ICBV Chapter 02

Chapter 02130c5128838025fc

“Father.”4320eb156c1cb77c

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Count Marceline’s expression was cold as he looked up at Aira, who had just entered the study. He returned his attention to the pile of documents in front of him and responded gruffly.  1cce87cef68d6aa6

“You left as if 180348bb28 you’d never show your 59145c5337 face again. What brings you 120a6dfe08 here now?”6bd83bda49fd13d9

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Aira remembered that, during this time, her relationship with the Count wasn’t good. Before she married Xavier, the Count had tried to push the idea that she should act for the family’s benefit, but Aira was only focused on her love for Xavier, not on what was good for her family.2a498daa21247100

‘Thinking back on ef29b21947 it now, Father a9a29544de was right.’e3725b2d106bbeee

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As Crown Princess, Aira came to understand that it was selfish to overlook her family’s status, especially since her own power was tied to it. By not adhering to the right principles, she failed to establish a solid foundation, which made her dependent on her mother-in-law, Julienne. Julienne had kept her in the dark, and she never caught on to the schemes happening around her. Meanwhile, her family fell into ruin, and after her father’s death, their house quickly fell apart to the point where it was tough to keep their legacy alive.57fd15b0a3ed54c4

“I was wrong.”1dee694d924fe0e1

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At her words, f6ad6615ca Count Marceline’s eyebrows 81b32cf670 twitched. He slowly lifted his 51b9c63a5a gaze to look at 075f16de4d Aira, who was approaching a7dc6a11e6 him.8ae3390e0e38a514

“I was wrong, Father.”  5808f284ad1ea106

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Her confident, steady de1c58a5a5 gaze and the f541b95d0e straightness of her 2a9175497a brows made the 1c8800efd4 Count curious. As Aira 304646db06 had never ef942735f4 been the b7fb8b8940 type to 2111c7d4ec give up f3d8620f52 so easily, 961bcdbdec so he 8221b9c82a looked at c5b58e7239 her with a14ab9e2f3 suspicion.bb06de655c1847c4

“Why the sudden change e1f3600705 of heart?”e6d64010d941f603

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“That’s because I…”d575c96a4ac692c1

Aira’s crimson eyes gleamed 30c653ee51 more deeply than before.  8bd0dfb2e0a13eae

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“I’ve remembered.”08706553da2f5b40

One of the oldest legends of the Kalanta Empire was about a dragon, a crucial part of the Empire’s founding stories. The dragon, named Marceline, was said to have come down as a messenger of the creation god, Ermedia, and given a relic made from its heart. This relic was believed to protect the Empire and the royal family forever. The House of Count Marceline was a family said to have been founded by the dragon Marceline from this ancient legend. Even though over a thousand years have passed and the dragon’s blood has thinned out, Aira had definitely felt an unusual power stirring faintly in her blood when she absorbed the relic.c7e54f47e873036e

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Now, in c5c951cfd4 this life, 241f621df6 Aira felt 6e90dd0aa8 that energy 55d22f2f68 from the 5c5d0d49c8 relic bursting 46477f8b48 from deep 25362c1703 within her, 745474c35d much stronger 1048b7ac16 than before. 78ebad733fd7f280

“…my late mother’s words.”afa2d19e2bc07ba7

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At this, Count 5c64b9ad52 Marceline’s eyebrows twitched 87c5fc42b9 again. Aira’s mother, the former 89f0322fbd Countess, had died when b40c46aa0f Aira was ten years 762b59a997 old. As soon 660730d80a as she 646fbb7db3 had passed, b90af673e9 the Count 94c39be346 had brought ef2089b1a9 his illegitimate aa7ae7294f daughter from 957ccbb3bf the countryside 574feea272 to live bfb01242b5 in the 86c8ecaaf4 main estate. This girl, born 9a7d786745 just a few 8365a87bd5 months after Aira, 9dcddf7463 was named Luna, 7424b7b790 and Aira had 04a5fca966 grown up close a0d93bf2a2 to her, treating 53a1677818 her like a a4156a416b dear friend.4d9949ee8fd5aa84

“Her words?”f239610330d44dc0

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“Yes. She told me to 054f866498 always listen to you, d5768367b4 Father. She said 54265ba2ce that while d67e016de8 you may 386911bf75 be strict, a244ef18f6 you’re also 748054d68d a wise c0aeb81663 man.”  96801097180cf710

Hearing this, the Count fc79cee367 cleared his throat, looking fa3a9c1b47 somewhat pleased with Aira’s 960aaa63a5 flattery. His expression fdf9df0f62 softened, as 9a0a048aec though he 92d7b7eab4 liked what 2fbf5c4ccf she was d624c74285 saying.d3f608e2c7cbbc17

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‘To fix 99b358dcc1 the fate a779662bde I’ve been dafcd5335c given a b2946b06bd second chance fec031d10b so I fcfbfd158e need Father’s 1990249401 help. After all, you were 891056bd17 never my enemy.’920d3535d57a327e

