Chapter 95: 95
Ch . 95 I Promise (1)
“What are you thinking of, Your Highness?”
Carlisle was gazing moodily outside the window with his arms folded . His blue eyes lost its focus and turned clear again, but he didn’t turn away from the window as he replied .
“Just of old memories . ”
Presently, Carlisle’s gaze was turned towards Freesia Palace outside the window . He didn’t have many good memories of the place . Perhaps it was only natural . He had a very unhappy childhood .
From the moment he was born, he didn’t stay at the palace, but was raised at the maids’ quarters stayed because of his mother’s humble origins . He had grown up not knowing that his father was the emperor until he was eight years old . Although he was the first son, no one recognized him as a prince .
As a child, Carlisle’s mother was always apologizing to someone . Even if the Empress threw a cup of tea at his mother, she had to bow down and subject herself to the harassment and jealousies of other maids . He couldn’t understand why his mother was this way when he was a child…but when he grew older, he later found out it was for his sake . And yet, his mother would always apologize to Carlisle too .
“I’m sorry, Caril . I’m sorry you have such a terrible mother . ”
His mother suffered greatly to protect him . It must have been difficult to safeguard the life of the boy without any maternal relatives in the palace, where plots and scheming were common . When Carlisle thought about it now, he probably survived that far because nobody cared about him .
“Caril, if anyone says something, just say you made a mistake . You can’t even breathe a word against anyone . ”
“No . Why should I do that when I didn’t do anything wrong?”
“The moment you are noticed by others, your life is over . ”
“Mom, can we just run away together? I don’t want to live as a prince . ”
He meant it . He would abandon the position a thousand times over if he could only be with his mother . She answered him with a weak smile .
“Caril, you cannot live like this . How precious is the blood that flows in your body? Look towards the high places like birds flying in the sky . ”
He complained countless times that he didn’t need riches, but his mother has pretended not to listen .
The turning point in his life came without any warning . One day, the Orb appeared in Carlisle’s body . He lay in bed for a week and struggled with severe pain . There were no words to explain the way his skin turned black then white again . It was only then that he realized the change in his body meant that he was not a normal human being . The sun and moon rose and set several times before the blue orb finished growing inside his body and separated from him .
The moment he held the perfect bead in his hand, he met his father for the first time . His father told him that the emperors had the blood of the dragon . Carlisle thought he would retch . This wasn’t just the blood of a monster…It was a curse . His mother was completely wrong; The blood flowing through his body was never precious or blessed . He could still remember clearly when Sullivan patted his shoulder .
“You will succeed me, Carlisle . Your father believes in only you now . ”
Soon after, Sullivan declared to everyone that Carlisle would serve as the crown prince . Carlisle’s life completely changed after that . Like a lie, Sullivan began to love him dearly, and in turn, the days he saw his mother gradually declined . Then one day, his mother spoke to him .
“I need to leave the palace for a while . Your Highness, can you manage on your own?”
“Where are you going? Don’t go . ”
“I’ll be back . Just count on your fingers for ten nights . ”
“No, don’t go . Mother!”
No matter how much Carlisle cried and clung to his mother, she turned coldly and left the palace . Since then, he folded her fingers one by one, counting the nights by ten, but his mother never returned to the palace . He realized at some point that she would never come back .
He felt an aching loneliness . Although he lived in palace, his food would often be poisoned and he struggled with death several times . In front of him were smiling faces, but when he turned around, he could not tell who was the enemy . Who was trying to poison him behind his father’s back? The enemy seemed to be on all sides and no one could be trusted . When he was alone and isolated, Sullivan called him . Then he issued a final notice .
“Carlisle, there’s no way to protect you here . Go to the border and enter the war . ”
“Father…I’ll die if I go there . ”
“You are the child who has the blood closest to the dragon . How can you die so easily? Follow your father’s decision . This is the best . ”
My father was a madman, so obsessed with myths that he wouldn’t look at the reality before him . Carlisle was only thirteen years old when his father condemned him to die outside of the palace . What were the odds that a young man who had never even held a sword would return alive? Even if there were people eager to kill him in the Imperial Palace, it would be much worse if he were away from his father’s side .
“…Haaaa . ”
It was a miserable life . He believed that he would live his entire life in misery . Anyone who married such an unlucky person like him would surely be doomed .
