It wasn't difficult for Aranea to exit the premises, she had infiltrated this estate many times in the game; she knew the exact route to take to not be caught by the guards.
She was returning from her nightly Dungeon exploration antics.
'I'm close to Level 17.'
Her studies were reaching their penultimate stage, only a day or two remained.
Making it back to her room, she threw the robe into the wardrobe and sunk herself into the bed.
She was lacking sleep these days, she barely got 4 hours of sleep last night.
But she had to make do with it, or else it would be game over before she even became 5 years old.
---
Morning, August 30th.
Her birthday celebration was in 3 weeks.
And today, her father had to leave for a short 3-week expedition to the borders; he would be returning on the day of her birthday.
Oddly convenient.
Holding her mature, blonde-haired mother's hand, her mother suddenly picked her up into her arms.
Pecking her face with a dozen kisses as they waved away her father's entourage.
Her mother, Jill Von Repitath. The daughter of a Marquis.
She was extremely accommodating to every one of Aranea's requests, and Aranea had zero complaints.
Except maybe the excessive kissing.
Funnily enough, even though she wasn't their real child; she couldn't feel any attraction to them.
While yes, you could link it to her still being a child in this body, her mind was still that of an adult. But she still felt nothing.
Maybe it was the power of blood connections.
---
Her mother left early today.
She was busy dealing with the affairs of the Duchy.
Thus, with no father or mother; and with Luke now returning to school while her oldest brother remained at his Imperial Academy...
She was all alone.
If you didn't include Luliya and her maid, that is.
Today was quite the boring one during the first half.
Study, mess with Luliya's ears, chat with Luliya, study some more.
Luliya, though, didn't mind. She enjoyed watching Aranea read and study these books.
Focusing on Aranea's face was appealing to her.
Even with that hair and those eyes, Aranea truly looked like a curious child when reading. She looked just like Luliya herself at those times.
And Luliya liked it, it was also comfortable.
---
It was tea time.
Or in their case, bug chasing time.
Luliya was sprinting across their garden getting her hands on whatever bug she could get ahold of, and Aranea watched in peace.
She didn't waste this time though, she used it to continue refining her Spell.
It was almost complete.
Listening to the tweeting birds, listening to the trickling water...
Aranea felt it all too surreal.
Yet that same sense of surrealness felt all too eery.
Because behind this peace.
Beyond the veil.
Lay-
"Look!"
Luliya held a stag beetle this time, and just as always, Aranea explained to her the features of the insect.
It was a funny routine.
Every time she explained one Luliya would have a massive smile on her face, carefully return the insect to its habitat then look for the next one.
Aranea swore that Luliya was here to entertain her and not the other way around.
Because it certainly felt like it.
Picking up a biscuit that Luliya's maid had prepared, Aranea stuffed it into her mouth and chewed away.
'It's alright.'
Not as good as those from Earth but good enough.
It had a bitter aftertaste to it as well.
Sipping down the tea to get rid of the aftertaste, Luliya arrived with the next insect.
'This isn't so bad.'
-----
4 days.
Aranea was inches away from finishing her Spell, it took a bit longer than expected but she was at the finish line now.
Mother was going to visit them for tea time today.
Munching away on another biscuit, Luliya hopped over today with another request.
"Come look for them with me!"
"...Um, I like it when you do it."
"But it's more fun with us together! Together!"
She emphasised the 'together'.
"Sorry, but another time, okay?"
"Aww..."
Her lips pouted over each other as she balled her hands into fists with crocodile tears, "You promise?"
Aranea lifted her pinky finger out, "Pinky promise."
"Okay-"
Interlocking pinkies with Aranea, she wiped her tears with the other hand, let go of Aranea's pinky, and then jumped off the pavilion.
She was looking for an insect to vent her sadness at.
Scratching her head, Aranea sighed in relief at her successful diversion. That would have been dangerous.
Even walking was becoming an extreme struggle now.
Crunch-
She bit into another biscuit.
Slurp~
Drank another cup of tea to hide the bitterness, and relaxed her body.
It was good to relax her mind from the stress; she might die an early death from her lack of sleep...
"Ari, mom is here."
Jill, her beautiful mother, arrived.
She walked over from the estate with an elegant gait, her maid followed her with perfect posture from behind.
If not for the lack of light due to the shadows cast by the building, then the scene would have been picturesque.
Letting out a small smile, Aranea pushed her chair back and carefully stood.
Lifting her right arm, she could only wave slightly.
'I'm sluggish... Why?'
Seeing her mother's blooming smile, she wanted to wave her arm harder...
'So slow...'
Not just that...
'Dizzy?'
Her mother's smile was radiant; vividly bright.
But Aranea couldn't reciprocate.
Her small smile; died.
Her hearing; rang.
It was a sharp, buzzing, ringing noise; like someone scratching a kitchen knife across a steel beam.
'...Huh...?'
Her mother's smile froze, the life in her eyes was falling apart as fast as Aranea's reaction time could catch.
Where did it go...?
Why did her mother stop smiling...?
Drip...
Why did her nose feel wet...?
Drip...
