73. Visitors at the Mansion

I placed some wood 015925347a down and filled the 5323ffec32 space with dry grass dc5d93ea14 to light a fire.1d53037e83e42727

There was nothing to do in the abandoned estate. Watching the fire until it completely burned out was my only solace. The flames burned so brightly that I couldn’t tell if it was my hair or the fire that was flickering.057e222c088b1e9b

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“I’m glad you’ve found something to keep your mind occupied. I was worried you might be too despondent.”8ff5a93729e446df

Suren said, fanning the 5214442e6d dry wood. The flames fcb8bcddaa grew larger 578e9ee658 with her 9c70693d13 touch.a7be042e1c86dcfc

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“Taking care cb7762b7db of the 73f11060c0 estate is 91f9263c77 somewhat enjoyable. The children are 679362aabb cute and pitiable.”7a4cd1fb68b4a643

“Yes, they might 1edbbd89a4 lack manners being 19aa010678 from common backgrounds, 3e5732610b but their actions 05e39b2e81 are genuine. I was worried because bd77341afc this place is so 93132f2c9a remote, but they don’t 9ac2f21cd4 know what discrimination is, 8d58ba916a so they don’t discriminate. Even the children with 190ecb8646 purple hair play well e51b427838 together.”f6241510b8a24eb3

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The children, 869ad1e21e fascinated by 39572524dc Suren’s hair, 608ac8fb73 continued to c3c70bcb3b follow her a517491bbd around, tugging 0d59dcbf5d at her 018a86d21e clothes.69cedfeacac96fa4

At first, Suren was 030734573b appalled, but she soon 6f41a373b2 realized that they were 36a17bf956 not pulling her hair 02e69e88d8 out of malice, but f6e89f703c pure curiosity. She adapted cd0fd47c14 and accepted dd93a0d7f4 it.dedb299193353444

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Contrary to her worries, b4ce81bbd7 the children did not c273315423 point fingers or throw 1cdcbbcd61 stones at her because 4de004036d of her different hair 48556adc55 color.e903353d0a0300a9

Having only traveled da282f0b8c between the capital db418d1797 and the northern 616599e963 regions, I had 1fc1f4e044 never experienced discrimination 6d5a434e2e because of my 5528c9d8c6 hair, but Suren 0ea0f7e3bf spoke at length 7f0977abca about her encounters fcdc5cc207 as if she 059972ea64 had faced it 69076fac2f often.f7deee2c4304f3d3

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“I’ve never experienced 304d96e425 discrimination, is it 09ff8fa61a really that common?”0093ba38726c9c74

“Yes. Even getting to the north with my recommendation letter was really difficult. On the boat, I had to wrap my hair in a scarf because so many people stared at me. If my hair were simply white, it would’ve been fine, but it’s silver, and I’m young… people found it strange.”8c88720fdd07e7a4

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“I see.”87dacea973a11814

“I don’t know why, but there are still many people with ill intentions. Although I didn’t, many of my kin have dyed their hair. They hide it thoroughly. At least white hair dyes well.”752f48b7a663e1cc

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She looked at my ccfa1dfb20 hair and caught a e1fb245a3a strand that was floating 2306de2359 in the air, examining a314ae348c it carefully in her 7a980cfe81 palm.48ebee6386f28c71

“Your red 154942865f hair would 37d8da0d7d be hard 0175657390 to dye. No matter what 865da9d3c7 color you use, 0beb719ed5 the red tint 98ac931d0e would show through. You’d have to wrap d6205dc043 it with a scarf c26a855b0d or use an expensive, 9bcb7f0ef0 high-quality dye.”338fa32241d7e6e7

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She let go of 304c5293a5 the hair, letting it 35626bc5e3 fly into the air. The red strand 675c34ff78 burned with the e5c06d75c1 fire, crumbling into 1692bdac99 fine ashes.ebc46009bb52c9e8

If I were ever feb1c8bcbd to escape his chains feb71697ec and gain independence. If I managed to d0f1c4af38 flee safely, would I 71dd39110e have to cover my 852c3c9c20 hair?86f17ef2ae27a845

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It seemed 61d9a9c147 like a cdd619e323 distant, unattainable 8b05b31191 dream.0cafe96cec003a09

* * *6f389ed9d52ffc2c

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At night, it 04478a322c was difficult to c5d3d3f0f7 fetch water, and f6db5bd63e due to security 1b4c40ea23 concerns, there were 10d1542eb8 opinions against frequently c2982c2970 opening the mansion.6e4368b22942a1d8