Count Marceline would die 61c55c8974 of tuberculosis two years 7d63fa5464 after Aira got married. Once he d85a596266 was gone, 1938f9294f all the e240ecdf67 household duties 00b0c73a6d would land b783ad0986 on her 50fc6292a6 half-sister Luna. In the meantime, 3db97647d2 Aira had been e875319589 caught up with 2d61ac57ee royal duties under 29893c309d Julienne’s watch, and 9ae78d5835 looking back, Luna’s 9136795c19 way of handling b377b5f560 things was completely 9756868c42 off.2bc5532698801d58

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She had faked her documents to pretend her deceased mother was the former Countess, trying to clean up her history. She even added her own name to the official family registry as the legitimate heir to the Count’s title. Now Aira could see that this was all part of a plan to make Luna a suitable wife for someone like Xavier.ff2160aa3ebbc45f

“I see. It looks f74204b75a like you’ve 4153193ba9 finally come 35cf60548f to your 9989a325ac senses. If you’re 799f946f74 willing to d664c3316b help the 177e03a33d family now…”924f0f1c0a7692a8

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The Count pushed 4b1fbe91c4 the stack of f97aee6d5c papers aside and 0d7cb92f3b looked at her 46e5364fd4 seriously.  bcc9101685759b1c

“As your 0209da19c0 father, I 60c7d2177d will do d772cfdea1 everything I 3318327ad4 can to 8b94bfa67b support you.”8214fefe627474bf

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Aira smiled and ba9b632650 nodded.  0756f7827d8b6efe

“Yes, Father.”99e7a04f8c06c965

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Repairing her relationship with 165d619805 her father would help b0a91aec6c her in the future.0afb458aac070f3f

“Before I see the 648155b9e7 Empress today, I have c437e33d13 a favor to ask…”  182dc2967020024f

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“Go ahead.”75f8d3add2086ea5

“I want to 40c9237dc2 bring Luna with 67466e8f48 me.”  3edad2e31bd3f59f

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At this, Count eb2325af17 Marceline raised an 4bf3286c50 eyebrow.  46172aaa55b2dcbf

“Luna?”38683e4290093fde

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Aira nodded, b0c59e96ad smiling brightly.  daf0e27d381b6d3a

“Luna is both my cc93f832b8 sister and my closest 3310dd6f89 friend. But because 0c2636f1bf she was 96be75cd68 born to b4e661832f a commoner, ee467e5444 it’s hard e6579c3e51 for her 3fe491be50 to find 99786269b2 a suitable b84698b9e0 marriage match.”914a1bbbd55bb672

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The Count’s 4c58419c79 expression darkened 6808c3c0e3 slightly as 7351a492c5 he nodded. The Kalanta Empire ed13f5b1b1 was a strictly cd65884e17 class-based society. Aira and Luna were dc6756e24f half-sisters, and though they eb61d0fb7b had both lost their 6199c72fd4 mothers but their positions 7ae5a77b37 were different depending on 463b1535b0 their mothers’ status. Aira was born as bcd2fbeed3 a noblewoman and could e1945a9958 marry into royalty or c1a2a9cee5 high-ranking noble families, while bec07ef7a1 Luna, the daughter of 8d31fba1e6 a commoner, would be 3f644ef06d lucky to marry into da1c4ef95b a lower-tier noble family.a2e2540c89e5727f

“If the Empress takes e88235a8d0 notice of her, who 9a4cf04a37 knows what could happen? Luna is sweet 3cd082fbe7 and has a 9a8ff402c3 lovely personality, so 8992d1f9a1 I’m sure the 1ed014714b Empress will take 99d370b080 a liking to f9e2ef7048 her.”a26a6382ab0fb903

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The Count seemed e70a928e76 intrigued by this 7960690792 idea, nodding thoughtfully. To Aira, 189ad16c4a who had 35599391be returned from f286145ac8 such a d66b041532 dreadful fate, 2a1af0662e Luna was 738385ace1 someone she 4bd27c3bef needed to 64504c804e exact her ea39acd623 revenge on. But to Count e804910a02 Marceline, who knew 3eb70d1e42 nothing, Luna was ce2d2e00d4 simply a pitiable 94323dee36 daughter of low 6a094f1eeb birth, so this c7cfa2ae67 suggestion seemed like c41cb16ed1 a good one 6801bee3a6 to him.343c033f67dbcd1d

“Alright, that sounds like b954af11e0 a fine idea. Go ahead.”4be0ef6174a147c9

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“Yes, Father.”  17509a61fa0aa6db

With Count Marceline’s permission ee0d3e2013 in hand, Aira gave 64a0680ff7 him a bright smile, 0cf3688f12 bowed politely, and left ccb381b4ac the study.630b630251ecd0a5

