A royal messenger from the Kingdom of Egra had arrived one day. Donning a crimson velvet cloak, the man in a robe showed his respect by bowing with a palm on his chest in front of Kamil, flanked by Cezary.
“Greetings to you, Duke. I brought a message from Keviel. You are hereby invited to attend the royal party of the Kingdom of Egra.”
“I see. Thank you.” Kamil replied with his fingers crossed on his desk.
Nodding firmly, the messenger turned around at once and departed with haste. He probably had other places to go and repeat similar messages.
“Well, you are allowed to attend,” Cezary said.
This was talked about before. Kerekes did mention that he was allowed to attend the royal party since it involved trade talks. However, the reality was that he had already been doing deals with noble houses from the Kingdom of Egra. There wasn’t particularly a reason for him to attend the royal party. Besides, he wasn’t overly interested in attending, either.
“I would rather stay by Flora’s side, but I don’t have a choice, do I?”
“Unfortunately, you should go. Take Wiara with you.”
In his previous life, he never really spent time with Fionara when she was pregnant. Granted, he was out in the wilderness to bring food to the table, which was something he had to do. Still, it left some regrets, thinking back.
I won’t stay for too long in Keviel.
Typically, the royal party lasted for a full week. He had no desire to stay for that long.
“Anything I should keep in mind?”
Folding arms, Cezary donned a heavy expression on his face.
“There are a lot you should be extra careful of,” he said eventually with a heavy sigh. “You aren’t exactly one of their own now. I reckon the Flissing will be friendly as ever, but everyone else… You need to be careful with.”
“Is it safe to let some of them know that Flora is pregnant?”
“I personally don’t see why not, but you shouldn’t announce it out loud. Answer only when asked. I suppose Lord Flissing will ask anyway.”
Baptiste indeed always inquired about his daughter at every royal party. It wasn’t likely going to be an exception this year, either.
Cezary added, “If any lord asks for trading deals, tell them to send an official letter. Don’t conclude any deals at the party.”
“Doesn’t that actually defeat the very purpose of the royal party?”
“It does. I honestly don't see the point of the royal party. It may have been a tradition, but they should axe it. It puts extra danger to the lords when they are forced to leave their domain with minimal protection.”
Kamil changed the subject. “Since you suggested Wiara, I suppose she is no longer blacklisted then?”
It was another way of asking whether she could be trusted.
“It was just for precaution. I am sure you understand. She has shown no sign whatsoever. I believe we can trust her now.”
It had always been Cezary’s recommendation to bring a woman as his personal guard if possible to the royal party. It was because of a trend of women being underestimated in such a role. Being underestimated was an advantage according to him. In fact, being underestimated was exactly how the Kingdom of Egra defeated the Siwen. Of course, not learning from their own mistakes was another factor.
“Alright, prepare the airship. I am going to see Flora.”
“As you wish.”
Since she was pregnant, she wouldn’t accompany him. That was obvious. What wasn’t obvious was the clear disappointment on her face, not because she couldn’t go with him but because of the fact that he had to go.
“You are not even their vassal,” she argued softly. She knew he’d go and knew that whatever she’d say wouldn’t matter.
“I know. I know, but Sir Waszak wants me to maintain cordial relationships between lords. Not choosing to attend might make them turn hostile.”
She caressed her belly. There was a small bump now. She was also wearing a loose dress due to pregnancy. He knew what she was trying to say; She wanted him to be by her side with the baby.
“I will be back soon.” He gave her a warm hug, then got down to his knees and placed his ear on her abdomen. It was too early for this, but he did it anyway. Beaming a warm smile, Flora caressed his hair with both of her hands. There may have been no love between them when starting out. It was an arranged marriage after all. But they certainly grew fond of each other over time, and her pregnancy drew them even closer to a point that it looked like they were a couple of lovebirds.
“I will be back soon,” he repeated as he stood up and gave her a kiss on her forehead. Avina was a distance away with a satisfied expression.
The journey to Keivel took only a day with a speedy airship, and he wasn’t the only one arriving with an airship as well. In fact, there were a few airships circling around the capital as his airship approached. One of the circling airships approached and, once close enough, a soldier aboard the airship shouted.
“Identity yourself!”
Well, this is new.
It was certainly a new experience to be asked by a guard in the air apparently. It was clear that Karsten was now taking air security seriously. The airship had become more or less a part of people’s regular life. Wiara, standing on edge of the ship exclaimed with her hand holding the handle of her sword on her belt.
