That Lady’s Stalker - Chapter 28
I don’t know when my father had left, but in that brief moment, only my mother and I were left in the cellar.
“Don’t show weakness. Get up, quickly.”
I struggled to rise, but my knees keep buckling. I didn’t want to disappoint my mother. Even though my knees bent, I pushed myself up, again and again. How many times did I try before I finally stood? Until then, my mother had quietly waited for me.
I gathered the strength in my body and, with my back to her, followed my mother out. Now that I looked at my life, it didn’t seem so terribly awful. I had my mother and brother.
As we stepped out of the cellar, the bright light stabbed at my eyes. It made me dizzy and hurt. Perhaps I wasn’t meant to be in the light after all.
“Asher, black hair is just a superstition. Don’t close your eyes. Look straight ahead. You are the prince of the Brescobaldi Empire.”
No, Mother. Before being a prince, I had black hair, and others don’t think black hair is just some superstition.
I silently opposed my mother’s words, but I was foolish enough not to speak them aloud.
A week passed peacefully. I don’t know what was said between my parents that day, but my father stopped looking for me. My body felt at ease, but my mind didn’t. Not at all.
“You must need a playmate.”
I don’t need one. But I couldn’t bring myself to say that. I could tell from the way the servants looked at me. I was not welcome by anyone. And yet, I think I still held onto some small hope.
That tiny hope shattered soon after, like sand breaking apart, but even in that destruction, hope still existed. Someone came toward me.
She wasn’t one of the playmates my mother had called in. She looked like a child who had come to the palace with her parents.
“Why are you hiding here?”
At first, I didn’t realize she was speaking to me. A beautiful child like her wouldn’t be talking to me.
“Don’t ignore me. Why are you hiding here?”
She blushed red, the color of her hair, perhaps because she wasn’t used to being ignored.
When I saw her eyes staring directly at mine, I realized she really was talking to me. I stammered, caught off guard.
“I-I’m not hiding…”
“Then why are you here? There are a lot of kids over there. Come play with us.”
I was truly shocked.
She was extending her hand to someone like me? Was she blind? Couldn’t she see my black hair? Was she… mocking me?
Sunlight poured over her head. It was blinding. So bright I couldn’t look at her directly. It glittered like that.
In the end, she pulled me out and confidently spoke to my playmates.
“Let’s join in too.”
The other kids looked at us with uncomfortable expressions. It was obvious they didn’t want me there, but the girl didn’t seem to notice.
“Alright, the first one to find this wins and becomes the leader here!”
The girl pulled a small bead out of her pocket and tossed it into the nearby bushes. It was a game I’d never seen before.
The other kids, like me, had confused expressions and hesitated for a moment. Then, seeing the girl run off to find the bead, they followed suit, rushing after her, not wanting to fall behind.
They had all fallen into her trap, me included.
I ran after the girl with the fluttering red hair. Finding the bead wasn’t even on my mind. She acted as if my black hair didn’t exist at all. Unlike everyone else who avoided looking me in the eye, she treated me like one of them, as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
976th Year of the Empire, March
That strange day passed, then the next day, and the one after that, but I couldn’t forget her. Because after that, I was locked away in the eastern tower and couldn’t see her anymore.
My father, after learning that I had a playmate, acted accordingly. He dragged me to the cellar, saying no bug should have a playmate.
At that time, even my mother couldn’t stop him. I was beaten until I lost consciousness. When I woke up, I found myself in this place— a small, narrow room with only a tiny bed. So this was how it ended.
In a way, this place suited me better. It was quiet, but I couldn’t help feeling a sense of loss. I would never see her again. I only wanted to see her once more… I was curious. If I met her again, would she still treat me the same?
Through the tiny window, a soft stream of sunlight came through, scattering over where her head had been. It was still blinding, but it no longer sparkled. Perhaps because she wasn’t there.
The sunlight no longer seemed beautiful; it was just a painful light, like it always had been.
988th Year of the Empire, December
“When Father passes away, I’ll make sure to get you out of here.”
“I like it here.”
Maybe it was because I hadn’t spoken in so long, but my throat felt dry and cracked as I spoke.
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
I saw his clenched fist trembling with anger. During the time I had been locked away, my brother had grown unrecognizably. He now had the eyes of a ruler. The cold wind swept through the small room. His silver hair fluttered. Silver hair, the opposite of my own black hair.
“I’m serious.”
“Black hair is surprisingly common.”
“I know.”
“I mean, you don’t have to hide.”
“…I’m the disgrace of the imperial family.”
