HDBMTD 08

Chapter 8

2. My People, Who Will Always Be by My Side

Aria was bedridden for three full days.

In her fevered mind, her mother and brother’s conversation, along with the image of Nocturne and Minette, replayed over and over.

‘This isn’t the time to be lying here.’
If Padva realized she had overheard their conversation… just the thought made her blood run cold.

She had to get out of the imperial palace quickly. An attempted assassination of a princess would be a fatal disgrace to Padva, who was eyeing the throne. If he sensed that Aria knew the truth, he would never let her live.

He had already tried poisoning her once. The second time would surely be more calculated, more merciless. This time, she might be completely eliminated. There was no time to lose.

But her fever was relentless. Could her body really have weakened so much, just from that brief run? Her entire body burned as if she had been thrown into fire again, so much so that she couldn’t even lift a finger. Whether it was because she hadn’t fully recovered physically or due to extreme stress—she couldn’t tell.

Whenever she fell into unconsciousness, she dreamed of the past. Dreams of a peaceful, happy childhood.

Even within the dream, she faintly felt that this wasn’t right—but she didn’t want to wake up.

She didn’t want to face the reality where even her family, her friends, and her fiancé had betrayed her.

It was unthinkable to begin with. She had once been the most gifted telepath in recorded history.

A person who reads minds—betrayed? It didn’t make sense.

There was no way this could be real.

She had to be dreaming.

Maybe after she shoved the leader of Cambiata into a sea of flames… she passed out and had been trapped in this nightmare ever since.

Yes, that had to be it. Her beloved family, her friends, her lover—how much they had loved her. Their feelings had been genuine. As the Empire’s only S-rank telepath, she could swear by it: they had spoken sincerely when they said they would stay by her side forever, no matter what.

And yet… her mother and brother tried to kill her? Her dearest friend Minette had committed adultery with her fiancé?

What a joke. She felt guilty even dreaming something so absurd.

Seriously, this was ridiculous…

Ridiculous…

But she knew.

She knew all too well that this cruel world was, in fact, reality. Because that’s how the human heart worked.

Yes, when they said they loved Aria—when they swore they’d always be on her side—they meant it.

And when Aria became crippled, they truly began to see her as a burden, something to be discarded like scrap metal.

They loved her once, and now they didn’t.

That was all.

Perhaps, deep down, Aria had seen it coming. Even from a long time ago, when she was very young.

* * *

“I don’t want to hear it…”

It was 3 PM—an hour when model academy students should have been focused on their studies. Yet the exemplary Crown Princess Aria was crouched in the bushes, covered in dirt.

No matter how hard she pressed her trembling hands over her ears, the voices didn’t stop. Of course—they weren’t coming from her ears.

– If we want to kill the princess, we must seal her powers first. Then bind her body… slowly…

– So scary! What if she already knows my secrets?

– The Imperial family is raising a ticking time bomb. We should force her into a control ring for everyone’s safety!

– She might be reading my mind right now, even as we speak…

– Die!

“I don’t want to hear it!”

It was a lie. She actually wanted to keep listening.

Aria, an S-rank Echafée, involuntarily read people’s emotions. But reading the hidden thoughts of people far away required considerable focus. And yet, she always pushed herself to read. Delved in by her own will.

Because Aria would collapse like a corpse if she didn’t use her powers, her parents gave up trying to make her wear a control ring. Instead, they demanded that she fulfill her duties as a princess.

From that point on, Aria threw herself into studies, freely using her abilities. With telepathy, everything came easy. She always knew exactly what her tutors meant, and could grasp any concept instantly. On bad days, she’d accidentally reveal knowledge before being taught, just by reading minds.

She excelled in all fields, praised by adults and admired by her peers. As a child, Aria was talented, cheerful, and always wore a bright smile.

“People love me. I love those who love me!”

How blessed, how precious this love was.

“Is there anyone else in the world as loved as I am?”

As a child, Aria was simply happy.

But as she grew older and began to understand human malice, cracks began to form in her happiness.

“Everyone likes me!”

The friends who once worshipped her were secretly thrilled when they heard she had been hurt, and they secretly hoped she would fail whenever a crisis arose.

“My brother is proud of me.”

Padva would boast of his sister’s accomplishments while drowning in inferiority.

“The people of the Empire say they love me, and celebrate my happiness as if it’s their own.”

