[ Servant ] “I couldn’t…..avoid it.”
His feeble voice came out from close to Linden’s feet.
Ever since he was a young, his life had belonged to the Kleinfelders. With the life he would’ve lost otherwise, he took care of all the dirty work they needed.
He had even killed the former High Priest in the past. Back then, everyone thought he had simply tripped down the stairs and broken his neck.
Linden was hoping for the job to be done just as cleanly this time, too.
[ Servant ] “….There wasn’t enough time…. The window of opportunity was small and too many people were watching…..”
He was speaking very quietly, wearing a long robe closing over his ankles. All the while, his eyes were cast towards the ground.
[ Linden ] “You call that an excuse?”
Thwack!
Down came another blow.
Without even flinching, the young servant endured the beating from Linden, not a single sound of pain escaping him. Kicking him from every side, Linden stopped and took a deep breath.
[ Linden ] “You left no evidence?”
[ Servant ] “Yes.”
[ Linden ] “You can’t ever get caught. Do you understand me? Never let them know I was the one who gave the order.”
[ Servant ] “Yes, sir.”
[ Linden ] “They’re a difficult opponent. We must never…..be caught…..”
If they ever did, the obvious end result would be the end of the Kleinfelders. Linden shuttered just thinking about it.
[ Linden ] “Or I’ll have no choice but to throw you away.”
[ Servant ] “…….Yes, sir.”
The young servant nodded obediently. Seeing that, Linden felt a little more reassured.
He was oddly loyal, not to mention tight lipped. Even if the worst should come to pass and his own identity was revealed, Linden was confident his name would never leave the servant’s mouth.
[ Linden ] “Get out.”
He nodded and pulled himself up off the ground, placing a palm over his bleeding head. He seemed more concerned over not getting any blood on his clothing than the fact he was injured.
Using his clean hand, he took the hood of his cloak and carefully covered his face. After he left Linden’s room, he silently stepped into a dark corner of the servant’s hall.
Without a light to guide him, he descended down the long and winding stairs towards the basement. Eventually he made his way out of the main building towards the small detached house behind it.
Once the house was within his view, he quickly hid behind a nearby tree. Just beyond his reach was the window, his eyes trained on it as he peered out from his vantage point.
Through that window of colored glass, a figure could be seen—like a barely visible shadow.
It was a woman, thin and filled with sorrow, holding a water basin.
[ Servant ] “. . .”
The servant’s eyes began to fill with tears as he watched the woman. She was the reason why a simple servant such as himself was forced to do such horrible things for the Kleinfelders.
After staying there for a while, he left the Kleinfelder estate, returning to where he lived by taking the same path as he always did.
The servant was heading towards the Temple, and his name was Klimah.
* * *
.
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
Even though she was exhausted, losing sleep was starting to become a habit. As the early morning sun made its way through the windows, Rienne’s eyes trembled as they adjusted to the light.
[ Rienne ] “It’s already morning.”
But her body was so tired, it didn’t want to move. Opening her eyes, Rienne counted.
[ Rienne ] “One… Two…. Three.”
Finally gathering the strength, Rienne pushed aside her blankets.
[ Rienne ] “It’s colder than yesterday, too.”
Once Rienne began to lower her bare feet from the bed to the floor, she felt the cold air nip at her skin. Not wasting a moment, she put on her slippers and brushed out her nightgown.
I really hate winter. It feels like things just get harder the colder it gets.
Winter hadn’t even truly started and yet, as soon as the temperature dropped in the slightest, she started to yearn once more for the warmth of her bed sheets.
[ Rienne ] “I should hurry.”
The season seemed to bring with it an overarching feeling of lethargy, but she knew the stronger that feeling was, the more she needed to push herself to move.
Wanting to wash up and change, Rienne took off the shawl she was wearing and hurriedly entered the bathroom, wearing only her thin nightgown.
[ Rienne ] “……Ah.”
But the moment she opened the door, her body froze.
There was already someone inside.
Not so different from her, Black was wearing only a pair of pants, and it looked as though he was about to take them off—like he was thinking of washing up, too.
[ Rienne ] “Why…..are you here…..?”
Rienne was so embarrassed she completely neglected to shut the door and leave. All she was thinking about was the burning question of why he was undressing in her bathroom in the first place.
