RAYLEIGH’S POV
She said yes.
Rayleigh can’t help but smile in relief, knowing he’d made up somewhat for his transgression towards teacher and the imperial family with this.
Everything will be fine, once we’re married.
Though...I’m sorry, Medea.
The memory of those pained, tear-filled golden eyes hurts, but Rayleigh knows he’d made the right decision. The Lambergs are the sacred northern guardians, and no matter how much the envious and fearful tried to remind others that the clan had shut themselves away for three hundred years while the world burned, the fact is that without them and the Sahara clan in the south the world would belong entirely to demons and not men.
Teacher, I’ll make you proud.
Count Callan had been beside himself with joy, engaging in a fierce drinking contest with Rayleigh’s uncle because the Grandmaster’s daughter would soon marry her childhood fiancé, and then the Winter Count’s favorite student would officially be his son.
Of course, the Emperor had stepped up the pressure on teacher - asking him when he’d remarry now that his only child would be leaving home soon - which had caused the drinking contest to escalate dangerously, stopping only when the Count and the Emperor had consumed enough alcohol for three armies.
Asha had sat quietly through it all, making small talk with Griffin and Ariana, adamantly refusing to look at Rayleigh even as she was departing with her inebriated father.
Asha.
Those brilliant blue eyes had looked wary and suspicious when he’d proposed, then her expressive face clearly showed thoughts racing as teacher’s daughter tried to understand his motivations.
You misunderstood me again, I’m sure of it.
Somehow though, Rayleigh gets the feeling he can’t tell her the real reason why he asked for her hand in marriage.
Teacher will take her to the north and raise the Ice Wall if he finds out.
The fact that Asha had somehow come to a conclusion - no doubt one involving a sinister plot on his end - and accepted his proposal regardless makes Rayleigh wonder.
What is she up to now?
Conroy places a glass of water on the table next to Rayleigh, and the action reminds the Grand Duke of what his aide had said previously.
> ”Lady Asha simply appears committed to her family.”
Did she decide to sacrifice herself for her House?
It’s a side of Asha he never thought he’d see, and unbidden his respect for her rises, alongside the twinge in his chest at the realization that his fiancée had assumed something nefarious is afoot, and chosen to offer herself in exchange for the safety of her loved ones.
Asha...I meant what I said. I’ll be a good husband to you, and a devoted son-in-law to teacher.
For some reason, Rayleigh is starting to get the feeling that the real battle is only just beginning.
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ASHA’S POV
Right back where we started.
She’s frustrated - with Rayleigh, the Emperor, the world - but mostly with herself.
If I’d kept up my lessons, if I’d continued practicing swordsmanship and magic, we might have had a chance at making it out of there and fleeing to the north.
I have no one to blame but myself.
Women in the empire are considered floozies if they smoke, but Asha doesn’t give a demon’s arse what others will think about her now, bringing her mother’s old pipe to her lips and inhaling. It’s not like anyone in her House will stop her, anyway.
Mom...what would you do if you were here? What would you say?
Would you be proud of me for protecting daddy and everyone in our House?
Or would you tell me I’m an idiot, that I should have found a way out of that situation?
From what Asha has heard, her late mother had been exceptionally intelligent and skilled in negotiation, being the only mage in history to walk away unscathed from an ambush by sorcerers, going so far as to almost make friends with mages’ mortal enemies.
She was really strong as well, wasn’t she? Dad once said she’d have become a Magic Grandmaster easily, if she hadn’t gone into mana overdraft protecting everyone in that final battle against Circe.
And then, once she recovered enough to train for advancement, I was conceived and started to absorb all her mana. For all the good I’ve done with it.
High Mage Selena hadn’t just been a genius magic user, skilled negotiator, talented linguist, or brilliant strategist. Based on the portrait in the gallery, she’d been an striking beauty - with large almond-shaped golden eyes twinkling in perpetual mischief, wild black hair, flawless caramel skin, and a sparkling smile that made the whole world light up with joy.
