Central district of China, on the rooftop of one of the most prestigious high schools.
"Bastard, you've got a lot of nerve showing up at school with that disgusting face."
"Eew, turn him around, I don't want to look at him."
"Disgusting pig, why don't you stay in your garbage home instead of coming here to make us puke?"
Neragan knelt on the floor. His uniform was torn and ripped, revealing several patches of disfigured skin that belonged to him.
Around him stood a group of high schoolers, all of whom showed extreme disgust on their faces. Their disgust was directed at Neragan's abnormal skin, which eventually turned into cruel bullying.
It was typical for him to be bullied in his daily school life, and most likely to have trash thrown at him. Names like pig, ogre, goblin, and trash bag were attached to his identity.
Today was a usual day. Surrounded by classmates, the usual bullying continued for Neragan. Under the harsh criticism of his classmates, Neragan's head stayed low. But he wasn't crying, nor was he angry or sad.
He had calm eyes and an smiling face. He knew his own body, the disgust others would feel toward him, the discomfort they felt, and their urge to treat and dispose of him as if he were trash. He was aware of their thoughts, and he wasn't blaming them.
If he were in their place, he knew he would do the same—nobody is comfortable sitting next to an ugly, disgusting freak.
However, He hadn't been born this way. Years ago, he had been ordinary in appearance and lived an ordinary life happily. The day he got into a road accident was the day that changed everything.
Neragan's head continued to stay low, and a classmate who was popular and surrounded by others threw a trash bag at him.
The bag's tie loosened upon contact, and the trash spilled onto Neragan, resulting in a terrible stench washing over him. Within moments, Neragan felt something on his face, and as he observed closely, he noticed tiny wriggling worms dancing on his skin.
Among the figures that surrounded him, there was an apparent leading figure. A young man with a dignified face leaned against the rooftop fence, casting his gaze toward the girls' netball team training in the playground.
His eyes lingered, casting a lackluster gaze hidden by boredom-filled pupils. While the others focused on throwing waste at Neragan, only the young man remained uninterested. Yet Neragan knew all this bullying was being led by this seemingly innocent guy.
Before the fateful accident, Neragan had been a youth on the edge. In a school where punishment for bullying was nonexistent, Neragan had been a whale in a deep sea. At minimum, half of those around him now had once been punished by him for bullying.
In fact he was kind of like a hero.
Back then, he punished others because he was strong and capable and protect those innocent, while his victims were weak but cruel. But now, times had changed.
Lying on the ground, Neragan looked up, and the clear sky came into his view. Like the sun slowly drifting to the west, the meaning of irony slowly sank into his mind.
A deep shine spread in his eyes. The words of harsh insult and ridicule did not slip into Neragan's mind. Soon, they would get bored and leave him alone. Until then, Neragan would endure in silence.
It was a method that offered the most peaceful outcome from bullying.
To him, this time period is like the harsh time those hero's in fairy tale experience. and he strongly believe there would come another day that he could become a heroic figure he was once before, and able to beat all thsoe that hurt him.
At that moment, another bag of trash fell on top of him. The source of who had thrown the bag was unknown. Similar to before, the bag's tie loosened upon contact, and the contents spilled out.
But this time, the bag was not filled with leftover food or trash, nor meals crawling with worms or foul-smelling liquid. Instead, inside was a round object marked with the symbol of a knife.
In the moment Neragan saw the object, his mind fell into instant disturbance.
The object fell to the ground, rolled, and ended up closer to Neragan's hand.
Neragan's hand moved, and he picked up the round object from the floor.
However, the eyes that once held a calmness akin to the dark sky of the night vanished from Neragan. Instead, signs of frowns and uncontrollable anger began to show.
The school bell rang, and the bullies soon started to head back.
"Let's go."
After even the girls' netball team members began leaving, the young man who had been leaning on the rooftop fence also started to head back.
While passing by Neragan, the young man dropped a packet of half-finished milk he was holding, right onto Neragan's head. The cold milk dripped down his face, and a smirk appeared on the young boy's face. He was entertained and had no fear of being punished for what he had done.
Unexpectedly, this time was different. Neragan quickly grabbed hold of the boy's hand. The disgusting hand, stained with trash and worms, touched his clean hand.
But that was the least of his worries. Once he had a hold of the hand, Neragan stood up and grabbed the young man firmly. Afterwards, like a wild pig, Neragan pushed forward until they crashed into the rooftop fence.
"What—get off me!" the young boy exclaimed.
Neragan did not say a word. With a frown of anger showing on his face, he then jumped from the fence, holding the young man with him.
. . . . . . . . . .
The cold autumn wind blew through the city of Pira. In this city, the streets were brightened, trees were decorated, and men and women sang and danced. The noble house of Hyra plentifully handed out treats and sweets to the commoners.
"Hahaha, so good that you have come here."
The head of the Hyra household was a middle-aged looking man, dressed in long, beautiful robes. A feather glowing in a crimson shade was wrapped around his head, as if the man's hair were a pillar of fire.
The Hyra family head welcomed an old man, who was the lord of Pira City. The old man was dressed luxuriously; golden jewelry embedded with gems adorned his hands and neck. His very presence was like the sight of the descending sun on the horizon—his golden shine was overwhelming.
"My old friend is about to see his grandchildren, so how could I not be here?"
The city lord returned the family head's greeting with a smile, and a slight hug was shared between them.
"Come, come—this way."
The family head laughed and led the city lord inside, along with the other important figures who had come with him, into the banquet hall.
A banquet was held in a grand manner. All cheered for the Hyra family. Although the grandchildren were still not born, this was a tradition held in Pira Village called the Fate-Sealing Ritual. It was believed that by performing all the celebrations that would eventually take place after a child's birth beforehand, they could seal the fate of the unborn child and celebrate its destined future where he will born without a worry.
"My old friend, did you hear about the children born in other families? Rumors have it that when the Nemi family's grandchild was born, the ancestral spirit inhabiting their family grave cried out. Some even say it was the rebirth of their ancestor.
And the Palake family's newborn grandchild crushed an iron ring worn by the family head—right in front of my eyes."
The old man wore a smiling face, but the weight of his words pressed heavily on the heart of the Hyra family head.
Soon, the banquet was over, and the guests departed after giving their blessings for the grandchild about to be born.
A day passed...
The once cheerful house of Hyra had fallen into silence. At the doorstep of the midwife's chamber, the family head of the Hyra household walked back and forth. At his side was his son, biting his nails impatiently. Surrounding them, the elders of the family were all present, gazing at the midwife's room with worried yet hopeful eyes.
Within the midwife's chamber, the screams of a woman echoed—the wailing cries of a mother enduring the pain of childbirth.
The woman's screams continued, shaking the hearts of the family head and his sons. Then, all at once, the screams of suffering came to an end, and the midwife's chamber fell into silence.
The elders of the family, along with the family head and his son, all looked at each other. Their hearts were tense, and they were almost about to rush into the midwife's room.
But it all came to a halt when the cry of a newborn child echoed out from the midwife's chamber.