Chapter 653

110 years ago.

In the capital city of the Bringar Duchy, Solar Queen, the streets were vibrantly decorated with colorful flowers and the city was abuzz with excitement.

Songs could be heard from every corner, and the sounds of merry drunkenness filled the air from early in the day.

The smells of alcohol, cooking food, cosmetics, perfume, and burning bonfires mingled together—Autumn Festival.

The city celebrated one of its few annual festivals with high spirits. Crowds packed the streets, drinking and dancing, reveling in the atmosphere.

In the heart of this jubilant city, at a fountain in the bustling square, a woman ascended the platform set up there. Her appearance drew cheers filled with joy from the citizens filling the square.

"Long live Duchess Bringar!"

"Glory to the Dragon Lady!"

"Long life to the Solar Queen!"

Welcomed by the citizens, the ruler of the Bringar Duchy—Day Bringar—waved her hand.

Her dark skin and tall stature were accentuated by her intricately braided hair that flowed long down her back.

Her form-fitting ceremonial military uniform highlighted her impressive figure, and the blood-red cape tied around her waist reminded everyone of her lineage.

The artistically ornate rapier at her hip announced her as a supreme military commander and distinguished warrior.

Above her head—a crown.

The silver crown, symbolizing the authority of the Bringar Duchy, gleamed brilliantly atop her braided hair.

Day Bringar, beloved by all citizens of the nation as the Dragon Duchess, gave a bright smile and shouted,

"You have waited long, my subjects! This is the Autumn Festival we have all eagerly awaited for a year!"

The crowd erupted in cheers.

Day Bringar winked at them, saying, "I too have waited for this day. Even after experiencing it over a hundred times, every year feels freshly delightful."

At the king's words, the crowd cheered again. Day Bringar dramatically gestured to the side.

"Let's skip the long speeches! Everyone, drink to your heart's content, dance, sing! And..."

Day Bringar grinned broadly.

"Love! Love, my subjects!"

The citizens raised their arms in response.

"We will drink, dance, sing, and love!"

"By the name of Duchess Bringar, I bless this year's festival! Have a wonderful time, everyone!"

With these words, Day Bringar, her cape fluttering, descended from the platform.

With resounding cheers, the official festival began. People dispersed throughout the city, starting to drink, dance, and sing.

...And.

Amid this festive atmosphere, there was a girl who watched the street crowds with cold eyes.

"Sigh..."

Hidden in an alley beside the main road, the girl watched the thronging masses and muttered to herself,

"It's okay, I can do this. I can do this..."

The grimy girl was sweating profusely.

She appeared to be barely ten years old. Her emaciated body was clad in what looked like nothing more than tattered rags due to malnourishment.

She stood out starkly against the lavishly dressed festival-goers.

Her messy black hair framed her large eyes, which scanned the crowd for an easy target.

"...!"

After a while, she spotted a suitable victim.

It was a middle-aged man, heavily drunk since midday.

He was arm in arm with a friend, singing loudly and staggering, with a wallet temptingly sticking out of his back pocket.

"Good..."

Emerging from the alley, the girl naturally stepped onto the main road and quickly positioned herself behind the middle-aged man.

Her thin arms trembled with tension, but her decision was swift, and she hesitated not in her actions.

As the girl stepped out of the alley into a side street, the wallet she had targeted was securely in her possession.

"Pant, pant, pant..."

Her breath came out in gasps, her heart pounding.

The girl watched as the middle-aged man continued singing boisterously down the street and then carefully opened the wallet.

"..."

Her face, initially filled with anticipation, soon fell with disappointment.

Inside the wallet were only a few coins—no valuable items. She shook the wallet a couple of times before letting out a faint sigh.

'But this is something, at least.'

With these coins, she could buy some snacks at the festival stalls.

Just then, a delicate growling sound came from the girl's stomach. Thinking of food, her hunger, exacerbated by days of starvation, reacted first.

Holding her hungry stomach and suffering, the girl staggered forward. She wanted to eat something quickly.

However.

"...!"

As she entered the next alley, the girl stopped abruptly, startled.

A woman covered in tattoos was smoking a cigarette. Noticing the girl, she smirked and gestured with her hand.

