"According to the map, we'll reach a village soon", he said without being prompted.

Lieselotte hadn't asked how long it would take or even where they were going. For him to be this sure, he must be certain about every decision he was making. A long time ago, he'd suggested running away. She was the princess and was kept locked away in the castle, never truly living. He was raised under the military's authority. His life was never his own.

But she had asked them where the two of them could belong if not here. It wasn't heaven, but there was no other place for them. He vowed that he would find a place. And two days ago they finally fled, after years of fleeting dreams.

Just as he said, within the hour, they'd found a small rural town. Just perfect for hiding in. L-elf wanted to pass quickly through this region. If he could help it, he didn't want to spend more than a night here. There were rumors of a strange beast, lurking in the woods for victims. Apparently, the creature had a taste for young women. Which put Lieselotte at risk.

He led her through the town, trying to think of a place where they could stay. A normal inn was out of the question. Even though it couldn't compare to the luxuries of the palace, it was the first place the royal search party would look. While he detested putting his beloved through such accommodations, they had to put up with an abandoned shack.

"Stay here", he said. "I'll go and get us some food." L-elf put a blanket around her, noticing that she shivered a little in the chilly air. Winter was on its way and this shed provided little warmth. He was determined to get them moving once morning came. At the moment, the sun was just setting and it'd be dangerous to travel at night. L-elf was confident in his abilities as a soldier but wanted as little of a commotion as possible.

While he went to the market, he went over his plans again. He had many skills and could do just about any work. Once they were far away enough from the palace, he could get some sort of job to support them. Then Lieselotte could live freely, the way she always dreamed.

"My daughter went missing the other day. That monster must've taken her! I know it!"

"We can't put up with this anymore. We've got to kill it!"

"Are you going to go up against it?"

More talk of the beast roaming the area. L-elf didn't care about one village's problems. The only thing that mattered was the princess. And she was hungry. He browsed the stalls, thinking of what she would like and what they could afford.

"Maybe it'll be appeased if we give it a sacrifice?"

"Who is going to give up their family member to be devoured by a monster?"

"I think I saw some travelers come into town. One of them was a girl. We could use her."

L-elf's hand tightened around an apple he was looking over but only years of arduous lessons kept him from crushing it.

"I don't know...she's innocent..."

"So were our wives, daughters, and sisters! They were all innocent. But we need to do something!"

L-elf didn't listen to anymore. He left the market with what little he bought and went back to Lieselotte's side. By then he had a plan for when the inevitable mob arrived.

"Listen", normally he'd never order the princess around but in these kinds of occasions, he had the greater knowledge and needed her to obey. "When I tell you hide somewhere. And don't come out until you know for certain that the mob is gone."

"What's going on? What are you going to do?"

The sound of a crowd moving was heard outside. "Just hide", he led her to conceal herself behind a few crates. As soon as she was hidden, the door opened. A tall man stepped inside and grabbed L-elf's wrist, pulling him outside.

He was certain he could fend off this man, as well as the entire mob. But if this town reported being attacked by one lone murderer, palace authorities would know immediately who it was and L-elf couldn't afford that.

"Is this the one?"

"Looks like it. She had pale hair."

"Kind of flat chested though."

"The beast won't care when it's eating her up! Tie her!"

L-elf's wrists and ankles were bound and he was carried off. The crowd of villagers brought him to the middle of the forest and tied him to a stake.

"Sorry about this", of of them said. "But we're tryin' to protect our families. We've had it with that vampire."

The soldier would have insulted their plan if he wasn't already in the middle of his own. They left him there in the darkness. The moon was the only light and it wasn't much. Once he was certain he was alone, he whipped out a small knife and started to cut at the ties. After a moment, he heard something creeping in the woods. L-elf's ears perked at the sound.

The sound didn't come from four paws, but two feet. A person? L-elf didn't think it was the infamous vampire. Information on them was scarce, but they were known to hide out in abandoned buildings, not in nature. If there truly was a man eating beast in the area, it couldn't be a vampire. L-elf continued and then he saw a light. Fire.

A torchlight came into view and holding it was a young man with childish blue eyes. He looked at the hostage with shock and then apologetically. He looked around frantically as if searching for someone to help.

"I-I'll get you out of that!"

Before L-elf could refuse, the stranger tripped and dropped the torch near L-elf's feet, starting a fire. The unnamed boy panicked and started to untie L-elf, as the flames reached him. He cried out in pain but kept the fire from the silver haired one until he was free. L-elf escaped unharmed and wondered why this person would go to such lengths, even burning himself.

Said person was ignoring the burns and scooping dirt to put out the small fire. Once the danger was gone, he sighed in relief. "That was a close one. I don't know how to stop a huge fire. Are you okay?"

"What a thing to ask when you've just been burned. I am unharmed."

"Burned? No, no, no. The fire didn't touch me. See?" He held up his hands which looked perfectly fine.

The gears in L-elf's hands were turning. "Walking in the forest alone at night, fast healing, accompanied to the rumors lead me to this conclusion..."

"Conclusion?", he tilted his head innocently. "I'm Haruto, what's your na-"

Haruto choked out a gasp as a knife was plunged straight into his heart. He looked down at the growing blood stain, then at L-elf, confused and hurt. L-elf's pulled out the knife and pushed Haruto to the ground. He was perfectly still. With that, L-elf turned to go back. With the vampire taken care of, it would be a little safer to travel tonight.

He only took a few steps when he felt a strange presence behind him. He turned to see Haruto staggering to his feet. A normal person would have been angry at being stabbed. But Haruto's eyes were just sad.

"Please. Please don't tell them. I just want to live freely."

"I will do what I intend to do when I return to that village."

"You can't!" Haruto grabbed him and L-elf was surprised to be overpowered by his strength. He felt a painful prick in his neck and then nothing at all.