For the first time in what felt like forever, I managed to wake up by myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I sat up on the bed and looked at the sun shining in through the window. Another beautiful day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today was the last day of the Assembly, so we would just exchange a few final farewells and it would all be over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Counting the days I had to stay here to attend the seminar, I had been in the castle for quite a while now. I was starting to get attached to this guestroom, but this was my last time sleeping in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today I\u2019d be going back to Claes Manor, and starting tomorrow, it would be business as usual at the Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was wondering whether taking such a long leave had been a nuisance for my coworkers when I heard a knock on the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cExcuse me,\u201d Anne said, walking into my room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The sight of me sitting up in bed must have shocked her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat?! Young miss, did you wake up yourself?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, I went to bed very early yesterday,\u201d I replied, not sure whether I should feel amused or offended by her surprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I usually didn\u2019t wake up unless someone stripped all the duvets, blankets, and sheets from my bed, so I could see why she\u2019d be shocked, but still…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo think that you would become able to get up by yourself… Young miss, I am so proud…\u201d she started saying, sounding honestly moved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now I was the surprised one, seeing her react like that, and I thought that maybe I should try to wake up by myself from now on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once she was done being shocked, Anne, together with the other maids, started preparing me for the Assembly. As they were doing that, we were told that I had a guest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What am I going to do? I\u2019m not done preparing yet! <\/em>I thought, but when I heard that it was Mary and Sophia, I immediately let them in. I wanted to apologize and thank them for yesterday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both of their faces were grim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLady Katarina, is everything alright?\u201d the worried Mary asked me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. I\u2019m not hurt anywhere or anything. I\u2019m alright!\u201d I replied, and she immediately looked relieved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYesterday Nicol told me that you were fine, but I needed to see you for myself. I know that it may be a nuisance, given the early hour, but I was incredibly worried,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thinking back on just how many people I\u2019d made worry, I felt bad for my actions once again. I gave Maria that speech about relying on others, but I obviously needed to learn to do the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry for making you worry. And thank you, too,\u201d I said, bowing in gratitude to my two friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot at all! I could not do anything for you,\u201d Mary said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI also wanted to search for you, but I was told not to…\u201d Sophia concurred.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The former sounded frustrated, and the latter sad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yesterday, when I disappeared, Sophia and Mary wanted to join Jeord and the others in looking for me, but they were told to wait because it was dangerous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought that was a good decision. Two young women had gone missing, and the last thing you\u2019d want at a time like that is for two more to go around looking for them and disappear too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The men who had kidnapped Maria were two ignorant, foolish nobles, and they could have hurt Mary and Sophia as well. They were smart enough to understand that, so they waited as they were told to, but they still seemed frustrated that they couldn\u2019t help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m really happy that you two care so much about me. And if you came after me, it could have been dangerous, so I\u2019m also happy that you two waited for the others to come back,\u201d I said, taking one hand from each one into mine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Their eyes were still a bit teary, but they looked nowhere near as grim as when they\u2019d first stepped into my room. Then they left, saying that they didn\u2019t want to interfere with my preparations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I was done, I looked into the mirror. The girl who stared back at me, even if not as fancy as the one who had joined the ball yesterday, definitely looked like a duke\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I heard another knock on the door, and I immediately thought that Mary and Sophia had forgotten something in my room, but this time it was Jeord visiting me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why is he here already? Isn\u2019t it too early for the Assembly?<\/em> I asked myself as I let him inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was already done with his preparations, and I was happy to see that his tired expression from yesterday had gone back to his usual one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning, Katarina,\u201d he said with a bright smile on his face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning, Prince Jeord. Is it time to join the Assembly already? I think it\u2019s still early,\u201d I replied, and his smile turned into a grin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, that is not why I am here. I wanted to ask you about some of the details regarding yesterday\u2019s incident.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat details?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had already explained to Nicol and the others that I\u2019d climbed into that room through a tree, that I\u2019d found Maria, and just about everything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAbout the man who helped you find out where Maria was.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOhh!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I finally realized what he meant. That would have been Cezar, who I just so happened to run into in the garden. He was waiting right outside the noblemen\u2019s room, so Jeord must have seen him when he barged in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt would seem that you remember. So, may I ask you where you met him?\u201d Jeord said, and his face now had a hint of seriousness on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was running after Maria in the garden, and I ran into him by coincidence. I asked him whether he had seen a blonde maid and said that I was looking for her, and he helped me out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course I had also met him earlier, while I was pretending to be a servant, but I felt like that detail was better kept untold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see,\u201d Jeord said, looking relaxed again. \u201cIt is just as he told me. I am glad that nothing improper was taking place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2018Nothing improper\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPay it no mind. In any case, do you know who that man is?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe is… some kind of foreign noble, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n After seeing him yesterday, I was convinced that he wasn\u2019t a servant, but I didn\u2019t have the time to ask him who he actually was and where he came from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jeord, taken aback, sighed. \u201cSo you did not know. Why am I not surprised?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs he a famous person?\u201d I asked, judging from his words that I was missing something very important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. He was the subject of much womanly talk during this year\u2019s Assembly, but, somehow, it seems that you have heard none of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wasn\u2019t the most savvy when it came to that kind of high-society chatting, admittedly. Unlike Mary, I wasn\u2019t good at asking other noble ladies for information either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou still had not greeted him, I believe, so that is understandable. However you will certainly have to do it today, so please try to remember what I tell you now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY-Yes,\u201d I said, nodding seriously, but Jeord grinned again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou surely know of Ethenell, the kingdom across the sea. The man who helped you last night is Cezar Dahl, its prince.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cP-Prince?!\u201d I yelped in shock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He did look like a high-ranking noble, but a royal? A prince?! <\/em>He\u2019d even told me his name, but I had no idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was sure that I\u2019d learned the names of the royal families of the four guest countries during the seminar…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWas there a royal family called Dahl?