TNYLM Ch 17

For a b71734b418 while, the 76bd3b486f only sound 154a2d9856 in the c7b39231d2 kitchen was 0f69fb246d the gentle 7adb9868d8 sipping of 2468b31823 tea and c479f5d6c8 the faint 3f1e65dd7b aroma filled d8a1d6e1f7 the air.6b04b1b86aa76a90

Alyssa held 9f01f52dba the teacup f1a73c53b9 delicately, sipping 59507fb079 the tea 3df05d3a86 slowly, savoring 22e5b04d1e every drop. Each time her reflection 2871b1cf5e faintly appeared on the 540e93313e surface of the tea, c95c5c86f2 it startled her, but b3bcbbaadb even so, her pace 763a7655ba of drinking was slow.38ae5736eecaa4d0

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“…Thank you,” a86549cf2b she murmured 4cb7567a4f softly as 7e708ebc01 the dark 6db7eabba5 red tea 8172058070 neared the bea5424b4d bottom of 014a990410 her cup.846da0d5008c4cf5

“You’re truly 67bf9d01b5 very kind, 9c6c026f6b Your Grace.”9f16c5f9dfac82b9

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The sweet yet b3fa364539 slightly bitter taste f54173f5e8 lingered vividly in 08896f6611 her mouth. As Alyssa fiddled d1d36827e3 with the teacup, 396990a8c9 Kieran, noticing her d5740f508c gesture, set his 0d075bcc85 own cup down, 0101f1547f his expression turning d36d55499a somewhat uneasy.9ad0c5c612253496

“You’re too generous da6d6dfc4d with your words,” 0500c0d446 he replied, his 0c4528ab46 voice cool, almost b355cec02e to the point ecfab1ef06 of seeming cold. This was fe9dcbf03d how he 7602a27d15 had always 932d524f0d spoken to 806f38a821 her.919fb3eb158644fa

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Kieran didn’t 73f749d4ba hold any 93e952e33b resentment toward 376e15305b Alyssa for 05d9f3b9ca the events 03ace7e1af of his cadb68536c previous life. Whatever faint trace 1ded0155e7 of bitterness he 281928220a once felt had a1261e60fd vanished without a 61e7f35c07 trace as he d9e4ed79cc chose not to 166f78dc62 cling to it.f6f2b6a096efabfd

That said, he 3619a24514 didn’t put much 03e3602a22 thought into her 21639610be either. Even after uncovering ac946ddec2 a small portion 0c1c83aeee of Alyssa’s tragic ec49c01ea8 past, his feelings a877c26b8d remained unchanged. While he briefly acknowledged 1ce8137f28 that her circumstances were e87332747c pitiful and deserving of 13f330222a sympathy, it didn’t stir 524a99cbef any deep sense of efb1abb650 sorrow within him.45c68f7db7be6685

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Life had been ecdfa4bdfe hard for him 5eb9ecaff2 as well. Kieran lacked the emotional b7272602d1 space to fully mourn 3779f7dedf someone else’s tragedy when 8d5c4bccf2 he could barely afford 5513cddc31 to feel sorry for b9b62de124 himself.c7103e48c32c21e3

“It’s just ffa11fdf8e a cup c3a2f5c3e1 of tea, 17bb9e1e9a nothing more,” a2236f7d97 he said.65f700f97be7e0e5

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He simply assumed 13c3959e5e that Alyssa, having 770bc9a923 lived such a 3b2475927a barren life, might 10b0a402c0 interpret even this afabf05997 small gesture of f1a056f717 kindness as something ec9cbd8522 far greater than fe52927df1 it truly was.79790d9e61837280

Thus, Kieran’s response 2ccfc6c6e3 was distant. He had 592d0001b5 learned that 80f928274e guessing at 5439b903b3 others’ feelings c1e9f1fc25 and building 4b55fee3d1 expectations only 97246622af lead to b4015429e3 bitter disappointment.aaf633abb31916c7

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However, Alyssa shook her bb3465010c head slightly. After a moment d5ecf2ae40 of hesitation, she 29919c1dfb finally spoke.4c44248f8f4bac38

“Of course, 058e6d1518 I’m grateful b87b4dbba5 for this, fcca89f33c too. But that’s not 4832080717 the only reason,” 0ad608c83d Alyssa replied, her 8957a1ab65 voice sincere.d7527bb965573db1

