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Scar of the Red Kite.
墨書 Inktalez
Chapter One
I never imagined that the encounter on that rainy night would become the sweetest yet most painful memory of my life.
Raindrops pounded against the Oil Paper Umbrella, creating a dense sound that seemed to whisper secrets. I walked alone on the slick bluestone path of the capital, the dim lanterns stretching my shadow long and distorting it in the murky puddles beside the road. The air was thick with the earthy scent unique to post-rain, mingled with the aroma of food wafting from an unknown source in the distance. Suddenly, a rapid clatter of hooves shattered the tranquility of the night, breaking both the stillness of the rainy evening and my calm demeanor. Instinctively, I stepped aside, my heart racing, when I heard a terrified shout, like a blade slicing through the night sky.
“Watch out!”
I turned sharply to see a frightened White Steed galloping towards me like a wild beast unleashed. Its hooves kicked up water droplets that sparkled like scattered pearls. A girl on its back desperately tugged at the reins but could not control the frantic creature, and it seemed she would be thrown to the ground at any moment. In that instant, time appeared to freeze; my mind went blank, leaving only the approaching white horse and the girl’s terrified eyes. Almost instinctively, I dropped my Oil Paper Umbrella and leaped forward, embracing her just as disaster was about to strike.
We both tumbled onto the muddy road, and I felt a sharp pain in my back as icy rainwater soaked through my clothes. The girl’s hair came undone, and a delicate jade hairpin slipped from her head, falling into the mud and becoming soiled. Struggling to rise, I finally caught a glimpse of her face in the dim light—an extraordinarily beautiful visage that could bring nations to their knees; even in such a disheveled state, her stunning beauty could not be concealed. Her skin was as fair as snow, her features like a painting, and her clear eyes were filled with both fear and gratitude.
“Miss, are you alright?” I quickly released her and took two steps back, asking with concern as my heart raced as if it might leap from my chest.
She lowered her head to adjust her rain-soaked skirt, her cheeks flushed like peach blossoms blooming after rain—delicate and vibrant. “Thank you for saving me,” she said, her voice as clear as a lark yet carrying an innate nobility. “If not for you, I fear today would have ended differently for me…”
Before she could finish her sentence, anxious shouts echoed from afar: “Miss! Miss! Where are you?”
Her expression turned frantic as she hurriedly said, “Sir, my name is Su Yuyan; my father is Master Su, Minister of Rites. I will repay your kindness one day.” With that, she bent down to pick up her muddy jade hairpin and quickly disappeared into the rain curtain, leaving behind only a blurred silhouette.
I stood watching where she had vanished, my heart still racing. In that moment, it felt as if a celestial being had descended from the heavens into this mortal realm, and I had been fortunate enough to encounter her.
However, fate has a way of playing tricks on people. The next day, while wandering through the streets with a classmate friend, I learned from him that Su Yuyan had been betrothed to none other than the Son of the Right Chancellor. My heart felt as if it had been tightly gripped by an invisible hand; a suffocating pain spread through me.
That night, I sat alone in my study, drowning my sorrows in wine, and picked up my brush to write: "On a stormy night, I encountered an immortal, yet she is another's wife." After finishing, I felt a heavier weight on my chest, as if something were tearing at my heart, making it hard to breathe.
Suddenly, a cold wind swept outside, causing the candlelight to flicker and crackle, casting eerie shadows on the wall that danced like phantoms. I looked up and was startled to see a blood-red kite drifting through the pitch-black sky. Its shape was strange, resembling a giant bat, appearing particularly sinister under the dim moonlight.
What was even more bizarre was that there was no breeze at all around me, yet the kite seemed to be controlled by some invisible force, slowly and steadily flying toward my window. I slammed the window shut, my heart pounding like a drum, cold sweat already beading on my forehead.
That night, I had a dream. I dreamt that I had transformed into that blood-red kite, circling above Su Mansion. I saw Su Yuyan standing in the pavilion of the back garden, speaking with a young man clad in brocade robes. He was tall and imposing; surely he must be the Son of the Right Chancellor.
A sudden sharp pain pierced my heart like a needle, an indescribable hatred surged within me. Just then, the dream shattered abruptly. I awoke gasping for air, realizing that my hands were tightly gripping my own neck.
Outside the window came a chilling laugh that sent shivers down my spine. I looked around in terror but found only silence; the sound of my own heartbeat echoed in the room. Was that laugh just an illusion?
I trembled as I touched my neck, where clear fingernail marks remained. This was no illusion; it was not a dream. A terrifying thought surfaced in my mind: that Blood-Red Kite seemed to be calling out to me...
And this was merely the beginning of a nightmare.
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