Note that Imre is pronounced Im like in him and rah, like in raw. Im-rah.
Chapter 51:
First Greetings
After the first formal meeting with Prince Clarence and Queen Racliffe, all of the marriage candidates were taken on a tour of the grandiose palace, where they would be staying for months, trying to catch the eye and heart of the elusive Prince Clarence. Some of the noble women internally gawked at the outrageous splendor of the castle, which was rebuilt ten years ago to the finest and boldest degree after an accidental fire burned down a good portion of the old castle, killing dozens of guards and maids in the process. But the head maid, who led their tour, did not dwell on such things as she gloated merrily about the newest innovations and designs in the castle, all while keeping her tone respectfully neutral. The final stop was the newest building that was added onto the queen's already large living quarters. This exuberant building, full of ornate statues, large, brilliant windows, and the lingering smell of fresh paint, would be the home of Clarence's wife, the future queen. With the current king's health deteriorating, and Clarence's eighteenth birthday already passed, steps were hastened or skipped in an attempt to prepare the building for the coming candidates. No expense was spared, however, to showcase the wealth and power of the Yursear kingdom.
As the head maid led each candidate to her respective room to rest and let her servants unpack her belongings, many of the women began to introduce each other after settling in their bedrooms. The rooms were luxurious, decorated to suit royalty. Fresh bouquets had been placed in the rooms by the maids before the candidates' arrivals, making the rooms smell of a variety of fresh flowers. The various rooms were delicately prepared, and the candidates were not at all surprised by the high-quality items adorning the bedrooms after the grandiose tour they had been taken on.
Charlotte was the last of the candidates to be taken to her room, so she only briefly glanced into her room before nodding to her knight and walking over to a group of candidates that were chatting and laughing. Charlotte pulled the cord that was tied around her wrist out and slid her fan off her wrist, opening it and fanning herself with a smile, "What a beautiful day to come to the Yursear kingdom. Truly a good sign for all of us."
All of the women bowed their heads in response and laughed politely. The only one who kept her head up was the princess from Maarit Country, Philomena. She nodded, closing her fan in front of her,
"A blessing indeed. Though I do miss the warm weather and sun from my country. The grandeur in the Yursear kingdom is truly above anything I have seen before though." Philomena graciously glanced up, her mahogany hair falling behind her tapered shoulders as she did so, her small hands rested in her lap.
Charlotte smiled as she fanned herself, "I agree. The architecture is something worthy of royalty."
"Well, I am sure you are accustomed to this grandeur, Princess Charlotte, seeing as you visited Prince Clarence a few weeks before anyone arrived." Olicia, one of the candidates from the Falfier kingdom, said as she approached. Her straight, dark brown hair was pulled up and away from her face, pinned in place with ornate pins. Her curved lips were painted a light shade of pink, and her cheeks were lightly rouged, but that was all the makeup she wore. Her brown eyes were twinkling, and her long lashes were barely able to hide the whirling mind behind them. Her dress was also decorated with a beautiful flower pattern, with a high waist, held in place with a jeweled belt. Her sleeves sat loosely on her long arms, and her slippers brushed against the ground as she approached the cheerful group. They all turned and looked at her, the noble women with Philomena and Charlotte barely unable to hide their surprise at Olicia's forwardness.
Charlotte closed her fan with a small slap and smiled, her expression never moving, "Well, it is customary as Bethellian royalty to greet another kingdom's royalty if I were travelling through their country. It would have been very rude of me to press on to the Vartien kingdom without a formal greeting to the Yursear King and Queen. Though with your rank, it is not surprising that you do not know that." Charlotte smiled and continued her conversation with the group, though they would pass glances back at Olicia, who smirked with her arms crossed.
"Is that so?" Olicia said, opening up her arms and shrugging, "Because I heard you met with Prince Clarence alone afterwards. That's not customary, is it? It's definitely not becoming of a Bethellian princess, nor any princess."
Charlotte's smile never wavered as she turned back to Olicia, "Mere gossip, which is something that is not customary nor polite to spread. Unless," Charlotte said, her smile growing slightly, "It is customary in the Falfier kingdom?"
"Not in the least." Olicia said with a shake of her head, "Falfierian people pride themselves on their honesty and fairness. Maybe people from the Bethell kingdom could learn some of my country's customs?"
Philomena's eyebrows furrowed as she stood and snapped, "You are very rude, you know that? We were having a very nice conversation until you came along and began making horrible accusations."
"I think I speak for everyone when I say that that is enough." A deep, feminine voice said, her footsteps quickly approaching the group. Everyone turned to look at their new guest. Now in her country's clothing, Sagara Naceri, the Second Princess Sovereign of the Kyhmal Empire, stepped in between Olicia and the group. As she looked between the two, she said sharply, "We have all just arrived. Acting like this will be shameful for all our countries. Do not forget who you all are representing. It is not just your family, but all of your people and your kingdom." Sagara looked forward, adding, "Please do not forget that." Before she slipped through them and continued forward and out of the long, large room.
