This fanfic is an AU (Alternate Universe) primarily inspired by the classic story of "Beauty and the Beast."
The story takes place in a medieval fantasy world featuring ancient kingdoms, enchanted forests, magic, enchantresses, and curses. There are no Titans, modern technology, or events from the original source material. In this universe, the characters have been adapted to fit a European fairy tale setting.
The main and supporting characters are originally from the manga and anime Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan), created by Hajime Isayama. They include Levi Ackerman, Erwin Smith, Hange Zoë, Mike Zacharias, Nanaba, Eren Yeager, Mikasa Ackerman, Armin Arlert, Jean Kirstein, Sasha Blouse, Connie Springer, Historia Reiss, Ymir, and others, all reinterpreted for this new universe.
The Story:
Long before the castle was wrapped in eternal silence, Levi Ackerman was the young prince of a prosperous kingdom. He was known for his discipline, his intelligence, and his impeccable education, but also for a cold, distant disposition that kept everyone at arm's length. Since childhood, he had learned that a sovereign must not show weakness, so he built walls around his heart long before inheriting the crown.
As years passed, the castle became elegant but empty. The banquets were grand, parties brought together nobles from every corner of the realm, and servants fulfilled every order with absolute precision. However, nobody truly knew the prince. Levi treated others with courtesy when necessary, but he never allowed anyone to get close enough to understand who he really was. To him, emotions only clouded judgment.
One winter night, while a storm raged through the kingdom, an elderly woman in humble attire arrived at the castle gates seeking shelter. Soaked by the rain and shivering from the cold, she offered a single red rose as payment. The guards laughed at her, but it was Levi who considered the proposal absurd. A withered rose in exchange for the hospitality of a palace? Without showing the slightest compassion, he ordered them to cast her out.
The woman warned him not to judge people by their appearance, for true beauty always remains hidden from the most arrogant eyes. Levi responded only with indifference.
Then, the woman stopped looking like an old crone.
An intense light filled the hall and revealed a powerful enchantress. Her voice echoed throughout the castle walls as she observed the prince with a mixture of disappointment and sadness. She had seen enough to understand that, behind his impeccable exterior, there existed a heart encaged by pride and loneliness.
As punishment, she cast an ancient curse upon him and all the inhabitants of the castle.
Levi's body changed slowly. Wolf-like ears appeared on his head; a long, fur-covered tail sprouted from his spine; his nails transformed into claws capable of piercing wood, and his fangs became those of a predator. His senses sharpened to the extreme, and along with them, wild instincts awoke that he had to suppress every day to avoid losing control.
The servants were not granted mercy either. Each one was transformed according to their role in the castle, condemned to remain alongside their prince as long as the curse remained in effect.
Before vanishing, the enchantress left a single enchanted rose inside a glass dome.
"When the last petal falls, your fate will be sealed. If before that moment you learn to love someone and manage to have that love returned, the curse will break. But if you fail... you will forever lose the humanity you still possess."
From that night on, the castle was erased from maps and forgotten by the world. The roads stopped leading to it, and rumors about a beast dwelling within its walls began to spread throughout the kingdom.
With every petal that fell from the rose, Levi felt his animal instincts grow stronger and his human heart fade little by little. Convinced that no one would be able to love a monster, he abandoned all hope and locked himself away, letting the years pass in complete solitude, never imagining that fate still had one last chance in store.
