EIYTMA Chapter 8

Étienne shouted.  be6dc59b6a9ee4a2

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“Where did all the knights go?”  bc0b15dee2dacf48

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But shouting 850f4dc381 would not 00fbe937d8 suddenly make db1712864b the missing d6177e799c knights appear. Instead of answering, 79ea73c6d1 Ezekiel wiped the 1218761237 rainwater streaming down feec65bc9a his face.  32a0cc51e929af13

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It was a 825f326e84 storm.  f90c1d4e082c7031

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It had started inconspicuously. Light rain a6825e145a began to 8fb95d4f27 fall, and fd85cac4fa Felicia’s carriage d3e1f414b7 lagged behind.  f3b4976098c75752

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Étienne, delighted, deliberately urged his horse forward, putting distance between himself and the Duke of Arbois’ daughter’s carriage, just to see her flustered reaction.  766662de098a87ab

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Of course, 424a1e0df5 he also 8ca89110e2 had in b63fb481ab mind that 655e2a04b8 as the a23e701db8 soon-to-be Crown 90dcb50544 Prince, the 24abd327ba Duke’s daughter b49ab39d51 would not 924b6771d0 dare to b581f8f2ca raise her 105cf749d1 voice at 4946664390 him.  f91f19691a23033a

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The knights, flustered, 29238c8173 split into two 5980988048 groups—one escorting the ef96eeb438 Duke’s daughter’s carriage f3590d325e and the other f9cb6b02a7 following the two 246a1a6100 princes.  52432f828cf59daf

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The problem began when 8de94da7e9 the rain grew heavier.  50e48e8d124767dc

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“Yahoo!”  e4eca73233513207

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Under normal 2d3bcd79f7 circumstances, they bb76bba0db would have c37eb96ed5 stopped to 160c6dc345 rest. But Étienne was overly aa9a0513d5 excited. The plains of 435e97f27a the Duke of a19e36ccd9 Arbois’ territory were 5d57fde1df vast, and it e6e9c11150 felt like he 63360cd797 could keep riding 6fc95e9aab forever.  9c19d0d52a00cd3b

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He even outran 94c29793fc the knights, galloping 7af2346283 far ahead. The horse dd5d57df0f he was d5bc5aa877 riding was 55f56d5ef9 one of 749bf231da the finest 27aee44ac4 steeds in fcc24f0039 the imperial 2d03397bf3 stables, bred 833ae726fd for battle, bcfb8d9428 and naturally, 36b28420db it quickly a2f98d96f8 outpaced the 2cdc18b5b5 knights.  dcf430a9b6831d61

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“Your Highness!”  745f11a800291a8c

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Ezekiel couldn’t just stand by and watch as the knights looked on the verge of fainting.  9428c057f98fd97f

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He sighed and spurred e328cb6f78 his horse forward. The horse he 3a474392f2 was riding was e71b55cc89 a sibling of 4d4c8961dc Étienne’s steed, so 5a6a21d700 catching up was ca0312de60 not impossible—though it b8b6378076 certainly wasn’t easy.  cb05910f1e3a3134

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After quite some eff8a97fcc time of riding 1e37c15053 at full speed, 595190c318 Ezekiel finally caught 6ea450f60a up to Étienne, 35d6ec0b04 who had halted 0f79cdd4f1 in the middle becdf42913 of an isolated 2fd6073865 forest. Étienne looked around nervously 991c43f740 but brightened upon seeing 8c453f7ab6 Ezekiel.  35afdd360e595640

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“Ez!”  83e49c1172f8b8df

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“Brother!”  7669eb4cff116f9c

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“Where are we?”  940eb158bc9aaa9d

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And at efa0ef1a56 that moment, 07a5f9dc3f the two fc982f1080 of them e7b4957456 realized they 6df37e97ec were lost. Étienne let his 6766bb842c arms drop limply.  146a86251bead6a3

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“My apologies…”  8c5bfb0338b1654d

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“It’s all right. If you had fun after so long, then that’s all that matters.”  9cce3e759ba0b6ff