[ Black ] “Did you want to get ready first?”
Black asked with his hand still on the waist line of his pants.
[ Rienne ] “No, I…. Why are you here…..?”
[ Black ] “I didn’t know you’d woken up already.”
[ Rienne ] “But why….?”
[ Black ] “This is my bathroom too, now.”
[ Rienne ] “Oh…..”
She just remembered.
He was already using the room next door now, which meant they’d need to share a bathroom from now on. That meant Rienne should just…..
…Thump!
Coming to her senses, Rienne closed the bathroom door.
[ Rienne ] “My apologies… A lot of things happened recently… so I’m not fully awake yet.”
Rienne said this through the tightly closed door. She was still so shocked her mouth wasn’t working properly either.
What have I done…..How could I have forgotten about this?
Just then, she could hear footsteps approaching on the other side of the door. Rienne tightly held the doorknob just in case he tried to open it.
[ Black ] “It’s fine.”
But that’s all he said. He made no attempt to open the door. Even so, Rienne couldn’t let go. Though no one was around to witness her embarrassment, she could feel her face heating up.
[ Rienne ] “I’ll pay more attention to these kinds of things in the future…. So please, wash up.”
[ Black ] “There’s no bathtub here. Is a reason for that?”
Before Rienne had the chance to leave, Black asked a very sudden question.
[ Rienne ] “What?”
[ Black ] “I’m asking why you don’t have a bath.”
[ Rienne ] “Oh, a bath……”
There used to be one.
There was once a large and colorful marble bathtub inside that room. It was a beautiful piece, lined with golden edges, and it did wonders to liven up the now big and empty bathroom.
But like so many other things, it was sold. The fine marble was cut into several pieces, and was now sitting in the Kleinfelder’s garden as decoration.
[ Rienne ] “…..I had no use for it. I felt like I was using too much water with a bathtub like that.”
Saying that, Rienne’s heart stung for a moment.
It was a much smaller lie in comparison, but she didn’t feel good about having to do it so often.
[ Rienne ] “Do you require a bathtub?”
[ Black ] “Not right now.”
[ Rienne ] “Then why….?”
[ Black ] “There’s a chance we might want to bathe together in the future.”
[ Rienne ] “Wha……what?”
Rienne tried coming up with the words to say, but when she opened her mouth, nothing came out.
Bathe……together? But why?
[ Black ] “I’ll get you a new one.”
[ Rienne ] “. . .”
And that was the end of the conversation.
Slip. Tap.
Beyond the door, inside that quiet bathroom, was the sound of fabric brushing up against skin—the sound of Black taking his clothes off.
….But… why….
Unconsciously, Rienne swallowed the dry saliva in her throat.
Why……would you want to take a bath with me….?
Then she heard the sound of splashing water. He was probably washing his face now. Suddenly, Rienne remembered the moment when he had his face bowed towards her as she carefully cleaned it for him.
It made it too easy to imagine the sight of his damp shoulders and arms, or his hair soaked in water, sticking to his forehead.
Why would we…. together……?
Rienne couldn’t stand the thought and quickly turned away.
This is all his fault, saying so many strange things while he looks like that.
Covering her ears, Rienne returned to her room. The sound of splashing water was nothing. She heard it all the time whenever she washed her own face.
And yet, her heart wouldn’t stop pounding.
Closing the door behind her, Rienne stood still and waited until her beating heart quieted down.
…..I can’t keep doing this.
It wasn’t a good idea to have any feelings for that man beyond strict vigilance.
I have to know what his true motives are—the truth behind why everyone keeps saying his purpose is revenge. Focus on that and don’t think any useless thoughts.
Rienne swallowed hard.
She needed to meet with the old beggar again.
.
* * *
.
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “What? Where did you say you were going?”
[ Rienne ] “To the Temple entrance.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “But why so suddenly? Do you have business there—?”
[ Rienne ] “Yes.”
As Mrs. Flambard asked, puzzled and confused, Rienne quickly interrupted.
There was no point in telling her everything. It was Rienne’s job to worry about what Black was up to, and she didn’t wish to cause the woman any unnecessary worry.
