The twelfth day of winter was proclaimed a national holiday. The day that proud Girannon hunters returned triumphant after having collected six sacred cores.
The streets of the noble sect were lined with festive ribbons. Decorative paper and posters were hung from the windows and rooftops of the central city. Young mages from the mage society walked the streets and performed magic tricks to boost the excitement of the large crowds. The royal orchestra was commissioned by the royal family to play happy tunes with the odd patriotic anthem to move the hearts of the citizens. All the well-established eateries had set up stalls and temporary seating areas to sell their foods.
The ladies of Sophie's cafe were starting off with a busy morning. They had set up their large stall in the space next to the landing area where the heroes would be arriving. They were in the midst of all the human traffic and had to keep up with all the people shoving coins in their faces trying to purchase the cafe's goods.
It had not even been an hour since they had set up their stall and yet their supply of iced cream was already running dangerously low. Even now that the air was quite chilly, the people of Girannon were still obsessed with iced cream.
"Briony," Henrietta called out her friend over the loud buzz of customers asking for cakes and iced creams. "How many more iced cream tubs did you bring? They are selling out so quickly."
Although Henrietta was nervous about disappointing the customers, she felt the joy of this magnificent day resonating within her. Nothing could wipe the smile off her face. Her silky blonde hair shone magnificently in the morning sun, and her blue eyes sparkled welcomingly at the customers. She was excited to see the arrival of the heroes, but even more than that, she was excited to see the holy lady Delton. She could not wait for the heroes to arrive so the procession could begin, and she was excited to see the lady who had saved her life.
Quite a few of the people wandering around the landing area were drawn to the stall by the beauty of the young maidens working at there. Over the past few months, all the desperate women who had been taken to Riley's women shelters around the city had become well fed and taken care of. They and their children had grown robust in health and spirit. The sparkle seen in Henrietta's eyes could be seen in all the women who worked at the stall.
Mrs Godfrey had been elated the previous evening when a large wagon had been dropped off outside of her children's home. It had been delivered by one of Lady Delton's servants who said that the lady wished the children could enjoy themselves at the heroes welcoming festival. The children had cried for joy when they learned they too would be allowed to go to the festival. They were especially happy to hear that their wonderful benefactor had sent them each two silver coins that they could spend on food and toys at the festival.
When all the children arrived in the central city, they were blown away by the sheer number of people there. Masses and masses of excited faces lining the cobblestone streets, happily chatting away. Everyone was wearing their best clothes, with brilliant expressions painted on their faces.
Clair and Luella were particularly excited about today's events. Both girls had been at Godfrey's home since they were babies. They both knew the dire situation the home had been in before the Holy lady Delton had decided to sponsor Godfrey's establishment. Both girls were extremely grateful towards their benefactor, but at the same time, they recognised the opportunity they had before them.
The girls were only eleven years old, yet they already had a taste of poverty. The pain that came from a stomach that had not eaten for days. The feeling of not being able to clean off the grime covering their bodies because they didn't have any clean water or soap. The horrible cold that froze them to the bone during the long Freezing season when they didn't have any firewood or blankets. The disgusted gazes they received from the rich people when they were begging for food on the streets of the noble sect before they were chased away by city guards.
Before Lady Delton had come along, the girls had known the harshness of being poor. The penalty that was dealt to those who were not lucky enough to be born powerful or rich. Their knowledge of how hard life could be had driven the girls to become ambitious. Together they knew they had to strive for better in life. Thanks to Lady Delton they were living comfortably now. However, there was no certainty for them that this kind of life could continue forever, in a few years they would be sixteen and would be required to leave the home. With their own strength, they were aiming for a better life. The first step of their plan would be to get personally acquainted with Lady Delton. In the distance, they could see the podium that the heroes would be landing on, and probably where Lady Delton would be.
Luella passionately dashed off into the crowd, determined to make it to the front. Clair, the more responsible of the two girls, shouted back to Mrs Godfrey to tell her that they were headed to the front where the podium was.
