CHAPTER#32:First words and first lie

The eagerness in his eyes shone brighter than the fire torches lit on the iron sconces in the hallway.

Erebus felt uncomfortable ignoring the adopted child. He was not good at handling children.

Jafar wore a ridiculous grin on his face that irked him to give him daggers from his cold glare.

"It's alright milady... You don't need to worry about him. He just doesn't know how to respond to children."He chuckled.

"Even women?"She asked him.

"Ah... Well yes... He never had a woman in his life. And he remained indifferent to the female servants in the fort. The demons also took him for an eunuch many times in the past."He sighed.

"He is a man of a hundred rumors."

He could feel eyes at him and an axe at his neck.

"Eunuch...?"

"Forgive me for running my uncouth mouth milady. But I assure you such words are just rumors. And you are more aware that rumors can kill many who are innocent people."

Meanwhile, Luciana looked at Erebus who lifted Nemesis from the collar of his shirt and walked towards her direction.

He entrusted the confused child in her arms and ruffled his hair. He took a glance at her and reached out his hand to her hair.

She flinched when he drew back his hand.

"Grass blades are sticking to your hair." he showed her two blades and dropped them on the partially frozen stone floor.

"T-thankyou."She stuttered a word of gratitude as she saw him leave in silence.

"Milady shall I fix your hair again?"Mina asked her eagerly.

"You're quite fond of dressing me up Mina."

"Of course Milady! Milady is just so gorgeous. That's why I keep saying your beauty is truly unparalleled."

"There she goes again."Jafar sighed.

Luciana let out a nervous chuckle. She looked at Nemesis who was strangely quieter.

"What's wrong sweetling?"She stroked his hair gently as she left the courtyard after excusing the old man.

"Dada..."

"What about daddy?"

"He does not like me?"

That was the first sentence Nemesis spoke clearly without any error. To Luciana, it was supposed to be a joyous moment after all the effort she put into his studies. But it was not a happy moment. Her heart stopped beating for a moment. Or so she assumed.

"My child... Daddy is always busy. And he met you after three long years since your birth. It will take a little time for him to open up to us." she hesitantly continued.

It was a lie. Her first lie. He was no child of theirs. They were not a real couple. They were only bound together by contract. Nemesis was not a child she birthed.

She would often recall one of her favorite stories. It mentioned that two people who are fated to be together are bound by a red thread by God. They fall in love with each other. She favored romance at some point in her life when she was a young enthusiastic maiden passionate about love.

But it all went down in the mud. "What is true love?" she would gaze out of the window listlessly and think about the answer that could satisfy her.

To become a mother to a lost orphan and the wife of an unknown beast within a fortnight. She could never dream about how rushed and unpredictable her life was.

She let out a heavy sigh.

"Milady... You seem to be listless." Mina appeared before her.

Jafar excused himself to attend to Erebus.

"What does my husband do the whole day?"She asked her.

"His daily routine?"

"Yes."

"I'm afraid I won't be able to relay precise information milady. Since my brother is the lord's attendant. He takes care of his day's schedule."

"Is it so?"

"But there is one thing my brother complains about him."She said suddenly.

"He says that master is an unpredictable man. He would never follow what brother asks him and in the end, it is my brother who takes care of everything in the citadel."

"He seems like a rough edge."She muttered under her breath.

"Pardon?"

"No it's nothing..."She shook her head and looked at Nemesis who was staring at the painting of a snowy landscape.

"Mina, how is the world outside the stygian territory?"

Mina paused for a moment.

"I...haven't really stepped out of the Stygian territory milady. It's just this snow-covered land I've known all my life. My brother often visits the capital city. He tells me that many flowers bloom there. And there is sometimes no snow at all. And the weather there is warmer compared to this place."

-"Her desire for simple things like these... It makes me realize how truly blessed I was to be born with luxuries that were never taken into consideration."She reminisced over her life in Amanécer.

"You like flowers a lot don't you?"

"Yes, I love to watch them bloom into such vibrant colors. They fill up the frozen white world with their colors. I have a little hobby of tending to the flowers in the garden behind the main building of the fortress...ah... I apologize for speaking out of line."

"No, It's just that... I feel relieved."She looked at Mina. Her eyes held warmth that not even her older brother had.

"You are a sincere girl. You should cherish this virtue."

"Yes, milady? Virtue?"Mina could not quite understand Luciana's words.

"You will soon understand what I mean."She gazed out of the window. The weather was chilly. The world was painted indeed white as Mina had confessed. The earth was covered in a white blanket of snow. The trees were bare. It felt as if the snow sucked the life out of every living creature. She suddenly heard someone giggling in a low voice.

She looked around the room.

She looked at Nemesis who was lying on his stomach on top of Leo. The wolf didn't seem to mind letting the young child napping over him. It would occasionally move letting him slide down its thick silky black fur.

"Mina, does anybody else live on the third floor?"

"No milady. The third and fourth floors are only accessible by the lord. No one is allowed here... Except for the attendants. That is unless the lord allows the servants for a valid reason."

-"Strange... Why do I keep hearing these voices?"

"Mina... Can you bring me a plain cloth and and sewing kit... If there is any."

"I'm sure we have some left in servant's quarters. I can bring the fabric for you."

She turned to the door and paused.

Luciana wondered why Mina stood silently.

-"Perhaps it's too much to ask from her."She sighed.

"Milady... I remember your clothes were to arrive today. Please wait a moment I will get them for you. They are the designs you asked for."Mina ran out of the room without giving her a chance to respond.

-"What! Clothes?