The First Color
Ariel Robeheim was born the sole daughter of the Robeheim family, one of the three great powers of the Empire. By the time she began to walk and speak in earnest, her surroundings had already become starkly different from those of ordinary children her age. Even adults two or three times her size hurried to bow their heads, and her breakfasts were always served at a long, wide table that felt oppressively grand. Her mother, Helene, was a warm and attentive woman who loved her daughter dearly, yet the duties of the house often kept them apart. Sometimes she would depart for distant lands to support her husband’s official work, returning only the following day without even sharing a meal. In those moments, the nursemaid Metel stayed by Ariel’s side, but that was all.
Alone at that vast, lonely table, the small child sat and, following the etiquette she had learned since infancy, cut her meat and brought it to her mouth.
“Munch, munch……”
It was undoubtedly the finest cut of meat, inspected and prepared with the utmost care—something ordinary people would never taste in their entire lives. Yet why could she taste nothing at all? With an expression as if she were chewing paper, Ariel continued her meal and glanced around. Every servant stood with their heads bowed low, avoiding her gaze entirely. To the young Ariel, they looked like emotionless puppets.
After finishing her meal, Ariel returned to her room and threw herself onto the soft bed. Though she had been precocious enough to leave her mother’s embrace at an early age, that did not mean she felt no longing for it. On the contrary, she missed it more fiercely than any ordinary child. Her mother’s arms were never a place she could simply run to whenever she wished.
“I want to see Ed……”
Even for her, there was one person she could call a friend. He was the only son of the Bilhark family, a vassal house bound to the Robeheims. According to her mother, she had thought him a suitable playmate for her daughter from the age of two and had arranged for them to become friends rather than bringing him in as a servant. The result had been a resounding success.
Whenever Ariel was separated from her friend Edgar, she would always end up like this in her room. It was not only because she missed him terribly, but because he was the first person to bring color into her otherwise colorless white world. No matter what precious ornaments she broke or how far she crossed the line, those around her never said a word. Or rather, they could not. Aside from her parents, no one had the authority to do so. Even her nursemaid, who had plenty to say, often swallowed her words and merely moved her throat in silence.
The first time anyone other than her father or mother scolded her had been about two years ago. It was the day her mother had first taken her to a social gathering. There, Ariel met a young lady from another house who possessed something Ariel had never seen before.
“What’s that in your hand?”
“This? It’s my favorite toy. Want to see?”
The girl led Ariel to a corner and covered her hands and skirt so no light could enter. Strangely enough, the toy began to glow. Ariel’s eyes sparkled just like the toy at the sight of this wondrous object. For someone who usually received everything she desired brought straight to her, this was a rare experience.
What would an ordinary child do in such a moment? They would probably beg their mother to buy them one later, or ask the girl if they could touch it just once. But that was the reaction of a child with ordinary sensibilities.
“Can’t you give it to me?”
“No. I really like this one.”
Ariel did not know why she did what she did next. Though she was only eight, she was no fool. She knew that taking someone else’s belongings without permission was wrong. Yet her hand reached out anyway, seized the toy, and yanked it toward her with force. The girl lost her balance, fell, and burst into tears.
“Mommy……!”
“……”
The child cried out desperately for her mother. Soon the girl’s mother arrived, drawn by the sound of weeping, and heard what had happened. As the girl tearfully complained that Ariel had taken her toy, Ariel tried to calm her pounding heart. In that moment—
“You must have been startled because of my child. The toy is fine, so please take it. There, there, stop crying.”
While wiping her daughter’s tears, the woman looked at Ariel with eyes that clearly said, Take it and leave at once. She wanted no further involvement, nor did she wish to create unnecessary trouble over the matter. If Ariel had obtained what she wanted, she should simply go and not make things worse.
Ariel felt something heavy drop inside her chest. Why isn’t she blaming me? Anyone can see this is my fault. Why does it sound as if she’s blaming her own daughter instead?
“Mommy, that was my favorite toy……”
“Come now, Mommy will get you a new one. All right?”
With that, the mother and daughter left. Ariel returned to Helene’s side, clutching the glowing toy. When her mother asked in her gentle voice where she had gotten such a thing, Ariel’s heart began to race again.
“Oh, another child gave it to me!”
“Did they? What a kind child. Did you say thank you?”
“Uh, yeah!”
