TSMMT Ch 127

Herya the Enchantress (1)

In truth, Guiscard Lodbrog had never been granted the Lodbrog surname. He was merely the son of a maid whom Herya had brought from Panborough. Everyone believed this, even Guiscard himself.

[Herya] "Shut that kid up! He's too loud!"

That was Herya, the woman in his memories. Young Guiscard swallowed his sobs as the woman he believed to be his mother roughly gagged his mouth. He looked up at Herya, covering her ears, glaring down at him. With radiant golden hair and striking green eyes, she was breathtakingly beautiful.

The favorite concubine of the King of Lodbrog, a daughter born in the forest to the late King of Panborough, and the cherished half-sister of the current Panborough monarch. Woman of the forest and swamp. Those were the titles that defined Herya, the Panborough princess turned royal concubine of Lodbrog.

They said the King of Lodbrog had fallen hopelessly in love with her at first sight during a visit to Panborough, courting her fervently before taking her as his favored concubine.

[Maid] "Hurry, let's go! Quickly!"

The maid dragged young Guiscard away as he wept.

An exquisitely beautiful yet hysterical woman, that was his very first memory of his biological mother.

He lived in the Lodbrog royal palace as an unwanted outcast, quiet and parasitic like mold creeping through shadow.

How could the child of a foreign maid ever be welcomed? Furthermore, the maid had arrived unwed, having recklessly conceived the child of a Lodbrog man.

People whispered endlessly whenever they caught sight of young Guiscard and the maid.

Who was the father? Why had she behaved so promiscuously? The maid—whose name he could no longer even recall, whom he had believed to be his mother—suffered the indignity of being called 'Mother' by a child she had never borne. Consequently, she harbored nothing but resentment toward him.

Everyone avoided Guiscard as if he were a contagion. He occupied the lowest rung of the palace hierarchy. Minor childhood mistakes were treated as catastrophic blunders, and with each passing day, the woman acting as his mother grew increasingly cruel.

Thus, he learned to read the room and bow his head. As a maid's son, his fate was clearly that of a servant, eventually assigned to serve Herya, the king's favored concubine. Naturally, there was little his tiny hands could accomplish, drawing constant scorn from others.

[Servant] "Must be nice having it so easy."

[Servant] "Hey kid, you ought to be grateful you're from Panborough."

[Servant] "Hey, you vermin! Stay out of sight!"

Panborough? Lodbrog? What do those mean?

He only understood the concept of nations much later. He asked the maid, but she never explained much, telling him only to do his work properly.

He wiped when ordered to wipe, swept when told to sweep. He moved things when commanded, and would have died if ordered to die.

When the king visited Herya, Guiscard hid himself as best he could. He fled and hid from the stable boys who bullied him, and ran away on days when the maid exploded in mad fits of rage.

Of course, a young child's attempt to escape almost always ended in failure.

[Maid] "Why! Why do I have to take care of you?!"

[Guiscard] "..."

[Maid] "Why do I have to look at you all the way out here, you filthy brat!"

Though she didn't beat him, she glared down at him with eyes full of cold resentment, eyes entirely devoid of affection. Every time she looked at him like that, he wished he could turn into an actual insect and crawl away.

Everyone in the royal palace looked at him with those exact same eyes. Guiscard grew intimately familiar with such gazes, feeling as though he were the most wretched creature on earth.

Yet, one woman stood completely detached from all that filth: Herya, the favored concubine. With golden hair cascading down to her waist, she was dazzlingly beautiful. Wherever she stood seemed like a scene from a dream, leaving Guiscard spellbound.

Because of this, he would sneak glances at her while pretending to clean her chamber, deriving a small measure of comfort simply by beholding her striking face.

[Herya] "What brings you here today?"

[King] "What do you think...?"

Guiscard pretended to arrange the vase in her room. The king stroked the woman's hair, speaking affectionately.

[King] "I came to see my woman."

[Herya] "Bullshit."

