Marina scrolled through the last lines of Shirei's letter, rereading every word down to the last stroke of ink. With a slow breath, she finally looked up, letting the words settle in her mind.
The light filtered inside the carriage from the high windows, reflecting on the fine fabrics that covered the seats. The pillows were dark blue velvet, soft and dotted with fine silver embroidery. The walls covered in inlaid wood bore images of wolves of all kinds, an undoubted mark of the house. Above her head, polished brass supports held a lamp with delicate crystals, ready to light up as the sun went down. The interior of the carriage swayed rhythmically with each jolt of the road, producing a faint rattling sound.
Ien's daughter leaned back in the seat, placing the letter on her lap, and looked out the window. There, the landscape seemed to flow like a dream: expanses of meadows alternated with wild fields dotted with vividly colored plants, stained by the purity of the snow. In the distance, white hills stretched out like motionless waves, and the clear sky gave the panorama a serene and unchanging air. At times solitary trees appeared, with gnarled and powerful branches, which stood out against the horizon, like ancient stone guards. The slow movement of the clouds gave her the sensation of a world that, in one way or another, always continued its course.
The carriage passed the main gate of the estate and Marina heard the familiar creak of the ancient iron hinges as she entered the main avenue. At the sides of the path, century-old trees stood like sentinels, framing the path towards the villa that could be glimpsed a little further ahead, imposing and silent as always.
As she continued, her thoughts inevitably returned to the moment she received the message from Lyceum. As soon as her instructions had arrived, she had been forced to suddenly leave her home in the Otherworld to venture into the mortal world, as requested, and an escort had taken her all the way to Lombardy. From there, however, she was brought back through a portal that paradoxically took her back across the borders of the Otherworld itself.
A slight twinge of perplexity creased her forehead as she reflected on the strangeness of that choice.
Why all this long journey, if they could have simply passed me through the Otherworld?
She wondered if the answer lay in those infamous wildernesses, a territory that, according to rumor, was as vast as it was fearsome.
No one, not even the Equinox Flowers, are allowed to go there.
The coachman's stern voice rang in the demigoddess's ears as the carriage came to an abrupt halt and the door opened with a soft creak. Two guards approached with a determined step to help her down; the snow fell with a silent calm, covering their cloaks with a barely visible white veil.
The means of transport moved away along the path, leaving Marina alone to admire the villa above her. The estate was majestic and silent, with its pearl gray walls interrupted by white profiles that harmonized with the snowy landscape. The snow fell slowly, settling everywhere in a soft blanket, but despite everything the air remained mild, as if that magical land was immune to the actual cold.
Next to her, the guard who would accompany her to the entrance observed the building with a composed air. Marina analyzed him with a fleeting glance.
He was a young graduate from the Daffodils Academy, the silver falcon pin pinned to his chest indicated the regiment he had been part of during his time as a recruit. Like most of the demigods who graduated in recent years belonging to the Silver Hawks, he had signed a contract as a private guard of the Lupi house. His gaze remained attentive but deferential, the proud bearing of someone who, despite his young age, had already accumulated experience under the severe discipline of the Academy.
The blonde allowed herself to be escorted through the main corridor to the closed doors. She didn't need to be told who was waiting for her next, only she could have called her.
I accepted because there is the possibility of obtaining information on Shirei, I hope I haven't made a mistake…
She smiled at the man and said, "Thank you. I can continue alone, it's better if you return to your place now."
The guard made a courtesy bow and, after remaining stunned to stare at her for a handful of moments, he went back without saying a word.
Ien's daughter placed her fingers on the cold metal doors and pushed open.
Let's begin… she thought as the entrance opened to let the bright rays of the sun filter through.
Marina crossed the entrance, letting herself be enveloped by the warm and enveloping light that filtered through the large window behind her, opening onto gardens of impeccable beauty. The room, sumptuous and tidy, was decorated with meticulous care. On the walls there were some paintings showing battle scenes belonging to her family, images that the demigoddess now knew by heart. Yet, in that very familiar environment, Marina felt like a stranger.
A woman with black hair and wine-colored eyes was waiting for her a few steps away, holding a chalice in her hands while a small newborn rested next to her in a transparent glass cradle.
"Good morning, Aquamarina, I trust you had a good trip" began the young lady as soon as she saw her.
