Cedric And Edith

"Edith? There's another person here?" Arden was taken aback for a second when he heard the other boy call someone's name.

Following the boy's line of sight, Arden noticed that he was looking ahead. Arden quickly darted his eyes to where the boy was looking.

Since the prison cell was dark, it was hard to make out anything, but Arden squinted to see if he could spot anything.

After a few seconds, he noticed another prison cell directly facing his own. Squinting further, he made out a figure curled up inside the cell, silent and still.

There wasn't even the slightest movement, almost as if the person was dead.

But then, he heard a voice.

"He'll be here in an hour. That's when he usually comes."

From the voice, and even the name, Arden could tell it was a girl. Though her voice was chilly, almost as if she were being forced to talk.

"Who is she?" Arden asked the boy.

"Oh..." the boy muttered. "First of all, my name is Cedric."

He had a wide smile on his face as he spoke. It was strange to see him smile, considering the fact that he was in a prison.

"And that girl over there is Edith, my twin sister," Cedric concluded.

"Twins..." Arden muttered. "I see..."

"Don't mind her, though. She likes staying mysterious, so she won't talk much," Cedric said.

Arden waved his hand in understanding as he rested his back against the wall.

"So, what's your name?" Cedric asked.

"I'm Arden."

"Oh, great," Cedric said. "You know, my sister and I didn't really commit any crime."

"I see..." Arden responded, as usual.

Cedric gritted his teeth as he clenched his fists. His expression suddenly turned sour. "Our mother was killed by those bastards," Cedric said, his voice laced with anger.

Arden glanced at him and noticed the pain and anger evident on his face.

"Bastards?" Arden's interest was piqued.

"Yes... The Xaren Family," Cedric said.

As soon as Arden heard "the Xaren family," he instantly turned his head to look at Cedric. "They killed your mother? What was her offense?"

Even though he asked this question, he already had a theory in his head. He felt like he knew what this was about and where this was going.

"We were poor, but my mother managed to get a job in their mansion," Cedric began. "But Ryker, Baron Xaren's son, decided to take my sister and me as slaves, knowing that his father wouldn't object."

'I knew it,' Arden thought.

Cedric paused for a few seconds. "My mother pleaded, but no one listened. In the end, she objected and challenged Ryker, which meant going against a noble..."

Arden instantly understood what had happened. "And the punishment for that is..."

"Death..." Edith completed Arden's sentence from the other cell.

"They killed our mother and threw us into this prison," Cedric muttered. "We've been here for about six months now."

"Hm... that's a long time," Arden couldn't help but say.

Cedric's angry expression suddenly disappeared, replaced with his usual cheerful demeanor. "So, tell me, what did you do?"

"I was just accused of stealing, that's all," Arden said.

Cedric furrowed his brows. "Accused? That means you didn't actually do it."

Arden just shrugged his shoulders, not saying anything else. He had nothing more to say about being accused of stealing.

"Well, hopefully, they'll find out you were falsely accused and release you," Cedric said.

Arden instantly glanced at Cedric. "What about you two?"

He knew that as long as a noble was involved, they wouldn't be released anytime soon.

"The guards aren't saying anything about releasing us. We're even tired of asking them," Cedric said.

Edith just remained silent, curled up in the corner of her prison cell.

'At least I've killed Ryker, tch...' Arden thought.

Cedric and Edith's case wasn't different from what Ryker had done to others. He had even done worse.

That aside, Arden just had to wait for the guard they were talking about. Then, he would strike.

"Do you have a plan?" Edith suddenly asked. It was clear her question was directed at Arden.

Arden squinted his eyes, looking at her hidden figure. "What makes you think I have a plan?" he replied with a question.

"Nothing. You just look so relaxed, almost as if you're not bothered that you might not be released soon," Edith said, her voice monotonous.

"Hmm, that's true," Cedric suddenly said as he placed his finger on his chin.

"You know, people arrested for stealing are usually not released early," Edith said. "It's a crime deemed very serious."

"I know that," Arden said.

"Well, you don't seem too bothered," Edith said.

Cedric kept glancing back and forth between Arden and his sister as they talked.

"And you're expecting me to be in a state of panic? Panic won't solve anything. It will only worsen matters," Arden said.

There was silence for a few seconds before Edith finally spoke. "You're absolutely right."

With that, Arden didn't bother to say anything else. He just heaved a sigh and relaxed. His plan was well thought out, so he wasn't too worried.

Moreover, he had an upper hand in this situation. If he played his cards right, he would certainly succeed.

'The fact that this bracelet doesn't affect me gives me an advantage here, and I'll use it to the fullest,' Arden thought.

As for what he would do after his plan succeeded, he already had that figured out... one that would change things but wouldn't affect his ultimate goal.

'Everything will eventually work out...'

As the silence stretched on, Cedric was already getting uncomfortable, so he decided to spark a conversation. After all, Edith wasn't one to talk often. He couldn't deny that he was slightly happy Arden was here.

Even if Arden didn't talk much, at least the whole place wouldn't be outright boring.

But before he could speak, they suddenly heard the sound of a door closing, followed by footsteps.

"Hmm... he's coming..."

A smirk instantly appeared on Arden's face. It was time to initiate his plan.