A serene morning draped the Soliére estate in soft sunlight, the manor slowly rousing from the revelry of the previous night. Servants, bustling more than usual, prepared for the king's imminent departure. In a lavishly adorned chamber, Lady Claire remained asleep beneath her silken sheets, the morning light casting a warm glow across the room lined with exquisite paintings.
"Mistress Claire, it's time to rise," Nina, one of the maids, announced as she drew back the curtains. "Your bath is drawn, and your attire prepared."
Claire groaned, her voice muffled by the pillow. "Is it morning already??" Having only slept for four hours, she still lacked the energy to get up from her bed. However, it is imperative for her to get ready for seeing the king's entourage off.
"It is indeed, my lady," Nina replied, pulling the covers away once and for all.
"Augh, Nina! That hurts!" Claire protested but was met with a sympathetic smile from her maid."I apologize, Mistress, but urgency dictates our morning. The king awaits your company at breakfast."
"He stayed the night?" Claire's eyes widened slightly as she swung her legs out of bed.
Yesterday's events still linger on Claire's mind, especially the rendezvous under the moonlight with her lover, bringing a brief, stolen smile to her lips. This joy, however, will be short lived. As Nina finished dressing her up, she finally leaves her room, heading to the dining table to have a breakfast with the king.
The dining hall was abuzz when Claire arrived. Her father, Duc Antoine, was deep in conversation with the king, while plates of steaming food circulated. Claire managed a respectful bow. "Good morning, Father, Your Majesty."
"There you are, come now and take your seat," the duc gestured to an empty seat.
As she settled in, the servants served her a cup of tea, a bread, honey spread, and some legumes. They started to eat their breakfast while the duc and the king discussed some matters of state. Claire just listened and silently finished her meal. After their meal, the king prepared to leave for the capital.
With the meal concluded and the king's departure executed with due ceremony, Duc Antoine summoned Claire to his study—a room dense with books and the scent of rich mahogany. The gravity of the moment settled between them like a thick cloak, punctuated by an uneasy silence.
"What did you call me for, Father?" Claire inquired, her tone a mix of curiosity and fatigue.
The duc sighed, his gaze avoiding her. "I just want to check up on what my lovely daughter is doing."
"Father, what is troubling you? I am fine." Claire asked, sensing an unease in his voice.
"That is great to hear." Duc Antoine said with a relief expression. "Anyway, back to what I want to discuss. I have already decided to arranged a marriage with the king for you."
"WHAT?! Father, you— you've decided this without telling me?"
Lady Claire was shocked by the sudden revelation. Though she knows that it will happen someday, she still dread the fact that her plans with Tristan were now ruined.
"I'm sorry child but this is the way to secure our position in the kingdom." The duc said apologetically. "Besides, isn't the king a good match for you? I wouldn't want you marrying some random man that can't even afford your needs." He added.
"I really don't have a say in this, do I?" Claire asked.
"The decision has been made. The marriage is already set a month from now. We have to get ready soon."
"I— I see," she murmured, her voice a ghost of defeat. "Excuse me, Father." With those words, she retreated, her footsteps echoing her dismay.
Distraught, Claire returned to her room and wept. Nina, standing by the door, offered a quiet word of support but received no response Regaining some composure, Claire approached her writing desk to pen a heartbreaking letter to Tristan:
To My Dearest,
I hope this message finds you well. It has only been a day since our last encounter, yet the memory of that night continues to warm my heart amidst the chill of my present circumstances. The sound of your voice, calming and steady, still echoes in my ears, a soothing balm against the storm of my thoughts.
Yet, as I write this, my heart is heavy with news that alters the path I hoped we would walk together. My father, with intentions grounded in duty rather than love, has arranged for me to marry another. The decision is not mine, and it pains me deeply to relay that our dreams of a future together must now remain just that—dreams.
I will always cherish the moments we shared and hold them close to my heart. I pray that the gods watch over you in your adventures, guarding you as fiercely as my thoughts once did. My departure from your life is sudden and unwelcome, but necessary, and I apologize profoundly for the pain it may cause.
May our paths cross again under kinder circumstances. Until then, I remain,
Yours truly,
Elaine
After writing the letter, She blotted the ink and folded the letter, sealing it with her personal wax stamp. Intending to give it over personally, she called for her maid."Nina, could you fetch my cloak?" she requested.
"Right away, milady." Nina's response was swift and accompanied by a note of concern as she noticed the solemn expression on Claire's face. She returned shortly, cloak in hand. "You're going out again? Will you be fine?" she asked, her brows furrowed.
"Yes, I just need some air to clear my head. I won't be long," Claire assured her, donning the cloak with a practiced swirl."I wish you safe travels, milady," Nina replied, bowing deeply as Claire stepped through the threshold.
The guard at the manor's gate raised an eyebrow but stepped aside, allowing her passage. "Would you like an escort, Lady Claire?"
"No, thank you. I shall return shortly," she insisted, her tone leaving no room for argument.
After she left, the guard called for one of his squires. "Follow the lady, just observe her from a distance and keep a lookout on suspicious people. If she's in danger, quickly save her, otherwise, let her be."
"Understood!" The boy replied.
