Lord Gerard and Lady Elaine thought they escaped from the people's eyes rather successfully. However, a professor caught them instantly. The man requested Gerard's presence for his second-year class, asking him to demonstrate his high-grade spirit, Rhya, to them. Gerard refused his request blatantly, arguing that there were others capable of doing so.
"I wanted to motivate the students through this demonstration." The professor slumped. The students knew that high-grade summoning spirits were rare; therefore, they never held onto the hope that they could succeed and never tried in this particular class. However, perhaps having a student close to their age who thrived in this impossible task could light their hopes, even a little.
After hearing the distressed teacher out, Elaine convinced her brother to be the second-year students' role model, though with difficulty. Even Gerard could not resist Elaine's pleas.
"Do not wander around the Academy and go around talking with strangers," Gerard held onto Elaine's shoulders, looking at her with eyes filled with worry.
"I am not a child, Brother." Elaine chuckled. "Go."
Gerard left with the professor, glancing back at Elaine every second. With a grin, the little sister waved him goodbye until he was not within her sights. Immediately, her smile dropped as she heard her stomach grumble. "...I need to find something to eat."
Elaine walked around campus grounds to find some edible berries, but there were none. She figured that the forest Gerard mentioned during the tour, however, would have some. Without hesitation, Elaine walked deeper into the woods while making sure no one saw her. Little did she know that there was a human presence within her five-meter radius.
The lady took her handkerchief out and picked out purple and pink berries alike. Once her hand could not pile them up any longer, she sat by a nearby tree and began popping them into her lips. When the tiny fruits' flavours burst in her mouth, she couldn't help but smile at the sweetness.
Suddenly, a soft breeze swept Elaine's hair slightly after she gulped down all the berries she collected. Not thinking much of it, she tucked the strand of golden hair behind her ear. That was when she noticed an object moving from the corner of her eye.
Alerted by the unwelcomed being, Lady Elaine stood up slowly and began to approach it with caution. After getting closer, she realised that the moving object was a man wearing the Academy uniform, crouching down. The lady tilted her head, questioning what the man was doing. Then, she squinted her eyes to get a better look at the thing on his hands.
'An injured bird?' Elaine thought when she saw a tiny feathery creature with blood covering its wings and feet. Her hands instinctively covered her sights when a blinding light shone on the man's palms.
At the next second, Lady Elaine could hear a cheerful chirp and a flying creature soaring towards the blue sky. Her parted lips gasped in astonishment as she saw the unexplainable scene occur.
Sensitive to sound, the man's ears twitched as he heard a lady's breath a few steps away from him. Immediately, his head snapped towards his left. The man's eyes widened as he discovered the lady's identity.
At the same time, Lady Elaine hitched a breath when he revealed his facial features to her.
"Prince Lucas...?" She mumbled but shook her head in disbelief. "No..."
'Red eyes.'
"Who are you?" Elaine stood up slowly. The man in front of her had Prince Lucas' facial structure, but he was different. His pale skin paired with his crimson eyes and hair as dark as night made his aura unique compared to her ex-fiancé.
Panicked, the man stumbled back in response. He glanced left and right as Lady Elaine stepped closer. Finally, he snapped his fingers as his last resort. Elaine hastened her walk and tried to reach him when she noticed his body dissolving into thin air, but to no avail.
Elaine was left in the crowd of trees, alone.
"Elaine!" She heard a shout echoing through the forest; the voice was familiar. However, she could not respond to the call as her heart raced, and unanswered questions filled her mind.
'Who was that man?'
'How could he look exactly like the Prince?'
'Perhaps, he is Prince Lucas' twin brother? But, his birth was not registered in the Royal family tree...'
The rustling of leaves broke Lady Elaine's line of thought, bringing her back to the real world. Her brother's sweaty appearance filled her eyes as soon as she turned around, and she could not breathe for another second as his warm arms wrapped around her.
"Why are you here?!" Gerard's voice boomed. "Did I not tell you not to wander around?"
Elaine could hear Gerard's heart through his heaving chest. "Forgive me, Brother."
"..." His heart started to calm down. "I told you to stay put. If you ran away again, I..."
Elaine forcefully pulled away from her brother with a frown due to his negative thoughts. "I was starving, Brother. I could have gone to the cafeteria to relieve my hunger, but people would see me. I relied on the next best option: the forest. I figured there would be edible berries here."
"What if you ate poisonous ones?" Gerard questioned in frustration.
