48: Invading her room (part 2)

Invading her room (part 2)

It was Egon's turn to stare, but Adela had to stand her ground. Much like she did when she asked him to sit down and have a civilized conversation with her regardless of the fact that he barged into a Lady's room in the dead of night and had the audacity to blame her for it.1

She had to be the one to draw the lines.

"This will be the last time we see each other, but I truly want us to part on good terms,"

"Is it because I showed you what I truly am," he asked passionlessly. 

What he truly is? She had no idea what that was. Maybe some partial honesty would aid her efforts in convincing him.

"It is because I should not be around you anymore,"

Leaning forward, he put his forearm on the tea table, his expression ungraspable.

"I thought that you were reacting too detached to everything I was showing you. Tell the truth now, you are terrified of me. Aren't you?"

She shook her head, searching her heart for some courage, for words that can truly reach him.

"All the fear and gossip surrounding the forest had always saddened me. Shapeshifters or not. I truly believe that different races can coexist together peacefully when there is a mutual will to make that happen, of course… There is even evidence of that harmony in our history,"

The deep one her father called 'buried' the other night, at least.

Egon raised an eyebrow.

"Fancy words for someone who failed to coexist peacefully with a beast,"

She took a deep breath and tried to think about other justifications for the annulment apart from her own feelings. Her eyes looked around for inspiration, and one came when she noticed once more the absence of the Archduke's signet ring on her finger.

"…I want to change things for the noblewomen in Lanark, and in order for that change to happen, it must start here from my father's manor. Without his authority, I would be ridiculed, it will have the opposite outcome on them," 

Egon did not seem to agree with her as he stared coldly.

"…It is really not about your extraordinary powers,"

"Extraordinary powers," he scoffed at her choice of words.

She frowned at his self-belittlement, "You said it yourself; I can see you for who you truly are,"

Powerful…Beautiful…

Her eyes drifted to the open window, she looked away into the sky as she spoke again, pitying her powerless self, "A featherless falcon needs the Archduke's wings,"

"Annulling an agreement with me is not easy," 

She looked back at him, putting on a firm front before she spoke.

"The epidemic we faced served as a test for the infirmary… And a pocket full of mana stones can buy you as many doctors as you wish... You do not need me,"

His mouth twisted down, and his eyes hardened.

"Indeed. Buying doctors is easy. What about your need though? Don't you need to get back that which you consider yours? Or have you forgotten about your father's land,"

The memory of her falcon flying over said lands burnt her eyes. She swallowed the tears before it was too late.

"I have come to understand that more than the land, it is the living things with their beating hearts that connect me to Lanark. There is always another way to get enough coins and buy the land back from you… But no amount of land can bring Kannen back to me,"

"…The proud Adelaide de Lanark changed, is that it?" He challenged.

Her chin went up, "Yes, I have changed. You should try that yourself one of these days," 

Egon's eyes softened significantly.

"When I first came here… I knew just what I wanted," he paused a whirlwind of emotions passing through his eyes.

She remembered his anguished expression as he told her about his father's suicide and decided to escape it the same way she did the first time.

"A life for a life?"

"No," he took a deep breath, "I wanted those who took away my parents and my brother's eye to kneel at my feet,"

She cringed; it was the first time he was making his intentions verbally crystal clear to her.

"You say I am a prisoner of the past. That is an understatement. I was raised for vengeance; it is my present and all that I know," his dark eyes glistened, "All that I knew," he corrected.

With a roll of excitement that passed through her stomach and ended at the tips of her fingers, she realized what he was trying to say.

"Adela...I want to be free of that prison. Will you help me?"

Intimidating as he was, the self-proclaimed beast clung to the edge of the tea table as he waited for the Lady's response. 

There were no false claims between them, and Adela was hyper-aware of the fact that he was still her father's enemy. Would she place her pride to the side and turn a blind to their fundamental differences, or will she refuse the hand that reached and watch as he hit rock bottom, possibly dragging her beloved Lanark along with him?

Accustomed to her long silences, Egon did not seem bothered by the lack of her immediate response, on the contrary, he patiently observed the subtle changes in Adela's features on the mental path she had to cross before making an important decision. 

She looked away when she finally realized how fast her heart was beating, when that was not enough, she stood up abruptly and took a few steps away from his ears.

His request was utterly confusing. A part of her was ecstatic to have finally found a way to reach him, and the other part rebelled against being cornered into giving a life-changing answer.

What would helping an enemy of house de Lanark cost her?

"Allow me to assist you,"

It was a reasonable suggestion. Adela turned around to ask him for enough time to consider things. She gasped when her head almost collided with his chest.

As if that was not enough, Egon leaned down.

She held her breath, her heart fluttering like a bird against a cage when he tilted his head, his lips drawing closer, she closed her eyes when she was sure that he was about to claim something else she spent years safeguarding: her very first kiss.

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