Thief of Twilight

Part One: Chapter 2

"H-Hey! Wait!" I was stripped of my clothing before being tossed into a wooden bath. Several coughs escaped my lips. "Hey! H-Hold on!" the two of the three women began to neatly fold my clothes.

One woman grabbed my left arm.

"Hey! I can-!"

"It's not coming off! The dirt!"

"How long do you think she's been out there? Poor thing!" another woman searched the bathwater for my legs.

"She must have been a beggar!" a third woman began rinsing my hair.

How can your skin be so dark? Do you play in the dirt all day?

"Stop!" I snatched back my arm. "Just stop! Shut up!"

The three women stepped back. Two of them clutched at the wet rags in their hands.

"I-I'm sorry..." I breathed. "I...I didn't mean it..." rubbing my head, I leaned back. "Can I just...have a moment to myself?"

The three women looked at one another before stepping out of the room.

"Shit..." I sighed heavily. I didn't mean to scare them like that. I didn't mean to yell at them either. It's just that so much has happened in such a short amount of time. I haven't had the chance to wrap my head around it. So far...my mission was compromised. I fled Khurut and now I'm in Sincheon. Si-woo, who if I remember correctly, said that he was a hunter and helped me get into the city. I was "bought" at an auction for eight million silver which is a pretty hefty price. But hey, I won't complain. I know my worth. Wait a minute...I haven't gotten my money yet! Did Si-woo say when I would get the money? I'll figure that part out later. What's more important is this emperor.

"Emperor Kang..." I muttered. "Kang...Kang..."

Those eyes. Like a pair of cold coins.

"Ugh." I took a quick look around the bath. The walls were white but I couldn't tell if it was natural stone or painted. The floors were wooden just like the bath but they probably weren't made out of the same kind of wood. There was a doorway with a single-window beside it which let me know that this was definitely an outdoor bath. The room was pretty empty for the most part. Except for a purple robe that hung on the wall opposite of me.

"Whatever." I quickly washed up before calling the three women back into the bath. I must say, this bathing chamber is completely different from the ones in Khurut. A wooden bath instead of one built into the floor. One of the women helped me dry my hair while the other two dried my body. I've dealt with this before. People who were afraid to touch my skin. They often looked at me like I was some type of disease.

"Don't worry." I breathed. "You won't get a virus or anything." they're lucky I don't know any poison magic or spells of that nature.

"Our apologies..." one of the women spoke up in a soft voice. "It's just that we don't know...we do not have people of darker skin in our country."

"It's very rare." another chimed in.

"I can tell..." I mumbled.

"But..."

I looked down at the woman who dried my feet.

"Your skin...we apologize."

"....Sure..." I looked away. I guess I'll have to deal with that here too. But I won't be here for long. Once I get the money from this Lord Kang guy, I can flee to another country before contacting Lord Baldwin. That's right. Lord Kang is the one that bought me.

"Um...excuse me." I cleared my throat. "But where is Lord Kang?"

"He is in his room." the woman drying my hair quickly answered.