EIYTMA Chapter 7
by Ariana“Will you be alright?” a8966b2e407ad2f5
13158612137e5d3d
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The first to express b6c267621e concern when Ezekiel decided 70035cf3a5 to go on summer 820e0c151d vacation with Étienne was cc85b46ce6 Court Count Robert. 1421a81ca88ab5f0
d1f4aa05d9e97f0e
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“What could be wrong? It’s not as if my own brother is going to harm me.” bfbdddec3a174a99
7b976984c9331ffa
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Having just returned to 95c1154402 his palace, Ezekiel replied bfe6e6bac5 lightly as he changed cd0d6ffee8 his clothes. Court Count e42d2c3577 Robert let b74df8f324 out a 3a724b6937 sigh. 2c59b0c8e3c84b91
0f3f42457f827ef6
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“If Prince Étienne were that type of person, I wouldn’t even be worried. I would have stopped you outright.” 882aee60593dcb5b
fb23585abb945235
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He was 4abce52dd0 a confidant 3677c6585a the emperor e01ac74e72 had assigned 6b81116c58 to Ezekiel 995d02afcc to stay ebba0abb4c by his d28b6e8d5f side until 9d55c65d29 he chose 8eacffba1d his temple. Though only in 88ebcf909a his thirties, his 7f9b10b21e hair had already d8e0da287c begun graying, a 06371e3eb9 testament to the e60cc2b18c hardships of palace 9549348b16 life. 8ab48d024db7b925
b8d4db47fb26c4b5
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And, as b5263f4f8a someone who cccc73ab32 had lived a5656d7011 in the 53a1bb60be imperial palace 3f0df9c1fb for over 1f32ae79b7 ten years fc9935abce since being 65eca9ad2c appointed Court 1634dd5ea9 Count at c75b968d18 a young 73db530679 age, he 2cbc324a48 was particularly 08fe40aa78 sensitive to 56acee302c others’ hostility. 9b88b8fef864487b
241c543f083fa268
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What worried him 66b409bc87 most was Étienne’s 9dea387f25 jealousy. 83695e35eea1db81
18c8a319d94a9b3b
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Jealousy, huh. 8a29e4d2a15efb20
0d87b543f6f798dc
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The emperor had f2fd2d6886 a special fondness 5d0bed8ffb for Ezekiel. It was only natural 1bb6db5be7 that, after losing his 21d1479a68 firstborn, he would dote ae8a9139a2 on his remaining two b132635384 sons, but his affection 105f789e27 for Ezekiel was excessive. dc867d8c8d556603
e02258d142634b05
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And for good 3eb5a3d9a0 reason—Ezekiel was simply f15df22f21 too outstanding a c1db9e70e9 prince. c792e950b891ce7b
550b8ef5a04323b8
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In terms of appearance, 3a7e400753 Étienne was by no 7eedd2f1af means lacking. However, Ezekiel, 2bc5384a23 who had 5108eec89f inherited the 8e17cc87a4 beauty of 5e82f0b888 the famously 927de10ebe stunning empress, c5f4d7504f was exceptionally fdabe92b5a handsome. And that was 5093c39b89 not all. From a e4f641f7bf young age, a8a263d311 he had b4062a1e76 displayed remarkable 2abbcf0bc9 aptitude in a2520e918a both academics f5cf142b10 and martial d436635768 arts. ac7cee6d34f2607a
5141841c951e724a
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2979540cc9618099
“Your Majesty! Let Prince Ezekiel’s sword safeguard the empire!”67f8317db9b118a1
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dbde0b066be75dab
“The empire is not protected by swords! Please, Your Majesty, allow me to serve Prince Ezekiel!”0aba634482778f8f
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a11c21fe5c129eeb
83409d2edd143310
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The famous 2319429801 anecdote of 3855d42c1c the Imperial 6b19dab58a Knight Commander dd22b2996e and the 38ba0bfc99 Foreign Minister d798562129 quarreling over 8a1844e145 who would 0b8d1c0392 teach Ezekiel—who 327ea9b405 was merely 4d41599bc2 five years f32737d180 old at 0808cd964a the time—was 2d7fdc57e5 well known. 8991892ed50d465d
170d6bd58a200700