\u201d I mumbled, mostly to myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou probably have not heard of it during lessons. I met him for the first time during the Assembly too. Ethenell, as the new king took the throne, has undergone several important reforms. The instructors had probably simply failed to keep up to date. As he was sent here to represent his country, we now know how important of a person he is. But apart from that, we have little to no information on him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was listening to Jeord\u2019s explanation with my mouth open in disbelief. This meant that he was the most important person from Ethenell in the Assembly…<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought back on our exchanges so far. He found me sleeping in the garden, pretending to be a servant, and asking for stories from abroad. This wouldn\u2019t have been that much of a problem if he was just a servant, but since he was a royal, what I did could be considered very rude…<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jeord smiled at my worries. \u201cSeeing how he acted yesterday, we can surmise that he is likely a good person. You need not worry too much. Of course, given the details of that incident, I asked him to keep it a secret. As such, today, you will greet each other as if it is the first time you are meeting each other,\u201d he instructed me. \u201cNow I have work to do, so I must go. I will come back here once it is time for the Assembly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jeord left, and now that I was all alone, I thought about the things I had just learned about Cezar. Who would have thought that the friendly man who told me stories in the garden was a prince? He just didn\u2019t feel<\/em> like a royal. He had the same relatable, friendly aura around him that Sora did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But yesterday he had looked completely different \u2014 like a prince, one could say. And he was even more handsome than I had thought at first, seeing him as a servant. He was on the same level as all the other love interests from Fortune Lover<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that I thought about it, I remembered hearing from Mary that Ethenell\u2019s prince was popular with the other ladies at the Assembly. If she was talking about Cezar, that made perfect sense…<\/p>\n\n\n\n But this would also mean that I asked him, in person, whether Ethenell\u2019s prince was handsome…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Now I understood why he didn\u2019t want to talk about that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHaha, I guess that would make sense… but…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I stared at the ceiling. I found out that someone I had become friends with was actually a very important person, and all of a sudden I felt an inexplicable loneliness welling up inside me. It was time for the last farewells of the Assembly, and Jeord came to escort me to the hall where everyone would meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Today, \u201ceveryone\u201d only meant the highest-ranking nobles, so there weren\u2019t that many people around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I started making the rounds with Jeord, greeting the various representatives from the guest countries. He was actually supposed to have finished doing this on the previous day, but he said that since he was only the third oldest prince, it wasn\u2019t that much of a problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here in our kingdom, the king decided which one of his sons would succeed him, so Jeord still had a chance of taking the crown. But the way he talked about it showed that he didn\u2019t really care about it. And being king sounded exhausting, so I could definitely understand where he was coming from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We met several princes and princesses, and eventually we reached him.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am Cezar Dahl, Prince of Ethenell. It is my utmost pleasure to meet you,\u201d Cezar said, pretending we had never seen each other before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n His hair was combed, his clothes were luxurious, and, in general, everything about him was fit for royalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\u2019s incredible! He\u2019s so good at playing this part! Wait, is he playing a part <\/em>now or was he doing that before?<\/em> I thought to myself while I said my introduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am Katarina Claes. The pleasure is mine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Anyone looking at us would have believed that this really was our first time meeting each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We then went on to exchange the usual lines:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cComing all the way here must have been tiresome. Please rest once you are back home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI hope we may have an opportunity to meet again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And so on and so forth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I still felt a bit lonely about it, but I managed to behave like a proper noble lady throughout the whole thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I looked at Jeord to get confirmation of how well I\u2019d done, but he was watching Cezar walk away, and his eyes had a mysterious glint in them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He said he thought Cezar wasn\u2019t a bad person, so what\u2019s the matter?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPrince Jeord? What\u2019s wrong?\u201d I asked him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNothing,\u201d he said, looking surprised by being addressed so suddenly. \u201cLet us greet the next person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I looked at him, with his usual perfect smile, and realized that he wouldn\u2019t answer no matter how much I insisted. So I just followed him as he approached more foreign representatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once we were done greeting each other, there was nothing left to do on that day. Except for those who had special reasons to remain, everyone departed for their own countries, and the Assembly was officially concluded. As all the foreign guests went back to their countries, we local guests would go back home. The servants prepared my luggage, and I was supposed to wait in my room until I was ready to leave, but I couldn\u2019t resist going out to the garden on my own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two days before, Cezar had promised me he would meet me here one last time. Back then that was a promise between two friendly servants, but we now both knew that this wasn\u2019t true. He was actually a prince. Go figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I assumed that there was no way he would come, now that his identity was revealed, but I had to wait just in case. It felt lonely to part ways like that, with only the formal greeting back at the Assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I didn\u2019t know how long I waited \u2014 it felt like it could have been several hours, or just a few minutes. Then, I heard a familiar voice addressing me from behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I turned around and saw Cezar, looking confused. \u201cI really thought you wouldn\u2019t come here anymore,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI also thought you wouldn\u2019t come, Prince Cezar,\u201d I replied, and his expression turned serious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo need to call me that. When I\u2019m here, I\u2019m just Cezar.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOkay, Cezar!\u201d I quickly said, realizing how he felt, and he smiled. It wasn\u2019t that elegant, rehearsed smile I had seen earlier at the Assembly, but his natural childlike smile that made his teeth show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cStill, you really got me. I thought you were a servant, and then I find out you\u2019re a noble lady \u2014 a duke\u2019s daughter no less \u2014 and even engaged to a prince!\u201d he said with a laugh, but that definitely applied to him too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd what about you? I was shocked when I learned that you weren\u2019t a servant, but a prince!\u201d I said, puffing out my cheeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou have a point,\u201d he said, amused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was relieved to see that, even now that we knew the truth about each other, he behaved as friendly as before. Seeing how tight and proper his greetings had been back at the Assembly, I\u2019d worried that he\u2019d drawn a line in the sand which I wasn\u2019t allowed to cross anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSay, Cezar,\u201d I said, remembering a doubt I had, \u201cyou said that you were a mercenary before going back to your home, but was that a lie?\u201d His nimble movements made perfect sense for a mercenary, but that was no job for a prince.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, it\u2019s all true. My father was the king, but my mother was just one of his many commoner concubines. I left the palace as soon as I was of age and started wandering around, and eventually I became a mercenary. But my older brother, who had defended me as a child, was still at the palace, so I went back to help him,\u201d he explained casually, as if it was the most boring thing in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I, meanwhile, was just as shocked as when I\u2019d heard he was a prince for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A prince leaving the palace to become a mercenary? What kind of fairy tale is this? It\u2019d been easier to process if he\u2019d just told me it was all a lie.