The three of them ran towards the stable and mounted three horses. Since the assassins seemed to be endless, they needed a safe place to go. Tyrone was sure that the marquis wouldn’t hide his attacks anymore because he was caught and he was threatened not just by his own son but also by the Fiores.
Xander was in the front while Tyrone chose to be on the tail so that they could both protect Sera. They spent almost half an hour riding their horses back to the duke’s estate but the assassins kept on chasing them.
Just when they were just half a kilometer away from the estate, an assassin shot Xander with an arrow.
“Brother!” Sera went down her horse to help her brother who fell from his horse. She looked at the bleeding wound and took a deep breath.
“Don’t you dare heal me, Sera!” Xander said in a serious tone. He remembered that magicians only transfer the poison to their bodies every time they heal poisoned victims
“Sera, it’s time to go home,” the duchess called for her daughter who stood in front of the big tree in the middle of the ranch.“I’ll be leaving now, Tyrone. Wish me luck and I hope that you’re not jealous up there.” Sera giggled as she stood up and waved the tree goodbye. She walked towards the carriage and smiled when her mother hugged her tight.“That would be the last time that you’ll get to visit him, right?” Stephanie asked her daughter. She thought that she would be crying like she usually did, but she faced her with a warm and gentle smile.“I could still visit him from time to time, but I don’t think it would be as often as I did before.” Sera let out a sigh.“You’re lucky that your husband is not a jealous man.” Stephanie laughed as she let her daughter lean her head on her.“I’m not yet married to him.” Sera blushed so she h
The loud noisy streets of the Golden City fell silent as soon as the sound of the horses’ hooves was heard. It wasn’t just one but almost ten horses were neatly aligned followed by the supplies and gifts that the unit received on their mission.Everyone who saw the returning march of the empire’s delegates smiled with amazement. The looks of admiration and respect were all garnered to the man who led the unit towards the peace treaty with the neighborhood kingdoms.Duke Alejandro von Fiore, the commander of the imperial knights, sat on his horse with honor and authority as he looked straight ahead, ignoring all the gazes he received. His gray uniform and the crest on the back of his cape were admired by most of the young boys that he passed by.“I want to be one of the Gray Wolves when I grow up!” a young boy muttered as he looked at the knights that followed the Duke. The men looked confident and strong, just like their master who
The house was buzzing with gossips from the servants as soon as the announcement happened. Who would’ve thought that the duke who loved their duchess would bring home an illegitimate child? They were a picture of a perfect and loving family but a child from another woman was suddenly accepted in the manor.“Father, what nonsense is that?” Alexander, the eldest son of the duke, slammed the table.They were having a family dinner when the duke announced that he brought home his daughter from a maid and that the child was living in the annex.“Mind your manners, Xander,” Duchess Stephanie von Fiore, said in an elegant but stern manner before she turned to the duke. “Ali, I won’t question your actions like how I did before. But is it true that the child was a little girl?”“Yes, Steph. The reason why I kept her here was that she had the distinct traits of a Fiore.”The boys looked glum when th
For Seraphina, living as quietly as she could be would be the only way to survive. So as she grew, she made sure to not leave the annex unless necessary and to stay away from her family’s sight. She told herself that she didn’t need to be loved or to be doted on. She was contented as long as she had food on her plate and a roof on her head. She didn’t need any more attention from the family than what she already received.And after almost eight years, Seraphina grew into a fine lady but no one knew about her existence. Only those who work at the annex knew about her and even the new maids that were hired after her arrival weren’t informed about the lady of the house Fiore.“My lady, you’re coming of age ceremony is coming near,” Mary, her personal maid, said with excitement as she brushed her hair. “Are you looking forward to it?”“Was there something to look forward to?” She smiled at the mirror
Sera jolted when there was suddenly a light after a long time of darkness. She slowly opened her eyes and she saw a familiar figure walking towards her after she parted the curtains."Young lady, are you alright?" Mary walked towards Sera with a worried look on her face."Young lady?" Sera mumbled.She touched her neck and looked around. The white walls, the shabby bed, and pillows, the pungent smell of old books stacked on the shelf in the corner. Indeed, she was in her room."Why am I here?" she asked when she turned to see Mary watching her with a concerned look."Though you came from a servant mother, my lady is still the daughter of Duke Fiore. It might not be as luxurious as the others, but this place is my lady's home now." Mary's warm and gentle voice was reassuring but Sera's mind was still a mess.What was she doing inside her room? The last thing she remembered was her brother chopping her head off. Did she go to the afterlife? Di
