The stage is empty and desolate.
In this mysterious space, there is only me - dim scenery, dim lights, dim stage.
I kneel there without moving, trembling incessantly.
Who called me here? What am I supposed to do? Did I miss something?
Loneliness and helplessness seem to have condensed into a sickle, hanging over my head, waiting for the moment I collapse and cut off my head.
"Turing...Turing..."
Someone is calling me, is someone coming to rescue me...
Right, it must be mom coming to save me...
Wait, why do I need to be saved?
1998, summer, Lévri Magic Academy
"Sister, wake up!"
The terrifying nightmare instantly disappears, and Turing slowly opens her eyes, immediately seeing a cute girl with peach-colored twin ponytails, dressed in classical and gorgeous attire, with a worried expression on her face.
Although the little girl didn't say it, the dark golden small crown on her head already revealed her identity - the eldest daughter of one of the six families of Acadia. Of course, Turing also carries this crown with her, but it is only worn on her arm.
"Sister, did you not sleep well again yesterday? You can even fall asleep on the long bench in the corridor." Although the little girl is only six or seven years old, her tone carries the concern of an elder for a child, making Turing couldn't help but smile.
The little girl is Diana, a mischievous fairy from the Galleher family. Although she is fundamentally a good child, her impulsive and passionate nature leads her to do many things that are well-intentioned but end up causing trouble. Things like helping an old lady cross the street again, forcing others to eat things they don't like, and doodling on glass according to her own preferences are just some examples of what she does.
"Sister, you're still laughing? We're about to go to school and face the books, eat the same lunch as everyone else... Sister, aren't you scared? Aren't you nervous?" Watching Diana sitting next to her, fiddling with the edge of her skirt and speaking softly, Turing's heart, wet with the nightmare, seems to have warmed up slightly.
Turing slightly restrained her smile, began to organize comforting words in her mind, and then spoke, "It's okay, Diana. As a child who started school a year earlier, everyone in the academy will take care of you. Even if..."
"Turing Ochsia." A calm voice interrupted Turing and Diana's conversation from the end of the corridor. Although it sounded short and quiet in the corridor, Turing's heart suddenly felt like it was hit by an enormous wave.
"Sorry, Diana. I have to go. I'm sorry." Turing didn't even bother to conceal her panicked expression, she stood up from the bench and rushed towards the door where the voice came from.
"Click." With the sound of the door closing, the spacious corridor was suddenly left empty, with only Diana standing alone.
"Why does sister always apologize?" Diana pouted unhappily.
Oedipus sat quietly and elegantly on the guest sofa, compared to the slightly anxious headmaster standing by the desk, at this moment, Oedipus looked more like the master of the magic academy.
Although Turing was already standing at the door of the room, Oedipus still looked straight at the headmaster, without any intention of looking at Turing.
"I have called your name three or four times." Oedipus' voice, as sweet and restrained as tea, gently sounded as she opened her thin lips, reverberating throughout the room.
But unfortunately, Turing was not in the mood to savor it.
"Mom, I'm sorry! I forgot about the important matter while chatting with my friend..."
[Mom ignored my identity as a boy, the advice of the vassals, and enrolled me in the magic academy, worrying about my future studies, and yet I still acted as if it had nothing to do with me. What am I really...]
After hearing Turing's words, Oedipus frowned slightly, and her slender fingers reached for her waist, as if she was going to pull out her pipe and take a puff - obviously in a waiting position.Seeing the scene, Turing, whose body was originally stiff due to nervousness, suddenly became agile like a puppet that had been enchanted by a witch. He crossed his legs, bent his knees, supported his chest, and held his skirt in one fluid motion, displaying the noble etiquette of a nobleman at the age of seven or eight. The noble atmosphere exuded by the child perfectly matched the symbol of nobility, the dark gold crown on his arm. Even the most experienced etiquette teacher would be amazed at the sight.
Turing spoke again, "Madam, I apologize to you on behalf of your child for indulging in conversation with my friends."
[Sigh, although I may have accidentally fallen asleep and not heard my mother's call, didn't Diana hear it either? How is that possible?]
"Well, Madam Principal, it's getting late. We can discuss further some other time." Oedipus silently withdrew his hand that had already reached the cigarette, stood up from the sofa, and slightly took off his hat as a gesture. "Turing, let's go." The dignified atmosphere accompanied Oedipus's words and spewed out from around her. It was difficult for Turing, who had been standing by that person for a long time, to describe what kind of feeling it was.
Although strict and severe, could there be a hint of gentleness inside? Turing thought to himself.
Oedipus pushed the door and walked out, with Turing following affectionately. Diana had already left the lonely corridor, and the sunset glow shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows on one side of the corridor, casting its light on the two people slowly walking in the corridor.
Oedipus changed his cold and serious demeanor in the principal's office and gently placed his hand on Turing's head to caress it.
Turing seemed to still be immersed in guilt, feeling somewhat awkward about this sudden reward.
Finally, Oedipus spoke, "Turing, some people are honored by their ancestors and knighted, so when war comes, their fate is to fight to the death."
"Some people, although born noble, are implicated due to major mistakes made by their families, and their fate is to be engulfed by the waves of revolution."
"There are always people who bear unfortunate destinies. They either actively accept it or passively endure it, for the sake of love or righteousness."
"Turing, as the only son of the Altria Family's main branch, you must make up for certain innate deficiencies. When others play, you must study; when others study, you must concentrate ten times more. This is your destiny, and you must bear it. Even if you want to escape, fate will always come to you in different forms, forcing you to accept it. You were born with an inexorable destiny to be excellent."
[Mother, I...]
When Oedipus saw Turing beside him, his lips slightly purple from pressure and trembling, he considered the intensity of his previous words.
She turned her body to face Turing, leaned down while supporting him, her gaze level with Turing's, and said as gently as possible, "Why did you have to be a boy? It's inevitable. So, for the sake of Mom, work hard, okay?"
Turing is a boy.
A boy who, under his mother's deliberate concealment,
Pretended to be a girl in the eyes of the world.
