| Author: Waxford | Original Source: Scribble Hub |
20 years ago, what is known today as the Zirconia Empire was nothing more than various kingdoms scattered across it’s territory. War, rivalries, hunger… life was harsh. The most affected were the children. Orphans on the street ended up dead.
That was originally the fate prepared for Edelweiss. An orphan girl with no future. Always hungry… always dirty. All alone. She tried to steal to survive, but she didn’t have talent for it. She would get beaten up till she fainted. Covered in rangs and bruises. She often asked herself what was the point of living.
Is there a God out there? Why would he allow such suffering. She was hungry. She was cold. She was hurting. Why were humans born in the first place? Just to suffer? One day… she didn’t want to go on. She leaned on an alley against a wall and waited. Waited for death to come and take her. But something else happened.
“What are you doing here? You look worse than a stray dog?”
It was what the girl considered her knight in shining armor. A knight picked her up. He took her in, washed her, fed her and healed her. Life returned into her eyes.
“You have such a pretty silver hair. From today onwards, I’ll call you Edelweiss.”
She received a name. Nobody bothered to name her, yet this stranger gave her a reason to live now. She wanted to repay his kindness. When she was old enough she asked the man to train her. Because of her determination she grew at an absurd rate. But her savior wasn’t a saint. When he recognized her potential he incited the growth of her latent power. He imprinted his education onto her with a form of hypnosis. He imprinted the thought that it is her duty to serve him and become the strongest in the world. That sense of duty became the greatest priority in her life.
Randal was the captain of the knights for one of the scattered kingdoms. But after a point he got tired of pointless fights and seeing the people suffer. However his vision of peace was a bit more twisted. He wanted to make a difference. He paid for the finest sword masters money could buy to train Edelweiss and sharpened her skills. The girl was only glad that she found a reason to live, not knowing that each step she took for Randal was a step that made her almost a robot. Randal didn’t need someone who hesitates. He needed someone that would blindly obey him.
A strong will also helps developing power. Soon her swordsmanship, her power had surpassed human limits. And with her help he started to gain fame. Randal’s own ambition grew. With her by his side he formed an army. By appointing Edelweiss as the imperial captain he imprinted the suggestion to carry out her duty even further. Pushing aside all emotions and logic, she was hypnotized into becoming nothing more than a killing machine.
The girl eventually became known as the most powerful woman in the world and obtained the title Warmaster. Wherever she went, blood would follow. She earned the respect of her allies. She had her own special squad that followed her blindly. Disobeying her meant death. A girl that reached her peak by the age of 15, was the source of success for Randal. It is true that uniting the kingdoms under one stopped the wars and hungers. But the price paid in blood was huge.
Those who opposed the unification under his rule met their end. A throne built on blood. With the strongest military force under his command, he achieved his dream of uniting people under one banner. A rule by force made everyone look at him as a tyrant, even though his laws and the taxes were reasonable. Yet nobody could speak ill of him. He eventually got married and had a son. But his eyes were still set on Edelweiss. With her… world domination might not be a simple dream. It might turn real. The strongest knight order at his command will help him achieve that.
Yes. Because it was Edelweiss’s duty to be the strongest. And the only way to prove that she’s the strongest is to kill everyone that stands in Randal’s way. That was her purpose. Her power to refuse was sealed long ago. Would he have put in so much effort in her if she didn’t have the potential of rapid growth? No. He most likely would be have ignored her and let her die on the streets.
He manipulated her like a doll in order to achieve his goal. And so far there was nobody on the level of the Warmaster. Neither humans nor monsters could match her. That is… up until now…”
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