She burst into a sharp, mocking laugh, glaring at the king. Guiscard felt anxious; the air between them was precarious.

[Herya] "Why? Afraid I'll bear your child? You're a lunatic. You're obsessed with getting me pregnant!"

The king let out a low chuckle.

[King] "What is so wrong with that, Herya? Since you came here out of infatuation, serve me properly. Is there any other king who would treat a woman so kindly after she miscarried his child, hmm?"

[Herya] "You tricked me! Just to get your hands on my blood!"

[King] "Your blood is part of your charm."

[Herya] "You're a blade-obsessed maniac! I will never give you what you want!"

Startled by her outburst, Guiscard dropped the vase he was lifting. Hearing the shatter, Herya glanced over. The moment her eyes locked with Guiscard's, she shrieked hysterically.

[Herya] "Get out, you cursed brat!"

[Guiscard] "..."

[Herya] "Get out right now!"

[King] "Who is that kid? My, Herya..."

Herya suddenly straddled the king.

Frightened, Guiscard bolted out of the room. That day, he was slapped across the face by the maid for the very first time.

---

[Herya] "What is wrong with your face? Did your mother slap you? Come here."

For unknown reasons , Herya summoned him the following day to venture into the forest.

Riding a horse for the first time, Guiscard entered the dark woods. Strangely, he felt at ease.

[Herya] "Do you like it here?"

[Guiscard] "I think so."

[Herya] "Good. Then let's come often."

From that day forward, Herya took him along to walk through the forest as though walking a puppy. The Abyssal Forest, a colossal expanse dividing Lodbrog and Panborough. Yet, she traversed it with light, unbothered steps.

[Herya] "Come over here! You'll get eaten alive if you're not careful."

Annoyed by his slow pace, Herya snapped at him. Keeping up with her adult stride was difficult for a young child. Though the forest teemed with monsters, nothing ever appeared when he stayed close to her side.

It was a dangerous place. He used to wonder why the knights never escorted her, given the extreme hazards of the woods. Eventually, Guiscard realized the knights simply saw no need to guard her.

To a kingdom proud of its sword-crazed monarch, a woman who refused to obey the king's commands held no value anyway.

At times, she left Guiscard sitting by the root of a tree, wandering off only to return humming a tune. In those moments, she looked as innocent as a girl of the woods rather than a highborn royal.

Yet, returning from those walks didn't mean Herya held any true affection for Guiscard. At times, she shrieked hysterically in fits of rage, engaged in intimacy with the king, and in exchange, went on another 'walk' into the forest.

Herya continuously brought Guiscard into the Abyssal Forest, as if it were her sole sanctuary.

However, as the king's favored concubine, she possessed many enemies. Unable to touch Herya directly, people occasionally targeted her entourage, and Guiscard fell victim to their malice.

[Mikhail] "What are you?"

[Guiscard] "..."

[Mikhail] "Judging by your clothes, you're no noble."

[Guiscard] "..."

[Mikhail] "Play with me."

A young child dressed in shabby rags stood out all too easily.

[Mikhail] "Hey, run properly!"

Guiscard sprinted through the garden, hearing the neighing cries of a horse. The tyrannical prince pursued him, an arrow grazing his cheek. Terror seized the young boy.

The queen longed to vent her rage on Herya but couldn't, making Guiscard an easy target, a child born to a Panborough maid. Thus, he became Prince Mikhail's prey.

While Mikhail presented a courteous facade to others, he was merciless toward inferiors. He fired arrows at him, forcing Guiscard to flee in terrified screams.

Save me.

No one heeded his desperate plea. People merely watched the spectacle. Whether he tumbled onto the dirt, crawled on hands and knees, or slipped into the pond, it was nothing more than entertaining sport.

When he fell into the water, Mikhail poked him repeatedly with a long spear.

[Mikhail] "Hey, run!"

[Guiscard] "..."

[Mikhail] "Run faster before I kill you!"

