TCORIYH - Chapter 1

It was always cold and dark inside the tower.

It was impossible to even count the date on the stone floor, where not even an ounce of warmth could be felt. It was during the first few days that Judith was able to scream and sob because she felt unfair.

Judith, who was lying on the hard stone floor like a carelessly burdened burden, forcibly lifted her closed eyelids at the sound of someone's footsteps coming from afar. After being left in this place for over a year, where even drinking water was a luxury, let alone water for washing one's body, her appearance was so cruel that it was impossible to open one's eyes and look at it.

"...It's possible. Just for a moment... I really need to say something...”

The sound of conversations being exchanged could be heard outside the thick-barred door. Then the guard's footsteps faded away, accompanied by the sound of coins clinking.

Judith slowly got up. At the same time, a black shadow fluttered across the stone floor, but she could not see who the owner of the shadow was. She was trapped in a dark tower, and her eyesight was already deteriorating because she had not seen proper light for so long.

"Who...”

Judith, who had been squeezing out a voice that would not come out, swallowed her breath and closed her lips at the terrible whistling sound coming from her throat. A rustling sound and a sigh were heard one after another, and there was a voice that came from a very low place, probably because she was squatting down to eye level.

“Your Highness, it’s me. It’s Samona.”

“Samona...”

“Your Highness, I have made some medicine. Please drink it."

Judith crawled on the damp stone floor and got closer to the bars. However, her hands fumbling on the floor could not find the medicine bowl right in front of her. Tears welled up at the corners of Samona's eyes as she saw that Judith's once clear sky-blue eyes had become hazy.

“How... How can this be... Who the hell is the guard... ”

“Samona, Samona, don't cry. Because of me... Don't cry. T, this place... How did you get here? How... Cheraan... What happened to Cheraan?”

In response to Judith's urgent questions, Samona couldn't hold back and burst into sobs.

Cheraan was the maid of honor for the Princess, Judith, and the only daughter whom the Marquis of Ebelta cherished very much. When everyone mocked Judith for being an unfaithful woman and insisted that she be hanged, Cheraan defended Judith.

Her efforts were in vain as Judith was imprisoned in the tower, but Cheraan often sent her maid, Samona, to the tower to check on Judith's current status. Samona had not appeared for a long time, and Judith was more worried about Cheraan's safety than anything else.

“Young Lady… The Lady passed away. The Queen Mother... Lady Cheraan was executed for spreading rumors about Degradation Krald. The Master and Madam have been unconscious for several days already due to the shock...”

Jusith's hand, which had been anxiously holding on to the iron bars, slipped. Pieces of iron that had rusted and peeled off here and there dug into her weakened skin and blood oozed out, but she did not even feel pain.

"And..."

Samona let out a tearful breath. Her blurry eyes lost focus and looked into space.

“His Highness Franz has been imprisoned.”

“W-what? Uh... Why."

“His Highness Franz... Rumors are going around that he attempted to assassinate Emperor Krald. I don't know the truth, but if you listen to what people say, it's probably true. Perhaps, Franz, because of that, might have criticized King Krald....”

“That’s not possible. He couldn't possibly do that. He can't do that... He...”

“The Queen Mother said Franz’s madness had gone too far and imprisoned him in a steeple in the middle of the Black Forest. Your Highness....”

Samona cried, but Judith could no longer hear her. No, she couldn't hear.

At that time, the guard returned along with the clanking sound. He dragged Samona away, asking for a moment more time, but she could not even shout to the guard to stop.

“Uh, huh... Ugh...”

Judith's back, which was crouching like an animal, trembled horribly. Her fingertips, which have turned black with dust and grime and are cracked and bruised from not being able to withstand the cold wind, scratch the stone floor.

"Ah, ah-!”

A wailing-like scream erupted from her body, which had not even been able to produce her voice properly. Even though blood was gushing from her cracked neck and her hands were a mangled mess as she scratched the floor, Judith didn't stop the act.

“W-what! Hey! Hey! Come up here! I think this girl has finally gone crazy!”

