"Are you uncomfortable at all, my Lady?" Mary asked as she started washing Olivia's hair while Olivia soaked in the bathtub. It had been almost a week since Olivia arrived in Solfin where things were unnervingly quiet. They had just finished enjoying omelets stuffed with crab meat for breakfast before taking a bath to start the day.

"No, the water's fine," Olivia replied as she blankly stared at the ceiling of her prison. "What have you found out?"

"I'm sorry to say, not much," Mary somberly admitted as she rinsed Olivia's hair with a bucket of water.

"Are you being ignored?"

"No, far from it, the other servants openly talk with me and are more than happy to show me around if I ask. But there's a hesitance whenever I bring up the Countess." To not stir up trouble, Olivia obediently stayed silent in her room while having Mary integrate herself with the mansion's staff to try and get a feel of the situation. "It's an open secret that the Crown Prince is having people watch the mansion, as well as the hostility between him and the Countess. A few even badmouthed the Crown Prince in hushed whispers, but no one ever spoke about the Countess."

"At all? Not even idle remarks?"

"None." Mary helped finish washing Olivia off and grabbed a fresh towel to hand to her. "Even the imperial palace's maids would occasionally gossip about the princes, but I've never heard a single word regarding the Countess, and if I bring it up first then the mood quickly sours. But what's stranger is that none of them seem openly afraid of her, only when I try to ask about her does the mood shift."

"The mansion's smaller than the palace so getting caught for gossiping is probably easier, here," Olivia reasoned as she finished drying off, tossed the towel aside, and put on a bathrobe. She led Mary over to the dresser that had a large mirror attached to it where she took a seat and Mary started brushing Olivia's hair. "Considering how Lucina handled the Rolfs, the servants probably have an unspoken rule to never talk about Lucina's…behavior. But you said they aren't openly afraid of her?"

"They all greet the Countess respectfully and she's never been hostile toward anyone, from what I've seen. Some even speak casually with her." Mary finished untangling Olivia's hair, which was naturally silky smooth so she didn't have to do much, and grabbed some hair ties. "Would you like your hair styled?"

"No, just leave it." Olivia stared into the mirror at her reflection and lightly traced the slave collar with her fingers. So far, Lucina would only visit her during dinner where she would ask about any inconveniences Olivia might have while eating with her. She would stay for around half an hour after they finished their meal before intentionally messing up her hair a little and leaving to make it seem like she was doing more than just visiting. "…" Olivia tapped her fingers against the dresser in thought about what to do going forward. She didn't want to spend an entire year trapped in this single room; she'd go stir-crazy.

"Olivia?" Bringing Olivia out of her thoughts, Lucina knocked on the door. "I need your help with something."

"Come in," Olivia called and a moment later the door opened with Lucina leading Tress and two other maids inside. "…What's going on?"

"Time is of the essence," Lucina replied and the three maids approached Olivia while holding some clothes in their arms. "But I need your help to stop your father from putting my city to the torch."

***

"We're approaching the gates!" Thomas cried out from where he rode alongside Richard as they led the Azure Hawk knights to Solfin. As soon as word reached Wortrest of what happened during the academy's graduation dance, Richard mobilized the entire knight order to march on Solfin as quickly as they could. He remembered receiving a report that Lucina's carriage had rushed through Wortrest but didn't think anything of it at the time. Now, he regretted not stopping that carriage. "My Lord?" Thomas tried to get Richard's attention. "While I agree that rescuing Lady Olivia is paramount, we can't just invade-"

"That bitch stole my daughter!" Richard barked back and the fury in his eyes burned brighter than any flame. "It was not enough that the crown tossed her aside like some old toy they no longer desired, but to also make her a slave because she was 'bullying' someone!? Derik is also, somehow, involved in this mess, and then Olivia's also stabbed in the back by a so-called friend!?" As soon as Olivia entered the academy, demons started appearing more frequently all over the empire which gave Richard little time to keep up to date with what was happening in the capital. He left things alone to focus on the subjugations since he received letters from both Derik and Olivia saying that everything was fine with Olivia's even saying her school life was uneventful and that he didn't need to worry. But knowing what little he did from the sparse rumors that were now bleeding to Wortrest, and this strange outcome, Richard now doubted if Olivia really was the one writing to him for the past four years. Even his son was, supposedly, in on it. "Marcus be damned, I will see heads roll for this!"