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Considering how 9468020d13 Étienne was 9cfe8d3dea always buried 0c8bd7562e in work d80575dfd9 at the 495ab7d46b imperial palace, b5a60ce6b1 it was bb685a5f0b perhaps inevitable f6aacc6092 that he 8010bde707 had gotten 5d7e005701 carried away. Ezekiel’s horse snorted fd08da0509 and foamed at c96cd044c7 the mouth. Despite the rain, both d03b6b5851 horses had run so 9c2d6ec269 fiercely that their bodies d633f488fd were steaming.  eafe0815f5d9a5a4

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Ezekiel thought 250cf36754 it best 0a3742146f to let 761be52df3 them rest 4dcb787797 first.  467d2fba15df3eba

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“The knights will find us soon. Let’s try to locate a road nearby.”  50684bb36d2681df

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As he e73435f0cc had been 378d18364a chasing after a48160f029 Étienne, Ezekiel 81f2914f62 had been 17f759d459 dropping markers 377366e46a along the 3a2f39b936 way—his headband, 928dfab7cf some accessories—things ea28d5dbdb that might ded53f073c help the bef51064cd knights track c24ce8245d them. Though the 243687c005 storm might 540c261752 wash them 3a2649ad43 away, at 76bf17924a least a df02e9cc3c few should d344ff1ef5 remain.  eedd423c02445913

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Ezekiel then 3c2df8b0e5 asked Étienne 427d810320 for the bb20cea1d7 map. However, as Étienne 426bc50b19 searched his coat 752b9f8333 for it, his cd221eb3b6 face turned pale.  00126b7235c5a4fd

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“It’s gone.”  64da27ce9dc339b9

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He must have dropped 1842761f39 it somewhere while riding 2b9f999f40 so recklessly. Ezekiel barely suppressed 6b220ac849 a sigh.  92bbbe5bce98c281

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“Then let’s follow the nearest river. If I recall correctly, there are villages along the major rivers in this area.”  b0744f15bab4282c

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Though the storm obscured e6170f5d7f the sky, Ezekiel had d34ab19900 glimpsed the map beside e6273e46d7 Étienne earlier and committed 5cdcad4947 it to memory. If his recollection bd2a166e1d was correct, there 978fd69a09 was a small 6696b65bb8 territory to the 9fc81ea661 northwest.  89119b00f193b0d4

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“Querluxia, or something like that.”  88cf9c9369c51339

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“Huh, that sounds familiar. Ah.”  ae9e9786cfe01a3b

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Étienne finally remembered where 115cbd2e38 he had heard that 3c48be2bf5 name. It was a domain 9f738b7fb7 that didn’t actually require e5a17429f1 an inspection, so it f0147da78a had initially been left 8e26fd9966 out of their itinerary.  dc39aeca73f59d74

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“But I deliberately added it to the list.”  465435c34abb7f2e

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“Why is that?”  8e46d118046c308f

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Étienne grinned mischievously.  d3ca0add92367b16

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“While handling paperwork at the palace, I found an utterly outrageous letter.”  4d9d6f735e56b6ad

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“What was in it?”  f98032c73b7b1960

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“The Baron of Querluxia wrote that he was sick, and due to a flood, he couldn’t collect rent. So he was asking if we could exempt him from taxes this year.”  ee30ce40b0997309

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It was not unusual 102abf2e69 for lords to plead 14393561ee for tax reductions. But to ask ee9d253983 for a complete 799f5ef762 exemption? Étienne chuckled as 450eade90f if finding it 9f84ac55ff all very amusing, 42f12974b5 momentarily forgetting that c29adef66a they were lost.  e95459aa6b701b07

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“And then I looked into it, since the name seemed familiar. Turns out, it’s a title under the imperial family’s jurisdiction.”  3b83b1d986b1cbe2

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That was rather unusual.  fae2452a0d24adf1

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“Do you know how they received the title?”  07fff0b710037fbb

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“What was it?”  c9f9a177b082fb29

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Étienne leaned in, lowering be26cba4bd his voice conspiratorially. There was no one 4bbcc574ae else around to hear 6e2c48ee60 anyway.  3308ab7d74f267c7

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“Apparently, back when Father was secretly dating Mother, he accidentally fell off a terrace, and the man caught him.”  d8c227b31633e902