They loved her—but they feared her more. They rejoiced in her joys, but found even greater pleasure in her misfortunes.

“And my parents… they always worry for me and guide me on the right path. They give me unconditional love.”

But in truth, they feared the child who could control minds with a thought. They worried she might someday destroy humanity. Sometimes, they even said it might’ve been better if she had never been born.

“…No one really loves me.”

People loved Aria—but they also feared her. And fear is a feeling very difficult to separate from hatred.

Aria couldn’t understand how people could love and hate her at the same time. How could they praise her to her face and plot to kill her behind her back?

No—that was wrong. She did understand.

She was the only S-rank telepath in the world. She read their fears, their doubts, their worries—understood them all as if they were her own.

There was no one in the world who returned her sincerity with equal sincerity.

People may have loved her in their own way—but their hearts could never balance the depth of her love.

At some point, she accepted that perhaps she was the strange one, for loving so selflessly.

That was why she had been deeply lonely since she was a child.

“Calm down, calm down, calm down, calm down…”

Whenever it became unbearable, Aria would skip class and hide somewhere isolated like this. Then she would dive into people’s thoughts, reading them all. In those moments, she could forget herself and focus entirely.

If she didn’t read others’ minds, she was left only with her own.

Her pain. Her loneliness.

So she kept reading. Kept feeling. Kept digging deeper.

Her uncontrolled immersion in telepathy was like an addiction. The more she looked, the more she hoped that someday—just one person—

Someone who wouldn’t hate her. Someone who would love her.

That’s why, when she finally found her Pair, her heart had raced.

But she couldn’t read his mind to confirm it. Sensitive Echafée like him might notice if she did.

So she devised a plan.

She would approach Nocturne slowly. Break down his guard. Help him solve his problems. People who feared her usually returned sincere affection when she became useful to them. She would show Nocturne how talented she was.

Heh. I’ll make him into someone who can’t live without me.

“Hey, what’re you doing?”

So, that day—when Aria was crouching in the bushes—it was pure accident that Nocturne found her.

It was one of those days. When she accidentally read someone’s malice… or when a pile of small, negative feelings became too much to bear.

Normally, she would hide somewhere, release her power until she felt better, then return and pretend nothing had happened—resuming her perfect princess act.

But this time, Nocturne had caught her in the act.

‘I’ve never been caught before…’

Aria was overcome with dread.

What do I do…
He’ll be disappointed. I must’ve looked strange.
If an S-rank mental Echafée is mentally unstable, it’s a national threat.
I’m supposed to show him only my perfect side, and now he’s seen this pitiful version of me.
It’s all ruined now…

‘Should I… erase just a little bit of his memory?’

Aria panicked so much, even her vow to never use her powers to manipulate others started to waver.

At that moment, Nocturne came over and quietly lay down beside her.

‘Huh…’

Aria realized it late.

Nocturne’s emotional color hadn’t changed. It was still that same clean, warm blue.

He didn’t ask a single question. He just stayed with her.

That gentle blue spread, and Aria’s heart gradually calmed.

Somewhere nearby, she heard the chirp of insects. Only then did she notice they were chirping. Only then did she realize her dress was a mess from rolling on the grass. Feeling slightly embarrassed, she brushed the dirt from her skirt.

Then, with nothing else to do, she turned her head.

Nocturne was lying on his back, hands behind his head, eyes closed peacefully. Though still young, his features were well-balanced and elegant, hinting at the handsome man he would become. His long lashes fluttered in the breeze, his lips were neatly shut beneath a high nose. A few buttons of his academy uniform were undone, as usual. A breeze passed by, ruffling his black hair.

Aria tucked her fluttering golden hair behind her ear. Staring at Nocturne, peaceful as a napping cat, she suddenly opened her mouth.

“Hey, Nocturne. Can you show me something?”

“…What?”

“You.”

Nocturne’s shoulder flinched.

He hadn’t expected Aria to say something like that. Aria herself hadn’t expected it, even a few minutes earlier.

But…

As she looked down at Nocturne’s face—his black eyes flicking nervously—she slowly leaned closer and whispered,

“Can I… look?”

Nocturne hesitated for a moment.

Then nodded.

When she opened her eyes, the familiar lattice ceiling of the Western Palace greeted her.

Aria blinked slowly and thought:

Ah, I’ve woken from the dream.