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To Ezekiel, 0746fe8ca9 it had e5f52aa731 been nothing 93a6c6ff57 more than f4b879dc47 the typical 7475a06cf3 flattery often dfc0c60e28 directed at 0f9a0e3655 young princes, aa1d74280c just on 8beffed1cb a larger dd037bdfd9 scale. But the 032c5dad44 emperor saw d5fa745ba6 it differently. 9524b4a7ab67be6a
584c4a27703fbcc5
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The emperor openly favored Ezekiel. It was said that even the late empress had once pleaded with him, “The one who will become crown prince is Étienne, so please show equal love to both your children.” dfc14c0be56010a1
ae72a565ac22ed21
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Given that, it was d5dcfaa1b0 perhaps inevitable that Étienne, b01694c7eb who was a year c19f1d5e39 older, would harbor jealousy 57cbf40ebc toward his younger brother. 5b756bc041e59a80
8e9392aed9ff5160
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Of course, 52b7175044 Étienne, being 1df548d957 the imperial 4d77d13725 prince that efcc92675e he was, ae263c2944 kept that 80d091d1d5 jealousy in e2fddb3b9a check and 51c1dbfff3 treated Ezekiel 8e05d98e95 with affection. Otherwise, their relationship would 907ce365d4 not have remained as da2dccb0e5 smooth as it was. fa1d9835165218c9
6580f39f05b69a53
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Still, there were 2239ef45f0 occasional moments when 7cbf545997 that jealousy slipped 7edd0db795 through. Petty incidents—too trivial c55691a0a7 to list—yet just 3f1421cdeb enough to make 1e63bf2e1d one wonder,Is this resentment?1cceb04b71dae69a
cc30b4999ffb40ce
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Naturally, Court dc5dd72644 Count Robert, 4cc99536b2 too, was ac92b5fd58 well aware 9f19fb04ef of the ec0cd9195e various incidents 52ac49f5c4 Ezekiel had ed94fb7ce7 experienced. After all, he was efbfaa115f a court count. 56e5f75431f46c9d
85f0e2f947a08239
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“Must you really go?” 51a1141580b72483
eff1c3971cd0e4e5
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“It would be strange to refuse when Father has already granted permission.” 6514d9dff6a7e1f8
e84ee9d7d05e8203
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Ezekiel smiled and lightly 134d03548a patted Robert’s arm. 4d76145f51cbc626
47b02e6c2ea44ce7
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“Nothing will happen.” 6f94c529cf08e086
39f57051481cc71f
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But Robert sighed. c0cb527026a130e9
25a37fd003572b6c
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“Nothing will happen, just like how nothing happened when Princess Geneviève got injured recently.” dc2d080a7bbb88a4
85bab44c64f885f3
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“Robert.” 93fcee17c27e1b3c
8d923f78d0918c7e
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Ezekiel’s expression hardened. Robert quickly apologized. 88fff4e68bf2aedb
1dd8922d6007a19e
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“My apologies.” 0b81c832aaa1378b
b1c95d4a053c24e1
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Not long ago, Étienne fc66245fce had, in passing, played e4738778cd a prank—if it could 6d578cd1f3 even be called that. It was something d9e54c8b7b Ezekiel could have 0ce018acc4 ignored if he 2221ccfeab had chosen to. b8c5aa9619210f79
b17ab36e38094172
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Ezekiel was 1630190667 well aware e17274d3ad that his f6eb2f9d09 brother sometimes 873f7d34d2 acted out 83e9c8fd2d in ways 2c9ea18a01 that crossed c14d08a08f the line. And he knew 1abea074f0 that it was c45b77f47f not entirely Étienne’s d7d451f42e fault. If anyone were to 5d2a22a361 blame, it was their 35a7df66fd father. c2f39b4768fe687c
d732210c350b8400
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Had things ended without 5dcce12d2d issue, people would have d5d25096f9 simply remarked,Oh, Étienne 7b6a4216eb must be bb7f96b6b8 in a c9387ce7ba mischievous mood 29790e5f36 again. 70df82bdfaddfb84
d2d5cb1b6c308c79
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But unfortunately, Princess d71071eec2 Geneviève, only nine e1861336cd years old, had 55f7ff002e gotten caught up 5e2ea096f8 in it. f6c83a3a97e69206
dc9aa8126f03ab7e