"Well, well, congratulations, our little one. You've finally succeeded in your first theft?"

"..."

"Now you're finally pulling your weight. Come here. Let big sister give you a pat."

"..."

"Come here, can't you hear?"

Hesitantly, the girl approached the woman. The woman flicked her cigarette to the ground and stomped it out, then extended her hand toward the girl.

"Give it here."

"...Pardon?"

"Hand it over. Our little sister's first earnings. Let's take a look."

As the girl hesitated, the woman's expression turned fierce.

"Ah, this is starting to upset me. Little one, you know how much I've struggled to raise you, don't you?"

"..."

Then, the girl's mind flashed with memories of the abuse she had endured at the hands of this woman.

Merely because they were both street orphans, she would steal food and often beat her...

This woman was the leader of all the female street orphans in this area. That was the 'big sister' standing before her.

That was why she couldn't refuse. Trembling, the girl pulled out the wallet she had kept hidden and handed it forward.

Thump!

The woman snatched the wallet, looked inside, and let out a sound like 'Tsk.'

"What kind of business starts with being broke? You really are unfortunate. Tsk."

The woman nonchalantly pocketed the wallet.

"Ah...!"

As the girl made a dismayed sound, the woman's eyes flashed menacingly.

"What's this 'ah'? Don't have eyes to see?"

"..."

"You can't even bring in enough for your own street tax, too young to work as a prostitute, and I've taken care of you for years. Right? Shouldn't you be repaying my kindness then? Isn't that right?"

She knew she should agree, but.

For some reason today, those words wouldn't come out of the girl's mouth.

Whether it was the festival's atmosphere, her first successful theft, or the persistent hunger gnawing at her stomach...

For the first time, the girl chose to resist.

"...Can't you give it back?"

"What?"

"I'm... I'm so hungry. I'll steal another wallet and give it to you, but can I have those coins... please?"

What came back was not an answer, but the woman's strong grip.

Snap!

Struck by a slap, the girl collapsed against the alley wall. Dazed, she could only clasp her hands and plead as the woman repeatedly slapped her face.

"Ah, ah, ah..."

After beating the girl until she was satisfied, the woman spat on the ground, panting.

"Raising rotten brats like you is why I live in poverty. It's all because of you!"

"..."

"Don't you pity me? Ruining my life and living like this because of you?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, sister... It's my fault..."

"If you're sorry, then hurry up and go pickpocket some more. It's a festival. Big crowd today. You'll make more in one day than you have in your entire life."

"..."

"And from now on, you bring everything you earn to me. I'll give you your share. Got it?"

"Yes..."

"Then get going!"

The girl hurriedly fled the alley.

"Tsk."

Watching her go, the woman flicked the recently acquired coins into the air and glared toward the central square.

"Drink, dance, sing, love... Such bullshit."

Mulling over the ruler's words, the woman scoffed.

"All four are stories we have no part in."

***

The girl, emerging from the alley, plunged once more into thievery.

She boldly picked out an old, portly, and amputee veteran, and attempted to pickpocket him.

Had she even half the strength she usually possessed, she would have succeeded without a hitch.

But she was too famished, and the beating she had taken in the alley left her body uncooperative.

She was caught while pulling the wallet from the pocket, and before she could flee, her hair was seized.

"Aaagh!"

Realizing the situation had gone awry, the girl quickly knelt and began to plead, knowing it was the safer way out.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Please forgive me just this once..."

"Why me?"

But the other was not in a normal state.

The old veteran growled menacingly. Still holding her hair, the girl asked with a trembling voice.

"What?"

"Why me? Why did you try to steal my wallet?"

"Well, it's just that..."

"I looked easy to you, right?"

The veteran roared and swung his hand.

"You thought because I'm like this, I'd be easy, you fucker!"

The girl was beaten to death.

She was battered until her body was covered in blood and bruises.

And in the back alleys of the city hosting the festival, no one paid any attention to a parentless, starving little thief being beaten nearly to death.

The veteran continued his assault until he felt his anger had subsided, then limped away.

The girl, beaten black and blue, lay discarded with the trash in a filthy alley corner.

