Previously
Thiel, a hybrid of the Snow Leopard and Black Panther clans, is neglected and abused by her grandfather Sinder and aunt Cornelia for her lack of freezing powers and her golden eyes. After being locked on a freezing balcony while the family celebrates Rowen's success, Thiel dies from exposure and despair.
The child hurriedly picked up a piece of a broken mirror that lay on the floor.
In her haste, the sharp edge sliced slightly into her fingertips, but she paid it no mind. She stared into the mirror shard with wide eyes.
Reflected in the glass was a wretched-looking child with hollow cheeks, frizzy white hair, and golden eyes.
Thiel muttered, staring at her face in the mirror.
‘How am I still alive? I clearly died.’
On that snowy day, right on the balcony of her grandfather’s office. Whenever she closed her eyes, she could still hear her grandfather’s shouts.
She remembered the balcony as well, where she had felt so cold, lonely, and terrified.
She also remembered hearing the laughter of Rowen and her grandfather as her consciousness faded.
‘Yet I’m alive? Am I dreaming?’
Thiel stared quietly at the mirror shard in her hand. A drop of blood welled from the finger cut by the sharp edge.
The proof was the aching finger dripping with blood.
What was more,
Thiel carefully pushed aside the hair on her forehead. The scar was plain to see.
The wound was from falling when Rowen pushed her down the stairs a month before her death.
Right before she died, the wound had almost completely healed, but now it was still quite large and red.
Thiel muttered, carefully touching the wound on her forehead.
The wound stung.
When she pulled her fingers away from her brow, a thin layer of blood stained them.
Thiel murmured quietly, looking down at her hands.
A faint flicker of light gleamed over her scarred hand, then quickly vanished.
‘Did I see that wrong?’
Thiel looked at her hands again, but the light did not return.
It made sense to see things like that, having just returned from death.
Thiel stopped staring at her palms and slowly raised her head.
In Thiel’s vacant eyes, the attic ceiling strung with cobwebs was reflected.
‘I’ve returned to the past.’
That meant if she did nothing, she would die all over again in a month.
Thiel’s eyes narrowed.
The voices of her grandfather and aunt still echoed in her ears.
The cold draft from the balcony lingered in her chest; she felt it freezing her body.
Clasping her chest with her small hands, Thiel thought,
‘I hate the thought of dying again.’
‘Being trapped on that balcony once more.’
And hearing the laughter of her family as she died was even worse.
Thiel rubbed her aching eyes with the cuff of her sleeve.
The corners of her eyes flushed bright red as she scrubbed them hard against the coarse fabric.
Even so, Thiel didn’t mind the sting, making a silent vow as she held her small, open palms up to her eyes.
“I will run away. Even if I lose my way and die alone, I will run.”
Thiel nodded firmly to herself.
Thiel pondered, sitting on the floor.
Her maternal family, the Nestians, lived amidst snowfields. Even if she managed to escape, she would obviously freeze to death.
Thiel chewed her fingernails, quietly staring into the mirror.
Just then, her golden pupils reflected back at her.
The moment she looked at the eyes her grandfather and aunt had always despised, calling them grotesque, a thought flashed through her mind.
After uttering the name under her breath, Thiel took a sharp, startled gasp.
Instinctively glancing around to make sure no one was watching, she finally let out a sigh of relief.
Mentioning the name Asterian was strictly forbidden within the Nestian estate.
The Asterian family of the Leopard clan.
The Nestians of the Snow Leopard clan and the Asterians of the Leopard clan had been on terrible terms for generations.
The fact that Thiel had never been acknowledged as a granddaughter was because she carried Asterian blood.
That was why Grandfather Sinder always looked down at her and muttered,
Remembering Sinder’s words, Thiel lowered her head.
It wasn't just her grandfather; Thiel’s aunt Cornelia, Rowen—the next head of the Nestians—and the household servants all told her the exact same thing about Asterian every single day.
They said if the Leopards ever saw Thiel, they would kill her instantly.
No family would ever welcome a half-breed like her.
Yet Thiel, having lived in the Nestian household her entire life, knew of no other family besides Asterian.
The world was far too cruel for a little child without any ties to survive alone. Even so, if she remained with the Nestians, it was clear she would die within a month.
Therefore,
Because the Asterians were the only people she knew even the slightest bit about.