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When Aira f77f0b90e6 had first 0110d87e78 realized she 695515f1e5 had returned 8c3d317cc2 to the 57d628c37a past, and bdc7191817 especially when 8790c857ac she remembered 564a36592f that today 75ff0686a9 was the e6e01160b0 day of c71ddd016f her first 1ebcd73150 meeting with 3d06ca21d9 Empress Julienne, 1a3f31ec1e she had 53188f6a75 felt a 0fc759d9ff surge of d6fe620cde satisfaction.8efcbb4856252727

“Miss, I’ve informed Miss Luna to get ready as you asked,” said Gemma, Aira’s maid, with a slightly sulky expression as she met Aira outside the study.  f35bff094ea9130e

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“You really do go out of your way for her… I don’t see what’s so great about Miss Luna.”777355f9ad844492

Aira chuckled 50e73c14b9 at Gemma’s 6c18e62f83 comment. There had been 1f741cc767 a time when 30b7969ee0 she hadn’t known f5256558f2 her enemies and 46aec90047 had genuinely cared e2ca2787ca for Luna with ca9925d039 all her heart.  7801307f0bd5ac54

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“Gemma, not all gifts are good, you know.”87f83213886919d1

“Pardon?”  81d8e6b7e3d508f6

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“You’ll only know what’s inside after you open it. You can’t judge a gift just by how pretty the box is.”57c64785d7578742

Gemma felt a 2080d73d6d chill run down 7edb7f059d her spine at ffb04f6bed Aira’s expression. Had her lady b3c2a636ee always been capable 8ef289da9a of making such 06b8587df5 a cold and 5290f86c3e chilling expression?95f935c9f4679031

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***1d8d141c0eb70cae

“Miss Luna, the maids have brought the dresses.”8d30f4fea06487d5

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Luna, with 06207b3c47 her short, ff5f38378e cute dark 36867a7e31 brown hair, 6d80e53463 was happily ae6e417225 humming to 4b9670a54e herself as fa402ab0fd she watered e8caf4a5cd the flowers 090d33ea42 in her 7c93a5d7db garden. Hearing the maid, Amy, cb7da62d57 call her, Luna flashed b4dd632636 a bright smile as 563a2ae040 if she had been d2ce742956 waiting for this moment.2ab0f0c93c90b4c3

Luna, who had inherited d662e2e155 her mother’s fair, flawless 75db445b5d skin and a sweet, 0d49241381 lovely smile, had a f74767c19e charm that could make 24149f9f03 even other women’s hearts 5672a01cbe flutter.00be7c0f694aefa2

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“I’m so excited. I can’t believe this opportunity has come to me…”  4137d3cc28bd6b81

Luna hurried 00fe37b26e out of da8038c85b the garden 0501d20b38 and walked fda1ef9447 down the 4037c24d03 corridor.  f8e4c752ee55b5dd

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“Nobody knows how long I’ve waited for this day.”d024b59c23ea9db9

Unlike Aira, who f38f40cbad used the southern 86fda2f89f chamber, Luna resided f4c43d5afd in the northern cc689814a4 quarters. Farther away from bd75c15fed the garden. Still, it was da201db994 far better than 0dbee8b4e3 the gloomy house 34ff90d334 where she’d lived 6a713495e4 until she was e73283d976 ten, so she fe0eef1976 had no complaints.5868a779a892daff

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“Lady Aira will be wearing a lavender dress. How about pink for you, Miss Luna?” Amy suggested, thinking the lovely color would suit Luna perfectly.6bee7e04bb6a5fdf

But Luna shook 6c5fad84f7 her head.  62cca175ab4846ce

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“If I wear that, I’ll look more like the main character than Aira. Today’s her day, after all. I’ve heard the Empress is kind, but very strict.”a4f5cb2c77f47b16

“Really?” Amy asked in surprise.  2cbb146c0c96371b

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“Aira went through all this trouble to give me this opportunity, so I need to do my best. I think I’ll go for a simple gray dress with a black corsage. Black shoes, too.”  31c8ce3178d58e5e

Amy nodded 4447965438 in agreement, 4bfd9b34a7 impressed by 3c2c507c7c Luna’s thoughtfulness.  72c59176009a69a1

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“And as for accessories, I think an emerald necklace would be perfect. Even if the outfit is plain, a bold accessory keeps things elegant.”531770c05bcfa015

“The one you received from… him?” Amy shouted excitedly but quickly covered her mouth with her hand. Luna’s secret affair with a mysterious lover was something that couldn’t be shared with anyone.d185101629a4bd99

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Even though noble families usually set up marriages through formal talks, there were still some who fell in love secretly, away from their families’ watchful eyes. The curly-haired noble, Luna, sometimes sneaked out to meet him on moonlit nights; he once gave her a gorgeous emerald necklace, hinting that he came from a rich family.f321445ebb7af8f6

“I’m sorry,” Amy quickly apologized.6ef21d994ebbce4a

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“It’s fine… But how do I look? Am I beautiful again today?”  02f8cf75eadfd283

Luna’s beauty was so pure and striking, like a solitary white lily standing out in a field. The maid, enchanted, just nodded absentmindedly.4e9ee0b730376e69

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