Prodigy at Heart

Beautiful, pretty, and majestic. That's all Rin could describe her if someone were to ask him about his impression.

Her silver eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. Her royal blue hair was like streams of the vast and pristine ocean waving graciously and giving her a stunning outlook. Her clothes exuded an imperial complexion, elegant in both decorative nature and physical appearance. She was like a saint staring at him from the sky, giving him the impression of a positive and pure character.

The said girl slowly walked down the path to approach Rin. She gently raised her gorgeous dress and hopped down to the gravel beneath.

"Milady! What are you doing? Why are you getting closer to that scum? He's dirty and unrecognizable. You shouldn't go any further" With a slight grunt, her maid followed her steps as she persuaded her not to come any closer.

"That's rude, Bella. I never said that you could voice your opinion, let alone insult him. I approached him because I want to meet him." The girl admonished the maid.

"I-I apologize..." She meekly bowed her head but Rin could still feel her sharp gaze directed toward him.

"Good day, I'm sorry if she offended you. I promise that I'll see her punishment later." She bowed to him as well.

"..." Rin stood in a daze, still comprehending the scene that was unfolding in front of him. He didn't really care about the maid's rude comments to him or the fact that she blatantly just called him a scum. He was worried because he'd done something really bad. And that is exposing his ability to wield Divine Arts in front of a noble.

"Ah! My name is Eina. Eina Bluesy, nice you meet you..." She extended her hand, waiting for Rin to shake it.

She seemed to be a well-mannered noble but Rin couldn't exactly discern if she was doing this to catch him off guard or if she was just actually trying to be nice.

The girl noticed that he was shaking. A bit scared, to be honest. Instead of returning to the introduction, Rin took a step back, his expression was a mixture of anguish and fear.

"Hmm?" Eina titled her head. "What's wrong?" She was worried that she might've done something wrong with her execution of a proper introduction but Rin's next words made her blink in surprise.

"Are you going to kill me?"

It was an innocent question. A question that is deeply rooted in the fear that he'd developed after hearing his mother's explanation. A question that Eina couldn't actually answer despite her being a genius.

"Kill you? No, I... I just want to meet you..." She tried to pursue him by walking forward but Rin stepped back once again, prompting her to abruptly stop. She noticed his confused expression. She didn't expect that a simple meeting would end up causing anxiety. Is it because she was a noble and Rin is a Damniant?

Realizing the gap between them, she turned to her maid and tried to ask for some help but she respectively dismissed her. Eina was hoping that she could learn a bit more about the lives of the Damniant but to think that her stature could affect them in a bad way really punctured her feelings. That in itself made her wonder if the relationship between the Damniants and an Eliad like her is really bad as most people make it out to be.

She didn't really believe that Damniants are bad guys. She specifically came into the town in order to test that out and this was her first meeting with someone other than her kind though it seems like the approach was too overwhelming for Rin.

"Sorry..." Eina made a sad expression. "Do you hate nobles like me...?"

Would she report Rin to the higher-ups and have him get arrested and executed if he told her that he doesn't hate her? That question pierced his mind the moment she asked that.

It's not like Rin hated the Eliads. He wasn't fond of the general livelihood that they were experiencing right now because of their systematic ruling but there is no personal uprising welling up inside him. He just simply doesn't want to get in trouble.

"I'm told that I shouldn't interact with an Eliad or talk to them. But... No, I don't hate you or anything. I'm sorry if I made it look that way..." He apologized.

Eina heaved a sigh of relief. If it is because of her manners, she would've left him alone after an apology but it looks like Rin didn't specifically want her to stay away. He's just aggravated.

"In that case..." Eina, once again, extended her hand to him. "May I know your name?" She asked with a gentle smile.

"Milady..." Her maid tried to warn her but it was too late. For the Eliads, having the Damniants touch them is actually really disgusting, and would consider throwing away their clothes if it is handled by a commoner. But Eina didn't really care about that. What's wrong with a human being touching another human being's clothes?

Aren't they just the same species living with each other in one world? What's so bad about them?

