Side Story. Like a Fairy Tale Character [Complete]
In a space as blank as a sheet of paper, a boy not even three or four years old was crying alone, without a mother.
“Hwaaah!”
The boy, shedding tears of sorrow, repeatedly called out for his mother. Despite his desperate cry for her, the child’s mother was nowhere to be seen.
At that moment, someone spoke to the child. The person speaking to the child without revealing himself was a god from another world.
“Baby, why are you crying?”
“Mom, Mom! Hwaaah!”
The child, unable to speak properly, sobbed and said only, “Mom.”
“Yes. You’re looking for Mom. Should I help you?”
The child quickly stopped crying and nodded at the word “I will help you. ”
“Baby, your mother looks different than before.”
The god showed the child Doana, asleep in bed.
The crying child was the son of “Gyeo-ru,” who had possessed Doana.
The child who died with Gyeo-ru in Korea was unable to ascend to the afterlife, searching for Gyeo-ru's soul that had vanished.
Despite looking different from before, the child recognized Doana as his mother and reached out and struggled to be hugged by Doana.
"Baby. If you don't have a body, you can't go to your mother."
At the god's words that he couldn't go, the child burst into tears once again.
"Huh, hwaaaaang! Mother!"
Perhaps feeling sorry for the child desperately searching for his mother, the god made the child an offer.
"Baby, I can send you back to your mother. But I can't send you back in human form like you are now. That's beyond my power. If you don't mind being a mute animal, I will send you back to your mother."
The child desperately wanted to be by her mother's side. If only she could be by her mother's side, she would have been happy to become a mute animal.
"Baby. When you go to your mother, don't cry anymore and live happily."
With those words, God sent the child's soul to Doana.
The excited child looked around as if exploring his newly born mother.
He wanted to see Doana's face and hold her in his arms, but the edge of the bed felt like a castle wall to the child who was only three or four years old.
The child gave up on being held in Doana's arms and grabbed Doana's ankle, which was sticking out of the bed.
He only grabbed her ankle, not her hand, but the child's face looked incredibly happy.
At that moment, the child's soul began to sparkle.
The child instinctively knew that he would soon be transformed into an animal. Now that he could speak to Doana, he conveyed his true feelings one last time.
"Mom, it's time to go now."
The clumsy words seeped into Doana's dreams like magic.
And then, Gyeo-ru's son soon transformed into a pure white kitten.
When morning came, Doana woke up, and the child cried out desperately to make himself known.
- Meow!
'Mommy, I'm here!'
- Meow!
'Find me. Please recognize me!'
"...A cat?"
As if responding to his pitiful cries, Doana soon found the child.
"Oh my, how cute. How did you get in here?"
- Nayaaaa!
'I came looking for Mommy!'
"Hello."
When Doana lifted him up with a bright smile, the child felt as if he had the world at his fingertips.
He wanted to live according to God's will, not to cry and to be happy, but the child's happiness did not last long.
Unlike the kind Doana had been at first, she was now too scary for him.
However, despite all this, the child always tried to comfort his mother.
The child approached her to comfort her as she repeatedly retched, and in Doana's arms, he acted with all his charm.
- Meow
'Mommy, are you having a hard time? Don't be sick.'
“Ugh! Haa.... They say there’s nothing better than animals when you’re having a hard time. That’s not wrong...”
- Meow.
‘Ahem, is it just me? Lean on me!’
But then, Doana yelled at her son, who had been reincarnated as a cat.
“Yaah!!! What if you bite this?! Do you know how much this costs?”
- Meow. Meow. Meow.
‘Mom, stop, I’m scared. I was wrong.’
Mom...
I just wanted to be with you.
Mom...
I like it when you laugh the most.
Mom...
But... why did you abandon me?
Why.
Why...
Why!!
The son of Gyeo-ru, who had met his second death.
He simply wanted to be by his mother’s side, yet he ended up with a miserable end.
I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!
I hate you, Mom!
You abandoned me again. You abandoned I-jin again!!
I-jin... will never forgive you, Mom.
The venom stained with anger became a curse and seeped into Doana’s stomach.
