crown [C. TARTAGLIA]

30

ever since childe could remember, he had been trained by professionals hired by the queen to make him stronger.

he was a frail child and was scared of all of it at first. why was he forced to do all this training? why did it have to be him, and not his older siblings who sticked with learning from books? he hated how he was shunned away only because he was the weakest out of the three.

the young kid couldn't disobey either, for it was the queen's orders that he should get stronger. if there was one thing she taught him, it was to never disobey her or doom would soon come his way.

it horrified him, even reaching the point of hatred towards his so called mother, but in the end he agreed and attended every training.

over the next few years, his frail state would improve for the better. he would no longer last a day without sparring with anyone, it was as if something awoken in the kid.

his older siblings noticed this too but thought that it was for the better since it made him stronger than before.

by the time he reached thirteen, it was time to actually do his duties as a prince.

"your mission will be to take care of... problematic, connections of mine. is that clear?" the tsaritsa orders him.

"of course." he bows.

this was the start of his mission, the mission to eliminate hindrances to the throne. it was one of the secrets of the palace, a group called the fatui which consists of the older siblings and trusted guards.

their job was to handle the dirty work that couldn't be let out to the public. as soon as childe joined the said affiliation, he started his very first mission at the age of thirteen.

"you are to eliminate them." the queen showed the young child a picture of a family portrait. "they are the ivanovs, responsible for creating a dangerous serum."

"why eliminate them?"

"the father of the household is one to have many connections, especially with the black market. we can't have him chattering about him being connected with us now don't we?" she smiles. "now, silence them."

childe traveled all the way to fontaine where the family resided along with some of the members of the fatui guarding him. he was the only one who would finish this mission without any help, it served as a test to see if the child really was worthy of being part of the group and his title.

it was said that the ivanov clan moved to fontaine after the wife gave birth, they had been living there for thirteen years now.

"master childe." one of the men who escorted him points at the mansion in front. "the bedroom is at the top floor, we will be waiting for you in the distance."

he nods, and so his first mission started.

he was excited, he had never done anything like it before. he wanted to test if his training improved his physical state, he strived for more challenges to come. he didn't care who it was he had to fight or to kill, what matters was that he got stronger.

"this is gonna be easy." the prince mumbles and began to climb the rope he tied to the window that led to the couple's bedroom.

when he reached the window, he slowly opens it careful to not make a sound. the couple slept on the queen-sized bed in peace, the only light in the room being from the moon out the window he climbed out of.

childe grabs the dagger placed behind him, walking slowly towards the sleeping couple.

"farewell."

blood splattered everywhere as he stabbed them mercilessly, they couldn't make a sound since he had buried their faces on the pillow they had. they had no time to react either since childe made sure to stab them on a spot where he was sure they'd be out in less than a second.

his heart pounded so fast beneath his chest, adrenaline kicking in on him. he wanted more, the smell of blood did not disturb him whatsoever. it excited him even more, it wasn't enough.

he then opens the door to the couple's bedroom, making sure than before going out he was spotted by no one. once it was clear, he went inside another bedroom which belonged to their daughter.

there, she sees her sleeping figure on the bed as she hugged a small stuffed animal. she was about the same age as him with her [H/C] hair spread all over the pillow she slept on.

she looked innocent, too innocent in fact that childe began to envy her. the girl didn't have to go through what he did, she had a childhood unlike him. she had parents that treated her like a precious treasure, treated her with care.

but this couldn't be undone. you didn't have parents anymore, much like he did. childe felt like he had nothing his whole life, he couldn't even see his siblings from the training he had.

was it right to have done this to you? to kill your parents, now you? was it right for him to strip that innocence away from you?

it made his mind ache, his thirst for blood disappearing the moment he saw you.

"sorry..." he mumbles. "i'm..."

in a daze, he quickly fled the scene leaving the dagger with the fatui logo behind. it was only retrieved by the men moments later when they realized the prince had left evidence behind.

upon returning to the palace, he tried to put on his usual facade as he reported to the queen.

"so, i take it you eliminated the ivanovs?"

he nods, "i... i did."

"hmm... i see. well done, my child." the queen envelopes him in a hug which shocked him. "you really are part of the throne."

she didn't specify he had to kill the daughter as well so he left that one detail behind. what matters was that the head and his wife was gone, and that his first mission was a success.

"your majesty..." he hugs her back, it was the first time he felt the warmth of his mother. "i will do everything i can to fulfill your wishes."

he would do anything if it meant feeling like he was important again, if it meant that he could get praised by his own strength. he would improve himself this way, and with this he could show his loyalty to the throne.