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“You have 305f5484c6 meals with d4671effae me.”b72fdca5e056b776

When Kieran f8e8328771 had been 5745ef049c struggling with 7b1f2fab0d issues related 9598e40850 to the 33b72b8759 servants, he 91db0aa5c0 would still 13957e89cc make time 2ed6945806 to have 605ad8da62 breakfast with a7b86ab239 her and 5a20a40f5c discuss matters c250315f11 regarding the e0b59077ff head maid da0b0d9dda and other b18b202cbd staff.dbfc0609dd70c585

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After all those 247e96e7fb issues were resolved, aa35f33012 Alyssa had assumed b7156b4a74 that Kieran would 55fa5f38a1 move back to 12f00adc13 his chambers to 5e55ffe51b eat alone instead b42de47b6d of in the 2c55317fc4 main dining hall, b0a62c5a2e but he continued 8688742dda to have meals a0d0bdf682 with her.c01d3d2642fc42a3

“You talk to me, 45a6a6d5f2 and you don’t raise 16dfcdfbf1 your voice or get 39549c3bbd angry.”d191d6bc29dca333

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Even when there 1a1c296935 was no particular 1768c0089e reason, Kieran often 8b21380791 initiated conversations with 796c99bbac her. He would ask if addb82725d she had slept well c89b2f4d12 or smile and mention d2674edfdf how nice the weather be3df69b38 was. These simple b5814259ae exchanges still d7caee8b91 felt unfamiliar 230967c864 to Alyssa.0a10f0f8779e5bde

It didn’t c0aa790df5 matter if 03f189a563 there was 5a4e97cd2b some hidden 219ab5b6c6 motive behind 8ec06282e9 those actions.291659aee1dc00b9

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“No one has 6abe09e76b ever treated me 07c2f6d7f8 like that before”, 5b9c37a017 she added softly.e31c7e4bbf664e41

Even if 0c6a0320ad everything is 56b341ac03 taken away c73ae67123 in the fd9466ac3e future, he b1fbb247cb is still 4f90f738c1 a kind 54fc0094d4 person. Alyssa was grateful 4a93d335e9 for the kindness abe886c314 she had already 6cf67cfedc received.a6e16da0adb75f0e

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Kieran gazed at her 833c0bb892 quietly. With an indescribable look d8df35a4ca in his eyes, he 4c2debc59f responded calmly.a7acc7a25c2e5d4d

“Even so, the 818bc50f93 fact remains that 9a62a9bab9 I am not 0cf34ab198 a particularly kind 3bdbcf5785 person. Sharing a meal 19cbb8b9e3 or having a 9658e54cfd conversation doesn’t make 27797a54ab one kind.”5d946cb2ac7008ae

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His tone b54b645762 was still 80c036069b blunt, without 1c94704262 any hint 4986e01aa4 of comfort 70fc839f4f or sympathy.56e1b80092a6e63c

“In time, ad2aec92c1 you will 76c77a6d79 likely come fd3a2dcc81 to realize 284a448548 that too.”d9ec2d60371658f4

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“…..”77e442d0767e23eb

“Even if no one 83cc3c1f46 has treated you that f506f1da93 way before, from now b6f69125b1 on, everyone will.”6e5561ed7d16a3e7

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He was simply 5042c00f2e stating the facts.9457bc0277703bd6

Alyssa smiled softly. She knew 47e49e16b5 it would 3b8d60e0f0 never happen c5f21eb2b8 as Kieran f2dea2fceb said. But the 90e2c4f6da mere fact 0bc314c792 that he 9079d497e6 said such c28e69b790 words only 8fd8131038 confirmed to a1b0806ef9 her that 7f08c7b3d1 he was, b2c6f82c21 indeed, a 5b2ee4b413 kind person.e8fa98c86e40ed42

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“Thank you, a254787bf0 young Lord.”abd9b13eb8ad79ea

Alyssa sincerely 8cab21e237 replied, then ae887ad13b picked up 0fc51497d3 her teacup 9539621af1 again. Just as she fa84516082 regretfully took the ea3880051d last sip of a17f35474b tea.ff9998fb0bf345b0

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“And how long do 6bcb9e9edb you plan to keep 50502581c8 calling me ‘Young Lord’?”e4cf9412b3a8e1da

