Chapter 15

Chapter 15

The four Lombardi siblings gathered in the patriarch’s office.

Rain or shine, meeting on the third day of each week had been tradition since they were teenagers. Gallahan, currently overwhelmed with the coroy textile business, found himself running late despite his best efforts.

As he burst into the room, sweating and breathless, three other distinct-yet-similar faces turned to look at him simultaneously.

“You’re late, Gallahan.” said Viese, not bothering to hide his annoyance.

“I’m sorry, brother. Where is Father…?” Gallahan asked, noticing the empty chair.

“He is still in a meeting with the manager of the Lombardi Bank.”

“Oh, I see.”

Lulac considered punctuality to be highly important. If the meeting had already started, Gallahan would have been scolded like a child, regardless of his age.

He wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead and let out a small sigh.

“You’re lucky,” Viese sneered.

“Long time no see, sister dear.”

Gallahan, familiar with Viese’s antics, gracefully turned his attention toward Shananet, who was quietly drinking tea in the corner of the room.

Shananet was the eldest of the four siblings and quite a bit older than Gallahan. She was also a woman of few words with a long, swan-like neck and an elegant demeanor.

“Yes. Father will be here soon. Take a seat and get some rest,” she said softly.

With that, Shanahet resumed sipping her tea and gazing out the window at the distant scenery.

As Gallahan took a seat, he was struck by how beautiful his sister was.

“I barely see you nowadays. What’s keeping you so busy?” Laurels asked as he tapped Gallahan’s foot with his own.

The third sibling, Laurels, was closest in age to Gallahan, but their personalities were so different it was hard to believe they were related.

Laurels was a simple man who hated complexity, so he often found Gallahan to be frustrating. Gallahan, in turn, always felt uncomfortable around Laurels.

“I’ve been working on something for Father. Well, it’s more just giving advice here and there,” Gallahan said modestly.

If it were really just a matter of offering a few words of advice, he wouldn’t have been too busy to see his own daughter.

Gallahan glanced at Viese, knowing it was a sore spot he had ended up taking over the business venture that his brother had been trying to push through.

As expected, a twitch crossed Viese’s face. He stood with his arms crossed, staring at the wall. Laurels on the other hand, oblivious to his brother’s discomfort, continued to joke.

“Ah! I heard about that. You just snatched the busin—”

*Wham*

Viese finally lost his temper. He sprang to his feet and slammed his hand down on the desk, glaring at Laurels with a fierce look in his eye.

“Are you mocking me?” he demanded.

“N-no! That isn’t it. I wouldn’t dare do that!”

Laurels’ entire body clenched up with indignation. At times, his relationship with Viese seemed less like two siblings and more like a superior and subordinate. Laurels seemed genuinely afraid of his older brother.

“And you, Gallahan. Full of yourself because you’ve been given one big task. Enjoy it while it lasts because it will never happen again. Understood?”

Gallahan’s face darkened as well.

He hadn’t had the slightest interest in a venture between the Lombardi and Angenas families. He had only wanted to take a walk with his daughter when things took an unexpected turn.

Gallahan wanted nothing more than to bask in the sun, read his favorite book, and spend time with his daughter Firentia. A load of heavy and stifling responsibilities was pure poison.

“I’m sorry. But I never intended for this to happen.”

“What?” Viese snapped.

“If you still want to take over this project...”

“You… little…!”

Viese, now in his mid-thirties, still hadn’t broken his childish habit of raising his hand when angered.

Just as a fight was about to break out between the brothers, Shananet quietly set her teacup down.

“Enough.”

That single word was enough to bring an abrupt halt to Viese’s movement.

“Viese, you’re bucking around like a colt that’s been spanked.”

Despite the weary sigh that accompanied her words, Viese’s shoulders twitched in fear. Laurels and Gallahan responded the same.

Though almost always calm and composed, Shananet was terrifying when angry. Viese, who had seemed ready to throw Gallahan to the ground, was still fuming but slumped back into his seat.

“Thank you, sister,” Gallahan said quietly as to not provoke Viese’s anger again.

“No need to thank me. I just dislike loud noises,” Shananet replied, her calm, cold gaze moving from Viese to Gallahan. “You’re more like a squirrel.”

