In a small city called Rouen, a girl named Audree was born into a family of poverty. In a family of four, she was the youngest.
In this social class, a large portion of the breadwinners toiled away at manual labor. Her father labored away in the mines daily in order to put food on the table, and her mother worked as a seamstress whenever she could.
Due to Audree's birth, the family became even more financially strained than they already were. And because of this, Audree's older brother Olivier was forced to begin working in the mines at the age of 6.
Only a year later, Audree's mother passed away due to lingering illnesses of childbirth. Olivier, who was quite attached to his mother, began developing feelings of resentment towards Audree. Though she was only a year old at this point, she had already forced him to work in the mines and killed his mother!
Their father, however, was a devout religious man and unbelievably doting over Audree. Olivier respected his father, so there was nothing he could do besides stare at Audree's "cute" face all day. Yes, all day. Since their mother had passed, someone needed to look after the infant at home. This duty fell to Olivier. And as awful as it sounded, the fact that a death occurred in the family meant that there was one less mouth to feed.
He still worked sometimes, but his hours were not nearly as gruesome as they were before.
Olivier looked at Audree for the umpteenth time.
How he wished to toss this child into the river of Seine every day. However, he couldn't bear the thought of his father's grief-stricken face. He had already lost his wife, and losing his daughter would be devastating.
So, Olivier began messing with Audree in "harmless" ways.
"Open your mouth!"
Olivier watched as the gleeful Audree expectantly waited for her food.
"Alright, here it comes..."
Olivier brought the wooden spoon closer and closer to Audree's mouth... before abruptly stopping and eating it himself.
"..."
Audree stared back at Olivier with a sour expression.
"Ha! You like that? That's what you get! Useless little creature..."
And like this, Olivier, while appearing to care for Audree on the surface, would, in reality, torture her in subtle ways.
However, what Olivier didn't realize was that his sister wasn't a useless creature; she was unusually intelligent. Audree remembered the torment Olivier put her through and began harboring resentment even at the early age of two.
And not only was Audree intelligent; she also had a unique gift. Her bright, piercing blue eyes could see more of the world than those around her. It was like a sixth sense that could detect an omnipresent substance in the atmosphere that nobody else could.
After some experimentation, Audree realized that, to an extent, she could control this substance in order to manifest physical phenomena.
This substance went by many names, but it was often referred to as "mana" by many, though this was a bit of a misnomer.
Rather than "mana", it was an "essence", a type of field that permeated the universe just as matter or energy did.
Some time passed, and Audree became more and more familiar with this "essence". After about a year, she began to retaliate against Olivier's antics.
"Ow!"
Olivier's hand was "coincidentally" pricked by sewing needles.
"Ah! What?"
The firewood was hot to the touch for some reason.
"Oh, gross..!"
Olivier "accidentally" touched something that resembled feces where it shouldn't have been...
Olivier didn't know how, but he knew that Audree was the culprit behind a lot of these pranks. He tried telling his father, but the stories seemed a bit too far-fetched to be believable. Thus the rivalry between siblings continued.
One day, Olivier had an idea. What if his father witnessed one of Audree's antics in action? She would surely be punished!
So, he set up his trap.
In the evening, before their father was due to return, Olivier began to boil water over the fire. Housing in the city was abysmal; they were often unsanitary and small. Boiling water was a common way to make the water safe to drink.
Audree was playing around in the main floor. From the main entrance, the stove and the main sleeping quarters could be seen, so there wasn't much to hide.
"Tch, what is she doing now?"
Olivier looked on as Audree appeared to be sewing something rather quickly; the needle was moving through the air at a rapid pace.
Olivier gritted his teeth. The things his sister would do were so nonsensical that no one would believe him when he said anything. Audree's personality became mischievous as Olivier tried to torment her nonstop, so she naturally became very sly. No matter what Olivier did, he could not capture any evidence of Audree's antics.
Today was different.
The water was boiled, and Olivier looked out the door into the city streets to see if their father was returning home.
