In the middle of the night, where the moon refused to give its light and the stars hid behind a blanket of clouds. According to the astronomers, tonight was the night that they had all dreaded for the past hundred years, and seeing it with their own eyes felt like doom was already at their doorsteps.
The dark sky began to swirl into a whirlwind, as the clouds turned the colour of blood, followed by bolts of lightning.
"Master, the prophecy has come to pass," a boy said as he knelt behind his master, who was standing at a tower staring at the clouds with knitted brows and hands behind his back. His long garment flowed in the air, highlighting his mysterious frame.
"I know. It took longer than expected," he replied, his voice devoid of emotion. His wrinkled face held no expression. He was too calm for someone who knew disaster was coming. His brown eyes stared at the clouds, though a flicker of fear glinted in them.
"Go and inform the Emperor about the ordeal that is coming," he paused before continuing again. "Tell him, the star of doom has chosen his household," he said, before shaking his head sorrowfully.
With the master’s request, the servant quickly rose from the ground, paying his respect one last time before climbing onto his swords, flying out of the tower.
...
Deep within the palace wall, a blood-chilling scream pierced through the cold, silent night. Maids were running to and fro from an extravagant building some rushed in with bowls of clean water, and the others running out came with bowls of red liquid.
Inside the room, a woman’s fist dug into the bedsheets as she cried in agony. "AAARRRGH!"
"Push!!! Your Majesty," the midwife urged, as she tried to stop her bleeding. Other maids gathered around the woman, wiping her sweat and trying to bring down her temperature.
"Push!!! Your Majesty, or we might lose the baby," the midwife cried out again.
Gathering all her strength, the empress gave one last push, and the baby finally came out.
’What is going on? Where am I? Am I not dead?’ the villain thought inwardly.
He had been in a very dark and quiet place for a long time, and he couldn’t tell how long it had been, but he knew he had been in a deep slumber, with few hours of being conscious.
He snapped his eyes open, and his eyes immediately met with that of a giant middle-aged lady. ’Why is everyone so big?’ he couldn’t help but stare at the woman who was staring at him with widened eyes. ’What was that? Is she afraid of me? Does she remember me?’ Different thoughts swirled in his head.
He looked around the room, the heavily lit room with burning candles. It was decorated with flowers, expensive linens, and gold antiques.
He was surprised when he felt the woman trembling as she held him. Immediately, the midwife fell to her knees. "Your Majesty, your child... your child is born with hair like snow," she cried out, her hands visibly shaking while she held onto the child.
The empress got up with her eyes widened in horror. She looked at the baby in the maid’s hands, and her chest tightened with fear. "He’s... not.... crying," she muttered.
"Why isn’t he crying?" she cried desperately.
’Why should I cry? I’m not a baby.’
"But Your Majesty, remember the prophecy. The demon is the only one who would be born with hair like snow... Maybe he is the child... We should report this to the Emperor and get rid of this disaster," the midwife urged.
Suddenly, she grabbed the midwife by her neck, drawing her closer . "You will speak of this to no one. Do you all hear me?" She turned to the other maids who had taken some steps away from the baby.
"Now make him cry!" she ordered.
’Child? Does that mean that I have been reborn?’ his brows furrowed.
The midwife took the child and began to hit him on his butt. ’Stop hitting me, you old lady! else I will burn you to ashes, how dare you?’ but his words came out as a cry.
"No, no! that’s not me, stop crying!" he shouted in his head, but nothing came out from his mouth except more crying.
"Plum," the empress called a maid from the crowd.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Help me up," she ordered. The maid quickly helped her to her feet. "None of you must tell anyone that I have given birth!" she warned.
As the villain was still busy trying to stop himself from crying, a beautiful woman, who looked distressed as if she had been subjected to hard labour, appeared in front of him. Her black hair clung to her face, and she reached out her hand, cuddling the child in her arms.
The empress smiled sweetly at her child, even though she knew he was nothing but disaster, she couldn’t bear the thought of killing her own child. "My wonderful child," she called with love, her hand caressing his little cheeks. "I’ll make sure no one will ever look at you with disdain." As she utters her words, a white energy forms around them.
The empress who he believes to be his mother began to channel her energy into his body, but he wasn’t moved by her act, as he believed everyone had an ulterior motive.
He felt his body overflowing with too much energy. He closed his eyes, relinquishing the taste of power, but suddenly, all the energy flowed into his core, placing a seal on it.
After the lady had finished the transfer, the baby’s white hair turned black. The villain’s eyes snapped open. "How dare you place a seal on me!" his mouth opened wide again. Bawwwwaawaaawaa.
The empress immediately handed the child to the midwife before spitting out blood. The other maid quickly held her in place. "Are you okay, Your Majesty?" came the panicked voice of the servant.
The queen nodded her head weakly, but her eyes sparkled with a pleased look, as she saw the baby’s eyes had turned white. A weak smile graced her lips.
But her smile was short-lived when a servant suddenly bolted into the room. "Your Majesty... your..." the servant’s ragged breath echoed through the air, keeping them in suspense.
"Spill it out!" the empress commanded.
The servant’s lips parted as he regained his strength. "Concubine Artherine has given birth to a male child. Since she gave birth first, her child will be the crown prince."
The words shook the empress, her smile disappearing from her lips. Plum, the handmaid of the queen, stepped forward. "Lies! Her Majesty was the first to give birth. Her child is already 30 minutes old," she argued, her blood boiling.
However, the empress raised her hand, stopping her maid. "It doesn’t matter if I gave birth first. The most important thing is who the patron heard first. Since you are already here, I believe the news has reached the his ears."
The baby villain stared at the sad and painful face of his mother. ’What an irony. I can’t believe I have reincarnated with the same omen as in my past life, where even my mother had abandoned me because of my hair colour... but this time, she is willing to fight for me,’ he thought, before putting his hand in his mouth, sucking on his fingers.