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s an impressive history… It sounds like something out of a novel,\u201d is what I finally managed to say. \u201cI wonder why none of the other ladies were talking about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was a handsome man on par with the best of our kingdom, and, apparently, he was talked about a lot during the Assembly. But I heard absolutely nothing about him being a mercenary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell,\u201d he replied, \u201cI\u2019m not hiding it or anything, but it\u2019s the first time I\u2019ve joined an international event like this, so I think it\u2019s normal that there\u2019s not that much information about me going around.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I remembered that Jeord had also said that he knew next to nothing about Cezar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMy plan was to help my brother from behind the curtains, but, as you can see, I was dragged here onto the main stage,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But between his looks and how flawlessly he moved around in the castle\u2019s hall, that made no sense to me. \u201cYou\u2019re made to be on the stage of high society! You\u2019re a natural!\u201d I told him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cReally? I\u2019m very good at mixing with commoners, actually,\u201d he said with a grin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I honestly had no idea how that could be possible, given his looks, but it could just be one of his talents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhoops, time is running short. I must go back and see my brother as soon as possible,\u201d he said, and his shoulders dropped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This was goodbye, for real. We\u2019d only known each other for a few days, but we\u2019d definitely reached the point where we could call each other \u201cfriend.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And I really liked him, too. From the first time I met him, he was really friendly and easy to talk to. Seeing him go made me feel lonely. The next time that the Assembly would be held in Sorci\u00e9 would be ten years from now. I couldn\u2019t imagine seeing him anywhere else, since he was a foreign prince.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, even ten years later, there was no way to know whether we\u2019d both attend the Assembly. This could well be the last time we\u2019d ever meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having to part ways with someone… It was the first time that I\u2019d had to experience that in this life. It reminded me of when I\u2019d departed my previous life, but with a huge difference: this time, I could say goodbye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019ve only known each other for a few days, but I had a lot of fun. Stay safe as you go back home. I wish you the best,\u201d I told him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He showed me his heartfelt, youthful smile. \u201cIt was fun for me as well. I wish you the best too, Katarina. Oh, and stop sleeping outdoors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was the last thing he told me before quickly walking away with the wave of his hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I watched his back get farther and farther away, and the fragrant spring wind gently caressed my face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre we ready to leave?\u201d I asked as soon as I was back in my room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCezar, you know it\u2019s almost time to leave. Just where were you off to?\u201d Janne replied, sounding annoyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was just saying goodbye to a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFriend? Is it that servant girl you\u2019ve been sneaking off to meet over and over?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah. That\u2019s the one.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWeren\u2019t you talking about bringing her back home with us? Did she refuse?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cUnfortunately, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, now that I knew her true identity, I could never ask her to come back with me with Ethenell. I just couldn\u2019t be bothered to explain that to Janne, who looked surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA girl who resists your advances? Now that\u2019s unheard of. It seems that you actually liked her, which is rare in itself… Do you want me to help?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This childhood friend of mine never offered to do things like that, but I went ahead and refused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s not my style to keep pushing after I\u2019ve been told no,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you say so…\u201d Janne said, looking somewhat disappointed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was probably serious when he said that I should take her as my wife. But with Katarina, that would be impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe I could have had a chance if she were a low-ranking noble lady, but she was the daughter of a duke and was engaged to a prince. Anything I did to her would become an international issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was clear that her fianc\u00e9 loved her madly. I remembered what had happened the night before \u2014 Prince Jeord was looking for her as if his life depended on it. When I had met him during the various Assembly events, he always showed a perfect, calculated smile and elegant, polite demeanor. I thought that he was very comfortable in his role as prince, despite his young age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But later, when I saw him near that guestroom, he was a completely different person. His elegance had given way to an anxious frenzy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I talked to him, interested in why he was like that, and he told me that he was looking for Katarina. That was when I first learned that the two were engaged, but, hiding my surprise, I just told him what had happened so far and where I thought she could be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As soon as I told him, he looked distraught and ran after Katarina, and it was then that I realized how much he loved her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To me, seeing his passion was like looking at the purity of a child. I was raised in that disgusting palace, and went on to live my youth as a mercenary. To me, feelings such as these were something to marvel at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But now, as they had to decide which of the four princes would become the next king, their country was sure to lose its beauty and tranquility. Even if the princes themselves wished for peace and equity, those around them could wish for a different turn of events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I knew that from experience, and I decided to give him a little warning. Unfortunately, that seemed to make him suspicious towards me. The last time we met each other, I could see that his eyes weren\u2019t friendly. They weren\u2019t hostile, either, but it was obvious that he was wary of me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I regretted sticking my nose into things that didn\u2019t concern me. I would normally never say things like that, and certainly not to foreign princes, knowing that nothing good could come out of it. However, after learning that he was Katarina\u2019s fianc\u00e9, I felt the urge to provide him with some unsolicited advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe that was proof that I was into Katarina as well. After all, if her engagement with Jeord were to be canceled, I liked her enough to try and persuade her to come to Ethenell with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We just told each other goodbye, but for some reason, I felt like our paths would cross once again in the not-so-distant future. I didn\u2019t tell her about that feeling, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I was working as a mercenary, I began having a similar feeling right before I received news of my brother becoming king. I had a very good sixth sense for things like these.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2019Til next time, Katarina,<\/em> I thought in my heart as I told her goodbye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Kingdom of Sorci\u00e9 flourished thanks to the many resources of its land and the development of magic through the years. I had heard that there was considerable turmoil during the reign of the previous king. But now, coming here, I saw nothing but peace and harmony in this beautiful kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the fourth prince was just as impressive as the rumors said… Actually no, he was even more impressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had so much to tell my brother, and I felt eager to see him again as I departed for Ethenell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n All the foreign guests had departed, and it was time for us to go back home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jeord looked busy with the aftermath of the Assembly, so I quickly said goodbye and, together with Keith, rode in the carriage that would bring us back to Claes Manor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Assembly felt so long, yet so short,\u201d I said to myself while looking at the changing view out of the window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe whole time I was worried about whether you would do anything problematic,\u201d Keith, who was sitting in front of me, replied coldly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut I didn\u2019t make any major screw ups, so like, it\u2019s cool, right?