Darkness' Touch

Chapter 49: Devotion

"More patience, m'lady. This is for your own well-being."

Avy was sprawled on a big couch looking as if she had run a marathon as her maid sat across where she was, holding a book. 

"We've been at it for three hours, Marie." The poor noble lady groaned in exasperation. Her head was lying tiredly on the pillows, making her have the view of the unfamiliar, luxurious ceiling, a bit different from what she had back home. 

It has been a week after the incident regarding Kill and everything had calmed down, and yet Avy could still remember how distraught the little beast child was when she scolded him the moment he woke up from his slumber. He did not cry, but he was apologetic to an extreme extent that it was evident on his face while his mother reprimanded him for following strangers in the middle of the night, getting into trouble, and making his aunt Emerald worry. 

Although the said woman did not show any hint of anger, she instead hugged him tightly in relief as she was still his designated guardian while Avy was away. 

Tertius, on the other hand, faced the tearful Missus Lewis when Ares and Avy walked him back home. The woman had not been able to bring herself to close her eyes after the boy had run away following their argument. She even considered getting the guards involved had the child not come back home that very night. Fortunately, just before she was getting ready to go out and alert the guards about the distressing situation, the missing boy burst through their doors with two known faces with him. 

The night before was tiring for the lady, to say the least. Avy was not one for physical activities, much more if it is tracking down missing children in the middle of the night. Her stamina depleted a great deal that it was comparable to a balloon left alone without its ends tied, with all the air inside coming out quicker. 

A week thereafter the exhausting night, the ducal princess found herself and her company in the imperial palace where she was summoned to stay during the summit. Having every single member of her family play a big role in the aforementioned event, she had no other person to be with in their mansion for at least two weeks. Even Ciel was tasked to humor the guests from foreign countries along with the Second Imperial Prince of the Kriseon Empire, Prince Light. 

"We cannot break the rule, my lady, you must go alone." Avy was pulled out from her thoughts by the voice of her knight, Clerivan, standing a few distance away from her. She listlessly sat up from her unwilling position and threw a glare at the man standing upright as usual.

"Yeah, you and your rules," she muttered, rolling her eyes. Mariel, who saw the gesture, chuckled. However, she also received the same glare after. 

"We really are not happy about it, my lady. Still, it is a custom to not let anyone except those who are invited to the summit enter the palace where the ball will be held, including personal servants and knights," the maid explained in a lugubrious manner. Avy had heard her apologize for it a few times already, so she just waved her hand, telling her to just continue the prior discussion they were having regarding the summit. 

Unpleasantly, just like what her maid had said, Avy will need to thrive on her own during the aristocratic gathering since anyone who might be able to harm a guest––knights, servants, or whoever they may be––are banned from entering the premises. This precaution is due to the non-aggression pact that all the leaders of every country in their continent had agreed on. Since most of the guests that will be attending are royalties from allied kingdoms, their safety was to be prioritized. This is because the death of even a single guest could be doom for a whole kingdom. 

"This will be the last royal you have to know, miss. He is one of the rising stars in the field of politics, being the ruler of his kingdom while being only nineteen years old," Mariel stated as she tidied up the books by the miniature table in front of her.