Thank you? Of course not. She had not even managed to say sorry. Yet even amid her guilt, she looked forward to meeting her friend next week. When he saw this strange toy, his eyes would surely sparkle just like hers. That alone, she believed, would wash away this shameful feeling.
A week passed, and Ariel visited Edgar’s family home. He always grumbled, yet he always granted her requests—whether she begged him to play with her, asked him to fetch fruit from places far beyond a child’s reach, or pleaded with him to get rid of a disgusting spider. Today, she intended to repay him by giving him her precious toy. Though she had essentially stolen it, she believed he would forgive her. After all, almost no one had ever refused to forgive her actions before.
“Ed! Look at this!”
“Oh, what’s that? It glows when you turn off the lights?”
“Isn’t it amazing?”
As expected, Edgar showed interest. Ariel puffed up with pride, convinced her judgment had been correct. When he asked where she had gotten it, she answered without hesitation.
“I went somewhere with Mom before, and I got it from another kid!”
“Got it? You mean you took it?”
“Uh……?”
His voice had suddenly turned cold. Ariel sensed something was wrong. He was right—she had taken it. To that girl, it must have felt like an act of ruthless, icy violence.
“Tell me. Did you steal it?”
“Actually…… yeah. You’re right, Ed.”
“Haah. Did you tell your mother?”
Letting out a deep sigh, her friend asked for the full story. Ariel carefully set the toy down and shook her head. Of course she had not told her. She had even lied shamelessly when the truth would have been difficult enough to admit. When she confessed everything, Edgar silently picked up the toy and placed it back in her hands. Then he spoke.
“When you see that friend again, you have to return it. Without fail.”
“B-but I wanted to give it to you……”
“I don’t want something that was stolen. I don’t want it at all.”
It was the coldest, most emotionless, and most painful voice Ariel had ever heard from him. It felt as if his words were slicing into her skin. Tears welled up in her eyes at once.
“Don’t cry. I won’t feel sorry for you even if you do.”
“Hic…… I’m sorry, Ed…… I won’t do it again, hic……”
“Stop that. All right?”
Faced with an expression that suggested he might never see her again, Ariel clung to him, tears streaming down her face. She admitted she had known it was wrong yet had stolen it anyway. When she poured out her honest feelings, Edgar’s expression soon softened slightly.
“First, return it to that friend and apologize. However you can.”
“Okay…… I will. Hic. How?”
She did not ask how. She feared that if she did, he might storm out and leave for good.
“And tell Lady Helene the truth as well. She’ll probably help you find that friend.”
“Okay……”
In other words, she had to confess everything to her mother, receive a scolding, and then borrow her help to meet the girl. This boy wanted her to atone for every sin she had committed by confessing to everyone she had wronged. That was why he had even suggested this solution.
“Until you apologize to that friend, I won’t be your friend anymore. Got it?”
“W-wait! I’ll go see Mom right away!”
Startled by the sudden ultimatum, Ariel jumped up, grabbed the toy, and hurried off to find her mother. When Helene saw her tearful daughter and asked what was wrong, Ariel confessed everything she had hidden until now—the toy she had stolen from another girl, the lie she had told her mother about receiving it as a gift, and the fact that she was now on the verge of losing her friend because of it.
After hearing the whole story, Helene neither scolded nor blamed her. Whatever Ariel said from now on, her friend’s words would likely carry far more weight and take root. What a wonderful friend she has.
“Mother will find that child for you. Let’s go together next time, all right?”
“Okay, Mom……”
“Now, dry your tears and let’s go see Ed. It will take some time to find that girl, so we should ask him not to end your friendship until then.”
“What if Ed gets angry?”
Helene chuckled at her daughter’s innocent worry and gently stroked her hair. She was certain the boy had deliberately taken such a firm stance to ensure Ariel would not try to delay or cover things up. If he handled it this way, Ariel would at least tell her mother the truth.
“It’s all right. Has Mother ever lied to you?”
“Uh-uh…… No.”
“Then shall we go together?”
With Helene’s help, Ariel managed to secure Edgar’s temporary reprieve. Three days later, they finally located the girl whose toy had been taken. Ariel brought not only the stolen toy but also one of her own cherished playthings as a token of apology. Thanks to one friend, she had learned a lesson she would never forget in her life. Even if everyone around her forgave her, there was someone who could still scold her when necessary. The name of that boy, Edgar, grew ever larger in the heart of the girl who had finally realized this truth.