I saw no one behind me but immediately looked up. Above me, on the trees, were two young boys sitting on a branch. One of the boys jumped down and landed a few feet away from me, while the other slowly climbed down. He looked at the way I came from then looked back at me.
"What is a lady doing out here alone?" The curly haired boy asked as he looked at me curiously.
I tilted my head and looked at him curiously too.
"Who are you?" I asked innocently.
The boys turned to look at each other then looked back at me.
"Hey, hey. You're saying that you don't know us?" The curly haired boy asked, clearly surprised.
I looked at him and shook my head lightly.
"I do not know you." I answered.
"What kind of place have you been living in if you don't even know us?" The curly haired boy asked the silver haired boy beside him who jumped down from the tree.
"Do you think you're that famous, Yan?" The silver haired boy asked in a mocking tone.
"Hey! Every noble lady knows us! Even ladies from other kingdoms know us! We are that famous!" The boy, Yan, huffed.
Who are these idiots?
These are one of those times I'd wish Sebastiene was beside me. He knows everyone and would immediately recognize these boys.
"That's it!" Yan clapped his hands once as if realizing something. "She is not a noble!"
The silver haired boy glanced at me.
"Miss, may I ask where you came from?" Yan asked.
Miss is used to formally address a commoner while lady is used for nobles. Same as Sir is used for male knights and Dame is used for female ones. But calling a noble lady miss is an insult.
"Westreon." I answered shortly.
"If it's Westreon, then she is under.. eh?" Yan's face went from thinking to shock.
"House Castellan." The silver haired boy finished, but unlike Yan, he did not looked surprised at all.
"T-that noble house that was a-abandoned by the gods and goddesses?" Yan stammered and shook the silver haired boy. "Hey Lix, do you believe that?"
I looked at the two boys in front of me, one was an idiot while the other one is unbothered. I found it weird that I never noticed them at the opening of the hunt and they also did not recognized me. I never knew someone would not notice my silver hair and purple eyes. The boy, Lix, also had silver hair, so it may be a common color in the capital.
"House Castellan is not abandoned by the gods and goddesses." I stated sharply.
Both boys glanced at each other.
"I heard that the rumor of them being abandoned was false." Lix nodded and looked back at me. "Is it true that the eldest daughter of House Castellan is a vessel?"
"Yes." I nodded.
Yan had a surprised look on his face while Lix had a thoughtful one.
"So it's really true, a vessel has been chosen." Lix muttered thoughtfully to himself.
I just nodded.
I still have no idea who these kids are.
"Is she here?" Yan asked curiously.
"Yes." I nodded again.
'I am here.' I thought to myself.
Yan looked excitedly at Lix.
"Don't be stupid." Lix smacked him on the head lightly. "Do you think we can just go and meet her?"
Yan rubbed his head and smiled brightly like he had a bright idea.
"I don't think they'll decline our families, right?" Yan smiled widely while bobbing his eyebrows up and down.
"You don't really need to worry about that." I told them. "If you want to, I could schedule a meeting with you both at the same time.
They looked at me and a wide smile crept up Yan's face.
"You will? Really?" He asked excitedly.
I nodded. "When would you like to meet?"
"Today!" Yan answered with a wide smile.
"Full." I replied but seeing Yan looked dejected, I added, "You can meet tomorrow though."
Yan looked up and smiled again.
"Okay. Tomorrow then." He agreed.
We both looked at Lix who stayed quiet throughout our exchange, his expression unchanging.
"What names should I put in?" I asked them, remembering that I still have no idea who they were.
Yan turned to me, puffed his chest and raised his chin up.
"Apologies for the late introduction, I am Adrian Brouette of House Brouette." Yan introduced himself proudly before pointing to Lix. "And this is Felix Salvatore of House Salvatore."
House Brouette, a Duke house in direct relation to the royal family. House Salvatore, a military house that has produced numerous strong fighters. Both houses are prominent and influential in their own ways.
To think that I would be meeting the sons of such families by mere chance.
"What's your name?" Yan suddenly asked.
"Hmm? Oh, just call me Mel." I told him with a shrug.
"Still does not answer why you came here alone." Lix looked at me.
"Well, Commander Klent said there's a nice clearing here, so I came." I answered him. "This is just a few meters away from the tent anyway so I won't get lost. But what are you two doing here?"
"We are hiding from the opening ceremony." Yan answered with a mischievous smile.
No wonder they did not recognized me, they were not even at the opening.
"The ceremony had ended though?" I told them.
"It has?" Yan said, his eyes growing wide. "We need to get back, Lix!"
"You need to get back." Lix answered him. "I informed my mother I would be out, unlike you who sneaked out."
Yan looked betrayed.
"Whatever!" He grabbed Lix's arm and started dragging him back.
Rude, but they were amusing.