And, the child’s curse was revealed at the same time as Doana’s giving birth.
Something strange was visible next to his luscious black hair. With pricked cat ears and a pure white tail, the child looked strangely human at first glance.
“Oh, no!!”
This was the moment when the child, who had given birth alone and had never shown anyone until now, was revealed to the world for the first time.
The child cursed by the cat had a tail unlike any other child, and his ears were also extremely pointy.
Doana belatedly wrapped the child in a swaddling blanket, but there were more than a few who witnessed it.
Doana was ultimately branded a witch who had given birth to a devil's child, and her execution was decided.
And soon, Doana's execution day arrived.
"Sob... I... I'm not a witch,"
"She's had a rather promiscuous private life."
People chattered busily as Doana stood on the scaffold.
"She's been punished by heaven. She's committed countless evil deeds, and it's passed down to her child."
"If she's executed... what will happen to the child?"
The idea of an innocent child being singled out by the world wasn't a pleasant thought.
The people looked at each other and shook their heads at the woman's words.
It seemed no one knew what would happen to Doana's child.
Then, a woman who was well-versed in the village's gossip spoke cautiously.
"I heard from rumors... His Majesty the Emperor sent it to the Pope?"
"His Majesty?"
"Yes. Several people said they saw him carrying the child to the temple and back."
"My goodness. Could it be that he was planning to entrust a witch's child to the temple?"
"The child is not at fault."
"But it is a witch's child. She will undoubtedly become a witch too."
The crowd murmured again.
"I heard the child died."
At that moment, a woman wearing deep robes interrupted the conversation.
The small woman spoke again to the crowd.
"They say that he grew up without sunlight, so his health was weak. So they took him to the temple to at least hold a funeral."
As soon as the woman finished speaking, the people nodded in agreement.
The woman slipped through the crowd and moved to a quiet place. The robed woman looked around and then took off her robe. Her pink hair flowed out in abundance.
Rose whistled, "Whew!" to summon a black unicorn. She then climbed atop the unicorn and climbed for a long time.
"Doana committed a great sin, but... the child is innocent."
Rose, upon hearing that Doana was to be executed for giving birth to a cursed child, pleaded with Arteum.
Please spare the innocent child.
Arteum agreed and took Doana's child to the temple.
Rumors spread that he was dead, but in fact, he was alive and well.
Rose decided to wait and see, hoping that the temple might be able to lift the curse on the child with pure white cat ears and a cat tail.
Doana's execution proceeded remarkably quickly.
She was crucified and burned at the stake. The blazing flames took the form of a cat ascending to the sky, as if guiding Doana to the afterlife.
Doana passed away. And at the same time, the curse on the baby born with cat ears and a tail, who was called a monster, was lifted.
When the one who had placed the curse disappeared from this land, the curse on the baby also disappeared.
“Wow.”
“Your Majesty, isn’t he so cute? Just look at his smile.”
Rose and Arteum ran to the temple in one step upon hearing the news that the baby’s curse had been lifted.
Just as the Pope had said, the baby looked normal, unlike before.
Rose gazed with delight at the smiling baby.
Rose and Arteum's steps felt lighter as they left the temple. The two wandered around the quiet temple grounds and sat down under a tree in full bloom.
Rose thought back to the child's face, smiling brightly before her.
"I'm glad the curse was lifted sooner than expected."
The decision to save the child felt incredibly rewarding.
Then, Arteum peeked out in front of Rose.
"When are we going to have a child?"
Rose's eyes rolled at Arteum's question.
It had been almost a year since she married Arteum.
She didn't want to have a child right away. She wanted to enjoy the sweet newlywed life with Arteum, and she wanted to continue growing her nascent business.
"You said we'd have a child two years after we got married, didn't you?"
At Rose's words, Arteum drooped his ears like a dejected puppy and hugged her.
"Two years is too long."
Arteum buried his head in Rose's arms and said sullenly.
"It's only been a year since we got married. Just wait one more year."
"I wish I could have just one daughter who looks like you."
"Is it really okay to have just one daughter?"