\u201d I said, gesturing to emphasize my point, but my brother grimaced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2018Major screw ups\u2019? What would you call running out of the ball to climb up a tree and jump into a guest room?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, that\u2019s… You know, Jeord said we should pretend that never happened, so…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yesterday\u2019s incident was caused by the ignorance of two foreign nobles, and making that public would turn into a huge problem, which is why it was decided that we would all just forget about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, this was on the condition that the two men would apologize to Maria and be punished for what they did. According to Jeord, since Lousabre couldn\u2019t afford being on Sorci\u00e9\u2019s bad side, they would probably punish those men more than enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And so, as far as everyone knew, I had simply felt unwell and left the ball early, before I could have done anything that could warrant being scolded by Mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Which is why I asked Keith to keep the whole story from our family… but he just sighed at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig Sis, listen. Even if everyone decided to keep it a secret, would you really believe that no one would tell the parents of an unmarried noble lady? And Father was at the Assembly to begin with, so our family already knows everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I felt a shiver run down my spine. I knew that Father was attending, but I assumed he didn\u2019t know anything about the incident. And if he says that our family<\/em> already knows everything…<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDoes that include… Mother?!\u201d I asked, already despairing, and Keith nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOf course. She knows that you tore your dress apart, climbed up a tree, and barged into a guest room on the second floor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Let\u2019s bring the carriage back to the castle! We\u2019ll stay there one more night!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMother has already ordered both me and the servants to bring you home posthaste.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNooooo!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The relief I was feeling at the Assembly finishing disappeared in a flash, as did my eagerness to go back home after so long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wasn\u2019t going back home. I was going back to a dreadful prison of scolding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t wanna go…<\/em> When I stepped inside, I was immediately greeted by the sight of my mother, who had been told that we would soon be there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She quickly dragged me to her room and subjected me to an endless sermon. In comparison, those lessons at the castle were short and sweet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When she was finally done the sun had already set, and I groggily walked back to my room, carrying with me a pile of books on etiquette that I had been ordered to study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhew, I\u2019m spent…\u201d I mumbled as I threw myself on the bed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSeeing that you are this tired, would you rather stay home from work tomorrow?\u201d asked Anne, who was unpacking my stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d almost forgotten about it, but now that the Assembly was over, I had to go back to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve already taken so many days off in a row, and if I stayed home I\u2019d just be forced to study etiquette with Mother. I\u2019d rather go,\u201d I said, thinking that going to the Ministry, where I could also see Maria, sounded much better than staying here with Mother scolding me and teaching me how to behave properly. Plus, I still wanted to ask Maria and Sora about their secret mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I prepared for the next morning and went to bed. The next day I would ride in the carriage to the Ministry for the first time in a while. On my way to my department\u2019s office, I met Sora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMorning. Sorry for getting you in trouble at the Assembly,\u201d he told me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou? Getting me in trouble?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat incident with Maria. While I went on with my mission, I was also supposed to look out for her. But when those two men started chasing after her I lost sight of them, so it\u2019s my fault that you did what you did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It wasn\u2019t surprising that a girl as cute as Maria would have someone act as her bodyguard. Sora was much stronger than he looked, and he was used to dealing with all kinds of unsavory people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut it was me who decided to run after her. It was Jeord and the others who saved her, and all\u2019s well that ends well, right?\u201d I said, and he laughed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI knew you\u2019d say something like that. Thanks. But try to be careful, okay?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d lost count of how many times I\u2019d heard those words in the last couple of days. \u201cI will,\u201d I said, as I had to all the others, and we continued walking to the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just as we reached the door, I remembered that I wanted to ask him something. \u201cSay, Sora, you and Maria were on a mission at the castle, right? How did that go?\u201d I\u2019d almost forgotten about it, given all happened in the meantime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell…\u201d he started saying, but the door opened in front of us and a familiar face came out of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, Mister Cyrus!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cKatarina Claes, Sora Smith. Good morning. Back at the Ministry, I see,\u201d he said, looking exhausted, and then walked away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wondered why he was in our office and why he looked so tired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe looked so beat. Any idea why?\u201d I asked Sora.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe was at the Assembly too, and don\u2019t forget that he\u2019s still single. I can\u2019t imagine how many women must have approached him,\u201d he replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That would have explained it. Cyrus wasn\u2019t used to talking with women, especially young ones. Spending three days surrounded by them must have been draining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that also explained why I didn\u2019t see him at the Assembly: he was probably hidden inside a swarm of girls. I really felt for him, the poor guy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning. It\u2019s good to see you all,\u201d I said, walking inside the door, and I heard three replies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMorning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning! You must be tired after the Assembly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was still too early for everyone to be there, but my older colleagues were already working, looking exactly like they did when I last saw them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Laura had covered her muscular body with a cute, frilly dress, and Hart was sitting in a corner, almost invisible, staring at paperwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We went to greet Larna, the department director, who had come in unusually early. Normally she\u2019d come in just in time for the start of the workday. She was a very unique woman, and she proudly said that she preferred working outside, running around from one place to the other. Seeing her sitting behind a desk was weird.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am coming back to work starting today, since the Assembly is over,\u201d I said, and she smiled at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know just how tiring the Assembly was for you. I\u2019m sure you still can\u2019t give 100%, but just do what you can,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a moment, I was confused that she knew how the Assembly had been, but then I remembered that she, too, was a noble lady and was probably attending as well. But she was a master of disguise, and even the face that I was looking at as we spoke was nothing but a carefully crafted fake. Neither I nor anyone else here knew what she really looked like. Even if I\u2019d met her at the Assembly, I probably wouldn\u2019t have noticed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite attending, though, she looked as brisk as always. She didn\u2019t look tired in the least.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, Miss Larna,\u201d Sora interrupted my thoughts, \u201cI would like to report on my mission.