Love Letter From The Future

“I am not just any ‘Miss.’ I am of noble lineage, with the blood of the Imperial House. Someone like you has no standing to address me as ‘Miss.’”

“…Hah.”

“Surely, do you also find the dragon’s name amusing?”

It was absurd.

This was a battlefield. Moreover, the opponent was a monster affiliated with the Dark Cult, an entity to whom the prestige of the Imperial House held no meaning whatsoever.

And yet, she stood there recounting her family’s prestige as if it mattered?

It was as good as asking to be killed. The woman let out a weary, irritated sigh.

“Am I supposed to find the dragon’s name amusing? That, I’m not sure about… But the arrogant little mage standing in front of me is certainly amusing. You seem to lack a proper grasp of your place.”

“Grasp of my place…?”

The girl smiled faintly as she heard this.

As if it were something she’d heard far too many times.

The Imperial Princess shook her head.

“I’m sick of it. All of this.”

She swayed her hand and let out a small laugh, looking both adorable and insolent.

It was enough to provoke the woman who had been barely restraining her agitation.

Just as the woman clenched her teeth and was about to lunge forward,

Thud.

The pebble the girl had been hiding in her hand fell once more. The woman, who had finally reached her limit, could do nothing but scream.

“You… You brat! Argggh, kkkrrraaaaahhhh!”

Lightning struck again.

A noise akin to the sound of birds taking flight in unison from the forest spread, and the bat-like mage was once again forced to press her head against the ground. Amidst the flashes of blue lightning, the scene became clearer.

The girl was screaming and charging forward.

“Kyaa, help! Sir Ian!”

The woman’s eyes glinted with fierce hostility. Her brain was already being consumed by the monster’s influence, yet this overt provocation made maintaining her sanity impossible.

And what was this pathetic display she was seeing?

Until moments ago, the girl had been confidently lecturing her, but now she was running away?

“Shameless…”

With her boiling rage, the woman sprang up. Though she was still somewhat restrained by the residual electricity, it mattered little.

For there was only one thought dominating her mind now:

Tear this insolent princess apart and take the blood of the dragon.

It was the ultimate key to solving all her issues. With one more flap of her wings, she leaped with a twisted spine, cutting through the air.

A thunderous sound as she struck the air, and with it, the ear-splitting cry of torn atmosphere.

The branches and leaves were shredded and scattered in the wind, all within a fraction of a second.

Before long, a familiar sound reached the woman who had paused mid-air.

Thud, thud, thud.

The sound of snapping, pale-blue magical strings. They were scattered across the space between the trees and bushes, messy threads left behind.

They were the tracks left by the princess, serving as a convenient clue for the pursuer.

At this point, vision was unnecessary. The woman localized the approximate position using sound and began a high-speed descent towards it.

The sound of trees being shredded.

There she was— the girl trembling on all fours, trying to suppress her fear.

The suppressed scream was futile. The woman landed gracefully, and even before the princess could rise, a crimson spear was hurled at her.

It pierced her thigh with an unsettling smoothness, sinking into the ground. The princess, unaccustomed to such pain, could only scream again.

“Kyyuh, krrruuuhhh… Aaaaaaaaahhhh!”

“Already the second time today, right?”

Was she enjoying the sound of the princess’s anguished cry?

Huff, huff. The woman took a step forward as she caught her breath, appearing somewhat composed. A trace of aristocratic dignity seemed to linger in her serene smile, even as it couldn’t hide the boiling hatred in her eyes.

She continued in a gentle tone, carrying conflicting expressions of a smile and venom.

“I know you battled my daughter… And even if it was a one-sided fight, I sensed the blood from far away. Our daughter damaged your limbs, didn’t she?”

The princess gave no reply.

She only gritted her teeth, trembling her small frame as she tried hard to suppress her screams.

The monster didn’t seem to like the lack of response.

Apparently so, as another crimson spike was thrust through the princess’s remaining leg.

