Solas Empire, Northern Dukedom of Farnese, Mediolan County,
The City of Mediolan, Lord's Keep
A youthful boy could be seen laying on a huge bed in one of many rooms inside the keep. He was holding a glass of water in one hand and massaging his temples with the free hand.
"'You won't feel a thing' my ass. It feels like my head had been hit by a dozen of trucks." The boy muttered.
"Milord?" A nervous voice parroted after the boy.
The boy seemed mildly alerted by the noise as he looked up towards the voice.
"Oh, nothing. Just talking to myself." He calmly replied. "Have you already alerted Lord and Lady Aemilia?"
"Yes, milord. The guards are currently on their way to deliver the news of your recovery as we speak."
"What about Ser Janus?" The boy questioned.
"We have also sent a messenger to the barracks."
"Good, good."
"Marcius!"
As the boy was speaking, the door to his room suddenly opened with a loud bang and a small figure ran in. The figure zeroed in on Marcius bed and launched towards him.
"Hello, Livia." Marcius greeted in a gentle voice as two small hands warped around his waist. "How are you doing?"
In return, he was greeted with tightening of the arms around him accompanied by a soft sobbing.
"You were in a coma and you are asking me how am I doing? Marcius! You nearly died! I was- I was so scared!" Livia, his little sister, wailed out a reply.
"There, there. I am awake now, aren't I? Your big brother is really strong. It will take a lot more to kill me." Marcius consoled the little girl, who was now crying loudly on his lap.
"Can you not mention about dying?! You think this is funny?! I couldn't sleep for eight nights straight because of you!" Livia angrily replied.
"Livia, stop bothering your brother! He just barely recovered from his injuries. You will accidently hurt him again." A pleasant voice chastised Livia as two other figures quietly walked into the bedroom. They were Lord Marcus Aemilia, lord of Mediolan, and his wife Lady Helen Aemilia.
"How are you feeling, my love?" Lady Aemilia questioned with a soft voice. A tired yet relieved smile could be seen on her face. But the tears in her eyes said another story.
Helen was a lovely woman with brown wavy hair and an oval shaped face. She had deep green eyes filled with warmth.
"Like I just wake up from nine days long coma." Marcius chuckled out a reply. He pulled Livia face up from his chest and began wiping tears away from her face. His little sister pouted and tried to bite his hand.
"It is good to see you awake, young man." His father said.
Marcus was the opposite of his wife. He was a stern man. He had a tall and muscular body with white short hair.
Marcius had complicated feelings about his father.
It was because of Marcus that his attempted murderer was still at large, even when he was put into a coma.
From Joseph's memories; he noted that Felix, the boy who poisoned him, came from an influential merchant family. And the assassination of Marcius was backed by both Felix's family and Sergia clan, a rival clan of Aemilia clan. So, when the blame was about to be put onto Felix, both his family and Sergia clan protected him and covered it up as an accident.
And since Marcius's grandfather, the head of Aemilia clan, was out of the city at the time, it was up to Marcius's father to conduct the investigation and arrest Felix. And the fact that his grandfather was still not back in the city and his father's reluctant to go after Felix in fear of retaliation, his killer was still a free man walking.
Marcus Aemilia was an ambitious man. And he never cared that much about Marcius because of his condition that unable him to cultivate. So, he was not willing to risk his position to capture the culprit of his not-so-favored son's injuries and followed-up coma.
It was also important to note that while Marcius originally died, Creto had made it so that he was just in a coma this time, which would make it easier for the god to put the soul back into Marcius's body.
But because Marcius had not died, his father was even more unwilling to go after the well-protected Felix.
"Father." Marcius greeted coldly. "And, mother," he softened his voice by a large margin, "It is really good to see you both. Especially after recovering from my injuries."
"We were so worried, your father and I. Your condition was critical and the doctors were unsure if you are ever going to recover." Helen said as she sat on his bed and gently embraced him. Livia yelped as she was sandwiched between two huge bodies. "Seriously, how are you feeling son? Are you still hurt anywhere? Or are you having headaches? You hit your head very hard." The mother's voice had a hint of crying.
"And as I told Livia, it will take a lot more than that to kill me." At his words, his little sister sloppily tried to bite him again. Her aim was Marcius's neck and she bit harder. "But I think I'm fully recovered now. I can't feel any pain or headaches." He lied about the headache. "Although I'm a bit tired."
"Then you should rest." Helen hurriedly said. "Livia, get up. Your brother needs to sleep." She tried to pried the little girl away from the bed.
Livia wined. "But mom, I miss big brother. If he is going to sleep, I can also sleep with him. Right, big brother?" Her tone was small as she looked at Marcius with pleading eyes.
But before Livia could finish her plea, the door to the room opened again and a figure in armor and red cloak walked in steadily. On his chest plate was the proud symbol of Aemilia clan, a ferocious red wolf holding a black sword in its mouth.
He kneeled down and greeted the occupants of the room.
"This humble servant greets city lord, lady Aemilia and lady Livia. This one also would like to greet and congratulate young master Marcius for his healthy recovery."
"We thank you for your kind words, Ser Janus." Marcus replied. "But if you don't mind me asking, what is the purpose of your visit? Are there any emergencies that need addressing?" He continued puzzledly.
"I was summoned by young master Marcius," was Ser Janus reply.
"Marcius, you summoned Ser Janus?" Helen questioned.
"Yes. I need the aid of the chief commander concerning with certain important matters." Marcius replied. "But first, Livia, go tell the kitchen maids to prepare some…" Marcius looked out the window to see the sun high up. "Lunch for me. I'm positively starving. Maybe bring some for yourself too. You haven't eaten anything, right?"
Livia shook her head cutely as a no.
"Okay. So, bring back lunch for the two of us. We can eat together." Marcius finished his sentence while gently combing through the little girl's hair as she purred.
"I'll bring lunch for big brother and me." Livia said, sitting up and quickly getting out of the room. But upon reaching the door she stopped and looked back. "But next time you don't want me to hear you discuss adult matters, just say so. I'm seven, not dumb." She said with a pout and walked out.
"Smart girl." Marcius muttered with fondness under his breath. But immediately after, he straightened up and looked at the remaining occupants of the room. The lone servant had also obediently walked out after Livia and closed the door.
"Ser Janus," he said with a serious tone. "I need you to immediately find and arrest Felix Argus."
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Author Notes
MidnightMK here!
I'll be updating a chapter a day. I found out the hard way that it is my limit.
I hope you enjoy the chapter!