" It's surprising that you value your subordinate so much." Carla gossiped while walking.
" He is my person." Eve flatly responded.
He raised his brow in confusion and gawked at her to explain. However, she didn't speak after.
[ My person deserves to be treated well. He is mine, after all.] That is what Eve believed, but she is too lazy to expound.
[ Heh, forget it.] Carla pillowed his arms as he contemplated.
" By the way, you and that Xaphael are quite close, huh?"
Eve returned his sidelong glance and answered a matter-of-factly,
" We will be a lot closer."
" Ohoho. Is that so? Is that why he gave you Judas?"
Eve can't guess what he's pointing at and didn't bother to think more of it.
" He hid it thoroughly, but I know he owns the Playhouses all over Sarthaal." He grinned
[ So?] Her expression can be easily read.
" He is a vile man not solely recognized for his cruelty, but also his extreme possessiveness. What he owns, no one should covet." His gaze towards her shone in an ambiguous light.
[ So what?] She is annoyed that they've been walking for ages but seem far from reaching their destination. Why can't they install a moving sidewalk? The castle grounds seem boundless that her feet hurt already. She felt like she had exhausted her lunch as fuel for all that hike. How she wishes she can grow wings, never needing to torment her legs again.
" Think about it, Eve. He gave you your person. What could that mean?"
" It's was a trade." She finally spoke, still keeping her eyes on the walkway.
" What do you mean?"
" As I meant."
[ Ughh!] Carla exploded in his mind. Somehow, talking to his cousin felt like knocking on an iron wall. He had a foreboding that he'd die of stroke if he'll ever argue with her. He hasn't been this frustrated before. Then reality hit him.
[ Is this what my old man feels towards me?]
He is both exhilarated and frustrated with that judgment.
" Anyway, Eve, you know how to drive?"
" No."
" Wanna learn?" Carla beamed a devilish smile, like a demon ready to corrupt an innocent girl.
Eve did not respond. She was pondering that learning to drive required work, and she dislikes that. She could just stay put and sit prettily or slumber when she rides a car in any case, so why learn?
***
Carla's hair glittered like gold under the setting sun. His impeccable face became vivid as he let out a proud grin.
He glanced at Eve, sitting on a bench, and waved at her. She smiled in response.
Carla is currently surrounded by his followers, fawning over his wonderous display of divine driving skills.
They were complimenting how impressive his techniques and how handsome he looked when he drove. Their comments were exaggerated, bordering fanaticism as if they wanted to send Leon to heaven with their ingratiating words. They seem ready to form a cult with that level of blind devotion.
Then she watched Carla collect his prize and runs his finger against the wad of money.
Seeing Leon like this, Eve recalled the tales of his infamy.
If Tess is known for his haughty visage and sly character, and Lyka for his sunny cast but temperamental attitude, then the youngest, Carla, with Lucian's face, is notorious for being a luminary in bastardy.
He is not only a prodigal son.
He is THE prodigal son.
According to a reliable source, hidden with initials L.C, Carla is a kind of rascal that will have seizures if he didn't act like a little bitch for a day. He confesses that one of his fears is that the family coffers will run dry with his feckless financial sense. Wasting money, for Carla, was similar to exhaling air.
" How was it, Eve? Aren't I divine?" Carla flashed a smug look, recollecting Eve's scattered thoughts. His already supercilious appearance was striking while vaunting his death-defying car driving "prowess".
" It looks fun." Just now, she witnessed Carla race against his minions down a hill. He skillfully maneuvered around sharp curves and almost sent his vehicle flying, leaving his rivals to eat dust.
" It's more fun when you're the one controlling it. You'll feel like you've grown wings, ready to fly any moment." He sat beside her and persuaded her once more.
" So, wanna learn? I don't normally pass down my skills to anyone, you know."
" Okay." She likes it, the idea of flying.
Under Carla's tutelage, Eve acquired the skill of driving as if she had an extra life. Since she will not die no matter what, she became an exemplary student who provokes the God of Death whenever she does.
Even Carla finds it enthralling how heedless she rides. He doesn't know if he should be proud or be nervous, because Eve is simply mad. However, he loves it.
Later, Carla dragged Eve to visit the Black Playhouse, and there, he witnessed what devil's luck his cousin has. It made him admire Eve, an undefeated gambling goddess, even more. Following her picks, his mini vault got expanded, making him so thrilled he nearly prostrated himself on her feet, ready to worship her as Goddess of Money.
Since then, the two grew closer, as Eve likes sticking to him, a magnet for brawl and mischief, and she to Leon, a diety for monetary prosperity. The two beings with questionable morals and modicum of rationality have then transformed into a pair that ventured to relish various shenanigans over the Eastern Region. From drag racing to gambling, to pummeling flies who rubbed them the wrong way, they did as they pleased, causing Lucian's blood pressure to spike on and off, that he ultimately urged his wife to come and exorcise the evil contaminating Eve.