Eina was entirely aware of the discriminatory remarks born from the Ancient Era's text but she believed that this generation has changed. The Eliads, in general, are the ones that should be reprimanded because of their inhumane actions but it is not like she had the power to turn the tide.

At the very least, the only thing that she could do right now is to make friends with someone like Rin, who was going to be her eye-opener for the rest of the oppressed.

Although he was hesitant, Rin slowly extended his hand as well.

"I'm Rin, Rin Einfried... Nice to meet you, M-Miss Eina..." He introduced himself in a meek and passive manner. It's not like he is educated about the etiquette that he should practice whenever he is meeting a noble or someone that has the same importance as hers. Rin could only exercise the highest respect that he could give in order to clear himself.

Eina took Rin's jittery hand and shook them delightfully. She wasn't the least disgusted at all. Rin could tell that she was pretty genuine in meeting him even though she was a noble though her maid wasn't really enjoying it either.

"Nice to meet you, Rin. I hope we can be friends!" She exclaimed in glee.

Perhaps this meeting was unprecedented? The fate of this world was already sealed but is this part of them? Or is there some kind of factor affecting the linear run of this world?

Or perhaps this will be the ignition to light someone's wrath?

* * *

While the two are talking to each other, Eina's maid returned to her post and saw her father monitoring Eina near the bridge.

"I've returned, Your Grace." She bowed

"Good work. Did something happen down there?" Duke Bluesy asked with a stern face.

"I'm not sure if the boy has fully accepted her introduction but it was a decent attempt. He was scared at first but milady's attitude managed to calm him down..." Bella answered.

The Duke closed his eyes. "That's a relief..."

The trip inside the Town of Fier wasn't conventionally planned as the ministry have forced them to communicate with them for the reason of business. Duke Bluesy knew that they'll become the bridge between those who disseminate useful products from the capital and those who will need them inside Fier.

They're technically abusing the system that they have established in order to prove that the Damniants are under their mercy. Naturally, as a businessman himself, Duke Bluesy wasn't fond of that despicable approach. A shrewd businessman getting the advantages coming from their oppression is beyond disrespectful in terms of being an entrepreneur.

The exploitation that they are recognizing right now is a wicked practice according to him. Simply put, diminishing the Damniant's access to natural needs and then charging them double the price just to get an unfair portion of it is their strategy to maintain the drastic regression in the economy. They're pushing hard to drain each and every Damniant of their wealth just so the Eliads could monopolize it.

To put it in a simple way, it is like collecting the people's taxes but they limit the potential properties or refined values that it would create just so they could have most of it.

In other words, Corruption.

It is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain.

Abuse of power in a land like this would typically be severe, especially for those who are financially vulnerable like the Damniants. Moreover, the damage from corruption is multi-fold and could lead to unflattering approaches of either the ministry itself or diplomats and other visitors outside the Kingdom. This will also dampen economic growth and development but the Eliads don't really have any problem with it as long as they are drowning in wealth.

"But, is it really okay?" Bella asked.

"What is...?"

"Milady interacting with that Damniant boy. I am still worried that he might do something, Your Grace. I just can't leave them alone like that. I don't want really want her to get involved..." Duke Bluesy narrowed his eyes upon hearing her reason.

Even maids and butlers who are mostly beneath the Eliads hate the Damniant that much and if you ask for their reasons for hating them, they will respond empty. That loathing instance is already a piece of natural evidence that the influence of the Eliads is blinding their own personal opinion and perspective about the Damniants.

They say that if a rumor starts, it will eventually spread. And once it spreads, there would be a high percentage of people believing that the rumor is true, thus clouding their own vision and initiative to look for the truth themselves. Once they hear something from that rooted case, they will eventually believe it as well and they will join the bandwagon without realizing it.

"Is there really no other way to make this work without consulting them directly, Your Grace?" Bella inquired with a worried expression.

Duke Bluesy heaved a sigh and turned to her. "Let me ask you something, Bella. Do you know why the Damniants are oppressed?"

Bella was perplexed by the sudden question but she answered it with respect. "Yes, the Damniants are oppressed because they are the Descendants of the Cursed King who almost destroyed the world in ancient times. They are offsprings of that malevolent king who revered the False God."