And from what Asha’s been told, her mother was braver than anyone else - a woman from the Southern Continent’s Anouar Empire who’d joined the war against sorcerers as a young teen Mage and fallen in love with a swordsman from the far north, choosing to stay in a foreign land and build a new life for herself when her fellow citizens from the south got on their ships to sail home.
Mom...
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As ungrateful as it sounds - because daddy and everyone in the House have always loved Asha enough to make up for her mother’s share - Asha’s always wished she could have her hair brushed just once by the woman who’d loved her enough to trade her own life for Asha’s.
I’m sorry I took all your mana.
To a mage, their mana is their life force. And Asha had consumed Selena’s so voraciously that many healers in the capital had pressed for an abortion to save the High Mage’s life.
Selena had beaten them up with her bare hands. No one told her what to do.
She’d been unconventional, by most measures in the world. In the Anouar Empire, women faced more restrictions than they did in Loredan, yet Selena had been raised by a small tribe of female mages who’d encouraged her to run wild and free - hence the independent, fearless spirit, as well as the swearing, gambling, heavy drinking, and smoking (only the free principality of Frankland and a few other kingdoms considered such behavior from a woman acceptable or tolerable).
And Asha had inherited that wild heart (and hair), as well as all her mother’s vices - indulging in cussing, drink, tobacco, and wagers more than any self-respecting woman should.
To hell with it. I don’t know when Rayleigh will kill me, so I might as well enjoy myself. Who’s going to say anything to me now that I’m really going to become the Grand Duchess?
Daddy would never stop her from doing whatever she wants, and the rest of the House praises Asha for breathing.
I need to work on my magic and archery skills.
Perhaps it’s a result of her northern blood, or the fact that in the south most monsters are weak against ice magic, but Asha’s aptitude for the cold element far surpasses anyone else’s.
I don’t have much time, so I’ll just have to get better at what I’m already good at.
I’m not going to inherit the House or the clan anyway, so all I can do is hope my half-sibling will be better with the sword and clan management than I am.
Asha hadn’t missed the way her father glanced at her whenever the Emperor had brought up the Count’s remarriage.
Daddy, I love you. So I want you to have someone by your side who fills your days with laughter and love once I have to leave. You spent all my life worrying about me, now it’s time to focus on your happiness.
Though knowing her father and his infamous reputation for avoiding entanglements with women, Asha suspects she may have to play matchmaker.
Dad won’t say no to anyone I choose for him. The question is: who?
The future Countess of Lamberg has huge shoes to fill, after all.
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“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“This is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Ouch.
Monique and Valora have never minced their words with her, and it doesn’t look like they’re about to start anytime soon.
“But, think about it.” Asha gets synchronized eye rolls at that. “I’ll have to leave daddy’s side soon, which means he’ll be lonely. Do you want him to be lonely?”
It’s working!
Looking at the way her attendants are hesitating and wavering, Asha knows she just has to push a little more for them to at least be open enough to the idea to help her.
“Daddy’s always had me, even when I was being a little shit.” You don’t need to agree with that statement so quickly, idiots. “He needs to start pursuing his own happiness, and he definitely needs to have another child to take over the House one day. We all know I can’t become chieftain once I get married to the Grand Duke.”
“Then how about NOT marrying that asparagus-eating demon’s piss?” Valora continues to be vocal about her hatred for the Grand Duke, and a part of Asha loves her more for that.
“If I break the engagement, what will happen to House Lamberg?” The redhead just huffs.
“Can’t you get that waste of seed to marry that waste of air instead?” WOW, Monique. That was vicious, even by your standards.
Valora nods. “What Miss Snooty said.”
Oh dear, here we go.
Their first brainstorming session is a complete failure, though Asha does learn some creative new insults.
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RAYLEIGH’S POV
Asha came up with this?
The other members of the privy council are as stunned as he is, judging by the silence and the looks on their faces.
Even uncle is staring wide eyed at teacher.
This...this is really clever.
Somehow, his fiancée had deduced the exact quantities of gunpowder and the make of the weapons unleashed in the capital that terrible day, and provided her father with numerous prevention plans that took into account the empire’s flourishing trade and connectivity, while balancing freedom of mobility sensibly against necessary safety precautions.