Rose looked at Arteum with a suspicious expression.
The surrounding officials were constantly insisting that they must have a son to inherit the throne.
"If I have a daughter who looks like you, I can pass the throne to that child. What's the problem?"
"But from generation to generation, only Princes can inherit the throne."
"Look at the Kingdom of Meder. There, Julius gave up the throne and his younger sister, Julia, became the King. So let's pass the throne to someone regardless of gender."
Julius gave up the throne.
And he was living in a secluded place with Diana.
“By the way, isn’t Princess Diana already past her due date?”
At Rose’s question, Arteum trailed off, his expression blank.
“Well, according to the prophecy, it says she’ll be carrying a generous child, so her due date will be later than others.”
Diana wasn’t pregnant in the first place, so she wouldn’t give birth, but it was not something to be discussed lightly.
“Or at least lie and say you had a miscarriage.”
Arteum clicked his tongue at Julius’s refusal to clean up the mess he’d made. However, there was one thing Arteum didn’t know: that Diana was truly pregnant with Julius’s child. Diana was nine months pregnant and about to give birth.
Since Diana had been so secretive after her pregnancy, Arteum was completely unaware of this fact.
If he heard this news, he might just grab Julius by the scruff of the neck.
Although Diana wasn't Arteum's biological sister, he cherished her like one, and Julius, he couldn't help but trust his close friend.
Arteum followed Rose's collarbone, tracing her neckline and kissing her cheek.
"Don't mention Julius..."
Arteum placed light kisses on Rose's eyes, nose, and lips before continuing.
"Focus on me."
Rose and Arteum's eyes met in midair.
Their intense gazes stared longingly at Rose. A gentle breeze passed between Arteum and Rose.
Hair swayed in the pleasant breeze, and the flower petals blooming above Arteum and Rose fluttered down.
"Wow, flower petals."
Rose smiled brightly like a child and reached up to the sky. Rose frantically caught the falling flower petals. Catching falling flower petals wasn't easy, so she couldn't catch a single one.
Perhaps feeling sorry for Rose, Arteum gently cast a spell on the falling petals, forcing them to fall into Rose's hands.
"Your Majesty! Do you see? I caught this petal!"
Rose, who had the petal in her hand, looked incredibly happy. Her cheeks flushed red, and she spoke to Arteum.
"Your Majesty, did you know that if you catch a falling petal, your wish will come true."
"Wish?"
"Yes."
"Does that mean that any wish you make will come true?"
"Of course."
As soon as Rose finished speaking, Arteum's eyes sparkled. He stood up combatively and began to stretch, waving his arms here and there.
As Rose blinked wide-eyed at Arteum, he quickly picked up the falling petals and piled them up in a heap.
“Your Majesty?”
Rose looked back and forth between the numerous flower petals piled up on Arteum’s hand and his face.
No... Why are you holding it so well?
Arteum thrust the flower petals in front of Rose, who was flustered.
“Aren’t you curious about my wish?”
Rose asked with a bewildered expression at Arteum’s words.
“What is it?”
“My wish is... to have a bright and pretty daughter like you.”
Rose’s serious face was visible behind the bright flower petals. Rose burst out laughing without realizing it.
“Pfft.”
“Why are you laughing?”
Arteum stiffened, his expression genuinely puzzled as to why Rose was laughing.
“No, it’s because you’re too cute.”
“...Me?”
Rose’s face flushed brightly at his words.
Rose grabbed Arteum’s wrist and pulled him closer. At that, the flower petals he had painstakingly gathered scattered in all directions. As Arteum reached out toward the scattered flower petals, Rose grabbed his face with both hands.
"Your Majesty,"
She said, drawing Arteum's face closer to hers and smiling.
"I love you."
A shower of flowers fell between Arteum and Rose, who were facing each other.
Like the protagonists of a fairy tale, the unchanging love of the two fell.
Rose, too.
May everyone be happy.
In a space as blank as a sheet of paper, a boy not even three or four years old was crying alone, without a mother.
“Hwaaah!”