"And I agree with you, my Lord! But we aren't prepared for this fight!" Thomas had been trying to reason with Richard the entire march to no avail, and now that Solfin was upon them he tried one last time before any blood was shed. "The Emperor and Duke Hoffman will be at our throats if we take Solfin, which the Emperor personally gave to the Countess. We only recently managed to deal with the recent infernal gates, but Duke Einbore is still dealing with demons in the north so he will likely join their side if we start this!"

"…" Richard remained silent and kept his horse at a gallop.

"My Lord! Please think about-…?" As Thomas tried to reason more with Richard, the sight of knights at Solfin's gate silenced him. The Hellhound knights were waiting on horseback at the gates, fully armed and armored. A single knight broke off from the Hellhound's formation and rode up to the approaching Azure Hawks and Richard brought his knights to a stop.

"Duke Richard Ordrin of Holst?" Peter called out as he stopped a few paces away from the Azure Hawks. "The Countess is expecting you and would like to invite you for tea."

"Tea!?" Richard scoffed. "Your treacherous master thinks this can be resolved with tea!?" Richard's horse whined and stamped its foot from how agitated it was getting because of its rider's blatant hostility.

"She and Lady Olivia are waiting for you at the mansion." Peter figured Richard's response so he used Olivia's name to try and bait him into accepting.

"…" Richard's gloved hands tightened around the reins of his horse as he fought back his anger from Peter daring to use Olivia's name.

"My Lord," Thomas, seeing a way forward without bloodshed, intervened and reminded, "Ensuring the Lady's safety should be our first priority."

"…I know," Richard said and took a deep breath to calm down. Thomas was right, seeing if Olivia was alright was why he was here, so if he was being invited in to see her then all the better. "Lead us inside then, Hellhound."

"I'll lead you to the mansion, the rest of your men will have to wait here."

"You dare give me orders?" Richard demanded and maneuvered his horse to approach Peter's. The two men were only a few feet apart and Richard growled, "My men and I will be seeing the Countess, now lead on."

"Only the Duke is invited," Peter stood firm and matched Richard's hateful glare. He reminded Richard, "Your daughter's safety is not up to the Countess, alone." Peter made a subtle motion toward the wall behind him.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

"Hm?" Richard looked at the top of the wall and caught the movement of shadow knights trying to scurry out of sight before they could be seen. "…Thomas?"

"Yes, my Lord?"

"Wait here with the men, I will be meeting with the Countess." Richard's voice was low and bled with anger that he did his best to keep at bay for the sake of his daughter.

"We will await your return!" Thomas gave a salute before having the knights make camp.

"Now, lead," Richard ordered.

"This way, Duke," Peter said as he led Richard back to the Hellhounds. None of them made any move toward him as they passed and they all remained where they were with complete professional discipline. While the marvel of Solfin's revitalization was great, Richard paid it no mind as he followed Peter through the streets and up to the mansion atop the hill. They were quickly let through the gates and approached the large mansion where Lucina was waiting by the front door with a few maids. The windows looking into the entrance hall all had their curtains closed. "Countess, I've brought Duke Ordrin."

"And neither of you is covered in blood," Lucina joked from her place by the door. "What do you think of Solfin, Duke?"

"I am not here for games, Countess," Richard spat as he dismounted his horse to stand a few feet away from Lucina. "Where is my daughter?"

"My, it hasn't been 'that' long since you last saw her, Duke." Lucina gave a wicked smile as she leaned against the maid to her left and teased, "Don't tell me you've already forgotten what your own daughter looks like?"

"What are yo-!?" Richard's words caught in his throat as his rage spiked. At first, he had completely ignored the maids Lucina was with, but now that he looked at the one Lucina was leaning against he immediately recognized the maid's distinct white hair and clear blue eyes. "…Olivia?"

"G-Greetings…Duke," Olivia awkwardly greeted her father while giving a curtsy in her maid uniform. The chain leash from her slave collar jingled when she bowed her head.

"…What is this, Countess?" Richard's anger boiled and raged beneath the surface.

"Exactly what it looks like, Duke," Lucina playfully replied. "Olivia's service is truly one of a kind…in more ways than one," she said and wrapped an arm around Olivia's waist to caress the outside of her thigh.

"!!!" Richard's hand grabbed his sword's hilt, but Peter's blade was already drawn and poised to strike.

"Now now, Duke," Lucina remained calm and kept her hand on Olivia's thigh. "Let's at least have some tea before the bloodshed." She released Olivia and turned to walk back inside the mansion.

