Snowflakes.Soft. Silent. Cold.They kissed her skin like angels… but felt like razors.
She opened her eyes to a silver sky, but all she could see was red.Her breath hitched. She was lying in it — blood. Her blood.Bruises painted her arms, her ribs screamed with every shallow breath, and her once-innocent body now felt foreign… violated. Beaten. Broken.
Why me?What did I do?Am I a bad person?Am I… going to die?
The flashbacks stabbed into her like blades.
Four towering men. Laughter that wasn't human.Their fists were merciless. Their boots heavy.Her screams had echoed into the woods, but no one came.
"Please… stop…"
But monsters don't stop.They enjoy the silence after.
Now, she was empty.No more fear. No more tears.Only the crushing thought: "This is it."
Her lips trembled. She tried to speak, but coughed up blood. Her final breath froze in her throat.
"For real… is this how I die…? Is this ho—"
Blackness swallowed her.No heartbeat. No warmth.She didn't even feel the snow anymore.
Then… a light.
Not warm. Not cold.Just… still.
A man she'd never seen stood before her.He wore white, but looked nothing like an angel.Eyes that had seen centuries. A voice that bent time.
"How do you feel?"
Her eyes fluttered open. Her soul cracked, but not shattered.Tears spilled down her cheeks.
"I… I can't die like this. Please… help me."
He nodded once.
"Very well. You will be reborn. As the daughter of a duke — but you will suffer for ten years before fate gives you a reason to live again."
"You will drown, and someone will save you. He will call you 'daughter.' He will give you brothers, a maid, a friend… and a life."
"But it will not be easy. Pain will be your shadow. Love will confuse you. And your choices… will become legend."
The last thing she remembered was his hand brushing against hers—And the fire that burst into her chest, screaming: live.