“This is Duke Fenchel of Ceres! We’ve come to attend the royal party!”
The guard on the other side took a long look at Kamil and conversed with two other guards behind him. Eventually, he bowed to show respect.
“Duke, please land down near the castle. Have a nice day.”
Kamil gave him a curt nod, and Wiara signaled the airship pilot to go ahead. He took a good look at their airships when they passed by. It was the basic airship. Cezary would say “Rev 1”. It was big and bulky. It cost more materials as well and it used iron parts. According to Cezary, “Rev 2” was “material refinement” where he worked on reducing materials to build. “Rev 3” started using copper components instead of iron with minor refinements in design. At the moment, his team was working on “Rev 6” which he aptly named it as “a battleship”. It was being redesigned specifically for airborne combat. In other words, Karsten was comically behind the technology but he had airships nevertheless.
You can’t just blindly follow the schematics. You have to improve on it. That’s the thing with technology.
Just possessing it wasn’t enough. It had to be constantly improved and fixed if flaws were found. This mentality was drilled upon Kamil by Cezary.
As his airship descended slowly, he was able to see the capital from the sky.
Well, the city hasn’t changed. It’s not doing well. It’s not the worst, though.
Karsten’s lack of concern for the economy meant that Keviel was doing just okay. The market stalls seemed bare due to the high gate tolls, and there was no vigor among people on the streets. But they didn’t look oppressed. It was just that they were economically struggling. The residents probably didn’t know any better. Besides, they were living in the capital. They were probably thinking that it was worse out there.
“We’ve landed, Duke,” Wiara declared.
“Alright, let’s see what awaits us.”
Cezary did warn him of the worst case scenario where they might attempt to detain him. He did say it was a very unlikely scenario but did warn him to cast levitation and escape alone if must. Wiara was warned of this as well and she had a very firm look on her face as if she was prepared for the worst, which was the reason she was on edge with her hand on her sword all the time. Likewise, those on the airship looked nervous as well. They knew that they might be voluntarily working into a death trap.
“Everyone, be on alert. Take off if local guards attempt to detain you. I can always fly away,” Kamil said to those on the ship, and they nodded back. He could certainly escape. Unfortunately, in such a scenario, Wiara would be left to die. Regardless, she remained professional.
“Duke, please follow me.” She walked down the airship afterwards, her hand firmly on the hilt of her sword. Constray to their gloomy outlook, they were received well at the castle gate and were guided to a guest room. Under normal circumstances, a lord would have a place to stay outside, but Kamil’s case was unique. He had no place to stay in Keviel officially. The Flissing would certainly welcome him, but that wasn’t an option at the moment. Once they were led to a luxurious room, Wiara checked the room throughout for peeping holes which were often used to eavesdrop.
“Looks clear,” she declared after going around the room. There were two separate beds divided by a room divider. A section of the room was meant for a bath and toilet-businesses.
“You are too stiff, Wiara. Nothing bad is going to happen.”
Kamil wasn’t particularly worried. It was a very unlikely scenario after all. Still she remained on high alert for a few hours before finally settling down, taking a book out of her belt. It was a romance story by Ruta. The title was the hare that tamed the bull.
Raem and Lara’s story turned into a romance book…
Opening it at once, she began reading it midway, basically to kill time while standing right by the door.
“Isn’t that the hare that tamed the bull?”
Her eyes went wide as if she didn’t expect someone to know the book.
“Have you read the book? Someone named Ruta wrote this. I like it. I’ve never read a story about romance. Well, I’ve never really read a book before coming here.”
Ruta was originally Cezary’s alias. Then Flora inherited it. Lux had numerous adult books written by Cezary which amused the hell out of him even now.
That dude is an enigma.
“Where did you learn how to read and write?”
“I was a personal guard for a wealthy merchant. I had to know how to read and write so that I could intercept letters on his behalf and check for poisons.”
She closed the book and caressed the cover as if it was something precious.
“If I had something like this back then, I wouldn’t have needed to fight boredom and drowsiness while standing guard.”
For stationary guards who needed to stay still for God knows how many hours per day, those two aspects pose a real threat. A book wasn’t going to solve everything but it certainly helped.
“Besides…,” she trailed off, not finishing her sentence.
“Pardon?”
“Nevermind, Milord. It’s nothing.”