***
A few days after that, Eve got to meet her aunt, Violet Leatrice Cross.
Because she was jaunting on the other continent, she was out of the castle for a few weeks. Nevertheless, when she heard her niece had visited, she cut her schedule short and went back to Sarthaal.
When Violet first glimpsed at Eve, she was so ecstatic she directly took Eve to her wardrobe. She was too delighted that she didn't even spare a glance at her husband and immediately dragged Eve to try on a hoard of skirts.
That was the day that both men bearing a similar face comprehended they fell out of favor.
Eve, on the other hand, realized why her uncle and cousins were well-behaved when dining. It turns out that Violet is authoritarian when it comes to etiquette. The way her lovely smile instantly shut Lyka's attempt to gossip and swiftly fixed the dining manners everyone had, was fascinating to watch. The four couldn't even tweet a rebuttal when she bathed them with a scrutinizing gaze. They could only shudder or break in a cold sweat. Eve then concluded that her aunt is the final boss of Jacea castle.
" My darling Evangie, come let Aunt Lettie see you in that dress." Her emerald orbs glittered in pleasure, a familiar trait that the couple seems to share.
Eve flaunted her lolita dress, following Violet's instructions. Don't ask her why, but one of her remaining handful of principles could be forsaken for hundred types of snacks. In her defense, it was a worldwide variety of sweets- a worthy cause to be treated as an oriental doll. In any case, she was merely dressed up in various styles, taken to tea parties, and introduced as her daughter. The cakes were enough to occupy her that she didn't care to correct her at all.
Violet, similar to Lucian, yearned terribly to have a daughter. It's a shame that conceiving one is rare in the Cross family. She could hardly ease her wish by dressing up her three sons like princesses until they were the age of seven. Not long ago, she was still considering dressing them up one last time. She even bought several skirts for than plan. Fortunately, her niece is here, letting her experience a mother-daughter bonding.
" Oh, you look so lovely. Do you like it?" Violet questioned.
Eve stopped spinning and turned to look at Violet. In particular, the plate of Strawberry Mille Feuille she had just mounted on the table before her seat.
" I like it, Aunt Lettie." She sat down, ready to devour the newly delivered sweet.
" Evangie sweetie, I'd love it if you call me Mom if that's okay with you." She fixed her chestnut-colored hair behind her ear and requested. It's been a few days since she spent time with Eve, and she fell in love with her cuteness. Especially considering she resembled Lucian and Carla so much, making her think that she is genuinely her child. The expectation and desire to have a daughter intensified, that when she heard her husband brag that Eve called him Undad, she directly issued him an edict to sleep on the floor. Lucian felt so wronged. It's not his fault Linlin thinks he's awesome. But, when he realized it was truly his fault, he accepted the punishment with a smile. He even felt the carpet extra soft that night.
" But I already have a Mom." The hand about to deliver the food to her mouth stopped mid-air. She was contemplating that Lilian, though have perished, is still her Mom.
" Then how about Aunt-mom?"
Eve did not respond but resumed eating her dessert. She is having an odd sense of deja vu.
" How about Mom-aunt, darling?" Seeing her impassive made Violet's heart sank.
[ Why is it like this? Isn't this how my husband did it?]
" No." Eve eventually responded after swallowing her food.
" Aumom?"
" No."
" Momtie?"
" No."
[ What is wrong with Aunt Lettie and Uncle Lucian? Is this a shared virtue for couples?] She mused when she remembered the familiar scene.
" Ah, it seems I've been acting rashly." She sighed, fearing she discomfited Eve.
" I understand. It's just a shame because I've already prepared the celebration feast if you called me one of those." A gloom of disappointment clouded her.
" What kind of feast?" Eve's gastric cells showed interest.
" Your favorite desserts, of course. I even ordered them to make Croquembouche, since I saw you enjoy creampuff's the last time." She let out an exasperated sigh. Maybe it's all a pipedream to be called Mom by a cutesy girl like her in this life.
" What's that?"
" It's a tower of dessert, consisting of pastry balls, filled with rich pastry cream, and bound with spun sugar." Violet did not see some glutton's eyes shimmering dangerously. She was busy wallowing in misery at her lack of fate with a daughter until,
" Momtie."
Violet's eyes trembled by that unexpected call.
" What? Sweetie, you called me Mom?"
" Yeah." Well, it's Momtie, but it's still technically correct. Hence, she did not deny it.
" Oh my God, I'm so happy!" Her voice quivered by the immense happiness she felt, not thinking more of the reason why the lass suddenly agreed to her request.