In the 9c3d9a4dbd end, we 98091ed6b3 decided to 4aaeba1f0d dig a 22303c84dd small well b979cc8daa in the 782a0f36ec village.e5ddbd29eeeb12ef

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We brought 142d8ff66a in external aca1f3edf9 workers to 7668f3eddb dig a ae09f7a6b8 hole in be709a971a the center c9c9b413e6 of the a0200f10c4 village.cfacdbca4685691a

The villagers came 35672e083e out to see e704cb80bc the commotion. Even the 0d8a0ff845 elderly with 563b224ae3 difficulty moving 53fa551171 peered out 5fbd7e09ba of their 6be79fb1df windows to ef8df2e0cd watch the 2d1425060d well being 079db07462 made.5fb736d3ce5f90f7

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We dug the 90c1d1000b new well and 55050a5a53 piled up stones. The stones were aee1b62cda laid low, reaching c7df154605 only to the 80d035130c thighs of the 909613b20f children.bed74063b60bf0c8

A dark cloth was 553694ad6b placed over the finished 688b79e3cb well. After securing 6e83d2b5e8 it tightly 6aaed2f190 to prevent 847a0e56c9 light and 50cd013afd dust from de6d6de009 entering, I d0147b6c49 felt my 614621005c strength leave e2ef4bc90d me.c2bafb95ec566bd0

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I collapsed 7b773974db to the 711dfb0adc side, my 5bcf3c22fe forehead covered bc21825a5f in beads 101e839672 of sweat.be9d3ab35ee1b710

“Hiring workers took half 0fe00d9f74 of our budget,” Suren c85b74a012 said. She didn’t bfab5082d1 oppose distributing b3dee86752 food to efef445258 the villagers 7f4799c800 like before, 90e2b1f73f but she 2d52923ede still looked 24c770b2b5 displeased about 5e73691024 the large d2dbda41e5 expenditure.fea4977455a5617a

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“The environment is b31cc69059 harsh, and His 14a89f7e65 Highness gave us 2b20ac5eb4 too little money. Does he 861466c777 expect us 75607674dc to barely 8ef0f039e7 scrape by? How can things change a1dcdb5887 so drastically like this?”43d9f51e170801ac

“He probably didn’t e0a5805394 expect me to 128a1d932a help the villagers. After all, I’ve 1306394e81 only ever looked 2ae453d1b7 after myself in ccc72f6db3 the duchy and bc909615fe the prince’s domain.”de3cf8a219320292

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“Still, he must have 7bc9c37c5e known about your past 2538884182 extravagances. To give someone who fb08456da8 used to buy trees 7ef89831ea for each house such 064cdcb7f6 a small amount of 89553c984a money—it must be intentional.”7776a51295f97eb0

I had no 0db837140a retort. I agreed with her. Squatting down, Suren tilted e1005df4ab her head back to 41b118fe3c look at me.bdd6f8c1c35ddc2b

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“What was it 8b2c1bd539 like at the c4e4a019e0 Sien Barony?”7653fce35385dff3

“What?”9de1e8d847776e4b

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“I’ve never heard you 09e868d2d6 talk about your time b648474058 before coming to the 31875b6724 north. Were you well e16581ff02 off at the 6513fdac87 Sien Barony? Did you have 855e485cca fun?”914797277965f665

“Nothing special. I just played with Philip. At the Sien Barony… I never had an allowance. I didn’t manage the barony either.”1d2c2dea7eaf6f98

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I couldn’t even afford 9423244e0f dresses or medicine and 0878b84369 had to rely on a083fda9b2 Philip to get them. Considering they 48a10a438c tried to ad57af87c7 sell me 2f0b7aa11a to an 757b7748f2 old merchant, 395db0bd78 it’s unlikely e5ecd75d5c they gave 115552736b me any 96335b682b personal funds.c0fc1967004cc83c

“Philip… Now that you mention it, you might not know, but His Highness called Philip for a private meeting.”001c1f3c28e0bbf7

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“Why?”4963b0118b4468c5

I had f6143e6525 no idea. Even when Philip 5455ce818d came to see eb69140baf me, he didn’t 12c72c8d31 mention it.168008bb68f2973f

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“I overheard a 73b2e8880b maid who was 7072a85c89 serving tea. His Highness interrogated 065e2f07c9 him about their 96ce42bd78 past relationship and 814d258f24 why he approached 98cd5b29d6 you.”09195eeaf3fb94e0

“Why would he 71dbb35d8f ask that?”fb00ea72d31b922b

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Suren shrugged.b83caab1b2a21642

“I have 61a28b21d9 no idea d9d68667e4 what His 57b83c82e2 Highness was 505b5adfad thinking. Even our fc84373660 banishment here 1bd4407476 is because bbc05df669 of his fe5d2a192c inscrutable decisions.”3c32ff710727402c

