[



sighs.... ]

I won't make you say you're sure again...

[ he just shakes his head ]

It's just that my scar... I had a normal life before. My parents looked after me, and my life was really good even though we were just a family in Coene - commoners, with a few odd family traditions.

But after the fire... I got burned. And the burn, it's—it's not normal. People couldn't stand to look at me. Not the doctor who treated me, not my parents. They thought I was possessed by some demon, and ended up trying to...

[ trails off. a pause. ]

... even when I was taken in by the orphanage, even though they were nice enough to save me from Death that time, they still couldn't stand the sight of me. It was just pity.

Until I was given the mask, it was just... a really lonely existence. [ softer, like he doesn't like admitting it out loud ] And then, afterward, even if people wanted to get closer to me or girls said they liked me... if I took off the mask, they'd just take off screaming.

So I think... it must be me. There must be something that can't be loved, and I think it's my scar.