“What?”

“That’s what I thought when I first saw you cradled in Mother’s arms, but you still remind me of a squirrel, Gallahan.”

Though it might have sounded like a compliment, Shananet’s stern expression indicated otherwise.

“You get startled by the smallest things, and you scurry up a tree to escape. You hide away in your little burrow and never try to fight.”

“Sister...”

“The only thing that seems to interest you is scurrying around like a squirrel collecting books. Isn’t that right?” A faint smirk appeared on Shananet’s beautiful lips.

“I hear your daughter is quite bright,” she continued.

The sudden mention of Firentia startled Gallahan, whose face had gone sour.

“But how could a lion be born to a squirrel? Maybe we shouldn’t be expecting much.”

Though she said these words under her breath, each word pricked Gallahan’s ears like a painful thorn.

“Unfortunate really. Hopefully your squirrelly-ness isn’t ruining her potential,” Shananet said, taking another sip of her drink. “What do you think, Gallahan?”

He had no words. He just bit his lower lip and remained deep in thought.

Shananet’s gaze remained fixed on him, unwavering.

***

“Your Majesty, Croyton Angenas has arrived.”

“Bring him in,” said Empress Lavini as she snipped the stem of a freshly picked flower with a sharp pair of scissors.

A moment later, Croyton—her confidant and the head of the Dyurak Merchant Guild—entered cautiously. She greeted him without taking her eyes off the blooming roses.

“Your Majesty, I am back.” Croyton removed his hat and held it to his chest, feigning a friendly demeanor.

“I am not here waiting for you but for the good news. Were you unaware, Croyton?”

“Of course not. I would not come empty-handed, Your Majesty.”

A bead of sweat ran down Croyton’s back at the empress’s sharp words, but he managed to maintain a smiling face.

“Please take a look at this.”

With both hands, Croyton handed over a concise progress report.

After removing her gloves, the empress’s pale hands accepted the report. She quickly scanned through its contents, and Croyton noted with relief that her expression was not unfavorable.

“As noted, the coroy textiles will be ready to sell by next week. We will begin sales primarily in the Sedaque shopping district, where the noble clothing stores are concentrated...”

“And how did you resolve the supply issues, Croyton?”

The last time Croyton had visited the empress’s palace, he had reported problems sourcing materials from the eastern regions. He would never forget the fierce look she had given him.

After what felt like an eternity, the empress had instructed him to seek assistance from the Lombardi family. Even thinking about that moment made Croyton sweat.

He pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket. It was embroidered with coroy fabric.

“As you commanded, I was able to get support from the Lombardi family. Luckily, Gallahan Lombardi was knowledgeable about textiles and fashion...”

“Gallahan?”

The empress, who was in the middle of putting her gloves back on, turned her head towards Croyton for the first time.

“Not Viese?”

Did I make another mistake…?

Terrified, Croyton hunched his shoulders.

“Yes, that’s correct. I tried to proceed with Viese, but... he didn’t know anything about the business...”

“When you say Gallahan, you’re talking about their youngest son?”

The empress raised an eyebrow, recalling Gallahan’s name from the far corners of the Lombardi family tree.

“Yes! He’s a very knowledgeable fellow! When it comes to intellect, Viese doesn’t even come close. Moreover, with Viese out of the picture, we’ve also been getting support from Clerivan, a close aide of the duke’s. It has made everything so much smoother.”

“Do I need to know these trivial details, Croyton?” A hint of irritation crept into the empress’s voice as she cut him off.

“Of course not! You can leave those matters to me, Your Majesty.”

Croyton quickly bowed his head, and the empress picked up the next flower.

“Gallahan, not Viese... quite interesting.”

A peculiar smile spread across the empress’s face as she pictured Lulac and his difficult-to-read intentions.

Though the law mandated that the eldest son succeed the head of the family, no one really adhered to it. Whether in the imperial family or within the noble houses, bloody wars over succession were commonplace.

Lavini found this extremely displeasing.

With a chilling sound, the rose petals in Lavini’s hand were cut in half and scattered. She was reminded of a lowly creature with eyes as red as the rose, and the flower began to disgust her.

