to find them here in Umbrium...”

Wrapped in only a tattered robe, I was all alone in that forest. They didn’t discriminate against me and they weren’t wary when they saw these ominous, raven-black markings on my body -- I was shown compassion by those who could sympathize with being shunned through the eyes of prejudice.

Ymir stole a glance at Rena while she patiently awaited his response.

No. It’s more than that. Not only did they take me into their home and raise me alongside Rena, a child of their own flesh and blood, but even she showed me what it meant to be loved. I don’t want to be without her.

He took a slight pause as if to regain his composure, “Though I suppose I wouldn’t mind leaving so long as you were to be by my side.”

Rena looked down, a small fang protruding from the edge of her mouth as she smiled. “Hee-hee. You’re so hopeless, you know? Well, I guess there’s no helping it then. If you reaaally need me with you...”

Rena stood up and dusted off her simple dress, remembering they still had errands to run. All the while, her canine ears perked and bushy tail gleefully swayed from side-to-side.

“Ymir, we still have to go gather berries for dinner.”

Ymir rose from his spot. “Yeah. Let’s go then, it’s starting to get late,” and as if following her lead, brushed the dirt off of his woolen shirt and trousers. He grabbed Rena's hand, picked up the basket they had brought, and the two of them made their way to the berry bushes.

The sun began to set as they filled the basket.

Plucking the last of the berries from their branch with care, Rena looked into the star-filled sky. “Do they really only incline us?” she thought to herself.

Ymir cut off her silent thoughts, “We should head back.”

About thirty minutes had passed since they started foraging and had filled their basket to the brim with the various types of berries that grew in this area. As they began to approach Umbrium, the atmosphere became uneasy. The usual peaceful ambience that the village had seemed to now be non-existent. The closer the two of them got, the deeper their hearts sank into their stomachs.

The sounds of furor filled the air, giving rise to their anxiety. The villagers who should have been enjoying their evening meals were now crowded in dissension with an unseen third party.

Ymir whispered in her ear, “Don’t make a sound.”

She nodded in affirmation and they moved around in the shadows of the buildings to see what the commotion was about, paying care to make themselves as inconspicuous as possible.

Too inexperienced to know the ways of the world, Ymir and Rena were blissfully ignorant of the politics occurring before them.

There stood a dignified man donning white plate armor with a golden trim, and a cape of the same color scheme. Slightly peeking from the top of his cape was the hilt of what seemed to be a massive sword. His face was masked by a beard and his lengthy gray hair rested upon his pauldrons, giving him the air of a man who had fought many battles and lived many more days.

The Sigil of Light was emblazoned onto the center of his cuirass -- a key crossing a sword beneath the crown, engulfed by a blazing sun. To his rear was a rank-and-file formation of twenty other knights, all wearing a less grandiose, but similar style of armor.

Alas, their fool’s paradise would quickly collapse.

“Residents of Umbrium, I am Knight-Captain Grayford of the Paladins of Sol, the King’s personal Knight Corps. I have come to deliver a message.” The previous racket abated, if for only a moment.

The amount of demi-humans coinhabiting this backwoods community with the pure-blood humans was an uncommon spectacle. The demographics were a near fifty-fifty split of the village’s population, making it the pinnacle of racial equality in the entirety of the Empire. Along with the inhabitants of this village being evenly balanced, they all lived peaceful and harmonious lives with one another. Although this was the general outlook of Umbrium, the other areas throughout the Empire did not share their sentiments.

“By royal decree, His Majesty, King Solum has proclaimed all non-human species to be enemies of the state. Due to the bestial impulses of these hybrid monsters, men, women, and children of pure birth have been brutalized, villages have been raped and pillaged, and other atrocious acts unbefitting of the subjects of our King have been occurring at an alarming rate across Solatellus. As such, there are two options for the demi-human inhabitants of this village: You shall henceforth submit to slavery, or be put to death.”

The headman quickly spoke out, “This is absurd! Take your damned knights and leave my village.”

Without a moment of hesitation, the Knight closed his fist within his gauntlet and struck the elder’s face, knocking him to his knees. “This is an order from His Majesty, King Solum. It would do you well to learn your place, headman.”

The headman, raising himself from a position of prostration, spoke out once more, “We will NOT tolerate being bullied by the lapdogs of that tyrant king!”

“Well, then...”

As the words left Grayford’s lips, the footmen behind him all drew their swords in unison.

“You will all just have to die.”