"Make sure to meet us back at the church of magic after the festival is over!" Mrs Godfrey reminded the girls urgently as their backs were disappearing into the crowd in front of her.
She sighed and smiled softly at the pair. She could not help but think that Clair and Luella were total opposites. Luella was beautiful and passionate, full of energy and a bit reckless at times. Whereas Clair was a plain-looking girl, but meticulous and focused, very interested in books and not at all excited by dresses and jewels like Luella. Despite their differences, the two girls were as thick as thieves, and most worrying for Mrs Godfrey, just too smart for their own good.
Mrs Godfrey thought many times while she had been raising the two girls that it was a pity that they were born poor common orphans. They could have gone so far in this life if they were noble children.
Over the past week, the Kaltain family had been extremely stressed out. Word had spread throughout the city that Lady Delton's artefacts shop was the place where the magnificent flying carriages that the heroes rode were made. So every day, while the Kaltian's had been trying to work on the things Lady Delton had left them, they had to try and deal with the demanding customers lining up outside the store who wanted to buy artefacts.
This morning the family had been ecstatic to lock up the shop and head out to the festival to enjoy the public holiday. Tierney Kaltain, dashed off into the crowd of people before his parents could stop him. Tierney was determined to get to Sophie's cafe stall and sample the famous iced cream that everyone had been raving about. Tierney had his allowance tightly clenched in his hand, his eyes were aflame with determination as he bulldozed past the unsuspecting festival walkers.
"What are we going to with that child?" Ezarah kaltain sighed as she watched her son's blond head dart off into the crowd.
"Honestly, he has no manners! Thank goodness her holy Ladyship is so kind and magnanimous, she never takes offence to his ill conduct. My dear, now that we have saved up some money from working for Lady Delton perhaps we should get him an etiquette tutor?"
Ezarah turned back to see her husband picking his nose. The angry tick that she had been trying to control appeared on her forehead. Her eyes twitched furiously as she watched her husband.
"So I see that he gets it from you."
"Huh?" Jorah Kaltain looked at his fuming wife, wondering what had done wrong.
The crowd suddenly started to jump and shout. Confetti was thrown into the air. Trumpets and drums started playing joyously. The people began to cheer and wave at the magnificent sight.
Coming in over the trees of the forest were the heroes. Their silver carriages gleamed brilliantly in the early light, making them look like morning stars in the distance.
Although the heroes were just returning from a long and perilous journey, they looked very well put together. As they came closer, their magnificent capes were beating in the wind making them look heroic. They looked dashingly handsome in their clean well-tailored clothes. Riley chuckled from the private tent that was behind the landing area. She had checked in on the men earlier this morning through the magic she had cast on a stray leaf to keep an eye on the heroes. When she had peeked in on them earlier, she had found them all up bright and early, carefully grooming themselves for their return to Gismead.
Prince Kristopher was first in their flying formation. He was standing up in his carriage waving gallantly to the crowd of admirers. His long silky golden hair swayed majestically in the wind as he flashed the masses a dashing smile.
"What a Prince Charming..." Riley chuckled as she looked up at him. Fanservice ran deep within the royal bloodline.
"Goodness." Agnes tried to compose herself from behind Riley after seeing the stunning image of the prince. "The kingdom of Girannon is truly blessed to have such a prince."
Riley gave Agnes the side-eye, she never suspected that Agnes would be the one to make such a bold comment.
Just behind prince Kristopher was the stoic Lord Braxton Smithson, the prince's personal guard. Braxton seemed completely unmoved by the crowd's warm welcome. Instead of warmth, his light brown eyes were cold, and it looked like he was scanning the crowd for possible threats to the prince. His tidy maroon hair was always kept short and neat, completely out of the way. Even though he was cold and unfriendly. He was completely devoted to Prince Kristopher, his loyalty was admirable.