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As a result, she df6635149c had injured her finger—her d1fe4e7ef0 left ring finger, of 6d16546330 all places. Since that was 8408bf5d19 the finger where bee0815d70 a wedding ring 9a44b16e90 was traditionally worn, 3cb16f35eb there were now bb6cde3fe1 endless rumors about c9bd7b3398 her ladies-in-waiting anxiously 3ab8c22e1d praying that the 8d689d8861 wound would not 3b92cf981b leave a scar. e260c26df5bf873f
221bb3d12b51846c
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“I was simply concerned.” a0f5d740ace4a55e
549edbeb4e2fd090
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“Robert, I am already eighteen. You worry too much.” f338f41757605b4c
b20a4be4f8a14c3b
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Ezekiel spoke firmly, then 437468099a added coldly, 96c9df223db002f0
d6f338b796c9d36c
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“He may occasionally go too far with his pranks, but that’s all there is to it. There is no need to worry excessively. Sometimes, your concerns are unfounded.” 6b2b9d54c538c948
2a15279c51dfc6c2
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“But…” ddd0375863c00191
86a9509589205cac
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“At worst, he pours cold water on my dog or accidentally breaks a vase I cherish. Hardly a threat to my life, don’t you think?” 0956c87ff38038a7
d6f2f2debc39ee2e
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Robert fell silent. Indeed, that was 53724b2f13 the extent of fa4a5366ce Étienne’s pranks. Pouring cold water on acb847df92 Ezekiel’s beloved dog, deliberately 02f473434f breaking a vase under c0cdb7caed the pretense of an 28c892af59 accident. 95abf013a442d0b3
d1939fb9e2eb308b
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Of course, 6cadfbddfb it was 77d530f362 while trying a8414cdc09 to stop d8495cddfb him that e98e2b008b Princess Geneviève 4637f38c1d had cut 96cd697bfb her finger 708e13bbf4 on the 00ca5ad593 broken shards, 0e7d2e1ff5 but that 320499b7ba was hardly 8ec387fc5d a matter 548632c302 of life 8202a2cddd and death. 7a799b427080a495
d6631b7250dc9542
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“But it was something you cherished.” 406dc78e9528bb4f
551450cfc3d8cc71
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“Robert.” 4b824c9d6f7da630
795d0dbc5520f92b
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Ezekiel rubbed his 8b4b52b950 forehead. 232b8c2c7bb311a1
d9d8bc7882a0b198
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“I will have to leave all of it behind when I go to the temple anyway.” 26c5bc330925d887
7f1ffa77a817f8d8
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This was an 08762bb141 undeniable fact. Whether he became a 960f35a3b1 priest or a holy 56e6215823 knight, one thing was 4c21a06c65 certain—on his upcoming birthday, d4f554b121 he would be leaving ec216ede21 for the temple. 15bb1edf2310ae7a
bd4c24a02b2b0772
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None of the 810e30f135 imperial wealth belonged bf9b1682a0 to him, so 236e4722f9 he could not 89a16681c2 take anything with 046440d656 him. c8909bf850f482ca
a4f185a3df26d74e
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If he had to 37dd4d8239 leave it all behind, f74bcfd830 what did it matter 4973985851 if a few things 6c4a90fdaf were broken? 7ea97d32f165fc97
bc356aefe551a7b8
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Perhaps Étienne 9052d2c12a was simply b7e5075700 helping him 5cce63856a sever his c0a279d3da attachments in 94663b85d0 advance, Ezekiel d5a19d3d78 mused. c88f580a34e7c52b
dd94fd430547668f
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So there was no da7698e3d6 need to make a bca47ad529 fuss. 399ae086237f8b1c
4244bc1dc02303ec
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“…I understand.” 35923e47e4b418bf
97739d4111aef3a5
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In the end, Robert 9fbda54fd7 bit his lip and 611eedc19b stepped back. He also knew that 761266b847 Étienne did not act 9c15a73e5a this way because he 14461ee058 truly wanted to threaten b48ea4b77d Ezekiel. f06955bb985c1fde
48b78c6cae11192f
