Who would have thought that holding an arranged marriage benefits me so much? I have been living with my fiancé since I turned 18 years old. I have been planning to get out of my own family, and thanks to the head lady of the house who always wanted to kick me out after my mother passed away, she couldn't find a way to get rid of me because of whatever reasons that my father would like to hold onto me, because of guilt? I bet there's a slight chance because of that, but I am his daughter. And God had listened to my prayers or theirs, and he sent me the scariest, evilest, and most important man to rescue me and them. The marriage would pay off every debt and cent of my family had owed to my fiancé's family. To me, I don't think the head lady would intentionally pick the best choice or anything ever for me. If there's any man who is exceptionally tremendous and influential in society, she wouldn't let them pass on me. However, I can only take one option, and he's the only person who can make my dream a reality.
When I was six years old, I moved to the land of chaos, big and full of glamorous people. There, they can aim guns in front of their faces, hold knives in their backs, and have more than enough money in their pockets. Society and status are the most important points. Of course, money and power are the basic ingredients of them. And then the reputation can create memorial status and be able to hold on to great respect.
Absolutely, I had no idea about this kind of power that people crave, especially in this family. I moved in with my mother. My mother, Catalina White-Reine, is the best and kindest person I have ever known. I only had her, and she only had me; we only had each other. My mother introduced me to my father, Charon Stygian Blacks. We lived in a mansion which is called The Stygian. The first thing that came to my mind was that I had to live with the richest or oldest man according to the name and the area of the land, which is in the middle of a high-social city. But it wasn't just that he was rich in wealth and power, and he was rich in women; as it turned out, my mother wasn't the only wife in the Stygian mansion. She was the 3rd lady of the family. The first wife, Nadeleine. She died when she had the second born, and then Charon remarried to the second wife, Veronica. Due to personal circumstances, love or not, I didn't even want to know. They had another 4 kids. Then the third wife secretly married in another faraway land and separated after she had a baby, and destiny or even karma brought them back together to be a big part of the Stygians.
The Stygian family included the head of the house, Charon, my father. The head lady, the second wife, Veronica. And her four kids: Eric, Elena, Medora, and Lucas. And there are Achlys and Serena, the firstborn son and daughter of Charon with his first wife. And then the third wife, Catalina, my mother, and me, Zephyra. To conclude, ten people were in the family, not including the maids, bodyguards, and other workers in this mansion. I partly couldn't imagine how chaotic it would be.
Being the new family member didn't give me special treatment, good or bad. I had my own room, which was huge and spectacular, at least for me. I had wonderful meals every day and night. I also had a maid to help me prepare in the morning and before bed. Not a personal maid like others had, but still a maid. The special treatment I had was that I homeschooled while others went to affluent schools to study. Still, the main reason for sending kids to school was to be in society, to be known, to be shown off their talents, beauty, or even their power, but yes, of course, to learn; apart from that, I was treated by them the same usual stuff like other siblings. But I could study and read all the books in the library by myself. I could learn anything beyond textbooks because I had my own teacher and trainer for archery, sword fighting, fencing, and instruments like the piano. I had extra lessons because I needed to gain essential social knowledge or high-class manners. To be more precise, not just because I lacked social and conversation skills but because I was new to society. To introduce myself to this world, I must at least have the basic knowledge to be spoken of or even worthy of attention. For example, all the rich and noble children should have skills in the performance arts like piano, violin, or cello and could be singing or dancing. Sports are also important because events can bring many influential people together.
While I was in the mansion all day, every day, I didn't have any friends. I was my own best friend. My mentors and I were pretty close but weren't the same age as me. My mother mostly spent her time with Charon. He was delighted and excited every time he was with her. I hadn't spent my time with her that much during the daylight. So, I used my night by seeing her and conversing with her before returning to my room. The connection between me and my father wasn't that upgraded or downgraded. We greeted each other in the morning, at lunch and dinner, and sometimes on special occasions when he called me to discuss my work in his office. I saw him trying to be more connected with me through some activities he created to bring me to join. But every time we were together, the head lady always came in between, and nobody could separate them. But gladful for Charon, the most powerful in the house, he found a way to be with my mother, even if it was only during the afternoon.
There is no need to mention the relationship between the head lady and me. The tone of her voice, her eyes, and her gestures was so elegant like the women in this society should have been, but the arrogance behind those actions disgusted me, and I couldn't see her as high as her standard.
Choosing which siblings were the closest to me was difficult because none made the cut. Let's say that the ones who spoke to me the most were Achlys and then Serena. They all had arrogant and snobby attitudes because they needed to be, or maybe society sculpted them to be that way. I only had a little interest in knowing the real intention anyway. But I had a bit of an idea of my relationship with Achlys. He was different. Maybe I was wrong, and maybe I was right.
Time passed quickly and slowly at the same time. Things got tangled and messed up and the situation forced me to be part of a big change.