Chapter 2 - Episode 1- The Start of Life (2)

[ Solaria's town square ]

" Lady Goldenshield, thank you for personally visiting us!"

After a not so long ride that feels like an hours with Anna, who was constantly fidgeting and visibly panicking in front of me we finally arrive at the town square of the Solaria. 

Solaria is not as big as the duchies in the empire. Rather it is comparable to a size of a count's land. Although my father and the Goldenshield is new to this peerage system, technically ten years of service after the title was bestowed upon him. The community and the citizen of Solaria has always been dependable to the family. The relationship between the people and the Goldenshield is built upon trust, the business minded people of the family perfectly gained the trust and respect of every people in each of their domain.

That is right, the Goldenshield has many domains not only here in Solaria. This is due to the ancestral lands being passed down in each generations.

And I, as the eldest daughter of the Goldenshield, have my own respectable duty to perform. That is why I am here personally, actively working on charitable events in the town square orphanage and shelter with countless of commoners lining up to get some free check up from our family doctors, donations, rations and of course the feeding program I organized not only to the orphans but to everyone who would like to eat.

If I am to ask the people who witnessed me since I was a child, if what I am doing is normal, none of them would say or think that I would agree to participate and associate myself with these kind of events and people let alone think this is normal sight to them. After all, I did put myself in a tough reputation.

" Hello, young lady." 

I smiled to the young girl who came and approach me while I was resting in one of the benches outside the orphanage. The line of people waiting for their turn is still long but they endure the heat of the afternoon sun and hope to get a little bit from what I brought inside.

" Did you get enough food to eat?" I asked, touching the young girl's pink hair and patting her head softly.

"Yes, my friends are still in the line ." She beamed, scouting over and sitting next to me. " Thank you!" She exclaimed.

This is not the first time I met this girl.

I have met her countless of time, in my other life-she perished every single time.

To be honest, there is no charitable event that my father or any part of the family had scheduled for this month. My purpose of doing this is because I know the future. 

Within two weeks, Solaria will enter its dry season just like every year. But this year is going to be difficult and the drought will last for a month. Many people in Solaria will suffer because of this, the Goldenshield who did not saw this coming did not prepare anything for its people. Therefore, while the Baron's castle has no problem coping with the seasonal drought, the people however suffer a terrible loss as many business collapse and many people perish due to starvation and dehydration.

But this time around, I prepared countless amount of food and water for my people to survive.

I know what it feels like to die, I know what death is. And I don't hope for this people to experience it again.

Just like how I do.

I died.

Not because of the dry season, but because of something else. 

The Giselle that they knew, the spoiled brat who was always sick had died long time ago. She died for many times.

" Tell your friends and the nuns to store more water, alright? This year's dry season will be cruel."

I tried to smile at the young girl, remembering her face hoping she will live longer than what her original fate is.

"Yes, yes." 

Her innocent laugh rings through my ear, reminding me of a memory I am still trying my best to forget. As she run across the street and approach her friends, her laughter and smiled stayed. The life that I once knew, recollected in my mind, she reminded me of the past that I want to completely and painfully erase.

Yet, that life is what I longed for-so how do I even start to forget it?

" My lady, the files has been updated and corrected." Anna reluctantly said as she stands in front of me. In her hand is a piece of paper that filled with names I need.

" Can you call Sir Bentley for me?" 

I took the file from her and examined it reading through each name hoping to find the person I am looking for.

" Yes, my lady."

-Alright, I need to see this person's name on the list.-

" My lady?"

" Hmm."

" I hope you won't mind me asking..."

I looked up Anna who has confusion all over her face. Obviously, there is something that she didn't get. This is not new to me, ever since I exhibited changes in my behaviors and personality, confusion is all written in every face whom I know of.

- Ah, she must be wondering why I need Sir Bentley, when everybody knows me and that knight don't get along.-

" Don't worry, I won't fight with him. I just need him to do som-"

" Lady, ever since you woke up that day you have been acting weird."

Oh.

So someone do have guts to say something in my face.

Anna, although I specifically told the butler I have no need for personal maid she did not hesitate to always volunteer whenever the other maids are too intimidated to work for me whenever I call for one. In my past life, Anna was also one of the maids that was working for me directly. To think that even in this life, even not commanded she still have the instinct to serve me.

How exasperating.

" I don't mean to impose, but that night..."