For her, there was a reason why she loved romance stories. She was a woman who chose her career over having a family. She never had a relationship and never slept with a man. In other words, she was a virgin. Thus, it made her fantasize about heterosexual relationships. It wasn’t a mere coincidence that a romance story piqued her interest. She was deeply interested in it.
Anyway, they had to stay in the room for a whole day before being allowed out. Apparently, they arrived way too early. Now, Kamil was fully aware of how the royal party worked and how long it’d last. It was a seven-day event, and he had no intention of staying for the full seven days. He planned to stay for two or perhaps three days maximum.
“My son!” A loud voice welcomed him as soon as he entered the royal lobby, a hall meant for gatherings between nobles on the first day where only heads of noble houses were allowed. The voice belonged to Baptiste Flissing, his father-in-law.
“Lord Flissing,” he replied curtly with a slight bow.
“Come on, son! No need to be formal. Look how much you’ve grown! You must have had a growth spout!”
Kamil was just slightly shorter than him. He used to be a full head shorter just a year ago or so.
“Yes, I have.”
“How’s my daughter? Pregnant yet?” He asked jokingly, not expecting the news.
“She is.”
Baptiste froze on the spot, his eyes wide. Kamil could be mistaken, but his eyes looked wetter.
“She is, eh.” His eyes were downcast, and his face expressed regret for some reason. “At last, she is finally in her own nest now.”
Flora was sent to a foreign land as a wife of a boy five years ago, her husband being four years younger which was pretty much unprecedented in the era; He made it work by throwing 50 gold coins at Edmund. It happened fast, and she had to leave everything behind on a very short notice. Baptiste did not regret his decision. Although a bit young, Kamil was the perfect choice for her. He had to make a quick decision before someone else proposed his daughter to him. The other choice was her death because there was no other suitable candidate. He was not going to let his daughter grow old unmarried. That would have been unthinkable as the first daughter of the Flissing. Smiling, he gave a powerful pat on Kamil’s back.
“I so wish we could drink wine now, alas it is the first day. We will wait for tomorrow. My wife will be thrilled to hear the news. I won’t tell her. I want you to break it to her.”
Then he walked away at which point Aaron Weber approached at once.
“Duke,” he curtly greeted him.
“Lord Weber.”
“How is Gojar doing?”
“Fine, he has been experimenting with food, creating new recipes and sharing them with others.”
“Sharing them with others?”
Kamil explained to him about recipe books.
“Interesting, you have a public library? For the people?”
“It wasn’t my idea. It was one of my maids,” he replied with a snicker.
“You granted a maid’s wish? Is she someone important to you?”
It took a moment for him to answer that question. The truth was that she was not someone who was important to him. Perhaps, Aaron was right to have been surprised.
“No, she’s not. But she was the only maid who followed me to Laufeld.”
There was also Karla but she was an ex-maid at that time.
“My Goddess, you had only a single maid when you moved to Ceres? You didn’t have it easy, did you.”
Recalling how everything started out when he first arrived in Laufeld several years ago, he could only smile. There was nothing. His so-called manor was completely empty. Little money he had was spent on furnishing the manor. Thinking back, it really felt impressive that he made it relatively painless.
“How is Tantan nowadays? You took in a lot of refugees, I heard.”
After losing 500 men in prime, Tantan was on the verge of social collapse. With its population just barely hanging over just 2,000, the town was facing a dark age. Of the two thousand people, around fifteen hundred were children and women who could not do fishing. Even the remaining five hundred men weren’t really fit to work and were old. Essentially, they were facing famine. Just in the nick of time, however, the airship was invented, and Aaron was one of the first lords who embraced the technology with open arms.
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“The population has been stable at around the 4,000 mark. We are no longer accepting refugees at the moment. There are already too many new faces. We risk losing our culture if we accept any more.”
“I see. Have you been to Reeva?”
Reeva was Elias Hunt’s village, which was a newly established settlement. Kamil knew virtually nothing about it.
“I have since it takes just a few hours by an airship. Lord Hunt is doing fine, and his men are working hard to build houses and basic infrastructure.”
“I heard he got married. Do you know who his wife is?”
“I believe her name is Amy Wallen.”
The… fuck?
“I beg your pardon? Did you just say Amy Wallen?”
“Yes. Do you know her?”
Isn’t she like 20 years old? Lord Hunt is like 55 or something.