The Asterian territory lay on the opposite side of Nestian land.
Unlike the Nestian estate, where snow fell year-round, the Asterian territory was said to have a very mild climate. So even if she was driven out, the Asterian lands would be far better suited for living on her own.
Thiel tried to whisper the unfamiliar word a few times, but stopped herself. If she dared call him father, he might kill her on the spot.
Her grandfather and aunt had told her that everyone in the Asterian family loathed her.
‘…Still, I am her daughter. Wouldn’t they take care of me if I promised to eat very little and live quietly?’ A glimmer of hope flickered in Thiel’s eyes.
She had managed to survive on a single piece of bread every two days, so she planned to plead her case by emphasizing that.
With her destination chosen, the question now was how she would escape. Thiel’s room was in the manor’s attic, and since it was in the most secluded corner, there was little chance of being discovered if she slipped out.
However,
Thiel sighed as she watched the knights patrolling the grounds through the window.
Besides, there wasn't a single servant in the manor who didn't recognize her face. If she stepped outside, she was certain to be beaten half to death and dragged straight back to this room.
Just then, the attic door swung open.
Blinded by the sudden flash of light, Thiel reflexively shut her eyes.
Standing beyond the open door was Emma, the maid who brought Thiel her food.
Emma.
Thiel feared Emma more than any other maid in the manor. It wasn't because Emma beat or insulted her.
Rather, it was because Emma rarely fed her. Since she was the only maid in the estate permitted to enter the attic, Thiel had to starve until Emma chose to bring her something to eat.
Emma marched toward Thiel with an irritated scowl, and Thiel flinched reflexively.
Emma grumbled as she tossed two hard loaves of bread down in front of Thiel.
Stamping her foot angrily, Emma spat, “Having to be a maid to a half-breed!”
Thiel’s eyes widened at Emma’s words, her mouth parting slightly.
‘Come to think of it, someone from the Imperial Palace arrived around this time.’
‘I just remembered.’
A month before Thiel died, Rowen Nestian, her cousin, had become a candidate for Crown Princess. To be precise, every girl of age with the Crown Prince was considered a candidate. For that reason, the Imperial Palace had dispatched the Emperor’s direct aide to assess Rowen, leaving the Nestian household bustling with preparations to receive the imperial guests.
Naturally, Thiel did not care.
However, Thiel had barely had anything to eat while the palace guests stayed.
The door was not locked, so she could have left the room if she wished, but she hadn’t dared.
Because her grandfather was so terrifying.
Recalling the memory, Thiel bit her lip.
‘No, this is actually good.’
Emma wouldn’t even come near the attic while the guests were there. All the maids in the estate would be trying to win Rowen’s favor. Cornelia would be entirely preoccupied with dressing Rowen up, paying no mind to Thiel, and neither would Rowen or her grandfather.
This was her chance to run away while the guests were at the manor.
Emma turned and hurried out of the room. Thiel then picked up the two loaves the maid had thrown down.
Still, she was glad the food brought today was bread, which she could hide beneath the blanket she usually slept under.
Thiel’s meals were usually either watery soup or rock-hard bread. Had it been soup, Thiel would have had to flee the manor without any food at all.
Grumble—
An embarrassing sound rose from beneath her thin nightgown, right from the belly where her ribs showed, but Thiel tucked the bread away.
Even if she was starving, she couldn't eat it now.
If she remembered correctly, this was the last meal Emma would bring her while the guests were staying.
Swallowing her hunger, Thiel turned around.
Ching—!
With a faint shimmer of light, the child vanished without a trace, replaced by a scruffy, tiny snow leopard cub. Yes, it was Thiel.
The small snow leopard trembled. Other snow leopards could easily endure this level of cold, but Thiel could not.
Because she carried the mixed blood of a Leopard and a Snow Leopard, her fur was thin. As a result, Thiel was always vulnerable to the cold.
Shivering, Thiel crawled beneath the blanket where she had stashed the bread.
Spotting the tiny snow leopard cub clutching the bread, the mice that had scurried over at the scent hesitated.
Thiel closed her eyes, cradling the two loaves in her small paws.
In order to escape, she needed to recover her strength first.
Thiel clenched her tiny fist, her thin lips pressing tightly together.
Today, she was going to escape this manor.