'Bored? Ha. There hasn't been a moment of rest since I've gotten here.' Feng Huan lets out a protracted sigh. Days of being here with the astute librarian have given him one conclusion: She's a powerful vixen! 'Not only does she keep teasing me, but she also has the physical prowess to back it up!' this is a person Feng Huan can't afford to fight.
Her right hand is safe and tucked away behind her back as she walks across the room. The wooden floors are not making a sound as if she's weightless before him. Stephanie chuckles audibly and pats his head with her left hand. "Now, it's all for your own good, Regent." She says, her eyes moving away from him.
'I can't believe that even after I'm sent here, I get to continue doing paperwork, what the hell is going on right now.' Feng Huan mumbles under his breath. He can't help but think if the damn duck was still in his humanoid form would he be doing this instead of him?
Feng Huan has wished for an easy life; instead, he's now a librarian's white-collar slave. Well, at least it's a very peaceful daily life he's gotten for the past few days. He would wake up early in the morning and go to the library, then he would wrack his brains out until the sky got dark.
Going home, he would pick up dinner from the nice lady down the street for a few Dalc. It's yam, because of course it is. The people living in this valley seem to have an addiction to yam. He would then go to the castle, greet Rong and the Duck, and sleep next to his sleeping pair.
She's been sleeping for a long time. A deep sleep, not even his shaking her continuously would wake her up. This life is mundane but better than what he would expect. As far as he can tell, she has only woken up twice since they've been in the castle. The last was three days ago. And she hadn't said anything then, only stared at him.
When he had asked her why she kept staring at him, she'd looked confused for a moment, before going back to sleep. Not much has happened since. He's just been working like a bee as Stephanie would pile up the desk with more papers.
And now that the work day has ended, he'll be heading out on a walk around the village, looking for any interesting things or people that he might run into.
'Maybe she will open up to me, I mean, she's got to be hungry by now, right?'
He is derailed from his thoughts when Stephanie taps him on his shoulder. He turns around and sees her standing by him, smiling and looking up at him. Her features look soft, and her braids bounce slightly as she shakes her head.
"Come outside," she instructs, pointing over her shoulder, "It's almost evening, let's eat."
They leave the room together. Stephanie walks ahead of him, leading him to the back of the library towards the courtyard. Feng Huan is surprised at the size of this 'library' as they go down a flight of stairs.
The place opens up into a large courtyard. The size is almost as big as a soccer field and is only illuminated by gas lamps and torches. The courtyard has several stone tables placed in a circular shape, each with its own fireplace and a wooden bucket near one of the tables.
Bookshelves surrounding the entire place are filled with hundreds of books; it appears as if this library is like a whole city all on its own.
There also seem to be people cleaning the place, they're wearing specific uniforms, and their legs are showing as the bend over cleaning and cleaning. They look as if they're in a trance as they tend to the place.
Some of them even sing softly as they dust. Their footsteps echo against the floor as they clean up every nook and cranny. There are so many books sitting here that if it were a normal bookstore, they wouldn't have to clean all of the shelves.
As they walk along the path toward the centre of the courtyard, Stephanie starts to sing along with them.
"Aren't they obedient? Such dolls." She remarks.
"... Yes, I guess they are," Feng Huan agrees, nodding.
"It's so sad that they're only servants and not human beings," Stephanie continues.
"Mm…" he hums, "Is that so?"
"Hmm," she nods, turning around to give him a bright smile, "Are you listening?"
"Huh? Oh… yes. Sorry. I was lost in thought." He replies
"Really? I don't see anyone who doesn't think that way usually," Stephanie replies, "But then again, I've noticed it lately too. You're too lenient for a regent." She says, her tone darkening as she narrows her eyes.
"Well, of course, you're not actually Domplumo. You're Feng Huan." she steps in front of him stopping in her tracks. "If you don't want others to know about that you should stop complaining about how I'm treating you, all right?" Feng Huan cannot see her face but at this moment...
He could only imagine.
She is looking up at him now, her body facing him completely. He tries to take a step back but finds himself stuck in place. He feels his heart pounding hard in his chest. It's as if his lungs can't catch up with his heartbeat.