With a sharp huff, Philomena grabbed her fan that she had put down and walked back to her room, closing the door behind her. Following, the group quickly dispersed, all glaring at Olicia as they left. Olicia; however, ignored them, choosing instead to maintain eye contact with Charlotte.
"How unsightly." Charlotte said, her expression dropping, "Please behave yourself. You will make all of us look very uncouth with your uncontrolled mouth." Charlotte then walked past Olicia, her head high as she made her way out of the room. She did not even flinch when Olicia whispered to her as she passed,
"I'll be keeping my eye on you."
The main doors closed behind Charlotte as she exited the room, not looking back as Olicia continued to glare at her.
…
"Lady Eva, the message from the informant has arrived." Saoirse entered the ornate dressing room, holding a small stack of letters in her hand as she bowed her head respectfully to the sitting figure at the dressing table.
Eva, holding a small bottle of lipstick in her hand, smiled, "Thank you, Saoirse." Saoirse walked across the room, stepping over the woven carpet as she handed the sealed letters to Eva, addressed to her alias "Lady Ivana" as fan letters. The information inside, however, was far more priceless than the feelings and thoughts of a fan. Taking the top letter off of the large stack, Eva's eyes trailed over the sender's name before she grabbed her sharp letter opener and sliced open the top of the letter with the blade. Carefully, she lifted out the paper inside and read the information slowly, moving the papers back as she continued to read. The rest of the papers in the stack rested on the top of the dressing table, waiting to be read.
"I can understand why Yulia said these were urgent." Eva put the letters on the table as she reached across the desk, pushing aside some makeup products as she grabbed a stack of parchment and an inkwell. "Duke Malcolm Breslin is returning to the Yursear Kingdom. He will be returning to the Yursinean palace in less than a month to help oversee the marriage candidates of his cousin, Prince Clarence. No doubt he will be using this chance to gain power and support from unhappy nobles. Smells like a rebellion is soon afoot."
"He's returning already? But that means-" Saoirse's eyes widened, "But he's not the formal heir. According to Yursinean rule it has to be a direct descendant of the king or the rule is invalid."
"Not if the direct descendants are unable to take the throne." Eva dipped her ink pen into the inkwell and began to rapidly write in a distinct language, her wrist moving deftly as she wrote and spoke, "If Malcolm's returning now that means he has already gotten the support of his vassals and the nearby nobles." Ink smeared across the paper, creating a beautiful font in a language unfamiliar to Saoirse. "We can't delay any longer. This is a real threat. He is unpredictable and dangerous. If Clarence is unable to take the throne, there's no telling what will happen. All of our plans will fall apart." Waving the paper to the side, Eva added, "Saoirse, please take this letter and deliver it to Yulia. Being in the palace, she'll know what to do."
Holding the freshly-written letter, Saoirse collected it with both hands, keeping the paper upright and still as much as she could to prevent the ink from dripping or smearing. If the text were to somehow become unreadable, there would be hell to pay. Saoirse could not afford for anything to go wrong now. "Yes, Lady Eva." Saoirse's wavy pink hair moved with her as she bowed her head, preparing to take the letter and leave the room to collect Neema, but as she turned on her heel she was stopped by Eva. Eva raised her hand in the air, her lips tight in a frown as she looked to the open door and shook her head. She had already heard the footsteps outside.
"Holland." Eva said plainly, placing the inkwell to the side as she straightened up her makeup desk. Hearing her voice calling him, Holland moved off of the side of the wall, uncrossing his arms as he walked inside of the room, feeling no embarrassment for being caught eavesdropping on a conversation he would soon hear directly.
"I'm here, Eva." He spoke up, his face brightening under the light of the room.
The candles flickered in the room as the coal braizer warmed the space. Stepping inside, Holland could feel the slight chill in the hall dissipate, but the chill of the current events would not leave his body. His nerves were on edge. Though their team had prepared for the rebellion, knowing it would be coming so soon was difficult. There were still so many preparations to be done, and time was beginning to shorten more and more. What had pushed Malcolm to act so soon? Clarence would not be engaged for months, and then there was the engagement period. Holland could only wonder.
Eva rubbed the space between her eyebrows, looking more fatigued than usual. "You must have heard Yulia's report already." She stated.
Holland coughed awkwardly "I didn't think you would want to explain it twice." He spoke in a casual tone, much like himself. "Besides, the situation seems a little more serious than we thought." He chuckled.
"Next time, come in before I catch you eavesdropping, or I will cut off your ears." Her words carried a cold venom that made a line of cold sweat drop, "There are few things I hate more than eavesdroppers."
