[Ch. 38] The Taboo of Room 134 (Past)

"Oi." Korph said after a while, "Moao is gone."

Amanda stopped and twirled around to see that he was right. She sighed, "She probably got distracted by a plant."

Raylon chuckled, "Really? Does she usually get distracted so easily?"

Amanda turned around and muttered, "You'd be surprised how often it happens. Whenever she has to be somewhere, she is always late because she's too busy staring at plants. I've tried countless times to get her to stop, but it never works."

Raylon nodded thoughtfully, "She must really like plants."

Amanda shrugged, "She might, but I'm not really sure as to why. Whenever she stares at them, it's like she is trying to look into their soul. Then she just turns away from it and acts like she never stopped at it. My Lady can be quite mysterious."

Korph scoffed, "I think you mean weird, not mysterious."

As they walked away to have tea and desserts, I sat back at the tree waiting for my nose to stop bleeding. After a while, it finally yielded, but the stinging pain in my temples remained. I decided to use another entrance inside the building to avoid being seen by Amanda.

As I walked through the hall a servant jumped, startled by my sudden appearance. She wailed, "Lady Moao! Your face! Are you alright?"

I glared at her, "Don't talk."

I spoke so fiercely that the poor servant nearly collapsed in fear.

I didn't mean to frighten her… Oh well.

I ignored the servant and continued to my room. I rubbed my temples as the noise surrounding me was painfully amplified. I collapsed onto my bed and closed my eyes trying to ignore the loud thumping noise.

After a few hours, my headache finally subsided.

I moved to clean myself up and noticed it was already dark outside. A sharp twinge came from my stomach and I quickly used magic to stop the hunger. Thanks to magic I can stop myself from feeling hungry, but unfortunately, I still had to eat. I left the room and arrived to see Raylon, Korph, and Amanda sitting at the table in the dining hall.

Amanda jumped up, "There you are Lady Moao! We have been waiting. Please have a seat."

I sat down and picked at my food, slowly eating it. I never cared much for eating since each bite doesn't carry much of a taste. The whole process of sitting down to eat is monotonous and pointless to me. As such, I only make sure to eat enough to survive.

I glanced up and noticed Korph shoveling food into his mouth, devouring plate after plate. I felt a twinge of jealousy seeing his happy expression, but my jealousy was quickly replaced by the numb feeling I usually felt.

I turned to Raylon and noticed he ate with proper manners in a charming way. A few of the female servants stared at him with desire in their eyes. It was clear they wanted a taste of him instead of the exquisite food.

I clicked my tongue and laid down my utensils.

I don't feel like eating anymore.

…..The next day.....

After waking up, Raylon found his way down to the dining room only to see that he was the first one to arrive. He looked to the servants, "Where is everyone?"

The servant bowed to him, "Lady Moao and Prince Korph are still fast asleep. Miss Amanda is currently attempting to wake up Lady Moao. If you would like to eat now, we will happily serve you."

He shook his head, "No, that's alright. I will go help Amanda and wake up Korph." The servants all bowed to him again before he walked out of the room. He came towards Korph's door and opened it. He saw Korph sprawled among the floor snoring loudly. His clothes were strewn around the room.

Raylon frowned in disappointment, "Really? You were only here a day and you have already turned this room into a mess?"

He walked over and started to kick Korph in a rough attempt to wake him up. Korph grumbled and rolled over still asleep. He smacked him multiple times and shook him to no avail.

Now he knew what Amanda felt like.

After trying a few more times to wake him up, he gave up and flung him over his shoulder. He then walked back to the dining room only to see Amanda in a similar situation. He plopped Korph into a chair and smacked him again before sitting beside him. Amanda motioned to the servants who placed a cup of coffee in front of both Korph and me.

"It's very strong." Seeing Raylons face crinkle in disgust, Amanda exclaimed, "I'm sorry! I almost forgot."

She grabbed a plate full of sugar cubes and handed it to Raylon. He took it with a gracious smile and began to dump the many cubes into his coffee. I was aroused by the smell of coffee and sat up blinking groggily. Korph and I reached out and sipped on the coffee simultaneously.

Amanda chuckled, "You two are really similar."

"Not at all." Korph mumbled, half asleep.

"Mmn." I mumbled in agreement.

The others ate as I sat at the table sipping coffee while still half asleep. My body still ached from the magic I used to heal Korph yesterday. It seems I need to work on my endurance more.

After I woke up enough, I recalled the entire reason I had brought the two here. I stood up and turned to Amanda, "Bring them to room 134 in two hours."

Amanda shouted, "What?! Wait!! Please Lady Moao! Please reconsider!"

I gave her one glance before turning away.

Seeing that I was ignoring her pleas, Amanda spoke in a stubborn tone, "I won't take them. I refuse."

I turned back to her, "Okay."

Her eyes lit up, "Really?"

I responded in a matter-of-fact tone, "You will just be in your room without seeing me for five days as punishment for disobeying."

Amanda's eyes watered, "My lady! How could you be so cruel to me?"

Although most individuals who disobey a royal order are dealt with severely, I have always found that this was the best way to deal with Amanda. She quickly relented each time I threatened to ignore her.

As I was leaving the room, I quickly slapped the backside of Korph's head. Korph jumped up, "What?! Are we under attack?!"

Raylon shook his head, "...No."

"Oh. Good." He rubbed the back of his head, "Why does my head hurt?"

…..

After a few hours, Amanda drudgingly showed the two of them to the room. She paused before letting them in, "It's not too late to turn back."

"What's so bad about this room?" Raylon asked her suspiciously.

"Just remember that you mustn't tell anyone else what you see in this room." She buried her face in her hands, "It would be such an embarrassment to our nation if others knew. Not to mention the Baron. I fear he would finally retaliate against her if anyone else discovered her…. Hobby."

Korph tilted his head, "Hobby?"

The door was flung open before anyone could ask any more questions.

Amanda let out a depressing shriek before hiding her face in shame.

A young boy stood staring at the three of them standing at the door. He wore a loose-fitting button-up shirt and brown slacks with black suspenders. On his head was a gray cap covering his messy white hair. His black boots were scuffed and clearly used quite a bit. It looked as if he was a paperboy who had just finished his route.

Strangely enough, his face had a striking similarity to Moao. His white hair hung in his face as his emerald eyes sparkled despite the dull emotion behind them. The most similar thing between Moao and this person was that they both seemed to lack any human emotions.

"Are you…" Raylon trailed off hesitantly, "Moao's younger brother?"

"You're wrong, Prince Raylon..." Amanda hid her face in shame, "This is lady Moao."