“I do,” he said while rubbing the bridge of his nose. The Wallen tried very hard to marry her off. It looked like they got their way finally. “My word, the age difference…”
“The gap is indeed large, I do agree,” Aaron said with a nod. “But not unheard of. Women need to be younger to successfully bear children after all.”
“Yes, I do see the point, but still …”
There was no way that Amy would have been pleased with the outcome. She almost married Nestor, a man of her age, and then ended up being married off to a man in mid 50s.
I should visit Reeva sometime soon.
Making a mental note, he conversed a bit more with Aaron before they bid each other farewell. The next person to approach him was Noah Harga.
“Lord Harga.”
“Duke Fenchel.”
After exchanging brief greetings, they beamed a smile at each other.
“How is Lady Harga?”
“You can call her Greta. I feel you have the right. Anyway, she is pregnant again.”
Noah had a son and a daughter at this point. He successfully solidified his lineage.
“Wow, congratulations. It would be your third child, yes?”
“Indeed, we’ve decided that this one will be the last. Three is enough.”
Kamil nodded along. His mother, Vilma, had a similar thought. Once she had three sons, she told him that three was enough. She bore a total of four sons. In a noble’s eyes, she would have been seen as a blessed woman. Some couldn’t get any sons no matter how hard he tried…, like Edmund. It required some sort of divine intervention for him to finally have a son.
“I see. Anyway, we’ve accepted your request for the airship. It will be delivered to your city soon.”
Noah nodded firmly. “I thank you. We lack scholars and infrastructure to build it. Besides, your price is more than reasonable. No need to spend more to end up with a lesser quality item.”
It was the first time for him to listen to a customer’s feedback on why they asked him to build an airship instead of building it on their own. Indeed, if the price was going to be the same, one might as well ask someone else to build it if it was going to come out better.
Anyway, I’d love to meet Greta sometime soon…
She had been so busy with pregnancy that she had yet to attend any royal parties. He couldn’t just visit her because she was married. Both were married. A married man visiting another city to meet another married woman wasn’t going to look good on paper. After some casual chit chat, they bid each other good-bye. It was only then Edmund approached him.
“Father,” he said to him. Edmund was still his father on paper.
“I see that you are doing well, Duke.”
He could see that Edmund was starting to grow gray hairs here and there. He was about 40 years old at the moment.
“I am. How is your son and lady Loukia?”
“Both are doing perfectly fine. I…” He hesitated to continue. “I don’t know what really happened to her, but she has become a changed woman.”
“For better or worse?”
“She is a literal angel now,” Edmund replied with a faint grin. “I hope that you can forgive her for what she has done to you.”
Loukia used to be an arrogant and lazy woman who took everything for granted. After her failure in assassinating Kamil, she was kicked out and was divorced. She was down but wasn’t out yet because fate reunited them once again. She even bore him a son he had desperately wanted. Kamil had no hard feelings for the woman because, if she didn’t give him a son, he would have been stuck in Lux even now.
“She is forgiven,” he replied at once. “I strongly believe that she feels remorse. She wouldn’t have changed otherwise.”
Edmund beamed a satisfied smile while nodding repeatedly weakly.
“I fully agree.”
Actions spoke louder than words. Loukia showed her apology by changing completely. She didn’t need to apologize at this point because she proved that she was sorry.
“By the way…, you’ve grown a lot since the last time I saw you.”
It looked like Edmund had just noticed his growth spout. There was a sense of longing in his eyes. If he had a son much earlier, his son would be just about Kamil’s age.
“I am just glad that I am finally taller than my wife,” Kamil joked to which Edmund chuckled.
“Indeed, that would hurt any man’s ego,” he agreed.
“By the way, if you don’t mind me asking, you never sent any diplomats about renewing the wheat tax.”
Lux and Laufeld, now Ceres, had an ancient agreement where Lux would take a sizable amount of wheat harvest from Laufeld. This contract was dissolved when Ceres became a free city. Edmund was well within his rights to attempt to renew it. He wouldn’t be able to get the same exact contract, but Kamil was willing to hand over a portion of the harvest.
“Lux doesn’t need it anymore. I now have Maiava. Besides, consider it a gift.”
“I don’t think I did anything to deserve such a gift.”
Edmund shrugged with a crooked grin. “Perhaps, either way, I do feel like I was able to get a son because of you. So, consider it a gift.”
Broadly speaking, he was correct. Everything started with him. His adoption, and Loukia’s subsequent attempt at his assassination kicked off everything. It had been chaotic, but everything worked out. Before they’d bid good-bye, Kamil asked one last question.
