"We're finally back," Thomas said and sighed in relief when they entered Wortrest keep. The Azure Hawk knights were home, and since the demon subjugations were subsiding then perhaps they could also take a proper break.

"For now," Richard mumbled as he led the knights to the stables to drop off their horses.

"Even so, it's nice to not have to worry about those pesky shadows," Thomas reasoned. Once Richard returned from his meeting with Lucina and Olivia, he and the rest of his knights started noticing the presence of shadow knights keeping tabs on them throughout their journey back. Only now, within Wortrest's walls, did the constant feeling of being watched subside. "I can't wait to have a proper dinner."

"To be on the safe side, take a few knights and scour the keep before turning in," Richard ordered as he got off his horse and started leading it into the stables. "Wortrest should remain pest-free."

"I'll see it done, my Lord. I'll…?" Thomas trailed off as he noticed one of the stablehands waiting outside the stables perk up when he saw the knights approach.

"You're back, my Lord!" the stablehand greeted while appearing nervous about something.

"What's wrong?" Richard asked.

"Well, my Lord, it's just that there's a…guest waiting inside the stables."

"A guest?" Richard raised an eyebrow and felt an unnerving presence coming from the stables.

"Yes. She wouldn't give her name, but mentioned something about 'letters' she would be exchanging?"

"!!!" Richard let go of his horse's reins and bolted into the stables. Had Lucina's Hellhounds actually infiltrated Wortrest? Thomas and the other knights quickly followed Richard as they stormed into the stables to find the last person any of them expected.

"Ah, Duke! Welcome back," Lucina happily greeted while feeding a carrot to one of the horses that usually pulled the family's carriages. She wore discreet commoner clothing and had a dark brown cloak wrapped around her with the hood pulled up as if to hide who she was. "I forgot how well-behaved your horses were. This fellow actually remembers me!" The horse Lucina was next to happily ate the carrot and was allowing Lucina to pet him.

"…?" Richard was dumbstruck seeing Lucina here. He was certain no one had passed him on his way to Wortrest, and he and his knights took the most direct route back. How was Lucina here before them? "…Thomas?"

"Y-Yes?" There was a thick pressure in the air.

"Leave the horses here and take the knights to the yard for training," Richard's voice was oddly low and completely calm as he stared Lucina down.

"At once, my Lord." Thomas knew better than to argue about this, so he quietly accepted the command and led the knights away. The stablehands, taking the unspoken hint, also vacated the stables in a rush to not be left between Richard and Lucina. Horses stamped their feet at the growing tension and started the whine.

"Aw, hush now," Lucina half-heartedly tried to calm down the horse she was feeding. "Don't let the big scary Duke fright-Ack!?" Richard closed the distance between them and his gloved hand clamped around Lucina's neck. With ease, he lifted Lucina into the air by her neck with one hand.

"How are you here?" Confusion fueled Richard's anger at Lucina's presence. "Speak!"

"Yo-Ugh! You're…just like…your son," Lucina managed to choke out. A scornful smile lit up her face as she taunted, "No wonder…Olivia…!"

"!?!" Richard released Lucina.

"!!!" Lucina hit the ground and started violently coughing as she gasped for air.

"…What do you mean?" Richard was whiplashed with emotions as the implication of Lucina's unfinished words sank in. "Derik…hit Olivia?"

"W-Who knows~?" Lucina couldn't help herself and taunted.

"Speak plainly, Countess!?"

"The fact you don't know if I'm lying…says a lot, Duke," Lucina laughed as she rose to her feet on shaky legs. Taking out a dagger, Lucina looked in the reflection on the blade at the fresh bruises around her neck. "Did you really trust the Emperor and Crown Prince to not mess with Olivia at the academy?"

"Of course not, that's why I allowed Derik to go," Richard argued. "Even if he's His Highness' guard, he's still an Ordrin. I trusted him to protect her, as her older brother, and inform me of anything major."

"And look how that turned out," Lucina jabbed. "What is it with fathers abandoning their daughters in their time of need, anyway?"

"…" Richard desperately wanted to strangle Lucina, again, but kept his cool. Even though he was loathe to admit it, he took 'Olivia's' letters at face value to put his focus on dealing with the demon subjugations. Lucina was, unfortunately, right. "I'll drop how you're here for now… What happened at the academy?"