The empress placed the shears on the table and asked Croyton, “Does Gallahan have any children?”

“Yes. He has a daughter named Firentia. I’m sure I’ve heard Gallahan say that she will be eight soon.”

“A daughter. I see. Eight isn’t too bad.”

“Is that so?”

Croyton chose his words carefully, as he did not know what she was thinking.

“Coincidentally, Astana went to the Lombardi estates to meet Viese’s son. I’ll have to ask him when he returns,” the empress added, smiling widely at the thought of her beloved son. “You never know, he may need a girlfriend.”

Her lips curved into a smile even redder than the mutilated rose petals.

***

“This is a game called hide-and-seek. This time I’ll be the seeker, so you two can go and hide.”

“Wow! This is the first time we’ve played this! It will be so much fun!”

“Yippee, yippee!”

I smiled triumphantly as I watched the twins clench their fists and bounce on their toes.

Heheh, they have no clue.

“You can hide anywhere as long as you stay within this building. But remember, dangerous places such as the well, rooms with no people, and locations with a lid are off-limits. Understood?”

“Yes, yes!”

“Now I’m going to count to one hundred!”

I pressed my face against the pillar and started to count.

“One! Two! Three! Four!”

I could hear two sets of footsteps running off in the same direction.

As I expected, the twins even hide together. That will make it easier to find them later.

“Ten! Eleven! Ack, my leg. Finally some rest.”

By now, they’ve gone far enough that they won’t hear me.

The twins had dragged me outside early in the morning to play together. When I suggested that they play on their own, they had insisted that it was no fun without me.

They repeated this like parrots, over and over.

Which is why I came up with the perfect game that kids are genetically predisposed to love: hide-and-seek.

“Ah, peace and quiet,” I said softly.

Without the twins’ constant chatter, the silence was almost tangible.

I decided to find a sunny spot to lie down for a bit before searching for the twins. As I made my way from the bustling main building to the quieter annex, I noticed a small child standing alone.

He had dark blonde hair, almost brown, and fair skin.

Who could that be?

He looked around the same age as Bellezac, but his face was unfamiliar. In addition, his clothes and posture made it clear that he wasn’t one of the servants’ children.

Thinking he might be lost and in need of help, I approached the boy.

Out of nowhere, he appeared to get frustrated. He took off his hat and threw it to the ground, stomping on it with his shoe.

His tantrum seemed practiced, as if he’d done it many times before. I stopped a few steps away, observing his actions. I didn’t really want to get close. My instinct told me to go the other way, that I should just go find the twins.

Just as that thought popped up into my head, I was preparing to turn around, when...

A sudden strong wind blew the child’s stomped hat into the far grassy area. The child looked startled. He surveyed the area and found me.

“You there. Go get my hat,” he said.

“Excuse me?”

“Are you deaf? I said, go get my hat.”

“What in the…?”

Anger boiled up inside of me, and I wanted to unleash every swear word I knew, but I remained calm.

“You go get it, you’re just like Bellezac.”

I may not have cursed, but this was the worst thing I could say to someone.

The boy scrunched up his otherwise handsome face and spoke in a slick, mocking tone.

“If you go pick it up now, maybe I’ll spare your life.”

“You really are just like Bellezac. What kind of nonsense is that?” I replied, crossing my arms defiantly. “Do you want me to beat you with books too? It works wonders.”

“How dare an ugly girl like you speak so rudely.”

This unwarranted arrogance and insolence. Was it a common trait among noble boys?

It was exactly like Bellezac. It wasn’t a one-off comment. He sounded exactly like my cousin...

Wait.

As I stared at the mysterious boy, a dreadful premonition hit me.

“A-are you...”

“My prince! Sir, where are you?!” someone called out desperately from a distance.

“...a prince?” I finished.

The empire had many princesses but only two princes. In my past life, I had only known what he looked like at a more mature age.

“It couldn’t be... the first-born prince...?”

As if to confirm my suspicions, the boy gave me an arrogant smirk and demanded, “Go pick it up.”

It was true. This was Bellezac’s spiritual twin and the boy who would bring ruin to this family.

He was the first-born prince, Astana Nerempe Durelli.