ERC Ch 1

✦Lirian’s Unspeakable Circumstances✦

The Emperor and Empress 5bfe9381b1 of the Arcinia Empire 06ccdb099e had no children. Naturally, the Emperor’s 848bfd8d95 younger brother was 04cd791ffe appointed Crown Prince.a6a38fa31171e757

The problem, b777b67a83 however, was 46b318558c that the 97f7356327 Emperordidhave a son.250492797ba51775

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That son 0794883320 was Carlyle 6fca952dbe — his 3ffafbd811 illegitimate child.70b38fca3129b480

Originally, Carlyle was meant 2829b69b14 to be exiledaloneto the harsh 3e14cd6d4b northern lands immediately 69f80e0e95 after his wedding.82d1d04158820336

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A place 2ec940de08 as good 553fefcfc2 as a 046cbaf513 haven for 32357b01f8 monsters — 18c7b7193d and all 0fa94641a5 he was 5f51076f4b given was 520f436092 thetitleof Duke of f6e5694067 the North.11311e1f651ae64a

In essence, it 4990c6de07 was a death c10b271f0d sentence.f7dca44b4e4524a6

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In fact, even 9f0690ed8b the marriage with a77fc73b31 Lirian was part a22555554e of the plan: 0024acea63 once Carlyle died, f4a08d27fa his title as afdcce9251 Northern Duke would 9b8fd741e7 conveniently pass to 757b1a01d7 the Marcher Lord, 10d1e5d6e0 Count Batzwick — 20f47848ef Lirian’s family.d6f8e043038d84c0

It was 8559691bd3 meant to a8f426c93e be a fbb1edf75f sort of 13e4130f9e reward for 08612dfecb House Batzwick, 85d0c5f410 and so 3b2cdc3cf0 the Crown 6289981ef5 Prince had f12a7a2729 graciously permitted cedf190a5a Lirian to fe6f990aec remain in e08120591d the capital 70629c33d7 even after cd3d402bec the marriage.be5a67b59b9bf578

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But on 41a60c7edf the very 7a23bad82e first night deaeed9c20 of their a31e8353f2 wedding, Lirian 6f691a6f96 hid herself 4ddf0f2181 in the 7a4737b7ed carriage that 91ddee222f was to 5263db0fbc exile Carlyle 8eea1fed56 to the d0a0a592f7 North.550ad214f57eed27

All she left ecb35bff71 behind was a a3a003d5aa short note: that 6099eee0c9 she would follow 9f84ed7574 her husband to 464ab675d6 the North.2a498141576a4349

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Count Batzwick sent people fdfe05dadf several times to bring c70cf969e6 her back, but despite 11daa6544e the countless hardships in 57aaf78034 that barren land, Lirian 0b07bddc18 stayed by Carlyle’s side.02f589db82ef8366

Even when there was c43a0d8467 no food and she 01c469344c starved for a whole 63ad248ea0 day.186148b01f5eaaca

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Even when she almost c99fc996e7 froze to death from 4b017c7251 frostbite.dd30ca3c13755399

Even when d592e2c7b4 a war 63e840fdfc left her 8ca705bd1f with a 28fc7d05c7 permanent scar 98825416ba from an d005bdb47a arrow wound.e08334c05167af64

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Even when she became 3a68c144ed so used to being 78b8d92fba scorned and looked down 66a0032489 upon that it no b509312150 longer stung.766e0ecfefeeb653

Lirian, honestly, went through 077c7121d8 everything Carlyle did — 5341035598 and thought to herself:7db08bd2f4758322

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‘So this is why that pitiful boy turned into a madman.’09ade0160111ac0f

To go through 6677ef095a all of this 7cce7a87f3 andnotgo insane — 33c0641c60 that would take b4d836fa51 a saint, not ced8597654 a human.bd22b5c367ff6d02