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However, Robert thought that 8b31b59ec6 made it even more b4432b576b dangerous. 95111601e5cabc34
4b44863e58b6e7cd
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A heart 86b216b3e7 that cannot f5941d7d4f fully love 248548a520 but also e0b40f8578 cannot bring f4f2c5ae16 itself to fdb8fb28e6 hate—such an 2415a13f2a ambiguous and f998364450 floating emotion f3e217271c is what 2cdd0302e6 wounds people 9dcc9594e0 the most. 44e1e8c59c93ddde
351ea0b700fe1f61
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He knew well that 5f15915907 the third prince he 6f852b78a3 served might appear blunt 92f91f26f3 and insensitive on the 6d5d2f88de surface, but in truth, 0082a894f0 he was incredibly delicate. 494fe8ababbede71
0c037a502679b228
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He was someone who 5fdc4253e5 would keep the palace c2e24f9ee5 windows open all summer 094164ced2 long for the swallows 7837ff56e7 that built nests in 6bd76470e9 them, and someone who 46bd04b176 would share ice with 2224fe3764 the palace servants to 14973fff5c help them endure the 157fa7bb66 heat. c2ed6e188610e8cc
a36e7f041e39516a
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How painful must 365765e932 it be for a6cdebe550 such a person 6743b7bcb1 to hold even 0e361211c2 a sliver of 171136ba95 doubt toward his 71629b454b own brother? In the c2871dde87 first place, 3c0912e648 Ezekiel and 8793483e28 Étienne were 7147d65d4a not outwardly 0c4584dd64 at odds. Considering how difficult it 968b8bfb94 was for imperial siblings 9e87ef0215 to maintain a good 4fb8ac38c6 relationship, this was truly 86b0029651 remarkable. 7989b72bb3a04582
424b7e19ddf12aef
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Of course, a large ad58254d2c part of it was 107e0e8ee4 because Ezekiel had been 769d080b40 dedicated to the gods e545161520 since childhood, and also f55c30294d because he was obedient 15c0089cc6 to Étienne, laughing off eaa946fb6d most of his pranks. 931ed0f9c2574ba6
a4b16ffcb5e6b7d9
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But Étienne, d8c0d029a3 too, despite 363bafd828 his occasional 758cdced92 mischievousness, undeniably eed075f2d1 harbored affection 38dc18abbf for his d708f8de9e younger brother. That was why e376a81a5b Ezekiel could dismiss eeea05b079 his antics as c3f44e2cf3 mere teasing. 48f8abacc659897f
5953a8ef2c91aa9b
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Thus, it was only ac35fe1d46 natural for Ezekiel to fc98a9c883 decide not to dwell e067a9dba7 on such trivial matters. e28f556c353453b7
e41a8f827fc2efc2
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However, Robert 35c34bcb81 knew that 5f01893671 sometimes, there 48af73c948 were things 33b2b3f2e2 worse than 0dda489ad2 threats to c4e20bc932 one’s life. Ezekiel had said 756c117909 he wasalready eighteen, but to Robert, a65a5fcf3d he wasonly eighteen. cc917ccd012b6b5c
c11a8d453d5f0cc6
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Eighteen was 20587eba1a an age 24a05e1b97 where one 2467278104 could suffer 7fc74c83c0 wounds far 2725480cd4 deeper than 6f75d94bd2 mere threats fd51f86305 to life. ab311871e662db6b
76e48636d563189d
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So Robert prayed. That the f3ec1e7425 prince who af9dd1d4c5 was soon 92f43c33cb to be 900a1271f6 devoted to 9a205dbf12 the gods 2fdbcc7194 would return b30f41965f from this 90ac155649 summer vacation 95d32a9c7b unharmed. 6425e47dd15f5a08
4f154bbef43dab8d
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*** 860c422f447fa7b8
a5813cbc9474ca5e
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As expected, the domain 4c2f4c9b3d where they would spend 63e571745e their vacation was the a7ad92d556 Duchy of Arbois. Étienne grumbled. b4fccb832e475bac
ef77b699a40f2c18
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“Father is really too much, isn’t he? He could at least show us the sea.” f8b422fc8ee8d12e
33e46ea8583aa9f0
