Letter from the Capital

The white snow kept falling one after another on Atthy's head, she struggled just to step her foot on the snow pile along the way. Atthy was getting confused. Where should she go? During this time she had never left the Castle. She knew nothing at all about the territory outside the castle.

Atthy kept walking aimlessly because she couldn't tell which way to go. Everything looked the same, covered in thick snow on top. Atthy continued to walk and instead entered the forest deeper and deeper. Atthy, who had been living in the hot and scorching desert, had a hard time dealing with the fiercely cold weather in front of her now.

While at Castle Atthy, she was always served by servants and was never far from the fireplace. Now she had nothing but thick clothes that wrapped her body. But, sadly, it didn't last long. The thick clothes could not dispel all the cold temperatures that surrounded Atthy. Atthy, who was in a bad condition, fell down on a large tree whose ground seemed to be slightly higher than the ground in front of her.

Atthy, who was no longer able to move her feet and then resigned herself to leaning against a large tree, sat in silence thinking about the fate that had brought her to this stage. From a poor lowly noble granddaughter, to a Duchess, and now instead, she was, to no one. Not a Romanov, not a Drustan either.

The cold temperature mercilessly continued to hit Atthy's tiny body, which was already helpless. Gradually, Atthy no longer felt anything. Her body was numb, and the pain in her bones that she could still feel while walking was now no longer felt. Atthy knew what had happened to her, images of death flashed through her head but were soon replaced by memories of her family one after another.

***

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Nauruan City is a large city at the eastern end of the border of the Xipil Kingdom, from Nauruan City to an area that is still within the Nauruan City Jurisdiction, a vast area fifteen times larger than the center of Nauruan city itself. A barren and dry area barely touched by the majestic center of Nauruan Town, Caihina Village, and eight other villages. A chain of nine villages that were extremely remote but ten times larger than the city center itself, one of the few remaining villages in the desert that had been forgotten by the nobles who ruled the city of Count Veraga. Caihina was the outermost village of the nine villages in the desert region, Nauruan City, which took twenty days to reach the city center by horse carriage due to the difficult terrain, but only ten days if by horse.

Caihina Village is a very wide sand plain, in the middle of which there is a large lagoon that is a source of water for the life of its inhabitants. The village of Caihina is surrounded by giant limestone hills which are covered with sand around it, forming a basin and making it look like a bowl. After passing through the limestone hills and the vast wilderness, it will enter a very large dense forest containing many wild and scary animals. The forest becomes the border of the wilderness area and the center of the city of Nauruan. Due to Count Veraga's indifference, many robber bandits were hiding in the forest border and the city center. Because of such rough and dangerous terrain, it was very rare for anyone to enter the Village, that's why the trade was very difficult to do in the desert region, making the nine villages in it even more isolated.

''Father!...Father!...Look!'' exclaimed Damon, a six-year-old boy running from a distance screaming for his father.

"Damon!... Stop your screaming!" cried Atthy, a teenage girl, Ashton Romanov's eldest daughter.

HUF HUF HUF

Damon paused for a moment trying to catch his breath when he reached the fence in his yard.

"What's wrong with you?... What made you have to run like that?" Ashton asked his father as he continued to hit the hot iron in front of him.

''The messenger just arrived'' Damon replied with sparkling eyes.

“Then?” Atthy asked nonchalantly while keeping the flames helping her father.

''He brought a letter…'' Damon replied with a happy expression.

''He's a messenger, of course, he brought a letter'' replied Atthy, teasing her little brother.

"The letter is for us..." Damon said with a smile on his face.

"Hm?!" Ashton and Atthy said at the same time.

"Even better, it's from the Royal Capital..." Damon said proudly.

Hearing Damon's words, Atthy glanced at her father and Ashton only responded by frowning in surprise.

''Are you not reading wrong, Damon?''Asked Ashton, still with a surprised face.

How could it not be surprising, since he had graduated from the academy twenty years ago, not once had he ever stepped on the Royal Capital again.

''No dad, the letter also clearly says for Baron Romanov'' Damon said as he handed the letter to his father, showing the writing on the front of the envelope.

''Then it's for your grandfather...'' replied Ashton.

''Not for daddy?'' Damon asked with a surprised face.

''Stupid! Baron is your grandpa...'' cried Ashton, rebuking his youngest son.

''Little brat... Come here and help me!'' cried Atthy, chuckling, seeing her younger brother who was still confused while watching his father.

''But, still... That's for our family,'' Damon said, not wanting to be outdone, then did what his older sister, Atthy ordered.

Ashton took the letter from Damon and then went into the house to give it to his father, Rowtag. Atthy returns to her work of forging iron and asks Damon to keep the flames under control. Since childhood, Atthy and her siblings have always helped her father, Ashton, who worked as a blacksmith. She also often accompanied her father to hunt in the forest with her younger brother, Aydan.

''Dad, there's a letter for you from the capital...'' Ashton said to his father. He handed the letter to Rowtag, Atthy's grandfather, right after he cleaned himself up.

''A letter?... From the capital?... For me?'' Rowtag asked with a surprised and confused face.

''Yes'' answered Ashton casually.

''Are you not wrong?'' asked Rowtag again, still with a surprised expression.

''I don't think so, my eyes can still see it clearly where it says Baron Romanov'' replied Ashton casually.

Rowtag received the letter from Ashton and read it. A few moments later, his face changed from astonishment to surprise, and even more shock.

''Ash... This letter is not for me but for you'' said Rowtag, holding up the letter he had read.

''For me?!... But dad, it clearly says BARON'' asked Ashton while explaining again.

''It's been more than fifty years... Maybe they think I'm dead'' said Rowtag, with a disappointed tone.

''Dad, what's wrong with you?... Does that letter bring bad news?'' Ashton asked with a pitiful expression. He couldn't bear to see his father's wrinkled face getting sadder.

''This letter is for you Ash... Because Atthy is your daughter,'' Rowtag explained, he smiled again when he saw the worry on the face of the only remaining boy.

''Atthy?... What does this have to do with Atthy?'' asked Ashton, confused by his father's statement just now.

''This letter is a cover letter for your daughter Atthy...'' Rowtag replied with a happy face.

Ashton's eyes widened when he heard the news from Rowtag, he was shocked beyond Rowtag's shock when he read his letter.

''Father... You must be too old, your eyes are shortsighted... Give it to me, let me read it!'' Ashton exclaimed, still in disbelief.

''Whatever... Besides, I told you the letter was for you, not for me'' Rowtag replied with raised eyebrows, then handed the letter to his son.