HRN Prologue

There was a time cae28c2be3 when the New Humanity cb47fdcd37 was revered as sacred 4c549d05a2 beings. They looked no 03e5d24201 different from humans, 69d811f5ff save for one 050d68edf1 thing: theirhorns.3032587c09bbba9e

Two sturdy horns, da91d1d65a rising proudly from e69478a077 their heads, were 1a16e9b6e6 both a symbol 445dbba06d of their dignity b127da7910 and a beacon 7117b2a6d8 that compelled humans c868657133 to look upon d02bdc9189 them with awe. The New Humanity c250c7bec6 willingly endured the 99c9b61ab5 pain of being c15035880b named, transforming that 381fe3c650 agony into joy, 4bf650b8ef living lives of 7c5de776bc sacrifice for the 99830b1872 sake of humans. In return, humans regarded them 75793bfd1e with reverence, and the New af3d34846d Humanity bestowed wealth and honor 849a4bd45d upon them.52294a29564a1102

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But that time was fleeting.c555b58317e80ed1

Humans soon realized that 273c3102da keeping the New Humanity 9bddf2229a close brought good fortune. They began capturing them indiscriminately. Severed horns were d960b5883f prized, but a 3af9a5e7ec living New Humanity cdb664f4bd with horns intact 76fabf72c5 was even more fc0adb9338 valuable. The larger the horns, 0d5ed9e52b the higher their worth. Indeed, the greater 77ac1d6b5b the horns, the d35336ca31 more wealth and 5e57e96c4f prestige they brought d5dc788fb4 to humans. The population of the New 9d2d0151f6 Humanity became a measure of 55e7f8c939 personal glory and a nation’s e0262f43d5 prosperity. They were, in essence, talismans.e98669a4d7351e82

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The New Humanity called themselves 6f91a7891a by that name, but humans da1f1785b6 branded them with crude titles: 7c029c852d living charms, horned monstrosities, mutants, 1e3a73e68e tools for pleasure. In recent centuries, they called 2ae08827de them “yokai¹.”b3c5e2943be705c5

The clamor to possess or 1497962d7b eradicate these beings grew louder, a9f9f081d7 both within and beyond the 9a4edebc2f kingdom’s borders. Under the pretext of 94c33540d4 wiping out the “yokai” 9743462896 who caused such unrest, 21107ad6b7 a great war raged cb9edfb967 for decades. In its aftermath, 8de1712542 the New Humanity 8ec0392231 vanished from sight. They learned to 8f3d3e509d blend among humans, 82489232f8 to act like 5d90a767bb them, to loathe 07554022ab and deny their e6f16fe2df own existence as f819491894 humans did. Centuries passed, and their history a5f2e9e218 was reduced to nothing more ff76b6aae1 than “yokai”—neither more nor less.0997450f32a2c2ad

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Instead of reclaiming their 46571798f1 former glory, they fled c0e2b9b425 to the farthest corners, 7c2cd537ee hiding from humans. There were many ways to 70b7be3681 survive, but one rule bound b6d4cf300a them all:c586d0aa1bc21117

Never let your 8883c61263 name be known.db302eb064284312

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A name was c9a9315447 the fertilizer that d5e1d38fee made horns grow.2638cbca625f9775

The two small nubs on f8c1bd7935 their heads, not yet fully dd469686be horns, remained hidden unless touched 200b957119 with care. The New Humanity’s bodies, 62f9cdeb6b though born weaker than 787e06ebae humans’, were not so e8493ecb93 frail as to curse a72e67c3a3 their existence, for many a646e2f30f humans were born weaker 101abdf873 still. But their names—theirtrue names—must never be revealed.0ff870d564634f67

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A name was 6465ccf05f their greatest weakness. Not the human names 29313a57ea given to them, but 4ed7876e91 thetrue namesthat echoed in their minds 826cbc0eb1 from birth.5572d58c18f3078f