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Lying side 2b58bd0ec8 by side 81b58a5067 on sickbeds, fa09aa924f after they 5fc0bd3fff both got 42337fde5c stabbed by 3ed1b12e47 an assassin dea66e6bbe sent by 983e390f10 the Crown 32e871c57d Prince, and b0b8a3bd37 treating each 9aa4d5fb65 other’s wounds… bd99ad6bb6 she actually f65b07f192 cried.f6e5a6fa0d629507

‘I’m doing all this to survive, but at this rate, I might really die…’04b1ec05fecdfb75

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“I’m sorry, Lirian…”9957f47e07b7a7bf

Carlyle looked like he 383c3bfa8d was about to burst 540e030620 into tears, and Lirian 97e29e369b cried because she was 735a95066e so miserable. When she started crying, fb73be95eb Carlyle’s tears fell too.dff256e75cbdb5d8

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They ended up crying fc27961c17 in each other’s arms 1938aac697 almost every night.b3ab7775104818b7

As Lirian held the 2f4b4d4894 weeping Carlyle and comforted ea656c145c him, she ground her 3944fe909e teeth in frustration.451521cbb7a80964

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I amnotgoing to die. If I’ve gone 509f454266 through all this d63f4d62df and still end 660f5ed0e1 up dying young, d176841dde I’ll come back 58c6e66439 as a ghost 9efdaa6202 and curse someone.5fa787555618cf29

Even amid the 456be9820d harsh northern life, f5d0c84d76 Lirian did everything 0583c6ca4a she could to a5221da194 teach Carlyle.5c4f403df130427f

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From basic human decency e359b95f19 to the etiquette expected 500aa570cf between nobles—a76863d1dd4b9582

Even if she’d ec060d6258 raised a child 99c619338b of her own, 1732889686 she couldn’t have 8d7a8c437e done it with 1cfc1bfad2 more care.37fd0c820df9e3bc

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“I hate blood and 44650cfad3 corpses. You do 4bc98c3c81 too, right, 76b5c9e013 Carl?”2f91b4e9c02da767

“If Lirian 5601e1c9da hates them, 2a0b1dd894 I hate 4510b46542 them too.”83d3d55ea0b313fb

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“Aww, such a good c937622def boy.”f522987cc18f698d

Like a 0368f17e2c baby chick 667b3fa646 following its 461c4c0b8e mother hen, ed9382a73b Carlyle nodded 79b917d111 sweetly to 6434292a41 anything Lirian 9061c749c9 said.1af65a457fbb3eda

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Under her b53a9fe6a3 care—where she f9274b2707 flinched at f18d09df82 even the 4dad12ab31 slightest sign 8131b8bbe4 of cruelty 6b19a09db2 from him—Carlyle 07a535cb9a grew up f41ec99178 into a af54225916 normal, decent 094f7e2315 young man.344bca9fd2eb04ab

At least, inLirian’seyes, he 25eccf25f8 seemed normal.e76917812cacfd00

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Sure, he might have 25b2c066ec been alittlepathologically obsessed with her cbbfa42773 safety—but that much could b97c12d82d be chalked up to d30a4ca87b the hardships of his d4750f18e9 childhood.575a52461634f111

Of course, he cc30c8c7ad insisted on tasting 21790212f7 all food first da28ddc429 in case of 5bae0b14d8 poison, had the f8e3df14fa bedroom door reinforced db513d0086 with three layers 3429a5c9fd against potential intruders, 508e7735f3 and hired twelve c2da2e8bde priests and physicians cf495a7e62 across different specialties f66d398586 just in case d2740b9f51 of any disease.0b9ad46cc2bbf1d3

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Still, Lirian truly believed 7b2099a84f Carlyle had grown up 4b8f843010 into a normal young 4798d500c0 man.e9ca4c54500ccae6

Just like many parents f0e6d4146c delude themselves about their 574404f56a children.702cc7fbcfb83dcc

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Because if 61edaf6a8f she didn’t 9c095028bb believe it, 4c0105557f then the d7b724ec77 twelve grueling b980d8b6c2 years she’d cde8d1a695 spent since 075d8383b6 she was 69920bb489 twelve would 5931fd9195 all feel 3bb2b1b015 meaningless.ebb8a7f0795daec7