More importantly, Mrs. Flambard was an honest woman. If Rienne told her anything, she wouldn’t be able to stand in front of Black calmly if she knew he was potentially there to bring them harm.
[ Rienne ] “I’m just worried about the old man I saw yesterday. The Temple normally hands out food, but the stairs haven’t been repaired yet, so I’ll take him something myself.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “In that case, you should order the guards to do it for you. Aren’t you too busy to be handling something like that?”
[ Rienne ] “I’d like to do it personally. I’m sure you have plenty to do yourself, so I’ll be fine going alone.”
Mrs. Flambard jolted forward hearing that.
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “What? No, you can’t do something like that! It’s much too far to go all on your own!”
[ Rienne ] “I’ll ask a guard to escort me.”
She needed to move as fast as she could.
The Tiwakan were already beginning to settle in Castle Nauk.
If Rienne ever wished to go out, Black told her he would escort her himself or tell one of his men to go with her. That meant she needed to speak with the head of her guard separately and come back before anyone noticed.
[ Rienne ] “So please give me some food to take with me. Preferably something that’s easy to eat with your hands.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “If you have no choice, then it can’t be helped, but I must insist on coming with you.”
[ Rienne ] “No, ma’am. You need to focus on altering the wedding attire. Have you forgotten? With the wedding only eight days away, not a moment has gone by where I’m not worried about running out of time.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Ah, that’s right…. Then I’ll take care of the food and get back to work…. But…..”
[ Rienne ] “What is it?”
Mrs. Flambard looked away, turning silent.
[ Rienne ] “What is it, ma’am?”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “About the wedding ceremony.”
[ Rienne ] “Yes?”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “I’ve been taking care to be mindful of the date while altering the clothes but…..Yesterday, the High Priest…..”
Mrs. Flambard hesitated for a moment and then continued to talk.
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Don’t we need to wait until a new High Priest has been appointed?”
[ Rienne ] “Right….”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “From what I can remember, nine days had gone by after High Priest Motiya was buried before High Priest Milrod was given the position. I know there was a reason why they needed to wait, but now the wedding is only eight days away, so I’m unsure what we’ll do about the officiant. I hope God won’t punish me for working on the wedding attire so soon after the death.”
[ Rienne ] “Oh…..”
Rienne’s expression stiffened.
So that’s why they killed him….to try and delay the wedding.
That was the reason why the Kleinfelders had the High Priest murdered. After the new High Priest was selected, in accordance with Temple law, he would fast for nine days to commit himself to God in prayer.
It was considered his first ‘conversation’ with divine. They said if God did not recognize the new High Priest’s legitimacy, he would not be able to endure the nine days and collapse of hunger.
This process was considered a rite of passage for the High Priest and could not be ignored for even a day.
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “You look unwell, Princess. Are you feeling sick?”
Her face was filled with worry as she looked at Rienne.
[ Rienne ] “No…. I’m not sick.”
She was afraid.
What were the Kleinfelder’s planning on doing after going through such great lengths just to delay the wedding?
They were not the kind of people to just give up control over Nauk, but they also knew they could never defeat the Tiwakan in an outright war. They would resort to trying to stab her in the back under the cover of darkness if it came down to it.
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Are you sure?”
[ Rienne ] “Yes…..I’m fine.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Well, alright then. With all that’s happened, I know you haven’t been able to sleep well, so I’d understand if you were a little tired.. But I’m glad that there’s at least one less thing to worry about now.”
[ Rienne ] “What?”
Mrs. Flambard gingerly patted Rienne on the arm, as if telling her she can rest assured.
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Your monthly fever, Princess. If the wedding must be postponed, then so must your first night, so at least we needn’t worry about that now.”
[ Rienne ] “Oh……yes, you’re right.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Then I’ll go and prepare some food. I’ll do what I can, but early apologies if it’s not much.”
[ Rienne ] “I understand. Please, hurry.”
[ Mrs. Flambard ] “Yes, Princess.”
After Mrs. Flambard left, Rienne started getting ready to leave. The whole time, confusion stirred in her head.
If they held off the wedding, she’d be able to safely hide her monthly fever. But at the same time, she’d be giving the Kleinfelders a chance to prepare their next move.
So what can I do now?
The complexities were tied like a knot, one she could not undo herself.
How do you feel?