There are no flaws in her reasoning and explanation. The answer that she said is actually the direct historical point that most people have learned in the current education program. A mere representation of the history and the scenery that unfolded centuries ago. It is the simplified answer that could give even without diving into the writings or the details themselves.

"Good. Very good. Keep that in mind. Now here's the next question: Was it them that destroyed the Old World back then?" He asked in a serious tone.

"Huh? Umm... I think so?" Bella wasn't so sure at all.

"You think so? What's your basis for that?"

"I mean if they are the Descendants of the Cursed King... Doesn't that mean that they are bad in general?"

"Logically speaking, then yes. But I'm not asking for an assumption, I'm asking if they are the ones who plunged the world into hell?" The Duke pressured her even further.

"..." She couldn't answer.

The Duke was already aware of it since he studied history as well. He knows all information regarding the cataclysm in the Ancient Era. And even though he knows it that well, there are no clear records or answers to his question to Bella. That's why it is impossible to answer it.

"Let me rephrase my question..." Sensing the awkwardness, Duke Bluesy cleared his throat and turned around. "Do you know any current crimes that had anything to do with the Damniants?"

"No, there's nothing that I have come across..." Bella answered.

"Then, did the Damniants do something bad to you or your family?"

"No..."

"Did they kill your peers, friends, or loves ones?"

"No..."

"Have they offended you at some point in your life?"

"N-No, they couldn't possibly..." She made a confused expression.

"Then why do you loath them?"

"—!" It was then she realized the fallacy of her own interpretation and perspective.

"We don't know if it is clear or true that the Damniants have caused the calamity back in the day. It is highly possible that only the Cursed King did the deed and the people under him are just victims of his tyranny which led them to this current situation. This stagnant situation was influenced by the old times. And it is by no means a joke that many people are dying because of this defective ruling." He explained.

Apart from that, Bella didn't really experience anything bad from the Damniants. She didn't know what happened in the past. She wasn't there. Her ancestors didn't specifically mention that they hate the Damniants either. She didn't experience endless suffering and she is definitely not a victim of the past.

"The Damniants didn't do anything to you. There were no crimes involving them either. And right now, the Descendants of the Cursed King are living peacefully and quietly in this rundown place despite getting backlash from the nobles. So let me ask you this again, Bella. Why do you loathe them?"

"..." Bella gazed to where Rin and Eina are and saw that the two of them are enjoying the lake and playing with each other with magic.

If she were to cancel out any misinterpretation that she thought it was right the whole time, this scenery would have been different from her point of view. Eina and Rin would've been just normal kids playing and enjoying their youth. No discrimination, no unjust treatment, no dirty upbringing, and no poverty.

Just the two of them relaxing near the lake and enjoying peace.

"Do you understand what I'm trying to imply to you, Bella?" Duke Bluesy asked.

"Yes, I sincerely apologize..."

"You can tell that to the boy that you insulted earlier." He then watched Rin and Eina. "You cannot change the past. But that doesn't mean that you can't change the future either. We have the choice of which path we shall take in the present time, and use that as a springboard to get to a better outcome."

"But... If that's how it's been, why do the other nobles think they're bad? Why don't we express this ideology as well and stop this oppression once and for all?" A good question, indeed.

It would be better if the rest of the world knows that the Damniants are just innocent victims that surged from the Cursed King's wicked deeds. However...

"We can't do that..."

"Huh?!"

"At least for now. We cannot do that just yet..." He closed his eyes.

"Why is that?"

"The Eliads have the Church to back up their claims. And the latter believe in the same principles as well. What do you think will happen if we caused an unnecessary commotion in this country by spreading words that they aren't bad as most people would think?"

"They will mostly think that we reside to the Damniants... Ah—!"

Duke Bluesy nodded. "That's right. It wouldn't be that much different from the Ancient Era..."

"..."

"Those who take sides to the Damniants, and those who take sides to the Eliads. A confrontation, be it aggressive or harsh, is imminent..."

If they were to start an uprising... The whole world may yet again, become a hellish battleground.