"I'm sure you already heard a bunch of rumors," Lucina idly replied without answering his question and took one of the apples meant for the horses to start snacking on. With a mouthful of apple, Lucina added, "You can probably figure it out yourself."

"I'd rather hear a firsthand account over rumors."

"Would you even believe me?" Lucina eyed Richard and, despite her relaxed body language, her gaze was cold and intense. "I'm the one who betrayed your 'precious' daughter, after all. You'll likely end up dismissing all I have to say."

"…Please." Richard's fists were clenched with frustration but he swallowed his pride, and asked, "Was Derik truly part of the plan to enslave Olivia?"

"…" Lucina took another bite of the apple and only answered once she swallowed, "Not originally."

"Then…?"

"I don't know what James specifically said," Lucina admitted, "But he was the one who convinced Derik to not help Olivia and instead help him to enslave her."

"…" Richard felt like someone punched him in the gut as his fear was confirmed.

"Though, I do have a fairly certain guess about what he received for it." Lucina took another bite of the apple.

"Received?" Richard sounded astonished and asked for clarification, "He was bribed!?"

"In a piece of the Saintess, yes." Lucina had no concrete evidence to support this, but Olivia's prophecy mentioned that the four male leads would fall in love during the reverse harem ending. Considering how they all acted so close to Beatrice at the ball, then it was safe to assume the worst.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"…Derik is already married to Vivian," Richard argued.

"Mistresses and concubines are quite common," Lucina countered.

"We instilled in him our values of-!"

"He helped sell his own sister into slavery," Lucina interrupted and took another bite of her apple. "You think he's not above chasing the Saintess' skirt?"

"…Damn it!" Richard spat and leaned against one of the stable gates. While he knew he wasn't the greatest father, he didn't think he was so bad that this would happen. Not even Alice had seen something like this coming. He rubbed his temples in frustration while Lucina continued to enjoy her apple. After a few moments of silence, Richard dangerously muttered, "I should just march on Gorinville."

"Then Holst is wiped out, and Olivia is killed for being part of a family that committed treason," Lucina idly countered as she finished her apple.

"You seem so sure of Holst's loss, Countess," Richard angrily spat. "We haven't even started the-"

"It was foretold by prophecy." Lucina stared at the apple core in her hand and started picking out the seeds.

"…Prophecy?" Richard hadn't heard of the temples revealing any prophecies that had to do with Holst or his family.

"While I shouldn't be the one telling you this, I feel we've come too far not to share," Lucina admitted. She flicked the apple seeds at Richard and explained, "I'll convince Olivia to tell you in her first letter, but I'll also give you a heads-up to prepare. Your daughter received five prophecies from Lord Zulm."

"!?!" Normally, only the clergy received prophecies, so to hear his daughter was given five stunned Richard. Connecting the dots, Richard asked, "And these prophecies have to do with the fall of Holst and what happened at the academy?"

"Specifically, Holst's fall after you try to avenge Olivia's death." Lucina tossed the empty apple core at Richard's feet before continuing, "The four fools that are clinging to the Saintess could have individually gone after her, and each time they did resulted in Olivia's death. Enraged by this, you led a coup against the Emperor and were crushed each time."

"But not in the fifth?"

"The fifth…ended with me enslaving Olivia and taking her away while the four fools shared the Saintess; which is why I say Derik was paid in the Saintess' skirt for betraying his sister."

"…You orchestrated things so that the fifth prophecy would become truth." Richard's anger was subsiding as he partially accepted Lucina's explanation. Lucina was recognized by the temples as the Harbinger of Zulm, and prophecies were delicate matters that the gods took very seriously. There had been cases in the past of false prophecies spread by people for their own gain only to end up killed in natural disasters that were suspiciously localized entirely around the person responsible. The weight Lucina's words carried as Harbinger validated the prophecies his daughter received and was enough to at least placate Richard's anger.

"It's the only one where Olivia lives." Lucina lost her smile and openly showed how upset she was about the situation. "Unlike the others, though, it didn't go into what happened to Holst as it seems Lord Zulm wants us to make what happens next by ourselves. Hold off on your coup, Duke, at least until you're certain you can win. Olivia will be safe in Solfin."

"Safe in Solfin, or safe in your bed?" Just because Richard accepted the prophecies didn't mean he accepted Lucina.

"I haven't crossed that line, yet," Lucina sadly admitted.