Next to Braxton was Fenrys, or 'Red eyes' as Riley called him. The man looked a bit stiff and embarrassed by the huge crowd, but he remained poised. He calmly waved down at the screaming masses.
There was a group of men behind them that I recognised as the S rank Hunters from the Romulus guild. They were all extremely well built. They were tall and had bulging muscles and defined scars that spoke of countless battles and severe training. Their aura was intimidating even from so high up in the sky. They stiffly waved down at the crowd as if unused to praise and positive attention.
The Romulus twins were also well versed in the art of fanservice, as they waved confidently down at the crowds, winking and shooting the ladies cheeky grins. Their bright red hair made them stand out from the air force of heroes.
Then near the back of the flying formation was Edgar and his tutor Elian Von Josselheim. They both were charming as they waved down at the crowd with big smiles.
The floating carriages started their descent from the sky above. They were steadily floating down towards the landing platform. The crowd responded to their incoming with even more lively praise. Cheers and chants broke out from within the crowd, creating an even more lively atmosphere.
I stepped back into the tent and took a few big breaths. Large crowds had always made me nervous. Even though I had participated in a mage tournament in front of thousands, even though I had completed the mage exam in front of so many high ranking officials, even with all the publicity I had gotten, large crowds like this still tended to make butterflies go to war in my stomach.
"There is no need to be nervous milady." Agnes cooed from next to me.
"Milady always worries beforehand but then performs excellently. So there is absolutely no need to fret." Agnes's calm voice felt soothing.
"Indeed Milady! There's no need to fret!" Mellie's bright tone smacked a smile onto my face.
"Indeed, Milady will be perfectly fine as always." Edna seemed to have no doubts either.
I immediately felt my nerves calm down, and I could breathe steadily again.
"Okay. Let's do this."
The trumpets of the landing area began to play joyously, signalling the landing of the heroes.
"You looking wonderful Milady." Bard sounded like a proud father as he stepped up from behind me.
He reached forward and pulled open the tent draping, allowing me the space to exit.
Since it was meant to be a joyful festival, I decided on wearing some colour for a change. And what is more festive than yellow?
Now that I was out in the open and away from the warmth of the tent, I was glad this dress had such thick and puffy sleeves.
Bard lead me up the steps of the platform, which I needed to be careful on thanks to my not being able to see my feet in this huge skirt.
I was grateful that the crowd broke out into applause as I walked up the steps. It boosted my confidence and made me remember the role that I needed to play as a Chosen Child. The people looked at me like I was a Saint. A flawless holy being chosen by the Gods, such a person could not falter at mere public speaking.
I gently lifted my right hand and waved gracefully at the crowd, perfectly executing 'the noble lady wave' that Agnes had taught me.
"We love you, Holy Lady!"
"Please guide us well, Holy Lady!"
"Please bless us, Holy Lady!"
The crowd's words rang through my ears as many people cheered for me. Bouquets of flowers were suddenly thrown into the platform at my feet. The loose petals from the bouquets created a beautiful curtain of colourful flowers that wafted through the air.
As I looked down at the people I felt a pang in my heart. I could see the urgency in their eyes. Although the royal family had not released much information about the recent human demonisation to the general public, the people were not idiots, they too could sense the impending danger. And who better to alleviate their fears than the holy saviour from another world, sent by the gods to rescue them. I could feel their fears weighing down on me. And although the pressure was great, I found myself eager to take up the challenge. In order to take on such a challenge, I could not continue on with this easy-breezy life. No more giving in, and no more being meek. I needed to be the holy lady that these people deserved.
Although I had already won the hearts of many, I needed to solidify my figure as one of grace to the general public. Since I had skipped out on almost all the public events I had been invited to, very few people of this kingdom had actually had a chance to see me, nevermind the general public. If I wanted to make big changes, I needed the public to adore me.