The boy, shedding tears of sorrow, repeatedly called out for his mother. Despite his desperate cry for her, the child’s mother was nowhere to be seen.
At that moment, someone spoke to the child. The person speaking to the child without revealing himself was a god from another world.
“Baby, why are you crying?”
“Mom, Mom! Hwaaah!”
The child, unable to speak properly, sobbed and said only, “Mom.”
“Yes. You’re looking for Mom. Should I help you?”
The child quickly stopped crying and nodded at the word “I will help you. ”
“Baby, your mother looks different than before.”
The god showed the child Doana, asleep in bed.
The crying child was the son of “Gyeo-ru,” who had possessed Doana.
The child who died with Gyeo-ru in Korea was unable to ascend to the afterlife, searching for Gyeo-ru's soul that had vanished.
Despite looking different from before, the child recognized Doana as his mother and reached out and struggled to be hugged by Doana.
"Baby. If you don't have a body, you can't go to your mother."
At the god's words that he couldn't go, the child burst into tears once again.
"Huh, hwaaaaang! Mother!"
Perhaps feeling sorry for the child desperately searching for his mother, the god made the child an offer.
"Baby, I can send you back to your mother. But I can't send you back in human form like you are now. That's beyond my power. If you don't mind being a mute animal, I will send you back to your mother."
The child desperately wanted to be by her mother's side. If only she could be by her mother's side, she would have been happy to become a mute animal.
"Baby. When you go to your mother, don't cry anymore and live happily."
With those words, God sent the child's soul to Doana.
The excited child looked around as if exploring his newly born mother.
He wanted to see Doana's face and hold her in his arms, but the edge of the bed felt like a castle wall to the child who was only three or four years old.
The child gave up on being held in Doana's arms and grabbed Doana's ankle, which was sticking out of the bed.
He only grabbed her ankle, not her hand, but the child's face looked incredibly happy.
At that moment, the child's soul began to sparkle.
The child instinctively knew that he would soon be transformed into an animal. Now that he could speak to Doana, he conveyed his true feelings one last time.
"Mom, it's time to go now."
The clumsy words seeped into Doana's dreams like magic.
And then, Gyeo-ru's son soon transformed into a pure white kitten.
When morning came, Doana woke up, and the child cried out desperately to make himself known.
- Meow!
'Mommy, I'm here!'
- Meow!
'Find me. Please recognize me!'
"...A cat?"
As if responding to his pitiful cries, Doana soon found the child.
"Oh my, how cute. How did you get in here?"
- Nayaaaa!
'I came looking for Mommy!'
"Hello."
When Doana lifted him up with a bright smile, the child felt as if he had the world at his fingertips.
He wanted to live according to God's will, not to cry and to be happy, but the child's happiness did not last long.
Unlike the kind Doana had been at first, she was now too scary for him.
However, despite all this, the child always tried to comfort his mother.
The child approached her to comfort her as she repeatedly retched, and in Doana's arms, he acted with all his charm.
- Meow
'Mommy, are you having a hard time? Don't be sick.'
“Ugh! Haa.... They say there’s nothing better than animals when you’re having a hard time. That’s not wrong...”
- Meow.
‘Ahem, is it just me? Lean on me!’
But then, Doana yelled at her son, who had been reincarnated as a cat.
“Yaah!!! What if you bite this?! Do you know how much this costs?”
- Meow. Meow. Meow.
‘Mom, stop, I’m scared. I was wrong.’
Mom...
I just wanted to be with you.
Mom...
I like it when you laugh the most.
Mom...
But... why did you abandon me?
Why.
Why...
Why!!
The son of Gyeo-ru, who had met his second death.
He simply wanted to be by his mother’s side, yet he ended up with a miserable end.
I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!
I hate you, Mom!
You abandoned me again. You abandoned I-jin again!!
I-jin... will never forgive you, Mom.
The venom stained with anger became a curse and seeped into Doana’s stomach.
And, the child’s curse was revealed at the same time as Doana’s giving birth.
***
Something strange was visible next to his luscious black hair. With pricked cat ears and a pure white tail, the child looked strangely human at first glance.
“Oh, no!!”