That night.

I died.

Or at least that's what everyone thought.

.

[ Two months ago, Goldenshield Castle ]

" I apologize, my lord. But the young lady took her last breath."

The gloomy room could not appear gloomier. The darkness in her room seems to mimic the life of which she had left behind. Although the young lady Giselle was not the best mistress and the kindest person around, everyone pitied and understand the child instead of hating her. After all, everyone had already expected this day to come.

She was so ill that everyone expected her death at the age of 18

" Did she reach 18 when she died?" Asked the broken Baron who could not even look at the body on the bed.

Her once luscious black hair, reminded him of how dark death can be. The once red ruby eyes the baron's admired in hers no longer bear the life it once had. To him, the body that is lying on the bed is something he could never fathom to witness. He knows, everybody knows this time will come yet he had never made himself ready for this moment.

The daughter that everyone in the empire could describe as a ruthless and rude lady, curse with incurable disease is just a little girl he could not buy a beautiful life to. For the baron, she was just her daughter who deserves to live-yet that wasn't her fate.

" She died exactly at 12 midnight, my lord."

The voice of the doctor cracked, realizing that the day she left the world was her birthday.

" My child. My poor child."

Having no heart to be in the same room where his dead daughter is, the Baron cried the whole night in his office, wondering if he was the great father that child could ask for, hoping he had provided her a happy life despite how short it was. He deeply aware about how his daughter had acted towards everyone, especially to the servants. She was never the kindest girl around, she was never the sweetest, she was spoiled and demanding, but as her father the Baron could only let her daughter do what she wanted. The baby he once held in his arms, the little girl who gave another purpose to live and love, the daughter who he loves the most, the sister to his younger brothers, the lady of the house, she was everything to the Baron.

" If only I had found a cure to your disease."

" What purpose of this vast wealth that I possess if it can't even buy my daughter's life!"

While everyone in the house grieved the loss of their master, in the darkness of the deceased room laid the body of a once beautiful lady in her bed. No life visible in the corpse, the skin almost grey, no single proof of living, Giselle body's mimicked the darkness of her room.

The sound of the Baron's cries across the hall was silenced by the strong wind that forced the lady's bedroom window open. The curtains harshly flew and swayed against it, as if forcing its way to the peaceful body in the center of the room. The moonlight illuminated through the room, reaching the edge of the bed. And in that moment, a gasp was heard. 

The gasp as if one is struggling to find life. A gasp of someone who just breathe. The gasp of someone who experienced death.

In the center of the room, the bedframe creaked as the body struggled to move and sit. As the moonlight reached her face, she breathed her start of life once again. 

She had returned from death.

.

{ Present Day }

" No one wanted to ask you, my lady, about that day; most of us see it as a miracle, but I couldn't help not ignore the changes within you."

Anna is undoubtedly curious, although there is a huge hint of concern in her voice and eyes, I know she just wanted to know the truth about that day. No one really knew what happened, I couldn't tell anyone not even a soul.

" I find it funny that you are quite scared of me, but won't refrain yourself from asking these kind of question."

When she flinched upon hearing my reply, I couldn't help but laugh. The way she bowed her head low making her tied brunette hair fall to the side of her face. Careful not to meet my eyes when it was just seconds ago where her brown eyes was looking straight to mine. She took a step back, squirming in her feet as she tried to make herself smaller in front of me, grasping herb uniform tight.

" I apologize my lady. I being rude-"

" HAHHAHAHHAHAH." I laughed louder.

" You don't have to apologize Anna, I'm not angry or anything."

" Still, I crossed the-"

"No, its fine. But maybe after this Anna you can just continue to think of what happened that day as a miracle from God."

-Miracle? Yes, miracle my ass.-

I know I'm lying through my front teeth, because none of this is miracle. In fact, I am most certain what happened was a product of a curse, the curse I had been carrying for a long time. I have no explanation of what is going on for I am too have no comprehension of all of these miracles.

Who even came up with such lame excuse of a miracle when I am absolutely suffering?

I lived through these nonsense for so long, and I could vouch that none of this can even equivalent to what a blessing of miracle is. This life is a curse!

My mouth is glued shut, no one, not even a soul knows what is really going on. I could never tell anyone of this curse I have in my hands, I can't tell anyone that that night was not the first time I came back to life.

No one should know that this is my 28th life.