HDBMTD 03

Chapter 3

What came to Aria’s mind was a line from a famous tragedy.

“If you want to throw someone into despair, let them live in luxury as a child. Praise and reward the success they gain with little effort. And when they begin to take everything for granted—take it all away.”
— Lakan, The Beggar King

In the past, she had only read it as a lesson about being grateful for what one has. But now, every word struck deeply.

‘Right, it really is despairing.’

If you fall into the fire, of course you’ll be crippled. In her mind, she understood it was already a miracle she survived. The problem was that until now, she had been far too lucky.

The higher a bird flies, the greater the shock when it falls.

‘If it’s like this, then I’d rather, back then…’

Clang!

At the sharp noise, she turned her head.

A maid stood there, looking as if she had seen a ghost. On the floor, a tray, a water bowl, and a towel rolled about. But the maid didn’t even think to pick them up—she only screamed:

“H-her Highness has awakened!”

1. There Was No Regression

Three centuries ago, demonic beasts poured down over people’s heads, and the world met with a great upheaval.

Because of monsters with transcendent power, all nations on Earth collapsed. Within a single century, over 90% of the world’s population disappeared, and human history moved toward extinction.

At the moment when everyone despaired, those who possessed the power to oppose the monsters appeared like saviors.

Among ordinary people, a new humanity suddenly emerged with incomprehensible abilities.

People gave them the name Échappée—a musical term meaning “escape”—and praised them as heroes.

The Échappée were divided into mental, combat, and various special types. Their numbers gradually increased, but high-grade mental types were extremely rare. There were no S-class, and even A-class could be counted on one hand.

Princess Ariadna was the first S-class mental Échappée in history, receiving all the empire’s love and expectations.

—At least, she had, until the accident.

‘But being pushed into the Western Palace means… they’ve stripped me of my position as successor.’

“Your Highness the Princess.”

“Ah…!”

Startled by the sudden voice, Aria jumped.

She had always used mental perception to detect others around her and had never learned how to sense presence with ordinary senses.

The maid, puzzled by Aria’s extreme reaction, apologized and said,

“The Empress and the Crown Prince are expected to visit. As soon as they heard you had awakened, they canceled their schedules and are returning to the palace.”

“Ah, Mother and Brother…”

Aria remembered the revolving lantern of images she had seen at death’s door—the faces of her mother and brother, too.

In that memory, she had always been loved.

Yet after living such a life, she had thought foolishly that it might have been better if she had just died—without considering the pain of her loved ones.

‘If I had died then, Nocturne would have been the one to witness my last moments.’

She must not leave such a cruel memory to her lover.

Though she had lost her power and become crippled, Aria wanted to accept this situation positively. She didn’t want to show despair to those who were surely already worried for her.

Before they arrived, she racked her brain to change her mood. Ah, yes.

‘Now… we can hold the wedding.’

Nocturne Bendrix, who was clumsy in music despite being good at everything else, had even played the piano to propose to her.

‘To think I almost threw it all away… I nearly committed something truly cruel.’

Her lover, who at the last moment wished only to face death with her.

How relieved he would be to know she had woken up. Thinking of him, she finally felt glad to have survived.

Aria forced herself to sit up, checked her reflection in the mirror, and had her attendants rewrap her bandages so she didn’t look too much like a patient. She asked,

“How long was I asleep?”

“You have awakened after half a year, Your Highness.”

“Half a year…?”

In the imperial family—no, in the empire—Aria’s role was that of a problem-solver. Thinking of the chaos her absence must have caused made her heart heavy.

For the sake of her worried family, she had to appear composed. She firmed her resolve—when the door opened.

“You’ve awoken.”

The one who entered was clearly imperial in bearing, a woman with bright blond hair and green eyes—the Empress, Aria’s mother.

The moment she saw her, Aria felt emotion surge up.

‘Must you really go?’

On the day she left for Ruin to fight the Cambiata war, her mother had tried to stop her.

‘They’re not in their right minds. Now that they’re cornered, there’s no telling what they’ll do.’
‘You know it’s something I must do.’

Though Aria spoke calmly, inside she felt troubled and confused. It was strange that the very one who had drilled imperial duty into her now blocked her path. Danger had never been an excuse to abandon duty.

