Chương 7: Chapter 7. The Northern Devil
The amber eyes seemed cold and indifferent to everything.
It was only at this moment that Remesis' resolve shook within her. It was as if this encounter made her become a child again, and experience the same emotions she had in her previous life.
No, they were even worse.
Remesis gulped as she looked at the little girl, not believing that she was seeing a monster in front of her. In turn, she too kept her wary gaze on her. She looked like a feral cub of a beast.
Asil Nara Asheloth. A northern devil whose name people were even afraid to say out loud.
The main rumor about her, which was not really a rumor at all, was this: that even a newborn baby, just weaned, would be ripped from its mother's arms by her and brutally murdered.
Remesis had always known her wife to be just that. The person she feared more than anything else in the world. So much so that she didn't even dare to hate.
The image of a tall and statuesque girl, whose smile was like the grin of a predator, and made her internal organs go cold, remained far away in her memory. Now Remesis stood before her only a neglected child who could hardly claim any further power.
Her black hair was disheveled and reached down to her shoulder blades. Her amber eyes, which held incomprehensible emotions, were like two small suns. Tightly compressed lips and an indifferent face. A beautiful face.
Asil stood motionless beside the imperial carriage. It was impossible to read the emotion on her face. But she was obviously not thrilled with the situation, and neither was Remesis.
They were accompanied to the North by four royal guardsmen. A negligible number. Asil's belongings were piled in a heap and looked more like a mountain of trash. And she herself was dressed in a carelessly buttoned gray caftan and similarly colored pants, more like servant's clothes.
Anyone who saw this girl in front of him would never believe that she was royalty. Since at first glance, Asil looked more like a street vagrant.
Remesis held her breath.
In her first life, since she was scared to death, she simply didn't pay attention to it. Now, however, the girl was more in tune with what was happening. She noticed that even though they were both cursed children, their situation was strikingly different.
At least Remesis led a life similar to that of an aristocrat. She had her own room, clothes and food, and a personal maid. Even though she was disliked by the people of the manor, it didn't stop her from doing what she wanted to do.
As for Asil… That child was definitely more pathetic than she was.
There was only one star in her horoscope that the people around her were completely intolerant of. So much so that this person was denied the right to live a normal life in society since birth. The death star, Asdal.
It was said that long ago, the devil himself appeared under it. A man who inherits it brings nothing but chaos and destruction. One with more evil than man from the beginning. Just one such life can carry the threat of an entire nation.
Had the princess been born into any other family, she would have died while still an infant. However, the only thing that saved Asil was that she had royal blood in her. A member of the imperial family, regardless of their origin, was considered untouchable.
Even if she was a devil, the emperor could not kill his daughter. That would be a violation of the Oath of the Sun, which was taken by the first emperor. The law stated that the only justifiable reason for a royal assassination was treason. Therefore, Alexis Cesius Ashelot could not go against the First Emperor's wishes.
He had to keep his daughter alive. Even though she lost her status, Asil continued to carry on the royal family name. Which didn't really do her any good.
The lowly Crown Princess lived worse than a backyard dog. She had no allies in the Imperial Palace. For years, Asil lived in darkness all alone. This was the reason why, as she grew older, she was more like a beast than a human.
The child Remesis first met was completely unaccustomed to living among humans. Empathy, natural to every human, was simply absent in her. The girl did not recognize emotions and could not understand them. Even her movements looked clumsy and more like a bear trying to walk on its front legs.
The adult Asil was not much different from her childhood self. Except that she had become more calculating and cunning. That was one of the reasons Remesis was so afraid of her. How could one feel at ease around someone who was completely unaware of any human principles and morals?
The one boundary that separated humans and animals. The princess seemed to have lacked it since birth.
Remesis also did not forget that it was at Asil's hands that she had already died once. Despite the fact that they had been married for many years, Asil did not pity her in the slightest. Remesis had been murdered in cold blood just like any other human being. There was no difference between them.
However, things were different now.
To survive, Remesis must take control of her before this cub grows into an adult beast. Asil Nara Asheloth. Her only chance for salvation and an instrument of vengeance. In the war against her kin — Remesis was going to make her her sharpest blade.
But to do that… First she would need to suppress the fear bubbling in her throat and preventing her from even standing properly in front of her. After all the atrocities she had personally seen in the north, Remesis was terribly afraid of Asil. Even now, even now, when she was a child.
The shiver that had gripped her entire body gradually passed. The girl found the strength to come closer and make a bow.
— Remesis from Duke Carter's house greets Her Highness.
«…»
Asil didn't reply anything. Only stared at her in a detached manner. Though for a moment, surprise flashed in her gaze. No one had ever addressed her according to her status before.
— I am honored to be Your Highness's consort. I hope we can get along well together.
There was another brief silence. Remesis wondered if she even knew how to speak. Come to think of it, in their first life, they had communicated very rarely. The first time Remesis had been married, she hadn't stopped sobbing and had been forced into the wagon. They had not even said hello then.
But now Remesis spoke to her first. Asil recoiled only slightly, truly like a small animal confronted with something unknown. Her amber eyes seemed wary.
This brief encounter was interrupted by a guard. The man in armor and red cloak looked at both children with equal disdain.