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cyrus stopped our conversation earlier, so I still didn\u2019t know what his mission was about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCyrus told me that you already reported to him earlier. Good job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am sorry that I could not gain any useful information,\u201d he said, lowering his gaze apologetically. Did that mean that he had failed his mission?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSora, what was your mission, anyway?\u201d I couldn\u2019t resist asking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI told Sora not to tell you anything so that you could concentrate on the Assembly, but I guess it doesn\u2019t matter anymore,\u201d Larna said, and started explaining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It turned out that the daughter of a not particularly wealthy baron from the kingdom\u2019s outskirts had disappeared. Since it happened in a part of the countryside which was considered to be safe, everyone was in a frenzy. What\u2019s more, the girl was a magic user, which was rare for a noble of that rank. This made her loved ones worry for her even more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Her sudden disappearance, while surprising, wasn\u2019t exactly unthinkable. The first assumption was that she was either kidnapped or had run away. However, the family received no notice from the kidnappers, and she had no reason to leave her home on her own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The family then asked for the help of the Ministry, which found out something suspicious. The servants who were working in the mansion that day \u2014 both those who were supposed to be accompanying the girl and even some of the farmers working nearby \u2014 couldn\u2019t remember what happened on the day of the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Their memories were clouded, and no matter how much they tried, they couldn\u2019t recall the facts. The Ministry assumed that Dark Magic was involved, and the people who were most familiar with it were tasked with investigating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sora and Maria visited that countryside manor, and, by sheer coincidence, Maria used her Light Magic to cure a wound on the hand of a farmer. When she did that, the farmer recalled seeing a carriage, probably belonging to nobles, running around near the mansion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was all they managed to gather, but at least they now knew that it was very likely that both Dark Magic and nobles, probably high-ranking ones at that, were involved. The next logical step was to send Maria and Sora, who could sense Dark Magic, to the International Assembly, where most of the country\u2019s nobles would be. They would pretend to be servants and intervene if anything happened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This mission was a bigger deal than I thought! When Dark Magic\u2019s involved, who knows what could happen. Scary!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI also tried to investigate a bit myself, but found nothing interesting. What about you, Katarina?\u201d Larna asked me, and I tried to recall anything relevant that I could have heard at the Assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Marriage proposals for Keith, marriage proposals for Nicol… Lots of marriage proposals… And then of course that incident with Maria and those two stupid foreign nobles. Could it be that…?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIs it possible that the two foreign nobles who tried to kidnap Maria also kidnapped that girl?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGiven the timing of the incident, right before the start of the Assembly, we considered the possibility of foreign nobles being involved. However, it\u2019s unlikely that anyone outside Sorci\u00e9 knows about Dark Magic, and, more importantly, the kidnapping was carried out too well. One would need to be familiar with the place. So the culprit is probably someone from within the kingdom,\u201d Larna replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She had a point, but after hearing all of those stories from Cezar about how unsafe other countries were, I couldn\u2019t help but feel suspicious. He even said that people abroad practiced human trafficking, and the government wouldn\u2019t even care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why was I even discussing human trafficking with him, anyway?<\/em> I thought to myself. I was running after Maria. Then, in the garden, he saved me when I heard something dangerous-sounding from those old foreign nobles…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s right! They were saying that one could buy magic-wielding children from Sorci\u00e9 in a harbor!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I was so shocked by that information that I thought I needed to talk to Jeord and the others about it, but the whole Maria incident made me forget about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I explained what I remembered to Larna, and her face suddenly darkened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Ministry has information on all the children who can use magic, and right now that girl is the only missing one. If those men were talking about buying a child like that, it\u2019s very likely that they were talking about the baron\u2019s daughter. Do you remember what those two men looked like?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI didn\u2019t see their faces clearly… All I know is that they had a lot of extra weight around their waists.\u201d To be honest, though, that applied to most<\/em> old noblemen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see. But still, how could foreigners manage to sneak into a noble\u2019s mansion, and how could they know of Dark Magic to begin with? Unless, of course, someone from Sorci\u00e9 helped them…\u201d she said, speaking mostly to herself as she considered various possibilities with a finger on her lip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After a moment, she spoke again. \u201cThank you, Katarina, that information will prove useful,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ll tell Cyrus about it and we\u2019ll look further into it. You just go back to deciphering the Dark Covenant. And if you remember anything else, come and tell me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She then quickly left the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere she goes…\u201d I said, and then noticed Sora looking at me in disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow does one manage to just forget<\/em> about something like that?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHm, I guess after the incident with Maria I just couldn\u2019t think of anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sora sighed. \u201cAnyway,\u201d he said, \u201cit\u2019s incredible that you, knowing nothing, were able to find out more information than me.\u201d He sounded genuinely impressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt was nothing but a coincidence though.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCoincidence, right… Just like with the Dark Covenant.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, just like that…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seeing Sora\u2019s expression becoming more serious, I suddenly felt nervous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m not doing anything bad, I swear… The Dark Familiar and the Dark Covenant are just parts of the game, and I can\u2019t do anything about that. I didn\u2019t choose to be the villainess, so what could I do?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe Sora, with some sixth sense unique to the game\u2019s love interests, was getting suspicious of me. But what he said next disproved that thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou really get caught up in the most dangerous stuff. Be real<\/em> careful, alright?\u201d he said, clearly worrying about me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I felt relieved, and very happy. The people around me, far from suspecting me of doing anything bad, were always looking out for me, and that filled me with joy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you!\u201d I replied, and then we got to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I left Sora and went to the meeting room which I was using to work on the covenant, and found that Maria was already there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning, Lady Katarina. You must be tired after the Assembly,\u201d she said, and I was relieved to see that her face, which had looked so grim just two days ago, was back to normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood morning. You must be too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, not at all. In the end, my mission bore no fruit,\u201d she said, disappointed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She probably hadn\u2019t heard of the latest news yet, so I repeated to her what I told Larna earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou are incredible, Lady Katarina. To think that you would obtain so much information without knowing anything about the incident!\u201d she said, looking at me with awe in her eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt was just a coincidence…\u201d I said, gesturing the undeserved awe away as if it was a fly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLarna said that she thinks a Sorci\u00e9 noble must be involved and that she\u2019ll look into it. What do you think?