Lila was a 16-year-old girl, but her life seemed like someone much older. Since the age of 11, she had been a vagabond, wandering the city streets in search of food and shelter. She had seen things that most people would never see in their entire lives: poverty, violence, and despair.
But it was what had happened in her past that haunted her the most. Several years ago, bandits invaded her village and massacred her family. Lila and her older brother escaped together, running through the fields in search of safety. But at some point, they were separated, and Lila never saw her brother again.
Since then, Lila had been alone, struggling every day to survive. Despite her youth, she had developed a strength and determination that amazed everyone who knew her. But still, pain and loneliness haunted her.
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POV Lila:
Since that tragedy, I have been wandering aimlessly, trying to survive each day. Sometimes I'm lucky and find some food or a safe place to rest, but most of the time I have to fight for every bite and every space where I can sleep.
I often wonder if my brother is still alive, if he is searching for me as I am searching for him. But the reality is that I have no way of knowing. I don't know if I'll ever see him again or if I'll have to live with the uncertainty of his fate forever.
Every day that passes, I lose a little more hope of being able to live happily. Today, like any other day, I was just thinking about giving myself an end and resting in peace forever. But something inside me urged me to keep walking and crossing so many places.
"I guess this will be the place where I die..." I thought as I felt the cold of winter pierce my skin through the dirty rags that I once called clothes.
I have traveled to many places, and I have used some not very ethical methods to survive. That's why I haven't found a place I can call home.
As I walked, I came to a city, and with the knowledge I gained from some people who took pity on my situation, I managed to sneak in unnoticed and without alerting the residents.
When I saw the city up close, it looked very beautiful, from the houses with strange but fascinating shapes, to the rare but majestic trees that gave it a rather mystical touch to this place.
As I walked and observed my surroundings, some colorful trees caught my attention. They were in a well-built park with wooden benches and paths surrounded by beautiful flowers and trees with blue and purple hues. I approached to see them up close and noticed that the flowers were glowing slightly.
It was beautiful.
I even thought this place would be perfect for my grave...
I no longer wanted to keep fighting. The pain of hunger and the terrible feeling of cold that I was currently experiencing were sinking my spirit and only destroying my mind more and more.
But before I could keep thinking, a pleasant smell caught my attention, and instinctively, I headed in that direction.
There I found a man sitting on one of the many benches in that place, but everything around me was overshadowed by the man since he was the most handsome man I had ever seen in my life.
He had a majestic short silver hair that contrasted with his slightly sharp eyes of the same color. He also wore a white and black suit that made him look like an important and elegant man.
I really didn't want to ruin the scenery that man was seeing, but the sweet aroma of the food he held in his hand limited my movement, making me stay relatively close to him.
The man seemed to notice my gaze and turned his head, looking at me with those beautiful silver eyes, and apparently, my appearance seemed to move him. After a while, he finally said:
"Come, sit here, if you want one," the man said and pointed to the empty side of the bench.
Normally I would have refused since there were all sorts of bad people in this world, from kidnappers, rapists, and even types who use your body for cultivation, but remembering my terrible situation and, above all, the protesting sound of my stomach, I decided to approach him.
"Even if he is a bad person, at least someone handsome killed me and not an ugly old man," I told myself as I comforted myself in case the situation was as I imagined.
Surprisingly, it wasn't bad at all. He even gave me his food and didn't flinch at my appearance or my smell, which wasn't the best.
He only asked for my name and age, but when I answered the latter, he looked extremely surprised. Although I looked very pitiful, did you know that my mother was the most beautiful woman in the village? She was so beautiful that some even thought she was a noble from somewhere.
But I didn't dare to say it, as what good would it do? It would only insult the memory of my beautiful mother, who I currently possess and who serves as my comfort in my worst moments.
The man once again looked moved and after thinking for a while, he gave me a bag containing a total of ten stones that shone dimly and some sort of pill.
I knew very well that these stones were the currency of cultivators that my older brother always talked about, as it was his dream to become one. It was very valuable, but what am I going to do with this? Go to a sect and work until death?
It may sound very stupid to say in my position, but in my travels I have heard many things and according to rumors that once entered my ears, cultivators treat mortals like slaves, especially if you have no future in cultivation. How could a village girl like me have the aptitude for cultivation?
Going there would only be looking for them to mistreat me to death, and I just wanted to have the most dignified ending possible.
So I thought of other viable methods in which I could use these resources. While I was thinking, a certain rumor came to my mind, which was about a lucky vagabond who managed to get a nobleman to take her in as a servant and eventually after a few months, she was promoted to concubine.
Although I never thought of becoming the concubine of this handsome man, I'm sure that my beauty inherited from my mother could secure me a position as a servant or something, if he gives me a little food and allows me to use the bathroom.
For some reason, I thought this was very viable, so I immediately executed my plan. The first thing is to give a sense of gratitude and then follow it until he accepts me. It sounds like a very stupid plan, but I believed it would work somehow.
When I put on my abandoned puppy eyes, which I always do when I go begging, I remembered the backpack that always accompanies me, and immediately went to get it.
This backpack is special because it was sewn especially by my mother and is a reminder that I was once happy. So no matter what happens, I will never abandon it.
When I picked it up and returned to where I found the man, he was no longer there, so I searched for him and finally, after a few moments of searching, I found him walking and appreciating the scenery. I prepared myself for a moment to do everything possible to get him to accept, even to throw a tantrum. Pride? That doesn't exist when you're dying.
As I approached, I put on a pitiful look and to give more credibility, I held the edge of his sleeve.
"Look, Lila..." when I heard this, my heart raced and I even thought of crying in the most pitiful way so he wouldn't walk away.
But he stopped and started thinking. In the course of his thinking, his face changed, and he began to look at me evaluatively until finally he nodded and said to me:
"Lila, do you want to become a princess?"
When he said this to me, I was completely shocked, so I nodded absentmindedly as I processed his words.
Princess... me?
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Pov Illios:
When I arrived at the mansion with Lila, I immediately called Mery to bathe and prepare her. I also asked her to scan Lila's body for any diseases and ailments, as I need her body to be healthy for my next move.
Finally, after two hours of waiting, Mery entered with Lila and her transformation surprised me a bit.
Her dark and silky hair cascaded down her shoulders, while her deep, dark eyes reflected the shrewdness she had acquired over the years of survival.
Her smooth, pale skin shone under the lamp light as she quietly moved down the hallway, dressed in the cultivator's robe that Mery had prepared for her. Although she didn't have many curves, she looked good.
Her beauty was evident even when she was still a little malnourished and weak.
Overall, Lila was destined to be a beauty if she had not fallen on hard times. Furthermore, her beauty would only grow even more if she started cultivating, which would result in her being worthy of being the first woman to test the viability of my plan.