Spurred by the threat, Guiscard scrambled up and ran once more.

[Guiscard] "Mother! Mother!"

He soon found the maid carrying a pile of laundry. Naive as he was, he believed she would save him.

Even if she wouldn't, she was the only adult he could turn to. Yet, upon glancing back, she quickened her pace and retreated inside.

Something... something is wrong.

That was the day Guiscard learned never to harbor expectations from the world.

---

[Herya] "Foolish brat."

[Guiscard] "..."

[Herya] "Why did you go there that day?!"

She spoke sharply. Looking at her face contorted in contempt, Guiscard bowed his head. The maid bowed low beside him.

[Maid] "I am sorry."

[Herya] "Useless creature. Believing a worm like you was a mistake. Why are humans so profoundly stupid?"

Stamping her feet in fury, she glared down at the bruised boy.

[Herya] "Pathetic, useless fool."

[Guiscard] "..."

[Herya] "Why were you even born...?"

Those words were identical to the ones the maid hurled at him daily, so they no longer wounded him. He stared blankly at the floor.

[Herya] "Right. I suppose my time to die has arrived."

[Maid] "Pardon?"

[Herya] "Spread my legs for that bastard countless times, yet no pregnancy again. Meaning my usefulness has run out."

Placing a cigarette between her lips, Herya ruffled her hair in frustration.

[Herya] "Cursed bastard... Humans were never meant to be trusted."

She muttered darkly.

After that day, Guiscard shed the last remnants of childhood innocence. He no longer sought help from the maid, acting entirely on his own. He let insults slide past him and stopped deriving joy from watching Herya's back.

Before long, he noticed people whispering about him in a different tone: an unchildlike boy, an unlucky brat, a chilling creature.

He spat curses back at them, growing quietly in the shadows while navigating people's glances like a wild animal.

On that day as well, Guiscard accompanied Herya on a walk. Though his body was covered in bruises, Herya remained as fickle as ever, and he had learned that some things simply had to be endured.

Strangely, the maid accompanied them into the forest this time. Herya strolled into the woods while humming a tune, whereas the maid trembled in fear as she gazed at the Abyssal Forest.

[Maid] "Lady Herya, how far are we going? We must leave before nightfall!"

[Herya] "We aren't leaving."

[Maid] "Pardon?"

[Herya] "We are going to Panborough."

[Maid] "What?!"

[Herya] "Don't you see? That king could dispose of me at any moment."

[Maid] "..."

[Herya] "We are heading back to Panborough. There are plenty of fools there who adore me."

Herya smiled sweetly.

Panborough... What kind of country is that?

Guiscard didn't know.

[Herya] "Right. Might as well reveal it here. Guiscard, I am your mother!"

What...?

Herya offered a dazzling smile, but Guiscard found it creepy. Looking closely, that smile contained absolutely nothing. Her feelings toward him were hollow. In comparison, the maid, filled with hatred, felt human, as if possessing actual emotion.

[Maid] "L-Lady Herya, saying that here..."

[Herya] "Why not? It's not like you ever treated him like your own child anyway. Isn't it true you found Guiscard a nuisance, even after I paid you so much money?"

[Maid] "..."

[Herya] "Well, a maiden suddenly becoming a mother with a child must have been tough. I understand."

Herya maintained her smile, but to Guiscard, it felt unnatural and exaggerated.

Just as the maid attempted an awkward smile in response, a sickening crunch echoed. Blood splattered, drenching his entire body.

[Herya] "Still, you shouldn't have raised a hand against my son, right?"

A plant with a colossal maw clamped onto the maid's neck. As the creature lifted its bent stem after snapping onto her, the maid's body dangled uselessly in the air.

Guiscard shrieked in terror.

[Herya] "Why, Guiscard? Aren't you pleased too?"

He screamed again. Herya looked freakishly cheerful.

And just like that, the maid who had raised him—whom he had called Mother—was gone.

---

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