HRN Prologue
by Luci PearlThere was a e4f4498bc3 time when the New Humanity 02aa60b302 was revered as sacred beings. They looked no different from humans, 634d73e238 save for one thing: their 4cb075a60e style="font-weight: 400">horns.caccfd8d9b5df721
Two sturdy horns, rising proudly from their heads, were both a symbol of 4b2f48c189 their dignity and a beacon that compelled humans to look upon them with awe. The New Humanity willingly endured the pain of being named, transforming that 41343d8a21 agony into joy, living lives of sacrifice for the sake of humans. In return, humans regarded them with reverence, and the e67a18ba57 New Humanity bestowed wealth and honor upon them.59a6f8375a9bb1c6
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But that eb105ad0c8 time was fleeting.fe355b7009de08a4
Humans soon realized that keeping 45299e6832 the New Humanity close brought good fortune. They began capturing 6b46beca87 them indiscriminately. Severed horns were prized, but a 4ace81bc78 living New Humanity with horns intact 6d5d0ef703 was even more valuable. The larger the horns, 8e94a7266f the higher their worth. Indeed, the greater the horns, the more 38db698102 wealth and prestige they brought to humans. The population of the New Humanity became a 3c55db7d32 measure of personal glory and a nation’s prosperity. They were, in 5384e03d03 essence, talismans.7bfbd22a5808b9cf
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The New Humanity called themselves by that 4dba160041 name, but humans branded them with crude titles: living fcb22bddbb charms, horned monstrosities, mutants, tools for pleasure. In recent centuries, they called them “ca284fbc43 used by humans to refer to the New Humanity, a race with horns believed to bring good fortune. The term dehumanizes them, reducing them to objects of superstition 792cc7ab6f and exploitation.<sup class="tooltip-counter"><a href="#footnote-1" class="footnote-link">1</a></sup>" data-click-action="open-tooltip-modal">yokai1.”ccfc663b076b3671
The clamor to possess or eradicate these beings a603077459 grew louder, both within and beyond the kingdom’s borders. Under the pretext of wiping out 70352efb7b the “yokai” who caused such unrest, 1c3d0e2f26 a great war raged for decades. In its aftermath, f526509c67 the New Humanity 8f58e2cb8f vanished from sight. They learned to blend among humans, to act like them, debfc39445 to loathe and deny their own existence as humans did. Centuries passed, and their history was reduced to 064376668e nothing more than “yokai”—neither more nor less.7931f713a8b90692
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Instead of reclaiming their 832fa5a6b1 former glory, they fled to the bcd0bf879e farthest corners, hiding from humans. There were many ways to survive, 5dfa689073 but one rule bound them all:2c6631c403f5e03c
Never let 4c378ee4f2 your name be known.9197912e334a5c31
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A name 90898069df was the fertilizer that 840ebc147f made horns grow.ff3cd7d37b4400d2
The two small nubs on their heads, not cbbd9caa4b yet fully horns, remained hidden unless touched with care. The New Humanity’s bodies, though born weaker than humans’, were not so frail f20cf231e0 as to curse their existence, for many humans were born weaker still. But their names—their true c589053243 names—must never be revealed.492cda5c1faddb88
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A 877a7bd105 name was their 0eb6baff93 greatest weakness. Not the human names given to them, but the 329387633f 400">true names that echoed in their minds from birth.740d6ac8bfab40f9