*There he is.*
Around the corner, their father appeared to walk with labored steps. This wasn't unusual; a full day of manual labor took a toll on the body.
Olivier prepared a few cups to act as if he was going to server his father some water after a long day at work... as was routine.
He poured some boiling water into a cup.
*This should work... She's completely focused on... whatever that is.*
He waited.
The seconds ticked by, but they seemed excruciatingly long. When was his father going to open the door?
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the front door creaked open.
This was Olivier's chance - the moment he had planned for.
"Welcome home, father," he greeted in a normal manner.
"Thank you, Olivier. I'm so lucky to have a son like you... who takes such good care of my little darling," replied his father.
Olivier's eyes twitched when he heard this.
*It's always her, isn't it?*
He was tired of the attention she received. He was tired of being made a fool of. His sister was only three and a half years old, but she definitely knew what she was doing to him. Every time, she would taunt him with innocent-sounding words with a smirk on her face!
And of course, the sewing kit was nowhere to be seen after their father entered the home.
*Tch... I'll expose you today.*
"It was probably another long day, father. Here's some water," Olivier naturally said.
"Ah... thank you," his father replied.
Olivier held the cup with one hand and walked towards the door.
Audree was gleefully gazing at their father.
To get to his father, he had to pass his sister.
One step.
Two steps.
Olivier hadn't felt this nervous ever in his life. Indeed, this was natural. This was going to be the most harm he would ever attempt to afflict on a person.
After the third step...
"Oops!"
Olivier "dropped" the cup of hot water. Right on top of Audree's head.
Time seemed to move in slow motion.
Olivier watched as the cup tipped over and the water cascaded towards his sister's head. When it landed, she would undoubtedly suffer some burns.
*Let's see what you do now!*
Audree didn't expect this development. She managed to turn her head to see the water falling towards her. She didn't want to reveal any of her "powers" to her father, but right now... it didn't seem like she had a choice!
*Szzzzzzzzzzzz....*
*... What happened?*
Olivier wasn't planning on actually hurting his sister. He knew that she would defend herself in some way. But this was unexpected even for him...
*Ice?*
The water that was falling towards Audree turned into small flakes of ice that drifted towards the floor.
She had instantly frozen the boiling water, and no one was hurt.
*How did she do THAT...?*
Though Olivier was dumbfounded, the only thing that mattered was his father's reaction.
The plan was a success.
Their father's face turned whiter than a sheet.
"No..." he croaked.
Their father hadn't forgotten Olivier's anecdotes about Audree; he simply chose not to believe them. Because if they were true...
"Devil's child..."
When these words left their father's mouth, Olivier instantly regretted what he had done.
"Devil's children", "witches", "occultists", "gypsies"... These were all derogatory terms for a particular type of person. A person that could use "magic". And for some reason, Olivier hadn't connected the dots to the fact that his sister could be one of these people.
Though the two siblings played pranks on each other often, the underlying truth was that they loved each other. When Olivier heard "devil's child" uttered by his father, he realized how petty he was being all along, and he came to realize this underlying truth. He knew Audree's fate was doomed. After all, these people were greatly abhorred by the public.
Though their father adored his children, he was a religious man; his detest for these "devil's children" ran deep. When he realized his daughter was one, he was at a loss.
"... I need some time to process this..."
With a complicated expression, he turned around and opened the door.
"... Papa, wait..."
Audree, who rarely spoke, cried out with her three-year-old voice. But even this wasn't enough to stop their father from taking one last look at her with tears in his eyes before briskly slamming the door shut.
"..."
"... Sh*t!"
Olivier slammed the wall with his fists. He didn't want anything to happen to his sister! Therefore, he gathered his resolve.
"I won't let anything happen to you."
He stared back at Audree with a determined look in his eyes. His will was nearly palpable. However, this atmosphere was short-lived.
A knock resounded on the door before it opened once more.
"Father, I won't let you hurt Audree...?"
"What a dump. I can't believe it's here."
