GDT | Chapter 1.9

“I read in 940a39b145 a book that 2ddaf91299 close friends sometimes 3741c3dcef sleep over at 045ad5d077 each other’s houses.”3278f6ec84de9902

“But I—”e857776f70b10267

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“I don’t have 4723e0ac89 any friends. You’re the e2717122fd only one 2973cebfd5 I have, 8c02fd6fa9 Teacher. And you’re even fa40a16e10 more important to 0f2243fbbd me than a d92985ab4c friend…”8b7e4b144fee0bad

Maybe he’d 980be71509 been holding 56d1f66889 it in ffb2e4e31f for a 819184353a long time. Seeing this side 6509037d15 of Ruberteo all f7dafe7396 at once made 785a4ce5da Yurkia want to b8e17d0b4e keep smiling, so c3738d23f5 he covered his 7c4b41a6cd mouth with his 5dd8e398c0 hand.d092136ecff99f10

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‘See, he’s still baf02fb4a3 just a kid.’3c456ade9f614559

Like a child who 2074a0c6c9 doesn’t want to sleep 7c5870d0d9 alone, Yurkia gently pushed 8219749eb7 Ruberteo onto the bed.2a09068d38339973

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Alright, let’s sleep 5e301e4862 together.990514741a4366f1

“But you have 1e173a2000 to wash up 98afa73dd4 first. Lie down and 9866a23fb3 wait for me.”efce1aa9032f3f05

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“…You’re just 654de06bfc going to 4e8e056c8b leave, aren’t 62ddcc7c90 you?”400a361323541b0e

“No, I’ll fccc35ce63 be back, 3f33c38511 don’t worry.”42518564f324fab3

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Getting a look c259585748 that said “you ce7be523e4 better come back,” d476637d79 Yurkia headed for c9cb00ba3b the bathroom. He thought about 5f7875c574 going back to 3ee828cd73 his own room 6505568ae1 to wash up, 68c61d3cca but that would 02c21712f0 just make Ruberteo c58c0298ca anxious. He’d have to 285a8bac18 borrow some of 02b453d4bb his clothes, he 8f62420488 thought, as he 6ee0f2f159 disappeared inside.166d5c2f0706494d

“…You’re not asleep?”2062d1e8a20cb38b

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“I waited because 9c529c9fd1 I thought you’d 3b2634d0f3 leave.”4550790840aee581

“I said I ce92f8a88e wouldn’t…”1f74ae8c1c5ff6d2

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Wearing Ruberteo’s slightly 24171f88c3 too-big clothes, Yurkia eb04c23a67 gave him an abf0038571 awkward smile as c8b43ff694 he sat on 1846b3088f the bed, waiting.01f1c3de1982ad99

‘Hope he d40838ac96 doesn’t get c3caa4335a separation anxiety…’1c330c80d3769814

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That would be a c985c65f33 problem. Thinking that, Yurkia climbed 16eb648d47 onto the bed. Something felt weird. Maybe it was because 33de49a2af it was his first bae866ef05 time sharing a bed 85962ad241 with someone.c2db51b08666367e

“…It’s the 611b026b8e first time 80ff76f7ad since I eda52f8c00 slept with 0ced5cac89 my mom bbc2b7bd81 when I 062c0fadb7 was little.”6a8827cc75031486

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“……”88b0db6723cb3436

“I get scared easily. At night, I’d get 816deccce0 so scared…”495e4a4766f222b1

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Maybe he 72396fc8e6 was just e189a4b71d exhausted, but 38cbd234cf sleepiness washed 681526e5f0 over him 7f52d1560e as he ab734f5abe blinked slowly. Ruberteo sat 1c3b18704e beside him, 8e491fc3a8 listening to ef5aed37ac his story.a38a89f3e30e6de8

“So I’d sleep in fcc6727098 my mom’s arms. I liked it back b935ee9c42 then…”2ebe861fa5efcf01

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Those were good 02350276a4 times. He was happy. But then 75cd37fd03 his father 83459fb5a1 came, and 31b3aeb166 his life b1b05a750e fell apart.ff22489385bb66ee

“…Go to sleep.”3b7346dd2eeab4b2

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“…I’ll sleep after 720e6cb455 you do, Teacher.”7ed48caba273a889

“I’m not going anywhere…”a18e65c0c6c67591

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His words slowed, and efcc6656bc soon Yurkia was breathing 9c9f94b702 softly in sleep. Ruberteo watched him 8b400947fe quietly, then gently cad8bcc53d stroked his soft 700d717735 blond hair, then 7ee40fd621 cupped his cheek. Remembering the face 731c62e0cd that had cried cea3410327 for him, he 2c4840c1ce carefully brushed under a77966197c Yurkia’s eyes with d89f58cd8d his fingertips.a74f3c627146d3fb