"…" Richard's hand remained on his sword as he followed Lucina and the maids inside. Once he entered the hall, the doors closed behind him and his instincts instantly started drawing his sword. "Counte-"

"Father!" As soon as the doors were closed, and the coast was clear, Olivia ran into her father and wrapped her arms around him.

"O-Olivia!?" All pretense of violence instantly vanished as Richard wrapped his arms around his daughter and brought her into a deep hug. "Oh, my dear!"

"Father!" Olivia cried into her father's armored shoulder and she began apologizing, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I-"

"You have nothing to be sorry for!" Richard's arms tightened around his daughter as if to squeeze the nonsense out of her. "Nothing at all!" He did his best to wipe Olivia's tears away with his gloves and gave her a sympathetic smile that kept breaking under the sight of Olivia's collar.

Lucina called from the base of the stairs, "We don't have much time, we should move to the office so those leaches outside don't get suspicious."

"…Countess." Richard refocused his mind on the task at hand. "I will be taking my daughter back with me to Wortrest."

"No, you won't," Lucina flatly responded.

"You think you can stop me?" With one arm still around Olivia, Richard drew his shortsword and pointed it at Lucina. "I am immune to magic attacks, Countess. Even that Aurister outside won't be able to stop me."

"Then you'll be signing Olivia's death warrant." Lucina no longer held her feigned joyfulness and was completely cold when addressing Richard. "She's a slave with Royal Grace. All it would take is a single written letter signed by the Crown Prince that she accidentally, or is forced to read for the collar to activate." So long as a letter bore the official signature of James or Marcus, the magic engraved on the slave collar around Olivia's neck would activate and she would be forced to follow whatever order was written.

"I don't want to hear such words from you, Countess," Richard spat, venom lacing his voice. "Of all people, you have no right to-!"

"Father!" Olivia pushed herself out of Richard's grasp and took a step back. "That's enough. We'll explain in the office."

"…Olivia?" Richard was visibly shaken by his daughter's actions. "Are you…being forced to do this under an order!?" His eyes turned back to Lucina and he took a step toward her.

"No!" Olivia blocked her father and tried to calm him down, "I'm not under any orders, right now! Lucina's…helping me."

"Helping!?" Richard had an exasperated laugh at how absurd that sounded.

"We're out of time to be here," Lucina complained and started up the stairs to the second floor. "Either follow us to the office for an explanation or leave. I don't want to tip off the shadows about my true intentions just yet."

"…" Richard held his tongue and looked one more time at Olivia who was lightly pulling his hand to follow. Silently, they made their way through the mansion and into Lucina's office which had a large window overlooking the garden. There was subtle movement in the trees beyond.

"Now then," Lucina sat down in her chair with her back to the window and motioned for a tea cart to be brought in. "I'm going to do a few things to make you angry as a show for the shadows outside. So long as James thinks I'm playing with Olivia, he'll leave her alone, so we're going to put on a bit of a show for them." Despite Tress being the one to bring in the tea cart, Olivia was the one to set and serve the tea before standing next to Lucina, also with her back to the window.

"…Explain," Richard kept his request vague yet plausible since he noticed the shadows watching them through the window from a tree. He didn't know if they could read lips so he couldn't outright ask what he wanted, but he would steer things in the right direction for Lucina to answer.

Lucina explained, "James was planning on having Olivia killed so he could take the newly discovered Saintess as his empress. She's docile and her looks are to his liking so she would make the perfect puppet empress to keep his ego high. To counter this, I convinced him to instead enslave Olivia and give her to me so she could live in embarrassment after having everything taken from her." Richard crushed the arm of the chair he sat in with his clenched fist. Lucina ignored the property damage, leaned back in her chair, and sipped her tea before continuing, "Since she's an Aurister slave, Royal Grace applies to her for the next year so we plan on laying low until that time passes and I'm able to grant Olivia some more freedom without the imperial family being able to get involved. I don't have an answer to removing the collar without James intervening just yet, but I'm still looking into that."

"…" Hearing Lucina openly admit that she intends to remove the collar to return her freedom made Olivia feel a little better about her situation, despite having to wear a maid outfit and put on an act… It was an act, right?

"…" Richard sighed heavily into his hands as he rubbed his face. With his face still hidden in his hands, he asked, "Are you alright, Olivia?" His anger had subsided and he sounded desperate, like a man on the verge of tears.