"Yes..." he whispers, watching his own lips move.
"Great! That's settled. Let's eat!" She grabs his right hand and pulls him to a table in the middle that's being tended by almost ten servants. 'How many people actually live here...?'
"Don't mind the slaves," Stephanie says in a cheery tone as she sits on her chair. She gestures for him to sit at the opposite side of the table.
Feng Huan awkwardly places himself next to the woman and looks down at the small platter of food in front of him.
"... It appears as if they haven't eaten properly for a while. Maybe we should-."
"They have the scraps."
Feng Huan shivers. He could feel the cold gaze on his skin, causing goosebumps to appear. He slowly turns to look at the source of the chill. Stephanie isn't looking at him anymore, instead focusing on the servants as they serve the dishes on the table. She is watching them intently, analysing everything that they do.
In the silence that follows she says, "... If they aren't content with the scraps, I can always kill them." a small smile forms on her lips.
"Don't be so rash, yes let's eat." Feng Huan says followed by a nervous laugh. Her gaze meets his.
"Oh, Regent, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking of your feelings there," Stephanie mutters before picking up her chopsticks. "I apologise, please forgive me," she says, but her face shows no sincerity at all.
"Ah, no need to worry about it, Stephie." he sighs.
Stephanie stares straight into his eyes before taking a bite out of her dish, "Hmmm, yummy."
Feng Huan watches her eat. His eyes are fixated on the movement of her lips as she speaks, as the fork goes up and down. He can almost taste the flavour of the dish, he wants it, but he knows he shouldn't. He looks down at his plate, he is suddenly feeling very embarrassed about this whole situation.
"Regent?" he hears Stephanie calling him.
"What is it?" he asks, raising his head.
"This is very tasty,"
"Yes... I can see." he sighs.
"Do you want to eat from my plate?" she asks.
"Why do you-." Feng Huan looks up and sees her glaring at him, her mouth full of food. "No. It's fine," he answers.
"All right," she smiles, "Eat faster then,"
…
Meanwhile, at the entrance of the valley, an army of five hundred men enters, dwarfing the permanent population of the valley. The Freemen greet the incoming troops while the undesirables can't bear to show their face.
The soldiers are holding what looks like bolt action rifles, their dark green uniforms are blending with the grass. They all have dark blue helmets and a white stripe down the side. They look formidable, and menacing to the population.
Rifles are rare, and the Duchess has brought the best of the best. Many people wish to have a chance to fight under them, and some even say it would be worth it if the Ustranians chose them as part of their army.
All of these soldiers are currently gathered in the centre of the valley, at the very front is a palanquin carried by six men. This is where the Duchess will emerge, carrying the Crown of Crome on her head.
The women of the valley watch as the procession moves past their house. Many women wave their hands, smiling, trying to look friendly, wishing the Duchess well. Some throw flowers and others try their best to get closer, but the guards are blocking their path.
"It looks like the Duchess is once again well received in her inspection of this region." John Student remarks as he looks through his spyglass, standing atop McCready Hall. The wind blows on the hair on his head as he exhales in a soft exchange.
"Yes, but does she really deserve such treatment? I've never met her personally, but I hear she's a very difficult person to work with."
"Really?" John raises his eyebrows at the old man Zig who's sitting on a small couch.
"She is extremely hard to understand. Her personality is unpredictable, especially since the death of her husband. She is kind, though. At least that's what I've heard."
"I see…" John nods, tapping his foot on the clear wood under his feet. It's shiny enough that the slaves who clean up after them could admire their appearance on its surface.
"I wonder why she's allowed to remain in the palace then?" John continues.
Zig shrugs his shoulders, "Perhaps it's because she had done some things during the last war?"
John thinks for a bit. Then he lets his arm drop and takes off his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose.
"There are too many slaves," he says.
"The war was terrible." Zig grumbles, his hand rubbing a large scar that runs across his forehead.
"That must be it."
...
The entire valley is lit by lamps and torches as the Duchess' palanquin makes its way to McCready Hall. All of the servants of the hall stand tall in attention, bowing respectfully as they approach. The light illuminates the Duchess' red cape as she steps down from her palanquin.
