CHAPTER 13

IT'S BEEN TWO MONTHS since that incident at the lake, and a month since that poisoning incident. Fortunately, like what I had expected, the poison wasn't that lethal to me.

It only made me sleep for a couple of days. I took that positively as a good rest, but I didn't know that chaos had ensued throughout the estate during that good rest.

Turns out that the duke orchestrated an investigation after I attempted to kill myself. He found out about the abuse that happened within the estate.

Contrary to what I had thought, the duke wasn't aware of the servants' abusive actions towards me. What infuriated him more was the fact that his trusted butler knew everything and yet he didn't tell him the whole issue, believing that it would be best to deal with it in that way.

With the duke's orders, all the servants who abused me since I was young were punished and kicked out of the estate without getting anything.

The head butler, who turned a blind eye during those hateful times was severely punished by cutting three of his left fingers and deducting half of his pay for this year. They couldn't kick him out since his family had been serving the Eveningstars since god knows when.

Eclipse and Caspian were given punishments as well for taking the side of the maids who abused me. Half of their assets had been confiscated, though they will be able to get them back after repenting.

Kaiser, who almost burned the maid's quarters, punished the head maid by himself. I wasn't so sure about the details of what he did, but Marina said that they couldn't hear the head maid's voice, other than loud whimpering and wailings coming from the dungeon.

Aside from that, the servants who stayed beside me and took proper care of me were handsomely rewarded. Though, I wonder what they received. They never told me what they asked or received as a reward. Not that I'm curious about that.

And I wasn't exactly moved by their actions. That was their duty in the first place. But since I hated having any debt to someone, especially someone inside this house, I started baking for the duke and Kaiser in order to repay them.

Knowing how sharp they were, they both figured out the reason behind me personally baking for them. They both assured me that they wouldn't ask anything in return, except for my safety.

The three of us started spending time together these past few weeks, or that's just Kaiser trespassing teatime with the duke.

"Only a few weeks more before the ball. Have you commissioned a dress already?" The duke asked.

"Yes, your grace." I placed my teacup on the coaster then turned my head to the side. The leaves danced gently as the cool breeze graced us with its presence.

Kaiser requested to redecorate the central garden, the one located in the main building, and it only took two weeks to be finished. Now, the central garden looks more mesmerizing compared to the other gardens in the estate.

"I'm going outside today, your grace." I picked a pink macaroon on the dessert plate then took a bite on it.

"Take a few knights with you."

I paused for a second at his suggestion, then shook my head. The knights disliked me.

"Should I go with you instead?" Kaiser then offered.

"You have things to do. I'll be fine on my own besides I can bring Scarlet and Marina with me."

We continued our teatime without letting any of their suggestions win. I'm glad the duke and even Kaiser are allowing me to do what I want on my own.

I've done a lot of things after my recovery and one of them was testing the limit of my mana. I also often sneaked into the back garden to practice with Ebony and Pandora.

What I've learned so far was to use a few of Pandora's powers; like freezing time, time reversal, time warp, and manipulating space.

Ebony, on the other hand, can turn anything into dust. He just needs to eat the shadows of the object or people then their body or physical vessel will turn into dust and vanish. He can also use darkness to blind anyone's vision.

I tried it once and it turned out that he can cover a wider range for an attack like that. Ebony can even dispatch a small part of himself to another one's shadow and spy on them.

I only mastered those distinguished attacks since I have a limited space and time to utilize. Plus, the duke and those idiots can sense my mana, so I have no choice but to lessen my practice to avoid any ruckus..

Fortunately, because of Ebony's ability, I can conceal my magical prowess and hide them from the great mage in this household.

My mana doesn't really deplete like what Ebony noticed before. It wasn't just in its full form, that's why it would always strain me out quickly. But now that I have managed to control the mana in my body, I can now use them however I like.

Of course, providing that I'll do that breathing exercise every time I laze around.

Our teatime ended when the duke's personal guard called for him and Kaiser. It must be the meeting they mentioned. Kaiser was reluctant to leave at first, but I desperately pushed him away. I want to be alone for a moment before I visit the market today.

"Alright, alright. Let's see each other later!" He exclaimed as he ran after father.

Scarlet approached me once the two had disappeared from sight. I've always ordered Scarlet to hide in the shadows whenever I'm having tea with someone. She's somewhat good at it. She confessed her secrets to me when I woke up from that long rest.

I found out that she was a skilled person. Though, she didn't really tell me any other things about her family, she just told me about her skills. I'm not really scared anymore since Ebony and Pandora vouched for Scarlet and Marina's loyalty towards me.

"Prepare the carriage. We'll leave in a few minutes," I ordered before taking another sip of my tea.

"Are you going outside, master?" Ebony asked.

Yes. I need to check on Miss Lacrosse's boutique and that merchant guild I took over a month ago. My business needs to grow.

"Is money everything to humans?" Pandora asked this time.

No. But it is essential to live properly in this world. It's a hard concept to understand, but making money is like something that gives our lives a certain purpose.

"Is that so? So, it's like accepting contracts for us. It's also something that gives us a certain purpose," Ebony said as if he had finally understood what I meant.

I smiled at his answer and only nodded my head in agreement. Ebony and Pandora have been contracted by different people throughout their existence, but they're not familiar with human behavior and this world's weird concepts. That's why they have a lot of questions that they usually ask me.

After I finished my tea, I stood up and walked to the main door where Marina and Scarlet were waiting. Scarlet helped me wear the black cloak I personally requested from Miss Lacrosse.

Marina held the bag filled with gold coins and the sketches. I've become quite the businessperson these past few months. Though, I've only partnered with Miss Lacrosse and that old man who sold me that dying guild.

It had a different name that I had forgotten, but I called it Crimson Lily now, a play with my name. It's now a merchant guild that helps people pursue their business ideas, but beneath that is another guild I'm growing, an information guild.

The money I used to fund it came from the shares with Miss Lacrosse's boutique. And now, both the boutique and the guild are getting quite a nice reputation. If things go well, I might be able to purchase a small piece of land next year.

THE CAPITAL WAS FILLED with people who were busy decorating the streets. There were lanterns and a few triangle-shaped foils hanging on the streets.

A few stalls were also being built on the side of the road. I glanced over my shoulder as I curiously looked at Marina and Scarlet. "Is there any event that will happen soon?"

Marina and Scarlet looked at one another before answering me.

"The Lantern Festival will be coming soon," Marina said.

"It's the same day as the victory ball," Scarlet said.

I nodded my head. Lantern Festival, I see. Did they wait for the festival and planned to hold the same celebration on the same day?

That's an unbelievably cheap decision. This shows how the emperor doesn't truly treasure the fourth prince's victory.

"Marina, go to the guild. Scarlet, visit the boutique and don't forget to bring the dress I requested. I will wear that at the ball. In the meantime, I'll wait in the artisan store."

"Yes, my lady," they said in unison.

This has been our routine since last month. Marina was the best in handling other people, while Scarlet was best suited in accompanying Miss Lacrosse. They both helped me equally, so I'll give them equal gifts soon.

"Hello, owner," I greeted as I entered the store. The owner smiled back at me.

After I received the dagger that I ordered, I kept it hidden in my room. I have not gotten the chance to use it yet since it looked too pretty to wield.

"Feel free to look around again, Miss Lily," he said, then faced the person in front of him again.

I was somehow occupied with my thoughts that I didn'tnotice that there was someone else inside the store. It was the same man, Rin,whom I always run into every time I visit this store.

I only glanced at himbefore keeping myself busy. I looked around, like I always do. I should find agood gift for them.