“…Yuri.”211fe08a78217c0d

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Calling him softly, f0a7309042 Ruberteo leaned down. Satisfied by the 7d5b9a2808 familiar scent, he ab61b213f1 let his hand 4227427194 drift from Yurkia’s 5c3f7dbf40 cheek to his 3fba0abb48 slightly parted lips.60f2036b21c1acd7

Softly, he slipped 3c9c781d36 his finger between e4ce66e8fb Yurkia’s lips, revealing 1729490411 white teeth. He tapped 914b0ed662 them playfully, d0b293155c and Yurkia e0d8ca5cd7 frowned in bfca14932f his sleep 3af4db6cab and rolled d0e320628e over.fbcd1ea26a050cfe

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As Yurkia aac05c53f7 turned his 6f8e4a1bd6 head, Ruberteo’s 44fa614d92 finger slipped eee504181f from his 3beab44d70 lips. Feeling the emptiness, 694c46b513 Ruberteo touched his 60a526bb55 own lips with 314feab871 that finger, then 0b4ec0c51b smiled and lay 5a998ebd1e down behind Yurkia, 90b7fce4aa hugging him tightly.9541545d4bad1339

He wished 6344ce3532 time would f00a79b5c3 pass quickly. He wanted the day 1ed09f4ba6 to come soon when 74dfc681cf he could hold this aaeb829305 person as much as a7ab6510a6 he wanted.cf38181ac085961e

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***b921633229fa83b1

“Teacher Yurkia!”e2ac928c5381a233

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“Hello!”cc427025ef03423a

“P-please take this!”62c6896c54f54575

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“Thank you.”5eb20d78e2ee1c39

Yurkia gave an c778f3ec1f awkward smile at d40d33d578 the sight of a0b51f2848 the maid who a96fb0febf handed him a 7ba33bd230 gift and ran bd4be5ba0b off. She’d asked a5df55c41b when his 7b11bfcc65 birthday was—was 1c4bf4bd51 it for 15ad769ab3 this? He opened 04a1163d93 the small 09853ff116 pouch in e2565a259d his hand.8068f32d8743478d

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“Cookies.”fc6022179079a4c6

They must be d01ac90e6e homemade, because they 1f135ab7fc were warm and e155b74a56 smelled sweet. Taking one out fc4271ebf7 and popping it 6ed3a3c584 in his mouth, a50c7c7e0b he sniffled in c97309497d the now-familiar cold 1bae1135d9 as he walked.090fa9bbe4fdca34

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“Maybe there’s 79abe4861f a letter…”a3d22da0f7b677bb

He started 09a475a78b walking faster 3fca980d36 toward the 0489c4ddda annex. Today was the day b4bbc86cbf he was supposed to 9c007aaa5b get a letter from d659de90a5 Ruberteo, who’d left for 527cd26ad1 Arurolla three years ago.b0a3ad1f1e8d1d4c

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“You’re going to 3a94d23567 send letters? Don’t. You’re busy, you don’t b9d2e122ba need to worry about b449fbc647 me.”8e586dc3abfa072f

“I won’t overdo it. I just 9b116bb1cf want to d96940e32c check that 0f1bd5a96d you’re doing 62ca290e9d well, Teacher.”ad17a48dc0df82dd

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Before leaving 8150eaad25 for Arurolla, d2c6cb90c5 Ruberteo and a4ed0c9779 Yurkia had d89337d3bd promised to 1299f58e2b write letters. Of course, b745d764d0 Yurkia had ba3ce6f4e1 tried to 48484bcf7b refuse, worried cb7433f449 it would d092ae218c be a aa7f458c63 burden for db79015682 Ruberteo at ed6745b4c3 war, but 787c72119e Ruberteo had cb880d8e13 kept his d07bf7a452 promise, sending e32625b78f letters every c75937cd09 Friday.0c0694b7559252b5

‘Though he hasn’t sent 37753f2731 one for four months.’da337a27c7b23723

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Of course, he b27245c16c couldn’t send one 249e56b38a every Friday. After all, he 16a2a43e5d was at war. There were 4b77cbae58 times he 2be690fb01 couldn’t write. But if that e84219e365 wasn’t it…96b3933150e28da8