‘I regret it now. Raising you with too much pressure… When you were little, all I feared was that you would go astray. I never even knew what kind of child you really were…’

Her mother, always perfectionist to the point of obsession, had looked disheveled then for the first time. Aria had only been able to promise she would return safely. Yet now she had come back like this.

Her mother’s face looked thinner than she remembered. Aria cleared her throat.

“Mother, I…”

“The core.”

Her cold voice cut her words short.

“Your mental perception—does it still function?”

“Ah…”

No words of relief at her survival. No scolding for breaking her promise to return unhurt.

Instead, the very first question was not about her life, but about the state of her ability.

But Aria knew—though her mother’s words were clumsy, deep down she loved her greatly. So she didn’t mind.

“The doctor diagnosed that my core is severely damaged. He said I will never be able to use my power again.”

Her mother, who always wanted her to be a wise ruler, would surely be disappointed. Still, it was something she would eventually learn, so Aria confessed it—though she couldn’t meet her mother’s eyes.

“I’m sorry, Mother.”

“…So it’s as Padva said.”

Her mother’s voice was unexpectedly flat, which unsettled Aria.

Did Brother Padva already know she had lost her power? She was about to question it when the door suddenly burst open.

“Ari!”

The lively voice belonged to a woman with silver hair and eyes of the same shade, dressed in splendor. At once, Aria’s face brightened with a smile.

“Minette.”

She had heard from the maids that Minette often came to the palace to watch over her. When she first learned this, Aria had been deeply moved—Minette was her oldest friend.

“I believed it—I knew you would wake up!”

Choking with emotion, Minette hugged her tightly. A strong smell of alcohol wafted from her.

Her flashy clothes caught Aria’s eye—had she just come from a party? But before she could ask, Minette’s hand pulled her head and pressed on her left ear. A sharp pain shot through her half-healed wound.

“Ugh!”

“What’s wrong all of a sudden?”

“Wait, your hand…!”

Before Aria could stop her, Minette lifted her hair. Burn scars covered her cheek, and half of her ear had melted away.

“My God… Ari, you didn’t just lose your power…”

Her shocked whisper made Aria flush with shame.

“I’m really sorry, Ari. I didn’t even know…”

“It’s fine. Let go now.”

“…Alright.”

Aria thought Minette’s behavior toward her felt different.

Minette was never a delicate person—her blunt honesty often made others call her rude. But never toward Aria.

She had never once crossed the line with her. When Aria once asked if she found it difficult to treat her naturally, Minette had waved it off, saying she simply became more careful with those closest to her.

Yet now she was strangely unreserved.

‘It must be because she missed me so much.’

Aria tried to understand and smiled. Minette soon moved on.

“The Crown Prince is coming too. Ah, here he is.”

Noises outside the door, then it opened, and a familiar voice rang out.

“Sister!”

A man with blond hair and green eyes, just like their mother. Aria’s brother, Padva.

He strode up to her bed and looked her over closely. Her swollen lips, shortened hair, and the burn scars not hidden by bandages.

His intense scrutiny made Aria feel a small shame. How pathetic must she look? Surely pitiful, surely disappointing. She glanced at him like a guilty child.

But unexpectedly, Padva’s face broke into a bright, sunlit smile.

“Truly, thank you, Ari.”

“…Brother?”

“I always believed in you.”

His eyes curved, and tears spilled down.

“Thanks to you, the terrible war has ended completely. Now our empire need no longer fear sudden terror, nor worry about being kidnapped for experiments. And on top of that, you…”

He caressed her face, then gripped her hands and repeated his thanks.

Padva was not one to show much emotion. She had never seen him look so happy.

He must truly be overjoyed that she awoke. Aria felt her own eyes grow hot.

At that moment, the Empress, who had been watching them coldly, rose from her seat.

“Mother?”

“I shall rest. You also need to recover your stability.”

Seeing her mother rise, Aria panicked. She wanted to ask about Nocturne, about her father who hadn’t come, about the empire’s state.

She reached for her mother’s hand.

“I’m fine now. Please, even just for a little while—let’s talk.”

Slap!

A stinging pain spread across the back of her hand.

Aria blinked between her hand and her mother’s, only then realizing—her mother had struck her away.