He was "different" from other humans; however, it took a considerable amount of time for the young Yuuki Frey to become clearly aware of this fact.
This was largely because there were few people who would point it out to him directly.
That said, he had felt a vague sense of alienation from as early as he could remember. It was only natural, given that while the other children around him spent their peaceful days being doted on by their parents, Yuuki alone endured the exact opposite treatment every day.
He understood that the likely origin of it all was his appearance—his silver hair and red eyes, which differed from both his parents, though, of course, this was something Frey himself could do nothing about.
Despite this, his parents showed absolutely no hesitation in routinely subjecting their child to acts of abuse.
The relationship between his parents was far from good, either. His mother hated his father, who would not believe her, no matter how much she protested her innocence. His father, for his part, resented his mother for having—or so he seemed convinced, though the truth was unknown even to Frey—accepted the seed of another man unbeknownst to him.
It was almost miraculous that they hadn't divorced, but perhaps Frey's presence—unilaterally deemed by each as the root cause of their mutual hatred and resentment—served as a convenient outlet for their stress.
By routinely venting their frustrations on their son, they secured enough mental leeway to calmly consider the concrete risks and subsequent hardships of actually going through with a divorce.
In a sense, he acted as a lubricant, reducing friction between the couple, but Yuuki himself had never desired such a role, nor, of course, had he ever felt glad to be of such "use." His excessively well-defined features might have worked against him as an ill wind from another direction.
Like others of his kind often experience, he attracted more jealousy than envy—not only from his parents, who were by no means handsome, but from everyone around him.
But let us return to the main subject.
While one might call it a peaceful daily life, the other children were not living easily either. The country they were born and raised in was poor. Strictly speaking, the common people, excluding the royalty, were forced to live a life of extreme frugality, and even a childlike Frey knew it was because almost all their earnings were taken to pay the 'Celestial Dragons.'
Therefore, naturally, even someone as young as him was put to work as valuable labor—at least, that was the norm in this country. But for it to start from an age where one might not even be fully aware of the world, as in Frey's case, was truly abnormal.
To his parents, Yuuki—deemed the product of infidelity and the subject of neighborhood gossip—was someone they wanted to keep out of the house, and out of sight, as much as possible.
In fact, while at home, he was ordered to stay as quiet as possible inside the moldy, narrow storage room allotted as his personal space. He was strictly forbidden from leaving it except for work outside, using the toilet, or wiping his body with a wet towel as a substitute for a shower.
Furthermore, all wages earned from work were confiscated, and his meals were extremely meager, consisting of things one might jokingly say were worse than dog food. It was no laughing matter: cold soup made only from discarded vegetable scraps left over from cooking, or clearly expired bread that was dry and beginning to mold—on worse days, he was even told to procure his own food from the raw garbage behind restaurants.
Naturally, if Frey, who was ill-regarded in the neighborhood, tried such a thing, he would immediately be pelted with stones and beaten with wooden sticks. He was treated almost like a vicious stray dog—no, even a stray dog might occasionally be given food by a passerby.
Yuuki Frey, who lacked even that, might have held a position lower than a dog. After all, when he walked through town, parents with their children would shield the children's eyes and shoot him glances that said, "Get lost somewhere else."
"Discrimination" was a relief. In the end, humans cannot live without looking down on "someone," to a greater or lesser extent.
For the people of a country already forced into such impoverished lives, discriminating against and oppressing Frey, who was at the very bottom, was probably necessary for their own survival—though, admittedly, he never reached such a profound realization.
Still, he understood that resistance was futile. For humans, knowing when to give up is crucial.
However, being a cursed child with an unusual appearance was not the only reason for the persecution. For another reason entirely, the people found Frey creepy.
First and foremost, given the dietary conditions described earlier, one would, of course, become gaunt and skinny, and it would be no surprise if one collapsed from malnutrition multiple times. Yet, in his case, such things never happened. On the contrary, despite not consciously training, his body was powerfully toned—in fact, his physical strength and stamina surpassed everyone around him, adults included.
Working mainly manual labor jobs for money, he worked later than anyone else and carried heavier loads than anyone else. Even so, with an iron-masked expressionlessness—though he did sweat, of course—he never showed a single sign of breathlessness. This, too, was likely one of the factors that made those around him find him creepy.
There were other reasons as well. First, his intuition was abnormally sharp. At least, the people around him seemed to perceive it that way. Whenever Frey walked down the street, it was common for brats who had heard about him from their parents to throw stones at him, yet Yuuki was never once hit.
Naturally, irritated, they would throw more stones more frequently, but still, they never hit—'as if he could see the future.' Ambushes from hidden spots were also useless—'as if he could detect the presence of people in places he couldn't see.'
Fed up, the brats would often surround him—cutting off his escape—and resort to more direct violence. But here, too, Frey's abnormality manifested. Unavoidable, simultaneous violence from a large group. That much was fine. Well, of course, it wasn't fine from Frey's perspective—but he never felt any pain. In fact, it was usually the brats who threw the punches who ended up with their fists swollen red and crying from the pain.
In such cases, the part of Frey's body that was struck would always turn black, with a glossy sheen like obsidian. But it wasn't a bruise formed from being hit. Both Frey and the brats knew that. The order was reversed. It didn't turn black because he was hit—rather, the skin on that part stained black just before the blow landed.
Once, he was even harassed by a stray dog, but in that instance, it didn't even come to him, dodging or blocking. When Frey, as if annoyed, simply glared intensely at it, the stray dog foamed at the mouth and collapsed. This also happened occasionally when he was harassed by the brats.
The power to see a little into the future.
The power to sense the presence of people in unseen places.
The power to harden and toughen a conscious part of his body.
The power to render an opponent unconscious without laying a hand on them.
Why did he possess such powers? Frey did not know. There wasn't a single kind adult around to tell him, and indeed, even the adults didn't seem to grasp the true nature of Frey's abilities.
To put it another way, Frey was under the grand misconception that these "powers" he possessed were not special, but something all humans had. From his perspective, he had been able to wield them freely since he gained awareness, so when he learned it wasn't the same for others—though he didn't show it on his face—he was deeply shocked.
Still, wasting time on questions with no answers was pointless—after such thoughts led him to abandon understanding, Frey continued his wretched daily life.
However, the people around him would not accept it. No, they too had abandoned understanding, but that didn't mean they left Frey's existence as it was. Unusual appearance. Product of infidelity, though a false accusation. That much was tolerable. But an incomprehensible, mysterious "abnormal power"? This alone was unacceptable. It could not be tolerated.
That was likely why, without a moment's hesitation, people, including his parents, did not hesitate to "sell" him off to reduce mouths to feed.
Yuuki Frey was just five years old at the time.