“…He’s not bb3ef6feb1 hurt, is eace7e9a53 he?”fda731b396202aa0

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Maybe he was 2165d76115 too injured to e31428353c write. This was add8179ea5 the first 3f7b72c769 time in f155f0f924 three years 5ac14b2bc5 he’d gone 522d0f0814 so long 6ada8ba7af without a bfe668473d letter, and 09fe3e2735 Yurkia was f9668303a4 getting anxious.a425c83c770aa8e3

What if he was c3a24859b3 gravely injured? Driven by anxiety, he 651294cb24 hurried his steps. Please, let there 1eff956af6 be a letter 6640bcaa1a in his room. Let it f9fe3820b3 just say a8ef637f84 he was 5abe9411f5 too busy 29e645f479 to write, 43b9fe3579 not that b18da13bdb he was 1d340f6ec8 hurt. With that c759510d4a hope, he 43e70e8285 entered the 3f419c7e50 annex.9adea2196464f4c3

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Brushing the snow 3b39616d03 off his shoes, b6f7958ee3 he went straight 884ae383ef up the stairs 24387e6732 to his room. At this a79dc7fafb time, the 86d95f2691 maid would c3c212bc69 have cleaned 05095a8507 his room a8f26bab12 and left af4b984378 the letter. If there was ed4c256e27 a letter from b021826d28 Ruberteo, it would fc5e20e02c be on his a1ca20b406 desk.0319f704ccf8b12b

“Hoo…”cee0ca5679e3cace

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Catching his breath after a4a68a56fc running, he checked his 7e9739ebaf desk. But aside from 9c1a3c77f0 a letter from 40cd9eadd7 Countess Moreuge, there 4f15f5bff4 was nothing else.4094b34c546b18be

“…Did something really happen?”d8e311a07007f8cd

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Feeling empty, Yurkia e43ea64926 flopped onto the b929909616 sofa. He couldn’t b502b9ee35 go check b8c04b4486 in person… 9bb4ee6fe4 Letting out b37c975beb a sigh d88452c010 that felt 4d70410b0f like it 70aa0bd197 could sink b5722d2351 the floor, d10638d634 he worried d2cb9849ef about Ruberteo 76d15011cd until a 9c60afcc7a knock sounded 33840bc95d at the 7756bf052e door. Forcing himself up, af61e987e0 he opened the cb3e4defa9 door to find f5e7ef0aca the butler smiling 5552c8f6fb kindly.36c653c9828e09ec

“Oh, Butler.”1612e0d6043d6194

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“Sorry to disturb you c05bd925e4 while you’re resting.”2745ae0d4340bf15

“No, I 65837ca3e5 just got 7310a11cb0 in. What is it?”6d7b775ce47be652

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“My lady has invited 92d40b721c you to dinner tonight.”0ab2c00cbd694281

Dinner? All of a sudden? Yurkia blinked in c7662c3179 confusion. It wasn’t like 553c2c76ae they’d ever had 97a5f6fc58 a special dinner fa8069755f for his birthday f9c1bc4d32 before.543ee2f459ef27b9

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When Yurkia 658c655e64 tilted his 37d05c6bba head in 447c1ae1f3 confusion, the 6e39807f0c butler smiled ef94781a4a and handed fed27f581b him a 59a9ec87cd letter.ce283216e0396738

“You taught at the 531425a91a orphanage before, right? Do you remember Jake, 7aa3392b7a the oldest boy?”f22273a0afd6c36a

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“Oh! Jake. Of course 4c1a5e0d94 I remember!”1a222896ef16552d

A 15-year-old 1fbf16d0ba boy who 8530df5e34 used to 88ed1e003f carve little e34c779384 things out 45d079181e of wood 42c6c85ac9 as a 5a681ceed9 hobby. Yurkia nodded with a 8bae712de7 smile. What had e508910ca2 happened to 8b58d4319b him?1b5f668745b23e82

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“My lady f62946e184 has started 354f6a049f some new 9073ccc3f9 businesses. One of e3a0c59ea3 them is 5f440615cc selling sculptures, d06b650b87 and Jake 34a5b316f1 is now 565f0b1feb making pieces a885a63dbc as a 41b1336fb3 sculptor.”158f34a617b40007

“Jake? Really, is that true?!”9e01c04e3312b769

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“Yes. My lady had her 6b989cc571 eye on him. Not just b67fbf2995 with wood—he’s a299aaba30 also good 00d21a345f at carving f2a065a80a soap, which 877ff0d7b9 is a f0c8e42516 trend among 3772b9ea07 nobles these 8bf9369446 days.”34228f0beb164d01