\u201d I asked her, and she put a finger to her chin thoughtfully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree with her. Someone from our own kingdom must be involved. I visited the town where the girl lived, and it would not be easy for a foreigner to carry out a kidnapping there,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unlike me, she had actually been to the scene of the alleged crime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd how did it look? I heard that Dark Magic was probably involved, but was that usual dark aura around?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt was a peaceful country town where you would never expect any crime to take place. Everyone, including both the farmers and the baron\u2019s family, knew everyone else, and they all seemed to be on good terms regardless of status,\u201d she explained. \u201cBut given that, they would probably notice immediately \u2014 and remember it well \u2014 if they saw an outsider. The fact that they did not is what felt strange. It was enough to convince me that Dark Magic was at play, even without the usual aura that comes with it. And then I cured someone\u2019s wounds with Light Magic…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd when you used your magic, they remembered what happened on that day, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. It was a coincidence, of course, but I think that my Light Magic counteracted the Dark Magic. I also tried doing it with other people who said that their memories were hazy, but it did not work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou tried it on other people?\u201d I repeated, surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. But unfortunately none of them remembered anything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She didn\u2019t know whether that depended on how the Dark Magic was used, the people that it was used on, or the limits of her own magic, but she was only able to get information from that one person, who had seen something that looked like a noble\u2019s carriage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut thanks to you, we now know that foreign nobles are involved, and that human trafficking is taking place in a harbor somewhere within our country. Your help has been so useful!\u201d she said, giving me that impressed look once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, Maria, stop! When you look at me like that, I feel so, so…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n All of a sudden, Maria dropped her gaze. \u201cI want to find that girl as soon as possible. She is only twelve years old… She must be so scared right now,\u201d she said, now looking horrified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMaria…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n After those two men dragged her into their room two days ago, thinking of that girl being kidnapped must have hit close to home for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, let\u2019s do our best and save her as soon as possible. Dark Magic or not, it\u2019s no sweat! Remember Keith\u2019s kidnapping? And the tanuki mission? We solved those without a hitch!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We had already been through two (three, if we count the Raphael thing at the academy) Dark Magic-related incidents, and we were successful. We even defeated a dragon during the Ministry\u2019s examination \u2014 one or two old foreign nobles wouldn\u2019t be an issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Okay, technically it was Pochi who defeated the dragon, but still… Wait, that\u2019s right! I was supposed to keep him hidden all the time at the castle, so I forgot about Pochi!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf Dark Magic is involved, maybe Pochi could help! Pochi!\u201d I shouted towards my shadow, and I got a brisk \u201cWoof!\u201d as a reply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d forgotten all about him because of the seminar and the Assembly, so I was happy to see that he was still doing fine. I\u2019m so glad familiars don\u2019t need to be fed…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes! Pochi is always with you after all,\u201d Maria said with a smile, hearing him woof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, he\u2019s always there to save me when I\u2019m in trouble,\u201d I said proudly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wondered why he didn\u2019t come out to save me while those stupid nobles were going to hurt me at the castle, though. Maybe it\u2019s because I didn\u2019t call him?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLady Katarina? Is anything the matter?\u201d Maria asked worriedly, seeing me lost in thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, it\u2019s nothing. Now let\u2019s go back to the covenants! Maybe there\u2019s some spell that can help us save the baron\u2019s daughter!\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pochi probably had a good reason not to come out, and it\u2019s not like I\u2019d asked him to either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next time I\u2019m in trouble, I\u2019ll make sure to call him for help,<\/em> I thought, and opened the Dark Covenant in front of me for the first time in a while.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seeing the pages full of those complex letters I didn\u2019t understand immediately made me feel tired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou\u2019ve done your best, Sarah. Thank you,\u201d he said, caressing my head, but the disappointment I was feeling at my own failure didn\u2019t go away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My mission was to borrow his help and sneak into the International Assembly to get close to Katarina Claes. She had the Dark Covenant, which we had been looking for. I was supposed to spy on her and, if necessary, take away her memories \u2014 but I wasn\u2019t able to approach her at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was her Dark Familiar that had kept me from my task. Once it noticed me, it did anything it could to hinder me. As soon as I tried to get close, it would come out and bare its fangs at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That ungrateful mongrel, intimidating the very person who created it…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n And the fact that Katarina was able to go on living normally while hiding a Dark Familiar in her shadow was bizarre. The man to whom I gave the dragon familiar ended up being consumed by darkness and going insane, but nothing of the sort was happening to her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wanted to find out more about her, but she was too well protected. She had so many supporters that acting uncouthly could risk endangering him<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ever since he saved me from that dark, terrifying place, my feelings towards him had always been the same. I\u2019d happily give my life for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I couldn\u2019t let anything happen to him. The only wish I had was to protect him and to make him happy, whatever the cost. Even if it meant taking someone else\u2019s life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n I, Susanna Randall, better known as Larna Smith, was talking with Jeffrey Stuart, oldest prince of Sorci\u00e9 and my fianc\u00e9, in his room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo you people at the castle already knew of it,\u201d I commented, surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I had gotten some very useful information from one of my subordinates, Katarina Claes, I rushed to tell Jeffrey about it. But he had already heard about it from somewhere else. Furthermore, he had already sent one of his men to investigate, so he had more and better information than me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou\u2019re as fast as always at finding out things and reacting to them, I see,\u201d I said, and he gave me his usual relaxed smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou know I prefer working behind the curtains, unlike you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was a troubling thing to say, if I really thought about it. It could have been unfit for a prince, but it wasn\u2019t surprising coming from Jeffrey, who was so obsessed with his brothers that he\u2019d basically stalk them continuously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou could have told me about your new information though. Why didn\u2019t you?\u201d I asked, as if I wanted to scold him, and he lowered his eyebrows in a very rehearsed-looking apologetic expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI only got it two days ago, and considering where it came from, I had to make sure that it was trustworthy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhy? Who gave it to you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe prince from Ethenell who was at the Assembly representing his country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…That\u2019s quite the source.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, which is why I needed time to investigate properly, and, of course, to convince the prince not to talk about it outside of here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Satisfied by his explanation, I decided not to complain about his delay anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd it turns out that the prince got the information from the same place as Lady Katarina.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow so?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey happened to be together at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That meant that the sources were stating the same facts, but more importantly, I wondered why Katarina was together with Ethenell\u2019s prince.