“Lady Celia, your bath is prepared…” Celia came out of her reverie from the maid’s words. In response, Celia nodded with a sweet smile as the maid excused herself to undress the lady.

Celia only looked at the maid and sighed. Deep down in her, she knew that something is bothering her even though after that said event, no one bother to ask her questions.

That’s why, even now, even after two days had passed, those two young boys had nothing but smiles and compliments on her but nothing about going to the temple with another young master.

The maid looked at the young lady and sighed as well.

“Young lady, is there anything that’s bothering you?” The maid asked with a gentle voice. Celia knew that every servant in this household became her friend.

That’s why no matter what she does, the servants will always care for her despite that she had been a spoiled brat in the past.

With just a simple apology, they eventually forgave her.

Celia shook her head and return her sweet smile.

“There’s nothing to worry about, Rina. I’m fine as you see,” even though the maid wasn’t convinced of how the lady said those words, she preferred to shut her mouth since what the lady said became a worship for some of the servants including this young maid.

After a while, no one speaks. Silence overwhelms the surrounding until she came to her bath.

She spent most of her time in the room. Playing with some bubbles in her tub, she couldn’t help bursting some.

“Why can’t they just ask me what happened that day but then they treat it like nothing had happened?” She thought but instead, she came blurting those words out.

This night, she couldn’t help but sigh and though she wanted to sleep in her bath, she couldn’t since tonight marked the crown prince’s birthday celebration.

“I just hope everything will go to plan…”

 

***

 

Nether was in his room, he was sitting on the edge of his bed while looking at the rotten piece of crown flower he made that was supposed to be given to his sister.

Yet, he couldn’t help but destroy it with his two hands. His tight grip on it made some petals fall to the ground while all of the things get broken like how he is torn inside.

He should be with his sister, he should be her partner for tonight, he should be the one to save her from that event and yet, why couldn’t he be the one to do all those things?

His eyes became blurry to the point that he couldn’t let go of his mistakes.

He should be the one his sister will only look to, and yet, these pests are lying around her, making her laugh the way that he couldn’t do.

“Sister, why?” He kept repeating those words as if it became his mantra but before he could finally ruin the crown flower, someone knocked on his door.

His eyes narrowed but he let the intruder come.

“Jacob…?” his voice that was previously rough, longing for something impossible, became soft like cold snow. A figure within the door appeared, in his knight suit and bow in front of Nether.

“Young master, it’s time…”

“I know Jacob but… just Nether will do, okay?”

Besides the pests that he doesn’t like surrounding his sister, Nether knew he could trust Jacob because he could protect her from any dangers. But those thoughts keep on hunting him.

Even if he trusted the young boy completely, he knew that someday, he will be betrayed by him that’s why he can’t fully trust him like he wanted to.

Not when Nether knew he had some feelings for his sister.

“Is sister, already prepared?” Nether asked again but there’s this change in his tone.

Jacob even noticed how his tone became sweeter like a honey a different tone when talking about his sister. Although Jacob knew that brothers and sisters aren’t allowed to be married in this empire, he had this hunch that Nether wasn’t just talking about how he respected his sister.

Jacob felt as if Nether was indeed in love with his sister at this young age. This is never good but then all he could do for now is to sigh since he knew that the love Nether had for his sister will go away as time passed by.

Perhaps, he was just in love with her because of the warmth that she had been spreading towards him and the people around her, Jacob thought so he shrugged off the possibilities that this love would grow.

Because in the first place, it will never be even able to shed light.

“Yes, Nether, Celia is already prepared. She’s waiting for you in the entrance hall,” as soon as Jacob said those words, Nether flinched when Jacob could say the words so casually like Celia isn’t a lady to the household. Yet, he couldn’t also feel any more jealous than now since Jacob speaks so casually her name like the two of them are close enough. Closer than he and his sister should be.

Nether glared at Jacob despite that Jacob knew yet he only turn his back and walked first than the young master.

Nether continued to look at Jacob’s back without even blinking and he knew that his looks aren’t anything more than a dangerous glare.

He couldn’t share his sister and yet he is sharing her with everybody. Why does everyone want to come between him and his sister?

When he grew up to be an adult, he will surely kill those people who will oppose his love for Celia. Not any single breath will survive and that is how his mind is telling him now, to kill Jacob.

It’s as if there’s this hidden voice in his head that’s telling him to push off on the stairs next to where they are walking and yet, he can only smirk at the thought

“Not now, not yet, when he still has some use for my sister…” just those whispers made the voice in his head keep quiet as if they have never existed in the first place.

However, those thoughts he had, got only delayed because he still can’t prove himself enough.

“Nether?” His gaze from Jacob got diverted upon hearing that delicious, sweet-tasting voice that he could only detect below them. They are descending the stairs and Jacob had already been beside the lady.

When Nether looked at his sister, he couldn’t help but let his eyes shine. His sight excludes everything, everyone in the place.

For his vision, only one person is corrupting it and it’s no other than his beloved sister.

“Sister!” his face heat up and he doesn’t know if he had uttered the words correctly or not but then, he never even waited for a second to run and hug her.

Everyone else thought that Nether was just so glad that he could see his sister again but the young man, is never glad, he is beyond glad, he is obsessed with his sister, and no matter what she does, either good or bad, he knew he will support her.

But then, just after hugging her, images of that night came to his mind. As he was the first one to break his hug, he looked at the hands that had been holding another boy’s hand in the temple, and his eyes started to narrow.

“Sister, please accept my handkerchief. It seems that your hands are a bit soft that there are still soft left to wipe…” Nether said and Celia’s eyebrows creased.

The young lady didn’t even know why his brother acts protective of her but then, she just shrugged off the thought of something possibly happening when they are just brothers and sisters. She laughed it off and Nether came chuckling by her side.

However, one pair of eyes couldn’t help but narrow at the actions of the young man. He just couldn’t with his hands tightly gripping his sword.

“Then, shall we?” The duke said and the rest nodded with a smile.

Jacob on the other hand, is seated on the horsemen as he is a knight only to stay outside of the family and came rescue the lady or the young master if anything were to happen to them. Even though he is in his knight suit, Celia felt heat all over her face.

Like it was the first time she had encountered a real young boy that reminds her of her crush in her previous modern world.

“Sister, may I ask you something?”

 

***

 

“Your Highness, everything is already planned. The young lady from the Crenst household finally arrived…”

“Then you should approach her and tell her to wait in that room,” Elmias widened his eyes. The shadow assassin that Eran had, became speechless for a second before finally nodding.

Eran, on the other hand, looked at the window glass from his room and narrowed his eyes.

He had to confirm something and by doing so, he had to look at the lady in that room. Especially since the room contains a secret from the imperial family, that could ruin anyone’s mind if they are guilty of lying

“Your Highness, the lady is still a child, are you sure you want to torture her in that room?”

“Say Elmias, did I say I would torture her?”