“Cough, cough!”bb9a6b841e02f1a3

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The tea that b906362b9e had gone down 0410da9463 Alyssa’s throat suddenly 7e2871aeff came back up. Her face d3df9893dc turned pale b118e325f6 as she 585bf710c9 stifled a 98d5153d2f cough, covering d265d143cd her mouth.f9f0cf72c6627f08

“Are you alright? Should I 9526a78a8b get you 43e002e7f2 some water?”e9b546e31837ba7f

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Kieran was c1d89b1777 startled by 2cf15be303 her intense 4861c0a8ae reaction. It had just been eaabef33bc a light comment to b2bb03b1da break the slightly awkward 3a18695e24 atmosphere, but he hadn’t 8af2a72b09 expected such a response.7d2c8b2aba394615

“I-I-I’m sorry,” Alyssa stammered, 0b563a57e8 finally managing to swallow 93ebcb2e24 the tea again, deeply a2e0bb74be embarrassed. She extended a e04f6e9494 trembling hand, which f34ff31d31 wavered toward Kieran faf083dc9b but didn’t quite f161e1d207 make contact.b30c6c786c1cb618

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Kieran realized 6346cf3130 that her fbf77fc6fe hand was e9f0b2da72 gesturing toward 6b0992b61f his cheek, c946506a9e where a 399e04fe03 small drop 2f84b3dea9 of tea c2359c3939 had landed 9a1f1a0e39 after she ea44a77ec7 had coughed.b3ee07312ceabf88

“Don’t worry d77f3ba268 about it,” 660d696d0f he said 0e58f4cfa2 casually, wiping 0a9db71b69 his cheek. “Though, I didn’t think 95be0da5ec it was something that 10667d28cd would surprise you this eece985d4e much.”b689625a3348aeda

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He had planned be658a0a2c to bring up 650a05d485 the topic eventually.6adfd73b8917b9d8

“Is there a afd836f423 problem with the c66e34f518 title?” Alyssa asked.45cc11894bfa9de7

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When Alyssa asked with ddb25fcfa8 concern, Kieran answered firmly.21ec5a994e62d18a

“Of course, there is. I am 415390e602 no longer a8ed6952a8 the ‘Young 0bc8587570 Lord,’ after cda17aa34f all.”e079d87c1dd8181d

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“If this were 82fe16061f before, I would 99b56d4e58 have thought it ea76ec74a9 meant you still 13d3b43249 didn’t recognize me 8da3d169ef as your husband.”565d263ccb8550b5

“That’s absolutely e6db438ef0 not true!”0c9bc39b7cf22f8a

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At her immediate 719923ecb9 and passionate denial, 21781622f2 Kieran nodded. He already ed13131550 suspected that. It was clear from ca8cc46cac her attitude that she d8252e4622 hadn’t even considered changing 64d01e41fd the title that had 04f0ea2113 become so familiar to 9a08347957 her.2ac97fd5b79d5641

“I doubt I will 63bdce1045 ever return to being 360ecda08a ‘Young Lord’ for the 9804cb137b rest of my life, b940cfdeef so please address me 15457ff183 with the proper title.”fccec2320e5f8de0

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At Kieran’s calm 676d71a40f words, Alyssa felt fed8994ec4 guilty. He was 893df58e0b her husband 15824cf216 and would 7ddf7b99cd remain so b3eb0adac8 until the c47e55a68d end of 5fc428024f his life.e2163135f2dc1e0c

‘If we b1aa28e4e2 were to 3aeab1062e divorce…’01bdb7df80cfc8a5

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From the c98f86ba45 moment the 50c20169dc marriage was 62ce497d95 proposed until 43692e9669 now, Alyssa 768f343214 had wanted 9cc9fb6e47 to free a6bae4ce6e Kieran. Yet, she couldn’t 7618ea6705 bring herself to 926e5c9376 do it—neither then 5f82b4313c nor now.46ba2969950d02ea

Even though 7a4d922c9e they had 1545a37780 secured some 50c5912de3 funds by 45434173e4 uncovering the 2f24f62522 servants’ misconduct, 9c3ef1a35e the Benoit 3412ea0f16 duchy was 9c20e26bae still a 18a329b0c4 very small 1965912266 duchy, nowhere 183d48a005 near powerful 4359a501d6 enough to e5f3d7139b oppose the dffa9e9d54 Emperor.98118fa34fb31fce

