Death's Door

A future that could be taken away with a simple flick of a claw.

One day, when I was twelve, my village was attacked by monsters.

The villagers panicked and were running everywhere in ma.s.s panic, making us an easy prey for the hungry beasts.

I was no exception.

At the most misfortunate moment, my leg gave out underneath me and I ended up face to face with the were-beast"s open mouth, just waiting to swallow me whole.

I thought "so this is the end" and closed my eyes.

Just when I thought I was dead, my life was saved by a silver haired girl.

The monster"s body ended up bisected in the middle and it fell on the ground with a lifeless thud.

And now before me, was my savior.

She looked a little older than me, but all I could think about at that moment was how lovely she was. Now I understood the true meaning of beauty.

I never was the type to be attracted to the external appearances of others, but this…this was a supreme swordsman in her natural element.

"Are you all right?" Her gentle voice seemed to put my whole mind to rest. I could only mumble incoherently as my words seemed to be stuck within my throat.

As I was lost within my thoughts, she walked forward and cut down the rest of the attacking monsters with the might of her blade.

I watched her cut down monsters one by one with nothing but a single blade; only thing I felt was pure admiration of her skill.

When she was done, it looked as though there was no monster invasion to start with, only the countless corpses littering the fields proving in contrary.

"Miss, what is your name?"

I hoped my voice could reach her.

"It"s Verita, Verita Welles. If anything happens, call me and I will always come to help."

I still remember her warm words…

It has been more than thirteen years since then, but I never forgot.

The very reason I became a knight instead of a farmer like my father wanted to was due to my admiration towards her.

Ordinarily, a commoner like me could not become a knight, but I managed to become a squire to a knight and I volunteered to fight on the frontlines.

For my bravery, I was allowed to become a knight, and after countless battles, I became strong enough to reach the rank of a Holy Knight.

But what I wished for lay much further ahead.

What I wanted to do was to catch up to her, become worthy of her.

Over time, she had reached the level of a hero, and was now known as the Knight of Sword, for her remarkable swordsmanship skills.

At my peak, I even managed to become a captain of Holy Knights, a t.i.tle entrusted to the strongest Holy Knight.

But after I lost my left hand, everything went downhill from there.

My limitless potential suddenly became limited.

All my past achievement meant nothing to the kingdom I was serving; as soon I was crippled they discarded me like a piece of trash.

I thought I was going to just rot there, while drinking my reality away….never able to reach the one I wanted most to catch up to.

And then…Master Runfar found me.

And now I am fighting for my life with the very woman I fell in love with!

Just what kind of luck do I have?!

Master Runfar told me to follow this squad and if necessary, to fight them.

I tried my best to use the blessing Dark Lord bestowed upon me, concealing my presence from everyone but one.

The hero was able to sense me, I don"t know how, but she could feel that I was nearby.

Then, she flung a pair of small rocks towards me with such a force that the tree behind me ended up receiving damage enough to leave holes through it.

"There is no use hiding, I can tell you are there, might as well come out to the open."

"I guess it can"t be helped." Meros now was face to face with his foe, who to his horror, he realized was the Knight of Sword, the one woman he wanted to surpa.s.s.

"I can explain…."

Before Meros could say anything, Knight of Sword proceeded to attack him.

She sent a wave of air slashes at his direction which he barely managed to dodge.

The air slashes landed behind him upon the trees and rocks, cutting through the scenery like a hot knife cuts through b.u.t.ter.

"Just an inch closer and I would be dead."

"I don"t care who you are, all I need to know is that you are not my ally. This means you are my enemy and all my enemies shall taste my blade."

She calmly remarked, now aiming her sword with her single eye in his direction.

"I guess there is no way to get out of this by talking, oh well."

Meros brandished his own sword, now that he had his left hand back, he might have a fighting chance against her.

"In that case, here I go!"