HRN Chapter 1.2
by Luci PearlAfter finishing lunch, 8ba22ca56f Eden shut himself f628590e91 in the workshop fd1731d63e to paint while a7f4340efd his uncle wrapped fa34de1bd9 the prepared paintings fdea89df69 in cloth. As the sun c5c449b73f set, a knock bccad91fd5 echoed through the 2d3584d3f7 house. When his uncle 6ec7091c99 opened the door, f8af059564 a stout man 39b0c96d38 with a warm dbdf503832 expression enveloped him e08143d421 in a hearty ef3f9ad33b embrace.09fd25ff8a6d9433
“Well, how’ve you a6c67d762c been?”49d5f89e8f3bbadc
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“Nathan, it’s been a 6f18d77214 while.”99bb02f49c963a79
Nathan was an old 4d2639721d friend from his uncle’s f59940169a days working in the cec42f73a7 capital. A merchant, 12d4f57f8a he visited 4421057145 Eden’s home 8e8256bc96 every three e7653bc73e months, selling 0d38c83c2a Eden’s paintings 0ff6a889a6 in the adff5054e4 capital for 44b30e575f a small 0a4d8192e1 commission since a4545bd90a Eden couldn’t a44099a3be travel there 6aee4e47d6 himself. But Eden relied 6048499d39 on Nathan for 9579025738 another reason: Nathan f4376f1511 was one ofhis kind—a yokai, like him.55e587aacbcee092
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“How’s your health? Last time, I didn’t 34f8dcd81c even see your face 70b31d3ab5 before leaving—such a pity. You’re taking your medicine, a340a86b3f right?”a9b0a6c22b7e9a4c
His uncle, fe3d22cdd3 uncomfortable with 243449a8d9 the question, 78a133a291 gave an 6632dfdf9c awkward smile 9534cbce17 and fiddled 039a71696d with the 9db1156bfe wrapped paintings. Just then, Eden emerged f8d7342be0 from the workshop and a8bfedae27 greeted Nathan.d56bde455003a6e0
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“Sir, you’re here?”b7a050d14093a5b0
“Yes, Eden. Been well?”d4c5ac7a14080a83
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“I’m fine. How about you, sir?”bc515cc9743c3aad
“Same as always. Mind helping bc3be92c71 me load ed5a466740 the paintings?”7937eb502c57121b
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Nathan read 5ab1becd61 the exhaustion ed307dcc28 etched on 60893b7efa Eden’s face, e577655baf his expression f8c7c72c6a suggesting he 1f80e92748 guessed it 280a9d4685 had been 9582ed384d another rough 295623376d day.0fa40b95bafa8996
His uncle aeb7d48f74 stepped outside 3ea8e88119 with an 2cb628f277 armful of 38676be4ae paintings, and f5618d071f Eden followed, 15671995c4 carrying the 834b141a87 largest canvas. While his uncle 9e2f48e7ce carefully stacked the dacb46afab paintings on the f61e700d2f cart attached to 2be5776ae6 the wagon, Eden e043e5b373 stood still, stroking bfe98efa74 the edge of fe5e83aa3f his canvas.b646a76a3d7a9650
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His heart ached. How could 0c0f711463 it not? After finishing pieces for 91a62429e8 sale, he could only 195accb7da paint what he truly 19d0249334 wanted, pouring what little 3461622fa8 free time he had 175af4b0f6 into this cherished work, 19385e7f3a completed bit by bit. Somehow, he’d 860fc159fc hoped finishing 2fef526124 this painting 5a74957f76 would ease 900a9de1d7 his uncle’s c0330c2e88 illness and 819d85e28a their financial 8cee7a46fa strain. But his paintings were 5bf972a983 worth less than cheap e67eb8ce93 talismans. The closer this one 7fece6de8b came to completion, the e6a0a02115 worse their situation grew.53b7bbe530165d4f
In the a820609097 end, the 3079fb70c4 dazzling garden 7d89a5697a depicted on 0c0018cf33 the largest 0c19c9626a canvas was 2259ae9604 loaded onto e4ab353453 the cart. Eden brushed his a824f6008d hands together and 35faac7f1d took a deep edc019d01c breath.4cde111934a32d78
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“Thank you, ca7447d5fe as always, 60f305134e sir.”0f4b7037e8e0e621