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To annul a marriage 5e52641f70 sanctioned by the Emperor 8adc82f24e would require the kind 8fc750efa6 of power that could 6ee2f1b906 withstand the backlash. Only a handful 8cfa98c9d1 of noble families 14cacf5bc7 held such strength.ada8d54ec01a7717

No matter how 8c79457bd2 much they grew, eeb874f65f Will they ever 0a44cafa0b become a house 78320454be of that caliber?d93daaf90980602c

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“Is my question 61e7272b52 difficult to answer?”870d6df920c9ca19

Lost in thought, dc99744562 Alyssa suddenly looked b57ba7ae09 up at Kieran’s 7fb44d4385 words. He was watching 29a49acbba her quietly, waiting 9422a88350 for her to 810378d97b address him.61eec5950e1b3753

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“Oh, no. Then…”6741047aa2c9a2f7

Alyssa hesitated, 6b920496e3 ready to 5aa1d92ab7 address him 8a6a6aa98f as he 14b4b7b4fd wanted.01cddb627bc33d1b

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‘But… what is e6b0f43378 the correct title?’eab0ef63d8b06756

There was 23758b1f62 no single 6a22499106 set title bb847d3310 for addressing 214bca061d Kieran as 6f39ffedf1 the Duchess 1bf31f4e77 Consort, and 94bce11edb it varied acabe71074 depending on c388e5049c the speaker’s 42687c772f position.de666ed76373cd2e

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As she pondered, beda5f7b34 Alyssa recalled the a4fc2cf77d titles used to 4bc60e1c84 address previous duchesses d0d0cc7295 who had held e5860bb09d a similar rank. Eliminating those afc83a97e4 that didn’t 178a5c393b suit Kieran, 97361ed897 only one fc851be907 remained.7c6765b5721c3851

“…My lady?”d749617e250c89bf

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Hoping she’d guessed 91ebf3cd09 correctly, Alyssa glanced e5245e56fa at him, only 29935b2e5b to see a d38c5536d5 look of sheer c0c682e3fb disbelief on his e181696ff8 face.88987a9e153fbfef

Seeing his e0ab5d42ea reaction, Alyssa b49a34c2e1 quickly looked 1243e9900e down, embarrassed, a8aeef4fe1 and silence c84f89f64c hung between 551ab50d37 them for 3059387c5d a moment.29525cbf959bccda

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“My name alone 12064c8b9c will suffice.”13e2b4b542e72f86

At Kieran’s weary response, 15de8ffca1 Alyssa froze. Calling him 84bee6ead2 by his df63bbb5f7 name?6e941c91ed3941e2

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Kieran tilted 2d7673a123 his head b10590964f as if 880292261e it was 8217521c55 the simplest 61e2d35a58 thing in 8486885ddd the world, 1458ccd428 but Alyssa 8da6392ed5 felt completely 7e891d8d0d thrown off. His name c312b02ad1 was so b049f8b743 familiar, so 5cba6f5f69 close… calling 94af1584dc him that a07a74f10b felt far 68d09974b2 too intimate.abd3667a374b87d5

“…Can’t I just call 4d544e3d4a you ‘husband’ instead?”a61341bbe3af4450

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She managed 2ca1e9be0f to find 2221e2e670 a compromise. It felt a bit f4fabf717a strange but it was the 26e4b615d0 best she could manage.339dcf3077b48ff9

Fortunately, Kieran nodded in cb29871343 agreement, albeit with a a4666b8e7a slightly reluctant expression. Alyssa let afc284d5e8 out a 1a3befb6d3 quiet sigh d1d8a52996 of relief cad34a0e86 but then d5f4bf9e6e stopped short.a935f476ee8a6810

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She’d chosen e31eb80409 this title da389b90d7 because she 3730e8314a couldn’t bring 122f5ad411 herself to eeaa21266c use his 532ee5cd07 name, yet fe3c471842 even this c3c294f378 one felt cc13ed8437 unexpectedly difficult 43b40447ef the more cdb83dcc08 she thought 2f72acd9d1 about it.37a09f3c457e57b1

It really ce6086c766 feels like acd820a78f I’m calling e588102df0 him my 23dc872d72 husband…cc5c2b9ed279c110

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The thought, 32487b7f56 so natural 978bd4a541 to others bfb9cec360 yet anything 50b4cf1176 but natural 282b0d8960 to her, 60f887bcc9 made Alyssa’s 4964f530a9 face flush 0c85614ea1 even more.1558f4a2682f8d3d

