A carriage was making its way towards Plumeria village escorted by two mounted men. They wore gambeson and had a bastard sword sheathed on the scabbard hanging off of their belt.

A young man mounted on the horse complained to his older companion, "It's too hot. I feel like my padded armor's getting heavier by absorbing all the sweat I am letting out."

"Just bear with it. We aren't too far from our destination. We will be spending the night there. You will be grateful for your gear when we set out early tomorrow and its freezing cold."

The young man hushed his voice and asked. "Is it true that we are escorting the baron's bastard son? I am surprised he has one given how scary the lady is. If I had a wife even half as scary as her, I would feel terrified even checking out other women. Forget about doing the deed and having a child."

"Tsk tsk.... what do you know. The lady sent the woman away when she was found to be pregnant with the baron's child. I had just joined the castle guards then. The lady made a huge scene and the baron had to beg her to even let the still pregnant woman leave alive."

"But the other nobles have tons of bastard children. Don't the kids still get cared for by the them? I heard that it was pretty normal for them to marry more than one partner."

"That is certainly the case for most nobles. But our lord is just a small baron while the lady is the daughter of Count Crestel. She has got him in a vice grip. I am surprised that the baron actually mustered enough courage to do such things behind the lady's back."

The man driving the carriage scrunched his brows and spoke. "To think that you two would dare talk about our lord in such a manner. Focus on the task entrusted to you."

The older man glared at the younger one before turning to the carriage driver and spoke in an ingratiating manner, "Hehe Mr. Collins, we were just making small talk and it slipped out. Hope you don't talk about it to Steward Collins. In return I will treat you to some excellent alcohol and a woman when we get to the town tomorrow."

The carriage driver seemed pleased with the arrangement. "Why would I tell my father about such little matters. Mr. Rusell and I are close friends after all. We should definitely head to interesting places in the town together."

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The three men started chatting to pass time as the scenery was nothing but the same dull greenery and some empty patches of land. They soon reached Plumeria village where they were welcomed by the official supervising the village. He lead the group to a house with a beautiful small garden beside it.

The official knocked on the door and waited patiently. The door was opened by a young boy no older than 10. He had black hair and brown eyes that looked a little too deep to be that of a child. Pale skin and pretty features adorned his face. He looked at the people the official brought over and invited them inside.

"You must be Vincent. Steward Collins said that miss Maya was a very beautiful woman. Looking at you, I can indeed say that the steward wasn't lying. I am Ron Collins. I've been instructed to escort you to the town of Istria by the baron."

Vincent didn't really care about these men initially but he developed a favorable impression of Ron as he praised his mother for being beautiful and he couldn't have agreed with him more. He nodded to Ron and asked, "When do we set out?"

"We will set out early morning tomorrow. It will be very cold when we leave. I hope you will dress accordingly. Are you well prepared Vincent?"

"I will be ready before sunrise. You don't have to worry about my preparations. I believe official Stud has arranged for your lodging and foods. It will be sundown soon. You guys should head over now."

The official lead Ron and two guards away. Vincent sighed as he got up and headed to his room. He looked at everything as he reminisced about the times with his mother. A sudden loneliness came over him. He shrugged it off and began packing for his journey one by one until he came across a deck of playing cards. He caressed it lovingly as he put it away very carefully.

The next morning, Ron came over to pick up Vincent only to find him standing in front of a white stone in the back of the house. The boy had a bunch of Plumeria flowers in his hand which he slowly placed in front of the stone. Ron surmised that stone must be the mark for the grave of Vincent's mother. He waited for kid to be done before helping him move his things to the carriage.

"Vincent you sure have a lot of books. It's surprising for a boy your age to enjoy reading so much. Seems like you will grow up to be very smart."

"Books make good friends. Mother said that reading will help me grow up to become a reliable man."

"Haha your mother sure did say some wise things. Such a pity that she left the world so early. I would have liked to meet her for myself. I have heard a lot about her. All good things of course."

Vincent started finding Ron to be pleasant to talk to the more he spoke with him. Soon the two guards joined them as they left for the town of Istria. Vincent looked back at the house where he lived with his mother for the past 9 years and felt a bit reluctant to leave. He steeled his heart as he remembered his promise to his mother and watched the Plumeria village grow smaller as it eventually disappeared from his sight.