Beginning to an End: Butterfly Flaps (Discontinued)

Chapter 5: Blood Red

The walk was silent and tense. Footsteps echoed in this dungeon-like building. Although Sky was safe from Amon with the presence of Leon, he was still cautious around him. Without Leon, he will have been killed multiple times, consecutively.

However, Sky can understand Amon’s desire to kill him. He had abused his friend verbally and physically every single day. What kind of person wouldn’t get angry when someone close to them gets abused?

He himself was like that. He was willing to avenge his loved ones should they get harmed by assholes.

But was it enough?

The only thing that confused him the most was where Amon was when Leon died. Amon was the type of person who would drop everything immediately and run to save his friends and family. Yet, it was as if he never existed in the otome game.

There were only three possibilities; either he died earlier in the game, he appeared after Leon got injured or died, or the game omitted Amon entirely.

Sky scans through his memory multiple times before finally realizing what happened. At the start of the game, there was always a symbol on the loading screen. The very same symbol that is imprinted on the sword in his hand. As the game progresses, the symbol slowly cracks apart until a new symbol replaces it. This could mean that Amon’s health deteriorated throughout the game until he died. This also explains why Leon’s mood and personality suddenly shifted in the middle of the game. Rather than an aloof and stoic Leon, the end-game Leon was paranoid and depressed, thus in all his routes he dies, perhaps as a way of atonement for Amon.

Now that Sky thinks about it more, Leon’s show of affection towards the female lead was perhaps never a romantic love, but more of a defense mechanism to keep Bellarose safe. No wonder he felt Leon’s actions were relatable. He was him except less murderous.

The game becomes more and more convoluted as Sky discovers the world he is living in. The missing plot points slowly fill in as he figures out what happened to these characters.

“We’re here.”

Amon’s cold voice snapped Sky out of his musing. He tilt his head upward and saw two gigantic doors in front of him. This must be the entrance to all kinds of weaponry.

With a shove, the two doors opened with a creak to reveal a brightly lit room, filled to the brim with weapons.

“Well then, take your pick young master Sky.”

Venom dripped out of Amon’s voice as he looked at him as if he were dirt beneath his shoes. Brushing off his hate-filled words, Sky surveyed the room with curious eyes. The weapons are sorted by their general types before being organized into an even more specific order. As much as he wants to take a look at the dagger section, he needs a sword that fits him.

Claymores and heavy swords were a no-go for him. Although they have great power, it is difficult to handle due to how heavy it is. A lighter sword is more optimal for his style as he greatly relies on speed rather than strength.

Rapiers and short swords are not good for actual combat. While faster and more agile than heavy swords, their durability and versatility are terrible. With one strike from a heavier sword, they can easily break.

Now there are only longswords. Longswords were incredibly versatile and fairly easy to use. They are light enough for quick attacks and durable enough that they would not shatter like glass under claymores. They can be used with two hands or one hand thus making them extremely versatile.

While the Graham estate has longswords, the blades, and hilts of those longswords do not fit him. The blades were neither sharp enough nor light enough for his taste. The hilts were far too long and ornamental for him to handle properly. A well-crafted sword should feel like a part of the user rather than a janky tool.