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Chapter 3.1

Sunlight streamed through the leaves and troves of trees as tall as the mansion. The rainy season was finally over.

“I heard Madame brought a child. Did you see?” gossiped a servant.

Servants had come with piles of laundry in the river flowing in the east of the mansion, and they soaked the clothes with gusto.

“I did, but I could not tell whether the child is a girl or a boy,” said another, “While the child has short hair and boy’s clothes, the face is too... beautiful.”

“Really? I heard that he is the Marquis’s hidden son. Why has the boy come when Master Kieran is here? I think it was unnecessary,” said yet another.

Another servant that had been stomping on a bedsheet to get the stains out, clicked her tongue. “Master Kieran’s illness is incurable. What would happen if the other nobles knew that? The Marquis is trying to show that there’s a healthy successor. Isn’t that plausible?”

The others nodded at the remark and focused on getting their respective laundry done when Betty came out with Lia. The servants hushed and raised their heads to confirm if the rumours were true.

“Is he really a boy?” whispered one servant.

“He really looks like Master Kieran,” said another.

The servants were surprised at the honey blonde hair and emerald eyes. The traits left no doubt about who the father of the child was. The child did not dawdle around and made his way to Kieran’s outhouse through the path decorated with rose gardens designed in Marchioness’s taste. The servants chuckled at the sight of the child. Now that they had seen the child with their own eyes, they searched for other subjects for their gossip.

*

Lia spent ten days in her room, eating the food that Betty brought for her and sleeping until her back and head ached. The only other person she met was the Marchioness’s personal hairdresser. He was a man with a soft voice and took great care in making Lia’s hair appear presentable.

She tried to run. But whenever she reached the metasequoia path, she lost her courage. The place was huge, and she wasn’t sure how she would find her way back to her home. She wondered if she was more obliging and followed the Marchioness’s orders, maybe she would let Lia see her mother. She had decided to do that.

“Betty, are we there yet?” asked Lia.

The maid smiled as she pointed beyond the splendid fountain. “Almost. You need to remember the way since your classes will be held in the young master’s outhouse from now on.”

“This place...,” mumbled Lia, “is huge.” Lia was in awe looking at the bustling manor.

“You will like it here,” said Betty, “Master Theodore taught Master Kieran in the academy. Unfortunately, he retired due to health problems last year.”

Betty’s voice was joyful. She was more polite and respectful towards her now. But Lia wished Betty was the same Betty before everything happened. Before she turned into a ‘Vale’. Betty ignored her protest when she requested her to speak with her as she used to.

“I don’t know how to write and calculate,” said Lia.

“Be more condescending. You’re a Vale now and the Marquis’s son,” said Betty.

“It’s too difficult.”

Lia walked with a lowered head, and sweet air brushed against her white skin. She was so far away from home.

“The Marquis will return soon. I heard that he successfully finished business up north. He will be happy to see you,” said Betty, looking up at the beautiful and clear sky.

Lia’s mood was downcast. The lovely fountain and the rose gardens did nothing to make her feel better, instead they made her feel sad and scared that her life was spiralling out of control and she could do nothing to stop it.

Then, a loud gunshot rang as they arrived at Kieran’s outhouse. The birds squawked and took to the sky. Lia could not move a muscle. Her eyes widened when another shot followed. She slowly turned around in the direction of the sound, and a boy who looked about Kieran’s age stood there with Kieran himself. Lia was fascinated by his clear blue eyes and black hair. She could not take her eyes off him. He was a head taller than Kieran and smiled a bit. It was terrifyingly beautiful.

Servants came up to the two boys. The boy with blue eyes and dark hair had tried his hand at a hunting rifle. He handed the rifle to the servant. Kieran saw Lia. He rolled up his sleeves and called to her.

“Lian!” called Kieran.

She remembered Betty’s instruction and lowered her head. Kieran approached with springy steps and hugged her.

“You came out...,” said Kieran, “I was worried.”

Lia wondered how to address Kieran. “Claude,” he called, turning back to address the other guy, “This is my brother Canillian Vale.”

Kieran had made the choice for her, and Lia broke free from Kieran’s embrace. The guy called Claude then walked up to them. His footsteps were light, and his manner dignified. Lia thought he was like an angel with black wings.

“He looks like you,” remarked Claude.

Claude’s response was indifferent, and he took off his gloves and drank from a glass a servant brought him. Then, he held a new gun. Claude looked over the elaborate pistol and glanced at Lia.

“Cover your ears,” he warned.

Lia did so while staring at the guy who seemed to have just stepped out of boyhood. He may have felt her gaze, as he smiled slightly while narrowing one eye to aim at a tree before pulling the trigger. The smell of gunpowder overwhelmed the lavender in the garden, and Lia saw Claude’s elegant profile among the thin smoke. She thought this place was full of beautiful and dangerous things.