Story' about the sword

"Like I said, this is a cursed sword. Its name is engraved on each hilt. Can you read it?"

"Eh? I'm not very good at reading ancient Latin characters. I mean, normally it's never taught in any school," I shook my head.

"But can you see it?" Raphael asked. I nodded half doubtfully.

"That means you are indeed the owner of this sword, where exactly do you get it?"

"That—I took it from an altar in Avalon's dungeon yesterday, sir," I said.

"So what do you mean by cursed sword?" I continued.

"It belongs to the knights of darkness,"

"You know their story, don't you?" Raphael asked again.

Yes, of course I know. All vampires know the legend. In ancient times, vampires did not exist in the world. Our ancestors were humans.

Then the earth was attacked by a gigantic flame-throwing monster that could not be defeated. The humans had done everything possible but even though they were united, they could never defeat it.

In order to regain peace, the strongest knights gather and make a contract with the devil. They were willing to trade their souls and humanity for great power. The demon king agreed and gave them the weapons taken from hell.

The knights gained tremendous power and they were finally able to defeat the monster. But it turned out that the monster was an order from the Demon king. The knights were deceived but they were already trapped in an eternal contract with the devil.

They, their families and their descendants will gain strength and a long life. But they have to drink human blood. That was the history of why we became vampires.

I grabbed my sword again, and felt the carving.

"You can try copying it on paper, I'll read the name for you. The engraving will only be seen by the true owner of the sword. I was a little surprised to learn that hundreds of years had passed and the sword wasn't in any noble's house..did the Dubois family ever have a sword like this? Usually cursed weapons are passed down from generation to generation like the Chastain family left Demetria to me," Raphael pointed his sword at me.

"Can I touch it?" I'm a little curious.

"Usually if it wasn't the true owner, you wouldn't be able to just touch it without getting burned."

"Eh? Burned?"

"Yeah, usually before finding the true owner, we keep it on the altar. Every grown child in my family used to take turns touching it..and Demetria chose me, since then I can't stay away from it," Raphael says as if Demetria was a real person. Even though it was a sword.

Demetria was a sword that I found beautiful. The color of the handle was brown. It took its name from the goddess Demeter, who in mythology was described as the goddess of fertility and agriculture. It just didn't match Raphael's tough and masculine physique. What power does the sword have?

I tried to touch the hilt, and a burning sensation ran through my palms. I immediately took it off and rubbed my sore red skin. Raphael wasn't kidding. The sword was definitely not forged by ordinary blacksmiths.

"I can guess, you were able to defeat Avalon's knights yesterday alone because—"

"Kyle helped me!" I corrected it.

"Let's just talk reality here, to be honest I'm sure that humans aren't much help," his tone was slightly disdainful. Kyle actually helped me a lot. Thanks to his blood I was able to move quickly, maximizing the power of my vampire. But I couldn't tell him that.

"He's a good archer," I said again.

"I know, but I'm not in the mood to talk about it, sir Valor. I want to talk about you and this sword. I think the Dubois family is also descended from one of the dark knights of the past..but, you never had this cursed weapon in your house?" he asked.

"Never," I said confidently.

"And you, don't even come from the main family. Usually only those born to a family head can possess a cursed weapon..like me, who is the second son of Marquiss Chastain. Or Jasper Dubois, who is heir to Duke Dubois and his younger sister," he said.

I felt a little anxious, I was worried that my cover would be exposed. I am indeed the second child of the Dubois family. But he couldn't know that.

"Why are you silent?"

"No, you said you wanted to bring me paper and pen," I reminded him.

He then got up and went out of his tent. I could breathe more freely for a moment. This may be more stressful than fighting Shadows. Raphael asked me to come with him to his private tent. He was a commander so he had his own tent. He said he should talk to me alone.

All right, we're both men now. He shouldn't have any strange intentions towards me. But still I am a real woman. I remember all the chats of the girls before I was trapped in this battlefield.

Raphael Chastain was one of the hottest bachelors in Lapella. He's from another state, but he goes to school in Lapella. He was my senior and I knew how popular he was. After graduating from the academy, he enlisted in the military voluntarily.

Of course as knights we didn't have to always stay on the battlefield. Sometimes we get a day off. Every four months we could go home. When Raphael came home, he couldn't really relax because he had to fulfill a lot of party invitations.

Back when I was known as lady Valerie Dubois, I had invited him to a party. It was because my friends were urging me. But he didn't come. I felt he was a little arrogant and looked down on my family. Dubois was the ruler of Lapella. How could he refuse my invitation?

That was why I wasn't too enthusiastic about knowing he was my fiancé. I mean, we've never even officially met. Why does father want to set me up with him?

Some time before I died, I interacted with him quite often. I got to know him better. I didn't think he was too arrogant. Maybe he just didn't want to come to the party of a spoiled duke's daughter and become the gossip material of the girls at the party.

He was a very responsible commander when carrying out his duties. He cares for his subordinates. I respect him.

"Here, try to copy the name of your sword, I will read it to you," he came and my thoughts were broken. My face turned red without me being able to prevent it.

I had been trying to clear my mind and get used to seeing him in a thin shirt that was a little wet. But why was he now taking off his shirt instead!

"Why?" she asked, confused.

"Why did you take your clothes off?"

"Huh?" Of course he was confused. This was his own room and the knights were used to it. I was also used to seeing knights exposing more skin than Raphael's today—to the point where I felt unworthy for marriage. I didn't know, maybe because I remember that he used to drink my blood in my past life. So I couldn't look at him like other knights.

"I mean, isn't it really cold today," I responded nervously.

"Yeah, that's why I took off my shirt, I had to wait for it to dry,"

He's right. I must sound weird right now. Remember Valerie, now you're a man!

I shook my head and started to write on the paper the commander gave me. I looked at the inscription on the hilt of my new sword. I copied it and gave it to Raphael.

He read it with a frown. I thought my writing was a little unclear. After all, it was ancient Latin writing. Could he really read it?

"Apollon, that's the name of your sword. Now try to hold it and call its name," said Raphael seriously. I nodded, and gripped the hilt of my sword firmly.

"Apollon," I muttered. Instantly I felt a foreign power radiate from my palm. Like a swarm of ants crawling through my veins carrying sparks that weren't too hot. I had a hard time describing it.

Unlike the last time I used it, it trembled slightly. I was shocked and dropped it.

"You should know your sword better. Back then, my family recorded its abilities from my ancestors. But for your case, it might be a little difficult. Since you said, Dubois never had a cursed weapon, there was no record of Apollon..we will learn it gradually," said Raphael again.

"What does it mean?"

"You have the Apollon, one of the cursed weapons. You will become a valuable asset to Florentia later. So I will train you myself, Valor," he said while looking at me seriously.

.