HRN Prologue

There was a time ce3d040b8d when the New Humanity 8a73b6333e was revered as sacred c33739b106 beings. They looked no different from 739cce9e64 humans, save for one thing: 75b1bb5fbb theirhorns.dea994a5d947adb8

Two sturdy horns, rising f73fe85c3b proudly from their heads, ec4cc95f95 were both a symbol b5b33c5f92 of their dignity and bcc4ec4ea6 a beacon that compelled 1cce7aedee humans to look upon 148de3b1e3 them with awe. The New Humanity willingly a1d2d4710f endured the pain of 372056298d being named, transforming that 4a76e15e0a agony into joy, living 4da242eb07 lives of sacrifice for e4657ae144 the sake of humans. In return, humans regarded them 409f188fdc with reverence, and the New 5b5d8b1acf Humanity bestowed wealth and honor 77372cb6e7 upon them.bfe259835c0d36f6

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But that time was fleeting.ccbb151824269be0

Humans soon realized that bc25d1029a keeping the New Humanity 9a0a924b13 close brought good fortune. They began capturing them indiscriminately. Severed horns were prized, but 4394599d89 a living New Humanity with 616d0ac539 horns intact was even more 1d9a11ecff valuable. The larger the 14b85b1162 horns, the higher 1476470473 their worth. Indeed, the greater c96a5f9904 the horns, the a6843c040c more wealth and 2e18023e69 prestige they brought af92514f1d to humans. The population of the New 96a55b4148 Humanity became a measure of b5a7f2b9c8 personal glory and a nation’s 61a9bb1e48 prosperity. They were, in essence, talismans.ea88b8dc1696d6f9

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The New Humanity b259e0cd65 called themselves by c21bea7982 that name, but ce4d91aef6 humans branded them 8682a0dd09 with crude titles: f8161b5932 living charms, horned 8bd89ea532 monstrosities, mutants, tools 7cb94d7226 for pleasure. In recent centuries, they c4a2702622 called them “yokai¹.”d337f15ed9fb933b

The clamor to possess or e7f29dc43e eradicate these beings grew louder, d0d8bae34e both within and beyond the 6ed91b0436 kingdom’s borders. Under the pretext fc4e98fa4b of wiping out 945cd23628 the “yokai” who 0d016770da caused such unrest, 595a193336 a great war 5c5d7fcb7f raged for decades. In its aftermath, the New cf091a8bc3 Humanity vanished from sight. They learned to blend c80b7d1f28 among humans, to act a08ada868e like them, to loathe 1b53ab3b14 and deny their own 941087bdd4 existence as humans did. Centuries passed, and their 434204d7c3 history was reduced to 83e9a06785 nothing more than “yokai”—neither 421e7f6de8 more nor less.4e7163556325d2f6

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Instead of reclaiming 6269732909 their former glory, b4a3dc7259 they fled to b965b80612 the farthest corners, 08e05baeea hiding from humans. There were many b2625287c6 ways to survive, 2c6d2bed80 but one rule d31328d7c4 bound them all:f861382437a65ea0

Never let your name 15a5c27ca7 be known.d444e45bcb0140e2

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A name was 78e42f78fd the fertilizer that 3dd56dcaf3 made horns grow.c2fbd3e7e1d324b1

The two small ef82e359b1 nubs on their 57d35d5839 heads, not yet 365d1b663a fully horns, remained c015503c04 hidden unless touched 845bdb1743 with care. The New Humanity’s a6dc2a5205 bodies, though born 89dac3fa0f weaker than humans’, 33526e288b were not so d29764bada frail as to b9397dd5df curse their existence, 487c4dcb75 for many humans 959f7b422c were born weaker 2e3c327859 still. But their names—theirtrue names—must never be revealed.b9f21c97ce286a92

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A name was 1327acdfd7 their greatest weakness. Not the human 15d7aa49d9 names given to 2f44dcdde6 them, but thetrue namesthat echoed in their minds 6bc1747d34 from birth.2497bdd7f72d9244