This was the moment when the child, who had given birth alone and had never shown anyone until now, was revealed to the world for the first time.
The child cursed by the cat had a tail unlike any other child, and his ears were also extremely pointy.
Doana belatedly wrapped the child in a swaddling blanket, but there were more than a few who witnessed it.
Doana was ultimately branded a witch who had given birth to a devil's child, and her execution was decided.
And soon, Doana's execution day arrived.
"Sob... I... I'm not a witch,"
She pleaded tearfully, but not a single person pitied Doana.
"You said she gave birth to a monster?"
"Is it Count Wence's child?"
"No. According to the previous Countess, she's not even of the Count Wence family's bloodline?"
"You said she gave birth to a monster?"
"Is it Count Wence's child?"
"No. According to the previous Countess, she's not even of the Count Wence family's bloodline?"
"She's had a rather promiscuous private life."
People chattered busily as Doana stood on the scaffold.
"She's been punished by heaven. She's committed countless evil deeds, and it's passed down to her child."
"If she's executed... what will happen to the child?"
The idea of an innocent child being singled out by the world wasn't a pleasant thought.
The people looked at each other and shook their heads at the woman's words.
It seemed no one knew what would happen to Doana's child.
Then, a woman who was well-versed in the village's gossip spoke cautiously.
"I heard from rumors... His Majesty the Emperor sent it to the Pope?"
"His Majesty?"
"Yes. Several people said they saw him carrying the child to the temple and back."
"My goodness. Could it be that he was planning to entrust a witch's child to the temple?"
"The child is not at fault."
"But it is a witch's child. She will undoubtedly become a witch too."
The crowd murmured again.
"I heard the child died."
At that moment, a woman wearing deep robes interrupted the conversation.
The small woman spoke again to the crowd.
"They say that he grew up without sunlight, so his health was weak. So they took him to the temple to at least hold a funeral."
As soon as the woman finished speaking, the people nodded in agreement.
The woman slipped through the crowd and moved to a quiet place. The robed woman looked around and then took off her robe. Her pink hair flowed out in abundance.
Rose whistled, "Whew!" to summon a black unicorn. She then climbed atop the unicorn and climbed for a long time.
"Doana committed a great sin, but... the child is innocent."
Rose, upon hearing that Doana was to be executed for giving birth to a cursed child, pleaded with Arteum.
Please spare the innocent child.
Arteum agreed and took Doana's child to the temple.
Rumors spread that he was dead, but in fact, he was alive and well.
Rose decided to wait and see, hoping that the temple might be able to lift the curse on the child with pure white cat ears and a cat tail.
Doana's execution proceeded remarkably quickly.
She was crucified and burned at the stake. The blazing flames took the form of a cat ascending to the sky, as if guiding Doana to the afterlife.
Doana passed away. And at the same time, the curse on the baby born with cat ears and a tail, who was called a monster, was lifted.
When the one who had placed the curse disappeared from this land, the curse on the baby also disappeared.
***
“Wow.”
“Your Majesty, isn’t he so cute? Just look at his smile.”
Rose and Arteum ran to the temple in one step upon hearing the news that the baby’s curse had been lifted.
Just as the Pope had said, the baby looked normal, unlike before.
Rose gazed with delight at the smiling baby.
Rose and Arteum's steps felt lighter as they left the temple. The two wandered around the quiet temple grounds and sat down under a tree in full bloom.
Rose thought back to the child's face, smiling brightly before her.
"I'm glad the curse was lifted sooner than expected."
The decision to save the child felt incredibly rewarding.
Then, Arteum peeked out in front of Rose.
"When are we going to have a child?"
Rose's eyes rolled at Arteum's question.
It had been almost a year since she married Arteum.
She didn't want to have a child right away. She wanted to enjoy the sweet newlywed life with Arteum, and she wanted to continue growing her nascent business.
"You said we'd have a child two years after we got married, didn't you?"
At Rose's words, Arteum drooped his ears like a dejected puppy and hugged her.
"Two years is too long."
Arteum buried his head in Rose's arms and said sullenly.