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve written down all the details in these documents, so you can read them at your own convenience back at the Ministry. I still have much left to do now that the Assembly is over, so much so that I\u2019ve had to cut back on enjoying my lovely brothers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I really didn\u2019t need to hear that last part<\/em>, I thought, as he handed me the documents. Anyway, it was true that he was busy, so I quickly left and started reading while riding in the carriage that would take me back to the Ministry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The report was a detailed, easy-to-read explanation of why Katarina and Ethenell\u2019s prince were together at the Assembly, and how they got their information. Jeffrey\u2019s attachment to his brothers bordered on perverse, but he was incredibly skilled at his work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the information on those documents, as I thought, made it seem likely that Dark Magic was at play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lately incidents like these had been on the rise, and I had a feeling that Sarah, the woman who disappeared from the mansion of that marquess and had tried to obtain Dark Magic, was involved. She was sometimes witnessed near the sites of crimes involving Dark Magic, but we still had no idea what her intentions were.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I could tell, however, that she probably wasn\u2019t acting alone. I believed that there was somebody pulling her strings \u2014 someone powerful who had considerable influence within the kingdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that the royals weren\u2019t fighting for the crown anymore, Sorci\u00e9 was at peace. Were these mysterious figures planning to stain the country with blood once again?<\/p>\n\n\n\n If that\u2019s the case, I must stop them at all costs.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Sitting alone inside my carriage, I bit my lip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n A few days had passed since the end of the Assembly. After enjoying a satisfying lunch, I was working on the covenant together with Maria, when Sora, who was doing deliveries around various departments, stopped by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow\u2019s it going? Made any progress?\u201d he asked, with a teasing smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSpending time at the castle without thinking about it has made it even more difficult to understand,\u201d I said, puffing up my cheeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We heard a sudden knock on the door, which promptly opened. Maria, Sora, and I all stared, confused, as we saw Larna barge in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt turned out that Katarina\u2019s information was on point, and the harbor that those men were talking about is probably Ocean Harbor, where trade between Sorci\u00e9 and Ethenell takes place, and we\u2019re going there right now to make sure,\u201d she said all in one breath, as if she couldn\u2019t waste a second before getting there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We were already mentally prepared to be dragged to Ocean Harbor, but thankfully Cyrus walked in and managed to convince Larna that going there right now, unprepared, was a bad idea. However, she still insisted that we go there as soon as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought that now that the Assembly was over I\u2019d be able to rest for a while, but it seemed that I\u2019d have no such luck \u2014 it was time to prepare for our trip to Ocean Harbor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With the Assembly behind me, I decided to hold a tea party with my friends in Claes Manor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The weather was clear, so I had a table prepared in the garden. It was nothing fancy, though, since the only guests would be the usual ones: Keith, Jeord, Alan, Mary, Sophia, Nicol, and Maria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig Sister, I think our guests will be here soon,\u201d Keith informed me right when all the preparations were complete, and I went to welcome them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you for the invitation, Katarina,\u201d Jeord said, casually kissing the back of my hand. He looked exhausted right after the Assembly, but he was clearly more than fine now, full of the usual sexiness that befitted a main character like him. The party hadn\u2019t even started and I was already blushing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHey,\u201d said Alan, who had come with him. He looked the same as usual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am most happy to be invited here, Lady Katarina,\u201d followed Mary with a huge smile. She didn\u2019t seem the least bit tired from the Assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you so much for having us, Lady Katarina. I have brought you the latest novel, you see, it is a wonderful story about…\u201d Sophia then started rambling. During the Assembly (or rather, during her whole stay at the castle), she had been deprived of her beloved books.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that she was able to read them again, her enthusiasm was greater than ever. She kept talking with sparkles in her eyes while she hugged her book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCalm down, Sophia, you\u2019ll have time to talk about novels once the tea party starts,\u201d her brother Nicol, calm as always, interrupted her. \u201cThank you for inviting us,\u201d he then said to me with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That smile, too, was as powerful as always. Just seeing it made me black out for a second. I thought I\u2019d gotten used to it, but Nicol must have become even more attractive after our stay at the castle. Stop, please.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLady Katarina, thank you so much for having me. I have made these for you,\u201d Maria, my cute Maria, said while handing me some homemade sweets. I\u2019d secretly hoped that she\u2019d bring some, so I was more than happy to accept them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank you, Maria! Let\u2019s go and eat them,\u201d I said, and added them to the table as we all sat around it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTo a successfully finished Assembly!\u201d I said, raising my teacup in a sort of workplace toast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jeord and Keith both raised their cups with ironic smiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh?\u201d Alan asked, perplexed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mary and Maria smiled happily while raising their cups, and Sophia, who was excited at being able to read novels again, raised hers even higher than me. Nicol did it too, but without changing his expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thus began our tea party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m glad nothing bad happened during the Assembly,\u201d I said while stuffing my mouth with Maria\u2019s sweets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Everyone around the table replied in unison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Did I say something weird?<\/em> I thought, and saw Keith bring his hands to his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig Sister, you said the same thing on the trip back home from the castle. Do you remember what I told you then?\u201d he asked me with a grave voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I knew my brother well enough to understand that when he spoke to me with that voice I was at risk of getting scolded, so I tried my best to remember.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou said that, uhm… tearing my dress apart and climbing up a tree were major screw ups? Something like that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m glad you remembered,\u201d he said with a smile on his lips but dread in his eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Okay. He\u2019s 100% mad at me. He\u2019s just holding back momentarily because everyone\u2019s around. I can expect to be scolded later.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI find it unfathomable that barging into a room with two kidnappers, by yourself, hardly registers as a bad thing to you. Your perception of things is incomparable to ours,\u201d Jeord said as he stared into nothingness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree with him. The whole dress-tearing, tree-climbing, and kidnapper-chasing thing? We considered that to be bad<\/em>, yeah,\u201d Alan followed, nodding to what his brother had said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ugh… That\u2019s right, I made everyone worry during the Assembly…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s not that I\u2019d forgotten about it, of course. But well, spilled milk and all that. And that happened during<\/em> the Assembly, but nothing bad happened at<\/em> the Assembly, technically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m really sorry for making all of you worry,\u201d I said, lowering my head. I could have tried to make an excuse for what I\u2019d said, but my friends were right, so I just apologized. I only now realized how worried everyone had been.