As the heroes were still descending in their chariots, I spotted a small child at the very front of the crowd. His clothes were a bit torn, and his face was smudged with dirt. And I could see a bluish-purple bruise on his arm. Without a doubt a commoner child, probably homeless. Him simply being a poor common child is not what caught my attention. Just from a glance through the crowd I could see hundreds of similarly bedraggled and bruised children.
What was different about this little boy was that he had somehow, with his meek little body, managed to make his way to the front of the crowd and was earnestly holding up a wilted flower to me. The fancily dressed nobles beside him were all holding out grand bouquets with exotic imported flowers, but he was not fazed. He earnestly stared me down, while offering me a single wilted wildflower. A common but a beautiful flower that gave way to gorgeous orange petals. It was a wildflower, and they were said to signify hope and strength because they managed to bloom even in the dead of winter.
Everything about this child was so symbolic. Perhaps this was fate.
I took a step forward to the edge of the platform and pointed at the child. I let me dark power spill out of me and latch into the boy.
Soon he had levitated up from the crowd and was floating in midair. The crowd collectively gasped at my actions, and the little boy's eyes went wide with shock.
With the flick of my wrist, the small boy sailed into my arms.
He was so small and light as a feather. His growth had probably stopped due to malnourishment. His body was about the size of a four-year-old. but since he had enough determination to push himself to the front of the line, I could imagine him being about seven or eight years old.
He looked up at me with utter confusion in his eyes. I gently plucked the flower out of his small hands and snapped off the stem between my fingers. I then secured the flower into my braided hair, making decoration in my intricate hairstyle. With a little help from my magic, the wilted wildflower was once again brought to life, its brilliant orange-yellow petals bloomed beautifully in front of the astonished crowd.
I looked down at the boy whose expression had now changed. He looked so relieved. Perhaps when I had levitated him out of the crowd he had thought that I was going to punish him. I pulled him in closer and gave him a warm hug. From the way he clung to me, I could tell that he had not received much affection in his short life.
"Edna," I beckoned to her while the boys head was still buried in my neck. "Take him back to the tent to rest. We will bring him back to the mansion after the event is over."
Edna curtseyed and bowed her head before reaching for the boy. He suddenly clung to me harder, desperately, as if afraid to let go.
"Don't worry little one." I scratched the top of his head. "This is a nice lady who will take you to rest for a bit. I will see you soon."
He reluctantly let go of me and took Edna's hand. Together they left the platform, just in time for the heroes chariots to land.
As I looked into the crowd I could see them staring back at me with admiration. Just as planned my display of kindness had moved them, and I had probably gained more popularity among the large commoner population. It felt unnatural to be this calculating, but it needed to be done. I would ease my conscience by making sure that the little boy lived a good life.
I turned and curtseyed to the Prince.
"Your Highness, welcome back to the kingdom, and congratulations on successfully leading such a legendary quest."
"Please, you flatter me. This was only possible thanks to you."
Kristopher really was a Prince Charming.
The crowd were overcome by the presence of this golden-haired golden-eyed god and lost their minds again. The cheering and whooping commenced. Fresh bouquets were being thrown into the air and the atmosphere of the festival reached its peak.
The festivities continued as each of the heroes got out from the chariots and waved at the crowd. This kind of scene reminded me of celebrities getting out of their limousines and stepping onto the red carpet back on Earth.
I noticed that Edgar received quite a lot of attention when he exited his chariot. It seemed that he had become quite popular. I could not help but smile at the sight of a bashful Edgar receiving so much praise. He awkwardly accepted it was an embarrassed smile.
Before long, about ten butlers stepped onto the platform while fully armoured knights surrounded the boundary, pushing the crowds back a bit and looking for potential threats. It was obvious that the royal family was taking extra security measures.
A short stout man stepped onto the platform and took in a deep breath and then belted out his announcement with an unbelievable volume. I guessed that he was probably the chief Announcer.
"SILENCE ALL!" I took a step back to spare my ears the pain.
