The second, smaller celebration takes place after guests have left, giving Lexi the opportunity to remove her painful stilettos and drink to her heart’s content.
While she’d have liked to ask Eric to invite Summoner Selena - out of gratitude for the blonde’s actions against Shade Raphael, because the dark haired male is absolutely deadly and Lexi dislikes owing anyone anything - the summoner’s status as the grand duke’s lover means the rest of them can’t speak freely if she’s around, so Lexi makes do with a request to meet at a popular high-tea spot when she returns from her next raid.
I still have no idea why she helped, unless she’s trying to curry favor with Jordan through me.
It makes sense, since the shade had also been attempting to use Lexi as a means to toy with the crown prince.
Elise had been beaming warmly at the blonde player after that incident, and Lexi wonders if perhaps Summoner Selena had been trying to improve that relationship as well after what happened at the emperor’s ball.
Speaking of...
Duke Tridentia had invited the emperor and grand duke as usual, since ducal and marquessate houses are powerful enough to easily take down the imperial family if they ganged up. For some reason, those two cruel brothers had actually arrived within an hour of the party’s start and stayed a good 90 minutes, far beyond the minimum required attendance duration.
Are they doing this to show how close they are to the Tridentias? Everyone knows the duke leads the imperial party, and is a staunch supporter of the Solusol bloodline. I suppose Eric’s relationship with Jordan means those two are concerned that the Dawn Duchy may favor the crown prince and push for his ascension while they’re alive, so they’re trying to make it seem like they themselves are close to the Tridentias.
It probably doesn’t help Jordan’s case at home that he’s known to be on good terms with the oldest player and the only Hargreaves.
No matter how badly my mother treated me, I knew she’d never actually kill me. But I guess that’s more because of dad, and the fact that some of my relatives often looked out for me because they hated mother and wanted to aggravate her.
Jordan on the other hand...
She’d heard about it from Ray, after Eric had rushed to the palace one day and returned to the manor forcibly dragging the blond prince with him.
My Sight doesn’t allow me to check someone’s full condition, but it was obvious Jordan was injured and shaken.
He’d hidden it well, greeting Lexi with his usual cheer as soon as he’d spotted her, but she’d seen right through him thanks to the amount of time they’ve spent together and quizzed Ray about it the first chance she got.
I’m glad he’s feeling better. But it seriously sucks that he’s so used to these attempts on his life he didn’t even flinch when he saw his dad and uncle earlier.
Jordan is laughing and teasing Eric now, the happiness on a gorgeous face clear for all to see as Ray and Marquess Alaric join in on the fun. For his part, the red haired commander simply grumbles and gripes about the incessant attempts to secure his hand in marriage, but otherwise Eric lets Jordan’s mischief slide.
As for how the duke’s second son had heard about the attack on the prince so quickly that day, Lexi’s learned that that’s the reason the duo have matching necklaces they keep hidden under their clothes - when the magic crystal set as a pendant changes color and turns ice cold, it means the other party is in grave danger. Eric had had to leave it behind before journeying north that time to secure the safety of the next Hargreaves, which was the primary reason why Jordan had almost gone mad with worry after months without contact.
It turns out that during the battle against the shapeshifters, Jordan’s own pendant had reacted to the danger the trio had been facing, and the crown prince would’ve rallied the Hawk Legion to Eric if not for the Dawn Duke stopping him.
The existence of the twin necklaces is a secret even from the emperor and grand duke, after all. Marquess Alaric had found the magic stones by chance when a mysterious island appeared in the middle of the East Sea one day almost two decades ago, and realizing their potential had made accessories for his younger brother and Jordan while swearing everyone who’d even seen the island to secrecy.
I guess it’s confirmed - Tridentia wants Jordan on the throne just as much as, if not more than, I do.
On her part, Lexi’s been doing her best to win more nobles over to the crown prince’s side subtly, since the imperial faction is split internally on which Solusol should be in power. It doesn’t help that the grand duke has been secretly building bridges with the noble faction in order to increase the number of his supporters and overthrow his older brother.
Never thought there’d come a day when I’d be glad my younger brother’s incapable of doing anything for himself.
He’d never do a thing their mother didn’t tell him to, and as much as the woman who’d given birth to Lexi despises her, Lexi’s father had made it very clear for years that she’d be the one to inherit almost everything as his firstborn and favorite.