The man who entered was not his father. This was a strange situation; this man was dressed incredibly well with gaudy fashion statements plastered all over his being. He was undoubtedly of the upper class. This was someone who their family could never ordinarily interact with.
"Wha... Who are you? What do you want?"
Olivier instinctively shielded Audree from the potential threat.
"Hm..."
The man lackadaisically glanced around the room before training his eyes on the young boy.
"It's here. Give it to me," the man demanded.
"What...?" Olivier faintly responded. He genuinely didn't know what the man was referring to.
"Behind you. The girl. Give it to me."
"..."
Olivier was dumbfounded, but that didn't last long. When he realized what was being said, he became furious.
"What?? You want my sister? Who even are you? What gives you the right to barge in here? And calling my sister 'it'... Despicable! Like I'd ever let someone like you lay a hand on her-"
*BOOM*
"!!!"
"Oli...!"
The man kicked Olivier into the wall faster than he could react.
Audree was livid. She hadn't been able to do anything to protect him... This man had to pay! For the first time, she prepared to use her full strength abilities on a person. But...
"Sacre bleu... You are one talented abomination."
Her "sixth sense" ability suddenly vanished.
"If you think you're the only one who can use essence, think again. How do you think I found you?"
"... a... devil..."
Olivier, who had the wind knocked out of him, realized the situation he was in. He was helpless against a "devil". As much as he didn't want to admit, he was actually weaker than his sister. After all, he was an ordinary boy.
But he wanted to do *something*. It would be embarrassing if he couldn't even keep his promise for 10 minutes! Olivier snuck some sewing needles into his hand from under his coat pocket. Along with them, he had a contraption he invented that he could put the needles in. He could then equip it on his fist... creating a "spiky" punch.
With extremely labored movements, Oliver threw a punch at the man's leg.
*Snap!*
"Huh...?"
It was futile; the needles immediately snapped upon impact.
Of course, the man let Olivier do this; he just wanted to see what the boy would do.
"Not bad," the man whistled in approval. "Kid."
"You're not... taking... Audree..."
Olivier tried to punch the man again, but it was too weak to do anything.
"I'm taking this. But your efforts are praiseworthy."
"No...!" Olivier gasped as he tried to attack the man again.
"... You really don't know when to give up, do you? Take this."
With that, the man produced a coin pouch from under his coat and tossed it to Olivier.
Seeing this, Olivier halted his assault. He dubiously looked at the pouch then back at the man.
"Open it."
Olivier weighed his options and finally realized that there was nothing to do but obey the man. When he saw the contents...
"...!"
It was packed to the brim with golden livres, the highest denomination of currency in the country. Olivier was shocked. He didn't know how much money this was, but it was certainly more than he would have ever seen for the rest of his life.
While Olivier was still starstruck, the man swooped down and picked Audree off the ground.
At this point, Audree was terrified. One of her senses was lost for some reason, and a mysterious man threatened to take her away from her family. She burst into tears when she realized she couldn't do anything.
Audree rarely cried. Her tears brought Olivier back to his senses and reminded him of the severity of the situation. He glared at the man. But before he could instigate an offensive, the man swiftly knocked Audree out and carried her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The man looked at Olivier with an icy gaze.
"A fair trade. No questions."
This time, the man radiated some sort of pressure that rendered Olivier immobile.
He tried to speak up. He tried to lash out. But his body didn't work.
All he could do was grit his teeth with tears in his eyes as the mysterious man kidnapped his sister.
And that was the last he ever saw of her.
---
Audree awoke in some sort of cellar. She was lying on a flat stone surface, and her surroundings seemed to be made of stone as well. She immediately checked if her powers were back, and to her relief, they were.
Naturally, she made attempts to escape her confines, but everything was useless. She could only wallow in the despair of her thoughts.
After an indeterminate amount of time, the cellar door opened, blinding Audree. After her eyes adjusted, the figure of the man came into view. In a flurry of emotions, Audree attacked the man again. In her current situation, she could only use ice, stone, and psychological attacks. The man deflected all of them with ease.
