Page 34 of Is It Wrong to Escape My Fate?
“That’s a no, then,” she sighed, continuing to comb. “While the Kingdom doesn’t force religion onto its people, a huge number of citizens are believers of the Oracles, including the royal family themselves. A year or two ago, the Priestesses of the Oracle prophesied that a man would arrive at the Kingdom that would finally turn the tides of war to our favor.”
Oh, shit.I could see where this was going, but I urged Mia to continue.
“The man with golden hair and ocean-blue eyes would possess the power of unlimited potential. He will be the key to the Kingdom’s peace as we finally defeat the Demon Lord.”
Holy fuck, it really wentthere.Claude Wescott was the classic hero of the story! The main protagonist! The chosen one!
And he was one crazy stalker!
“There’re also some visions of him forming a large party to raid the Demon Lord’s castle to face him, but the details were vague. He brings along eleven, so they form the Twelve Champions.” Mia finished with my hair. “Ah, that’s also the reason the Prince didn’t want to marry. Of all the eleven champions, his visage is the clearest, or so the Priestesses say.”
“So the Crown Prince is part of Claude’s party?” I would have thought it was the other way around — that it was the Prince who would lead them with the Hero as his right-hand man.
“Yes. And the Prince argued that dealing with politics, like marriage, would interfere with the prophecy. It’s also why he’s focusing on the magic academy and training future soldiers.”
My eyes widened as I faced Mia. “They’re looking for the other Champions.”
Oh, my god.Thiswas the main plot of this story! The quest to find the Champions to defeat the Demon Lord. In the meantime, they would train here in Aerahelm until such time that they were needed and called to fulfill their destiny.
The main plot that had nothing to do with me.YES!
I would be free to do my own thing and research how to bring myself out of this place. Again, another reminder to myself, lest I lose what made me,me.
With that resolved, I asked Mia my other question. “What happened at my debutante ball that made it so infamous?”
It wasn’t a big deal.
I lounged in the tub, letting my body soak in the heated water.
It shouldn’t have been a big deal, but I could easily imagine how horrifying it must have been for thirteen-year-old me.
Mia described what everybody had seen on that miserable day: I disappeared from the party for a short while, and when I reappeared, I was distraught and disheveled; my clothes were burned and ripped in embarrassing places, and I was soaking wet. I didn’t intend to return to the party in that way, but it was as if I was running away from something, and that might have caused my confusion.
I realized too late that everyone already had seen me.
My parents immediately asked if I was attacked, and I vehemently denied anything or anyone attacking me. Instead, I told a story about playing with a stove, getting my dress burned, and jumping into a fountain to stop the fire. It didn’t explain the rips, but everyone heard and accepted my explanation.
The adults declared it an accident, but noble children understood it differently. They began to look down on me. Too much of a weirdo, immature idiot, or various other adjectives that could be summarized in one word: an embarrassment. Not just to my family or to the entire noble society, but to the Kingdom itself. My reputation plummeted in an instant.
Something didn’t feel right with that story. There was an incident involving Elias during my debutante ball, too. Was it related to this story? I should ask Eli about it since he already knew about my memory issue.
Anyway, now that I was older and hadnewperspectives in life, the entire event should not have been a major problem. I should have picked myself back up, continued life as normal, and didn’t suffer as a recluse. But that was the folly of being a young teenager; everything seemed so much worse, escalating into a downward spiral.
Personally, I didn’t care much for the opinions of others. What mattered to me most was my perspective of myself — everything was fair as long as I didn’t hurt anyone by my actions. But I knew, deep,deepinside of me, that OG Bea cared, or else I wouldn’t have been resolute in being a recluse in the first place.
Now was my chance to take that back; to repair my reputation and improve my family’s standing in the noble social circles.
While also trying to form a tangible escape plan.
Totally doable.
I finished my bath and wrapped a towel around myself before I exited the bathroom. In the evenings, I was left pretty much alone in my room, but at least one of my knights would be standing outside my door if it wasn’t time to sleep. No one should be able to get in or out of my bedroom without their knowledge.
So why was it that when I stepped into my room from the bathroom, I felt an ominous presence with me?
It was the same feeling that night when I heard someone whisper my name. I thought it was my imagination, or maybe the remnants of a dream, but now I doubted myself.
This was the problem with keeping the room dark when not in use — a habit I carried over from when I was living by myselfin an apartment where I strived to keep my bills low. Should I start keeping the lights on at all times?