"…Yes." 'Alright' was a subjective term in this case, but Olivia felt that it was the right way to describe things as they currently were. She wanted to reassure her father, so she explained, "Lucina hasn't used the collar to order me to do anything, and Mary's also here to help take care of me."

"Mary's here?" Richard looked up and slowly removed his hands from his face but kept his mouth hidden long enough to ask his question.

"I kidnapped her before coming here," Lucina admitted.

"…" Richard wasn't sure how to respond to Lucina's matter-of-fact statement so he chose not to speak.

"Olivia?" Lucina motioned with her hand for Olivia to get closer to her.

"…?" Olivia silently obeyed. "Oh!?" Only to find herself pulled down to be forced to sit in Lucina's lap.

"Countess!?" Richard shot up from his chair in protest at seeing his daughter treated like that.

"We have to put on a proper show, Duke," Lucina replied while giving a sly smile and holding Olivia in her lap. It was clear that she was doing this for reasons other than just putting on an act. "As compensation, I'll help you exchange letters with Olivia."

"You will?" Richard was skeptical.

"Yes, and I also won't look at them to give you some privacy with your daughter," Lucina promised. She gave a silent scoff at Richard and said, "Every Sunday, put any letters you want to send to Olivia in the top right-hand drawer of her room's dresser. I have ways of getting them, and I'll put any letters she sends in the top left-hand drawer. The letters will be delivered after twelve o'clock."

"How?" He was sure of Wortrest's security and that no Hellhound could infiltrate it.

"I have my ways." Lucina wouldn't give a straight answer. "Now, if you want Olivia to stop having to wear a maid uniform, storm out of the mansion in disgust so she can return to her room. You two can talk all you want in your letters later." She chuckled and added, "I'm sure it won't be too hard for you, Duke~."

"…This isn't over, Countess." At the very least, he confirmed Olivia was alive and, relatively speaking, safe, so he was willing to back off for now. If Olivia had been under a constant order then the collar's runes would be constantly glowing, but they were silent and dull. Richard turned and walked to the door before saying, "I'll be back for you, Olivia. Just…please hold on." Desperation and sorrow filled his voice at having to leave his daughter here.

"I will," Olivia tried to sound as brave as she could for her father despite how much she hated seeing him leave. But this was for the best. She knew that her father couldn't win a civil war against the crown as things stood, so things needed to change if she wanted to ensure her freedom. She needed to start putting things in motion. "…Lucina?"

"Hm?"

"I want you to send two letters for me." The main story was over and she had no idea what to expect, so why not light some fires with her future that hadn't been written yet. "I'll give them to you at dinner."

"Okay..." Lucina agreed before falling silent and chuckling to herself.

"What?"

"Nothing," Lucina teased before looking down at Olivia. "Just that you look cute in a maid uniform while sitting in my lap." Lucina's hand gently cupped Olivia's cheek and offered a tender warmth that her eyes didn't match.

"!?!" Olivia's body tensed up as she had time to think about her position now that her father was gone. She was sitting in Lucina's lap with her legs dangling over the arm of the chair and had her head pulled close and resting against Lucina's shoulder.

Sensing Olivia's unease, Lucina softly pleaded, "I'll take you back to the safe room in a little bit, or now if you'd prefer…but… Could we stay like this for a while?"

"Is this part of the act?" Olivia hesitantly asked.

"No… This is me wanting to be greedy," Lucina admitted and she released Olivia's cheek while lowering her head to rest against Olivia's. Tender, desperate words whispered into Olivia's ear, "Please, Olivia?"

"…" Olivia didn't respond, but she also didn't pull away or ask to leave, so Lucina continued to hold her without a word. As the two sat in silence, Olivia was left to her conflicting thoughts. She was grateful that Lucina let her see her father and would allow them to exchange secret letters, and that she was allowed out of her stifling room for a while even if it was just for a show. She was grateful to Lucina, and that scared her. The one who went behind her back and clasped the slave collar around her neck was also the one who saved her life and protected her. A twisted love infected Lucina's heart that Olivia didn't know how to properly handle. Lucina was terrifying, yet endearing. She put Olivia first, while at the same time locking her down. Olivia's mind was becoming a mess, and the warmth she was feeling from Lucina holding her offered conflicting advice from the heavy collar around her neck that spoke volumes. Volumes about what, though, was becoming muddled.