— Come on, now. Hurry up and get in. How much more time do we have to waste on you?
The guardsman addressed them not at all as the princess and the duke's daughter. It spoke volumes about their position in society. Even the child of an aristocrat cursed by an unlucky star was considered nothing more than trash in the empire.
Remesis didn't want to talk to this rude man and didn't answer anything. She sighed heavily. Her hard life outside the manor was just beginning.
Both girls' belongings were roughly piled into a separate wagon and the children themselves were placed in the carriage. Seated on opposite seats, Remesis stared out the window. The preparations took no more than five minutes, after which the tiny carriage moved off.
Remesis stared at the gates of the Imperial Palace. The Emperor hadn't even come out to see Asil off. His own daughter was traveling far away, and quite possibly would not return. But Alexis Cesius Asheloth didn't care deeply about that.
Mentally, the girl chuckled.
Could this man have known that in just ten years he would be crawling on his knees and trying to reconcile with his daughter? His enforced place as ruler was in serious jeopardy. After all, he hadn't even hesitated to ask Remesis for help. Stabbing her in the back was the only thing he could think of in such a situation.
However, it's already known how it ended up…
Although the girl had died before she could catch further events, she was sure of one thing for sure. Remesis did not even doubt the success of overthrowing the current government. After all, by the time of her death, the northern army was known as the largest and most ferocious in the history of the empire.
Siege of even the Imperial Palace would be nothing more than a rabbit hunt for them.
«Huh…»
However, for Remesis, this was just one of the reasons to have a good relationship with Asil while there was time for it. It didn't matter even if they divorced in the future. Remesis did not at all want to be on the enemy list of the man who would have this entire country in his hands.
The journey to the North was going to take at least a week. All this time the carriage was silent. Despite her young age, the princess was already very secretive and suspicious. However, considering the life she had led so far, it was not surprising at all. A child who had been abused for years was obviously distrustful of those around her.
And the new wife, who was privy to the details of her former life, didn't risk imposing on her. This was a case where rushing into things was clearly not going to lead to anything good. For starters, they should just get used to each other.
«…»
Asil, meanwhile, continued to keep her gaze fixed on her. It was quite creepy. It was as if a beast was watching its prey from the darkness. Even with the fact that it was a child doing it, Remesis was still uneasy. The girl gathered her courage and pretended not to notice it.
There was a reason they say that beasts always sense fear. The basis in taming them is to stop being afraid of them.
Remesis repeated this to herself like a mantra as they rode towards the border of the northern region. After a few days, the green hills and fields were replaced by snow and cold. The north had indeed been an abandoned region for many years.
After the previous lord of these lands died without leaving behind an heir, no one cared about these lands anymore. Overnight, the mighty northern garrison that protected the empire from dangers and was the emperor's reliable rear guard turned into this.
After the death of the lord, the barbarians — wild tribes living in the mountains, felt their impunity and began to ravage the local settlements. The emperor did not dare to send his men to fight these bloodthirsty savages. Otherwise, it would have consumed a significant portion of the empire's resources, which were needed in the capital.
As a result, years later, there was nothing left of the North's former greatness.
That Remesis was able to survive in such a place surprised her to this day. Many times she found herself on the verge of death, but the terrible fate miraculously escaped her. In the end, she ended her life not by the spear of barbarians or wild beasts, but banally at the hands of her own wife.
«Indeed. My death was as ridiculous and pathetic as my entire life.»
Although Remesis knew that she probably wouldn't die before the age of twenty, that didn't mean her life wasn't in jeopardy. After all, it happened all the time. Being in the north, even closing one's eyes for a moment could be a deadly mistake.
The barren lands were full of danger. Endless hunger, the possibility of dying from frostbite at any moment, assassins' arrows, and monsters were all things that could never become commonplace for a normal person.
But the main snag of the dangers of these lands lay in their unpredictability.
It was still a long way to the capital of the north, the fortress of Nord, but the carriage came to a sudden halt in the middle of the snowy road. Remesis held her breath. The knife hidden in her sleeve had been at the ready all along.
— Well, children, here we are.
The guardsmen accompanying the carriage drew their swords. Horse neighing and profanity came from the street.
— Brrrr… It's so cold in here! I can't wait to finish and go home.
«…»
The tension in the carriage was rising. Remesis swallowed dry saliva, expecting them to rush inside at any moment. There was no point in running now. And where to, anyway? There was nothing but endless snowy desert everywhere.
— Hurry up and get out. We promise it won't hurt.
The rolling laughter was like the hiss of a pack of hyenas surrounding the wagon.
The eight-year-old girl only gripped the knife tighter in her small hand. She was scared and excited at the same time. Asil was silent. As before, the expression on her face made it impossible to guess what thoughts were swirling around in her head.
In the last few years of her quiet life, Remesis had experienced fear for the first time. The very kind that made her heart grow cold and a herd of goosebumps run through her body. The fear of death.
The girl wasn't exaggerating in the slightest, remembering her days spent on the northern edge. Every one of them had been filled with a deadly threat. Which had begun… Today.
After all, the first danger they would face when they first arrived in the North was the Emperor's mercenaries.
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