What happened? Who was that just now? That situation wasn’t a part of Sera’s memories in her past life. She walked backed and forth around her room as she tried to organize her thoughts.When she felt tired, she sat at her study desk and pulled a paper and a pen from the drawer, and started writing things down. First, she wasn’t in a dream. Second, she truly went back to the past and that was her reality now.What should she do?It was the biggest question in that situation. Of course, her goal was to survive, but how exactly would she try to survive? Did she have to relive that life again?She clenched her fists as she remembered the days when she couldn’t do the things that she wanted because she promised to live quietly. Would something change if she tried something that she liked?She put a big question mark on the paper filled with her scribbles. What should she do in order to survive? If only she could leave…
“Hey, kid.” The Crown Prince looked at her and lend his hand. “Leave this place and come with me, I’ll treat you better.”With the innocent yet determined face that he showed, Sera was almost persuaded. Wouldn’t it be better to leave the manor with him? However, it was the first time that she had a chance to encounter him. What if he was way more frightening than the Fiores? What if just like her family, he would just be using her to get what he wanted?A silence ensued as everyone was waiting for her answer. She slowly shook her head and hid behind her father. She had no choice but to rely on the duke at the moment.“I’m sorry but I want to stay with my father, your imperial highness,” she said and looked away. She couldn’t look at the eye of the person she rejected after he offered her his kindness.“It looked like you had your daughter wrapped around your fingers, Duke.” The Crown
“Tsk. Why do I need to serve a bastard daughter of the duke?” The maid mumbled as she entered Sera’s room. “If she didn’t arrive, I wouldn’t be assigned here in the annex!”Sera pretended not to hear her rants. It had been a week since the duke’s weird way of treating her and after he left, he didn’t visit again. She knew it just happened on a whim but she still felt disappointed about being unnoticed once more.But that would be okay! That would be better than dying earlier than expected.She tried to console herself so she wanted to distance herself from any negative remarks. Ignoring them would be better for her rather than overthinking and drowning herself in misery just like what she did before.“Hey, Miss. Eat this.” The maid forcefully put the meal on the table in her room.Though she heard what the maid said, she didn’t feel like eating so she just ignored her.&
“Sera, it’s time to go home,” the duchess called for her daughter who stood in front of the big tree in the middle of the ranch.“I’ll be leaving now, Tyrone. Wish me luck and I hope that you’re not jealous up there.” Sera giggled as she stood up and waved the tree goodbye. She walked towards the carriage and smiled when her mother hugged her tight.“That would be the last time that you’ll get to visit him, right?” Stephanie asked her daughter. She thought that she would be crying like she usually did, but she faced her with a warm and gentle smile.“I could still visit him from time to time, but I don’t think it would be as often as I did before.” Sera let out a sigh.“You’re lucky that your husband is not a jealous man.” Stephanie laughed as she let her daughter lean her head on her.“I’m not yet married to him.” Sera blushed so she h
The three of them ran towards the stable and mounted three horses. Since the assassins seemed to be endless, they needed a safe place to go. Tyrone was sure that the marquis wouldn’t hide his attacks anymore because he was caught and he was threatened not just by his own son but also by the Fiores.Xander was in the front while Tyrone chose to be on the tail so that they could both protect Sera. They spent almost half an hour riding their horses back to the duke’s estate but the assassins kept on chasing them.Just when they were just half a kilometer away from the estate, an assassin shot Xander with an arrow.“Brother!” Sera went down her horse to help her brother who fell from his horse. She looked at the bleeding wound and took a deep breath.“Don’t you dare heal me, Sera!” Xander said in a serious tone. He remembered that magicians only transfer the poison to their bodies every time they heal poisoned victims
“Sera…” Tyrone called her with a pleading tone. He tried to look to her eyes but she wasn’t looking his way. Though he was hidden, he saw her tremble a little.Though she heard him, Sera didn’t want to listen. Was it all a ploy to lure her out? She shouldn’t have followed her useless emotions!“Don’t you dare call her name with that filthy mouth of yours!” He really wanted to cut his neck at that moment but he restrained himself. He didn’t want to break Sera’s heart out of his anger.“Sera… Please, listen to me.” He tried to take a step towards her but Sera took a step back as if she already closed her mind about him. She just said that she would trust him!But how could he trust her words? She knew that Sera went through a lot. She had a terrible trust issue and he was lucky that she trusted him. He should’ve told her earlier. He should’ve told her before Xa
