Chapter 29

It had been few days since she woke up. Aretha went for a walk in the garden as usual, when a messenger came and gave a letter of invitation to her. "I wonder why would Miss Berenice invited me to her tea party so suddenly. I do not remember having any prior contact with her." Aretha said as she handed the letter to Yua.

Yua took the letter and suggested, "My Lady, perhaps it was better to reject the invitation. She might have some intention toward you, and I felt it was not a good intention."

"I knew you were worried about me. However, I do want to know what can she do. Send her a reply that I would be going."

"Yes, My Lady." Yua exchanged look with Nika beside her. Both of their expression were filled with worry and anxiousness, that something would come to light during the tea party.

Ignoring the unusual expression on her maid's face, Aretha went on with her routine to dine with Vladimir. "How were you feeling today?" he said, while he pushed her chair as she sat down.

"I have never been greater. Thank to Lord Vladimir and the other's concern and dedicated care, I am wonderfully well."

He took a seat opposite to her. He looked at her while tapping his fingers on the table. He said, "I am sure you would feel trapped staying in the same place, which was why I have ordered your maids to prepare your luggage. There was a small town in the west with extraordinary scenery that could not be seen here. It would be good for a change of environment once in a while, and… this would be a great time for us to spend the time with each other."

"I am sure My Lord had prepared it with much consideration. During our vacation, would it be alright if I send my siblings to Lady Minerva? She had been wanting to meet them but was unable to do so while I was sick in bed."

"You could. I see that you have been exchanging letters with her."

"Yes. Lady Minerva was such an interesting and intellectual person. There was so much that I could learn from her."

"That was good. She would be a good company for you."

The two chat with each other while the food was served one by another. Vladimir loved to listen to her voice and how he missed listening to her for this whole time. When he came back from his expedition, he was troubled to find that she was going through her manifestation period. What make him flabbergasted was how excruciatingly painful it was for her the whole time.

Her body's heat keep rising. Her face was flushed crimson. Sweats never stop trickled down from her body. The maid had to keep changing the bedsheet. Despite the situation, she was laid unconscious, never once she open her eyes during those period. He could only ordered the maid to keep changing the sheet and wipe her body carefully so she would not get cold. They must not disturb someone who were going through manifestation period and tried to change the current of the mana in her body, or else, he would have already asked Casandra to cool down her body.

Now that he saw with his own eyes that she is fine, he could finally relax his mind. He did not care what ability she had, for it was not his concern. He wanted her for herself, not her talent, nor her strength. Although there was something that happen during those period that he could not spoke about. It was something, that somehow made him felt uncomfortable and guilty toward her, however, he did not understand why. Hence, those thought, and those awkward feeling was being toss aside.

***

Cole nudged his elbow on Diana's shoulder. She uttered a yelp as she brushed off his elbow from her shoulder. "That's hurt," she exclaimed.

He shrugged his shoulders, feign ignorance. "Well… Perhaps, that might be a sign for weakness…" he replied casually with mocking tone.

She retaliated against him by kicking his ankle. He cried out in pain. "You—"

"I see, the two of you must be Cole and Diana, right? Ella told me, the only pair that would bicker non stop were the two of you."

They turned and looked at the lady who appeared without them noticing. They bowed and greeted the lady. "Lady Adad."

Minerva chuckled in amusement. "There was no need to call me in such formal way. My name is Minerva."

"Lady Minerva," they replied.

"You must have been tired from your journey. Come in… The maid will escort each of you to your designated room. Feel free to ask anything from them. You can have your rest for now, they will call you when it's lunchtime. We will be dining together with my parent. Please be at ease, there would be nothing that could harm you in any way. We will have our talk later, after all, we have quite some time together."

As how Minerva had said, the servants carried the suitcase while the maids escorted the children into the mansion toward their rooms. They each got their own room.

Minerva had been exchanging letters with Aretha since their first meeting. From those letters, they share some of their life experience, and from there, Minerva got to know about Aretha's siblings, or to be more precise, the children that became orphans after their village were invaded and burned to ashes. Instead of some petty sympathy, Minerva acknowledged the strength Aretha and the children had, in overcoming the trial that they had encountered, which pique her interest in meeting the children.

Coincidentally, Vladimir was about to bring Aretha on a vacation, with only the two of them. Aretha do not feel comfortable leaving the children while she went on vacation, and remembered Minerva who had been wanting to meet the children, thus she conveyed her intention to leave the children with Minerva. She was more than delighted to take care of the children.

Aretha also shared her concern with the children and they gave their consent to follow her idea. At first they were hesitating on how to conduct themselves when meeting the noble lady, however, their worry diminished within second after meeting her.

"I felt more comfortable with her than that man," Cole whispered to Peter.

Peter put his forefinger on his lip, signaling Cole to shut his mouth. He said in low voice, "We are not alone."

