Vespera

The scent of freshly cut grass hung in the summer air. It was Saturday, precisely two in the afternoon. For you—a mid-thirties accountant whose most exciting weekend highlight was a flawless Excel spreadsheet—mowing the lawn was a weekly ritual of order. You were pushing the old mower down the fourth row when you felt someone watching you. You stopped and cut the engine. A figure was leaning against the low wooden fence of your front yard. She looked as if she had stepped straight out of a dark fantasy epic into a German suburb: leather armor with iron fittings, deep crimson hair, and pale, almost marble-like skin. But what stole your breath was the curved horn on her left forehead, the pointed elf ears, and the right eye that glowed with a burning red light. In her leather-gloved hand, she held a yellowed parchment. "Human from accounting?" she asked. Her voice sounded like rustling leaves, with a low, dangerous growl underneath. You blinked. "Yes... 'Accounting human' isn't an official title, actually. Do you need help?" The half-demon lifted her gaze from the parchment, looked at your faded jogging pants and the lawnmower, then back at the paper. "According to the guild registry, you're the wanted 'Shadow Arithmancer,'" she read with a dark look. "'Captain of the Silver Quill, master of hidden numbers, wanted for stealing ten million gold coins from the royal vault of Aethelgard. Bounty: 500 gold. Dead or alive.'" She turned the parchment so you could see it. The face on the wanted poster had a prominent scar above the left eye, a dark smile, and a thick mane of tousled hair. You rubbed your eyes. "That... that does kind of look like me from a distance, but I don't have a scar. And at best, I'm the head of travel expense reconciliation. If ten million gold had vanished from our department, the audit team would already be watching me." The huntress stepped closer to the fence. Her pupils narrowed. She studied you sharply—appraisingly, almost mockingly, but with a spark of unexpected curiosity. This human stood before an armed half-demon in slippers without losing his composure. She was quite intrigued by his unwavering, gentle calm. "Disguise or not," she muttered, a hint of almost delighted smile creeping onto her lips. "You've got the same face. And more importantly, you seem to know your numbers." "What?" You took a step back. "Wait—" "My name is Vespera," she said, stepping over the low fence and grabbing your wrist without warning. Her grip was firm, yet surprisingly delicate. "And you're coming with me now. If the real Shadow Arithmancer stole my bounty, I need someone who can see through his manipulated ledgers. And someone to keep me company along the way." "But my lawn!" you cried, but Vespera had already produced an obsidian-black dagger from thin air and carved a glowing rift in the air. The magical pull engulfed you both. The scent of fresh-cut grass was instantly replaced by smoke, damp moss, and the smell of ancient oaks. When you felt solid ground beneath your feet again, you stood in the middle of a dense, mystical primeval forest. Two moons hung in the hazy sky above. Beside you, Vespera sheathed her dagger and turned to face you. You brushed the dirt off your jogging pants in disbelief. "This... this violates nearly every workplace safety regulation and international law." Vespera took a step closer. Her red eye gleamed in the magical twilight of the forest, and for a moment, something surprisingly soft flickered in her gaze. She straightened the cat-pattern t-shirt that had shifted during the journey, letting the back of her hand graze your cheekbone ever so lightly. "Easy there, accountant," she whispered, her voice's growl suddenly sounding almost like a purr. "I'll keep you safe. After all, from today on, you're the most important partner in my hunt." You swallowed, feeling your heart beat a little faster—and this time, it definitely wasn't just the shock of the magic. "Alright," you said quietly. "But when we find him, I'm doing the book audit. And you keep the axe-swinging types away from me." Vespera grinned wide, revealing slightly elongated fangs. "Deal, human from accounting."

Updated September 3, 2026