"..."

She was hungry.

Really, simply, just that.

In a city where even begging required paying others for a spot to do so.

It was a festival. The streets overflowed with abundance and festivity. Food and drink were plentiful. But all of that was a distant story for the girl.

***

The girl regained consciousness as dawn approached.

The festival was over for the day, and the city was cold in the dead of night.

Limping, she got up and staggered towards the street of stalls, hoping to scavenge some leftovers from the shops that had closed for the night.

However.

"Where do you think you're going, you filthy thing?"

"Can't you just go away!"

"Don't spread your disease, go back to the sewer you live in!"

Everywhere she went, the girl was chased away.

Bloodied, her clothes, which were already like scraps, had turned into rags, and rolling in the dirty back alleys had made her smell foul.

"..."

Even during a normal festival, she wouldn't have had to starve.

If she had just pretended to be pitiful, she might have received some food out of pity.

If she hadn't gotten greedy, hadn't tried stealing, she wouldn't have ended up in such a horrible state.

Staggering, the girl suddenly stopped. In the middle of the night, there was a house brightly lit.

As if drawn, she approached and peeked through a slight opening in the curtains at the window.

"Ah..."

She saw the warmth of a cozy family home in contrast to the cold autumn night outside.

Warm air poured from a burning fireplace.

A young couple was elegantly sharing a glass of wine in the kitchen, with a browned turkey dish between them.

The couple's young children, who had been asleep on the sofa with their new toys from the festival beside them, murmured in their sleep and turned over. The parents shared a loving laugh as they looked towards their children.

'How nice.'

The girl watched the scene, her emaciated hand clenched into a fist.

'If only I could have lived like that.'

If only she could have grown up happily in such a nice home.

No, even if it were poor and lacking, if only she had a home to shelter her from the wind and rain.

No, even without a home, if only her parents hadn't abandoned her.

Countless meaningless fantasies flashed before her eyes. The enviable life she could never have continued to flow past her.

And then, the fantasy broke.

Snapped!

The couple, belatedly noticing the girl, approached with cold faces and adjusted the window curtains.

With the curtains drawn, the interior of the home was no longer visible.

"..."

Even from her fantasies, the girl was chased away. She stumbled backward, tripped, and fell.

She no longer had the strength to stand, let alone to continue living.

The girl collapsed on the spot, her consciousness snapping.

In a darkening world, the girl wished.

Rather let this life end here. May I never open my eyes again.

To escape from this hell forever...

***

"Your Grace, it's time to return to the palace."

Day Bringar's loyal adjutant and Dragonblood Knight, Leighton, urged her.

Day Bringar, who had been mingling with the citizens and drinking in the central square, shook her head calmly.

"Don't be so strict, Captain Leighton. It's only once a year! Let me enjoy it a little longer. I'm not even drunk yet."

"Your Grace... If you stop drinking now, we can clear this place. That way, the citizens can also go home and sleep. It's already dawn. The day will break soon."

"Sigh, okay, okay, I get it. Always nagging..."

Finally, after continuous nagging, Day Bringar surrendered and waved her hand grandly.

"That's it for today's drinking! Those who haven't finished their drinks can continue tomorrow!"

The warriors, who had been pushing themselves to the limit to drink with the queen until the end, cheered all at once and then simultaneously collapsed.

They had all been forcing themselves to stay awake just to share this glorious drinking session with the queen.

Leaving the devastated drinking scene behind, Day Bringar left the area with a clean appearance. Following her, Leighton shook his head.

His Dragon Lady was an excellent ruler in all respects, but her excessive love for festivals and enjoying mingling with the citizens was a problem.

Every festival was utterly exhausting for him as an adjutant.

"Shall we have a quiet drink together when we return, Captain Leighton?"

"Please refrain, Your Grace... I'm already exhausted to death..."

"You really do exaggerate... don't you?"

Day Bringar, covering her mouth and chuckling, suddenly spotted a shadow lying on a road shrouded in darkness.

"Captain Leighton. What is that child?"

"Excuse me?"

Leighton looked in that direction too, and soon, he could see it.

The figure of a young girl, lying bloodied and dying.