Anastasia was walking inside the palace with a scowl on her face. She was upset because a beautiful princess suddenly appeared out of nowhere. She should have been the one noticed by the prince, but it seemed he lost interest in everyone because of that one girl!
"Aren't you even going to apologize?" Anastasia exclaimed when she bumped into someone, her face contorting even more when she saw that it was the princess she disliked.
‘She's not even that pretty!’ she thought to herself. ‘And we even have the same shoes! Talk about bad luck!’
Anastasia wanted to confront the girl. She had never seen her before in Corohelia, so she was curious. Besides, she couldn't believe that the girl would just run away after causing a scene, and for some strange reason, the girl's voice sounded familiar to her.
"And why does your voice sound familiar? Have we met before?" Anastasia asked.
The girl wanted to speak, but Elizabeth arrived and shooed her away. Anastasia was furious, but there was nothing she could do as the girl had already left.
"Calm down," Elizabeth reassured her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "The prince merely took a liking to her, but they're not getting married yet. Your fight is not over."
"Mom..."
"When have I raised you to be weak, huh?" Elizabeth looked Anastasia in the eyes. "You're beautiful and intelligent. You can win the prince no matter what you do, alright? Now, go.”
Those were the words that Anastasia held onto. She stood outside the palace for a while, thinking about what she could do. She paced around outside the palace, and she happened to see the prince talking to a guard.
"Shoes?" Anastasia frowned as she looked at the shoes the prince was holding. They were just like hers.
She quickly hid behind a wall to eavesdrop on their conversation.
"Put this in the room," Ashton said before handing over the shoes. "I will find her no matter what. I will see that girl."
"Understood."
Prince Ashton left for a different path, and the guard walked closer to Anastasia.
"This can't be." Anastasia bit her finger while thinking. "If he sees that girl again, I'll have no chance!"
Anastasia ran towards the palace to seek help from Elizabeth because she didn't know what to do, but she bumped into the guard who had been talking to the prince earlier.
"Damn it!" she exclaimed when her shoe came off, the same happened to the guard. Both shoes flew to the ground.
"I'm sorry," the guard apologized, picking up the shoes. He gave one to Anastasia before leaving.
“Ugh. Fucking dimwit.”
Anastasia put the shoe on, but it doesn’t fit. Suddenly she realized something. “This isn’t mine…”
ANASTASIA’S LIPS broke into a sweet smile after telling her story, while Cinderella's expression turned sour.
"Everything that happened was simply fate's doing..." she said, gently stroking my cheek. "Don't blame it on the fact that the guard picked up my shoe, and not your shabby ones, okay?"
Every word she spoke was painfully sweet, accompanied by an even wider smile and a soft laugh. It was so sickeningly sweet that I felt like tearing her face apart.
"Are you telling me that my life is ruined because of that damn fate?"
I imitated her smile, but I made sure mine was even scarier. I held her pulse and gently twisted it.
"Are you telling me that you have no responsibility for what happened, right?"
The corner of my lips rose further, and I was pleased to see how her eyes bulged.
"What if I ruin your face just like you ruined my plans, and then say that I have no responsibility for what happens to you?"
I glanced at the scissors on the side, and she paled when she noticed what I did. "W-What are you planning to do to me?!"
"What else? I'm going to cut your face," I replied without hesitation.
I close my eyes while thinking about cutting Anastasia's face. The blood and pieces of her flesh scattered on the floor, her eyes rolling down the street, and her teeth that I will turn into a necklace…
"You're going crazy!" she exclaimed, tears in her eyes.
She was crawling away, so I acted quickly.
"Stay right there. We're not done talking, are we?" I said with a raised eyebrow, while her entire body seemed paralyzed.
"Aaaahhhh! Help!" she screamed, realizing that her life was in real danger. "You demon!"
I laughed. I grabbed the scissors from the table and approached her. "I am a princess, Anastasia. I am the princess of Corohelia."
I slashed the scissors across her face, down to her neck. I felt her struggling to breathe as I did it. I wasn’t cutting her skin yet, but she’s trembling in front of me.
What if I move her body again while the scissors are pointed at her? Surely, blood will flow if I do that.
"Don't! Please, don't!" she pleaded as I slowly buried the scissors in her neck.
"Hmmm?" I innocently gazed at her, but there was a hint of mockery in my voice. "You're so weak. You should scream louder."
"Anastasia, are you here?!"
I glanced at the door when I heard Dasha's voice. It seemed like they were leaving for the palace.
"Help! Help, Dasha—"
With a snap of my fingers, she couldn't speak anymore. I seemed like a witch now, but I had no idea where I got this power.
"You'll leave quietly if you don't want me to really cut your face now," I said seriously, showing the scissors. "Do you understand?"
She repeatedly nodded as if afraid I might change my mind. I sat on the bed and snapped my fingers, allowing Anastasia to move again.
Anastasia quickly ran and opened the door, and I couldn't react more when Dasha suddenly entered and hit me hard on the head with the baseball bat she was carrying.
Oh, damn it.
WHEN I woke up, I was alone in the basement. I winced at the sudden headache, but I managed to stand up.
I opened the door and almost cursed when I realized it was locked. Those annoying people had apparently locked me in here.
"Ouch..." I sat on the floor while continually cursing.
In an instant, I felt a breeze in front of me as if someone had passed by. When I lifted my head, I saw my mother, bloody and crying, staring at me.
"Ella..." she called out, with tears and blood streaming from her eyes and mouth.
I gasped and could hardly speak due to fear and a strange sense of sadness. I used to wonder why my heart always aches when I see my mother.
But now, with her blood flowing towards my feet, my questions were answered.