Rosie's Games

"Are you threatening me?" she asked. Was he trying to threaten her into taking their deal seriously? Or was it a warning?

He reached out and touched a piece of her hair.

"Are you threatened?" he asked.

"No."

"Wonderful. Then I am going to expect that you communicate what you want from now on. Are we in agreement?"

"Are you even giving me a choice?" she fired back, meeting his eyes. Now that he was close, she realized how tall he was. Despite wearing a little bit of heel on her shoe, her head just barely reached his shoulders.

He chuckled and suddenly took a step back.

"Perhaps?"

She smiled. She understood the point that he wanted to make. Because of what she did, the Duke was now at odds with the Lux Family. If she wanted their plans to succeed, she needed to communicate.

"I understand. From now on, I will try to communicate the things that I want," she answered.

"Good. Now, as to why I came here." He held her wrist and slid what looked like an ordinary golden bracelet without any jewels. The bracelet looked too large on her wrist but before she could complain, it slowly morphed, changing its size until it perfectly fitted her small wrist.

"Tap on the snake head once if you need help, and twice if you want to tell me anything. It will create a vibration if there is a message meant for you."

"A communication device?" she asked, surprise written all over her face. These things were expensive! Not even the Princes or even Dorothy had something like this!

Communication devices were rare, not just because only one family created them. They were rare because of how expensive they were.

The Four Quarter Masters would create a cheap version of this device that would become popular with the nobles, but that would happen two or three years from now.

"You are welcome."

"I— Thank you," she was truly grateful for the man's help.

"Thank me by avoiding petty troubles. You cannot leave this place if they discover what you have."

With that, the Duke jumped out of her bedroom and vanished into the night.

Seeing him gone, she let go of the breath she didn't even know she was holding. Talking to the man felt like walking in a place full of traps. For some reason, his intimidating presence was affecting her judgment.

Yet, his generosity was quite surprising. Everyone knew that the Duke of the North was a tyrant, but he was treating her with great impartiality. Of course, she knew that this was because of her Blessing.

The Duke would gain great benefits once she reached the North.

Again, the marriage was nothing but a very good business transaction.

She sighed and examined the bracelet, deciding to keep it on her wrist or take it off while she sleeps.

In the end, she decided to always keep it by her side.

Then she removed the rest of the outer layers of her clothes, washed her face with the cold water that Milith must have prepared before she arrived, then lay down and closed her eyes.

It has been a long… exhausting day.

….

It had been two days since the incident happened and the mansion had been abnormally quiet. Something about its eerie atmosphere could easily scare anyone, even the maids who had been working in the mansion for more than twenty years were uncomfortable.

Rosalind eyed the white skies before looking at the knights outside of her two-story house. It was just as the Duke predicted.

The knights arrived early the next morning and surrounded her house. Everything from the outside to everything that they needed inside the house had been checked. Even the buckets of water that she needed to take a bath and each of the ingredients that Milith used to cook could not escape their eye.

Aside from this, Victoria's maid Grace had started to give them clothes and more food. Both Milith and Rosalind had examined the things, thinking that they must have slipped in something that could harm her, but found nothing.

She figured this was Victoria's way of showing her support for Rosalind's plan to leave this place.

"This is the brochure of the top dressmaker in the Capital. Madam wanted you to choose some beautiful dresses for the upcoming hunt," Grace said. "Madam wanted to take young Lady Marie and Young Miss Rosalind to the hunting games so Madam has sent me to properly teach the Young Miss some of the basic etiquettes that need to be observed during the hunt."

"Oh…" Rosalind muttered.

"I will teach you the things that you are not supposed to talk about to some nobles and things that had been banned during the tea ceremony," Grace continued while handing her the brochure of the new fashions from the Capital.

"Thank you…" Rosalind said. "Though I am curious about something."

"What is it?"

"Whatever happened to my older sister?" she asked.

"I don't think that is any of your business," Grace said harshly. "The Young Lady fell into a scheme. It is proper etiquette to avoid talking about these things to stop any false rumors from going around the Capital."

"Rumors?"

"Again—"

"THE MESSENGER OF THE EMPEROR IS HERE! PLEASE RECEIVE THE ORDER OF THE EMPEROR!" A rather loud voice interrupted their conversation. The two of them looked at each other before Milith arrived.

"Miss Grace, Young Miss, there are people outside of the house. Even the Madam and the rest of the members of the Lux Family are outside."

"What?"

"We should go." Grace didn't hesitate to drag her outside and make her kneel in front of a man. The stranger was wearing a white knight uniform with a crest of the empire on the left side of his clothing. A blue and white turban was on the man's head; something that only the higher-ranking servants of the Royal Family had the right to wear.

"This message is for the Young Lady Rosalind Lux of the Lux Family!" the man said as he lifted his chin and opened a scroll.

"Say that you are here!" Grace whispered.

"I am here!" Rosalind called out as she lowered her head. Why would the emperor suddenly give her an order?