59: By the Lady’s side

By the Lady’s side

Standing before the imposing entrance to the Archduke's manor, The Majordomo was poised with his luggage firmly in hand, while the baroness stood beside him in a similar disposition. Their current posture was a tacit confirmation of the revelations Arkin disclosed to the ladies during their carriage ride home, but experiencing something with one's own eyes was an entirely different matter.1

"What is the meaning of this?" were Adela's words as soon as she descended from the carriage with the assistance of her knight.

"My Lady, please trust me when I say that I only learned of this after you and Lady Larissa had departed!" the Baroness said, looking at Adela with frightened eyes.

Baroness Frieda... an innocent in this whole situation...

Adela looked at the Majordomo — whom she considered a potential culprit — with condemning eyes, "Bernard, I need you to explain yourself!"

Bernard's demeanor remained professional as if nothing was amiss with the night. "My Lady, our orders are clear. The manor is to be vacated except for the guards at the main gates. You, Lady Larissa, and the Baroness are to leave for the Baron's fief,"

Neither her father nor her mother was in a condition to plan for the estate and its workers.

Adela narrowed her eyes, "Whose orders are you following?"

Bernard adjusted his monocle before responding, "I am following the orders of the King himself. Just before departing with Their Excellencies through the portal to Destan, the Baron was also with them."

Adela's throat felt as if it was completely closing.

"This cannot possibly be the outcome of a few hours in the night. How long have you been preparing for this?" she asked, her voice quivering with anger and fear.

Bernard's face remained emotionless, but there was a hint of sympathy in his eyes, "I'm afraid I cannot disclose that information, my Lady."

A small whimper escaped the Baroness before she shot a sharp look at her son, "Arkin, please retrieve the ladies' luggage from inside. They must retreat to proper chambers and rest."

Adela observed her sister, Larissa's face was as pale as her beautiful white gown. She came to one conclusion.

Larissa cannot stay here…

"Go with the Baroness, Larissa,"

The Majordomo removed his monocle and placed it in his pocket, an action that Adela had never seen him do before. 

"My Lady, I beg of you...," he said, his tone beseeching.

Adela refused to hear the rest, Bernard was undoubtedly loyal, but ultimately, his loyalty was not directed toward her.

"Your orders are to be followed. However, no one can order me around here," Adela's eyes drifted to the Baroness who knew what the Lady meant before hearing her say anything. "I am not going anywhere, Baroness, and that is the last anybody will say about it," she declared firmly.

"Adela," came Arkin's plea from behind her, his tone tinged with urgency. "I implore you to consider your decision during our journey. If you should choose to return, I will personally ensure your safe arrival back to the manor."

As if with the sole intention of haunting her, Egon's curse-like words suddenly took on a life of their own, filling her with dread.

Open your eyes and see who is next to you. See who wants to show you the truth and who wants to keep your eyes shut...

Did all the privileges she was born with count for naught when her parents were calling the shots? What control did she truly possess over anything in the Archduchy, including herself?

She raised her gaze to meet Arkin who stood by her side ignoring his mother's words. His eyes were fixed on Adela, waiting for her decision and anticipating her every wish.

My knight is on my side…

"...Escort your mother and my sister to your father's fief, and return to me before dawn," came her instructions.

Displeased by the temporary distance she asked to put between them, all he could do was make one last demand.

"Promise me that you will not leave this place and go anywhere until I am back for you. Promise that we will think together about it,"

"If Arkin knew Adela even slightly, he knew that her next move would be to travel to the King's County where her father was most likely taken.

Adela reluctantly nodded.

She knew she couldn't truly go anywhere in just a few hours. For as the beastman had said earlier, she needed to take her next steps very carefully. However, she did not like making promises to her knight when so many variables were at play.

"Come, we have to talk,"

Larissa led Adela by the hand away from the others until they reached the center of the garden where the fountain stood. Its crystal-clear water mirrored the stars of the cold night, much like how Larissa's face mirrored the melancholy she felt within. Tears had smudged her makeup, but her elegance still shone through.

"About your confrontation with Egon earlier, I do not know what has transpired to cause all of this, but we cannot afford to be selective when it comes to the assistance we require," 

Adela's features contorted with ire. "Are you truly taking Egon's side in all of this?"

Larissa did not refute Adela's accusation.

"Can you not see that our father's health has deteriorated since that auction? What kind of assistance could we expect from someone who came to this Kingdom only to settle an old grudge?"

Larissa held her sister's hand tightly.

"We must also consider things from their perspective... a child dragged to the Woods after losing his mother, his father dying before his eyes while he shielded his hours-old wounded brother..."

Adela was taken aback by Larissa's knowledge of the situation. How much did her sister truly know?

"Adela... it appears to me that Egon may have had a change of heart, one that motivates him to move beyond his past. On the other hand, it seems that you are trying to provoke him. Are you conscious of that?"

Adela turned her head away, her reflection in the crystal-clear water of the fountain questioning her. Am I?

Larissa placed her hand on Adela's shoulder.

"Let us focus on father for now, hm?"

Suddenly, Adela regretted the impulse to send Larissa away.

"I asked you to go to the Baron's fief, but Andreas..."

Larissa cut her off. "I have to be where the king requested, you never know what he had in mind. Plus, Andreas will know where to find me... You should think about what I said. Alright?"

Adela nodded unconvincingly.

Larissa hesitated, "Are you sure you do not wish to come to the Baron's fief?"

"I'm sure."

There was someone whom Adela did not wish to depart without hearing from first: the Crown Prince, who had promised to return after leaving the dance floor.

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