"THE MIGHTY HEROES HAVE RETURNED TRIUMPHANT AND MADE THE ALL-POWERFUL KINGDOM OF GIRANNON PROUD!"
He took in another deep breath.
"THE KING LOOKS UPON SUCH PATRIOTIC ACTS MOST HIGHLY. AS SUCH EACH ADVENTURER HERE IS REWARDED THE TITLE OF 'HIGH LORD'!"
My eyebrows shot up at this. The king had always been generous with rewarding Gismeadians, but receiving such an esteemed title was really dumbfounding.
However I remembered that Red-eyes was already a high lord, so I wondered what he would get as compensation.
"IN THE CASE OF HIGH LORD FENRYS WHO HAS ALREADY BECOME A HIGH LORD, THE KING ALLOWS THE LORD ANY ITEM OF HIS CHOOSING FROM THE NATIONAL TREASURY."
My jaw almost dropped to the floor. Just the idea of checking out the national treasury was making me salivate.
"IN ADDITION TO SUCH HEFTY REWARDS, EACH ADVENTURER WILL BE GIVEN THREE TRUNKS OF GOLD AS COMPENSATION."
The crowd in front of us was completely flabbergasted. Although almost all the nobles had shown up for the festivities, the majority of the onlookers were commoners. For them, such an amount was unfathomable.
"THE KING WANTS TO REMIND ALL THE CITIZENS THAT GREAT POWER PUT TOWARDS ADVANCING THE KINGDOM SHALL ALWAYS BE REWARDED!"
I sighed. It was obvious that the King was flaunting the wealth of the royal family. The king would not be putting on such a display for the average citizens, my guess was that the foreign diplomats had already arrived in Gismead for the Emergency Kingdom Summit. What else would cause the king to put on such a show?
"AND NOW FOR THE UNVEILING OF THE SIX SACRED CORES ."
The royal butlers uniformly walked to the front of the stage. Each of them held a polished wooden box in their hands. In a perfectly synchronised manner, the butlers lifted the lids of the boxes and reached inside to retrieves the cores with their gloved hands.
The seven butlers held the gleaming cores in their hands for all the people to see.
Each core was about thrice the size of an ordinary chicken egg, and perfectly spherical in shape. More importantly, I could sense the tremendous power within each core. In fact, I could almost hear a rhythm emanating from them, the sound of seven gentle beating hearts.
My eyes scanned across the cores. First was the fire core that was a bright red. The inside of the orb swirled with magnificent fire patterns that made it look like a little flame was alight within the orb.
The water core was blue and had a sense of calm and tranquillity about it. It glistened majestically in the hands of the butlers.
The wind core was colourless, except for swirls of grey within the orb, that made it look like a mini storm was brewing within the orb.
The earth core looked like it was made of granite. It was very solid and gave off a sense of power and might.
The lightning core was exquisite. It quite literally shone with a purple tinge to it, with a clear white line going down the middle making it look like lightning was going off inside the core.
The darkness core was pitch black as expected. Not very exciting but then again, it gave me a sense of comfort.
I smiled, very pleased that I could now make my six holy weapons when I suddenly realised something was wrong. I frowned as I looked at the last butler in the line. There were only meant to be six sacred cores, each core corresponded with the six types of magic. The fire core for fire magic, the lightning core for lightning magic, etc. However, there was a seventh butler, holding up a seventh core.
I looked at the shining white core in his hand that was radiating light and I was utterly puzzled. Could there perhaps be two cores of the same magic element? Perhaps there was a twin lighting sacred core.
Kristopher stepped to my side, seeing that I looked so confused.
"We checked it multiple times. It is a sacred core, but of what element we have no idea."
I looked up at him incredulously. He looked just as puzzled as I was.
"Edgar put forth the idea that it was a core without an element. He theorised that the core would change depending on what type of magic ran through it..."
