Chapter 2 - Nabel

Chapter 2 – Nabel

Count Rieda, her father, regarded the boy with disapproval. Even without him, Ronée was already a thorn in his side. For Count Rieda, she was no more than an existence which caused unpleasant rumors tarnishing the reputation of his House to spread.

“Get rid of him as soon as you grow bored of him. That you would dare to bring a filthy lowborn into my house…”

She likes things which remind her of herself, it seems.”

Her step-mother, the Countess, who was a mage, thought of nothing else but what she could take from the House of Rieda. Like Count Rieda, she too detested Ronée more than anyone else.

“Cursed girl.”

It was a story that began when Ronée had turned five. When the holy magic had had no effect on her, the priest had thrust his cross at her, proclaiming that this child had been abandoned by the Gods. From that day on, those she called her parents had looked upon her with loathing.

“Hey. Dust is going everywhere.” Her stepmother, the Lady Rieda, called to a knight and gestured towards Ronée with her chin. “Shut them up in her room so they can shake the dust off their bodies there at least.” She coughed exaggeratedly and looked away from Ronee. Her eyes showed how lowly she thought Ronée was.

“Yes, my Lady!” The knight grabbed Ronée’s arm roughly, showing no respect for her in his manner.

“.…!” Ronée’s mouth gasped open. She tried to plead that he was hurting her, but the knight dragged her down the hallway as though she were a criminal.

“Ah!” Ronée let go of the boy’s hand in shock and looked back at him immediately. She discovered that the boy was looking at the knight with even fiercer eyes than when he had been locked up on the slave cart.

His eyes were fixed on the knight, as though he were seeing something quite different. His gaze was that of a young, injured beast.

“Get in there, please!” Only his words were polite. The knight who had just thrown Ronée into her room also grabbed the boy by the scruff of his neck and threw him in after her.

Surprised, Ronée caught him in her arms instinctively. Thud!

The boy who had been thrown and the girl who had caught him rolled onto the floor in each other’s arms, their bodies aching from the impact. “Ah…”

Bang! The knight slammed the door shut.

“Cursed girl…”

That, too, she heard clearly. Once they were gone, Ronée turned to the boy. It had always been this way for the poor child; it wasn’t a surprise anymore. But, the boy seemed shocked.

“…You can leave whenever you like.”

Accursed house. That was how Ronée referred to this place. Although the gods did not listen to her prayers, she did not believe that they had abandoned her.

If the Gods had truly abandoned me, I wouldn’t have been born, would I? She had already come to this conclusion long ago. Curse this house.

Ronée, who had been lost in her thoughts again, closed her eyes and fluttered them open. “Or, if you want, you can stay.”

The place was not a good environment for a child, but it was still better than living on the streets or being locked up inside a slave cart. It was merely a simple act of kindness that served no benefit to her; though, she thought that it might be nice in some ways.

But, while for her it was just a small kindness to let him live in a corner of her room, it could have been more than that for the boy. Such a young child could never have done anything to deserve to become a slave. She was sure his only crime was being born as the child of enslaved parents.

As she had told the boy before, she despised slavery. Perhaps because it reminded her of the images of countless slaves who had been beaten in her place by her father.

Count Rieda had used to beat the slaves in front of her without reservation, as though he was telling her how he would beat her if she were not of his noble bloodline. Slaves of about her age were dragged out with broken bones, bloody and bruised all over.

And there was only one reason for this brutal treatment. It was all because she was a cursed girl, abandoned by the gods, that the holy magic had had no effect on.

The boy stared at Ronée for a while and then nodded his head.

“Get this boy cleaned up first, please.”

Only one maid, Ryne, followed Ronée. Their mothers had been close.

“Yes, my Lady.”

There was a clear distinction in status in their household between the employees that received a wage and the slaves that were treated as less than human. But at Ronée’s instruction, Ryne took the boy’s hand without hesitation and gently led him to the bath.

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The boy did not resist, but said to Ronée, “I will not forget your kindness.”

It was the first time the boy had spoken. His eyes were still as dark as an ocean abyss, but he met Ronée’s gaze directly. There was no hostility there anymore. Ronée nodded, though she did not really know what he meant.

“Of course.” She supposed they were just meaningless words of thanks.

“My name is Nabel.” Having said his name, he proceeded towards the bath.

“I have told my name only to you,” he added quietly. His feet, covered with wounds, stepped onto the clean floor of the bathroom.