"Yet?" Richard scoffed. "You clasp a slave collar around her neck and think she'll be willing to give you her heart!?" Standing up straight from the gate, Richard scorned, "I knew you were mad, Countess, but this is beyond my expectations."

"Our future is no longer written, Duke. The prophecies are over." An unnerving smile played across Lucina's face as she pondered, "I have an entire year to wrap myself around Olivia's heart. You should have seen her after you left." Her arms reached up and Lucina hugged herself. "She let me hold her in my arms despite me letting her know I would immediately stop and take her back to her room! She chose to stay with me~!" Looking up from her delirium, Lucina knowingly taunted, "Should I start calling you father-in-law now or-?" Richard's fist collided with Lucina's face and she was sent sprawling to the ground.

"You always did know how to dig under people's skin, Countess," Richard spat as he flexed his fingers.

"Because it always gets me what I want!" Lucina laughed as she clutched her new black eye. After calming down and getting to her feet, she said, "Oh, I almost forgot the other reason I came here."

"Other than to taunt me?"

"Yes." Lucina's blunt response made Richard want to give her a second black eye. "I was delivering some things to the capital on Olivia's request when I started hearing the most interesting of things."

"…" Richard still had no idea how Lucina got here before him, but now she was also supposedly in the capital? He knew he wouldn't get an answer from her so he decided to ask Olivia about it in their letters. Even if Lucina peaked at their letters and went against her word, that would only work against her if Olivia ever found out so he was betting on Lucina keeping her promise.

"The Crown Prince and Saintess' wedding will be held next month!" Lucina declared and clapped her hands together.

"…And?" While not surprising, Richard didn't see what this had to do with him.

"And Derik is officially recognized as a concubine of the Saintess!"

"!?!" Richard's whole body flinched as his anger returned. "…What?"

"Invitations had already gone out when I was there, so I'm sure there's one waiting for you inside." Lucina started walking away while twirling the dagger in her hands. She went deeper into the stables and turned the corner to disappear behind a wall. "Remember, I'll drop off any letters by noon and will pick up any responses by three."

"Countess?" Richard followed after Lucina. The sound of shattering glass beyond the wall made Richard sprint over and turn the corner, "Count…ess?" Only to find no one. The small room had no windows or doors to leave from, and there was nothing to hide behind, yet Lucina was gone. "…What did-"

"My Lord!?" Thomas came sprinting completely out of breath into the stables. His face was distorted in worry and fear. "You must return to the keep at once!"

"What's going on? Is Alice alright!?" Richard's mind instantly refocused and he left the stables to approach the main building.

"The Duchess is fine. While we were out, a letter arrived from the imperial family," Thomas explained as the two men made their way inside. The servants were all whispering nervously, and a bleak air permeated the halls as Richard saw Alice sitting on the stairs in the main hall weeping into her hands. Vivian was beside her with an unreadable expression, but her hands were tightly gripping Alice's shoulders.

"Alice!?"

"Richard!" Alice stood up and nearly collapsed into Richard's arms as the tears wouldn't stop flowing.

"Alice?" Richard tried to comfort his wife but her tears wouldn't stop. "What happened?!"

"Duke?" Vivian slowly stood up and picked up a piece of paper that had been sitting beside her. Somberly, she offered it to Richard who took it and felt Lucina's words ring through his head. In Richard's hand was a wedding invitation for the Crown Prince and the Saintess' wedding, and written in was the 'glorious' news that the Saintess, as Empress, would take in Solomon Kor, Andrew Mystyr, and Derik Ordrin as her concubines.

***

"L-Lucina!?" Olivia was in the middle of exercising, one of the few things she was able to do in her room to pass the time, when Lucina arrived with dinner along with a black eye and bruises around her neck. Her old habit of worrying about Lucina came back in force and Olivia immediately got up from her pushups and ran over to check on Lucina's injuries. "What happened!?"

"…" Lucina enjoyed Olivia fussing over her, again, and answered, "I just dropped by to talk with your father and I let him vent for a bit on me."

Olivia's hands froze as she brushed the hair off Lucina's black eye, and asked, "Did you taunt him into doing this?"

"Will you still fuss over me if I did?"

"…" Just as Olivia's habit returned, so too did Lucina's to intentionally start trouble to get hurt and pull at Olivia's heartstrings. "Take a seat." And it always worked.