While we never got along thanks to mother’s poisonous words, I never got the feeling Gian hated me enough to wish me dead for getting pretty much everything our family owns, plus almost all of dad’s attention and affection at home. Guess that makes him a weird kid? Or it that just what’s normal, and everything here’s abnormal?
It’s been almost a year since she’s arrived in Terra, and her internal barometer for normality is a little skewed after all she’s been through.
Loud laughter startles her out of her thoughts, and Lexi smiles a little when she sees that Hissy has leapt onto Eric’s lap - the redhead doesn’t go anywhere near the cat if he can help it - and is snuggled comfortably while the commander tries to shoo it away without touching it.
Awww, don’t be like that. Hissy just wants to celebrate your birthday with you.
Even Vena had popped in shyly just now after all the guests had left, in order to wish Eric happy birthday and gift him a pair of magic earrings Lexi’d secretly sold to her at 99.9998% off.
The red stones match his hair perfectly, glinting in the light as he turns his head this way and that. When Vena signed that they provide complete protection against fire-based attacks up to Level 60, that handsome face had contorted in a way that indicated extreme awkwardness, before Eric ruffled brown hair and thanked the half-elf gruffly.
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Thomas, the boy she’d found and that Ray had sent to the Badger Legion months ago, had sent a heartfelt letter congratulating Eric on his birthday and promising to work hard in order to someday be worthy of joining the Hawks. It’d made Eric smile a little, before he’d quickly changed the topic when Jordan started teasing him for getting soft.
Lexi and Ray had received their own letters from Thomas, and she’d had to bite her lip to stifle her reaction to his sincere gratitude.
I only went looking for you because you’re useful to me, kid. Don’t ever assume I have your best interests at heart.
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Two days later, Lexi heads over to Elise’s after accepting another two-star dungeon raid. She’d gotten used to hanging out with the older sage often, and though they’d stayed close to each other at Eric’s birthday party they hadn’t been able to chat the way they normally do. The older sage had even left with the last of the guests, waving to Lexi and apologizing for not being able to stay longer, which is weird no matter how much Lexi thinks about it.
Elise’s guards wave the carriage through, then Lexi is following the head maid to the library as Eric and Ray opt to wait in the drawing room.
I know you want to rush back home and play with your brother’s kids, Eric. I’ll just chat with her a little about the party, especially about Summoner Selena and Shade Raphael.
When she enters the bright chamber, she has to rub her eyes as the head maid closes the door behind her.
What...
All around Elise are little yellow lights.
Elise?
There aren’t any target lines that Lexi can see, but then again Intuition at her level doesn’t provide her with complete information.
Is this because of the system update thing? It can’t be. I didn’t see these lights even after she went to see Oracle Sita. Then something at the party, maybe? My skills were blocked thanks to those annoying nobles after all. Or maybe something else happened? Elise left before the second celebration, with a large group of guests, and it’s been thirty-five hours since then.
Approaching hesitantly, because Lexi has never thought Elise would ever want to harm another, she wonders how to bring it up.
I can’t lie about it, since she knows my skills. If she’s thinking about wanting to hurt someone, then she knows I’d find out with a single look.
“Elise?”
The room suddenly becomes too hot, the air stifling and heavy as Lexi struggles to breathe, before those purple eyes - now with hourglasses as pupils - blink then widen with horror, and then the temperature returns to normal as Lexi staggers and gasps.
“Lexi! Oh my God I’m so sorry!” The shorter sage guides her to a seat, before hurriedly handing her a glass of water that’s been cooled. “I was lost in the book, and I reacted terribly. I’m so so sorry, Lexi.”
Gulping down the refreshing liquid, Lexi doesn’t miss how the yellow lights are fading.
She’s stifling the thought. Which means she’s hiding something, because she knows I can see intent to harm.
She has to know that I’ve already seen them, though. What’s the point of trying to cover up now?
As soon as she meets those amethyst eyes - now with normal pupils - Lexi realizes Elise has noticed her own sapphire gaze wandering.
“I see.” The black haired woman’s shoulders slump, then the petite player takes a seat next to Lexi. “You saw it.”
“What’s going on, Elise?” She watches carefully as her friend’s inner conflict reveals itself with yellow lights that blink in and out, before vanishing completely as Elise smiles.
I don’t like that smile.
It’s clearly fake - meant to reassure Lexi - but at the same time there’s a tinge of sadness that feels real.
“Elise, please don’t lie to me.” I thought we were friends. “Please tell me what’s bothering you. I’d love to help, if I can.”
