Midas still remembers that day ten years ago as if it were yesterday, because it is his greatest trauma. Every time he closes his eyes, he can still see it. In the middle of a battlefield, the smell of his own blood filled the air. At the same time, the desolate and horrifying landscape before his eyes gleamed under the sunlight.
His golden hands, covered in his own blood, felt as rigid as stone.
"I didn't want to… I didn't want this…" Even if he didn't want to kill all those people, he had no choice but to do it. Now he was surrounded by dozens of golden statues that had once been people.
All the golden statues that stood upon this battlefield were frozen in various combat stances, trapped in solid gold for eternity. None of them knew what had struck them, because by the time they realized it, they had already turned into statues made of that precious metal.
"I didn't want this!" Desperate, as blood ran down his abdomen, Midas tried to move his hands to wipe it away. But his hands—just like the statues surrounding him—were rigid and covered in solid gold.
That only made him feel even more desperate. His hands wouldn't move; they were stiff like the gold itself, and the burning pain in his abdomen felt as if it were about to scorch his skin.
In front of him stood the golden statue of a robust man wearing heavy armor, pointing a spear at Midas. The tip of the spear was stained with blood, which explained the wound in his abdomen.
In the distance, a hemomancer scientist watched Midas in silence. He shook his head when he saw the cowardice of his experiment, who was supposed to be willing to fight for the Empire of Noxus and the Black Rose. Instead, what he saw was a great disappointment.
That was the reason Midas had been imprisoned, and the reason for his suffering.
***
In the present day, Midas hides among the alleyways of the capital of Noxus. He is frightened and nervous, but above all those disastrous emotions, Midas finally feels free. Even though his hands are bound with the inhibitor, he can feel the heavy, fresh air of the streets brushing against his face.
"Hey, what are we looking for?" Briar asked with an excited smile. Her blood boiled with excitement knowing that right now they were escaping from the claws of Noxus—yet ironically they were still inside the Empire.
Midas answered with a snort. Right now he looked like a barefoot beggar standing next to a strange and adorable abomination.
Although they had escaped from the heart of the dungeon after hearing the distant voices of the guards, they were now faced with the overwhelming magnitude of the Noxian Empire. The buildings were dark and sinister, tall and sturdy, just like the inhabitants of this nation.
The ominous sight raised Midas's nerves. He couldn't stay still as his golden hands creaked with every movement inside the inhibitor. His eyes darted left and right as he thought about his next move.
"Hey, didn't you hear me? We have to do something interesting to get out of here, right? In the first place, Noxus accepts powerful people. If we show them our strength, they'll surely welcome us with a warm embrace."
"Be quiet. That won't work. I'm not powerful. I don't want to fight or kill anyone else. Never again… I won't ever do the same thing again. I'm sure of that. Not for this damned place."
Midas's face said it all.
Briar had seen that same expression on the battlefield. Rage, hatred… Although she usually didn't pay attention to such details—she was more focused on eating than looking at people's faces—there had been moments when she noticed something like it.
But there was something more in Midas's expression that Briar couldn't understand.
"Whatever. I need a map. I'll steal one and get out of here. You can do whatever you want."
"Oooh… You're such a grump, you know that? There's nothing interesting about what you want to do. What could a boring map possibly do for you?"
'Ha! She's crazy,' Midas thought.
Anyone human enough who had gone through the same torment he had would want to get as far away as possible. Briar couldn't understand that because she hadn't been born human—but there was no way Midas could know that.
Meanwhile, Midas looked toward the road, where dozens of people bustled from one side to the other. The place seemed to be some kind of trade route filled with people selling their goods to the locals. He couldn't find any trace of a map nearby, which disappointed him.
Imitating Midas's gestures, Briar tilted her head to look around. She didn't really know what she was looking at, but by following Midas's gaze she noticed a fat man sitting on the ground. The man had a pile of scrolls spread over a thick black cloth.
Seeing that, Briar—foolish, but not naive—had an idea.
"Hey, Midas. If I told you I have what you want, what would you do about it?"
However, even though she had spotted the place, she paused when she saw the vendor's reddish skin. The blood flowing through that person's body looked abundant and sweet, making Briar's mouth fill with saliva in response to the ferocious hunger rising from the depths of her stomach.
"What do you mean? Just tell me where the map is," he demanded, frowning at her.
"Hehehe…"
A strange laugh came from the girl. Briar looked at Midas with a grin.
"I'll distract that bag of blood, and you grab your map. Deal?"
"Wait, what are you going to do?"
"Food!"
Before Midas could learn more, Briar shouted as the jewel on the pillory shone brightly. She pulled out the jewel and the pillory—or stock—split open, turning into two sharp blades. After that, she kicked the jewel away, sending it flying until it stabbed into the vendor's abdomen.
Through the art of hemomancy and the magic infused in Briar's blood, she lifted into the air and was pulled toward the red jewel (hemolith), as if flying straight toward the man. When she collided with him, a red explosion pushed everyone nearby away, injuring them in the process.
"Blood!"
With an almost demonic appearance, Briar drove the blades into the vendor's neck and cut off his head instantly. Blood splattered everywhere, staining the girl's face.
"Hahaha. Delicious. I want more! Give me your blood!"
The horrifying sight of the girl bathing in blood made Midas's stomach twist, almost making him vomit. Even in such a dark moment—while the screams of the townspeople rose to the sky, warning everyone of the danger—Midas did not lose sight of his goal.
He clenched his teeth and lowered his head before blending into the terrified crowd. With agility suited to his thin body, Midas ran past Briar and, using his teeth, grabbed one of the scrolls—one that conveniently had the word "Map" written on it.
Having achieved his goal, frightened by what he had just witnessed and nervous from Briar's macabre laughter, Midas began running with all his strength once again.
He knew very well that that phenomenon was now feeding on the people who hadn't managed to escape, and the thought filled him with guilt.
'I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… I didn't want this.'
But the moment Briar began her attack, those people's fate had already been decided, and Midas could do nothing to save them.
He moved quickly through the stalls of the commercial district, dodging the fleeing people. But because of his weakness, he collided with a woman and fell face-first onto the ground.
It was difficult to stand up again because of the inhibitor, but he still gathered enough strength to rise and run once more.
Meanwhile, Briar had already been surrounded by the sentinels.
There were around twenty men and women armed with black armor and various weapons. Maces, axes, bows with arrows, and massive swords that most people would struggle even to lift.
Anything was allowed.
But Briar, with sweet blood still flowing across her mouth, gave the Noxian soldiers a terrifying smile.
"Looks like some friends arrived for dinner."
And she lunged at them with her jaw wide open, ready to enjoy a magnificent feast of blood.