Chapter 1: The Witch [1]
Chapter 1: The Witch [1]
"Have you heard about that woman?" the woman dressed in tattered, dirty clothes asked, her hands immersed in the river as she vigorously scrubbed the soiled garments.
"That lady?"
"Do you mean the witch?" inquired another woman, joining the conversation. She, too, had come to the river for the same purpose.
Neither of them appeared to be from affluent backgrounds, and their financial circumstances hinted at a constant struggle for sustenance.
"Yes," replied the first woman, a somber tone in her voice. "Have you heard about what happened yesterday?"
"About her death, right?" The second woman nodded, her expression solemn. "Yes, I've heard it from Keli."
"I must confess," the first woman said with a sigh of relief, dipping the cloth into the flowing river water in an attempt to wash away the dirt. "I can't help but feel relieved about her death."
The second woman paused for a moment, her gaze fixed on the flowing currents. "Indeed," she responded, her tone carrying a sense of conviction. "His royal highness did the right thing by executing her."
The first woman, her voice brimming with anger, proclaimed, "If not for him, I would have personally twisted her neck and killed her!" She demonstrated her imagined act with brute force on the cloth, mimicking the princess's neck.
Near them stood yet another lady, her presence seemingly innocent amidst the charged atmosphere. She had arrived in town only recently, married off to a local farmer. Though her status appeared higher than the other two, circumstances had brought her to the river's edge, engaging in the shared task of washing clothes.
Unaware of the ongoing gossip, the foreign woman mustered her courage to approach the two locals. "Um, what is this about the witch?" she inquired, hoping to join their conversation.
Startled by the sudden voice behind her, the first woman exclaimed, "Oh my, Ms. Hos, you scared me!" A shiver ran down her spine, betraying the lingering fear associated with the mysterious figure they had been discussing.
"Apologies."
"I just wanted to know about the witch..." the foreign woman said, bowing her head twice as a gesture of apology.
The second woman, seated beside the first, observed the foreign lady intently. Her skin bore a pristine, silky white complexion, untouched by the stains of dirt that marked their own hands.
Observing the contrast, the first woman couldn't help but remark, "Ms. Hos, you must be well-fed to have such a fine body. I wonder if you've faced any difficulties in affording a newspaper."
Her words carried an underlying intention to diminish Ms. Hos's perceived status in their encounter.
"I... I'm sorry, but I'm not sure how to answer that," the foreign woman replied hesitantly. "I'm not fluent in the language of this Empire. I can only speak, not read."
She scratched the back of her head, appearing vulnerable, as if she could be easily singled out - an easy target.
With her hesitation dissipated, the first woman resumed the conversation, seizing the opportunity to showcase her knowledge.
"You see, we refer to her highness, the first princess, as the witch."
As soon as the words left her lips, the foreigner's eyes twitched, transforming her once gentle gaze into an intense, fiery stare that could be likened to a gaze from hell.
Anger ignited in her eyes as her idol was mocked.
"How—" she began, but abruptly cut herself off, unable to contain her fury.
"How dare you call her that!?" She rose abruptly, her clenched fist ready to strike at any moment.
"Eh?" Both ladies flinched in surprise, perplexed by her vehement reaction.
"The land I come from," she continued with fervor, her voice filled with conviction, "she is revered as an idol!"
"Every woman there aspires to be like her! I personally worship her as a goddess! How dare you call her a witch!?" Her face flushed with intense emotion, each word searing with fiery passion.
Confusion and surprise gripped the two ladies as the seemingly vulnerable woman raised her voice in a fit of rage.
The foreigner stood up, hastily gathering the clothes she had been washing. Her face radiated with anger as she stormed away, her departure leaving a charged atmosphere in her wake.
The two remaining ladies remained rooted to their spots, unable to move as they watched her disappearing from their sight.
"Phew. What the heck?" The first woman sighed, perplexed by the foreigner's outburst.
"I was surprised," the second lady admitted.
"I thought she was a Snow Rabbit, but she's nothing but a White Gorilla," the first woman remarked, her tone filled with disdain.
"Let her be. She will soon realize what that bitch has done."
***
*Bang*
Upon entering the house she shared with her husband, the lady carefully set the large wooden basket filled with clothes near the door.
With a sense of urgency, she ignited the lantern to fill the room with a warm glow. Her eyes darted towards the bed, where a newspaper lay, adorned with a portrait of the princess on the front page.
Like a familiar routine, the sight of her idol, her goddess, gracing the front page of the newspaper was almost a daily occurrence. She eagerly flipped through the pages, engrossed in reading for the next 30 minutes, reveling in the connection she felt with her beloved princess.
