Headed by a Snake

The swirling fragments of Valeria's broken sword rose up, lighting the forest canopy a brilliant gold.

The pieces snapped together in a cacophony of sparks, forming a great fanged beast with eight spined legs and six jagged wings.

The level of power in that creation was so obscene that Valeria couldn't even call it her own Spell.

It was... terrifying.

Her will had become an unstoppable force-- destruction incarnate.

The raw, magical truth of an unforgiving Realm was shaped by divine claws into something inconceivable to her.

Yet, mere seconds before the whirlwind of power could collide with Landris Wyndham... it stopped.

The bolts of lightning on the mana-creature's back stilled-- only half-formed.

The molten flame erupting from its maw slowed to a halt-- frozen in time.

Ink-black puddles of darkness again appeared all around Landris... and from those impossibly dark holes came countless pale hands.

They reached up like slithering snakes... grasping at the golden beast with dirt-ridden nails and swollen fingers.

It...

was...

...beautiful.

Unbidden tears wet Valeria's cheeks...

The sheer difference in power was undeniable.

Was it... possible... that the Hex God was somehow... weaker than the Lake Goddess?

No... That didn't make sense.

NOTHING made sense!

Both gods were children of the Dragon God...

But if that wasn't true...

Did the fault... lie in her?

Was she mere... talentless trash, only meant to be thrown away?

The fact that she was chosen... was she just... a cruel joke for the gods' amusement?

The Hex God's kind eyes... his gentle reassurances and his honest praise-- was it the same kind of lies fed to her by her father?

The golden mana-beast disappeared soundlessly, dragged into the dark abyss by a sea of white, elongated arms.

And what remained was a single man.

Landris Wyndham.

And in his blue eyes... Valeria saw his firm, unwavering faith.

"Princess Romanov," He said... "You need to calm down."

"N... nn.... NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Valeria let out a scream...

She could hear her own desperation in her voice.

--her own weakness.

So... she ripped it out.

Valeria Ashenspire grabbed hold of her voice with her hands.

The mana in it transformed... solidifying into a dark, twisted heap of dark iron closer to a nail-ridden stick than a sword.

Its name was Curse of the Black Mountain... the one and only sword given by the Hex God.

It was the only proof Valeria had... that someone believed in her as a person... more than her duty as a knight of the Romanov line... even more than her title as Duchess.

She raised her ⌈Hexblade⌋ high as she charged Landris Wyndham.

He stood resolutely... unflinching. He ignored Valeria's feint and parried the low strike that came after.

The Curse of the Black Mountain burst into furious black flames, followed by a flash of golden light.

At the close range, Valeria was covered in soot. Her head ached, her ears rang, and her eyes clouded with white... but her heart still yearned for blood.

Nothing had changed.

Landris still stood.

He was sheathed in a silvery barrier... mana interwoven much like the dragonscale on Valeria's own body.

Prince Landris had left Nemaya Strana to prove himself... to become worthy of his royal blood.

Somehow... he made it.

And Valeria... did not.

No matter how much she trained, no matter who she killed, no matter how much forbidden knowledge she collected... it meant nothing.

...not to her people.

...not to her royal peers.

...not to her father.

...not to her childhood friend.

Valeria swung her sword one last time-- and Landris caught the blade with his bare hand. He held it tight, allowing its uneven edges to cut his flesh.

"Are you finished, (Sunshine)?" He asked with a smile.

"That spell just now... it was dragon magic... ⌈Diamond Scales⌋, wasn't it?!" Valeria whispered, "How can you..."

Landris had given his true name...

That put him under the effect of the Hex God's domain.

It should... have been... *impossible*... for him to activate his defensive spells.

Unless... he didn't do it on purpose?

The idiot Prince tilted his head... "I had faith that my goddess would protect me, that's all."

"Landris..." Valeria narrowed her eyes, "Why... are you going this far? If you're openly using dragon--"

"Ah ah," Landris pressed a finger against her lips, "I'll answer... so don't talk about things that don't exist."

...What?

How?

But...

Erza Aerzin was a DRAGON GODDESS!!!!!!

"I have... a dear friend," Landris said with a pained smile. "We've been friends for a long time, actually. He doesn't like that kind of talk."

The Prince loosed a soft sigh and looked up with a dreamy look in his eyes-- but Valeria was still too stunned to respond.

"I don't know why he puts so much faith in a screwup like me," Landris continued, "But... if it's in my power... I'd like to pay him back for it."

Valeria narrowed her eyes into tiny squints.

"Dude..." She shook her head... "You're so... frickin'... dumb..."

Landris let out a laugh, relaxing his shoulders and standing straight, "Hah... Yeah. I know."

Valeria took a deep breath in through her nostrils and took a step backward.

She reached behind her back and into her dimensional storage pouch.

From it, she drew her pistol.

With a firm hold on the pistol grip, she clicked the safety switch off.

In a smooth, practiced motion, she pointed the barrel at the last Prince of the Wyndham line.

Slow but certain, she applied pressure on the trigger.

The mechanism drew the hammer back... and released it. The hammer struck the outer shell of the bullet. The primer within ignited.

Bang.

The noisy crack of the first shot rang in Valeria's ears, but she had neither the mana to protect her hearing nor the luxury to care.

Landris managed to swing his sword-- maybe deflecting the first shot? But Valeria wasn't done.

The second shot hit him in the chest, piercing a hole through his armor.

Valeria could taste the mist of blood that came forth.

...She didn't know it beforehand, but Landris' ⌈Diamond Scales⌋ must have only worked to disperse the force of area-effect magic.

It was a strangely perfect counter to dragonfire.

--and completely useless against modern Nemayan engineering.

And thanks to the Hex God's curse, Landris couldn't even use ⌈Mana Ward⌋ to defend himself.

The Prince grit his teeth... his soft eyes no longer calm. He didn't drop his sword... but he reached forward with his opposite hand.

Valeria aimed her third and fourth shots at his heart.

It was strange, though...

It didn't seem like Landris was trying to cast a spell.

What was he trying to do?

Plead for mercy?

Did he... really not understand their positions?

Did he think she wouldn't shoot?

Valeria had no choice, in order to survive. He *must* have realized that?

He had to die... and no one could learn about her involvement in his death.

She shot Landris in the upper thigh.

He collapsed onto his knees.

She shot him in the right shoulder.

He still held tightly onto his sword.

Valeria took another step backward.

Aiming carefully, she placed two well-aimed shots through Landris Wyndham's forehead.

The Prince collapsed backward, one neat hole bored between his eyebrows, and another slightly higher.

Finally... Valeria lowered her weapon.

She could not deny... that that man had more faith than she did.

But what use was that faith?

Faith in his goddess... faith in whatever friend he was talking about... nothing truly mattered.

The Realm was going to be reborn soon... and no one was going to be able to stop it.

Valeria lowered her head and closed her eyes.

"Forgive me for the offense, Prince Landris," She whispered. "My name... is Valeria of the Romanov Duchy... servant of the Hex God, Kyrj Kira'ak... and... the heir of ash and fire."