A guard helps her onto the ground and leads her to McCready Hall. The small country hall is filled with loud conversations and bustling noise, sweet murmurings about the agenda of this year's visit. As she approaches the front door, she notices several guards posted outside.
Their weapons are held tightly in one of their hands, their posture perfect and attentive. The Duchess pauses briefly as she passes by them. One of the guards lowers their head respectfully, and another one bows deeply.
The Duchess sighs. This is the smallest entity within her Duchy. It only exists because of the monsters in the President's cabinet. Especially Alana Parr. But she also needs to remember, despite how much she hates the girl, she must stay civil, or at the very least, not antagonise her as much as possible.
The Duchess takes a deep breath before opening the doors leading inside. The room itself is rather small. Her puffy red hair and her similarly coloured dress down to her calves give her the image of a queen, but her eyes betray her. They give her away with just one glance.
The King has given her a Dutchy to rule, but the dear brother gave her the one far from the border...
"Your Majesty," someone behind her says, breaking her thoughts. She turns around to see an older gentleman approaching, dressed as finely as every other courtier in the kingdom. His face seems kind. His white hair flows softly around his ears and is still luscious atop his head even in his old age. A thin gold chain hangs over his neck.
"Greetings, Mr. Barros," The Duchess responds, her voice cold. Her eyes scan over his face, searching for any sign of weakness. There are none.
"... You were quite the beauty during our last meeting. And now, even more beautiful."
"I was unaware we had such conversations."
"We had."
"Then I suppose I shall enjoy the conversation that we share tonight,"
"That is wise of you, Your Highness." He bows slightly, the beads and chains tinkling with every movement of his arms.
"Please make yourself comfortable. You'll find my quarters are just down there," he continues.
"The rest of the guests are waiting for you."
The Duchess glances back towards the hallway leading to her bedroom. She turns her head back to look at Mr. Barros and bows her head lightly, "Thank you, Mr. Barros."
With that, the Duchess starts walking towards her temporary bedroom. As she walks further away he begins to imagine what kind of night she will spend. She hopes the wine that her family provided is strong enough to help her sleep tonight.
...
Feng Huan and Stephanie enter McCready Hall and walk towards the dining room. Stephanie looks around, observing the luxurious decorations and the paintings decorating each wall. There are many different scenes of people doing various kinds of business and fighting.
The Duchess stands at the centre of a crowd, wearing a crown and wielding a sword. Her body is covered with a thick veil, shielding her from view. But despite her veiled presence, she looks elegant, powerful, dignified, and commanding.
Her puffy red hair makes her seen, its colours eye-catching even to those not looking. Even though she wears nothing but a simple gown, the fabric is shimmering and sparkling as the candlelight reflects against it, giving it a brilliant, golden colour.
Feng Huan keeps his eyes trained on her as Stephanie's focus drifts elsewhere. The Duchess has always been known to inspire the highest respect among all the oligarchs and nobles, at least that's as much as he's read.
The function goes on well into the night, and the men and women start talking business to each other. Feng Huan has no idea what to do, so he goes outside to sit on a tree stump. From where he sits he's able to keep a better look at everyone else in attendance.
"Having fun?"
"Ah!"
Feng Huan almost falls over in surprise. Two small hands catch him before he completely tips off the tree stump.
"I thought you were asleep." Feng Huan exhales.
The Princess smiles at him innocently. She's wearing a black dress, matching her black hair that she braids into two pigtails. She looks cute, but still, a lady should wear a more modest attire, at least one day a week.
"Not yet, I woke up earlier than usual to do some reading. I'm afraid that your party will go very late," she answers. She sits next to him, resting her head against her shoulder and hugging her knees.
"You shouldn't bother reading, it's boring." Feng Huan comments.
She laughs.
"That's true, but sometimes it's the only thing I can do."
Feng Huan sits with his pair for a while, admiring the stars in the night sky.
"Wait... I haven't caught your name." Feng Huan says as he turns to his pair holding out his hand. The princess looks at him with a surprised expression.
"Oh... it's Marin."
Marin
"Well then, Marin… Would you like something to eat?"