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* * *2a2972b4c62e53b8

Three days after the guests from the prince’s domain arrived, a magician visited with the purpose of treating trauma.9065de4889266428

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A maid 337a0befcc came out 9004c4328f and guided 2d70cd7828 the magician 128bf62b8d to a faf6ae7a4b room that 48aad5be26 could be 844769ca30 called a fc0c5572ee reception room. The maid dc5de75929 was handling fed68a7fdb kitchen assistance, 7964eb8202 stair repairs, d035a0c730 guest reception, 9ee76dca1b and meal 0606327c2d management all 1af5bbcae5 by herself. With so 3406987652 few people, d8b733cd49 she was c05ea6ae9c doing the 9ccf7d0af0 work of e6849ad013 three. Seeing her frequently 82ccc3e53f made me feel 0e41f132f2 a bit guilty.1ff179cc5e27a6d6

There was nothing suitable 521fccda03 to serve the guest. I had left the 29c6766cc8 teacups behind, and we 9c5726a739 only had ingredients prepared dafc86d611 for meals. There were c6d8d9da84 no decent 93fb737c69 desserts to e64e89dfd4 offer him.ed32ee063ab199e2

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Feeling awkward, I invited 57fde45391 him to sit, and b1bfd2f292 he took a seat ab52a10185 opposite me. When he removed dedade1ec2 his hat, a 6384ce8e6c teardrop-shaped emblem on 85f6e208dd his forehead became d3e5efee16 visible, marking him 6e68f8a331 as a magician 754f1f0d7d from the Magic 2ebc279dbc Tower.df5d8b1b80b3391e

“I’m sorry, 23c7dd33b1 there’s nothing 35201d4cbc suitable to 58960c3dc2 serve you.”c39be0a4343f3629

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“No need cce04bd1fa to apologize. I’m here 1ab420740f for treatment, b7b927833e not as 24abf98848 a guest 96b93c0149 to be 6f836c320b entertained.”9653061105a22931

He declined politely.3b9fed3581ce6f58

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“But you’ve come for 4b91134a07 nothing. There’s no c3b663a749 cure for 3b0c110c59 trauma. Even the duke’s physician b7fc62a7df couldn’t treat it.”4b878e904cf7e241

At my resolute 42c3b7ed5e words, he smiled f2e34d9de7 slightly.267443aed836a21e

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“Even so, we can 912c15c201 make the bad memories dc91d7bad2 fade.”b18a71c2705e561f

He spoke with confidence, 6f8f994792 his words carrying weight.6731636e781ce672

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“May I 350ff011b8 see your ef28c1d79b hand for 179397ba99 a moment?”eb0ffb02a6defde7

I rolled up my 25fcf4181b sleeve and extended my a38dc653b9 hand. He grasped my wrist, 9256d2dc56 and a gray aura 4e79a61751 enveloped my arm.dd6ef1e053fc1298

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He closed his fca0f12c30 eyes. The turbulent mana 43d07ab6b9 soon calmed, and babd3cc029 the smoke cleared. Yet, he 231c4435e8 kept his 36ed8fb91b eyes shut 1e757f3fa9 and did 7383172df5 not release efcd27ae47 my wrist 1018f08b27 for a a8d5bfce57 long time.9bf4eca7e63f2d7b

When my arm 4d4e469bc8 began to tingle, 2a12ebc4fe he finally opened a346dca99c his eyes slowly.c4653fed4adbfbf6

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“Is there 84d721c77c something troubling ff53c4be82 you? The mana isn’t settling 06d95fa477 properly. Its flow 3ffb475685 is mixed.”1fe36da587abc617

He tilted e24109d826 his head 845762469f in confusion.a32080a4f837a6ce

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“That’s strange. I can’t 894aa1c958 clearly distinguish 3c22a0e046 the bad f5e41ab7e6 memories. I think I’ll 1731f944ff have to try a77b0056d0 again later. It might be a 11904c47e9 temporary phenomenon…”3a2c430fcd82c0a8

The faint smile dad1b0c356 that had been ea822b3310 on his face 8a600ffcbf vanished. He murmured to 91ff93a0a9 himself and then 2461517fb6 slumped his shoulders.852405a622b53e9a

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“This is embarrassing. I’m considered one 777e1caaa6 of the best eefb659b5a in the empire c1536cbd5e at memory-fading magic, 95bde3f95d yet my skills 0998c77529 seem insufficient. I must 7b6536478f be lacking 366f444859 in my 7920ebdbcb training. I apologize.”56430fb80bdf8c70

