The Laughing Swordsman

Vicar looked at Willow with melancholy. It was almost like disappointment was seeping out in waves out of his eyes.

Like the hope in his heart on the verge of death had finally died.

His expression was unbearably cold, like emotion did not matter to him anymore.

"I thought that if nobody else, you would not be like them."

Vicar shook his head.

"But I was naive."

Willow grit her teeth.

"What? Like all the raven people? You think we don't deserve to live compared to you because of your white hair?"

Vicar narrowed his eyes.

"No. All of you. You are all the same. The only thing that distinguished you were appearances. In the end, all of your hearts are the same..."

He frowned.

"Disgusting."

Willow screamed.

"What do you know? You know nothing! All you've been doing is living in your privileged palace!"

Vicar raised an eyebrow.

"I was told to participate in the war, but because I said that I didn't want to, I was labeled as a traitor. And as such, they attempted to kill me."

He gestured towards the dead bodies scattered around the palace.

"So I killed them."

Willow's lip twitched. She began to smile.

"So you are scum! You can't even stand with the side you belong to!"

Vicar looked deeply at Willow, then sighed.

"The side I belong to, is it?"

He chuckled.

"So because I was born this way, I have to be on a certain side?"

His expression suddenly became dull.

"...It appears I drastically overestimated you."

Willow had trouble keeping her head up, but still screamed with all she could.

"What? So I am weak. But until the end, I will fight for what is right!"

Vicar didn't seem to be listening to her anymore.

"It almost seems like I am the one that is wrong."

He mumbled to himself.

"After all, I am the only one that decided to think in such a huge population. By logic, it seems that I am the anomaly."

Willow didn't understand what he was going on about, but that didn't stop her aggression.

"Fuck you!"

An ugly smile formed on her face.

"Haha... you should've seen the look on your mother's face when I killed her!"

Vicar shrugged his shoulders.

"I did."

While Willow froze up, he continued.

"You were also smiling very proudly when you put the sword through her heart as well."

Blood spilled out of the corners of Willow's mouth. She frowned.

"What do you know? All you are is a pampered prince living a life filled with luxury! You will never understand what it is like to be oppressed like me!"

Vicar nodded.

"Yes. I will never understand what it is like to be you."

Willow smiled with a trace of insanity.

"So even you see how depraved you are! I bet you're so happy that you finally got to kill the last of my kind! Even with your limited mind view, you can still see how pitiful I am and how privileged you are!"

Vicar simply remained silent. His expression did not change. Willow took this as a time to continue hurling insults.

She said anything that came to mind.

"I made sure to twist my sword when it pierced your mother's heart! She cried out in so much pain, you couldn't even imagine!"

Anything possible that could hurt his feelings.

"I bet your sister deserved to die! She probably did depraved acts ever since she was born, whoring herself out for old men to use!"

Willow began speaking faster and faster. She completely closed her mind off and continued insulting him.

Because it gave her... a sense of satisfaction.

"You're sick! A murder! The blood on your hands will never be cleaned! No matter what you do, you will always be a terrible person!"

But eventually, she simply got too tired.

"You... you..."

Her brain was having difficulty functioning, as there wasn't proper blood flow. The fact she held on until now was quite impressive.

As for Vicar, he simply stood still.

He listened to it all, without saying a single word.

Once Willow's mutterings finally became quiet, Vicar opened his mouth.

"On the account that we were once friends, I will spare your life."

Before Willow could retort, the sword was suddenly pulled out of her chest. She felt herself bleed out. However, before death came for her, a gentle feeling spread across her chest.

After a few moments, her vision cleared up, while the life-threatening wound in her body disappeared. In fact, even the cold and hunger she had been feeling disappeared as well.

Her eyes drifted upwards, to meet with Vicar's.

He used to be in a simple, but formal white shirt and pants. However, now pristine white fur had grown on the back of his arms. His normally short hair was now fairly long, reaching just below his shoulders.

However, his overall body shape did not change.

Vicar's mouth wasn't fully closed, but that was because of the new sharp and long teeth he had that did not fit within. And the most noticeable feature was his faintly glowing blue eyes.

He took a deep breath.

"As of now..."

Vicar turned away.

"We are no longer friends."

He began to walk while Willow was still lying on the floor.

"And if I ever see you again."

Suddenly, Vicar stopped in place. He slowly looked over his shoulder and narrowed his eyes. As for his tone, it dropped several times over.

"I will kill you."

It seemed that all of the anger and rage in Vicar exploded out at that moment from those clearly enunciated words. There was a strange pressure he exuded. It wasn't like the ones that dragons did, but one from pure emotion.

Vicar's heart had been hollowed out before being replaced with anger. That much was obvious from the new frightening demeanor he carried.

Willow couldn't help but freeze in fear, unable to respond.

And with that, Vicar continued walking away, making crunching sounds in the snow.