After that, Alaric went back to the palace while the duke told his family – except for Sera – about what he heard. The three were enraged and the duchess had to stop them from killing Tyrone who was waiting for the duke to open the gates for him.How could he be so brazen to request an audience with their father? They entrusted their precious sister to him because they believed that Sera chose the right man but he was the one who almost brought her to her deathbed!Xander sat beside Sera and tucked a few strands of her hair to her ear. “Wake up now, will you?”He bit his lips. Though the priest said that she was out of critical condition, she still needed to be monitored. They were also instructed not to wake her up because her body needed to recover from the stress and the poison.“If not for Mother, I would have killed that bastard out there,” Andric said in gritted teeth. Did they have fun trying to lure Sera out of
“I finally found the evidence that the prisoner talked about, Your Imperial Highness.” Andrew gave his master the documents that he asked to take as evidence.Alaric smirked. “Did you say that this is from the House of Gale?”“Yes, Your Imperial Highness.”Alaric put down the documents and clenched his fist. How dare them? How could they send their son to seduce her and attempt to take her life from the shadows?“The lady has to know about this.” Alaric stood up and prepared himself to visit the Fiore Duchy.On the other hand, Tyrone stormed into his father’s office with clenched fists and gritted teeth.“My Lord, you shouldn’t do this!” The butler tried to stop him but he just pushed the old man away.“What is this commotion about, brother?” Tiana asked when she saw the fuming Tyrone being held back by his father’s knights.
Sera woke up the next day with a bright smile on her face. She was in a good mood because she would be having a date with Tyrone that day.“You seemed inspired today, My Lady.” Mary teased her.“Well, I’ll be out on a date today.” Sera giggled in excitement.“Then I should make you the loveliest girl in the empire today.” Mary laughed as she prepared her bath.“I don’t think I need that anymore,” Sera said confidently. “I bet I’m the loveliest in his eyes no matter how I look.”“I bet he’s just a blind man in love.” Andric entered his room and sat on her bed.“What are you doing here, brother?” Sera asked before she entered her bathroom.“I just went to check on you before my morning training.” Andric stood up and walked towards the door. “Sera, be careful always, okay?”“Don’t worry. I
Her brothers were worried when she went home that day. They thought that Sera wouldn’t have the courage to reject Prince William or that she would have no choice but to marry the crown prince instead. They were mad when they thought that it was a ploy of the emperor to marry her into the imperial family.That was why they were all shocked when Sera returned with a grin on her face.“What happened?” Xander asked with his left brow raised when he saw how happy Sera was.“I’m going on a date tomorrow.” Sera smiled and continued walking inside the manor.“You’re going on a date with the second prince? I thought Lord Tyrone was your lover?” Andrei exclaimed loudly that even the servants looked in their direction.“What are you talking about, brother?” Sera asked him in surprise. “Why would I go on a date with the His Highness William? Of course, I’ll go on a date with Tyrone!&
The duke sent a reply asking for permission to visit the palace instead of just simply sending a letter as an answer. When Sera’s brothers heard about the sudden proposal, they rambled about how the princess only saw Sera as a mere tool that would give them an advantage in their power struggle.Because of that, their view of Tyrone became better. They believed that Tyrone would treat Sera better than any other guy because he only saw her as her and not as the duke’s daughter.“You better give him a piece of your mind, Sera,” Andrei said with a gentle smile.“I think smacking his head would be better,” Xander suggested.“No, brothers. She just needed to tell them to stop bothering her and tear the proposal right in front of him,” Andric added.Sera laughed awkwardly. Just why were her brothers suggesting she do something that would send her to the palace dungeons?“Don’t mind your br
“We’re done!” Xander laughed as he laid himself on the grass. He hugged his sheathed sword and rolled around to go towards Sera.“Brother, why are you playing around?” Sera crouched down and messed her brother’s hair. “You’re not your usual mature self.“Give me a break from time to time, will you?” Xander chuckled as he closed his eyes, savoring the warm touch of his sister. “You’re grown up now so I could relax a little more.”Sera sat on the grass and moved Xander’s head on her lap. She didn’t know how to express her gratefulness towards the brother who gave her his time to teach her the sword. She knew it wasn’t an easy task knowing that he was also training with the sword and training as a successor.“Thank you, brother.” Sera smiled as she continued to brush his hair with her fingers.“Why are you thanking me suddenly?” Xand