"It's only been a year since we got married. Just wait one more year."
"I wish I could have just one daughter who looks like you."
"Is it really okay to have just one daughter?"
Rose looked at Arteum with a suspicious expression.
The surrounding officials were constantly insisting that they must have a son to inherit the throne.
"If I have a daughter who looks like you, I can pass the throne to that child. What's the problem?"
"But from generation to generation, only Princes can inherit the throne."
"Look at the Kingdom of Meder. There, Julius gave up the throne and his younger sister, Julia, became the King. So let's pass the throne to someone regardless of gender."
Julius gave up the throne.
And he was living in a secluded place with Diana.
“By the way, isn’t Princess Diana already past her due date?”
At Rose’s question, Arteum trailed off, his expression blank.
“Well, according to the prophecy, it says she’ll be carrying a generous child, so her due date will be later than others.”
Diana wasn’t pregnant in the first place, so she wouldn’t give birth, but it was not something to be discussed lightly.
“Or at least lie and say you had a miscarriage.”
Arteum clicked his tongue at Julius’s refusal to clean up the mess he’d made. However, there was one thing Arteum didn’t know: that Diana was truly pregnant with Julius’s child. Diana was nine months pregnant and about to give birth.
Since Diana had been so secretive after her pregnancy, Arteum was completely unaware of this fact.
If he heard this news, he might just grab Julius by the scruff of the neck.
Although Diana wasn't Arteum's biological sister, he cherished her like one, and Julius, he couldn't help but trust his close friend.
Arteum followed Rose's collarbone, tracing her neckline and kissing her cheek.
"Don't mention Julius..."
Arteum placed light kisses on Rose's eyes, nose, and lips before continuing.
"Focus on me."
Rose and Arteum's eyes met in midair.
Their intense gazes stared longingly at Rose. A gentle breeze passed between Arteum and Rose.
Hair swayed in the pleasant breeze, and the flower petals blooming above Arteum and Rose fluttered down.
"Wow, flower petals."
Rose smiled brightly like a child and reached up to the sky. Rose frantically caught the falling flower petals. Catching falling flower petals wasn't easy, so she couldn't catch a single one.
Perhaps feeling sorry for Rose, Arteum gently cast a spell on the falling petals, forcing them to fall into Rose's hands.
"Your Majesty! Do you see? I caught this petal!"
Rose, who had the petal in her hand, looked incredibly happy. Her cheeks flushed red, and she spoke to Arteum.
"Your Majesty, did you know that if you catch a falling petal, your wish will come true."
"Wish?"
"Yes."
"Does that mean that any wish you make will come true?"
"Of course."
As soon as Rose finished speaking, Arteum's eyes sparkled. He stood up combatively and began to stretch, waving his arms here and there.
As Rose blinked wide-eyed at Arteum, he quickly picked up the falling petals and piled them up in a heap.
“Your Majesty?”
Rose looked back and forth between the numerous flower petals piled up on Arteum’s hand and his face.
No... Why are you holding it so well?
Arteum thrust the flower petals in front of Rose, who was flustered.
“Aren’t you curious about my wish?”
Rose asked with a bewildered expression at Arteum’s words.
“What is it?”
“My wish is... to have a bright and pretty daughter like you.”
Rose’s serious face was visible behind the bright flower petals. Rose burst out laughing without realizing it.
“Pfft.”
“Why are you laughing?”
Arteum stiffened, his expression genuinely puzzled as to why Rose was laughing.
“No, it’s because you’re too cute.”
“...Me?”
Rose’s face flushed brightly at his words.
Rose grabbed Arteum’s wrist and pulled him closer. At that, the flower petals he had painstakingly gathered scattered in all directions. As Arteum reached out toward the scattered flower petals, Rose grabbed his face with both hands.
"Your Majesty,"
She said, drawing Arteum's face closer to hers and smiling.
"I love you."
A shower of flowers fell between Arteum and Rose, who were facing each other.
Like the protagonists of a fairy tale, the unchanging love of the two fell.
Rose, too.
May everyone be happy.
<The Husband Stolen Twice Complete>
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