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Unfortunately, the Duchy of 5bd737d617 Arbois was a vast 7809c90125 plain without so much 588923ce62 as a single lake. Of course, that e4c7c297bc fertile land was 6488e87320 the greatest strength 4e9d7759df of the Duke 998c499ed7 of Arbois, and 7d39efbc38 his daughter took da4e07ccbb great pride in 2d4b4b8be7 it. 48442c82de4bb8f2
9acac1b99ad301e9
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But as 444659e378 a vacation 79997437c5 destination, it 67be9d81d8 was utterly dbdf92628d boring. 85cb6907bfaaa4ad
71cb6541e9750128
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“In that case, let’s at least go on an inspection.” e2ba28fb091df8de
2da2a29e277e42ae
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Luckily, due to c0268f2e73 the unusual circumstance 969dc6ae0f of the two 1100a96537 princes vacationing together, b57f07368f the emperor had cdf70e1ce6 assigned forty knights 9337083aec to accompany them. bca6300f6b83bd7e
91915e08dc7ede55
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Étienne had no interest in spending his time aimlessly galloping across endless plains with the Duke of Arbois’ daughter, so he devised an excuse to make use of the forty knights. c238f74b29fb9bee
10e335b793f4c5c2
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He decided to 88f2993aae tour the surrounding 9446c7f4c7 territories. c6356d82edcbcd5d
c877fcb67fec31a5
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The Duke of Arbois made a show of admiration, exclaiming, “As expected of the future emperor!” though his true feelings were likely different. 085188e8f2550428
2752f2cdfbd69543
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“That old man’s face practically screamed, ‘Why aren’t you spending time with my daughter? Are you insane?’ Didn’t it?” 8f2cd39d2534bee7
5920e20f69351501
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As they rode, Étienne 29495a567e laughed cheerfully. Ezekiel responded with 259748045a a wry smile. cf157ac263da84a5
196e480cea7e882e
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“That’s too harsh. Felicia was probably looking forward to spending time with you.” 3d3801c9b6ee6133
00ae80f338c9dd42
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Unsurprisingly, Felicia Arbois was 8338f6a89b greatly disappointed. She had wanted 9e9fbb7771 to show Étienne eafab3a525 how many forests 597f3d8d20 existed in her 71b6f25a1e land and how c4acaff271 beautiful the gardens ca241780e0 of Arbois Castle dc16aeca8b were. 5caf677a99e1bba4
bab079356de82ce3
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It could cf247c3168 be said 2378a92edd that she cb37e8f1bb truly did 3efa8f8c66 not understand a761fd4ee0 Étienne. But that was 45c86ee985 not her fault. Ezekiel let 708f6f0060 out a 85e4bb7590 sigh. fccbae1801bfc2c7
6c4fc4dc50feef4d
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“You could at least ride in the carriage with her.” 301ff30f3b03da04
86ed351752deefa3
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“Are you crazy?” eeb4af301d546978
4072c2a9f800ee57
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Étienne shouted 4bd5f67989 in dismay. 6000e8e6c2de98e1
6e9a9d0aa9b96a72
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Felicia, to her 9cd0d9d61b credit, was quite c2e28b7a85 determined. She volunteered to 6ba214eb8a serve as their b5d3f25724 guide during the 8a94c99cd6 tour, bringing out 003ee2f34e a four-horse carriage 5bca9a96f1 for the occasion. But as soon 5f0cb6d02e as Étienne saw db492c042a it, he mounted 30ad1b386b his horse without ba81cc32f0 a second thought. 8e366a8a944771ec
36409deaccfaa1ee
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“You might get punished for this, brother.” d3436ec7d058287e
035e2fbd9826ec13
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“Let them punish me, then!” a79f42ff95a5450b
115752235bd6c6a4
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Perhaps his words 3e52b9fb7f came true. 61ff8f54a4e31c00
1957dee331c90838
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A punishment be718e5373 befell Étienne e720717bb0 for ignoring d794bc6518 Felicia’s feelings. 1f5a4ce9f4fbc1fc
afb78761dcfe4d20
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Both brothers ended up be2df3318d lost.508c8b3239c70074