"It seems you're all gathered here,"
said Lady Mayrin, her voice cold and her gaze indifferent as always.
Rilia usually felt a wave of unease whenever she saw her mother,
but this time… she felt oddly relieved.
At least now, she could escape from those two.
"Countess Mayrin, it's been quite some time," said Countess Beatrice with a stiff smile.
"Indeed… but I'm afraid I can't stay long," Lady Mayrin replied coolly,
her tone making it clear she had no intention of continuing the conversation.
"I'm tired, and it's getting late. Perhaps we can speak again before your return to your estate."
Before Beatrice could respond, Lady Mayrin turned to her daughter.
"Come, Rilia," she said, taking her hand and walking away, leaving Beatrice frozen behind them.
"That wretched woman…" Beatrice hissed under her breath,
clenching her gown tightly in frustration.
"Just because she married a count in the capital,
she thinks she's above everyone else… that pathetic daughter of a newly titled baron."
---
"Didn't I tell you not to speak with her when I'm not around?"
Lady Mayrin's voice cut sharply through the quiet carriage.
"What was I supposed to do if she came to me first?" Rilia muttered defensively.
"And you couldn't find a way out of it? How disappointing…
I thought my daughter would at least have inherited a fraction of my wit."
Rilia clenched her fists but said nothing.
How does she expect me to ignore a countess when I'm just a child?
If I did, she'd spread awful rumors about me…
But she knew better than to say that out loud.
Her mother didn't take kindly to excuses—
especially when it came to her sister.
Beatrice, the woman who once competed with Rilia's father for the family heirship,
had never forgiven him for marrying Mayrin Virgai,
the daughter of Baron Silvers—
a man who had earned his title through military victories
and was granted nobility by the Emperor himself.
Their marriage had been political—
a symbol of alliance and imperial favor that sealed Vincent Bayrol's position as head of the family.
But Beatrice… never let go of her resentment.
Even after her own marriage and departure from the family,
she carried that hatred like a crown she refused to remove.
"Did you meet Beatrice?"
Vincent's calm voice came from across the carriage.
"Unfortunately, yes," Mayrin replied without turning from the window.
"Did she say anything unpleasant?"
"Nothing worth remembering," she said curtly. "Just her usual, empty flattery."
What a lovely family reunion,
Rilia thought sarcastically as the carriage came to a halt—
finally home.
---
"Ugh…"
Rilia groaned as she stretched her arms after finishing her bath.
"What a long day. Too much happened at once—
my brain needs a vacation."
She tried closing her eyes, but sleep wouldn't come.
The Empress's piercing gaze flashed in her mind again,
and her body trembled.
Was she even human?
Those eyes—sharp and cold as steel—had sliced through her like a blade.
Why did she look at me like that? Was it… just coincidence?
Her thoughts spiraled,
so she grabbed a book to distract herself
and eventually drifted into sleep.
---
Morning came too soon.
Golden light slipped through the curtains, landing on Rilia's face.
With a sleepy groan, she forced herself out of bed—
she had work to do.
After dressing with the help of Isabel and finishing breakfast,
she sat at her desk, trying to write the article due next week.
"Why is my mind completely blank?"
She sighed, dropping her head onto the desk.
Across the room, Isabel peered out the window and frowned.
"Oh, poor thing…" she muttered.
"What's going on?" Rilia asked, moving beside her.
Outside, one of the family's knight captains was "training" a young recruit—
though it looked more like he was using him as a punching bag.
The arrogant captain barked orders and shoved the boy to the ground,
while the others stood by, laughing at his weakness.
Rilia's hands tightened around the window frame.
There was something in that scene—
a spark of pity, and maybe… something else.
"It seems you're all gathered here,"
said Lady Mayrin, her voice cold and her gaze indifferent as always.
Rilia usually felt a wave of unease whenever she saw her mother,
but this time… she felt oddly relieved.
At least now, she could escape from those two.
"Countess Mayrin, it's been quite some time," said Countess Beatrice with a stiff smile.
"Indeed… but I'm afraid I can't stay long," Lady Mayrin replied coolly,
her tone making it clear she had no intention of continuing the conversation.
"I'm tired, and it's getting late. Perhaps we can speak again before your return to your estate."
Before Beatrice could respond, Lady Mayrin turned to her daughter.
"Come, Rilia," she said, taking her hand and walking away, leaving Beatrice frozen behind them.
"That wretched woman…" Beatrice hissed under her breath,
clenching her gown tightly in frustration.
"Just because she married a count in the capital,
she thinks she's above everyone else… that pathetic daughter of a newly titled baron."
---
"Didn't I tell you not to speak with her when I'm not around?"
Lady Mayrin's voice cut sharply through the quiet carriage.
"What was I supposed to do if she came to me first?" Rilia muttered defensively.
"And you couldn't find a way out of it? How disappointing…
I thought my daughter would at least have inherited a fraction of my wit."
Rilia clenched her fists but said nothing.
How does she expect me to ignore a countess when I'm just a child?
If I did, she'd spread awful rumors about me…
But she knew better than to say that out loud.
Her mother didn't take kindly to excuses—
especially when it came to her sister.
Beatrice, the woman who once competed with Rilia's father for the family heirship,
had never forgiven him for marrying Mayrin Virgai,
the daughter of Baron Silvers—
a man who had earned his title through military victories
and was granted nobility by the Emperor himself.
Their marriage had been political—
a symbol of alliance and imperial favor that sealed Vincent Bayrol's position as head of the family.
But Beatrice… never let go of her resentment.
Even after her own marriage and departure from the family,
she carried that hatred like a crown she refused to remove.
"Did you meet Beatrice?"
Vincent's calm voice came from across the carriage.
"Unfortunately, yes," Mayrin replied without turning from the window.
"Did she say anything unpleasant?"
"Nothing worth remembering," she said curtly. "Just her usual, empty flattery."
What a lovely family reunion,
Rilia thought sarcastically as the carriage came to a halt—
finally home.
---
"Ugh…"
Rilia groaned as she stretched her arms after finishing her bath.
"What a long day. Too much happened at once—
my brain needs a vacation."
She tried closing her eyes, but sleep wouldn't come.
The Empress's piercing gaze flashed in her mind again,
and her body trembled.
Was she even human?
Those eyes—sharp and cold as steel—had sliced through her like a blade.
Why did she look at me like that? Was it… just coincidence?
Her thoughts spiraled,
so she grabbed a book to distract herself
and eventually drifted into sleep.
---
Morning came too soon.
Golden light slipped through the curtains, landing on Rilia's face.
With a sleepy groan, she forced herself out of bed—
she had work to do.
After dressing with the help of Isabel and finishing breakfast,
she sat at her desk, trying to write the article due next week.
"Why is my mind completely blank?"
She sighed, dropping her head onto the desk.
Across the room, Isabel peered out the window and frowned.
"Oh, poor thing…" she muttered.
"What's going on?" Rilia asked, moving beside her.
Outside, one of the family's knight captains was "training" a young recruit—
though it looked more like he was using him as a punching bag.
The arrogant captain barked orders and shoved the boy to the ground,
while the others stood by, laughing at his weakness.
Rilia's hands tightened around the window frame.
There was something in that scene—
a spark of pity, and maybe… something else.
.................
Sorry for the delay in posting ..💔🥰