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut,\u201d Maria interjected, hardly after I\u2019d finished my apology, \u201cit was all my fault that Lady Katarina found herself in that dangerous situation. I am sorry,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was surprised. It was true that I\u2019d gone into that room in order to save her, but she still had no reason to apologize. She was just a victim, dragged there by those two stupid noblemen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be sorry for anything!\u201d I shouted, standing up from my chair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe\u2019s right, Maria. You were but a victim, and have nothing to apologize for,\u201d Jeord calmly agreed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, don\u2019t worry. My sister just ran off on her own. It\u2019s not your fault,\u201d Keith added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah. This idiot is completely responsible for whatever stupid stuff she does. Don\u2019t worry,\u201d Alan continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat is completely true,\u201d Nicol finished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sophia and Mary were silently nodding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They kind of made it sound like it was my fault, but, well, it was. So I joined in the nodding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Thank you,\u201d said Maria, looking up at all the people comforting her. She was blushing slightly, and she was so cute it almost hurt to look at her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s fine, Maria. I\u2019ll come to save you if anything like that ever happens again,\u201d I said, completely dazzled by her loveliness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBig Sister, have you learned nothing…?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI beg you, ask me for help first.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre you trying<\/em> to get yourself trouble again?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou assured us that you wouldn\u2019t do anything dangerous anymore…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The four boys all commented one after the other, looking at me in disbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPlease try to avoid danger,\u201d Mary and Sophia also added with sad looks in their eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ugh. I can\u2019t really disagree with them…<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I realized that I had to change the topic. The Assembly wouldn\u2019t do, so I\u2019d much rather talk about the seminar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTh-The, uhm, the seminar was hard, wasn\u2019t it? But it was fun being all together in the castle!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n What I was trying to do was painfully obvious, but Sophia and Mary, who had spent most of their time there with me, indulged me anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes. Those lessons were very tiring, but it was a fun experience,\u201d Sophia said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI also had fun spending time with Lady Katarina after so long,\u201d Mary continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not only did we attend lessons together, but we also ate together and our rooms were close to each other. It felt like being back at the academy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe shared bath was so fun too!\u201d I said, remembering when I went there with Sophia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cUgh…\u201d I heard Mary murmur while hiding her face in her hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong, Mary?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cN-Nothing… I just remembered a sad, unfair thing that happened to me,\u201d she explained with a sad voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, right, she couldn\u2019t come to the bath because she wasn\u2019t feeling well. I\u2019m sure she\u2019d have liked to see the castle\u2019s bath once. I\u2019d better change the topic again.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet\u2019s see… oh! The first day of the seminar was so hard I was close to giving up, but Keith stroked my head for the first time in a while, and that made me feel much better. Thanks, Keith!\u201d I said, looking at my brother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cB-Big Sister, maybe we should not talk about that right now…\u201d he said strangely, shaking his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I thought it was a happy, lovely topic, but Keith looked so displeased with it that I had to think of another one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What can I talk about? Oh, right!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAlan actually played some songs for me one day during the seminar! I fell asleep halfway through though. I\u2019m sorry, Alan,\u201d I said, talking about his practice piano performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was so good that I couldn\u2019t help but get sleepy. When I woke up Alan wasn\u2019t there anymore, so I never had a proper chance to apologize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c…Oh, that? I don\u2019t really mind…\u201d he said, looking away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Is it me or is he blushing?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I noticed that Mary was staring holes into him. I had no idea why, but this topic wasn\u2019t a good choice either. I tried talking to the Ascart siblings next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSophia, I\u2019m sorry that I passed out when you invited me to that tea party. It was such a wonderful place, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She had prepared a surprise tea party in the garden, but I suddenly passed out while we were going to Nicol\u2019s room to invite him too. The garden looked so beautiful. It was a real shame that we couldn\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cN-Not at all, if anything, I should apologize to you,\u201d said Sophia, looking strangely nervous as she bowed her head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou? Apologize to me? Why?\u201d She hadn\u2019t done anything wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, that is… you see…\u201d She was at a loss for words, and her brother intervened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShe must mean that she\u2019s sorry for inviting you without noticing that you were feeling unwell,\u201d he said coolly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cY-Yes, exactly,\u201d Sophia nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, but there was no way you could know, so don\u2019t worry. Actually, I was feeling fine that morning. You know what\u2019s weird? I don\u2019t even remember where exactly I lost consciousness. I didn\u2019t go all the way to Nicol\u2019s room, right? But I also kind of feel like I visited it…\u201d I said, trying to recall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, you never came into my room. You must be remembering wrong,\u201d he said without changing his expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was likely. Right after passing out I had a dream about the game, so that had probably confused me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, a lot\u2019s happened, but I was just glad to be able to spend time with all of you,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We used to gather often when we were studying at the academy, but now that we were working, we didn\u2019t have as many opportunities to meet. That made our time at the castle that much more fun, despite all that had happened. I\u2019d had enough of assemblies and seminars, but I wished that we could all gather and have fun again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you would like,\u201d Jeord said, \u201cyou may come to visit one of the royal vacation villas. There is one of them in a lovely place surrounded by nature.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cReally? I\u2019d love to!\u201d I quickly replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat does sound nice. We should all go together, Big Sister,\u201d Keith said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree,\u201d Mary said. \u201cSounds wonderful, right, Prince Alan?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh? Uh… Sure does, yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI am already looking forward to it!\u201d Sophia commented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, me too,\u201d her brother agreed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA royal vacation villa… wow…\u201d I said to myself, amazed. It was decided that we\u2019d all go there together, and I couldn\u2019t wait.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But for some strange reason, it seemed that Jeord \u2014 the one who had made the invitation \u2014 wasn\u2019t very pleased with how things had turned out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nah, I\u2019m just imagining things.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For the first time in what felt like forever, I managed to wake up by myself. I sat up on the bed and looked at the sun shining in through the window. Another beautiful day. Today was the last day of the Assembly, so we would just exchange a few final farewells and it would […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tak-berkategori"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3475"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3475\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3476,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3475\/revisions\/3476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Post-Assembly Tea Party<\/h1>\n\n\n\n