A harsh, braying laugh interrupts Rayleigh’s thoughts.
Marquess Aasi. Of course.
The Marquess had long pushed for his own daughter to be Rayleigh’s fiancée, continuing his efforts even upon receiving an invitation to the Grand Duke’s engagement ceremony.
“Come now, Count Lamberg.” Those sagging jowls quiver with each word. “Do you really expect us to believe that a wet behind the ears girl-“
“MARQUESS.” Rayleigh is surprised that Griffin joins him in the reprimand.
’Wet behind the ears girl’? That’s teacher’s daughter, you pissant.
Rayleigh had picked up some crude words from Asha over the years.
Those beady eyes flicker like flies around a carcass, before the Marquess brays nervously. “Your highnesses, pardon my insolence. I meant no disrespect towards the future Grand Duchess, it’s just that...”
“Shall I call Asha here so you can all question her yourself to prove her intelligence and insight?”
Teacher is so calm despite the insult to Asha. I have to learn that.
”To be at once as serene as the eye of the storm, and as violent as the raging tempest itself. That is the path to mastery.”
Teacher had taught him and Griffin that years ago, and the more Rayleigh understands, the more he realizes he doesn’t understand.
Count Canalla immediately catches on to Marquess Aasi’s plan, loudly declaring “why of course, Grandmaster. We’d love for your child to enlighten the privy council with her insight.”
When teacher smiles, Rayleigh begins to understand a little more just how much he truly doesn’t understand.
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Asha arrives quickly - blowing in to the room like the force of nature she is, hair as wild as her character - and Rayleigh has to cover his mouth to hide his smile.
She rushed here on Luna, didn’t she? I hope she didn’t do it bareback, since she’s out of practice.
Judging by the murderous looks on the faces of Asha’s closest attendants as they trail behind the acting lady of the house, Rayleigh suspects his errant fiancée did indeed forego saddle and bridle, most likely leaping onto her white mare and riding off at top speed upon receiving her summons.
Always and forever an untameable little thing.
“You called?”
Gasps fill the gilded chamber at her impudence, which makes Rayleigh snort into his palm as Griffin chokes and coughs into a handkerchief.
The Emperor’s crimson eyes sparkle, dignified face - already naturally younger looking than his years - seeming even more youthful as he beams at his soon-to-be niece. “Asha! Uncle Aaron is sorry to bother you, my dear.” Rayleigh is having a hard time holding back his snickers at the dumbfounded expressions around the gold and wood table. “Some of our most esteemed advisors are in need of your counsel, you see.”
That has to hurt. They deserve it.
“Is that so?” Asha looks completely unperturbed, going over to teacher to give him a peck on the cheek before giving in to uncle’s looks and hugging him in greeting.
When she pulls a pipe out of her jacket, putting in dried leaves taken from a small pouch and lighting up while casually perching on the edge of the table by her father, Rayleigh knows he’s in for a show.
“So? Was it you who started it, Aasi?”
The Marquess sputters in indignation, no doubt furious that a ‘wet behind the ears girl’ dares speak to him so impudently when she’s the daughter of a count, and he not only outranks her father in the peerage but is a renowned chauvinist who hates when women talk back to him.
“Let me guess: Canalla backed him up? And that’s why I had to abandon my practice and rush over here on Luna?”
Practice? I see...no wonder she’s wearing pants.
Asha used to wear trousers for mounted, physical, and magical combat lessons, transitioning to skirts before eventually giving up such activities entirely since so many nobles had tittered about them being unbecoming for a lady who’d soon be Grand Duchess.
It seems Asha has decided to go all in.
The smoke from her pipe gives off a pleasing, citrusy scent, though most people in the room are looking completely aghast at Asha’s behavior.
“Well? Did all of you call me over here just to gawk at me?”
Asha...
Rayleigh would normally be similarly horrified by her attitude and actions, but since the other nobles had picked a fight with teacher first, he’s inclined to support Asha just to spite them.
From the looks of it, Griffin feels the same.
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MOONRISE BY LUNASEA: CHAPTER 9 END