“I was told that Lord Hunt married Amy Wallen. How did that happen?”
Edmund folded his arms upon hearing the question, donning a heavy expression on his face. “The current head of the Wallen is a very ambitious man. I am sure you know that by now.”
Kamil gave him a nod, and he continued.
“After failing to marry her off to your vassal, Sir Vogel, he aggressively tried to find a suitable husband for Amy. It was a pure coincidence in the end.”
“Lady Wallen couldn’t be happy about it.”
“Of course, not, but she didn’t have a choice. Even Elias wasn’t happy about it. He wanted to find a woman in 30s, a widow or something. But he eventually agreed since the Wallen was willing to give a sizable dowry.”
Elias would need money. As a new lord of a new settlement, his hands were tied.
He added, “At least, Elias will treat her well.”
“Does this mean the Wallen have relocated to Reeva as well?”
“They have. They have indeed left Lux.”
He had a bad feeling about the whole affair. Elias was likely going to meet the God of Death sooner than Amy. It could happen before their child would come of age. In such a scenario, the head of the Wallen would likely take control of Reeva. Either way, all he could do for the time being was keep watchful eyes, and the first day of the royal party went by. It was apparent that Elias chose not to attend the party as a lord. He probably didn’t have means to reach the capital.
On the second day of the royal party, in which lords and his families would have a party in the east wing, Kamil broke news to Lady Flissing about Flora’s pregnancy. She shed tears of happiness and said that she’d like to visit Ceres some time soon to see her daughter which Baptiste gave permission. Daniel was also exceptionally happy to hear about his sister’s news. Baptiste joked that they might as well relocate to Ceres since most of his family are already living there. He was basically making fun of his son who was staying frequently in Ceres to be with Esther. Indeed, it looked like he didn’t care about remarrying. He was completely devoted to Esther who was only a mistress. Interestingly, Baptiste wasn’t pushing him to get a first wife because Esther was beautiful enough and had the blood to be promoted to become a first wife if she bears him a son. She was Edmund’s daughter after all. Kamil chose not to ask anything about the princess since she was basically a topic of taboo. But he did have something to ask which he forgot to ask on the first day.
“What happened to Elsos? Who has gotten it?” He asked Baptiste and Daniel. The father and son glanced briefly at each other before the father answered.
“The king has gotten it. It is going to be announced soon,” he said with a face that was clearly not pleased.
Grimacing, Kamil lowered his voice. “But didn’t he already grant himself Gonne?”
“That city has been falling apart for a while now. The king claimed that he had never really collected any tax from there which was the reason he used to grant himself Elsos.”
“That is his own fault, though,” Kamil said. He was close enough with the Flissing that he could speak his mind and not worried about repercussions.
“True, but a valid reason. Additionally, it was him who conquered the city. He does have some legitimacy.”
Regardless, Karsten was hoarding lands, which wasn’t going to sit well with some vassals. But then it wasn’t his business. He looked around the hall, which was full of nobles and their families. Edmund was with Aaron and Noah. None of them brought their wives. In his memories Aaron never brought his wife to the royal party. Greta was pregnant, and Loukia probably chose not to attend.
Do I see … a pattern here?
The Fenchel, the Flissing, the Weber, and the Harga seemed to be friends, and then there was everyone else. The former was pro-Egra houses, probably. The latter? They were a questionable bunch.
Even the newly formed houses are already turning against the crown? That’s fast.
The only exception for Harga which was understandable since Noah used to work for Edmund.
If there is a gap between these two groups, it’s going to get wider once the king announces that he is going to take Elsos.
Karsten took too many settlements. He had to distribute it, not hoard it. It didn’t matter whether he had reasons. Vassals worked under their liege to become richer. The Fenchel and the Flissing were both granted extra settlements, thus they may remain content. It couldn’t be said for everyone else, especially those in the west. Of course, not every vassal was ambitious. At the same time, for a nation that had seen more wars than Estana did for hundreds of years, there were certain expectations from vassals to expand their domains.
He should have at least granted Elsos to a new vassal, but the city is too big for a new vassal to take over.
The population of Elsos was over 50,000 in his knowledge. The city was too large for a newly established house to control.
Perhaps, he was right to take it.
It wasn’t an easy business. Either way, he felt that his business was done. Leaning toward Baptiste, he whispered.
“Lord Flissing, I plan to leave tonight.”