At those words, pink lips twist, and an expression Lexi is personally familiar with flits across a fair face before Elise forcibly pushes the dark thoughts away.
So what I said made her momentarily hate herself? Why?
“Thank you, Lexi.” This time the smile is genuine, but Lexi has to force herself to relax and play along as her mind whirls.
“No thanks necessary.” She hopes Elise falls for the smile. “I’m sorry for just popping in like this-“ There’s the Elise I know. “But I just missed hanging out with you, so I dropped by to say hi.”
Purple eyes glisten, and then Lexi laughs when she gets a warm hug.
After being nagged thoroughly to prepare for her next dungeon, she walks arm in arm with Elise to the drawing room so that the older sage can at least greet Eric and Ray, before Lexi boards the carriage to return to the Tridentia manor, leaning out the window to wave and promise (again) that she’ll be careful on her next raid.
Everyone in the manor is used to her avoiding the children, so no one says anything when Lexi opts to go straight to her room upon returning. Vena is still in training - the half-elf devoting almost sixteen hours a day to blade and healer lessons - but Lexi’s sure her party member heard the mentions of the planned dungeon raid.
Mia leaves after placing lunch and three bottles of wine on the low table, then Lexi’s finally alone with her thoughts.
I don’t think it was about Eric’s niece and nephews. When I alluded to me visiting her because she stopped coming over, there were no yellow lights, and her reactions were the same kind, genuine Elise reactions I’ve come to expect.
But when I said I wanted to help...
Self-loathing is an old friend of Lexi’s.
I’m an idiot. Of course she has a lot of regrets - not only in her own world, but here. She’s lost two families of her own in Terra - and her last child died while she was away helping a country that isn’t hers. It’s normal for her to hate herself. She must’ve been dealing with the pain and guilt all this while, and gotten good at hiding it from others. The reason I saw those yellow lights when I walked in is because she was alone - or thought she was alone - and was probably thinking of her children.
Something whispers in her mind, a wisp of smoke that vanishes too quickly, though the unsettled feeling lingers in her heart.
What was Elise reading?
The construct of the leather-bound tome was eerily similar to Sage Icarian’s journal.
Was it another one of that guy’s diaries? It must be. I doubt Elise would leave her own thoughts in the library when an inquisitive servant could just read them.
But why didn’t she tell me?
Throughout her time in the library, Elise never once broached the topic of her reading material, which Lexi realizes now is a deviation from pattern.
Elise always tells me what she’s reading, even before I ask.
...But was it really Sage Icarian’s other journal, or someone else’s writings?
If this is about her kids, then was whatever she was reading something that reminded her of that time? Maybe a diary of her late husbands, or her own children?
It’s uncomfortable, having doubts about someone she’s trusted wholeheartedly since she’d met them - that in itself a deviation of pattern - but Lexi can’t stop the questions bubbling up within her.
What if she was thinking of harming someone else?
If anyone had asked her that this morning, Lexi would’ve laughed them off the face of the world, staunch in her belief that the gentle sage would never think of hurting another person.
But now...
I don’t like how she tried to hide her intent. That means she doesn’t trust me. And since trust goes both ways, it’s not unfair of me to doubt her too.
Or am I being too demanding? Everyone’s entitled to their secrets. I just happen to have a skill that lets me know when someone has murderous or slightly diluted homicidal intent.
After all, whenever she trains with Eric, yellow lights appear too.
Those lights tell me that Eric is serious about classes, because even though he pulls his strikes he doesn’t hesitate to hit me with the practice weapons if I fail to dodge or defend.
So for Elise to have Intuition’s lowest level indicators around her without any target lines showing, that means the person or persons she wants to harm was either herself, or they weren’t in the room, I’m guessing.
She’s honestly not sure how far Intuition’s warning lines extend, has only noticed them while in actual combat. But Lexi recalls how Eric’s orange lights had slowly faded to yellow before disappearing that time when she’d been recovering from the shapeshifters’ attacks.
I could be wrong, but I don’t think so. His behavior, his words...all of them indicated he blamed himself for my injuries. So it stands to reason that his target was himself.
So WHO was Elise thinking of hurting? Herself, or someone else?
As she downs her fourth glass of wine, Lexi realizes she takes a little comfort in the fact that no target line had ended at her.
If Elise ever becomes my enemy, I’d be in deep shit.
That one brief moment when the older sage had reacted instinctively to defend herself tells Lexi enough.
I can’t beat her, not as I am now.
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CHAPTER 31 END