She quickly realized that the child in front of her was Winter Blooming. She thought he was about seven years old. His handsome features were already evident, but he was still a child.
'Cute.'
As Violet watched, thinking like that, the boy started to look at her, periodically putting firewood in the furnace and glancing at her. By then, the boy was gradually giving up hope that his mother would come looking for him.
The boy, who was still loading firewood, asked.
"What are you looking at like that?"
"Huh? Oh, sorry. I was rude."
The boy shook his head as Violet spoke affectionately.
"No, it's not like that. You just saw something."
"I was looking at the fire."
Violet thought she was seeing some kind of hallucination after entering the Fire Temple. The boy who was constantly adding firewood said.
"Go away."
"Oh, I bothered you."
Violet finally came to her senses and turned around. At that moment, the boy looked back at Violet, worried, and said.
"Can you keep what you saw a secret?"
"Why?"
"There are people who don't like it when foreigners work in restaurants. They say it's dirty."
"..."
Violet thought for a moment and then answered quietly.
"They are really bad people."
"I don't know."
"I'm sorry for bothering you. I'll never tell anyone."
Violet said that and started walking away. As she was walking away, a large man came from somewhere and immediately grabbed the boy by the collar and lifted him up.
"This little rat! You're already been stealing food again!"
Then the hanging boy shouted.
"Oh, that's because you didn't give me food! I'm hungry!"
"It's because you eat so much! If we try to handle your appetite, the restaurant will go under, you son of a thief."
Being larger than his peers and growing at a rapid rate, the boy felt hungry most of the day. However, even though he worked all day, he was not paid and was not given enough food to fill his stomach, so he had no choice but to go into restaurants and steal ingredients.
The restaurant owner continued to curse, and Violet quickly realized that much of Winter's speech sounded like the restaurant owner's.
The restaurant owner picked up Winter and threw him, then as soon as the boy stood up, he slapped him in the face, knocking him down again, and started kicking him without hesitation.
Violet ran away, frantically.
"Stop it! What the hell are you doing!"
Then the restaurant owner stopped and looked back at Violet. For a moment, he was speechless at the sight of her beautiful features, but then he cleared his throat and said.
"This little rat... no, doesn't that little kid keep stealing food?"
"How can you beat a child like this?"
"No, Miss. If we leave him like this, that dirty foreign kid will keep coming in and out of the kitchen. You don't want to eat in a restaurant like that, Miss."
"I have no intention of eating at a restaurant run by someone who beats children."
"Oh, really..."
When the man showed his displeasure, Violet quickly suppressed her anger. If she were to get angry here, it would just come back to the child. Finally, she swallowed her pride and spoke softly.
"I don't know how much he's stolen, but please stop today since I'm watching you. Please."
"... Since the beautiful lady said so, I will do so. That damn thing is lucky."
The restaurant owner grumbled and glared at Winter, telling her not to tell anyone Winter worked there before leaving. Violet hurried over and asked Winter, waking him up.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt badly?"
When she asked, the boy frowned and answered.
"I told you to go away."
"I'll just look at the wounds and go."
"If you feel sorry for someone, give them money. If you feel sorry for someone, you feel superior. If you make them feel that way, give them money."
Violet hurriedly searched for her purse, but she had nothing in it. Even the clothes she was wearing were of no value, considering their practicality. She felt around her hair, but Jen was upset that another maid touched her hair, she had left it long to keep out the cold, so there was nothing there.
She took off the scarf she was wearing and handed it over to Winter.
"Would you even use this?"
"You don't even carry any money?"
"This dress doesn't have any pockets."
"I bet noblewomen get annoyed too. Even my crappy clothes have pockets."
She knew that Winter was always complaining that her clothes didn't have pockets. Violet laughed, thinking that even though this Winter was young, they were both equally dissatisfied and wrapped her scarf around the boy's neck.
"You look very smart."
"Why are you lying?"
"Really. You look strong."
"That's true."
"Soon... you'll be bigger than me."
Violet spoke with a pitiful expression as she wiped the wounds on the boy's face clean with both hands. Then the boy, still annoyed, spoke.
"If I push a noble woman, I get the death penalty?"
"Not to that extent."
"I have to work, but it's annoying."
"Why are you getting so annoyed when I'm worrying about you?"
Violet scolded him, but her expression was filled with affection. Still, he looked uncomfortable, so she stood up, and the boy's eyes widened and he quickly grabbed the hem of her skirt.
"Why?"
"Huh?"
“Ah.”
Winter quickly took her hand away. Then he gripped the scarf tightly in his hand and sat down in front of the stove again, starting to put in firewood. And little by little Violet's vision became blurry. She knew that this illusion was slowly fading away, so she spoke to the boy.
"Take care. Don't get caught stealing next time."
