Things had become so bad in Hondura that many parents who gave birth to witch children began to hide them from the public to make sure no one ever found out that they were witches. And this was the only reason why Varina was never killed by the witch slayers.
Varina was a young girl born to poor parents who lived in a small town in the woods. She had a younger brother and sister, and both she and her sister were born as witches. Varina’s parents had warned both girls not to ever tell anyone outside the family that they were witches! If anyone found out about their powers, then they would be taken away by the witch slayers, so they had to hide their powers no matter what! But when they were alone, Varina and her sister were allowed to practice their magic using an old magic book that they had found in the woods a long time ago. The book was only filled with basic magic like using fire to light candles, or using water to wash clothes, but the wonder and excitement the two girls felt as they practiced was unmatched!
Their brother, Patrice, had been excited by the concept of magic when he was little. As a baby, he would watch his sisters from a distance in awe of the fire they created or clap whenever they filled a bucket with water. Patrice felt excited about becoming a witch himself one day, but his hopes were dashed when his mother told him that only girls were allowed to become witches. Patrice obviously didn’t understand why only girls became witches. Since the era of witches was over, there wasn’t that much information about witches in the world anymore, so most of the new generation didn’t know anything about who the witches were. Patrice felt angry at the idea that he could never gain powers like his sisters, and slowly, his excitement whenever he watched his sisters using magic behind the house began to turn to envy. The two sisters grew closer and closer, and Patrice felt even more isolated by them! Patrice was left out of whatever they did together, and he was made to go help his father with work in the woods while his sisters were allowed to practice their magic. For a young child, such isolation and exclusion built up an intense inferiority complex in him, and he began to search for any place where he could belong.
And that was why, the first time he saw a Witch Slayer walking through their small village, Patrice was absolutely in awe! The magnificent silver armor worn by the witch slayer and the large sword and shield on his back were the most incredible things Patrice had ever seen! The red runes running along the armor only made the witch slayer look even more amazing to Patrice, and when Patrice learned that the Witch Slayer was a man who could use magic, Patrice was hooked! This was where Patrice could belong! This was what Patrice wanted to do! Patrice began sneaking out of the house to follow the Witch Slayer around while asking him all sorts of things about his work! The Witch Slayer was only in town for a few days, and he found Patrice to be an exciting young man, so he indulged Patrice with a kind smile. Since Patrice was so young, the Witch Slayer didn’t tell Patrice the full details about what he did! No one would want to tell a child that they killed people for a living. Instead, the Witch Slayer told Patrice that it was his job to make sure witches couldn’t hurt other people. Witches were a danger to those around them, and the Witch Slayer was there to protect all Hondurans.
"Then, if I tell you where some witches are, will you teach me how to be like you?"
Patrice had said this statement with absolute seriousness, and the Witch Slayer paused in shock and looked down at the little boy! Patrice was looking up at the Witch Slayer with a hard look on his face, and the Witch Slayer realised at that moment that Patrice was not joking. The Witch Slayer gave Patrice a single nod in return, and that was what sealed the fate of his family.
Patrice had packed his bags and run away from home that day, and the next day, the Witch Slayer arrived to eradicate everyone in the family! Varina’s parents and sister were killed in cold blood by the Witch Slayer, but Varina had been away from home running an errand when it happened, and the only things she saw when she returned were the sight of hundreds of the townspeople cheering and clapping for the Witch Slayer as he burned her house to the ground with her family still inside! Varina had been so stunned by the sight that she could only stand and stare. There was a storm gathering above the town as Varia’s mana started going out of control, and Varina was only a moment away from unleashing her magic. But at the next moment, a hand clasped over Varina’s mouth, and Varina was put to sleep with a spell!
Varina woke up a few days later to see that she had been taken to a cave in the mountains. There was an old woman cooking something over a fire, and the first thing Varina did was ask for her family.
"Your family is dead. I’ve been watching over you and your sister for a while now. That magic journal you found in the forest used to belong to me. When I heard there was a Witch Slayer in the town, I came as fast as I could, but I was too late, and I could only take you away. Your parents and sister were killed in the fire."
The old woman spoke with a wise voice that showed she had been through many things in her life, and Varina asked a desperate question.
"What about my brother!? Is Patrice okay!?"
The answer to that question had broken Varina. Patrice had sold out her family, and he was now on his way to the Royal Capital to become a Witch Slayer. For the next few days, Varina had not been able to sleep or eat. She cried her heart out in anguish for her family, and the old woman had simply fed her and allowed her to grieve. But then on a random day, the old woman had knelt beside Varina, and she spoke in a hard voice.
"Do you want to get revenge?"
At this point, Varina’s grief had begun to turn into hatred! Hatred for her brother, who sold her family out, hatred for the Witch Slayer that killed her innocent parents, and worst of all, hatred for the townspeople who celebrated as her family’s house burned to the ground! Varina hated everyone in this world! She hated them all!
Varina’s answer had been yes, and the old witch began to teach Varina everything she knew about the Mind Arts. There was no doubt that Varina was talented. In fact, the old witch would go as far as saying that Varina was the most talented witch ever born. Her talent with magic was comparable to the witches of old who had possessed the highest capacity for magic out of all witch generations! Even the foolish Witch Queen Faya didn’t possess as much talent as Varina did! The old woman’s name was Halene, and she was the last living wielder of the secret of the Mind Arts amongst all the witches. Back when she was a young girl, Halene’s parents had found out that she was a witch, but rather than helping her like Varina’s parents, they tried to lure her into a trap where the Witch Slayers could get Halene. Halene had used the Mind Arts to take all of them under her control, and she killed both her parents and the Witch Slayer without any remorse before going on the run.