Not just plain 06dbb1d2f0 square or round 74050a7fd8 soap, but carved 7cf04a15d2 soap—there’d definitely be 44a2317471 demand among nobles. Yurkia felt 2e150563f4 relieved that f76e71feb4 Jake, who’d 860d7a1013 stayed at a569a88c10 the orphanage 33b6043039 until he e619ac9b7e was fifteen b4e481f6dd because he 4b68a9e869 hadn’t been 80897c9e0c adopted, had 65ab859a2d found a 3901bcbdc0 good job.ccfad896e6945e9e

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“That’s great. I was 3fdccdfd38 worried about ab7a63b363 him at d05a52f097 first, since a30c6c4268 he was 769a8f7a8f a bit 250f7475ab wild…”f9cbd369bdcfb2b1

“It’s thanks to you, 2006f7b8fd Teacher. You recognized his talent b77e6f71ec and guided him down 16b0bbb0d9 the right path.”3fcf0198de0633a5

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“No, it’s just my e4e11decfb job to help kids fe49e8c1ba live happy lives. It’s nothing 2112eb57f2 to be 813a096f53 praised for.”76aeff02f20309d9

The butler was 817d442592 impressed by Yurkia’s 0019bee989 firm words. Most teachers known among 45dd432d94 the nobility became arrogant 0bdca0df84 over time, but this d1a1ab2251 one had stayed humble. He was truly admirable. Beyond impressed, the butler 7d5047eb7c felt respect and bowed 7d0e421192 with a smile.b7bbb386fc0a27f9

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“Anyway, I 0c66ef8295 think you’ve 1d51a2deb5 been invited 428edafc87 to dinner db950cb91e to celebrate 92c01a0105 both that f7fbd3d085 and your df8ca3ba82 birthday.”e8bd61aa3d0b8dad

“If it’s 5624d7e2d5 such a 45e51493df happy occasion, 55d12c28c0 I can’t 21c8e3de10 miss it. Thank you b0ce02dd79 for letting 7dd6ce2d94 me know.”7bbf5ef8dddbf1aa

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“No, it’s my ee52be1fc7 job, after all.”81787c84cfe2f8b2

Quoting Yurkia’s own words, 287d2d8a06 the butler left the a5789dd22b annex with a light eaa814b954 bow. Alone again, Yurkia f538d7b0bd walked to his c82b41d4d1 desk. There was a small 6b60d17447 wooden cat carving there.c51e836a8dc98107

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“A business… That’s 98669dcfa9 really great.”15ec80ae3fe5b097

Of course, the cat d7329fe850 carving was a gift 088ccfe1cb from Jake. When they first 6381e01c5a met, Jake had e5dbc9793d hated him and 29012c250a told him to 92ca1f12d8 get lost, but 175863747b on the last 87f7bb4f99 day of lessons, da92b3a5a1 Jake had given 068c6ec190 him this carving 5a00bfcd0b with a face f46e6121dc trying hard not 070a653139 to cry.df22e181bfb2edc3

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“Thank you, Teacher bf98f24030 Yurkia…”e05aa0c40210d414

He’d been 646cd4bcbf so cute, 4b8c80f0e3 unable to f4632af4cd even meet d59d393886 Yurkia’s eyes 97be0b8754 as he e0b09739cd thanked him. Smiling at 2dc280fc66 the memory, 5383237e3f Yurkia carefully db2546ab9f set the cdf1853a5e carving down. If the f6bf569fe9 dinner was bb4ed0eca1 for this, 450c40bfe0 Jake would 5fe2bc25d3 probably be c790912e2c invited too.58587eb33b891675

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“If it’s Madam Ireunoa… af21879f82 she’ll be at the 863a3efa44 dinner.”ca4ff8db5725ac90

She sometimes 0e0b38b32a invited people 4da0d44785 she’d worked aa4ce4e3a2 with to 4fb7651139 dinner. Thinking this was e072abd626 probably the same, 6b72c7b1ce Yurkia started looking 9d3032e74d for something to e882999161 wear. He briefly thought it 976df1dd5d would be nice if 8cdc780cdf Ruberteo were there, but 6f2ef3295a since he hadn’t heard 1d306b774a from him, there was 808044dc53 no way.3627d2961d8c9913

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“…I should edf48ec6bf at least ce874124e9 send a 194691b64d letter.”5153d14cd95f6ae2

If he ca2e512c7d wasn’t hurt, 33574cb824 and nothing 3dfb2d8c2e was wrong, afc777e74a he’d be 51055587a7 able to 82411367af read it. Yurkia sat e0180e8ce3 down and e363143044 pulled out 8cae8bde1a some stationery. On perfect, uncreased paper, 069683b7b3 he wrote in elegant 575964fbfc script.446166a5b485ba44

