"What is it !? Those eyes ... What a repugnant!"
The words Evan heard when he arrived at Capital City were filled with ridicule. Their faces contorted as if Princess Ariella had just raised a terrifying monster.
Even though Evan heard and understood the ridicule, he no longer felt sadness and hatred. It was because he understood Pain better than anyone in Capital City. After all, he had been through Pain his whole life before coming to Capital City.
"Father! I have decided to make Evan a knight!"
Unlike in Evan's dream about the cruelty of the King of the Oslesan Kingdom, King Vesh accepted Evan's presence well. He even agreed to his daughter's request.
As such, Evan had been designated as Knight, and the coronation was received unexpectedly.
His golden eyes sparkled as if they were precious jewelry. Perhaps because the future he would face would be more complicated than he imagined. His spirit was like a blazing fire, while something fantastic seemed to be able to extinguish the flames with the slightest touch.
It was Second Princess Aurellia Chaetris Oslesan who poured insults on his appearance the most. Still, in reality, she was only a girl, 4 years younger than Princess Ariella. The latter had just read a fairy tale about the Golden Eyed Demon.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Evan. It seems my attendants are a little excited about you."
Day after day, Princess Aurellia's mischief and cruelty towards him grew bolder when her sister was not in the Kingdom. She kept on doing small things like attacking him with a wooden sword under the pretext of practicing swordsmanship or asking her attendants to beat Evan to a pulp. Such things go far beyond mere jokes.
That was not the definition of spite because constantly committing cruelty to someone who has done nothing wrong. Still, it is an attitude that a younger sister takes to protect her sister so that the Golden Eyed Demon stays away from her sister. This only intensified as there was no one to remonstrate with Princess Aurellia.
When Evan was treating his wound calmly in the corner of the garden with the herbal ointment given by her mother, he heard Princess Ariella's voice above her head.
"Hey, Evan, what are you doing in a place like this?"
Evan immediately hid his battered face. He didn't want to look pathetic in front of Princess Ariella.
"Nothing, just looking for fresh air after practicing."
"It's been 1 month you have been here, and you still can't be honest with me." A girl with long silver hair with one braid tied with a black bow and gray eyes was sitting next to Evan.
"Princess! It will dirty your skirt." Evan tried to stop Princess Ariella from sitting on the grass.
"Fufu, you should be able to worry about yourself more than my skirt." She giggled with his concern for her.
"This is normal, so you don't have to worry about it."
"Huff, it must be hard to treat it yourself." She picked up the herbal ointment that he was hiding with ease.
"Ah!" He didn't realize that the ointment he was hiding had changed hands.
"You better shut up and let me treat your wounds ... This is an order!" Princess Ariella said the absolute sentence because she was sure Evan would try to reclaim it.
Under her orders, Evan could only put his hands back on the grass and let his face be cared for by a beautiful girl.
He didn't feel the hatred or disgust emitted by Princess Ariella after seeing him up close. Only the beauty and sweet smile that was caught when he opened his eyes.
"Yup, it's finished."
Evan did not understand how Princess Ariella could be that cheerful after helping heal his wounds. Since he arrived in Capital City only, she and King have not bothered with his curse.
"Aren't you afraid of these curse eyes?" Evan lowered his head.
"Erm, why am I afraid of those beautiful eyes?" Princess Ariella looked into Evan's eyes.
"That really is an unfounded excuse. How can you say that my eyes are beautiful? Please don't cheer me up with that." Evan looked down again and covered his eyes with his palms.
"So you think I'm telling a lie?"
"I didn't mean it that way, but it's because only you are praising my curse." Evan looked up and saw Princess Ariella, who was closing her eyes while enjoying the afternoon breeze.
"Indeed. My words cannot change anything to the people who hate you. But, at least... I want to change your view of the world, even if your existence is rejected by them. Maybe, you will realize that this world is not as bad as you think."
Evan stared at her with wide eyes. He was at a loss for words to answer Princess Ariella's advice, which had touched his deepest heart.
"Evan? Are you still there?" Feeling neglected, she slowly opened her eyes and saw tears falling down Evan's right eye.
"Gosh, you are crying? Did I say something cruel to you?" She panicked to see his cheek was soaked in tears.
"Huh? Tears?" Evan didn't notice that one of his eyes was shedding tears. He felt embarrassed and tried to wipe it with his sleeve.
When Evan was about to wipe away his tears, Princess Ariella offered him a handkerchief for him to use. She wore a gentle expression. Evan unable to turn down her offer of kindness.
"You just need to get stronger so that others will accept your flaws."
Evan did not know noble etiquette and had low education. Even so, Evan was willing to study tirelessly to master such things for someone's sake ... Someone who showed him a new view of the world.
For two years filled with blood and tears ... he managed to become a knight who actually defeated dozens of knights who already exist.
His philanthropic nature and good reputation with commoners and castle servants made him famous in the Kingdom. He was trusted by King Vesh to become the Knight Commander. His relationship with Princess Ariella was also getting more robust. When Evan started to fall in love with Princess Ariella, he felt happier than before.
However, this tale of a Peasant's fortune would be torn apart under cover of vicious hatred.
After two long years, Princess Ariella's job never ended, which upset the King. Without telling Princess Ariella, King Vesh transferred the task to the Second Princess.
Second Princess's annoying obsession with Evan made her accept the task without thinking twice.
"Evan, can you show the Weapons you got from conquering the Labyrinth?"
Help me win the contest! If you want to support me, please vote with power stones! Don't be afraid to share your suggestions, criticisms, thoughts and opinions. Don't hold back!