[6] BAB II : lentern light

The hum of birds chirping captivates the hearing of anyone who pays attention to it. Another sunny day when the morning is peaceful and full of family warmth. As is being displayed by one of the leading royal families in the southeast of the world. The tea ceremony is held in a glass dome filled with beautiful flowers blooming with colors that are refreshing to the eye. Beautifully patterned butterflies surround the greenhouse that is currently being occupied by this happy mother and siblings.

Happy? Just so you know, I'm enduring this agony!!

"Isn't this tea party so much fun?" asked Freya cheerfully.

"Right mom." I answered calmly.

It's boring…

Entering mid-autumn, the scenery outside the palace already looks different compared to summer. But that didn't seem to apply to the plants in the large greenhouse that was being hosted by the tea party. This relaxed event was run warmly and full of laughter by the mother and child of the small family. Until a servant girl came and approached Freya. The maid whispered for a moment then bowed and left. I could see Freya's expression which was already looking bright even brighter after the news given by the maid.

"Kids, I have good news for you two!" Freya exclaimed excitedly.

I don't know what it is, but I don't think it's a very good thing.

"Our royalty's trusted royal families, Alston and Alberich, will be visiting the palace and reuniting their sons and daughters." Says happy Freya.

"They will be your playmates!" continued Freya.

My hunch is never wrong... I'm already quite overwhelmed playing with Venus, and Freya is calling other children to come to the palace? Seriously?!..

"Really ma'am?" Venus asked with a face that looked very happy.

"Really! They will come to the palace in a moment." Freya replied softly.

I was silent and responded to every word Freya said with a smile and laughter. Until the tea ceremony ended, I was asked by Freya to get ready to welcome the noble family who will come this afternoon. I decided to wait for their arrival at the palace library. Because compared to the palace drawing room, this place is quieter and I can use it as an excuse to keep the children quiet.

Actually, some time ago I was waiting with Venus in the living room of the palace. It's just that because the carriage that was about to come was a bit late, it made Venus who was feeling impatient before get sleepy and sleep on my lap. Finally Freya asked the maid to escort Venus to her room, and like it or not, only Freya and I would welcome the guests.

The large white door with brown and gold covering a stack of bookshelves inside opened. Showing Freya and a woman who is the same age as Freya, standing behind three small children with very happy faces.

It will be a long day…

"Good afternoon Southeastern light Angelise, princess Valencia," greeted a middle-aged woman standing right next to Freya with a slightly bowed head.

"Kids, greet the princess as well," he continued gently.

The two boys placed their right hand on their left chest, while a little girl hung her skirt with both hands. They slightly bowed their bodies, giving a respectful greeting.

"Good afternoon Southeastern Light Angelise," they said in unison.

They're really polite, even though they're still very young.. I'm sure the middle-aged woman behind it is really trying hard to train them..

"Good afternoon and welcome, thank you for the greetings. But talk casually with me, I feel bad." I said casually as I got down from the long chair I was sitting on.

The title 'Southeast Light Angelise' was announced by Aldrich when he was born in Valencia at that time. And there are also those who use the word 'young' like the right hand of the king at that time. Therefore, all citizens from the territory of the Kingdom of Angelise will greet Valencia with that title.

To be honest, that title is ridiculous...

"Okay, how about we just get to know each other," said Freya happily.

"Starting from the oldest, please William," continued Freya.

The black-haired boy lowered his head and took a step forward from where he stood. He looks very dignified compared to the children next to him. Even though their ages weren't that far apart, that was probably because he was the oldest.

"Previously, thank you to Her Majesty the Queen for allowing me to introduce myself for the first time, I am William Estaban Alberich," said the boy named William politely.

"I am the first son in the Alston family, Regis Mangesha Alston," continued cheerfully a boy who was quite striking because of his red hair and bright yellow eyes that looked sparkling.

"I'm Regis' twin, Reyna Tamara Alston," said a little girl with long hair and the same eye color as her twin.

I silently watched them for a moment carefully. Before their arrival, I had time to read several books about the nobles in the Angelise kingdom.

The Alston family's twin son and daughter are two years younger than Valencia, and the Alberich family's son is a year older than Valencia. But there is something interesting in my opinion in this condition. The Alston family is an aristocratic family that was given the title of Count by the King because of the holders and controllers of foreign businesses that have run from the previous king to the present. State finances can be quite stable because the Alston family is the largest exporter of gemstones and mining products in the Angelise kingdom. So it's no wonder that Freya said that the Alston family was a trusted royal family.

Then the more interesting condition was the noble family Alberich. The family that got the title of Duke, or you could say the highest title given to royalty. They are the right hand of the kingdom that takes care of the military and security of the main area of the Angelise kingdom. And they've carried that title of duke for generations. But behind their greatness, they keep a dark story in their family. I can assume from the folklore that is circulating, that they are a cold-blooded family. There was a case where a blood of theirs killed his blood relative in order to get the title of holding the head of the family as a Duke.