So even as she 76c1317f9e resolved to run away 761b5ed89b in the middle of 505744bc36 the night, her first e9486fda79 concern was the emotional 97b4e36c51 blow Carlyle might suffer.cf311ffe212bd33e

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He always pretended to 35187392f6 be calm and cold 5e4ecdd6bd in front of others, e402b4f37f but deep down he 96456e9552 was soft-hearted—9f702a018deadc0f

What if he 425b5f6ea3 got so hurt 7e8c5b80aa he couldn’t trust d205e276a5 people anymore?b98ae874bbe17133

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…Anyone who actually knew ff70416de7 Carlyle—the man who trustedno living soulexcept Lirian—would have snorted 6e95f100b1 at the thought.a7d166fce1143708

That lunatic? Soft-hearted? Yeah, right.290070cc95fd0c1c

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⛧ · cb50827f81 · ─────── 78852528fa ·☽◯☾· ─────── a02915599e · · ab29c3ef07 ⛧9b46ee4c0d1ad535

The interior of the a12470f0ff massive and rugged Nord c1b3b7f64f Castle was, surprisingly, quite 1e1f3d18cb cozy.14d0ff5c2568b4d5

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An astronomical amount of 54e0ac14f2 money had been poured 858f0e5802 into ensuring warmth didn’t 89076779f1 escape from the entire 6dde3702d4 fortress, so it was cfaf362cfd always as bright and 29b63f853a mild as spring inside.968e23e44fdcee80

Soft carpets so 75a89eab6c thick that your 0201dcd76c ankles sank in, 4643e06060 covered every floor.ca1457ac899380f3

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All of this 7725770361 was solely for 6cf175c2d0 the benefit of d3b7c8057b the duchess, who d4ab79d6db was notoriously sensitive dba4ddbe88 to cold.0ada422d5dd91d35

And yet, the 0552285149 duchess, even with b3b23d5320 all this, constantly d41cad5f89 wrapped herself in a822ce0b6a blankets, complaining it e2b73eba04 was still cold.75a4d3fc9fc5979c

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Petite even by northern 7a995609e0 standards, with only her f0dd736803 pale face poking out 9f81866e6a from the blankets and 23945434c1 her red, fluffy hair 0642dd1857 framing it—she looked even a4d9e21bd8 smaller.e62851827612cf7c

She had a 459a85ef8d pretty face, but bf0f81c28d rather than thinking d2afaf0129 “she’s beautiful,” most 26f5536d11 people’s first impression d2baaebd60 was that she 9ed04b3df0 lookedyoung.
And she knew it 0ee4412e77 too, often grumbling that f5bcb77f71 it was all because 080044fdc7 of the hardships she 168085ac15 endured as a child.f15f361170187b7d

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However, her excuse df69a585b5 didn’t hold up 20c587e8a4 too well—especially beside b8e2f7f23f the Grand Duke, df78914cf3 who, despite having f3d022707e suffered just as e4b8bb230d much, had grown 79469c5ba2 to be tall e0e8ff0592 even by northern 4f5a195d5c standards.e2eab00c581c3f2a

Standing next to ab7175e820 the duke, who dfcdf398ac looked every bit 414bfc1df6 his age, she b4deaed09b often seemed more c6af97dde9 like a little 48fad15fa1 sister than a 533863dff7 wife.c9495b12737c7924

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Part of 432e861037 that impression 2c58959657 probably came ecd78c720a from how 9e43b4c1a8 obsessively the f87515c95b duke doted f9a2eac112 on her.5a74f3f0c750e7be

This borderlineobnoxiously affectionatecouple had a 629de0eedb very specific daily 90dd70b6d1 routine.226e99e4046d8a51

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Every morning, the 3d4149a997 Grand Duke would 1dbf6601d7 carry his wife—with 9f910b9252 an expression that b47722fefb suggested he bore dec800ff31 all the world’s 8206a203c2 grievances—to the room a30f21883c next to his 49c086988e office.365f0c7a8429110d