You didn't need to be an expert to catch the slight acid note that she had chosen to accompany the sound of her name. The demigoddess took a deep breath before stuffing her emotions into a cave in her mind and pretending they weren't there. She straightened her posture and entered the wonderful living room of the villa, trying not to let the sad memories of her childhood resurface in his mind.
"Mother…"
The girl bowed and remained still, waiting for the woman to allow her to sit. In an instant she had returned to when she was just over ten years old.
"I see that, despite the place where you live, you have managed to maintain a minimum of the good education that was imparted to you."
Those words were followed by a gesture with her free hand that indicated her to sit in the opposite chair.
Marina followed the invitation, not too kindly, as she responded to her mother's words in her head.
Not from you, you didn't give me any education.
She was tempted to fall into the chair, but she still chose to play the false game that her stepmother was trying to use to trigger a negative reaction in her.
"Your clothes, however, could be replaced with something more… elegant."
Marina ignored the comment, after all she was expecting it. She was no longer a child and she knew perfectly well the way the woman tried to arouse her anger. She had done it in the past to push her father to remove her from the estate and, even though years had passed, she still repeated the same actions.
She sighed calmly and decided to cut it short.
"Mother, why was I called here?"
"Why do you ask?" She replied with a second question, accompanied by an annoying smile, "It seems obvious to me."
The woman gracefully sat down on the other side of the table. "You have made serious mistakes that could undermine our family's reputation."
My family, she corrected in her mind.
"I thought it was right to call you here to correct them before they could lead to something dangerous."
Marina imposed an impassive expression on her face, even if inside she felt hurt by the obvious surveillance to which she had been subjected. She wasn't surprised that the family had spied on her; after all, she knew that every heir of the Lupi was kept a vigilant eye on.
But who could be the informant in this case? Another son of Ien?
She wondered if there was anyone among them willing to betray her so openly, and who among the many was involved. She immediately discarded Lorenzo and Michela as suspects; she knew their souls and knew that they would never stalk her or betray her for a futile power play.
Oh Gods… Lorenzo must have followed me for sure sometimes, but not for this reason.
She snorted slightly as soon as the woman shifted her gaze to the crib, then asked: "Is my father aware of our meeting?"
"Your father has no time to waste on such nonsense."
Marina rolled her eyes and smiled with annoyance after confirming her suspicion, So the answer is no.
"I would prefer to confer when we are all present, dear mother."
She started to get up but the guards, who had been present at the top of the room since she arrived, immediately moved to block her path.
The woman shook her head, "We'll discuss it now."
Ien's daughter resigned herself and returned to her chair, it was useless to try to escape her. The only option left to her was to put up with the conversation and hope it didn't last long.
"Okay, what do we need to talk about?"
"You have too little contact with Cragar's children, especially the boy. It's not good, you can't keep spending time with him."
The demigoddess froze. She imagined that, at a certain point, her family would get involved and deprive her of the freedom she had obtained at the Lilies Park. She had started to worry when she had become friends with Dalia, but she believed that Aena would solve everything, after all it was the goddess of love and the rector of the park who had given her that mission.
She hadn't expected any specific mention regarding the violet-eyed demigod and that only added to her worries about him. In the past, Cragar's son was one of the academy's soldiers, but also someone linked to Rakion, the same god who was mysteriously seeking revenge.
My intentions were to use this meeting to understand if the Lupi had any further information on Shirei. I thought it would be necessary to skirt around it a bit without addressing the topic, but I didn't expect that we would get straight to it.
Her guesses were, at any rate, correct. Her stepmother, who knew little or nothing about her family's fortune, had made her come all that way to talk about Cragar's children.
If the Lupi hadn't made a fuss about her bond with Dalia until then, There's necessarily only one problem, she concluded.
They had to know something about him.
"Shirei…" she involuntarily uttered in a low voice.
The woman nodded with disapproval in her eyes.
"I don't care about the name, you have to keep your distance from him."
Marina wanted to reply, but her attention was diverted by the sound of the doors opening. A woman advanced into the room, followed by three immaculate white wolves, who walked beside her with the grace of creatures accustomed to inspiring fear. Their eyes were trained straight on Marina's stepmother, in a silent confrontation that seemed to freeze the air in the room.
"Aunt…?!" Marina exclaimed, surprised and relieved by the arrival.