Carlisle felt no more anger, resentment, or sorrow . All he had left was emptiness . His mother abandoned him at the Imperial Palace, and his father was pushing him to a dangerous place, saying it was the only way . The chances of survival were extremely slim, but he didn’t have any desire to live anyway .
‘Everything . … It’s all because of this Orb . ’
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Carlisle looked down at the blue bead ring in his hand .
Before his mother left, she made him this ring so the Orb wouldn’t be noticed, but he doubted it would be useful . He couldn’t use the Orb for himself or for his family…
In those days even the maids working for the Imperial Palace did not want to make eye contact with Carlisle . Rumors began to circulate that his existence was unclean . The rumor was not wrong in Carlisle’s mind .
“…The sky is so clear . “
On the day before he would leave for battle, Carlisle hid himself in Freesia Palace, the largest palace on the grounds, and looked up at the blue sky . He was in a gloomy mood, but unlike his thoughts the sky was clear . It didn’t matter though, since nothing reflected Carlisle’s mood in his life so far . He was under the sway of other people . He was about to give up everything when–
Jabag, jabag .
He heard the sound of light footsteps . When he turned his head in the direction of the sound, a blonde-haired girl emerged through the bushes .
Carlisle was momentarily speechless . He thought it was a fairy . He couldn’t believe there was such a beautiful human being . She had golden hair, pale skin, and jeweled red eyes that stared right at him . The moment their eyes met it felt like eternity .
“Are you a servant working for the Imperial Palace? I’m lost, where am I?”
“…What?”
Carlisle’s eyes widened as she addressed him informally . Although he didn’t care for it, everyone used the crown prince’s title since he ascended to the position . He didn’t answer, and the girl said softly,
“Are you a lost child, too?”
At her question, Carlisle looked down at what he was wearing . He did look quite scruffy, but he was leaving for the battlefield tomorrow anyway . He wanted to reveal himself, but at the same time he didn’t want to hear the girl use his title like everyone else . Although words of respect came from everyone else’s mouths, their eyes and voices were cold .
The girl before him spoke up again, her red eyes lifted sharply as if she were offended .
“Why don’t you answer when people speak to you?”
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When he saw this girl like a nine-tailed fox in the palace, he couldn’t help but be surprised .
“Why should I answer your question?”
“Because…because servants have to obey the words of the nobility . ”
Carlisle leaned back and responded in a flat voice .
“There’s a strike today . ”
“What? No way . ”
“Ask someone else for directions in the palace . ”
“I’ve been walking around for ages, but I didn’t see anyone else . ”
It was easy to get lost in Freesia Palace’s labyrinthine grounds without a guide . The girl’s poor dress was a little worse-for-wear, but he decided that wasn’t any reason to do her a favor . The girl said something else, but Carlisle closed his eyes and ignored her .
Then, at one point, it became quiet . Suddenly curious, he opened his eyes and saw the girl sitting nearby and looking at the flowers . She looked a picturesque image as she smiled prettily at the flowers, unlike the face she made when she was complaining earlier . She was still beautiful before too, but he liked this a lot more .
“Is there something interesting about the flowers?”
“Don’t talk to me . You won’t even give me directions…”
“I told you to ask someone else . ”
“Tch, how am I supposed to find someone else here? I’ve been walking around a long time and I only met you…I’m scared to be alone . ”
Carlisle chuckled how girl’s voice adorably became smaller and smaller . It had been a long time since he met someone of his age . Unlike the half-brother who always stared at him, she was a perfect stranger .
“I didn’t know it was such a strange flower . You can find it all over the palace . ”
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“Not where I live . Maybe this flower only blooms here…Have you ever been outside of the palace?”
“… No . ”
“Never?”
“Never . ”
The girl looked surprised at Carlisle’s answer .
“Then have you ever gone to a bakery or an opera outside the palace?”
“No, I haven’t . ”
“Wow–Charlie’s Bakery is really good . And children usually aren’t allowed to go to the opera, but I saw it once because my mother took me there . It was so grand and beautiful . ”
Carlisle did not reply . It was a story of a world that he didn’t know .
When Carlisle didn’t say anything else, Elena sidled up to the boy’s side .
“Then would you like to come with me?”
“…What?”
“I’ll take you to a fun place outside the palace . ”
The girl’s bright expression dazzled him and Carlisle’s heart began beating faster than usual .
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