"Like liars?" Holland said, the grin on his face growing. Eva glared sharply at him, picking up the pen she had just written with and sending it with all of her might in Holland's direction. It stuck to the wall with a sharp twip, mere centimeters from Holland's ear. He shot a glance over to it and smiled, "I knew you didn't have it in you to hurt me, Lady Eva."
"Actually," Eva said, turning back to the mirror in front of her and reapplying her lipstick indignantly, "I missed. All of these annoyances are making me lose my touch." Holland laughed as he plucked the pen from the wall and returned to its rightful place next to Eva.
"Well, I can imagine what you need me to do, so I'll get to it." Holland said, backing away from Eva with a smile.
Eva glared sharply at him, her eyes burning with an annoyed fire. Holland almost felt singed from her fiery gaze. Waiting no longer, he turned and walked out, waving lightly as he exited the room tactfully.
As Holland stepped out of the room, Eva called for him once more and said, "Holland, prepare to leave for Meuridge early tomorrow. We're leaving at sunrise."
Though Holland did not respond, Eva knew he had heard. Holland's behavior had changed to become less and less formal, but Eva paid no mind, knowing the stress their entire group had been put under with the current go-ons in the Yursear Kingdom. It was easy to become nervous, knowing that the Yursear Kingdom was the center of the continent, both geographically and in power. If the power in the kingdom were to change hands so suddenly, there would be dire consequences. As the leaders of the rebellion, they had to act. If not, there would be no guarantee that the other kingdoms would hold strong enough to protect the elves against the Yursear Kingdom, particularly the Faelfier Kingdom.
After Holland's heavy footsteps faded, Saoirse waved the freshly written letter in the air, attempting to dry the ink if not a little more as the smell of fresh ink drifted into the air. After a short moment, she bowed her head again and then said, "I will collect Neema and send the letter to the informant immediately, Lady Eva." The letter would take at least a week to return, even with the informant rushing back and forth on horseback. With Saoirse and Neema taking over part of the delivery, at least this time could be reduced somewhat.
After a quick nod of the head from Eva, Saoirse trailed out of the room, carefully holding the drying letter in her hands as she closed the door to Eva's room behind her and ran down the hall. She would have to fill in Vaan after she and Neema got back, as he was out on a mission himself currently.
Once the sounds around her faded, all there was in the room was the sound of the candles flickering and the crackling of the charcoal brazier in the corner of the room, warming the space around them. Looking over her now cleared dressing table, Eva lowered her hands and pulled open a small drawer to the side of the desk. There was no handle, and it would have been difficult to know there was a drawer, but Eva reached forward as if it were only natural, pulling open the small drawer with the tips of her fingers.
Inside were a few small items, some pieces of paper yellowed with age, and other small trinkets delicately wrapped in silk and other materials. Only the small item wrapped in the light pink handkerchief was taken out. Holding it delicately in the center of her left palm, Eva pushed aside the fabric with her fingers, revealing a delicate locket, decorated with golden vines and a single lily inlaid in the front. The clasp on the pendant was broken, exposing a small, dried white flower inside the locket. The flower itself was small, but there was a faint fragrance drifting from the inside, filling the area around it with the smell of nature.
Delicately holding the locket in her fingers, Eva stared at the flower with a reminiscent sigh. She closed her eyes, remembering something as she traced the edge of the pendant and asked aloud to herself, "Am I doing the right thing, Imre?" She lowered her gaze as she stared into the mirror on the dressing table, looking at the dark circles that had begun to form on her face, concealed by a thick layer of makeup. Looking at herself in the mirror, and then to the pendant, she felt a familiar pang of loneliness.
…
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Hello, all! Thank you for your continued support! Hunny and I are still in Texas, but I was able to finish this chapter yesterday and get it posted thanks to Hunny's hard work :D Also huge thanks to my mom for letting me borrow her laptop~ Though, it's sad... everyone here thinks my siblings and I are from Texas! I open my mouth and they immediately ask me what city I'm from (in Texas), and then I say, "Actually, I'm from (other state)!" And they make faces!! I can't help my strange accent ;; Weather and people here are too much like my home state. I think I'm ready to head home tomorrow D:
Now that Malcolm's identity is known, have your guys' thoughts changed? He will be a little hellion, and I know how much y'all Lil'Alywin fans will hate him just because he's a piece of work. I, personally, am highly awaiting writing some scenes of love and affection between characters ^^ and some not-so-affectionate scenes. Only time will tell. I know some of you may feel things are moving slowly, but I can't spoil where our thoughts are headed. Rushing won't do us any good.
I'll be working more and more soon, so most of our work will be focusing on YMtK and my other project Misted Winds until I get enough time to draw webtoon stuff. I may be applying for my master's too, sooooo.... tee hee please don't kill me ;; Until then, all. Thank you kindly
EDIT: Apologies to my webnovel readers for the late update! I was on vacation until today, using a different laptop, so I couldn't post until today ;; Thanks for your patience!!