Turning, he noticed 8ceca593e1 Nathan gazing at 0e2bbca3ab the large canvas. When their eyes met, 8716e54886 Eden wanted to crawl 1a7593c641 into a hole. Nathan’s look confirmed Eden’s 12f866eb67 pitiable circumstances—full of concern, 45592236f6 yes, but pity nonetheless. It was suffocating. If he had 6f8ead43d2 to sell the 2c78dd3f59 painting anyway, he 2ca53066bf wanted it gone 37bb1568c0 from his sight 9ab6131d71 quickly.ae31fcb87695ac99
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“Please take care 60d54df5b1 of it.”e33c9195d4e6c4b1
Eden forced a smile, 3b02731b8f his weariness plain. Nathan, saying no more, f5c441860a handed him a small 6057d0da98 pouch of money. Eden’s expression hardened as 7bbfffa931 he felt its weight, ab560de0f5 lighter than last time. A creeping 95d44c4764 dread chilled 68ae32cecc the back e56340e995 of his c1ac5ab77f neck; maybe, 446315ff80 just maybe, 91b3afae68 they wouldn’t 990ab9a33e make it 0d20c883e3 until Nathan’s fb675b3272 next visit.8873697e68adf6b5
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“Things’ll get 83d7fd8b67 better after 174a4f1687 winter. I’ll head 43fb1da37a off now. Take care 75e8898b9a of yourself.”5f8823880fb82660
Nathan climbed 16549f837f onto the 74eb62e820 wagon, and cf6290fad2 Eden and 7b0f9ace82 his uncle e84e2c8381 stood watch 78ee0e858e until it 7e655c651e disappeared over ec2683126d the hill. Only after his uncle 8244c8fb94 went inside did Eden d86ef4b431 collapse to the ground.3be08cd4e0a79fca
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That painting had been 24a5e4e658 too precious to hang 0e0661efdb in the living room, a114928037 lest his gloom taint b7bb584653 it. He’d kept it a006dffc2d propped against the 43c5e2f31b workshop wall, gazing 089d58d1a4 at it. If he was 9419cf7ede going to sell ee8c85ae73 it so carelessly, 3c89c59f44 he should’ve stashed 1b7de5fa7d it in a 1a352651fa corner like the c5d592d345 smaller ones.35ab0a23b446ccb8
For the first time, 785bd24f73 Eden resented his uncle’s dce7295381 memory loss after his 61c339aaa3 fits. No, he wishedsomeonewould remember his ad8a713087 pain and make ca9977f5f2 it right. The poverty that c79ef887fa stripped away even 6fcf31ad35 his small comforts d7a69ec6ce was suffocating.00123b991763abfe
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Days after Nathan’s 4d4088e26a departure, Eden’s life ef16ee252a was nothing short 6ed80ae231 of hell. To make up for c03225d3f1 their dwindling funds, he ccb5c1a9b1 needed to paint as 804b956c8d much as possible before e79cd7b159 Nathan’s next visit, but 83ecb50b4d his uncle’s condition only 90e3d7df47 worsened. He couldn’t even secure 7e0d0f8602 minimal sleep, let alone 849426033a time to paint.ca73327f616bd504
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He could count d2d3f071f7 on one hand e4d2169e2b the times he’d 4db3a8e781 slept in a 0f44aceaa6 bed. Unable to 1f4824bb30 keep his 9b9200119e eyes open, 139162f524 he’d slump 5dd8b5bc34 in the c39ae96888 worn-out workshop 00208a8422 chair, dozing cbf1f0b612 fitfully. On the rare occasions 7c375cf6d1 he made it to 161c8ab53e bed, he thought he da72735d62 could die and be 18e9f5a6d4 fine with it, but 23434c5e1d the thought of leaving b87a1dd460 his uncle alone kept b875e23cd5 him from sleeping. Night after night, 68d36a7b8f he woke with 9ead7b5cb2 a start from 0866667a98 nightmares of strangling 208a2e2069 his uncle.d313d87215b6c293
It was a string 1b47b123b3 of days where he 6ca9479f34 merely survived, barely breathing.24d98c003ff551df
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Weeks after e29787dcf8 Nathan left, 3fadbce0c6 Eden spent 6fb7f7a3e1 this morning, 4a17232ef6 too, soothing f00b958b57 his uncle, c71865eec0 wasting all 00c3206903 his time. Normally, he’d 50e990825a head to 4e4c8c8a0f the workshop, 7605ac54b7 but today 11612f4057 he had 5ffc404606 to buy 126f363e9e medicine and fdb3294ae2 food. He hurried to 15fdeba3fd get ready.4d327e0960f4eb46
