[Get the hell out of here, you worthless shrimp.]
[You're a disgrace to humankind.]
[The world is better off without you. Just hurry up and die already.]
These were the words from people cursing me at our kingdom's market district. I've been hearing such words for as long as I can remember now, and as unbelievable as it may sound, I'm only 14 years old of age.
As young as I am, I always wondered why everyone in the kingdom harbored so much hatred toward me. I grew up at an orphanage, where l made a few friends, but when I turned 8, the owner of the orphanage casted me out, and as a result, I started living in solitude on the street, without friends or anyone to lean to. I survived from picking up food from trash cans and sometimes worked for shop owners the whole day who'll pay me with a plate of food in the evening. Some people just threw food at me like l was a dog, and I had no choice but to pick it up and eat to keep on living.
I dont know my parents or any of my relatives, but l had a hunch they abandoned me just like how everyone else in the kingdom hated me. There's a magic academy where children my age and below go to learn magic. I was never allowed to set a foot near it, so I never learned how to use magic, but I didn't let that stop me. I worked hard, trained each and every day, and in the end, I was able to learn to cast a little magic just for self-protection.
After being chased away from the market district by people, l grabbed my torn-sack bag with my belongings, which were just a piece of bread that was now hard as a rock, a bottle of water and my old jacket that was given to me by the Orphanage-Head although its gotten small and too old for me, l still keep it.
As I walked away, cursing my miserable life, I saw a bunch of bandits ganging up on a girl the same size as me. Judging by her clothes, it was safe to assume that she was a child from a rich noble family. I wanted to mind my own business and walk away, but then I heard her crying for help. Her voice was full of despair and nervousness, and I couldn't bring myself to look away. It's true that I'm the outcast in this kingdom, hated by all, but that doesn't mean I'm heartless.
I dropped my sack and rushed in to help her, but I was welcomed with a punch in the stomach. There were five of them, and I was alone.
"Get out of here, you cursed brat before you jinx us."
"Leave that girl alone, please,"l pleaded
The moment I said that, one of them cast a fire spell on me, and I started burning. I could feel the pain surging all the way to my bones. I used the little magic I taught myself and cast a spell to cover myself with water, which luckily, pulled the fire off.
The hooligans were shocked.
"I thought you weren't allowed to go to magic school, so why the hell is it that you're able to use magic, huh!,"one of them asked in annoyance.
The others kept harrasing the girl. I knew there was nothing much I could do to help her, but still, l had to try whatever I could. My energy was already running low from the spell l used on myself. I never had a huge amount of magical energy to begin with.
They started beating me and passing me to one another like I was a ball. I felt dizzy. I couldn't stand straight or see clearly anymore. Until l saw the royal knights heading toward us, and l let out a sigh of relief. Help was here at last.
"What's going on here,"one of the royal knights asked. I was too beat to explain, so I hoped the girl l saved would explain on my behalf, but what she said next ripped me apart.
"I was attacked by this cursed kid from nowhere. These gentlemen came to rescue me,"she lied.
"Cursed kid, huh,"l asked myself. I never understood what they meant by that, but almost everyone in the kingdom called me a cursed kid. Surprisingly, no one ever bothered to explain to me why they all thought I was cursed.
"Please, dear knights. Eradicate this jinxed kid before he curses the whole village. He was wild and violent. He almost killed me,"the girl added to her lies. That's when I realized that she must be working with the bandits, and they pulled an act in front of me to get me in trouble or find a reason to kill or get me killed.
"You've gone out of control, you monster!. It's time for you to die and leave our kingdom for good,"the knight said, drawing out his long and sharp sword that shined and reflected with the sun rays.
He raised it up high and asked,"Any last words, kid?"
I looked on the side and watched as one of them stepped on top of my bread and water. I felt hurt. If only they could have let me eat my last meal before dying, rather than killing me on an empty stomach. Well, it doesn't matter anymore. I'm done with this life. It was nothing but miserable after all.
I watched as the knight aimed his sword straight to my neck as he cut it like it was nothing. And in that very instant, l died on the spot
I woke up in a white place that had nothing else except a very bright light in front of me. I was in white clothes, my neck was intact, and l wasn't feeling pain anywhere. In fact, l felt alive and healthy more than ever.
"Is this... the afterlife?,"I asked, not really expecting an answer. To my surprise, the white light in front of me replied in the sweetest voice I had ever heard.
"It's not exactly the afterlife kiddo; it's a place between life and death."
I was shocked to hear the light speaking, but it didn't seem like it had bad intentions toward me, so l kept the conversation going.
"Okay... So, is this where dead people like me hang out or something?" I asked, sitting down and gazing at it.
"Not quite. This is a special place, one that only a few have seen. It's a place where you can get a second chance at life."
"What? A second chance at life?"
"Yes indeed. You lived a painful life, but you remained kind no matter how badly people treated you. For that, you deserve a reward to live another life."
I stood up and walked around in circles, digesting what I had just heard. I thought of all the terrible things that had happened to me when l was alive. I wasn't ready to go back and experience that kind of life again. I would prefer to stay in this place. At least it's peaceful.
"No, thank you. I don't want to go back to my life. I prefer to rest in peace,"l responded, and the voice from the light let out a chuckle.
"I understand your concern," the light said. "However, you won't be going back to your old life. You'll be reborn in another world, one very different from the one you knew."
My face lit up. A second chance at life in a new world, where I could make friends and feel like a real person. A place where all the people who called me a cursed kid wouldn't be around. That didn't sound so bad.
"Okay, I accept," I replied, and in that moment, the bright light in front of me grew even more intense, blinding me in the process. Within a few seconds, the next thing I saw was myself surrounded by a few smiling women.
"Ncoww.. look at him. Your child is so adorable, Cinderella. I'm so jealous,"one of the women said, and that's when I looked at myself and realized I had tiny baby hands.
"Where am l?,"I asked, and everyone opened their mouths agape in shock.
"Did he just talk?"
"Seems so...."
"Unbelievable! How can a newly born baby talk?"
The woman carrying me who l assumed was my mother raised me up and looked at me in the face.
"My cute baby boy is just extraordinary,"she said with a smile.
"Babies don't talk. That's.... that's impossible,"the other exclaimed.
"A talking baby! Nothing good can come from this. It's a sign of a curse,"the grumpy one muttered, and others except my mother nodded in agreement.
It seems I've already made a couple of enemies on my first day in another world. If I'm not careful, I might re-live the life where everyone called me a cursed kid. I can't let that happen, so starting from today, I'll not talk.... well, at least not like an adult. I should learn baby language. So.... how do babies talk again?.
"Gugu-gaga..."l paused, making a cringe face from what I just said, and my mom laughed.
Gosh... It's gonna take a while for me to learn how to talk like a baby.
Before long, l started falling asleep in the warm hands of my mother, and l just relaxed and enjoyed the feeling of being carried by someone who actually cared.
Tbc