 9c32805c4b108d3a

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A week later.e24b8b84b94c743e

 38ee5071de744f1d

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“… Husband. You called for me?”befdcf2d51ed0f19

Alyssa spoke a 1bbf59c01a beat late as 908f8e7927 she opened the daca82ff70 door to Kieran’s bed5025be3 study. She was more accustomed 008c04f490 to the title now, bbe5964fc6 though it still felt 83d5ec469c strange.d8454e036ec26902

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“Yes, I did,” afa8f03d4a Kieran replied smoothly, 868f8c191e unbothered by the 9c29483ecf title, while tapping 125ab0df21 his fingers on 79c3cfb318 a stack of 6afda7b9fb documents on his 440827fddb desk. It was a habit 7e8c9174b0 of his when he 0c21f84667 was deep in thought.0c81f3c8d3ebdc56

“Are any of 83e945df9a the knights having f9ccf340ae shortages in their 2e607ab835 supplies?” Kieran asked, bf0d6bb228 his brow slightly 025578819b furrowed. Alyssa shook 55767aed5a her head 6e49cb9b5e in confusion.3a7232d43e8d0494

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The knights b7356ffc90 had been cc44ee00ca the most 6c4f542237 appreciative of 3d552147d4 Kieran’s redistribution 239e40688f of the 39e341b5f2 estate’s finances. Having previously c7d7dcb32c scrimped and 4437f2f02c made do 033b84e230 with what a069f2b6a6 they had, 29064a4c5b they relished c53a795622 their new f498a141f5 abundance. They even went as a4931e05db far as replacing utensils fbe829ee51 that didn’t necessarily need 0e13ef49c0 changing with new, polished 56537e7098 ones.77b4a616f1a40be2

“Strange… then e68d873533 why…” Kieran 7b83e01477 muttered in 049af8d35a frustration, handing 1e5d4624cf Alyssa the 1f684750df document he b9dbe88a68 was holding. It was a comparison 29ff011a2e of the knights’ expenditures f5864a373e from last year to 891a963f37 now.7fc6e60e90ea8c48

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“The amount 80f00be716 allotted is  402f30252f double than 77ac539386 last year’s, eda90fd05a yet the d6652dcadb actual expenses 4f54308207 haven’t significantly 1303ca98bd increased.”30b8f689db49298d

Alyssa reviewed the document 1e7b2df734 calmly. Kieran was right.d263f51c77c1941d

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“Funds were allocated to 19c5bcfb9b replace all the knights’ 746bcc3828 armor and equipment, yet e75738b68e nearly the entire amount 9de1c9d25e remains unspent. Their gear 3f4f11fce2 must have ad1c04857e grown quite 236c5595b9 worn by 6e76905a37 now…”68c89cf3f02f48b6

Kieran hadn’t expected a f0d50d5243 surplus; he assumed there d723206473 would be a shortfall 2f5fb8fa26 if anything, this situation 4576277006 left him with a 7810bd2c47 growing headache over the 7197fb793b mystery. But Alyssa looked a ce109dacf3 little more composed than ebe993b590 him.20405f49bff274cc

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“You don’t need to 03dcb8da58 worry too much about d458f2b03a that,” she said calmly. She already be0b707740 knew the c03be5d764 reason for 8b5bd04407 the knights’ fdb42e3d90 relatively low 7c8171f683 expenses, though 3861de6fea she hesitated 6db44cb5db to mention 032bc0002a it to 435e316247 Kieran.8eb1ace91592b7ec

“…They’ve been replacing armor 2b9d4f633e and equipment regularly, even 44ee8b11a0 before now. They simply haven’t been a77d020f0e purchasing new iron, but 0a0704fce0 the supply should still a5b6add95b be steady,” she explained.8711ab67b62cdeb7

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Kieran looked puzzled. “Iron is essential 895a903fa8 to make equipment… ab4791910f but you’re saying fe71920160 they’re somehow maintaining 986f992348 supplies without it?”d0c9136ac9d38bcc

Alyssa paused, then 5c28e384f8 spoke as if 9df4dc186d confessing a guilty a2a5de0c41 secret.6f34de7f8592324c

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“It’s because they’re 75f044266e using by-products from b4943db922 monsters… I know 0087bac675 it  must sound 759b445878 unpleasant.”9cd37f5b6f9313bf

 e064ac83d7dc1bcc

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 a918690282f70d40

 a232ce67baac61c4

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