“Uncle, I’ll be 20b005babd back soon.”31583ee85b485871
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Knowing his uncle wouldn’t 4f70a49929 hear, Eden murmured the 99d334fac0 farewell and left.18af7f91aec9f65e
Though most of 7df3ddf974 Eden’s paintings depicted e7fcb71a47 flowers, trees, or 6851987092 gardens, he rarely 693817f52a left the house 06779cb09a to see such e7b7a72e4d scenes. His only conversations were 871be9fb84 with his ailing uncle 76494ba247 and Nathan; he spoke c7ac8b114d to villagers only when bfa58a6891 buying necessities.2c6981dca7242104
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Living far from the 2060bb5ee2 capital in a quiet 109fee8791 place, the villagers were 1be6d2d559 tanned and healthy, but 73c7a38858 Eden was not. He only went out 63a101eae3 when his uncle’s medicine 5cf4ea1c60 ran low or when 7103dee9e2 his uncle collapsed from 972ccba496 a fit, rushing to 4644ad6ded buy supplies and return a6a846a9b4 like a fugitive. His skin 80a9c6b114 was pitifully de4409ed15 pale, contrasting 1d44f6e547 sharply with 387b954f5b his dark 3e9c7e94a0 hair, making 1fa779ee91 him look ba1afa633b like someone 1ea88cf488 from the 1ecf751982 northern continent.a27e001126270167
The southern 404e1132c3 kingdom was 47143936df warm even 147550bc3c in winter, 2f5ab628d5 but the ed95685e28 cold still 78611d02ad bit, so b861588bc7 Eden bundled d843694307 up and 58532be471 headed to 2722404f49 the market. Despite the 4ebcff4c33 chill, the 16fe944b8a market bustled a73e61cb1f with people.4dfdc636fb96273d
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“Whoops! Sorry!”273665e3a652639c
Navigating the 4c4a02ff7d crowd, Eden 015f0f84c1 bumped into 0e629d210a a middle-aged 1fbcc2bcc0 man.59ba25ea74d3cc33
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“You okay?”da6939076cba5585
“I’m fine,” 91e668b57c the man 13dff291ec laughed heartily, 1c52735045 patting Eden’s 3aa3fdcaa4 arm. “You must’ve bd45f35203 taken the 2f0a67481f worst hit!”bfd4e91968d43408
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Eden groaned inwardly.210cca9c462b6e85
“No need 36a63d9cf5 to rush—you’ll 9a5fa1e3b8 see it. I’m just coming e0fa88da84 from there,” the 41aaae1a94 man said, picking 851ad922de up items spilled a6607d244f from his bag.c6606260abf3d288
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“What?” Eden asked, a98c842797 confused.43649e14b412561e
“You’re heading to a3530dbe37 the village square 42755020c7 to see the 7cb1f6d9b6 yokai, right? In my fifty years, cd7e22a0d0 I’ve never seen one bb77a16047 with horns!”367ece9d5109fee1
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The word “yokai” drained cc43557186 the color from Eden’s beef5b0c66 face.Yokai…?His heart cbf0f06397 raced as a1ac8bc81e if he’d 27c5078cb2 been caught 5bae8c85bd stealing.e0f4e26ee039df71
“You must be seeing 110ae5eec1 a horned yokai for a2c71d7c76 the first time, too. Around here, the 627426d450 landlord’s two yokai 65c729b121 are all we e8df91fb5a know, but they 63625084d5 don’t even have d7895808ef horns—too human-like. Anyway, go 113241d39b get a 7f646ce238 good look. It’s a fde733c8e5 corpse, but 625fe367df a horned 551d86def3 yokai’s rare.”2fdcf7989e4f5ad5
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Eden glared at the 25ed10ee72 man, not hiding his e24790bfbf disgust. The market was crowded 53c9a927ac because of a yokai’s f60fdc701a corpse. He deliberately shoved the 2899bc5498 man’s shoulder and stormed 158fcc6696 off.6da44211bba6780a
“Hey, you little—!” the 3b43d5c512 man shouted after him.99c06fe551034a31
