CH-2

Aurelia walked without direction, her steps slow but steady as the sounds of the ballroom faded behind her.

The night air was cold, brushing against her skin, yet she felt none of it.

There was no anger left in her, no sadness either—just a hollow silence that stretched endlessly inside her chest.

She didn’t know how long she had been walking.

The estate grounds were dim, shadows stretching across the stone paths.

Somewhere far behind her, voices echoed faintly, but none of them called her name. They never had.

A faint scent reached her.

Smoke.

At first, she ignored it, her mind too distant to care. But then came the shouts—sharp, panicked, breaking through the quiet.

Servants rushed past her, their footsteps hurried, their voices filled with urgency. Flames flickered against the night sky, growing higher, brighter, devouring everything in their path.

Aurelia turned slowly, her gaze falling on the burning structure. For a moment, she simply stood there, watching as chaos unfolded around her.

Then suddenly—

A force struck her shoulder.

“Don’t just stand there! Move!”

She stumbled back, her footing unsteady as she was pushed closer to the burning building. The heat hit her skin, sharp and suffocating.

A loud crack split through the air.

Before she could react—

something collapsed.

Pain exploded through her body, blinding and overwhelming. The world tilted violently, her vision drowning in fire and light. Sounds faded, voices disappeared, and everything became distant.

And in that final moment, as everything slipped away…

a single thought remained—

If there is another life… I won’t live like this again.

Darkness swallowed her whole.

…

A breath escaped her lips. Soft. Unsteady.

Her eyes fluttered open.

The ceiling above her was unfamiliar—plain, wooden, nothing like the grand halls she remembered. Confusion flickered through her mind as she slowly lifted her hand.

It was small.

Too small

Tiny fingers trembled in front of her eyes, delicate and childlike.

Her breath caught.

Voices echoed nearby.

“She’s awake…”

“That cursed hair…”

“Why was she even born…”

Aurelia froze.

That voice…

Her mother.

Her heart began to pound, not with fear, but with something deeper—something colder. Recognition.

Slowly, she turned her head.

And there, in the faint reflection beside her—

she saw it.

White hair

Soft. Untouched. The same as before.

Five years old.

Back.

Not a dream. Not an illusion.

A second chance.

Her small fingers curled tightly into a fist.

I won’t be weak again.

I drew in a slow breath, forcing my trembling body to still.

This room… these voices… this suffocating feeling—

I remembered all of it.

Every insult.

Every glance filled with disgust.

Every moment I was made to feel like I didn’t belong.

But not anymore.

This time, I would see everything before it happened.

And this time… I would never let them break me again.

I lowered my gaze to my small hands, still clenched tightly.

So fragile. So powerless.

…but not for long.

If this world thought I was cursed—

then I would become something far worse than a curse.

Something they couldn’t ignore.

Something they couldn’t control.

I slowly lifted my head, my eyes steady, cold.

Let them hate me.

Let them fear me.

It would only make my rise… more satisfying. 😈

...CH-2 ENDS...

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