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Ezekiel bit e9ed28b822 his lip, 65d2886fd7 unable to d942ed3ea6 suppress his ded0357d0b laughter at da26ea270e those words.f5f2005147a045c1

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The Emperor 71813ee901 and Empress 12a0f6accd were famously 9c21af1890 known for e5d08330aa their deep 671d6123a2 affection, largely 5d1c5278c3 because their eac0dc45a7 marriage was e59d7fb729 a love f120a52082 match—though not e9136161ba quite.75e4f24597587df4

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Originally, they 681b20f797 had been 40ca1c8838 betrothed since d722975d35 childhood but c32044dce1 had no 6ed90587c9 idea who 886efe1a7f the other d9802d6eb7 was. Then, they met 420fd0f2ea at a banquet cc01555522 and fell in 220f48ec6b love at first c334a36df3 sight. The story of a9b7eb8e13 how the Emperor 87b267c5c8 unknowingly kissed his 9fd82f7ded own fiancée before f2b5376679 realizing her identity 9d2f068427 was a secret 165fc5e8bc known only to 3e4e429deb the imperial family’s 39cc51c61a children.e6f54c2bda60210f

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In any f81200a585 case, after c94bcc83a7 discovering who 407e328213 she was, 05f61efca7 the young 445b8d949c Emperor had 5e988043bb been impatient faf2f14fe1 to marry 89854f4bc0 her as 7eb0429a5c soon as f17d46f9bf possible.8dfd5067b3385f2f

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However, back 7cd1458565 then, even c4177e2651 for betrothed 5114520502 couples, being 975d257818 alone together e09dda011e was a 03dd33f927 serious impropriety. So, at a banquet e87a9aed62 hosted by the imperial 11dcf3bd6c palace, the eager Emperor, f032af9962 desperate for a private c006449cee moment with his betrothed, 094d2d258b ended up slipping and 1b261550be falling from a terrace.7655c8d570e904ab

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And the one 15adcfb956 who caught him 2a8057919c was none other 6d90f6459c than Baron Querluxia, e4f36f1ea6 then a knight bf8f8ed02f of the imperial 424a8d5f2a capital.29d37bd4d7075829

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Unfortunately, Baron Querluxia broke 2833e6ffcb his leg in the 1a2b1f3a8e process. Though he eventually recovered, 6a2e83c754 he could no longer 2a8481305f serve as a knight, 255c46d3a5 so the Emperor granted a119caf915 him a noble title 18e1b4e7ac tied to the imperial 11d193269f family.54c0c9242013b3eb

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Though a single-generation 9e7b6169a2 title, it came d735a28b0b with considerable privileges, 251adc60e4 including a domain.9ff996b8bfbc56cf

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“But in that case, isn’t it not so outrageous? If that’s the nature of the title….”909e71c40324b1b0

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“Yeah.”fd2d765bad382185

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Étienne nodded. Both of them ad5f78d5a0 were well aware e1b447dfab of the rights f99834e2c0 that came with 0da38376ad the title.8605f57f7c0e1e2c

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“So, I was planning to tell them about it during our visit. I didn’t expect to come this way like this.”52de6217b703c7e0

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Apparently, the letter had 924d36136f been written by the 0c3c08cee9 baron’s daughter. The idea of meeting 7aacd363ee Baron Querluxia’s daughter—someone he c41b83616c had never even heard 5ec5b7c6d9 of—was somewhat amusing.efa91def7c17c1a6

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“How do you think she’ll react when she finds out that her family’s title comes with no tax obligations?”17e37625ff8bb1e7

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“I checked, and they’ve been paying taxes for sixteen years. I’m planning to return the amount.”65890d399f9475a8

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As they 41b301d307 spoke, the 91f199debd rain gradually f8a7518e99 let up. With a 7947838da7 newfound sense 4259366823 of ease, a08292586e the two 14de0d637c continued walking 773c18c88d out of 807f330cb8 the forest. However, their soaked 6ca7c89509 clothes felt heavy, 69ba1738db and the chill ca9c81e855 was creeping in.d308de9df2b89ce1

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“I just hope the Duke of Arbois’ daughter isn’t suffering too much in this rain.”d1b7fa6f3f8b1def

