The Destiny of the Rainbow

Although Iris couldn’t fathom what Cadere meant by that, the rage was beginning to consume her. She had never been this furious before, it made her speechless in this situation. With calmness and firmness, she pushed Cadere’s hand that stroked her cheek.

“Did you think I would believe your words? Or could it be that you don’t understand the meaning of your words?”

“I don’t know. I’m just saying whatever comes to my mind. Maybe if mother asks me again tomorrow, I’ll offer you another answer?”

Cadere spoke while tilting her head, looking innocent. It seemed she didn’t lie, but Iris couldn’t contain her up-rising anger and talked with a loud voice.

“Why on earth are you doing this to me? Either the King or the daughter, all of you are insane! How…!”

“At least… If you have someone you can relieve your anger without worry, you won’t have to suffer alone. Don’t hold back. Think of me as my father. Swear and hit me to your heart’s content.”

“I don’t know what your true intention is. I’m not feeling well. Please leave.”

“Have a good afternoon, mother. Let’s talk about fun stuff tomorrow.”

Iris didn’t answer, but Cadere didn’t mind either. She bent her knees slightly and bowed deeply, then bid Iris goodbye politely. Still no answer from Iris.

Once Iris heard the door closing, she felt the burning on her palm. This was the first time she slapped someone and she found no pleasure in it. Rather, it was scary. She wasn’t scared of being punished, she was scared of the cruel behavior that secretly settled inside.

Iris tried to ball her fist but failed. Her lower lip got bitten real hard. She had lost interest in getting to the drawing-room and went back to where she sat before.

By now, the garden was covered with snow as the snow from yesterday hadn’t melted even though it had stopped falling. For that reason, she couldn’t see the flowers. Nevertheless, whenever she looked at the garden like this, the boiling anger and glumness subsided. That’s why she often sat here and watched the garden.

At that moment, Iris let out a dejected laugh. Often, she ran the gears in her head to search for a plausible reason to sit here, but she knew that was just justification, an excuse.

This palace was a prison.

There were dozens of rooms with huge and grandeur exteriors, even the interiors far fancier than the exteriors. Despite that, this room was the only one that had a large window. She couldn’t even take a single step out of the palace. The only place she could see how was the outside was through this window where she saw the garden at a glance. Where else could she see the outside?

Anger once again ignited. Iris’ eyes turned red. She felt lost, she didn’t know where to point this anger. To the King? The Princess? Was it all right to even get angry at them? If not, what about placing a curse on the fall of the Parviz Kingdom? She shut her eyes tightly. Her golden eyelashes were shaking.

Deep inside, she knew. That she couldn’t do that. Or, even if she had that chance, she couldn’t do it by herself. ‘It wouldn’t hurt to die because of craziness.’ She assured herself but didn’t feel the slightest bit relieved. Because it meant, she surrendered to fate.

It’s not like Iris was treated poorly. On the contrary, she was being treated lavishly. Dresses and gloves made of silk that she had never seen before, fans engraved with a unique pattern, as well as sweet desserts and meals. All of these screamed high quality. Things that Iris had only heard about from whispers were now becoming something common for her. Iris felt burdensome at first, but she now got used to it.

Still, no one was visiting her. Iris was always alone as she never had a conversation with a maid or servant. They were Parviz people after all, hence they were naturally the King’s people. The amount of time she spent talking to herself kept increasing. However, after days passed by talking to herself, she got tired of it and shut her mouth. More than rarely, she spent days without saying a word.

A month. Iris had been talking to herself, restraining anger, and immersing herself in a pool of depression for a month. Outside of this room, she had to face the fine but closed rooms and eyes that monitored her everywhere.

“I’ll come here again tomorrow…”

Out of nowhere, Cadere’s innocent face came to her mind. Her body trembled with disdain, she felt sorry and, although she thought it’s ridiculous, she was also looking forward to it. Then, she opened her eyelids and covered her mouth, shocked.

“Looking forward? I must have absolutely gone insane.”

How could she let herself have expectations when Cadere’s words were still fresh in her head. Iris didn’t understand what Cadere was thinking and what her intention was by the words she expressed, but the Princess was the reason why Iris was here. She must not forget that fact. Iris tried to ignore the eagerness that slowly kept growing.

However, in the end, Cadere didn’t come after a few days. Iris was disappointed and furious, even though she expected this outcome. She wanted to deny it, but it was clear that she was deceived. She was aware of her position, she still didn’t forget the words Cadere had said.

But unbeknownst to her, she felt betrayed.

Iris blinked slowly and stared aimlessly at the white garden where time had stopped.