My mood lifted at the sound of that. A flexible sacred core that could be moulded to anyone's strengths. I was suddenly feeling very energised and excited to work on the six sacred cores and figure out what the hell was going on with the seventh core, and possibly make an awesome artefact out of that one too.
"ALL PRAISE THE KING AS HE HAS NAMED THIS DAY, THE 12TH DAY OF THE FREEZING A NATIONAL HOLIDAY! ALL CITIZENS ARE INVITED TO STAY AND SPEND THE WHOLE DAY IN JOYFUL CELEBRATION!"
Suddenly fireballs were shot up into the air. They exploded sending brilliant firework-like patterns into the sky above the festival.
With that, the people once again broke out into cheers. Even more, bouquets went flying as the royal orchestra began to play a jolly tune. The butlers all exited the stage and delivered my sacred cores to my tent.
The heroes and I left the platform while giving perfect noble waves and pristine smiles.
Agnes greeted me at the bottom of the platform, she was full of smiles and happiness.
"Milady, the cores are being loaded into the carriage as we speak and will be delivered to your workshop. Also, the new servants are now heading to the mansion as well. Edna will escort you to the palace for your meeting with His Highness, Prince Alphonse. The rest of the staff will be teaching the newcomers about the mansion and organising everyone. When you return, the staff will be waiting to greet you."
"That's perfect, thank you, Agnes."
"Milady, may I ask what I should do with that little boy?"
"Yes. Take him to the mansion. Please clean him up and make sure that he is well-fed. Give him one of the spare bedrooms and instruct the others to treat him as if he is nobility."
Agnes looked a bit startled by my answer, perhaps she thought that I was going to send him to Godfrey's Home.
"May I ask why you are not sending him to Mrs Godfrey, milady?" she had a puzzled expression on her face.
"Well, I'm thinking of adopting him."
"What?" Her eyes went wide with concern.
Agnes's shock was written all over the bulging eyes and gaping mouth.
"B-But why?" Agnes stuttered still feeling taken aback.
Honestly, I did not know why. Was it very responsible to suddenly adopt a child? No. But I just had a feeling about that boy. A special something about him in my gut. Besides, he would have a much better life with me than out on the streets.
"That will be all Agnes. I will see you again later today. Probably late evening."
Before Agnes could protest, Edna and I escaped into my second carriage. The horse reigns were tugged and I was on my way to the Royal Palace to pull all the secrets out of Prince Alphonse. I had a feeling there was a lot that he was not telling me.
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Luella shrieked out her frustration as she saw the Holy Lady's carriage take off down the road. They had not been able to get an audience with her.
Luella kicked the dirt with her boot and cursed as only a commoner knew how.
Blair who was much less athletic than Luella wheezed as she caught up with her friend. She put pressure on her side that was aching terribly and clasped the back of Luella's skirt.
"No. More. Running." she panted frantically.
"Blasted crows, we missed her!" Luella angrily kicked the ground again.
while Luella was swearing, Clair lifted up her head and saw the old woman she had seen standing beside the Holy Lady. Clair guessed that that woman was the holy lady's maid.
Clair reached for Luella's hand and dragged her friend to the old woman who was supervising some men load boxes into a carriage.
"Excuse me, Madame." Clair politely curtseyed as the old woman turned around.
Clair suddenly felt nervous under the sharp gaze of the stern-looking woman.
"The Holy Lady promised to meet with us, but she left before she could keep the engagement. Could we perhaps wait for the Holy Lady at her mansion."
Clair cringed at her lie, but she knew it was necessary. She could always apologise later, but there would only be one opportunity to get an audience with the Holy Lady.
Agnes looked down at the two girls suspiciously. They were obviously commoners, but still, they were quite well dressed. Perhaps merchant's children.
"When exactly did her holy Ladyship promise and audience with you?" Agnes was sceptical of the two girls' proclamation. Would Milady really promise to meet two children and then forget about it? But seeing as Riley had just expressed her want to adopt a child, Agnes wasn't quite sure where her Lady's head was at.