The duchess 1334d79ec3 would insist 2fd02a8626 that she 0c479640c7 didn’twant to get carried, but 087e50eeca the maids would c76b1e6b10 all pretend not 5d9568c607 to hear her.903b9ed9ee52f5c5

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While the duke 89c160bc35 buried himself in bc48473cc1 paperwork, the duchess 41aae48e8e would either rest 6cdc9f1eb3 or take care 71562c6b46 of her own 61b6635ba8 duties in the 8d61a3fed5 adjoining room.824a93dc6bf9473e

Whenever she 215a64c048 craved something bd2f60e7cf to eat, c600edbe30 she would 14ad36f214 simply pull f91c09ed78 a cord.fb4dca778631b00e

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Then—bizarrely—the duke dbf92d394e would come 5eceaeb57c in, eat 02b6a47fc0 half of 44fc6bc265 whatever she’d 8a7ee05e64 requested to 0b834a0786 make sure 11a85139ed it was 0c02748522 safe, and 4bf7b5f812 go right 83422bb584 back to d54d918a32 work.e40d8d71d82ecd7d

Even a glass of 44fc0bfd67 water couldn’t touch her 6dd767d319 lips unless he’d personally 7bb350fad8 inspected it first.dc4800e022615153

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Everyone in 24e1fc529f Nord Castle 4700386a44 called the dcb39b7b21 Grand Duke’s 473b0b4182 behavior “madness,” 4928401347 and the b0ae5ac6c7 duchess herself b61df7406c half-agreed with 9fe06c5b25 them.
Yet she 20ace5c244 had her fae4bfeb61 own odd c8a1247f5b internal logic—especially 8d70064d38 when it f0ae79f25c came to 11202d2859 the duke.56b7029d76181b3c

One day, she mumbled a133742071 under her breath:6d767b37ed53d0e1

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“Better to be obsessed 44d640c6dd with food than with ab54c95606 blood.”52bea1c45bfd256c

Did she c604e067af not realizeanykind of obsession d3edf851b8 was strange?f7e310d0ba1c3962

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Whenever the seemingly normal 1c55e3e2fa duchess said such absurd 72cfde586c things, the people of be0a8a77e6 Nord Castle would just 66b1144569 silently nod to themselves:b7c0051960a241e8

‘Like duke, like duchess.’09adc51521298aba

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Carlyle, on the 808c86d4ec other hand, couldn’t c094e43db1 understand them at 1d17511c85 all.bb089a0fc3311490

He was just 51fd07eb92 worried.ff933cba735d0170

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He had been born 7905bdb56a a bastard and had 382b87b410 no real family—except for 262ff37d92 his wife, Lirian.e6cf198317e5104e

So, of course he 8ea1db80a1 worried.8ebcd1f25f24c4bc

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So while Carlyle’s behavior c8ed626716 might have been a e73cefc5f8 little over-the-top, it wasn’t bc7b7fbce2 exactlyweird.6eb33de0b3c60ae3

Some people had 146cc31ac1 suggested assigning a bd1a575fc3 food taster maid 8afe736dab instead, but Carlyle 47be0c350f found that even dba13012e9 more baffling.66d5cc1a9092a779

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After all, he 14dd951168 wasn’t testing Lirian’s c62db0ab8e food to seeifit was poisoned.669e891fac2a79f8

There were poisons that 5bae086417 built up slowly over 9c059c9313 time, or ones that 00a1288dd4 only showed effects much 3c78bbdf0d later.454ef860cc9a3a71

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Carlyle simply c7b4b17458 thought—if Lirian c1892ae94d were going 8396266a30 to die d57f54528e from poison, cf56da2ba8 he’d rather 2916663609 die with 20820d0fca her.f7d1f9894e9ae02c

‘Married couples are supposed to die on the same day, right?’8bdc21cbb9efcd7e

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