"Dia, is lunch ready?" her husband, a tall and handsome 24-year-old farmer with blonde hair and ordinary black pupils, walked into the room.
As he entered the room, the farmer removed his half-shirt, typically worn during work, and hung it on a nearby pin.
He called out to his wife once more, "Dia?" but she remained fully engrossed in the newspaper.
"DIANA!"
"Y-yes!?" she replied, finally breaking free from her deep concentration, turning towards her husband.
"Lunch?" he asked.
"Oh, yes, yes," she responded, quickly springing into action. She stood up and retrieved the porridge she had prepared earlier before leaving to wash the clothes.
Their modest lunch consisted of porridge and salads, as bread served as both breakfast and dinner.
Without a table, they ate their meals on plates while sitting down, a common practice in their household.
As her husband began to eat, Diana followed suit, yet he noticed her occasional pauses of five to ten seconds before resuming her meal.
Unperturbed, he continued eating until he finished his portion, his thirst quenched by a glass of water. With a desire to engage in conversation, he attempted to catch his wife's attention.
However, no matter how hard he called her name, this time she appeared distant, lost in her own thoughts.
"DIANA?" he called out again, gently tapping her face with his left hand, hoping to bring her back to the present moment.
"Eh?" Diana's surprise was evident as her husband tapped her face.
"Hmm... what's the matter, Dia? Is something troubling you?" he inquired, his concern evident in his voice.
Diana, upon hearing his question, simply nodded her head in response, her silence speaking volumes.
Lei, her husband, tenderly placed his thumb on her lips, softly caressing them from one end to the other. His voice filled with romantic concern, he asked, "Why? What troubles my sweet wife?"
But Diana, not in the mood for romance, revealed her troubled thoughts instead.
"…"
Lei, Diana's husband, sensing the gravity of the situation, drew closer to her. With a solemn tone, he uttered, "What they said... it's true, Dia."
Confused and taken aback, Diana, who had been expressing her grievances about the ladies, found herself puzzled as her own husband seemed to align with their perspective.
"Eh?"
"What...?"
"What do you mean, sweetie...?"
Lei let out a sigh before gently taking Diana's hand into his own. With a heavy heart, he began, "This might be difficult for you to hear, but... she was an evil witch."
"She had conducted horrifying experiments on hundreds of innocent children, bewitched and manipulated thousands of men, luring them into her web..." Lei's voice trembled as he revealed the shocking truth.
"N-no..." Diana's voice quivered in disbelief. "That can't be right..."
"You know, right? Due to an accident, she became blind," Lei said softly.
"Yes... what about that?" Diana replied, her curiosity piqued.
"It was only after that incident that she started to change..." Lei's voice carried a hint of sorrow and understanding.
"She took organs from numerous people, their eyes, and attempted to transplant them into her own," Lei revealed with a heavy heart.
"The experiment failed, resulting in the deaths of thousands of innocent people..."
As Diana heard these chilling details, it felt as if her very soul had been torn from her body, leaving her in a state of shock and disbelief.
Lei paused, witnessing his wife on the verge of fainting.
Concerned, he held back from sharing further, embracing her tightly as she burst into tears. He gently stroked her back, providing solace and comfort in that moment.
Reluctantly, she had no choice but to believe her husband.
.
.
.
In the desolate confines of an abandoned church, an atmosphere of darkness loomed, casting ominous shadows upon dilapidated walls. Time had taken its toll, leaving the once majestic structure in ruins, with crumbling pillars and shattered stained glass windows.
Within the somber ambiance, a wooden coffin rested alone in a corner, its weathered exterior betraying the passage of time.
The once still coffin convulsed with vigor, violently shaking for what seemed like an eternity, unsettling the silence that cloaked the area. After five intense minutes, the tremors gradually subsided, leaving a tense stillness in their wake.
Then, with an eerie grace, the lid of the coffin began to slide open. It revealed a sight both captivating and haunting—a stunning maiden emerging from the depths. Clad in a flowing white gown, she sat upright, her upper body exposed to the world while her lower half remained confined within the coffin's confines.
Her mesmerizing appearance offered a stark contrast—a cascade of silvery white hair framed her pallid face, accentuating her rosy pink lips. Despite the ethereal beauty that emanated from her, the emaciated state of her body was impossible to ignore. Her flesh clung tightly to visible bones, a haunting reminder of her frailty.
'My head…'
"…"
The blind princess had been revived.