Baptiste looked somewhat surprised. “I see. I guess you’ve gotten what you need, eh?”
“I have. I don’t have any reason to stay.”
“Very well, farewell for now.”
He excused himself from the party and was heading back to his room. It was a pure coincidence that he ran into Lillian who was accompanied by a butler and a maid. Her divorce was complete, and she was back in the castle. Her title, princess, was stripped away, and she was now just Lady Lillian. Her eyes went wide when her eyes caught Kamil from a short distance. She had a miscarriage, which allowed her to save a bit of her grace because she would have been kicked out of the royal castle, should she have given birth to a bastard. Whether it was an intentional miscarriage, it was unknown. She had a fan in her hand that covered the lower half of her face. Leaning toward her butler, she whispered some words. Then the butler walked toward Kamil and showed respect.
“Good ser, my lady wishes to know your name.”
He recognized who she was, but it looked like she was unable to recognize who he was due to his growth spout. He beamed a smile at her with a slight bow.
“I am called Kamil Fenchel, the duke of Ceres,” he declared.
Her eyes went even wider, full of shock.
“You jest,” she proclaimed. “I met him a few years ago. He was a child.”
He beamed a smile once again and replied, “Milady, boys often have something called growth spouts, allowing them to mature in a short span of time. Additionally, we met about two years ago, which is plenty of time for a boy to have had a growth spout.”
The maid, who looked clearly older and probably knew what he was talking about, approached her from behind and whispered. It looked like Lillian was taking her time to digest this new bit of information for a moment and then dropped a bombshell.
“You were supposed to be mine.”
Oh, boy, this woman hasn’t changed a bit. You’d think she’d have learned something from the fiasco.
Both the butler and the maid were startled and rushed to stop her. It was extremely rude indeed, and she was completely, utterly, out of her space. Kamil wasn’t even a direct vassal at this point. He was more of a foreign guest. Making such a statement to a guest was simply unthinkable. But he wasn’t angry or anything. Why would he? It was none of his business. Besides, he was happy enough due to Flora’s pregnancy that he was more than willing to overlook this mishap.
Yours was Daniel, lady. You let him down and betrayed him. Fear not, he is in good hands, the crimson ruby of Ceres.
Of course, he wouldn’t dare say such a statement out loud. Instead, donning a tranquil smile, he bowed toward her curtly.
“Milady, you must have mistaken me for somebody else. I am a happily married man. In fact, I’ve been married for five years.”
He could hear Lillian making a click in her throat; she was clearly displeased with how this was going. She conversed with her maid and butler for a moment before the butler came forth and -
“My lady would like to visit Ceres soon.”
I think not. You are a seed of chaos.
Again, donning a business-like smile, Kamil replied, “I am afraid Ceres has nothing to offer a lady of your status. It’s just a humble farming town.”
He actually had the authority to refuse her entry, given the fact that Ceres was no longer a part of her kingdom. If Karsten made a formal request, it might be hard to refuse, but the king wasn’t unlikely to bow his head to him.
She scoffed, clearly letting everyone in the vicinity know that she was not pleased with the flow. At the same time, there wasn’t much she could do. For better or worse, she had no power over him.
“Hmmph,” She scoffed and whispered. “I could get rid of your wife and get you.”
No man should have been able to hear what she said. However, Kamil had exceptional hearing due to his close ties with wind elementals. In other words, he heard what Lillian said loud and clear.
No one…
His eyes became bloodshot instantly.
No one messes with my family!!!
He witnessed his former wife taking her own life after seeing their house in flames where their two sons were hiding. Although he could no longer recall her face clearly, he could still recall her dead eyes vividly, the pair of eyes that were deprived of hope by no fault of her own. It became a sort of trauma for him. He walked toward her at a fast pace.
“Sir -!” The butler, realizing that he must have heard her whisper, stepped between them. “Duke, please, just let it go,” he pleaded but he was blown away violently, crashing into a nearby wall with considerable force. Lillian, at this point, was pale and could only take a few steps backwards. Her maid did not step in like the butler did. Instead, she stood still, knowing that there was nothing she could do at this point. When close enough, he grabbed her by collar and dragged her upwards to a point that her feet were no longer touching the floor.
“Don’t You Dare,” he slowly spoke to her in a voice that was full of anger. Their faces were very close to one other.
“You are … choking me…!” She labored to speak.
“If you ever lay a fucking finger on my wife, I swear to the God of Death that the whole Egra bloodline will be wiped out. I swear it.”