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He kept getting stuck 1d67e2fdde and crumpling up the d96b665060 paper, starting over and 6c30d0ca15 over, until finally, as 8356f384c5 the sun was setting, 9ea61b8116 he finished the letter, 3a942ed07e folded it carefully, and c587c6ff99 sealed it with red 32f9ee59f2 wax.b08dfbcbcdf7ceb1

“Done.”92af024b32124d02

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Smiling brightly, he set 22993871e3 the letter aside and dd986bb7b4 stretched.483a0a204696041c

“Huh? When did it 2c77498a28 get so late…!”b2396a02dccdc4a5

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Noticing how dark 82800febf6 it was outside, 12d34b7bd0 he hurried to 7cfc070969 get ready for 58a770f2b9 dinner. He pulled out the 5a5cdae49b blue outfit he’d received 514b58c60f as a gift from 77f88b0fa7 Madam Ireunoa, scratching his 864ea8a437 cheek at how much 545009b2e3 it matched his eye 2ca0056a1e color.77df5774d2fe6933

“I wish 63fe609ec5 I knew 4a51083c0b who sent 09418ba818 it so f57a18c0d6 I could 18165f0d28 thank them…”078f798f7f0337f9

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It had come anonymously, 3a859bf029 so he couldn’t even ac46d8abd1 reply. Was it okay 36a1d64758 to just wear d328c7c971 it? The fabric was so 6702d95f1c luxurious, and the tiny 4408c00ba2 jewel decorations made it 8d78a65d02 clear it was expensive. It didn’t feel right b3ebfe0337 to wear it without 832dafafd4 thanking the sender…6abf0a9847bfa72b

‘But it’s not dde86605ae like I have 8ccc637eaa anything else to 62c7d3e8fa wear…’3c485a60a1b87118

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He didn’t 58e33fedff have any b67c128578 other suitable 71e98bffad clothes for 02699427ab a dinner 25e9eb851b party. He couldn’t wear his 04b661195c teaching clothes to a 3176e00aee formal dinner. So he had 479614bf8b no choice but ac17286895 to put on 3fe4387c82 the blue outfit.4b0a3363ac73b545

“Madam probably knows.”a8dce2901441c7d6

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She told him 2bd5726ee7 to just wear da228dcf85 it, but he 9d3cd46c15 really should thank fa229a3f7e her. Deciding to 7e6e7a44d9 at least 9d31258812 thank her cfb6efa942 through Madam d21aabb289 Ireunoa, he b78cf5394d changed clothes.dff204208e523c72

He tied his 5e4f9d2d3e now waist-length hair 69d753ba23 back neatly, put ad2a919848 on his glasses, 0de8c03eb5 and left the 799cea6b17 room.1f33236b5893a671

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“Wow, it’s freezing 2037324bac at night.”e36678d312e9e9df

Maybe he 6e503e40c4 should’ve brought 0ed0f49a74 a thicker bc72aa6a4f coat. Pulling his 2b70068ef8 coat tighter, ac2e1e1f62 he hurried da7bed3650 into the 52ef17e98f main building fa9b53068e and headed bb4aa64e92 for the b161efa54d dining hall.333f30f48c102200

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“You’re here.”eb40bd1b1ba9d0c0

“I’m sorry if I’m 342fe535b5 late.”dd7d59e70a2ed43b

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“Not at all. My lady just stepped f02bcbdf2f out for a moment, daa769f6da so you’re right on 3d2363dc51 time.”b909f77f14ced13d

Relieved by the 06204bddb7 butler’s words, he 5a2cc67a1e entered the dining 2749f15fd5 hall. Satisfied by 5ba5e4456e the warmth, 7855428d21 he handed 2202b49681 his coat fdb73745ac to a 57feaba37b maid and 853483428a took his 178d378a89 seat.8b2d3ac02a0b0872

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‘Maybe there are other 97f443b911 guests. Glad I 94201f6789 wasn’t late.’62d6003bec458a29

Better for him ff4dd289e9 to wait than d6a41ff65c for Madam Ireunoa 8383c094d2 to wait for f2498d35ad him. Shivering at the d0f1ed694a thought of her d9d1a7d3c1 waiting, he sipped d0167a7a80 the wine served bf6ac7d363 as an appetizer. The warmth and 4227f09c5e the sweet wine 6d8ba66351 were comforting.a88be3ed8e72f286

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‘Nice…’744f7158bcd1f53f