"Mm." Lucina walked over to the table they usually ate at and took her seat while Olivia brought over the bucket of cold water she used to rinse her sweat off.

"Could you get a fresh towel?" Olivia asked Mary since the only hand towel she had was full of her sweat.

"I'm fine if you use that one," Lucina playfully mentioned.

Olivia muttered, "That boldness of yours is what got you that black eye."

"I'll fetch one, my Lady," Mary quickly left and brought back a fresh hand towel to not give Lucina the satisfaction of using one of Olivia's. "This one is clean."

"Thank you, Mary." Olivia dunked the towel in the frigid water and pressed it against Lucina's face.

"C-Cold!?"

"That's how you stop the swelling," Olivia dryly stated as she kept pressing the towel over Lucina's whole face.

"…" Tress blankly watched as Lucina was getting smothered by a towel while the other two maids were starting to get nervous.

The atmosphere in the room took a sharp dive as Olivia removed the towel, and dryly stated, "I could have suffocated you to death with that."

"…!?" The maids all took a nervous step away, except for Mary and Tress.

"True," Lucina agreed while wiping some water out of her eye with her hand.

"You wouldn't stop me?"

"If that's what you want to do, then I won't." Lucina gave a neutral smile to Olivia, and added, "I already gave orders to everyone that they are to follow you if you do end up killing me so that you'll have some support going forward."

"…"

"My accounts also have your name on them, so you'll also have my money to-!?" The towel was once more pressed against Lucina's face, but this time more gently and only over her bruised eye.

"You really…confuse me," Olivia said as she gently wiped Lucina's face.

"About what?" Lucina asked as she ignored how cold the towel was to not ruin the moment.

"…Everything." Olivia watched Lucina lightly squirm under her hand as it was clear that the bruises still hurt.

"I thought I was pretty forward with my thoughts since bringing you here." Lucina looked up at Olivia with her one good eye and leaned her head into Olivia's hand.

"That's exactly what's confusing me…" She moved the towel down to Lucina's neck and Olivia's hand gently pressed against Lucina's throat. "Why do you love me?"

"Well…" Lucina waved her hand to dismiss the maids who were still waiting to set the table. Tress and Lucina's maids left without question, but it took a look from Olivia before Mary also left the room. "Why did you love that boy from your past life?"

"Tanak-?"

"Boy," Lucina interrupted and the disgust on her face caused Olivia to flinch. "He doesn't deserve to have his name said by you."

"…" Olivia thought back to her life as Ayaka and answered, "I…started liking him when I saw him playing for our school's baseball team. It was love at first sight."

"So, his muscles?" Lucina had no idea what baseball was but didn't want to divert the conversation since she had a point to make so she didn't delve into it.

"…At first," Olivia reluctantly admitted. "But once we got to know each other I also liked his personality! He was kind, always helping other students, and he made time out of his busy day to hang out with me and eventually go on dates with me. I felt…at ease when I was with him. He didn't talk down to me about my family's situation, and he genuinely cared for me."

"Which is why he cheated?" Lucina jabbed.

"That's…" Olivia didn't have a comeback for that.

"It's the same for me." Lucina brought Olivia out of her thoughts about Tanaka. "You accepted me despite my questionable legitimacy. You were kind to me and would make time out of your days to play with me, even when you were busy. You even shared your deepest secrets with me that not even your parents know. I feel at ease when I'm with you." Lucina chuckled as Olivia's grip around her neck loosened, and she joked, "The only thing I can't relate to is loving you at first sight simply because of your muscles."

"…I guess I have terrible taste," Olivia quietly admitted as she gently pressed on Lucina's neck bruises to bring down any swelling.

"I'm sure you'll be fine." Lucina dropped her gaze and said, "Once you're out of that collar, I'll respect whatever you want to do and wherever you want to go. Even if it's leaving me here buried in the dirt."

"…" Olivia didn't respond. Lucina misunderstood Olivia's last muttering as having to do with Tanaka, and while it partially did, there was a second person that she was referring to. A person who no longer had any business being as deep in Olivia's heart as she was. The room's walls felt suffocating as she silently washed Lucina's bruises in the empty room. Her eyes kept lingering on the bruises, and Lucina's exposed neck that was visible due to the low cut collar of her blouse. Had the room always felt so small?