"Lyra," Adelia called from her place in front of the vanity mirror. "Is everything packed and ready? We will have to go down soon."
Lyra, her maid, silently and meticulously gathered the young lady's hair into a single braid, just as she had always done.
Only this time, she added ribbons and decorative ornaments to her hair to avoid excessive simplicity.
"Yes, My Lady," the maid responded while adding finishing touches. "I completed the packing last night, just as you instructed."
"Alright…" Adelia responded, gazing at her reflection while feeling for her jewelry on the surface of the vanity with her fingers. "That's good. Now, you need only be a bit faster. Father must be waiting for me already."
"I am trying my best to hurry, My lady," Lyra replied flatly. "But if you keep fidgeting, then I will never finish."
"...sorry."
A small smile played on Lyra's lips as she huffed lightly. "Have you gone to see the Duchess this morning?"
Adelia tensed a bit but was quick to admit, "Oh yes, I have." She took her earrings and began to wear them, the look in her eyes appeared almost sad. "I couldn't possibly leave for two days without saying goodbye… hopefully, Meryl will keep her company."
"I'm sure she will," Lyra assured. "And I as well, I will make sure the Duchess doesn't even notice that you and the Duke are both gone."
Adelia promptly relaxed into a smile. "Thank you, Lyra."
Her Father had informed her beforehand that they would be residing at Lavim for two days, but he hadn't told her the reason and only claimed that he had business regarding the Duchy to attend to.
Adelia disliked his occasional secrecy most of the time. She would prefer he opened up to her about things concerning the Duchy, she was going to be his successor, after all.
Still, she wasn't complaining about his excuse—anything was worth leaving the suffocating walls of the Veldon castle, even if for a short while.
When Lyra finished with her hair, Adelia stood up, taking in her full reflection. She wore a long-sleeved peach gown with a high neck that bordered on a blend of simplicity and sophistication.
It was accompanied by an intricately embroidered silk scarf that she draped on both her hands from behind.
She gently placed her hand on her chest, where her pendant lay hidden beneath the dress. She always did that out of habit, mostly to make sure it was hidden and sometimes to have a feel of it.
Adelia caught Lyra's gaze on her from the mirror and quickly dropped her hand.
Lyra sighed wearily. "Honestly, my lady, you have to be careful with the way you absentmindedly reach for your pendant."
"I… I try, Lyra, truly," Adelia replied softly. "It's just… it's a difficult habit to break."
"Then you better start working on it. You cannot afford to reveal it to anyone."
"I… I know…" Adelia responded in agreement.
Adelia never wore dresses that exposed too much of her neck and that was because of the pendant.
It was meant to be kept hidden no matter what. It would pose a serious problem if anyone were to realize what it was.
Taking a deep breath, Adelia made her way towards her chamber doors and down the stairs, oblivious to the fact that her maid was trying to keep her pace with luggage in tow.
She knew her Father had been waiting outside for a while, and she didn't want to keep him waiting any longer.
As Adelia descended, she accidentally bumped into another maid on her way up, causing her to fall on her bottom to the marble floor with a pained groan.
"My… my lady," the maid looked up and her eyes widened, then she quickly got up and bowed her head. "My… my apologies!"
"You're not the one who needs to apologize," Adelia countered. "I'm sorry for that. Are you hurt anywhere?"
"Please, my lady," the maid protested. "Don't apologize. It was my fault, I should have seen you coming. I was absentminded… I'm truly sorry…"
'Honestly…' Adelia thought, nearly rolling her eyes. She didn't have time for such a futile back and forth.
"That's what you get for being in too much of a hurry!" A voice called from behind.
Adelia turned to find Lyra at the top of the stairs holding her travel bags and breathing heavily.
"Goodness, My lady," she added. "You could do well to remember that your lovely maid is trying to keep up with you with your luggage in hand!"
Adelia pursed her lips. "I'm sorry, Lyra. I didn't mean to pressure you." She apologized. "Still, you could have gone at your own pace and caught up with me outside. Father won't leave unless everything is intact."
Her maid furrowed her eyebrows and narrowed her eyes, Adelia quickly understood the message.
She smiled, "Thank you for being so considerate, Lyra. I now understand that you are doing your utmost best to prevent me from being late."
"That sounds much better," Lyra responded grudgingly as she descended the stairs carefully, eliciting a small laugh from the young lady.
Adelia turned to the maid she had run into, who was still keeping her head down.
She had a beautiful sheen of black hair that fell to her shoulders as she bowed and earlier, when she was on the floor, Adelia had gotten a glimpse of her eyes that were a vibrant blue. Her skin had a lovely glow and a sweet fragrance wafted off her.
She was pretty… too pretty in fact, that it seemed she didn't belong in Veldon castle as a servant.
Adelia couldn't feel any aura from her and that was enough to tell her that she was a commoner through and through, and commoners didn't usually look this well kept.
Most rich people who weren't nobles were witches and a commoner of this maid's caliber would barely be able to afford the sheen of her skin and her rich fragrance.
Except, of course, she was related to a Witch, which was highly unlikely.
Most of the Witches despised the forsakens; that was what they called humans who couldn't wield magic.
"Raise your head." Adelia told her, then opened her mouth again to voice the question lingering on her mind, when she heard her maid's impatient voice from behind.
"You should hurry, my lady." Lyra called. "You don't want to keep the Duke waiting longer than he already has."
The young lady's eyes widened; she had almost forgotten that she had somewhere to be!
"You're right, Lyra." Adelia agreed with a sigh. "I should hurry."
She looked at the young maid in front of her and smiled, making the woman stare at her in surprise
Then she continued her approach towards the castle's front doors and the maid watched her go, her thoughts remained unknown behind her shocked expression.
Adelia decided she would address the maid's issue when she returned from Lavim, should she remember it then.
And God help her she remembered...