At her words, the boy looked back at Violet. He seemed to have something to say, then quickly turned his head away and focused on the firewood again.
"Don't worry about it."
Violet was looking at Winter, trying to make the illusion of the boy answering her so consistently disappear.
She vaguely thought that perhaps she was having these visions because she wanted to be by his side when he was young.
Before Violet's vision completely darkened. Winter's eyes seemed to have caught her first glimpse. Winter glanced at Violet again, then ran over to where she was in surprise and looked around.
Violet reached out again at the sight, but couldn't catch it. The boy returned to the stove and sat down, grumbling.
"What the heck, now it's really on fire."
Violet belatedly realized that the boy had been beaten so badly and was still sitting upright, putting in firewood, because he had been lonely and didn't know how to ask someone to stay with him.
When she found out, she almost cried.
***
When the illusion disappeared from Violet's eyes, standing in front of her was Una, the mixed-race child who had come to Alika with her.
"How did you get in here? Oh... Is this kid an illusion too?"
As she was talking to herself, Una opened her mouth.
"Uncle Winter came to Alika because the Princess was sick, and the Princess came here because of the baby?"
Violet smiled at Una's words.
"Yeah. I guess that's the biggest reason for each of us."
Then Una smiled bashfully and grabbed Violet's hand tightly
"Just as the Princess was sick for Uncle Winter, the Princess's son wants to be sick for the Princess."
"What... what do you mean?"
Violet, who didn't understand at first, froze with a pale face and didn't know what to do, but Una continued speaking.
"Originally, the Kanik clan was a people with the power to take away the pain of others. Now, they have become people who inflict pain."
"What a sad thing."
"But this time, the people you saved will take your pain away. Then, they will return to the Princess."
"Now, wait a minute. You guys are still kids."
"It's okay. A lot of people are sharing it. The baby is very small."
"Even if I'm sick, I should be the one who suffers. A child shouldn't take on the responsibility of an adult."
"The Princess and Uncle Winter also grew up taking on the responsibilities of adults. It was the Princess's choice to save the Kanik people and make them pray to the fire God for the Princess's well-being. Now, the Princess and the baby who will come to find you will be healthy."
Violet, who was watching Una laugh bashfully, tried to laugh along and said.
"Is this all an illusion?"
"You could look at it that way. Ah. Now, let's go get Uncle Winter."
"Should I pick you up?"
"Yes. He's in a hellish place right now. I'll tell you about the God of Fire on the way."
Una grabbed Violet's hand tightly and dragged her somewhere. Violet followed the child, barely able to contain her confusion and fear.
***
Winter was still standing in his wife's room. He glanced at his watch for a moment, then snapped at the doctor, Rickman.
"Why can't she wake up yet?"
"She... really passed away. There's no way to..."
Winter snorted at those words.
"Don't be ridiculous. She was the woman who got mad at me a few days ago and told me not to go to the water supply. Yeah, well. She wasn't very pale, but she wasn't someone who would die suddenly like this."
"She took her own life."
"What nonsense is that!"
Winter shouted and grabbed Rickman by the collar.
"If you're a doctor, you should be doing your job as a doctor! What kind of doctor are you if you can't even wake up my wife and do something like that?"
Unable to contain his anger, he threw Rickman against the wall, took a folding knife out of his pocket, unfolded it, and held it to his throat.
"Wake her up quickly."
"Hey, don't do that! Didn't I tell you that I can't do it!"
"Do something! Do something to wake her up! It's ridiculous for a person to sleep this long! Just because she was walking around barefoot..."
"It's not like being a day late will make a big difference. Just this once..."
The moment Winter remembered his wife's plea, he felt a sharp pain in his chest and sat down. It felt like his heart was being torn apart. It felt like salt was being stuck in every corner of his body.
He sat there in that state, while his surroundings moved rapidly. When he came to his senses again, he was moving his wife to the crematorium.
Unlike other countries around them, cremation was common in Rockround. So, every large family like the Blooming family had a crematorium. They took great pride in sending off their dead within the family.
Winter still couldn't accept his wife's death, but with the encouragement of those around him, he dressed up in a black suit and wore white gloves, which he usually didn't bother to wear.
And he was standing in the dressing room, staring blankly at his wife being made up.
Hayel carefully handed over the documents.
"Sir, the Big Lady said she would prepare the Little Lady's funeral herself."
"I will do it."
"Wouldn't that be better?"
"Oh. I should do it. I killed her."
"CEO..."
"Damn, that Princess was barefoot."
Winter, who had been saying that, burst into laughter again. When the laughter was heard from the dressing room, the people around started to murmur.
Winter continued, looking at the burning fire.
"You know what? The God of the Gentiles is in the fire."
"Huh? Oh, I heard it from Eglin."
"Yes. God. That God."
Winter muttered.
"I wish the God who is useless was there today."
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