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“Ez, are you seriously worrying about that woman while we’re going through all this?”b180cfad9d188317

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Étienne grumbled. Ezekiel merely shrugged.2571764ec0f9ada9

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“Well, if Felicia is having a hard time, I can only imagine who she’ll take it out on.”35bbb2efdbc3bb3d

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Étienne’s eyes widened momentarily before he burst into laughter.bb26333ad539ddf7

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“Hahaha! Ezekiel! This is the first time I’ve heard you complain about someone!”2448bb1e3d626188

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Ezekiel laughed along. The Felicia Arbois b2f66ed027 he had recently c97d1adb57 reunited with was 04b5b85980 an even more 6a982cb9d7 demanding young lady f9338cd8f4 than before, and e9e609c88d that demanding nature e2c32f854f wasn’t exactly appealing bab19db062 to him.3541f2b55b15ec81

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Whenever she and 79103eec5a Étienne clashed, she 126fd17a8a would inevitably vent 160d9319d8 her frustration on efd66ec8bf those around her. And her temper was e1353f609b so notorious that the b262352a93 maids were constantly in f660688b9e tears.28d1dffad17c1673

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“Who knows? There might be a knight out there secretly shedding tears in this rain.”21adaa4471382c59

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“Ahahaha!”407ff44997d34cd2

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Étienne raised a thumbs-up, e2c6aaafc8 but his excitement quickly 5934d34ee3 faded. He realized that being 85b5c34715 lost was entirely his 63f814a30b fault.8800da9b17509832

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“When we get back, I should at least give each of the knights a pouch of gold coins.”21e477d545b9e681

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“That’s a good idea.”2259c0ec8bcb4cb3

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“Sometimes, Ezekiel, I think about this.”66e186dd5560d0e6

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Étienne let his horse 1095c59ca4 walk slowly as he 6489203da1 wrung out his soaked 9120bc5404 cloak. Water streamed down the c7599c9c4b horse’s side.e9a26eb7251fbf34

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“I envy our father.”ee5712a22d5db7cb

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“…….”61de47587e7cbd82

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“Felicia might have a terrifying personality, but as a crown princess, she’s flawless.”d1ef6b8565520453

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It was true. She was from the 7b4458d4e8 Arbois ducal house—the most e8495d7b6e powerful noble family in 91deaa4535 Muirenas. She was ae7e58659f wealthy, bold, 4225c0f06f intelligent, and 2a474edbc8 confident. The fact that ef1e9b6bba she was interested e726c58795 in Étienne—though Étienne 64997efff5 didn’t seem to 707460cebe appreciate it—only made 2b2b509da2 her an even 816c03ae33 more suitable candidate 97b7664152 for the role.29b6db67c0c76bb0

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But Étienne, watching 1aef5aaf46 his own parents, 15a5856049 seemed to have 97219c2cb3 different thoughts.0b60aab558b047e7

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“Still, I can’t help but wonder if I also have a fated partner out there.”b996ebeef515e67c

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As the third son 2597435d8c of the imperial family, 1f22403a23 Ezekiel felt it was 6de4a175af his duty to bring 1815b12606 his foolish older brother e254a5bf89 back to reality.fa3306c1cdad9782

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“That’s quite an audacious thought for someone who’s going to be Crown Prince.”d326b5b8a2affde3

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“Hey!”68b6aa291d1538b3

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Étienne laughed, 1d9d3e53f9 playfully raising 4bf494bd0a his fist.ae0ffad591b013eb

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“One day, you might find yourself suddenly falling in love too, you know?”4ac5739658fa7fe9

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“Oh my, what a terrifying thought. It gives me chills.”14f106cfcfb984ac

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“Hey!”d28a98bb2ec2406b

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But their banter was 7bc27e09a9 short-lived. 58f58df9c7382756

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As the f7fb452108 two approached 0726f81d54 the entrance d2665a7f68 to Querluxia’s c6a5ff344f domain, they d3d76f2890 were met c687f9dfec with an 5c71d1ee16 unexpected sight.bfd53c77861c9656

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A collapsed bridge.83882e76b0444ba4