Soliére is now a bustling city as the day has already started. It was almost noon so people were quite busy with their tasks for the day. Tristan and his friend, Félix, were also wandering around the city, buying supplies for their next destination and chatting with the locals. As they finished their business early, they opt to go to L'Étoile de Valoire to eat. There he found the same woman he was with the night before, eating her meal alone.
"I didn't expect to see you here, Elaine." He said as he approached her.
"Ohh." Elaine said as she noticed him. "Come and join me, Tristan. Your friend also opt to join us, yes?"
"Why thank you," Tristan replied. "This is my friend, Félix, we go on adventures around the world. Félix, this is Elaine. Her beauty still shines even in this tavern, no?"
As they exchanged greetings, the men ordered a food for themselves. While waiting they began to talk about tales of their adventures throughout the land. Elaine, intently listening while she glanced on Tristan and smiled joyfully. Moments later, the waitress served them their food and they started to eat their meals. The tavern is less occupied in the day so they can only hear themselves talking and laughing amongst themselves.
After their meal, they went out for a stroll in the marketplace again, accompanying Elaine. She bought food and ingredients to enjoy at her leisure later in the day. When she finished her shopping, they went to the Adventurer's Guild.
The Adventurer's Guild is a three-storey building where individuals can earn money for doing various quests, from foraging to subjugation quests. The guild in Soliére in particular, houses one of the strongest adventurers of the land because they are situated near the Great Forest, where unique and numerous monsters reside. The place is like a tavern inside. A large bulletin board is placed on a wall on the right near the counter, cluttered with quests from different clients.
As the trio entered the building, they were met with glances from other adventurers. Mostly on the woman that is with them. They immediately head to the quest board to look for an interesting quest.
"Hmm.. Since we have Elaine today, we will take a lower difficulty quest." Tristan said in consideration of their companion. "Found one!"
"What is it?" Elaine asked.
Tristan read the quest that stated "A horned bear was spotted near the Great Forest. Calling adventurers to subjugate this monster."
The adventurers in the Guild suddenly got flabbergasted at the idea of subjugating a horned bear. Murmuring among themselves on how insane this group can be. Their concerns are on point though, since slaying a horned bear typically require at least 5 A-rank adventurers to even have a chance.
The other adventurers in the guild cast dubious looks their way, murmurs of disbelief swirling around them.
"You know this is madness, right?" an adventurer whispered loudly enough for them to hear. "A five-man A-rank party struggled with this beast. What more can the three of them do?"
Ignoring the comments, Tristan handed the quest slip to the receptionist, who looked at Claire with evident concern.
"Good morning, adventurers! It seems that you have accepted the horned bear subjugation. I warn you that this is an A-rank quest, I hope you're taking this into consideration." The receptionist said worriedly.
"Of course! We just need to have some fun and exercise with our companion here. Right, Elaine?" Tristan replied.
"Yes, of course!" Elaine said.
"Don't worry about it, miss. We promise to protect you." Félix assured her that is was fine.
"Pardon me for asking, but may I have your adventurer's identification card?" Said the concerned receptionist.
Tristan obliged and handed over his party's card to the receptionist.
After carefully inspecting their IDs, the receptionist finally said, "I see, 2 S-ranks and a D-rank. I'm still quite worried but I guess you'll manage. You have accepted the quest. May your adventures be successful, dear adventurers!"
They hurriedly left the building after accepting the quest. Then, they head to a nearby smith's store to purchase a weapon and armor for their companion.
"Choose whatever you want, my love. It's on me." Tristan said.
"I'll take you up on that offer then." Elaine replied as she started to browse some weapons. Suddenly, a bow, seemingly made out of a tree branch caught her attention.
"Hoo, you have a great eye, young lady." The owner remarked. "This bow is especially made from an Elderwood tree. It is a durable bow that can even last you for a lifetime. Also, it has magical properties that enhances the accuracy of the user. Though it greatly consumes mana, so most bow users don't want it. Do you want to try?"
"Yes, let me try." Elaine replied.
"Then follow me." The owner said leading her to a target range. "You can use these iron arrows for practice. To call forth the magical enhancement, chant 'O spirits of the forest, guide the elder's bow,' then try to hit the target."
"Got it, thank you." Elaine replied. After saying the chant, a sudden surge of mana released from her. She launched arrow that pierced to the center of a target and destroyed it completely. It took quite the amount of mana from her but it deals significant accurate piercing damage to the target. Next, she practiced 5 more shots without the spell, hitting the bullseye 4 out of 5.
"I didn't know you still have it in you." Tristan remarked.
"Who do you think I am?! I am not old just so you know!" She retorted.
"What do you think?" He asked.
"Owner! I would like to get this along with the iron arrows and a set of armor for an archer." She said excitedly.
"Then follow me, I'll lead you to the dressing room. Also, all of these will be 30 gold pieces. Kindly wait for a moment, I'll adjust the size of the armor according to the lady's measurements." The owner replied.
Afterwards, they went to the stables to get their horses. Elaine doesn't have a horse so they bought her one. They bought a black stallion. The seller remarked it as a fierce and fast horse with a great build. The horse suddenly liked the demeanor of Elaine, quite rare for that particular horse.
She named the horse, Noir. After a brief ride, they somewhat bonded easily, cementing her decision to purchase it for 500 pieces of silver.
Now that they are fully prepared, they embark on their adventure. A final adventure together, a fitting farewell for each other.