"Her Holy Ladyship came to visit Godfrey's home a few weeks ago. We met her there and she promised to meet with us. We came today to find her but she had already left before we could approach her."
Clair did not like being dishonest but she felt it was her only choice. When Lady Delton had visited the home, she and Luella had not even talked to her, but seeing as Clair was sure that the old woman in front of her did not accompany Lady Delton that day, the old woman would have no way of knowing that what she was saying was false.
"Ahh. So you are both children from Godfrey's home..."
Agnes nodded. Lady Riley had been so busy for the past season that she had probably forgotten to meet the two girls. Agnes knew that Lady Riley could be quite forgetful. On top of that, Agnes presumed the girls would be too afraid to lie to her.
"Very well, you can hop onto the back of this carriage with me once everything has been loaded." Agnes sighed wanting to be done with this conversation so that she could supervise the packing.
Agnes abruptly left the girls to shout at two men who were being far to rough with the precious cargo.
Clair turned around to see an astonished Luella staring back at her.
"Clair!" She smiled with a stricken face. "You did it! That was amazing!"
Clair honestly did not feel too good about what she had just done, but nevertheless, she took it as a victory.
"Luella." Clair looked at the elated Luella who was doing a celebratory jig. "We have to be on our best behaviour at the Holy Lady's mansion." Clair gave Luella a pointed stare.
"I know, I know." Luella brushed off Clair's concerns nonchalantly. She was too busy wondering how fabulous the mansion would be.
Clair sighed and decided that she would be doing all the talking when they finally got to meet Holy Lady Delton.
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"What?" Agnes frowned grumpily at the butler. "I can not just allow these crates to be loaded on without knowing what they are."
"My apologies madam, but it is a direct order from his Highness, Prince Kristopher, that these crates be taken by the Holy Lady." The butler politely replied.
"Well, they're too big!" Agnes retorted angrily.
"Very well, Madame. They will be delivered to the mansion right away."
Before Agnes could reply the butler left without a word. Agnes frowned. There were so many strange things happening today: Milady wanting to adopt a child, the two girls from the children's home, now these giant crates the prince was insisting that her Ladyship take home.
Agnes sighed and could not wait to get back to the mansion and fall asleep.
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"So you'll leave the back window open for me tonight?" His green eyes looked thrilled as he stared down at Mellie.
Mellie blushed and she nodded shyly.
"Remember, the back window on the bottom floor of the east wing. Past midnight."
Mellie's face flushed red as she heard the words spilling out of her mouth. She could not believe what she was saying, but at the same time, she was so excited.
Yesterday she had met this young man while on her way back from the Hestia apothecary. And today she was going to sneak him into Lady Delton's mansion, so the two of them could spend time together away from prying eyes.
Mellie was so excited, she had the night all planned out. She would leave the window open for him, then they would go up the stairs to the abandoned living room on the second floor. They would share cake and iced cream, maybe even kiss. She wanted to squeal with joy but remembered to keep her composure in front of him.
The only thing she felt slightly bad about was sneaking a man into Lady Delton's mansion. She knew it was not right, especially since Lady Delton has been so kind to her, but Mellie was certain that nothing bad would happen. She trusted Claud and knew that he would not try and do anything sneaky in the mansion. He only had eyes for her, he had no ulterior motives.
Edna suddenly felt a familiar shiver go up her spine. Concern and worry were written all over her face. She knew something was not right but she could not put her finger on it. All that came to mind was Mellie for some unknown reason.
"Is everything alright, Edna?" Riley asked seeing Edna's usually expressionless face twist uncomfortably.
"Everything is fine, milady. I must just be tired."
"When we get back to the mansion just go straight to be. Take the day off and just relax a bit. Don't overwork yourself." Riley felt a bit worried as she looked at the dark circles under Edna's eyes.
"You are too kind Milady." Edna smiled a small smile gratefully.
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