After our brief discussion, we talked little after that. Donellan asked me if I was hungry and asked someone to fetch me something to eat while we rode the rest of the way. During the journey (yes, I’m calling it a journey since it took about 3 hours to get to the capital) I looked out the window, observing and trying to familiarize myself with my surroundings. During my observations, I concluded that the scenery changed as we approached closer towards the capital. I guess a good way to explain what I was seeing would be going from the suburbs to the city? It was busy and buzzing with people. There were a lot of merchants selling their products and people doing some shopping, eating food and having fun. Everything was eye catching, and the overall energy was welcoming. 

We were finally nearing the capital when the carriage stopped suddenly. I looked outside and didn’t see a shiny palace in sight. I had assumed that we were headed to the palace considering that this was the only reason Donellan would travel to the capital (well not the entire reason, but we will get into that one later) and I had guessed correctly upon asking him. So when I saw nothing but a tall building with no signs in the front, I was obviously bound to be a little confused. I turned to look at Donellan, wondering why we had stopped. 

“We are making a quick stop here. I need to speak to someone. You can stay in the carriage. Or — “Donellan quickly cut himself off, refusing to say the rest of his sentence. He looked at me for a couple of seconds and was ready to open the door to the carriage. (one thing about Donellan was that he enjoyed doing things for himself and that included opening his own door. He differed greatly from the rest of the nobles)

For some odd reason, something was telling me I needed to follow Donellan at all costs. I couldn’t put my hands on the strange feeling, but my gut told me it would be a good idea and so without further hesitation I said, 

“I would like to come with you, father.” 

Donellan turned back and looked at me, and I couldn’t tell if it was my imagination or maybe I was seeing things, but there was an inkling of a smile on the man’s cold face. Whether it was my imagination or the fact that I was finally going insane, I believed in what I saw and gave the man a smile back. We then got out of the carriage. Since I was a little small for my age, my little limbs would have a hard time getting out of the carriage myself. One of the guard knights named Lenard was going to offer to carry me out of the carriage when Donellan swiftly picked me up and held me in his arms. I was so incredibly shocked that I let out a distasteful yelp. Not once in my life had anyone ever held me in such a manner, not even when I was younger. I might’ve been in the body of a six-year-old, but I still had the mind of a 17-year-old, so I was even more embarrassed by the sudden turn of events. I could feel my face heating and I didn’t know how to act. 

I could tell that the knight named Lenard was trying very hard not to laugh and this very fact made me even more embarrassed. Since I wanted to get out of this mess quickly and Donellan didn’t show any signs of putting me down, I grabbed him my the chest and told him in a tiny voice: “Um, father, you can put me down now.” 

As if just now noticing my discomfort, Donellan finally put me down. Donellan cleared his throat and stated that we were entering the building in front of us. As we were walking, I turned around and gave Lenard the deadliest glare I could muster. That bastard. I am definitely going to get him for this. Lenard had been staring at me this whole time, so he caught me glaring at him. He only diverted his gaze with a smile still on his face. Laetitia, on the other hand said nothing. 

After that debacle, we made our way inside the building. The inside was a lot more modern than I had expected. It looked like your typical big corporation lobby with a waiting area, doors that lead to different rooms and what looked like an elevator, but not quite an elevator. The interior was made of glass but you couldn’t see past the glass. To put it more simply, I could see my reflexion through the glass but that’s all I could see. It was kind of disconcerting. Besides that, everything else was plain and simple. We continued to make our way down the hall for what seemed like minutes and we finally reached what you would call the front desk. Donellan said a few words, and the clerk pushed a silver button near her desk and guided us towards a door. From there we made our way down a makeshift elevator. The whole time, I paid close attention to everything that was happening (I mean; it was kind of hard not to since this place was so interesting). This place looked like a parallel to my world and a fantasy world. Our surroundings looked a little different compared to before. We finally made it to another door and Donellan gave the two knights a look before knocking on the door twice. I could hear the voice of a middle-aged woman from inside saying: “come in” 

Donellan opened the door and gestured for me to follow him inside. As soon as we entered the room, I could immediately tell where this was and this woman’s identity.