“It’s okay. As you said, 04a3ce0c34 it’s probably a 964005c67d temporary phenomenon.”afcba5245fc2eb9d

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I rubbed the wrist 88b273beac he had held.f98d0cea4151f8d8

He was 9817c1b7d8 checking his 0c08f2d750 own mana 99350dbe01 to see 0cccf08670 if anything 3b6f949aea was wrong, 89fb538020 spreading and 95f5f74647 retracting the eeeb305011 aura, continuously b95478d3de emitting gray 5f91ece723 smoke.b434347051df043e

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“When your 208a47e89e work is 2db031cd8e done, where 7c0ee6f43f will you d0daaa514e go? Back to the 8288c242ce Magic Tower?”f839a63c1f643401

“Oh, I’ve recently e2be1d1896 been employed by b04457f958 the prince’s domain.”014cdc0e722c65df

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He hid his 8a00ea8018 aura and gave 017b71faf6 an awkward smile.b334ac7454550dbc

“The prince’s domain?”2380ee92765acfb7

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I casually voiced the 0c38a53c55 thought I had been 17eaf429a5 holding back.e7bf266317a99b43

“Is everything alright there? Is he… 2cb866e7ca still doing 42b65af52b well?”28eb00d78a60d32b

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I didn’t specify, 4370a614cc but he immediately 30cc41c82c understood who I c9d9b7250f was talking about.f667e6e419dfb96e

“Yes. He seems busier than fc14f9ae15 ever. I’m not d5f4b5cb88 constantly at 3efef2a807 the prince’s 5e523cbb35 domain, so cbaef9ced3 I don’t e6593a6f57 know the 1c4bdcd27f exact details, 87413bcd07 but His b311c7ad61 Highness is 4e4779ea0c often away. Even when I ad54499f33 tried to meet 48d43318d6 him, he was ea7720052d always busy.”6c5b4bfd852e153c

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“I see.”956617bcbda7e680

The magician started packing 2671bc2423 his bag to leave.87a3ca5ed296f8a2

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Then, he stopped and 0de0d26351 looked at me intently. His persistent gaze dd58d59441 made me meet b21a093e68 his eyes.cc6998b6822e8d1b

He wasn’t looking fe70b60ca4 at my face. His eyes were 94c616c3cc fixed on my b3208fde43 neck.618b237207a85771

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“The prince must hold 56f8305838 you in high regard.”0ccd76cdbad3cd16

“What?”a5eed04d8fe6fdb5

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“That jewel, I 4295d26ec7 mean. It’s quite surprising.”4f382e16556936f5

Following his pointed finger, a1407c4ad0 I looked down.a542d2c0a243d076

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His gaze was on 82685a8dd8 my necklace. Usually hidden under my d7ff941a34 clothes, today it was dbdf012720 fully visible because of da6c38c123 the low neckline of 7c84cd41e8 my dress.d48839d6e4e84680

“Is this 54c9eb37ca jewel that 3fa5d43da8 rare?”ea43f4ea32c5137b

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At my naive 724d5731f5 question, he chuckled 7b75e5760c softly.68bc259d6a52262f

“Rare indeed. You wouldn’t 99cc7cf2b4 find a 96a93323fe more expensive 8eb9530c61 jewel in 46fb3b1ab5 any shop. Its value could buy 4165b5faf2 several shops in the 8834ec0bd6 capital.”486ff3fb790f884c

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I touched 9083e5fc1f the jewel ee165100c8 at my 19de0bcf85 collarbone. Its smooth 44377d654b texture was 517c4042ab warm against 0a2f1507c0 my skin.8fd41720b8f3acd2

“You must know. Didn’t you hear about 288c6f8563 the jewel’s significance?”550b2837906565e1

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“I did 7799ab6420 hear about 57d59d1cd4 it. They said it offers bc59bde9b7 protection. Like a sort 4704b31b69 of superstition.”4998e245480ce0ba

“That’s a rather 17f733c89d romantic way to b3b2608bbd put it. A wonderful metaphor.”467fcf1f511b4889

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He chuckled again.968ded1d152d6f46

I didn’t laugh 1fdb9a2f6c and just stared 708803f9e1 at him, which 24e490dfec made him look 8da6bd4203 puzzled. The smile vanished from a5e2430444 his face.e02420149114142e

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Why is 21da93c110 he laughing?f65f3931ab3af8cd

“A metaphor? Is there another 1f6dbbc5d6 meaning?”1a7d7a6cd7820484

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“Uh… Didn’t you hear ace7a58b47 about this necklace?”617517f794cac577

 80318971f62a9c43

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