To go bald or not to go bald

"Where will we stay this night?"

The silence of the night, that has been dominant inside the carriage for a few hours, was broken by the young master's low voice. He raised his head up as he was asking that question, looking away from the book he was reading and instead, glancing at me.

"Yeah..."

Leaning on the window and staring out at the distance, I nodded my head.

"...Huh?"

I don't know what expression Alaric was making, but his voice was confused. I shifted my gaze and looked at my master's face.

"I asked where are we going to stay this night... 'Yeah' is not an answer for that!"

Did he ask that? I wasn't really paying attention to him.

"I'm sorry. I don't know where we'll stay this night."

We weren't that far away from the nearest village, but it was already late at night and the area was dark. They might decide to camp out at night as riding a carriage is hard in the darkness.

After listening to my response, Alaric first nodded his head, then raised an eyebrow.

"Is something wrong? You seemed to be out of it for the whole day."

Here we go again!

"No, everything is fine."

"But you've been..." Alaric raised his hand and pointed at my head. "...Pulling out your hair the whole time since morning."

"Ah?!"

At his words, I lowered my head and looked at my palm and at my clothes. Indeed, there were strands of dark blue hair scattered everywhere. I hurriedly moved my hands, picking up the hair strands one by one and rolling them into a small ball. Alaric's continuous glare at me was annoying, so I glanced at him for a second and opened my mouth.

"I was just thinking about cutting my hair."

"...Cutting your hair? Why?"

I shrugged my shoulders.

"I don't know I suddenly feel like shaving my head bald."

"P-pardon?"

I slightly opened the window and threw the ball of hair outside the carriage.

"You've been thinking about shaving your head the whole day?"

"Yeah."

"...."

Alaric blinked a few times before he lowered his head towards his book with his lips pursed a little bit. He didn't say anything after that for a while and only stared at his book, however, he didn't flip even one page the whole time. After a few minutes, he suddenly blurted out.

"You won't need to shave to get bald if you keep doing that."

"Ah?!"

My right hand gripping a few strands of hair froze in the air. I loosened my grip and lowered my arm.

"I won't."

"You will!"

"I won't!"

Tap

Alaric closed the book in his hands.

"You sound so sure as if you've tried it before!"

"I have!"

"...."

The man immediately closed his mouth. After a few seconds of shock, he began to talk in a low voice once again.

"You have? You pulled your hair in order to go bald? Why?"

"...."

Why is this man so curious about my hair now? Dude, mind your own business!

"Back then, I wanter to learn!" I closed my eyes and heaved a sigh. "I was a servant at the count's mansion with no ways to educate myself. Even if there were some means for me to study, I didn't have the time to. I only had nights for myself."

Alaric blinked his eyes several times while repeatedly opening and closing his mouth. He put the book aside and leaned a little bit closer.

"And at night, there were no lights for me to read a book! I had no other choices!"

"N-no other choices?"

I shook my head.

"I had to burn my hair!"

"What-"

"I had to pull out my hair one by one, gather them, and burn them! I had to cut it short with the kitchen knife and use them as fuel! Back then, I went bald, I would have no other sources of light, but... that didn't stop me! I pulled my hair all the nights and I didn't go bald."

"...I-Ian you-"

The young master had a face of sadness and pity, and his eyes were shaking slightly. He bit his lips and his gaze sank low.

'No way, he believed that bullshit?'

What's with that face? What? Did he get sad because of my fake tragic past?

"I didn't go bald, do you know why?"

"Why?"

At that moment, I let out a chuckle.

"It's because I have very magical hair!"

Alaric's eyes widened.

"Very magical hair?"

I nodded in his response. The man's expression grew more and more shocked before it gradually got puzzled, and then he fell into deep thought. After a few seconds, he suddenly knitted his brows and twisted his head towards me.

"You are making fun of me!"

With an expression that screamed how wronged he felt, Alaric pointed his finger at me and said in a slightly raised voice.

"How can you lie so easily? I believed you! I got sad for you! You are so fake, I won't believe you anymore!"

His face was a little bit flushed red from anger and embarrassment and he seemed to be about to cry from shame. I looked away from Alaric, as his expression was making me feel guilty, and shrugged my shoulders.

"Why do you think I was lying? Why? Can't I have magical hair because I'm a servant?"

Alaric grabbed his book with both hands and glared furiously at me.

"Because I would know if a Rapunzel existed in the story!"

"...."

A what?

In what?

I opened my mouth to ask those two questions from the enraged and ashamed young master, but before I could say anything, a loud voice reverberated in the silence of the night from outside the carriage.

BANNNGGGGGG

As the loud sound, that seemed to belong to an explosion, ranged out, the carriage shook violently and the cries of people and the horses resounded from outside.

"Wha-"

Alaric grabbed the edges of the seat he was sitting at to prevent himself from falling down, but he was eventually thrown to the floor of the carriage. The books on his side fell down one by one and scattered around. I barely supported my body and managed to sneak a glance outside the shattered window.

Fire.

A ball of fire was coming towards the carriage.