"...I did not think that far." Elaine lowered her head, perplexed. It would be a problem if she were poisoned by what she ate, after all.
"Well, it seems that you did eat edible ones." Gerard scanned the bushes where Elaine picked the berries. "Just do not do this again, all right?"
"I promise." Elaine nodded. "But, how did you find me, Brother?"
"I used Rhya's ability." Gerard grabbed Elaine's wrist gently, taking her out of the forest. "She uses the wind and can identify where a human is from a specific direction."
"I see." Elaine brightened. "So that was what the breeze was."
"Right," Gerard remembered. "Rhya also detected another human close to where you were. Did you happen to see the person?"
"...No." Elaine shook her head. "I was eating by a tree, alone."
Gerard believed her without a doubt. "That is indeed mysterious. That person's presence suddenly disappeared without a trace."
Elaine deemed she should keep her meeting with that man to herself as of now. His birth not recorded in the Royal family tree despite being Prince Lucas' spitting image was suspicious, and Elaine intended to investigate this matter thoroughly. She had a couple of hypotheses in mind, but her gut told her not to ask these questions as they might bring consequences. And she chose to follow it.
Gerard and Elaine met up with His Majesty at the entrance after finishing his talk with the Headmaster. King Kelvion asked them to have lunch with him at a restaurant he reserved, and they both accepted due to their grumbling stomachs. They ate their food in peace, and finally, the King escorted the siblings home to their mansion.
"Elaine," King Kelvion called after Elaine hopped off the royal carriage.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Elaine turned around, facing the King.
"As parents, we have the responsibility to provide our children with the best environment to live in." His Majesty said.
"...Yes." Elaine nodded. "I understand."
"And---" The King's words left a deep impression in Elaine's heart. Perhaps it was because she was not a parent and had yet to have a child, but it made her understand how her parents would feel after such a rebellion from their dearest daughter.
When their butler informed that Elaine returned of her own will, the married couple instructed her to enter their bedroom alone. Nervous, she gulped when she stood outside their door. However, Elaine mustered up her courage and entered, standing her ground when the door behind her closed. But, she did not dare look at her parents in the eyes.
The tension in the room made it difficult to speak, but Elaine apologised immediately. "I apologise for going out without a word, Father and Mother."
"And you know that what you did was wrong?" The Duchess' cold voice caused shivers to run down Elaine's spine. Her hands and feet were cold, causing her to clench her fist.
"Yes, Mother. I promise never to do it again."
For the first few seconds, it was dead silent. Then, Elaine heard footsteps approaching her as her eyes were glued to the ground. That was when she heard sniffling sounds and trembling arms embracing her.
"Accept our apologies as well." The Duke let out a quivering breath, fighting the tears threatening to fall. "We should not have taken away your right to study in the Academy."
Elaine's eyes widened as she heard her parents' regret. She was in the wrong, yet why are they asking for their child's forgiveness? She was the rude daughter who did not want to be bounded by their shackles.
Then, Elaine remembered His Majesty's parting words as he left for the Royal Palace.
"And, do you know when parents feel most vexed, Elaine?"
"...No, Your Majesty." Elaine shook her head blankly.
"It is when they feel their child cannot be who they desire them to be." King Kelvion answered his own question, enlightening Elaine.
"At the end of the day," His Majesty's eyes smiled, "there is no parent in the world who would win against their own child."
"You were upset, were you not?" Stephanie rubbed Elaine's back to comfort her. "We broke our traditions first. We were not good role models for our children."
Elaine felt water brimming in her eyes, her lips trembling. "F-Father and M-Mother do not have to apologise. W-Why...?"
The Duke smiled. "As you have promised never to run away again, we will promise not to take your freedom in the future. Is that all right with you?"
Elaine buried her face in her father's chest. "Thank you." She said softly.
The parents let go of Elaine because they thought she must be tired after her trip to the Academy. It was silent again after their daughter left.
The Duchess chuckled after some time. "I cannot believe I became someone I promised not to become."
"What is it, love?" The Duke inched closer to his wife as they sat on the bed, curious. He held the Duchess' hand, rubbing her skin with his thumb.
"I remembered my resistance against my parents, and it was much worse than what Elaine did." The Duchess laid her head on the Duke's shoulder with a grin. "Well, she did run away with a man, though."
The revived memory brought a gentle smile on the Duke's face as well. "I am still grateful for that courage of yours. If not for your defiance against your father, we would never have had Noah."
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