Exclusive Chapter 01 - The Unloved Son

*splash*

*splash*

A small chubby child of three years old sat at the edge of the pond and cheerfully played with the nearby stones. He kept the ones he found pretty and threw the others into the pond.

“Big sister will definitely like this one. It’s pretty just like her eyes!”

The toddler happily exclaimed after picking up a small ice-blue pebble.

His clothes were dirty and patches of it were torn up, showing the various bruises on his tender skin. Even with all the scars and scratches, there was not a hint of pain or anger in the child’s face. His chubby cheeks contained an everlasting smile of innocence that refused to be extinguished.

He was isolated from the world around him, ostracized by his own family, beaten by other kids, and yet the toddler’s arctic blue eyes shined as bright as the stars.

“Tch, that trash Roran is still here. How long is he going to live here? Doesn’t he know that everyone hates him, including his own father? To think he continues to take abuse from others, his brain must be addled by now.”

A walking guard muttered as he patrolled by.

………...

This child was abandoned on the day he was born. Even his mother had quietly passed away right after giving birth to him in their small humble hut. If she had a midwife to help her, then things might have gone differently, but the world was not that kind.

The child grew up in the slums but eventually, one day, a guard found him and brought him to a man. The two-year-old back then did not know what was going on as the intimidating large man stood in front, just glaring at him. The boy unknowingly felt tears welling up in his eyes, but he silently stifled them after seeing the expression change on the man’s face.

“Take him out. He can live in the unused shed outside the manor. Make sure he gets his meals, but other than that, tell others to leave him alone. I’ll deal with Selia later on this matter. Leave!”

“Yes, my Lord.”

The servant quietly responded and left with the child in his arms.

……………………

*CRASH*

“How dare you, Mort! A servant? Am I that ugly that you had to go to a damn servant!?”

A shriek of a woman howled in a large bedroom in the Axier manor. The woman was absolutely gorgeous, or would have been if not for the current rage in her face. With dark glossy hair and high cheekbones, the woman's skin was as fair as the moon. 

“Selia, it was a mistake…one that I highly regret.”

Mort’s calm voice sounded in the air.

“Is that all I get from you? Regret? There is a damn child with your blood loitering around the manor! Did you ever think how humiliating that must be for me?”

Selia’s shrill voice continued to rage at Mort.

“Sigh… the child is already born, there is nothing I can do now.”

Mort tried to calm his wife down.

“What about Felice? How are we to explain to her that the filth outside is her brother, but I’m not the mom!?”

“Enough! I will deal with all these matters. I just want you to not cause trouble for the child. Half of his blood might be common, but the other half is still mine!”

Mort then walked away and ignored the rest of Selia’s tirade.

The sound of glass breaking against the door resounded throughout the corridor as soon as Mort closed the door behind him.

“The fates must be playing a cruel joke on me… To finally have a son and yet not be able to call him your own.”

With a sorrowful voice, Mort walked away.

…………………..

Meanwhile, a little girl of three years old was happily skipping around the pond. She had long lustrous black hair tied in a pony, and a striking pair of ice-blue eyes. She had an extremely adorable face with gorgeous eyelashes that would put even a grown woman to shame.

She also carried with her a basket with several dolls and some fruit inside. While she was walking, she stooped down to pluck a flower that caught her eye.

“So pretty!”

She placed the flower in her basket along with the other items there and continued strolling.

When she finally found a location she liked, the little girl sat down and placed a blanket on the ground. She then took out her dolls and set them up on the blanket. Feeling a bit hungry after the walk, the little girl took out an apple and started happily munching on it.

While the girl was completely focused on her apple, a chubby boy of around two years old slowly made his way sniffing around the area.

When the little girl saw him, she giggled, as she found the boy amusing with his nose held up high like a dog. Hearing the laughter of someone, the boy turned towards the direction of the little girl.

With his mouth drooling at the sight of the apple, he turned a pleading eye towards the little girl.

Seeing his pitiful expression, the girl happily gave the apple she was eating to the new stranger.

“Hey, what’s your name?”

She asked in an adorable sweet voice, while the boy greedily devoured the half-eaten apple.

“Ror…ahn!”

The toddler responded in broken sentences.

“Eh? You can’t even say your name yet? Hmm... then I’ll just call you Rory!”

Hearing the voice of the girl, the boy cheerfully nodded his head while pleading for another apple.

“Haha, from today onwards I will be your big sister! By the way, my name is Felice!”