For the first time in her life, Audree felt futility. Nothing she could think up could get her out of this predicament.
The man whistled in admiration again.
"You are a dangerous beast cub. You'll be valuable. But for now..."
Audree didn't know what the man was talking about, but he immediately showed his intentions.
The man set up attacks that were slow enough for Audree to understand what was coming. Since this was the first time she was experiencing something like this, she didn't exactly know what to do.
And she paid the price.
Physical attacks bludgeoned her stomach. They sliced her skin. They tore her hair.
Psychological attacks amplified her feelings of hopelessness - she felt like she was reliving the first time her "magic" sense was removed.
And after the assault, Audree lay battered and bruised on the stone floor.
The man stared at her for a bit longer before finally turning around and shutting the cellar door.
After that, what was presumably once a day, the man returned to the cellar and threw countless attacks at her. Every time, she would lay broken and bruised. But whether it was a blessing or a curse, she would fully recover by the next day.
She attempted to escape many times, but she was never successful. Fortunately for her, she was well fed and well educated - the man was likely sending his servants to care for her. Through a crack in the cellar door, she received an ample amount of food and books.
Nature's call was never an issue, either; in a corner was a hole in the ground that mysteriously cleaned itself.
Every day, she would endure an assault. Every day, she was subjected to physical and psychological torture. She broke down, built herself back up, only to be broken again.
The man never spoke to her and likely ordered his servants to always remain silent around her. Thus, she was forced to endure everything all on her own.
Audree was rapidly gaining strength, but she did not realize it. After all, no matter how hard she tried, she could not retaliate against the man.
But at some point, the man returned twice a day. Then three times. Then four. Then more. Until finally, one day, he spoke to her again.
"Let's go outside."
Naturally, Audree was dumbfounded. She didn't know what she did to earn this reward. No, could it even be called a reward in the first place? She didn't know.
When she left the cellar alongside the man, she was blasted with a sensory overload. To someone who had spent most of their life in a dark, mundane cellar, the sights and sounds of the normal world were overwhelming.
From this point on, aside from the daily "training", Audree lived a picturesque life of a lady in high society. She had a comfortable bed to sleep on at night. Meals were lavish. Human interaction became commonplace. The sudden changes were jarring, but she quickly got used to it. Attending functions and witnessing arts such as theatre and symphonies was a common activity.
Often when they were outside, the man would ask her to run an errand. If she ever disobeyed or made a mistake, she was immediately punished in the cellar. She couldn't run off, either. The man would always find her. She never knew what these errands were for, but she didn't really care. She just wanted to get off with the least punishment. The lack of autonomy in her life made her extremely submissive.
But around her ninth birthday, this would change.
During the daily training, Audree had never been able to overcome the man's attacks. However, on this day, she noticed that the man faltered. She did not miss the change in his expression; for a brief moment, there was fear in his eyes.
Though Audree was always subject to physical and psychological attacks, despite all the pain she suffered, one emotion she almost never felt was fear. Yet, the man in front of her expressed fear, albeit briefly, in the presence of a young girl.
This was laughable.
The man clearly had countermeasures prepared. He placed an anklet on her that diminished her abilities. But despite the decrease in her raw power, her spirit had completely changed. Her demeanor changed from that of prey to a predator.
Audree continued to grow, and the man continued to place more countermeasures on her person.
And one day, she woke up with a new desire - freedom. The days of her submission had quashed this feeling deep in her heart, but today, it was beginning to return.
She sat up and looked around.
She observed her surroundings in detail.
After confirming her situation, she sighed and contemplated her next moves in a manner unbefitting of a ten-year-old girl.
She closed her eyes, and after a few minutes, she opened them again. Her eyes glinted with a new light - a light of wisdom far beyond her years.
With an outstretched hand, as if she were reaching for something, she spoke.
"An alternate life instance, huh? Interesting..."
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