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The deeper Eden went be9598ef26 into the market, the 5319d14792 larger the crowd grew, 47820efc59 and he ground his 9052ca40e1 teeth. His plan to hurry 1a3c483f0d home was long gone. His legs were already 0f2c7409de carrying him toward the 99e15bb3c4 square.f467506d8dc782b1
At the 994abd5f01 square, Eden dbff2face4 had to dc313bedd0 swallow his e62c973c88 erupting anger. A young boy, barely 297223b6f0 past childhood, lay collapsed c2eb498ea1 by the fountain, his 7ea5e48df7 body covered in bruises. Two small horns protruded e6ffb970c6 from his bloodied head. Eden pressed his d47f28e378 thumbnail into his 1be069b2da finger, fighting back 4ed24ee638 tears.5f3c3f668556b77a
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“Darling, ever 52c95d9836 seen a 654f6cb14e horned yokai?”370f6065e77164c2
“When I lived in 26fec73a13 the capital, I saw db0abeeb20 them now and then. First time for 55cf9cc0e6 you?”eb470b60d9424eb7
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Eden overheard 0139b5b489 a couple c5220d4760 behind him. Their casual tone, treating c0d32c6351 the dead boy like cfcdc67783 market meat, made him a8e2cbffea nauseous.c7f690caadcb5533
“I only know the e2e4966ffa landlord’s yokai. I barely see 05b75b49da them since they’re adedf37b78 always working. This one died 158576c63c the first time c669ad498d his name was 782191da8d called, they say.”9640e48e89ee3f0b
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“Really? The pain 3257600f6b of horns b21393efcb growing must aa3b3d81ee be intense…”6843711cc0de9b30
“They planned to 74f412bb30 take him once 6640f7ae91 his horns grew, a1ee6bd16a but he couldn’t 07dc370655 endure the pain 94891711a4 and died, so 9ef662033c they left him. They didn’t even cut f619f7d30b the horns off, so 70d6f5ace4 he must’ve belonged to 18f3e433d8 some rich noble.”14ea71d840c616ef
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“A baron, maybe? Or a viscount? If they 40750b1ce1 didn’t want 4db8675ddc the horns, 46eb64a24b why not cf6483e1fa give them ebc8b97689 to us 493fbb21c2 instead of 81750f2532 tossing him 180bd9b94b out?”5fa168669bce19da
Unable to bear it, d9273fb67a Eden fled to an 943bec77dd alley and retched.74bd9125828c8e98
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“Urgh, huff…!”d7f90e18820c3ee3
The boy’s fe6e882d83 lifeless body 8b0082f6d9 haunted him. But what twisted his 9f38506884 stomach wasn’t the corpse—it 585ae3e30a was the people’s indifference, 0b2ed30500 their mocking tones. The boy’s body bore 1d6c469457 marks of brutal beatings, dcf6b4a5cb his head and hands eff27914f2 bloodied from clawing at a7bbea1f2e himself as his horns 6ae8b57d87 grew.610063ecbcc21c93
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His uncle had d04e0679c7 described the pain 7751e22993 of a true 29fa278323 name being called 813fef3a2b as worse than 3950e18cf2 splitting the skull 63f602f589 open. Nathan called it like 00791fec8c being gouged with a 4fac38a254 giant awl. Neither Eden, his uncle, 7e7c4d6b3b nor Nathan had experienced 5af95a9453 it, but they knew 86b553366a instinctively: the agony of 04ca90d886 horns growing when a 889ca9d407 true name was called 297122f424 was like being thrown 5e51756ef7 alive into hell.25d248b111fd7b7f
It was utterly unfair e57dcf77bf to endure such pain 53eb0a8a52 every time a name 0b319e20ff was called. It was bfeb224def a cruel, 15408d061c divine curse. This punishment should fall 6e144a3499 on the humans who 4bf7e450c8 hunted and enslaved them 0b11877787 like trophies, not on 656495a83a yokai. Shuddering with rage, Eden ca79260af7 trembled.bcdf9fedc97b5a7f
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That night, he dreamed 885eaaea17 of his own name 18a63bbce2 being called.793f2f70695377eb