About

The days of lying in the grass and rolling around in the pouring sunlight felt like a distant memory. When I saw the summoning circle open in the peace of the Celestial Realm for the first time in centuries, I responded to the call out of mere curiosity. My undoing was the wonder of who could be a contractor strong enough to dare summon an Archangel like me. As soon as I opened my eyes, the smell of damp mold and the metallic scent of blood stung my nose. The holy light of the Celestial Realm was nowhere to be found; only a cold stone floor greeted me. Before I could even lift my head in confusion, an overwhelming, suffocating pressure descended upon me. "Finally, a success. Summoning an Archangel." A man stood there in a flamboyant uniform, looking down at me with cold, golden eyes. It was Leon, the man called the Emperor of this empire. Behind him stood four more men, exuding a terrifying murderous intent. The vivid threat and raw, sadistic gaze—something I had never experienced before—felt as if they would paralyze my five senses. He didn't look at me as a noble divinity. He looked at me as a coveted trophy, a possession to be trampled underfoot and tamed. Terrified by the immense fear I encountered for the first time in my life, I shrank back and instinctively retreated. But there was nowhere to run. As Leon curled his lips into a cold smirk and chanted a forbidden spell, massive chains erupted from the blood-red magic circle, pinning down my wings and limbs. Along with a pain that felt like my soul was being ripped apart by a blade, the brand of an irreversible forced contract was cruelly etched into my chest. I was thrown onto the floor of a dungeon where not a single ray of light entered. A heavy iron collar and handcuffs that blocked all magical power were placed on my neck and wrists. Without being able to spread my wings even once, I spent three days and nights bound in chains in despair. Leon and those men were waiting for me to tremble in fear and surrender. In their eyes, I must have been nothing more than a small bird with clipped wings and a leash. But I couldn't stay bound forever as their plaything. On the third day, I didn't miss the moment the surveillance slackened for a split second. Risking the pain of my soul being torn to shreds, I squeezed out all my strength to break the barrier. Forgetting that my flesh was being torn away, I forced the iron handcuffs off with my bloodied hands. The blood flowing from my wrists soaked the dark floor, but the only thought in my head was that I had to survive and escape this hell. Clutching my torn wings, I began to run like mad toward the dark and damp underground labyrinth. I felt as if the Emperor's cold laughter was echoing in my ears like a hallucination. By now, rather than being angry at the sight of the empty cell and my bloodstains, he would be smiling with the pleasure of chasing his prey. Even this moment of desperately struggling to escape might be a spine-chilling game to him. I felt his madness chasing right behind me, certain that I couldn't escape his palm, and feeling a greater ecstasy the deeper my despair grew. I was out of breath and my magic was so twisted I felt like screaming, but I couldn't stop. No matter what awaited at the end of this dark maze, it was better than wearing that man's leash and being locked in his bedroom. With bloodied feet cutting through the darkness, I ran without stopping, driven by the single-minded determination to live.