And to what extent the great tragedy occurred in the family, but only rumors without definite truth from the mouths of the people. Because the terrible tragedy was tightly silenced by the kingdom and made that this terrible tragedy never happened. All that remained of the Alberich family was William, the rightful heir to the duke title as head of the family. Even though William is still very young, he is slowly learning and trying to help the kingdom because the title he holds is very heavy. Aldrich, as king brought together the Alston and Alberich families and made the two families close. And the Alston family opened their doors kindly to the Alberich family who had experienced a terrible tragedy that was kept secret at that time.

There are many hidden stories in the story that I'm currently living.. ughh..

"I know you guys already know me but I'll introduce myself too. I'm Valencia Esther Royaley, nice to meet and get to know you," I said kindly.

After that brief introduction, Freya and the middle-aged woman who turned out to be the mother of Regis and Reyna, said goodbye and left me with three new people I had never seen while I lived in this world. And right after the two mothers left, these twins who were younger than me showed their childlike nature. The inquisitive Regis and Reyna who always looked amazed every time she watched me speak. As for William, he just smiled and was very calm.

"Princess, can I meet the princess' younger brother?" Regis asked, the umpteenth time out of all the questions he'd hurled at me.

"Yes, but earlier while getting ready and waiting for you to come, he was fast asleep," I said casually while turning over the book I was reading.

I could see Regis put on a sad face and go back to looking at the picture book he took from one of the shelves. This is why I chose the library as the starting place for the meeting, because I don't have to find a topic of conversation with all of them. Meanwhile Reyna was reading some books that seemed to catch her attention after seeming tired of watching me intently since earlier. And as for William...

"It seems you are interested in the action romance novel written by John Raper," I said casually while glancing at the book the boy was reading.

William looked up and looked at me with a friendly smile and closed the book. He paused for a moment watching the brown cover of the book with a red border hanging from the gap in the book's sheets.

"The main character in this story is described as very beautiful, a strong girl who leads a large country," said William, who was still looking at the cover of the book.

"There are many beautiful poetic words in it. It appears when the main male character is present and interested in the strong girl, "William continued. He seemed to smile slightly.

"In my opinion, John Raper's book is not written if there is no poetry in it," I said casually and returned to reading the book in front of me.

William chuckled and nodded in agreement. He realized that I wasn't paying attention to his head movements and spoke again.

"Correct. The princess seems to read the writings of this famous writer a lot."

"The content is comfortable to read and not boring, because it's not a cliche novel in general. Every word in the book is an old poetic dialogue beautifully strung together to form an interesting story. You didn't read the book wrong," I explained.

"You're right," agreed William.

"Princess!! Check this out, I found a book about dragons!!" Regis shouted suddenly while running towards me showing me the cover of the book he was carrying.

"Regis, be polite in front of the princess," said William.

"It's okay, did you forget when I said take it easy with me?" I protested by raising my right hand.

"What book is that Regis?" I asked.

I saw Regis' sad expression that had once again brightened up. The child laughed happily and ran back to take a chair in front of me and again showed his book. Black book with a slightly large size but thin, has the cover of a dragon and a palace. The instant I saw that, I could assume it was a bedtime story book.

"Look at this princess, it's about dragons!" Regis said excitedly.

"Dragon? Does that creature even exist in this world?" I asked trying to be interested.

"I think they must be! Fall asleep somewhere!" Regis replied.

"Right Reyna?" asked the child turning to his sister who looked surprised at being asked so suddenly.

"..umm, I.. not sure," Reyna said timidly.

The two kids seemed to be at odds with Regis trying to convince his little sister. Luckily they don't end up fighting later. I took a deep breath and turned to look at William who just chuckled at the sight of the two small children.

"What do you think, William?"

My question made the twins silent and turned to look at me. Not unlike William who looked down to think for a moment.

"In my opinion .. it's just a fairy tale, princess," replied William calmly with a friendly smile.

"No! I'm sure the dragon exists, master William!" protested Regis.

"Okay, let's just say they exist... but in a different dimension from humans," I said casually to close the beginning of the debate.

"..if, if they existed, we would definitely be eaten.." Reyna muttered suddenly.

It was quite funny in my opinion to see Regis' frightened expression hearing that. the little boy stared at the book he was carrying and chose to run to the shelf, returning the book without reading it.

"Why don't you read it?" I asked meaning to mock.

"..No! I'm not!" Regis shouted from behind the shelves.

I chuckled with satisfaction at the sight. If I think back on them for a moment, I think Regis would be a match for Venus. Their active nature is really similar, and I'm a little afraid that it will bother me in the future. Unlike her brother, Reyna was quieter and more reserved. But I'm sure the child will look more courageous and open when he grows up a little in the future. As for William, the boy was friendly and very calm. But somehow when I saw that kid, he had a resemblance to Kris. Because many secrets they hide from their expressions. I am sure of it.

