CHAPTER 33: A NEW HOME

"I..."

Sylvia’s throat tightened, the words lodging like a stone. She should say it. She had to. She should tell her mistress what she had overheard the previous night; the prince had begun to doubt her. He questioned Aldric, asking if there had ever been anything between them.

She had to tell the princess that dangerous seeds had begun to take root in Leroy’s heart. Seeds that, if left alone, might fester into poison.

She looked into Lorraine’s eyes. They were kind, always, but distant now. Tired. Faded like silk left too long in the sun.

Sylvia opened her mouth to speak... And closed it again.

"I..." she whispered once more, but her voice gave out. Her courage failed her.

Lorraine tilted her head slightly, watching her with quiet curiosity. She said nothing, simply waiting.

Sylvia looked away, ashamed. She could not hold that gaze.

"I just... hope you feel better soon," she murmured at last. Her hands clenched behind her back.

Perhaps it could wait. Perhaps Aldric was right. Lorraine didn’t need to carry this burden right now. Not when she was resting. Not when she had already suffered so much. She was leaving this place in a month. What could change now?

Lorraine smiled faintly and turned back to her bowl of berries.

"How are the preparations going?" she asked after a while, her tone lighter, but her eyes betraying the weariness within.

She was eager to leave. Anyone could see that. But Lorraine was not a reckless woman. She had been planning this carefully, silently, piece by piece. She had gold hidden in places no one would think to look. Gold, she had hoarded like a dragon guarding her escape.

She owned nothing in name. Not even her dowry. In Vaeloria, a woman was a possession, first of her father, then of her husband. Property, no matter how finely dressed.

So Lorraine had hidden what she could. Houses, land, titles... she could not take them. But gold... gold could travel and would be worth the same anywhere.

She would not live as a pauper in some foreign corner of the world. She might leave this cursed place, but she would not abandon her taste for silk sheets, warm baths, and velvet-lined gloves. She would go as an aristocrat. A rich woman. A free woman.

"It’s going well," Sylvia answered. "If you can decide on a place to settle, we can begin sending the gold ahead."

Lorraine’s eyes softened. "I’ve always dreamed of a place with rolling hills and endless meadows," she said. "Wildflowers in bloom, sheep grazing lazily, the wind carrying the scent of earth and sun..."

Sylvia’s lips pressed into a line. She knew that place. She had seen it, too, in paintings of Kaltharion’s countryside.

Why was Lorraine describing his land? Wasn’t she trying to escape him?

Lorraine caught herself. Her gaze flickered, and she looked away. "Or perhaps a house in the woods," she added, her voice quieter. "Where the stream sings nearby, birds chirp, flowers bloom, and... no one knows my name."

"I’ll look into it," Sylvia replied. But there it was again—the sorrow. A thin, invisible veil that wrapped around the princess like silk and shadow.

A pause. Then Lorraine turned to her with a smile.

"And Sylvia... has Emma been talking about Cedric lately?"

Sylvia blinked. Of all things, why that?

Emma, the cheerful, bright-eyed girl who once couldn’t go a day without mentioning Cedric. Since his return from war, that habit had vanished. Sylvia hadn’t noticed it until now.

"No," she said. And now that she thought about it, that was odd. Emma had never been one to keep her thoughts hidden. Especially not when it came to Cedric.

"That’s suspicious, isn’t it?" Lorraine said with a knowing smile.

"Definitely," Sylvia nodded. "I’ll talk to her."

Of course. That was what Lorraine meant. She wouldn’t ask Emma directly. She wasn’t cold, but there was always a distance between a mistress and her maid. Sylvia, however, could cross that line.

Lorraine seemed pleased. She nodded and returned her attention to the folds of her blanket. But then her hand reached out and grasped Sylvia’s.

"And Sylvia," she asked gently, her grip firm. "Have you decided if you’re coming with me?"

Sylvia blinked.

"Me? Of course, I am." Her brows knit together in confusion. "Why would you ask that?"

Lorraine’s smile widened slightly. "Think about it a little more," she said, patting her hand.

Sylvia frowned. "I am following you wherever you go. I owe you my life, Your Highness."

"I don’t want that," Lorraine said, her expression turning solemn. "Don’t trust me too much, Sylvia. I am someone who selfishly uses a lady’s death for my gain. It would take nothing for me to offer you to the vultures, if it served my ends."

Sylvia flinched, but her voice was steady. "Then I would go to them willingly. I do not serve you because I must. I do it because I want to. I owe you everything."

"Oh, dear Syliva, you owe me nothing," Lorraine whispered. Her voice broke slightly, and her eyes glistened with something close to tears. "But if you feel you owe me anything... let it be your happiness."

Sylvia blinked. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Every time his name is mentioned, your heart skips a beat," Lorraine said softly. "Your eyes light up when you see him. You fix your clothes without even realizing it when he walks in. He is the only one who makes you smile like that. I won’t stand in the way of it."

Sylvia turned pale.

She had hidden her feelings for Aldric so carefully. Or so she thought. She had always believed that she was the one who knew Lorraine best. That she could keep her secrets without guilt.

But Lorraine... Lorraine saw everything.

Sylvia bowed her head. Her cheeks burned with shame. She hadn’t wanted to keep it from her. Not really.

And yet, Lorraine had known all along.

Of course, she had. Nothing escaped her. It was mysterious in its own way. Even when something wasn’t reported to her, she’d know the truth. If that was true for her wide empire, it would be impossible for her to know what was happening under her roof. The princess had a great instinct. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have built an empire underground.

Her admiration for the princess went up, but sadness clung around her like a dark cloud. She had hurt the princess by lying to her.

"I’m sorry," Sylvia whispered.

Lorraine simply reached forward and wiped away a single tear from her cheek.

"I hope you find joy, Sylvia," she said gently. "Even if it is not by my side."

Lorraine knew about the "relationship" Sylvia shared with Sir Aldric. After what Sylvia went through, it would be hard for her to trust anyone, but she had allowed him near her. That alone was great progress. She was happy for Sylvia.

A little jealous too, but mostly happy.

She didn’t know what she would do without Sylvia in a new land, but she could always find a way.

"Find a way to kill me," Lorraine said.