“Auuh, au.. Kyyyyyyyyaaaaaaahhh!”

“That’s it, that’s it. Is this the roar of a dragon? Pfft… And just where did you come up with this nonsense about the ‘dragon’?”

The woman approached gently and slowly bent her knees. The now powerless princess could only glare with bloodshot eyes.

Meeting that gaze, the woman smiled faintly.

And then—

“Smug, are we?”

She slapped the girl hard with her palm. The force was so great that the princess’s upper body collapsed onto the ground. An involuntary groan escaped from her lips.

Yet, the princess’s spirit wasn’t broken. She lifted her head again.

The result was the same.

Crrack!

And her head was smashed into a clod of dirt. The blow was strong enough to rattle her teeth.

Now, the princess could barely move her head, only groaning.

At long last, the woman smiled brightly.

“You finally look more fitting, Your Highness… I rather like women who understand their place.”

“Hnn… hnn…”

“You seemed to have put some thought into this, didn’t you? That desperate tactic of yours… those pebbles? They were nothing but borrowed strength, after all. So why do you keep acting so cocky? Irritating.”

Pfft, and another crimson spike was driven through. This time, it was the right arm.

The princess, who had no thoughts of stopping the bleeding with her remaining hand, gritted her teeth and swallowed the blood and wailing cries.

Drops of fresh blood splashed against the woman’s face.

Even these few drops were enough.

The woman’s expression grew serene as she slowly rose.

“Ah, how sweet. If only you had cooperated earlier, you wouldn’t be in so much pain now. Even someone of your status could have done that, pity you. Although, I must admit, I did hear rumors. About you hiding out in the Academy for a while.”

“Da, da…”

“Someone who likes the same person as my daughter, aren’t you? How pitiful… You finally realized after so long. Love is about conquering. Those without the will or ability to do so can only be left to envy from afar…”

“Shut up.”

Her labored breathing reeked of iron.

A sign that blood was rising. From the depths of the young girl’s lungs, already far beyond her physical limits, came an increasingly faint scent of blood.

Had she ever run so hard in her life?

Had she ever been humiliated this way?

She could confidently say no. And so, Shi-en, for the first time, voiced her emotions aloud.

“Someone like you… How dare you presume to understand my feelings? I nearly died from my mother strangling me when I was a child. I’ve spent my whole life distrusting and hating humankind. Fearful of betrayal… and being abandoned…”

“Ah, I see.”

The woman smirked, slowly raising her hand.

The conversation was over.

It was too precious to end her this way. Perhaps I could use this girl as a blood bag for a while, then offer her to Lord Delphrium. What kind of reward would I get? Could this be my chance to become the next of the Seven Deadly Sins?

While entertaining such thoughts, the woman slowly brought her hand down.

“So, you’ll continue to envy forever. Eternally.”

And then, at that moment.

Time suddenly slowed.

The woman’s heightened senses caused her perception to warp, disrupting her sense of time.

What?

The eyelids that had been closed with a sneer slowly opened. Through the slightly parted vision, a scene was imprinted.

The remaining hand of the princess.

Until now, it was assumed she had been using it for support. But on closer inspection, something felt off.

Even with a limb pierced, the pain must have been unbearable.

It was only natural to attempt to stem the bleeding with the other hand. Yet, the princess had persisted in biting her lip and enduring it.

Why?

The answer was revealing itself, faintly glowing.

Ssssshhh.

As the faint sound resonated in her ears, the bat-mage hastily sprang into the air.

Ssssshhhhhh!!!

A web rose.

The pale-blue threads that had been lying limp everywhere were now abruptly snapping with sharp noises, forming a tight, encircling trap around her. These were the strands that had been flung off the bindings that once restrained Seria.

A flawless trap, with no visible escape.

Yet, the vampire could only let out a hollow laugh.

Can’t escape?

Then breaking through was an option. Threads this thin, surely they’d tear easily with enough momentum.

As the woman twisted her spine with a loud creak,

Another peculiar sight caught her eye.

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