She heard the guard in front of the cage shouting down the stairs. Judith suddenly burst into sobbing laughter, clutching the hand that had been scraping the floor.

It's all over. Her life was truly insignificant.

Being trampled, scolded, and insulted was all she had.

"No...”

The guards who came running to Judith's hysterical screams tried to open the cage door but stopped moving all at once.

When they looked up at Judith, their eyes showed fear unlike before. The sight of the eyes, which had already lost their sight, shining brightly amidst the animal-like hair whose original color was indistinguishable, created an eerie strangeness.

"Never....”

Judith's lips, which were dried and covered in blood, were slightly tender.

“I can never forgive you. No matter what I become, no matter what happens... I will never forgive you!”

“Now, wait! You bastard, open this door quickly! If this girl dies, we will all give it to the Queen...!”

Suddenly, there was a sound of something breaking.

At the same time, Judith's small body collapsed, a handful of blood pouring out of her lips.

***

Judith, who had been frowning at the rough texture on her cheek, opened her eyes. At the same time, a bright light flooded her vision like a waterfall.

How?

Judith looked around with a mesmerized expression. Everything was clearly visible. Although his own eyes had long ago become as blind as a bat's and she could no longer distinguish between day and night, she could now clearly see every thing in front of her.

It was an unfamiliar place. No, it is not an unfamiliar place. Judith quickly realized where she was.

That was her room. When she was still the Princess of the Kingdom of Tien, it was the same room where she slept and woke up every day from the time she was a child until she was seventeen.

"Dream...?”

Judith mumbled quietly, stuck her tongue out of her lips, and touched it with her hand. The tip of her tongue was intact without a single wound. Not only that, her lips were smooth, although a little cracked. There was nothing dirty about his hands, face, or hair.

As soon as Judith realized this, she frantically got off the bed and looked for a mirror. There was only one mirror in her room. Even then, she was always covered with a cloth.

Judith mercilessly removed the silk covering the long mirror and looked at her reflection in the smooth glass with disbelief.

An ugly-looking girl was standing in the mirror. She was wearing a chemise with soft lace and embroidery, but her thin body and pale skin made her look pitiful. The extremely long bangs and facial features that seemed to have not yet grown made her look depressed.

“Judith, are you awake?”

Judith, who was standing blankly in front of the mirror, turned her head with an expression as if she had seen a ghost. A maid, who looked cute with her hair pulled up on either side, came in with water and a cloth to wash her face and looked at Judith with a puzzled expression.

“Judith, what’s going on? The expression...”

“Mary Ann?”

Then the maid blinked and burst into laughter.

“Our Princess, it seems like you had a strange dream. Yes, this is Mary Anne. Come this way. I’ll wash your face.”

“Mary Ann, I..."

Judith, who could hardly continue speaking, could not take her eyes off Mary Anne's face for a long time, as it was in her memory. She wanted to take Mary Anne with her when she left the Kingdom of Tien, but she was a person who could not ask for anything m from anyone at that time. So she couldn't take Mary Anne, who was crying, even though she said she would follow her.

“Judith?”

“Mary Ann, you... How old are you now?”

Marianne, who was putting down the silver basin, frowned slightly. Her eyes were full of worry. Mary Anne laid down the wet cloth and walked towards Judith at a rapid pace.

“Judith, are you really okay? Aren’t you feeling unwell?”

"I'm fine. I'm fine. So tell me. Marianne, how old are you now?”

“Judith, too. I'm sixteen years old. I am one year younger than the Princess.”

Mary Ann is sixteen years old.

Then she...

“Judith?”

“How can this be...?”

“Really, why are you doing this? I'm starting to get scared. Are you sure you're okay? Should I call a therapist?”

Mary Anne asked urgently, but Judith did not answer. No, she couldn't answer.

She turned again and looked straight at herself in the mirror. It was only now that she felt vividly that her blurry memories were slowly coming back one by one. She knew that girl in the mirror. A gloomy girl who was ugly, weak, and afraid of everything, often shedding tears.

The moment it was all over, she came back.

As seventeen-year-old Judith Lorebinev.

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