Lizzie of the North (Yrsoreth Chronicles 2)

10 ◦✿◦ Petunia Has Come

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

By now, three weeks had passed, and to say, Lizzie has been slowly, but surely has been working hard to save her neck, or her heart, or any vital part of herself that may cause her death in the future. Red, the obscured fortune teller-storyteller-fake gardener, was never seen even once again.

Lizzie continued stacking up her Adorable Points from Erdan and Garth, the servants, and even the black knights. After the dinner in his office weeks ago, Devanti Norvillon granted back her limited freedom with two conditions.

One, Black Knights would be stuck next to her.

Two, never step foot into the garden.

"Garthie," she called at the other holding onto her hand whilst walking to the stables. Her feet and other injuries from the fall have long been healed, but Garth would just swoop her up. As a compromise, Lizzie wished for holding hands.

"You walk slow Silver, it's a waste of time." It was his complaint to which she answered "But I like walking with Garthie."

"You tired now?"

Lizzie shook her head and tilted to the garden's direction in which they just passed. "Why is it locked?"

Erdan answered her instead and followed her gaze. "Because it's not so safe and... See, the tall grass, the moss...."

"But why nobody cleaned it?"

"Because nobody uses it anymore."

"I think it would be very pretty, right Shaw?"

One of the knights behind them responded a hesitant, "Yes, my lady."

Garth had something on his mind, he'd look at her, open his mouth then shake his head. He did so a few times until they reached the stables. They rode horses outside the vast space of grass,  blue sky, and the view of Nordis slowly returning to life for a new day.

For a place known for cruelty, the wind carried people's happy and strong-willed voices through her ears. The streets far below the mountain where the Norvillon Castle perched, had people moving in certain directions, and children run with laughter.

Lizzie heard that far in between, lower nobles of the North were caught with corruption and tax raise that was not approved by the duke. A stupid few did the slave trade in the past as well. Then there were also traitors caught with plans for a rebellion that usually ended before they began.

The Norvillons hunt them.

His Grace is more merciless to humans than monsters, she overheard one of the knights.

"We're here," Erdan's voice woke her up from a daze as Garth slowed down the horse whilst securing Lizzie in front of him. They have now arrived at Brifaniq hill where flowers covered half the surface and trees the other half, just beside their castle mountain. Erdan picked her up from the saddle before Garth could jump and do so.

"You've gained weight," young devil number one commented, as he carried her towards the widely spread black fur on the grass that had their food and an opened picnic basket. "That's good."

But too much weight isn't, Lizzie thought. That's why she insisted on more walking to at least move her body. Too much eating without movement would kill her earlier.

The three of them ate their breakfast alone, with no knights accompanying them. Even she could see a few glint and sparkle of something from the forest border, or she could hear a rustle or hear noises of crashing and dying growls, Erdan would just remark "It's nothing." or Garth would grin and say something about the food. She was used to it now and Lizzie would enjoy the view and the fresh embrace of the morning wind.