The conversations were fleeting and the overall purpose of her appearance was mere etiquette, she was the reason for celebration and depriving something even as meager as a greeting from those who'd bothered to come, was, by her standards, the epitome of disrespect.
Yet it was only supposed to end there, Crusch had no other inclinations such as holding conversation, furthering contacts or…, god if it was even possible, make friends!
Her appearance and social battery ended at greetings, to which it apparently wasn't seen as rude; Melissa and the hazel eyed maid had assured her of that much. Plans don't always go as planned however, instinctively reacting to the voice once again, her body, of which she'd failed to gain control over in terms of its emotions and reactions it had to particular people she guessed were from its past was now reacting to the man who'd graced her shoulders.
"It's been far too long" The man said, Crusch's gaze almost widening by a bit, the feeling in her body…almost felt…solemn?
Why was this body feeling pity over this man? The person in question was around six feet, he was dressed expertly in a giant fur collared coat covering a muscular and burley body, a beard which she wouldn't be surprised if it could hide an entire small child within it was braided and held together by a band of gold coloring or was it actual gold?
His deep blue eyes seemed to gaze at Crusch with an expression of suppressed excitement, trying to remember anyone of such starking features, she was interrupted once again by the man in front of her.
"Ah Sir Gildal, a pleasure it is to meet you" the blonde haired man bowed.
'Gildal?' it still didn't ring a bell.
"Sir Gildal, it seems you know me quite well" she began, "I haven't really had the time to interact with anyone outside the castle"
She didn't make it overtly obvious that she was a hermit; no one outside of everyone inside the castle was probably meant to know that. Gildal didn't seem to pay much attention to that, his expression still as lively as ever.
"Hahaha, I've heard all about the Young Lady's seclusion for cultivation" he laughed, a hint of pride in that sentence, "I guess you wouldn't remember me much since I've long since retired since that day"
Gildal's expression seemed to change, now trying to attain a semblance of seriousness and some other emotion that Crusch couldn't comprehend at the moment and then he closed his right hand into a fist, placed it into his chest and turned to face Crusch to which he slightly bent his knees in a manner to mimic a kneel.
"Proud former first attendant of the Ludunhime household, former first guard of his benevolent eminence and…Young Lady Ludmilla's final guard"
Crusch's gaze slightly widened, a look of both shock and then a slightly complicated look gracing her youthful features. There was an indescribable pang of pain that hit her at the mention of that last sentence, one she couldn't explain, it was a pain so harrowingly piercing to the chest that it almost mimicked the feeling of loss…no..this was a feeling so, so much worse. Crusch didn't simply feel the pain of loss, not the kind of loss imparted by a singular person but many…
To put it simply it was as disturbingly familiar, similarly terrifying to the feeling of losing an entire family…but multiply that a hundred times over. Why was she feeling like this? This man was alive and well so why was this body overreacting so much? Her mind pondered for an answer as she scrutinized the man's features, hoping for a spark of a memory but couldn't find it, was she remembering someone similar…no..it was definitely—
"Lady Ludmilla…are you alright?" Gildal asked, at some point he'd risen to stand at his full stature and looked at Crusch with worry and that's when she saw it.
For a fraction of a second, a time frame that she could've easily missed had she dared not to be paying attention did Gildal's expression overlap with another in her mind. Scarred and bruised, a face contorted in pain and one of its eyes crushed and bleeding as a visible visceral claw mark ran across its face with crimson blood drenching it completely, a mangled appearance that was almost unrecognizable but Crusch somehow already knew; it was the same man she was looking at now.
"Lady Ludmilla?" Crusch suddenly reeled back in shock as her mind spiralled back into reality.
'This…this person..'
She was trying to understand the short vision that sparked in her thoughts, was that even a vision? From what Crusch could understand her body only assimilated her thoughts with memories, experiences and sceneries the body itself had seen or heard but this…she'd clearly seen what was this man's unmistakable death! Hesitantly as she scrutinized the man once more who seemed to be quite worried over her reaction, she asked.
"When…were you assigned to be my final guard?" It was a dumb question, the man was quite in front of her now and not some mangled corpse.
"Ah, long time it's been" he remarked, the look of worry somewhat subsiding as he aged a few more years, "It's been fourteen years if I remember well"
'F-Fourteen?'
She'd at first thought her body had mistakened him for someone earlier in her past that it remembered but fourteen years ago and she was but a child, a year old child at that. There was no amount of it remembering anyone so how was it that it could mistaken this man for anyone? Or…had Crusch perhaps misinterpreted the actual assimilation of her new bodies memories…could it perhaps…
'No, No, that's impossible' Crusch had long pieced a few bits together but magic was something she couldn't use before nor had she had any inclinations of it, this couldn't be the effects of some passive magical ability her body had that she wasn't aware of.
'Then…Then what was that…?' Crusch thought, her body suddenly shivering at the thought yet there was thankfully no time to let the horrors haunt her for much longer as Gildal patted her on the back.
"I though' I'd never be'r able to see the Ludunhime family's Little gem again"
Crusch glanced at him, at this moment being reminded of the blonde man's existence who soon excused himself leaving her with Gildal as the celebrations around her ascension continued. Crusch once again stole a glance at the man, perhaps trying to spark another glimpse of something but to no avail as she sighed.
"I don't remember being called a gem that much" she suddenly voiced, Gildal slightly turning to her in surprise.
"Ye'r don't? Ah well, it was a long time ago" he turned back to the ballroom and figures in idle conversations and as Crusch followed his gaze was there the sight of her parents in conversation with everyone else, it seemed Melissa and the hazel eyed maid were well aware on how they'd keep the crowd occupied away from her if she didn't wish to speak much. Yet, come to think of it, wasn't this how it always was?
Crusch failed to remember a time in any novel fantasy with Noble balls like this where the noble's child did a lot of the talking with people not their age, it really did almost always end in greetings and if they did have to converse with someone older than them then it was short and fleeting, perhaps packed with the classic tension and arrogance of whichever party. She half smiled when she thought of this and was only slightly distracted from the terrifying scenery of only a few minutes prior till Gildal chose to speak again.
"Long times, it's ye'r ascension huh? Ya should enjoy it more, hahaha most nobles ye'r age take ye'r selves far too seriously" He chuckled while shaking his head, "Maybe its our fault.., will there be drinks this evening?"
Crusch who was brooding over the man's previous words suddenly felt the corners of her lips twitch at the question.
"Sir Gildal, I'm fifteen" she reminded to which the latter party was barely concerned.
"That's the age of consent ain't it?"
'What!?'