CPG | Chapter 3

While Ternnis was eating, Rayyan returned to the room where he first met the prince. Although it would be nice to attend to the prince during his meal, the state of the room was more urgent. Given the prince’s poor health, this environment could only worsen it.

Rayyan scanned the room, noting where the prince had sat and what he had touched. It seemed he had touched more things than expected, leaving traces of dust. The prince’s body must be covered in dust too.

He decided to fill the bathtub with warm water. With so much to do, Rayyan took a brief moment to sigh before starting to clean.

Meanwhile, Ternnis realized the attendant was missing only after finishing his soup.

“Where’s the servant who’s supposed to attend to me?”

He was still an unsatisfactory servant. Ternnis irritably put down his spoon and got off the chair. As he stomped up the stairs to return to his room, he realized there was no one else but the insolent attendant.

“That sly chief attendant. Just one servant, huh?”

Ternnis’s lips pouted. Once, they said he’d be the Crown Prince, showering him with flattery, and now they sent just one servant. Having had dozens of attendants, it was unsatisfying to have just one. Yet, despite finding the chief attendant insolent, he couldn’t think of killing him if he left the castle.

After all, he was going to die in this castle soon. The chief attendant was probably just waiting for that day.

“How much time do I have left?”

How much time did he have left? It wasn’t something a child dreaming of the future should say. But Ternnis knew he was different from other kids.

Ternnis looked into his turbulent mind. As soon as he became aware, the familiar pain of his organs twisting and nerves fraying surged. The sensation of his fingertips being finely shredded felt like holding thousands of needles burning inside him. It was a pain too much for a child to bear.

Initially, Ternnis would scream in agony and faint repeatedly. But as those moments piled up, he no longer screamed or fainted. Numb to everything, Ternnis climbed the stairs with a blank expression.

Just like in the dining room, he stopped abruptly in front of his room. He felt a similar sensation to what he experienced in the dining room. Before going down, the room had been filthy, but now there wasn’t a speck of dust.

Was it because the white cloth covering the furniture was gone? But with a new blanket on the bed, he wondered if it was even the same room. Having experienced it twice, he had to admit the servant was quite efficient.

His admiration was short-lived. As soon as he spotted Rayyan standing like a shadow, Ternnis’s lips twitched. He hadn’t liked him since he didn’t flinch at his scolding. Disliking one thing led to disliking everything. Even his expressionless face was annoying.

“Why is the servant who’s supposed to attend to me here?”

“I’m sorry.”

Rayyan offered no excuses beyond an apology. He hadn’t been slacking off somewhere. Was he expecting Ternnis to understand without words? Ternnis turned his head sharply, refusing to acknowledge his diligence.

“I’m going to bathe.”

“I’ve prepared warm water. I’ll assist you.”

Rayyan approached Ternnis promptly. As he reached to undress him, Ternnis sharply slapped Rayyan’s hand away.

“How dare you try to touch me?”

Rayyan looked at his reddened hand and bowed his head deeply.

“I only intended to assist.”

“The mere act of you reaching for me is wrong.”

“It might be difficult for you to undress alone.”

Rayyan’s gaze swept over Ternnis’s clothes. Still wearing what he brought from the main palace, it was adorned with many decorations and required attention in several places. But Ternnis glared at Rayyan with even more irritation.

“I’d rather tear it apart than let you touch it.”

Faced with the prince’s strong warning not to touch him, Rayyan hesitated, then stepped back. He chose to follow the prince’s words rather than forcibly undress him.

“I’ll guide you.”

As Rayyan walked towards the nearby bathroom, Ternnis glared at his back. Did he not hear the order not to touch him, or was he ignoring it? Whatever it was, he wouldn’t let it slide if it happened again.

Entering the bathroom, the scent of water filled the air. Watching the steam rise like mist, Ternnis waved his hand dismissively at Rayyan, who was still nearby.

“Leave.”

Rayyan left without a word, and Ternnis belatedly touched his clothes.

“Ugh. This is supposed to be clothing…?”

After undoing a few buttons, Ternnis gritted his teeth. He thought it would end with the buttons, but there were strings tied, and many things to undo on the shoulders and back.

Unable to undress, Ternnis entered the bathtub as he was. He frowned at the discomfort of wet clothes clinging to him, but the warm water pressed against him, providing comfort.

Submerged up to his neck, Ternnis leaned his head back and sighed deeply. Darkness fell over his closed eyes, and the scenery of the main palace from that morning blurred like a watercolor.

– Let go! You expect me to wear this?

Ternnis irritably threw aside the outfit the servant offered. It was the day he was being sent to the abandoned palace, so what was the point of a fancy outfit? As Ternnis threw a fit, causing everyone to sweat, a woman watched silently.

Ternnis glared at the woman as he threw things at the approaching servant. Despite his outburst, her expression remained indifferent. Ternnis shouted at her.

– Clear it all away. I won’t wear these clothes or walk.

Ternnis refused everything the Empress ordered. Everyone knew he was on his way to die, so what was the point? But the Empress didn’t accept his refusal.

– The more it’s the last, the more formal it should be.

– What’s the point of this? Will my situation improve by wearing this? Will my health get better by walking? I’ll just be a spectacle.

– At least it’s better than being sent off disgracefully.

The Empress coldly suppressed Ternnis’s opinion. She wouldn’t let his last moments be shabby.

– What about my pain?

Ternnis looked at the Empress with eyes like a wounded beast. He had no expectations from the Emperor, who had many wives and children, but he thought the Empress, his mother, would understand his pain. Yet, her face showed no emotion as she looked at him.

– What difference does a little more pain make? Dress him.

At her command, the servants approached, and the will-less Ternnis didn’t push them away.

Every touch felt like a spark of pain. He bit his lip to suppress a groan, his pride preventing him from showing weakness. The thin skin of his lip tore, bleeding, but no one cared about his pain.

That was the morning’s events. The Empress mercilessly ignored his last desperate display. Despite knowing how much he hated others’ touch, she acted as if she’d forgotten everything.

As a result, Ternnis was thoroughly humiliated, dressed like a clown with his pride trampled, and was sent off amidst everyone’s ridicule.

“Do you think I’ll go quietly? Even in death, I’ll haunt you all.”

The hurt in Ternnis’s eyes was soon hidden by defiance. He vowed revenge, even in death, but then smirked at the futility of it all. Who knew if spirits lingered after death?

Trying to erase useless thoughts, Ternnis paused as he slapped the water.

Aside from the warm water easing some pain, he felt no sensation in his fingertips. It was so unfamiliar it felt like looking at someone else’s hand.

Had the feeling in his hands died? Were the nerves dead, so it didn’t hurt? Ternnis wiggled his fingers in front of him. They moved as he thought, so maybe the nerves weren’t completely dead…

“What is this?”

Had he done something different with these hands?

He retraced his actions but couldn’t recall anything.

***

While the prince was in the bathtub, Rayyan looked at his hand that had been slapped. It was a sharp blow, but only a child’s strength. The redness and sting faded quickly, but a strange sensation lingered.

“What’s going on?”

The tingling sensation on the back of his hand wouldn’t go away. It wasn’t painful, just odd. A faint itch spread from the back of his hand.

“Could it be…?”

Rayyan wrapped his other hand around his hand, his expression complicated.

“Do I enjoy getting hit?”

It was an absurd hypothesis, but he couldn’t immediately dismiss it.