Not just her nose...
'Dizzy...'
Her ears...
'Ringing...'
Her mouth...
'...Am I in pain...? I can't tell anymore...'
Her eyes...
It was all wet...
It all hurt...
'Mother isn't smiling...'
'Why is mother running...?'
She could see the fear shattering her mother's face...
She could see the tears explode from her eyes...
She could see the visages of Mages drift into existence around her...
But most importantly...
Her mother...
Why is she terrified...?
'And my legs...'
They buckled.
Her body began falling over, a world of pain bursting itself into the depths of her body.
Splat-!
And the girl; she dropped, collapsed on the ground.
A fountain of crimson had sprouted from all 8 orifices on her head; drowning the pavilion in a rose-coloured painting.
---
"Aranea!"
Her screams were powerless.
Jill could do nothing but feel her daughter's warmth slip away.
She shouted and shouted; begging for her daughter to open her eyes.
But there was too much blood.
Her daughter's body was convulsing, quivering as incomprehensible sounds escaped her throat; noises drowning in agony.
Sharply raising her head, the anger in Jill's eyes drilled into the maid's body.
"Capture her."
Before the maid could quip a single word in, two Mages wrapped her up in Mana, constricting her mouth, arms and legs.
She could question the bitch later.
Returning her eyes to her daughter, the anger dissipated instantly; only her tears and sorrow could escape from them.
'Why.'
'Why my daughter.'
'Who did this?!'
"Who!"
Jill's heartbroken voice echoed endlessly through the garden.
-----
Wearily opening her eyes, the canopy of her bed greeted her as usual.
It would have been a comfortable awakening if not for the pain drowning her nervous system.
Shifting her eyes around...
"Mother...?" Her weak voice shakily entered her sleeping mother's ears.
"Nng~"
It wasn't enough to wake her up, 'Has she been by my side the entire time?'
Struggling a deep breath out, she looked at the latest notification in her System.
'Poison.'
Here's the upside, she had a strong resistance to poison now!
'Fan-fucking-tastic.'
She knew the timing of her father's expedition was suspicious, but to think within just 5 days of him leaving she'd be poisoned and almost die?
Someone wanted to kill her off, and badly at that.
'How much did they pay her?'
That maid was 100% the culprit, there was no doubt about it. She was known in the game for being hard to bribe but it wasn't impossible.
She probably didn't expect her to collapse from it so quickly, she didn't know that Aranea had the weakest constitution known to mankind.
The fact that it took that many days to knock Aranea to the edge of the abyss spoke of its potency.
The maid likely planned to slyly feed it to her throughout Luliya's contract to the house then leave once the poison had built enough in Aranea's system to kill her.
Unfortunately, and fortunately, her plan was thwarted thanks to Aranea's shit body.
Anyways.
"...Mother."
"Nng... Hmm?"
Slowly opening her eyes, Jill dazedly looked up.
Her daughter's swirling, pitch-black eyes gazed back at her.
Breaking into tears again, Jill jumped at Aranea, gently squishing the girl in her embrace.
"Ari!"
Speaking through her sniffles, "I'm sorry! Mommy is so sorry!"
Rubbing Aranea's back, she pulled her head away from Aranea and began kissing her face over and over again while chanting:
"Mommy is sorry!"
'...she has nothing to apologise for, this dumb mother of mine.'
Even though she called her dumb, Aranea endearingly looked at her crying mother and responded with:
"Mother has nothing to be sorry about, I'm sorry for worrying you."
"Stupid!"
But it only aggravated the kissing demon hidden in her mother's heart.
---
I was knocked out for 3 days.
In these 3 days, the maid was interrogated harshly while Luliya was kept under house arrest just in case.
The maid gave up everything she knew, which wasn't much.
It wasn't enough to start an investigation.
But she also confirmed that Luliya and the Moon Viscounty weren't involved in any way shape or form.
But the Viscounty did give a formal, public apology and send a delegation over to the estate with gifts.
A new maid was sent over, this time it was a more trusted maid who had followed Luliya's mother her whole life.
Luliya was set to stay till the end of September and return in August of next year. The contract was for Luliya to spend 2 months every year at the Lethraxus Ducal Family's estate until the age of 12.
'Only 24 days left before Luliya leaves.'
It took some extensive placating before her mother finally left her side; also known as the song of a thousand kisses...
And now, Luliya sat on her knees on Aranea's bed, her hands were placed on her lap with her head facing down.
Luliya didn't know what to say to Aranea.
She wanted to ask if she was fine but her maid hurt her, so it was wrong.
But-
But she wanted to get along with her!
But she couldn't...
Holding back the urge to cry, Luliya bit her lips and sat in silence.
Aranea had just the thing for her.
"No insects today?"
"Eh?"
Luliya's head shot up at the word 'insects'.
"Bring some."
The sadness in Luliya's heart dissipated instantly.
Aranea didn't get a chance to get another word in before Luliya ran off to the garden, her friend said she wanted insects, so she was going to go get insects!
'...she's adorable.'
But Aranea didn't forget.
She didn't forget her role.
She didn't forget the truth.