Anyone could tell that Albert was worried. He had picked me up and was walking towards the door in a hurry. We were technically rushing to the carriage as soon as we could, he didn't even apologize to King Howard before leaving. Once we got to the carriage, Albert took a deep breath.
"Take me to the house and make sure to drive as fast as possible." What had happened? Why wasn't he telling me? I swear the suspense was killing me, so I had to ask.
"Papa, what happened?" Albert looked at me and gave me a small smile.
"It's nothing to worry about, son."
"Then why do you look so worried?" Albert stared at me for a minute or two before he closed his eyes and pinched his nose in frustration. He then let out a sigh.
"Mama collapsed as soon as she came to the house." What the hell? Even I am worried now. What must have happened for her to collapse like that? I guess the grumpy old man and Maria had a fight about my future and she lost it. I needed to somehow escape to my real parents, but how?
I knew I was a bit cold-blooded, even if they had been
taking care of me for five years.
It didn't really take long for us to get to the mansion since Albert had been yelling at the horseman to hurry up all the way long. As soon as we arrived, he carried me up the stairs and handed me over to my personal maid. At first, the maid just stood there holding me, while Albert was almost running to Maria's chambers. I even pointed out that I wanted to go there, but she still wouldn't let me go. I had to struggle until she let go of me, and I ran all the way into Maria's chambers.
As I walked in, I saw Albert was sitting next to Maria, patting her head gently. I couldn't see her pretty well from the bed's height, but I did see some parts of her silhouette on the bed. I didn't want to bother Albert, so I kept jumping up and down to find out if I could see her face, but no luck. Albert must have noticed me struggling to see Maria, so he put me on his lap.
Her face was pale, except for her puffed-up eyes and nose which were red. She must have been really stressed out and cried a lot to end up in this state. Besides, women generally have a very weak heart, so they must have emotionally affected her. Her breathing was kind of faster-paced than usual. I put my hand on her forehead; it was burning. She had a fever, and definitely, it was because she was emotionally stressed out. I looked up at Albert to see if he called the doctor or not, but he was out of it. Why wasn't he calling a doctor?
A maid came in with a bowl in one hand and a towel in the other. She set the bowl, which was filled with ice and water, on the table beside mom's bed. Then, she soaked the
towel in the ice-cold water and put it on Maria's head to help decrease her body temperature. I guess they knew about it. I got down from Albert's lap and walked towards the maid that put the towel on Maria's head.
"Infowm me when mama is awake." The maid politely bowed as she tied her hands together. It was surprising how the maid wasn't weirded out by me anymore since I was an odd one. I never knew how to act like a toddler, so I did the best I could. They described me as a 'mature child'.
"Yes, young master."
I headed towards my room. Since I really had nothing to do, I decided I might as well train myself until Maria woke up. I got up on my bed and closed my eyes. Ever since I broke the first stage, it has been a lot easier for me to gather more mana in my core. I always felt like something happened ever since I broke through my first stage, but I don't really know what.
I was able to cultivate my mana for around five or six hours before a knock came from my door. A maid came in and bowed lightly.
"I am here to announce that the Duchess is awake."
I got off the bed and went to her room. Maria was still crying when I went inside her room. As she saw me, she got off her bed and hugged me.
"I'm... I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being such a bad mom. I'm so sorry."
She kept on crying and hugged me even tighter. I stood still as the maids and butler silently watched us. Maria kept on crying on my shoulder. I patted her back, trying to comfort her and help her stop crying but it didn't really work. Instead, it made her cry even harder. Albert knelt down beside us and pressed her shoulder. I have never blamed for what had happened for the last few years, but she always looked guilty along with Albert.
"Alex, why don't you go to your room?"
I gave Maria one last look before I nodded at Albert. Albert helped me by taking Maria off of me. I came out of the room, and I was actually surprised that no one followed me out. The only thing that the servants did was bow their heads as I exited the room, so I listened in on their conversation. I know it was clearly rude, but I needed to know.
"Dad is really going to kill Alex, Albert. (Sob) He is planning on killing him in a week. I heard (Sob) him talk to someone about it. What should I do?" She broke down, crying again. I didn't hear Albert respond for a moment.
"I don't know." There was another silence that filled the air.
"Albert, can you go to dad and explain to him. Please." Her voice was getting softer and softer as she spoke, but I am pretty sure that's what she said.
"You know he doesn't listen to me when it comes to cases like these." Then they both went silent.
I should probably think of an escape plan tomorrow and get out of here. I do think Albert and Maria are the sweetest parents that any kid would be lucky to have, but my real parents must be really worried about me. I needed to somehow tell them that I am alright. I should also come up with an explanation of how I know they are my birth parents too if I needed to explain it to them. I hope I am strong enough to fight in this little body.
"Wait!" It was Albert's voice.
I jumped, thinking that I had been caught. I started tip-toeing away to my bedroom.
"I know something that might work that will save Alex." That caught my attention. I peeked into the room. Albert had a smile on his face, and Maria was looking up at Albert for his sudden outburst. "I don't know why I didn't think of this before."
Just get to it already. What is it?
"What is it?"
"Well, honey, earlier Alex won the fight against prince Cleo, so-"
Whatever they said afterward blurred as a prickling pain entered my stomach. It was like I was getting stabbed with a hundred small knives. I groaned in pain, even though I was trying really hard not to make any noises. The door opened, and the butler peeked out to see who it was. Everything was getting blurry. I closed my eyes and began shaking my head, hoping the blurred vision would go away, but it only worked for a moment or two.
I saw blurred silhouettes of Maria and Albert coming towards me. Maria's mouth was a bit clearer since I was trying really hard to make sense out of what she is saying. I am sure I was drenched in sweat since Maria's dry hand came and started shaking me.
I let out a breath that I must have been holding in ever since my upper stomach has been hurting. The last thing I remembered next was darkness.