Ever since Ansel and Aline visited the residence, Kedra spent each waking hour training with Lionel. She also integrated the maids into their training, teaching them how to use a dagger to defend themselves.
Each member of the household was on full alert and was strictly forbidden from leaving the residence unless escorted by Lionel.
As such, a week of grueling training and preparatory work went by without issue; there had been no sign of any soldiers belonging to the Deslandes family, and Kedra began letting her guard down.
'It's been a while since that incident, and yet they haven't sent anyone here yet. Gosh, I kind of feel silly for making all of these circuits now.'
Kedra stared at an open drawer filled to the brim with various stacks of engraved circuits written in her blood that she had hurriedly drawn in preparation.
The collection was mostly composed of either explosive spells or spells that created weaponry, with the occasional circuit dedicated to first aid.
The girl took a few more moments to stare at her work before closing the drawer and sighing.
"There's so much potential in these things, and here I am making weapons out of them."
Suddenly, Maria burst into the room in a panic; she was winded and lightly sweating, with a somber look on her face.
"My lady, you must come quick; there is a small convoy approaching the residence."
"How many people are there?"
"I didn't get a good look, but there were at least ten horsemen leading it."
'Isn't that overkill for a little girl and her four servants?'
"Alright, Maria, go get Lionel; I'll be right there."
Kedra carefully grabbed a dozen of her magic circuits from her drawer, stuffing them in her pockets before grabbing her sabre and heading to the front door.
Arriving in the main hall, she saw the three maids and Lionel standing at attention. The servants each concealed a dagger on their person, while Lionel proudly displayed his sword.
Opening up the door, Kedra saw two carriages bearing the Deslandes family crest come to a halt in front of the main gate, along with the many horsemen that were escorting them.
One of the guards descended from his horse, opening the door to the first carriage. Stepping out from inside was a well-dressed man with platinum blond hair and the same piercing emerald green eyes as Kedra.
With a wave of his hand, each of the guards descended from their horses, awaiting further orders.
Kedra approached the gates, steeling her expression and placing a wary hand on the hilt of her sabre.
Seeing her approach, the man bowed his head in salutation.
"Greetings, 'Kedra'. I am Eliseo, your older brother."
The girl's hand did not leave her weapon for a second; she stared at him with a cold, wary gaze, trying her best to determine his intent.
"Now now, you don't have to be so wary; I come in peace."
The man raised his hands and put on a smile.
"I've come to fetch you, dear sister. The time has come for you to properly become a part of our family."
Surprised at Eliseo's words, Kedra raised a brow, taking her hand off of her sabre.
"So you spend eleven years pretending I never existed, and you come get me when it's convenient, is that it?"
"Heavens no! Ever since you were born, I was desperate to persuade our father to let you join our family, but his grief at the thought of having betrayed our late mother clouded his judgment; to put it simply, he wanted nothing to do with you. But I did."
The look of displeasure on Kedra's face did not cease to make itself more apparent as her jaw grew slack and her brow furrowed.
"After all this time, I have finally managed to persuade the Duke; he has accepted to make you a part of our family; you can finally get out of this dingy residence."
"This is all very sudden; can you give me more time?"
"I'm afraid not. A ceremony is to be held tomorrow to officially recognize your existence; it is imperative that you come with us today. Worry not, all of your belongings will be brought over to the family's main residence."
Kedra began to think; she was quickly running out of options. She didn't want to risk angering Eliseo with a refusal, and yet she couldn't bring herself to trust him.
'If he really cared about me that much, why didn't he come to visit even once? I really don't want to go with him, but it's not like I have a choice. Shit!'
"Alright, but my servants come with me."
"Of course, that is precisely why I brought two carriages."
Kedra called for the maids and Lionel, who promptly walked out of the front door.
"Ah, weren't there two more maids in your service?"
"They got mauled by a bear."
"Ah, a shame indeed."
'Seriously, he just accepted that lame excuse?'
Eliseo helped Kedra enter the first carriage, getting in himself once she sat down. The four servants were directed to the second carriage by the guards but were halted by Kedra as she pointed to Maria.
"She comes with us."
"Come now; the other carriage has plenty of space; there's no need to overcrowd this one."
"I wasn't asking, 'brother', she comes with us or I start resisting." Kedra said in a cold, authoritative tone, placing a hand on her sabre.
"Very well, Kedra." Eliseo replied with a smile.
Once everyone was seated, the horsemen saddled up once more, and the convoy began its journey to the Deslandes residence.
Along the way, Kedra and Eliseo simply stared at each other wordlessly, both of them trying to determine the other's intentions.
Maria simply sat beside Kedra, sweating bullets at the thought of sharing a carriage with the heir of the Deslandes dukedom.
'I really appreciate my lady's trust in me, but did it really have to be me in this carriage?!'
Finally, the long silence was broken by Eliseo.
"Once you become a properly recognized member of the Deslandes name, we were thinking of enrolling you in the royal academy, after properly catching you up on what you are lacking, of course."
"So, when will that be?"
"Well, considering you have not gone through an official education, it will likely take at least two years before you are fit to enroll, maybe more."
'You're telling me I'll have to spend two whole years playing pretend with a family like that? No, thank you.'
"I believe that I already possess more than enough knowledge to enroll; I had Maria teach me everything from history to etiquette after all."
"That's great, but the academy's curriculum is harsh; we must ensure that you are ready so you do not taint the Deslandes name."
"I insist; there is no need to teach me anything more. If you want, I can prove it. Ask me a question, any question."
"Seeing as you are so determined, I suppose I shall humor you, dear sister."
"What event put an end to the war between the elven alliance and Lucraria, bringing about the current era of peace?"
"Considering Aswal's population is made up of around thirty percent elves, following many lobbies by elven nobles, the king ordered that a task force be dispatched to the Lucrarian capital in order to negotiate a ceasefire with the ruler."
"Correct. Moving on, what do you get if you divide the square root of thirty-six by three?"
Kedra took around thirty seconds to process and solve the problem, but pretended to think for a few more moments.
'I could just say it now, but I don't want to appear too smart, just in case he gets suspicious of something.'
After around a minute of pretending to count in her head and on her fingers, Kedra finally looked at Eliseo and announced the answer.
"The square root of thirty-six is six, and six divided by three makes two."
"Correct. For your final question, how should you address the king of a country?"
'Ah, this is a trick question; each country has its own rules regarding how one should address the king. Since he didn't ask for any particular country, I'll just give an open-ended answer.'
"The proper way to address the ruler of a country depends on the country's culture and rules of etiquette; commonly, they will be referred to as 'your majesty' or 'your royal highness', but here in Aswal, following the decree made by the king upon his ascension to the throne, the current sovereigns are to be referred to as simply 'your highness'."
"Correct again. I must admit, Kedra, I am impressed. However, a few simple questions are hardly enough to properly determine your level."
"Tell you what, I'll make you a deal. We have hired a tutor to teach you the minimum amount of knowledge required for you to enroll in the academy. If you manage to make him admit that there is nothing more he can teach you, I will personally ensure that you enter the academy this year; I'll even have you skip a year, seeing as those questions you answered were of a similar level to Ansel and Aline's homework."
'Jackpot, the sooner I enroll in that royal academy or whatever, the sooner I get away from these bastards.'
"What happens if the tutor doesn't admit that he can't teach me anything?"
"Well, in that case, you have to spend the two years learning from him as planned."
"Alright, Eliseo, it's a deal."