I failed to protect Fionara. I swear to every Gods and Elementals out there that I will protect this one with everything I have.
She was pale, and tears were gathering in her eyes. The butler, coughing hard after recovering from the throw, dashed toward him, and grabbed his shoulder.
“Duke, please get a hold of yourself!”
Sighing, he let her down, turning around at once, and began walking away.
I already have a reason to go after the Egra. Do not give me another reason because, if you do, I will wipe out the whole bloodline.
While Lillian was down on her knees and was coughing, the maid told her nonchalantly.
“Milady, you brought it upon yourself.”
“Sssh!” The butler attempted to silence her.
“I will not. I’ve had enough. I quit.”
“... What?!” The butler uttered.
“I’d rather work for the duke, excuse me.”
Kamil, although a distance away, was able to hear their conversation. He stopped and looked back. Lo and behold, the maid was indeed walking toward him. When close enough, she bowed.
“My name is Anita. Please employ me.”
Both Lillian and the butler looked dumbfounded and could only stare at her with their mouths agape. Anita was a brunette with gray eyes. Her most notable feature was her exceptionally sharp eyes which made her look mature. She was probably in late 20s. If Kamil refused her, she could well be executed. Therefore, he had to accept her.
“Very well, follow me.”
“I thank you.” She bowed deeply.
Once back in the room, he had to explain to Wiara why there was suddenly a maid following him.
“Oh, my word, Duke…” Wiara sighed while rubbing her temples. “You’ve gone too far.”
“I disagree. Lady Lillian crossed the line,” said Anita.
“Doesn’t matter. We are leaving. Wiara, let’s go. We can talk on the airship.”
“Yes, well, we better go anyway, given what happened,” she agreed, and they quickly made it out of the castle and onto their airship. Soon, they were in the air, heading toward Ceres. All this occurred within ten minutes. The guards at the exit had no reason to stop him, thus he had to let him go. After all, they had no reason to stop someone from having “a walk to get some fresh air”.
Kamil, Anita, and Wiara sat around a table inside the airship, which was well decorated enough that it looked like they were in a high class inn. The only indication that they were flying was probably the sound of wind that was unusually loud because of their speed.
“So, Anita, I assume you had no family in the castle,” he asked.
“No, I do not. I wouldn’t have quit otherwise.”
Wiara had her legs crossed with her arms folded and was just staring at her, looking clearly skeptical. She eventually asked, “Are you a maid? Your action was bold as if you knew you could protect yourself.”
“I have been trained as a maid as well as an assassin. I can fight, if that’s what you are asking. That’s why I’ve been assigned to the lady. Otherwise, a guard would have been required.”
“Why quit so suddenly?”
“I’ve had enough of the girl’s shenanigans.” Then she looked at Kamil. “You heard what she said, Duke. It wasn’t the first time she crossed the line.”
“She is … something, for sure,” he replied, refusing to slander.
“You’d think she learned a thing or two after what happened with her divorce. But, nope, the girl’s hopeless. Again, I’ve had enough. I feared that I might die of anger if I stuck around for too long.”
“Has the divorce been finalized?”
“Yes, it has. As a punishment, her title, Princess, has been revoked. She is now just Lady Lillian.”
“Wasn’t she pregnant? Has she given birth to a child?”
Anita’s face darkened. “She killed the baby by inserting poison into her womb.”
Wiara stood up from her chair, looking visibly shocked while Kamil narrowed his eyes. “What in the world…???” She uttered.
Anita reluctantly said, “It was … my recommendation. She was going to be exiled otherwise. I didn’t think she’d go for it, however…”
What a nutcase, that princess…
“I see. Thank you for telling us.”
Either way, Anita was a royal maid; She was basically a highly educated maid. She could share her knowledge with Karla and perhaps update her knowledge. Of course, she would need to be watched over a period of time before being entrusted with anything sensitive. This mentality was drilled by Cezary.
I wonder if they will invite me to the royal party again…
It was given that Lillian would tell her father about what happened. She may even twist it to make him look bad. But Karsten was not a fool. He had his faults but he was a capable ruler. Objectively speaking, he had brought the kingdom to a sort of golden era and saw the kingdom expand its territory and destroy their nemesis, the Siwen. At the same time, as the kingdom became bigger, so would his faults.
Well, at least I had a valid reason to leave early. I was thinking of an excuse but don’t need one anymore.