Chapter 8
By dawn, I was riding a carriage that was headed to my new "home". The horizon was a pale violet, the air moist with morning dew as the wheels crackled against the cobblestones.
After an hour, a manor rose into view between the trees. It was the color of ivory, columns carved with elaborate designs. A large fountain stood proudly before the courtyard where numerous statues had been erected above newly-planted grass.
The carriage halted and when I hopped off, I saw an old man waiting for me. His hair was white, his body lean and he was wearing a suit.
"Good morning, Lady Varemont."
I cringed at the name. I had to get used to being called that name in a matter of time eventually.
I nodded, pushing aside the hood of my silk cloak. "Good morning. You are Ronald, I presume? The Head Butler who will be working under me—me and my husband."
"That is correct, my lady. As for the Lord, he has been waiting for you in the living room." In his eyes, I saw the question: 'Why didn't they spend the night together?'
But I couldn't care less. We were his masters and he'd do well to keep his mouth shut.
"All right," I breathed, and started for the door. "I'll go to him. In the meantime, show my coachman where the carriages are to be kept and after that, lead him to the servants' quarters. He'll be staying here from now on."
"As you wish, my lady."
"Oh, and do we not have maids? Why hasn't anyone come out and fetched my luggage?" I said as I went on, raising my voice as I got closer to the house. "Surely our families didn't hire such sloppy servants."
A paused on my tracks as a maid bowed a perfect three-hundred and sixty degrees before me.
"F-forgive us, Lady! We had to prepare your room so we came out a bit late."
I couldn't help but raise a brow. "What do you mean? Didn't anyone tell you that someone is going to live here? Why prepare only when I'm about to arrive?"
Panic enshrouded her soft voice as she said, "My lady, t-that's because the Master—Master August told us that the two of you will be sleeping in separate rooms!"
I blew out a breath. Damn that Nikolas.
"I suppose his room is much larger than mine?" I asked, crossing my arms.
The maid raised her head, confusion crossing her green irises. Now that I could have a proper look at her, I saw that she had pale-blonde locks, freckles dusting her cheeks and nose.
She appeared utterly dumbfounded at my question. "H-huh? Pardon me, Madame?"
"I asked you if his room is much larger than mine." I repeated.
"U-uh… yes?" she said.
I rolled my eyes with a groan. "Fine, whatever. He can have the bigger one. I'll let him win this time since he's the one who arrived first."
"W-what…?" the maid muttered.
I threw my shoulders in the air, continuing on my way. After talking with the maid, dozens of maids spilled out of the polished double doors, murmuring apologies and doing quick bows as they collected my trunks from the carriage.
My feet landed on the smooth marble tiles of the ground floor and I was instantly impressed. It wasn't as grand as my own home but it came close enough to surpassing it. The walls were plastered with minimalistic wallpapers adorned with gold, the wooden furniture sleek and ornate, while a golden chandelier dangled from the ceiling high above.
"L-Lady Erilyn!" The maid from before caught up to my heels. "Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Noel and I will be your personal attendant. It is an honor to serve you, my lady!"
I smiled despite myself. Turning to her, I matched her bow with a curtsy saying, "Nice to meet you, Noel. I'm Erilyn and I look forward to seeing you work."
Noel brightened up, as though rays of sunshine were bursting form her.
Walking into the living room, I saw Nikolas sprawled on one of the sofas. Like me, he had also changed into a completely new attire. I didn't know what these people were seeing, but to me his face was still that of Nikolas'. It also came to me that I had only seen August once, and that was when he finally came home last week.
I stopped a few inches across him, hands joined before me like the dutiful wife that I was. "August, dear."
Since Noel was planning on following me to my room—and it was only right because I still didn't know where it was—I made sure to act my part.
Nikolas crossed his arms. "What took you so long, Erilyn?"
"I'll probably tell you within the day," I gave him a forced smile. "But for now, I'm going to rest."
"Indeed, you look tired. There are bags under your eyes." I caught a glimpse of a smirk.
I widened my eyes to warn him. Though I said, "I… I am not even going to try to deny that."
His lips that curled into a frown. "Are you okay?"
Since when was Nikolas concerned of my well-being? Oh right, we were acting our roles.
"I'm fine, August." I said. "Let me take a nap and we can talk."
His brows. "Talk…? Ah yes, about that. Sure, you can take your time, Erilyn."
I dipped my chin slightly, swiveling and heading for the stairs.
"And thank you for having my room cleaned for me," I said without facing him. "Noel here said it was you who told them to get it ready."
"No worries," his tone was cheerful. "I thought you'd be more comfortable that way."
I nodded. "Thank you, August. I appreciate it, truly."
Without waiting for his response, I let Noel lead me to my room.
While I ascended the stairwell, the memory of the first time I saw Nikolas returned to me. It occurred on a seemingly random day, when my mother was invited to the Varemont estate for a tea party.
As a curious child, I wandered the large house and got separated from Mother. But I wasn't worried, I was used to huge spaces.
I ended up in the knights' training area. And there, I hadn't seen such so many Water-Wielders in one place. Among them was, Niko. He was as small as I was, brandishing his spears made of ice and beating opponents far taller, bigger and stronger than him.
Seeing him, my heart frizzled with an unknown sensation—a mix of thrill, awe, admiration and competitiveness.
'A worthy rival,' I thought.
I then decided to challenge the boy, his hair long and his skin pale—like a princess'.
'Fight me!' I shouted in the sides as I burned with the desire to defeat him.
The adults laughed and mocked me for I was little and petite. But Nikolas Kore, he grinned wider and his eyes were twinkling with starts identical to mine.
That was the day I suffered my first defeat. The same went for him, as well.
At those moments in our lives, I liked him. But it didn't last long. Time passed and I realized it was better to hate him for the rest of my life.