Alone in the Duke's office

On the balcony outside the duke's office, Lemiel leaned his back against the railing and took his cigar and lighter from his pocket. The night was silent and his eyes looked hollow as he took a drag from the cigar, the smoke drifting into the darkness.

Thoughts filled his head as he stared into the void. Back then, it wasn't his father's greed that motivated the former duke to take those lands from the Azure clan.

The king had discovered that the Azure clan was refining the herb called 'Irebloom' into useful drugs, but they were also secretly producing illegal substances. The matter had been discussed by the high council and since Amstel Fortress was the nearest to Azure lands, the king tasked the former duke with taking those lands in whatever way he saw fit.

But Lemiel hadn't expected it to affect such an innocent person's life the way it affected Sienna. He hadn't cared about it back then, but thinking about it now didn't sit well with him.