"What book is the princess reading?"

The question suddenly snapped me out of my daydreaming self. I glanced at William who was still showing his calm smile. I flipped through the cover of the book in front of me slowly.

"It's just a tragic horror story.."

"You like that genre?"

"I think this is interesting. What do you think of a young child seeing the massacre of his family before his very eyes?"

I tried to say with a calm and relaxed intonation. I could see that there had been a change in the flow of the magical aura belonging to the boy in front of me. His expression didn't change, but I'm sure his blood was flowing very fast when I said that.

"I think that's very tragic, princess," William replied calmly.

"Isn't that right? Fortunately, this is only a novel story because the massacre was carried out by ghosts wandering around. There's no way that could happen in the real world, right?"

"That's right princess, that can't happen in the real world."

I smiled with satisfaction hearing the words of the eleven year old child's toughness. I'm sure he's quite used to scary words and even scary sights. Because young children in general will immediately be frightened when they hear about things that they think are scary. For example, like the story of the dragon on the two twins earlier.

Several hours passed quietly until a maid knocked on the library door. I asked the maid to enter and the female servant asked me permission.

"The kid woke up? It's okay, ask him to come here," I said.

The maid nodded and left the library again. The sunlight in the library window is already indicating the time to enter the afternoon. And of course even a napping child should have woken up in high spirits. Not long after the maid left, she returned with a small child who showed a bright face when the library door opened wide.

"Sis Val is cheating! Sister didn't wake me up!"

Venus grumbled angrily at me. I shook my head in surprise by closing the book in front of me. William rose from his chair, followed by the twins bowing intending to salute.

"Good evening Southeastern Lights Angelise," they said in unison.

"Ah! Good evening!" exclaimed Venus excitedly.

As I suspected before, the arrival of Venus made the atmosphere even more lively. Especially the interaction between Regis and Venus. Reyna, who had always been looking at me before, now turned her attention to Venus' behavior. If I interpret from the child's sparkling gaze, the girl seems to feel exasperated when she sees Venus constantly chatting with the people in front of her.

I think the sudden book reading event on the day of the first meeting was not too failed and ruined. However, there was a little commotion when the two twins began to fuss over one of the books because the cover was striking gold. It is a book that contains explanations of gemstones and the stages of processing them. I don't think it's a book that would suit them, so it's safe to say they just chose a book by its cover. As a result of the commotion, Freya and the mother of the twins had to come and help break them up.

They will become troublesome children.. I'm sure of that..

"Princess! Prince! We will come back and play tomorrow. Don't miss us too much okay!!" exclaimed Regis happily who was being helped onto the horse-drawn carriage.

After the fuss over picking up the book and eating some snacks to cool off, countess Alston or the mother of the twins decided to head home, back to their residence.

Actually, for the residence of the Alston family itself was in the northern area of the great archipelago of the Angelise kingdom. As for the Alberichs, they have territory that extends from the northeast to the eastern seaboard border, at the foot of the Emerald volcano to be precise. But since the two locations were quite far from the palace, Freya decided to rent out one of the capital's mansions. The main reason why the queen did this was so that the sons and daughters of the two families could often go to the palace easily and quickly. Let's just say the queen wants her two children to stay in the palace but still have peers to chat and play with.

In other words, I would meet them more often than other noble children... of course...

"I'll bring something for both of you," continued Regis who waved his hand from inside the horse carriage.

Yes, do as you please, leave immediately quietly and don't give me more headaches..

"I will be looking forward to your arrival! Be careful on the way!" Venus replied no less enthusiastic.

Luckily I didn't have to scream at them, haha…

They all left the royal forecourt. Slightly different from Venus who still seems to be channeling her uplifting energy, now I'm trying to hold back my smile and wave my hand as long as possible. Right next to me was Freya who gently helped Venus answer all Regis words from the start.

"Did you guys enjoy playing with them?" asked Freya softly while stroking my head slowly.

"Really enjoyed!" Venus exclaimed.

"Yes mom, it was quite fun," I said following.

Not at all!!!!..

"It's just a shame, sis Val should have woken me up so I had more time! Huh!" protested Venus.

Ho? This kid is still annoyed with me?

"You can still meet them," I replied in a lazy tone.

"Nonetheless!"

After responding to all of Venus' grumbling with Freya who just laughed looking at us, I decided to return to the room immediately. I think today is a more tiring day than other days. Assisted by Rasya, I chose to change my clothes more casually than before. When Rasya left, I sat quietly on the sofa by the window and looked at the evening sky which had orange and golden yellow colors which were very beautiful to look at. I let out my aura, letting it surround myself just letting it out.

I'll train myself a little...

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