Cole glanced to his side, taking a glimpse on the knights that came with them as their guardian. He rolls his eyes in annoyance.

Although Cole was grateful that Vladimir put an end to their pitiful life, and even brought them to his castle for a better life, he did not like the man. Being grateful and took a liking on someone was two different thing, he said. He thought that their life was not any better from before, just changing from a rotten cage to a new gold cage. They were still controlled and oppressed from living a peaceful and free life together with their sister.

Since they started to live with Vladimir, their time with Aretha decreased significantly. It was even worse than when they were still in Rosaceae City. He felt it was an irony, for them to must asked permission from a stranger first to be able to meet their sister. The other also agree with him, although they did not openly show their dissatisfaction as him.

However, they could do nothing, because there were no harm in their way, and they lived with more than enough food to feed their stomach, and were able to sleep under a comfortable and safe shelter, and that was all their sister wanted for them.

"Who cares whether they listen or not. When did I ever pretend to be obedient? Plus, sister also knew I had never like that man, and even she did not said anything about that." Cole replied.

Peter sighed, tired to even care about his friend's tantrum. Daphne patted his shoulder, and comforted him, "do not think much about it. You knew how he is… The only person he would listen to was sister."

"I could only hope he would not said anything unnecessary during our stay," Peter said as they walked into the glamorous mansion.

They took some rest until maids came in and informed them to dine in the dining hall. Peter, Daphne, and Lucy had change their clothes, while Diana only tidied up a bit with the same clothing. Cole, on the other hand, keeps his habit of wearing quite sloppily.

"Even if you did not want to change your clothes, can't you at least keep yourself tidy? Fold the collar neatly, and do not roll up your sleeves, would you?" Peter nagged, as his hand swiftly fold the collar of Cole's shirt.

"It's too suffocating," Cole said and pushed Peter's hand away.

Peter gave up. He knew by heart that there was no need to force him anymore. They went to the dining hall and greeted the Marquis and Marchioness. The old couple invited them for lunch and advice them to not hold back from filling up their stomach. "Children should eat what they would like to eat," Marchioness said.

After they finished the meal, the Marquis and Marchioness had to pardon themselves as they still had some work left, leaving Minerva with the children. Minerva took the children out for a walk. It was best to walk for a bit after you eaten to help with digestion. During their walk, Peter handed to Minerva a letter by Aretha.

______________________

*Little Theater*

C.Udon : "I'll let you guys peek on the letter that Peter had just passed to Minerva."

The letter :

[ To my dear friend,

Lady Minerva,

I believed Peter had done a great job, in passing the letter directly to you. Please pardon him, I had thought him not to trust stranger easily. You have my trust, that was without any doubt, however, that could not be the same with others, even if they were your own people.

I wrote this letter to you, for I wished to tell you what I desired for them. You see, each of them were a talented kid and I wish nothing but the best for them. However, I am alone and I could be wrong in my ideal for them. That had been my concern for a while now. Lord Vladimir was of no help for he did not care for them as how I care for them. However, you, my dear friend, in all your letters, I could sense that you truly care and wish the best for them, hence, I dare to consult with you in regard for their future. Let me tell you a bit more about them.

Peter as you can see, was the leader among them. The other kid would listen to him even if they sometime had their objection. He was the most reliable and trustworthy. No matter what task I gave, he would, without fail, accomplished them. However, it hurt me when all he done was for the sake of others and not for himself. He was never selfish and never asked anything that was for himself.

Cole was the exact opposite of Peter in the way he conduct himself. He was rough with his word but he never lie. Although he appeared hateful to the whole world, I knew by his heart, he loved more than he hated.

Daphne was the older girl among the three, perhaps, for that reason, she was considerate and gentle. She was a girl with full confidence, however, she could be shy among stranger. She had always been fascinated by the complex institution of a kingdom. If you ever need someone to share the idea of politics and perhaps economic in your mind, she would be a perfect companion.

Lucy was a bright, cheerful, and loud girl. She would expressed her feelings through her words, and always let herself to be understood. She was a girl, more than anyone, with a loving heart. She was someone who would rather look on the bright side than to be trapped in the darkness. She had the heart of a healer. Her experiment would always be for the sake of healing others.

Diana, although was the same age as Lucy, she was thought to be the youngest, perhaps because she was the smallest in the group. She was calm in her judgment, and confident in her action. However, she was a bit hot tempered when she was near Cole. Which resulted her to be teased frequently. She was strong, and by strong, I mean strong in strength. She had an aspiration. An aspiration to hold a sword in her hand. A sword that was meant for her, and solely for her.

My dear friend, that was all I could wrote, perhaps, it would be better for you to see for yourself, who they are. Just like how I am, I hope you would see their charm and fell in love with them.

Sincerely,

Ella.]