Stigmata

I am not Cursed

The reason Theophania wore a veil was rather stupid, in a tragic way. Or, was it tragic in a stupid way?

Regardless, it all started years before her birth, as such stories always did. The world she was born in was a fantasy world, after all, so it was only natural that a Demon King should arise at some point. Among the Heroes sent to fight it were Theophania's parents; King Theodore Albrecht I and the Saintess, Lady Keira Shay. Together with their comrades, they defeated the Demon King and saved the continent from certain destruction.

Had the story ended there, it might have been a happy one.

Alas, the story was about Theophania, not her parents, and a story without conflict isn't much fun to read.

After defeating the Demon King, Theodore Albrecht brought the Saintess back to his kingdom to be his Queen. One of them, anyway. The wife he'd abandoned to go off fighting alongside the Heroes of other nations had kept the great kingdom of Acan running in his absence. Her tight control of the nation's nobility and ruthless application of law had earned her the moniker Iron Queen. All this while raising a child who had never met his father. How shocked must she have been to see her husband returning from war with another woman in his arms—and his heart. Aiyah~, such a tragedy.

She had every right to be upset. Her husband's infidelity aside, her child's position as heir could be usurped at any time if the Saintess bore a son. Given the circumstance, it made perfect sense for her to plot against her husband's new wife. I probably would have done the same, were I in her shoes. Well, maybe not exactly the same. Bribing the previous Archbishop to proclaim the newborn Theophania's eyes 'cursed by the Demon King' was a little excessive, even for me. Still, I couldn't help but sympathize with the Queen. She was my favorite character, right until the end.

Of course, that was back before I was Theophania. Now, I was the one bearing the 'Demon King's curse', and it was so annoying. I could barely see through the veil I had to wear everywhere I went, and I always had pain in my neck at the end of the day from watching my feet to keep from tripping over things. The embroidered fabric was beautiful, though, and blessed by priests of all different faiths to keep the 'curse' at bay.

I was almost a little sad to watch it flutter away when a large, armored hand caught me before I could follow it down the stairs. I winced as blessed steel dug into my diaphragm. Bracing myself against his arm, I looked up at Ser Valerian. Because of the veil, I never knew what anyone around me looked like. I instead learned to identify them from a combination of their footsteps, voices, and silhouettes.

Naturally, I had no idea that Ser Valerian had red hair. Or a beard. Or a broken nose in an otherwise perfectly handsome face. It was no wonder all the young initiates swooned over him. His eyes were chocolate brown and wide with—.

Oh. Right. How stupid of me.

I turned my gaze down to my feet and made sure I could support my own weight before curtsying to the handsome paladin. "Forgive me, Ser Valerian," I said as tonelessly as I could. "Thank you for catching me."

He shifted his weight and I had the feeling he was about to speak, but he was cut off.

"You vile wretch," the abbot spat. He marched back up the stairs until he stood right in front of me. "You dare to cast your curse on a paladin of Alítheia? I should lock you in the hall of penance and forget about you!"

I kept my face blank and my eyes downcast. I wanted to kneel down and retrieve my veil, but that would only put me in the perfect position for a beating. I thought I would be able to avoid one with Ser Valerian and the new Archbishop around, but... I sighed internally. I should have been watching my feet. From the corner of my eye, I saw the abbot raise his hand and I tensed in anticipation of a blow.