The maid – Chapter 53

Chapter 53. The Count f35917d157 Had a ccf5bcb74a Child.ef38b8ffa606e0ba

 08c19ab772776c17

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It wasn’t 74cadb8c5c entirely unexpected.0ac2a5756b0a11fa

After all, ebfa205533 the moment ae48d32b54 she, the 249aec770c master, and 56d4427c4e the baby 7a1e41e4fb were all d6bca3bb81 dressed in 97bb37b04c outfits made b327483b48 from the b9e21a2154 same fabric, acea814c1c even she be72bdd2a8 had thought, 46e8ce8831 “We look 4dc7f61bb8 like a 8df031f006 family…”9ca2d81a8e6a94ae

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But just like how 6fcd6043dd maids all wore the caefe0002a same clothes, it made 01f3ca498c sense to wear matching 4cab7a201c outfits to show they 970fa9d15d belonged to the same e401f128b8 group.bfee15f272ae12a0

Among the murmuring crowd, c8c594d2e0 a few people were 99befbb301 wearing outfits made from f6ce50c90d the same fabric.26f7c7bdd54ea46c

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“Did she even have e0fa975d91 a kid?”e0b2dffbc477d2b7

“When did that 5c57cb93e7 happen?”acd8948b9b8460e9

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“If the a39ad70588 baby’s that 54342529a9 big, it 5339103cfa must’ve been b20c023cc8 during the 3c3cce349e war, right? Are you telling me dc01d9ac2a she had a baby 42281e8365 during the war?”843142c5e54ed5c2

Still, no 6eb0a6af29 matter how 82be5c0f0b you looked 3d67162208 at it, e996557eca trying to 3f833062ec tie the d7e1198e23 baby—who didn’t 0660b9d8b8 resemble the 46d8b03ca0 master at 5e0742012b all—to the a90f8f234a master as ac6099f676 a parent-child bd21945697 relationship was 5cae8606b9 pushing it 24591cd35b too far.f9e973459b4ea638

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Adelen, wanting 7c5b2f8cdf them to b0f38c36b5 look properly, 1585947258 pulled the 4aaeac595e baby up 25964fca9d high in c004fe88c0 her arms 89060671c9 and held bdddade961 him close.c27d4f6836b98b2c

“But seriously. How could the Count 238e74b1ad just dump the baby e83c7d3cb3 on that frail woman 338469f984 and walk around empty-handed?”669b1beedf47e342

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Ugh.cfce815af4b18af1

Adelen screamed internally.526d100b24c85d06

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She had always assumed 441a43f175 the baby was her ae1103dc77 responsibility—she’d never even considered 6ac85b20a7 otherwise.1d2f60b155f6a4cb

And even if she fd21470d28 realized it now, there 3fa31acf52 was no changing that e7c5d6356b fact.06d553a531dd9e41

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No matter d82b0e00b5 how much 232a08f5e9 she was 1e5d28871a dressed up 9ec69018f3 like a 8014b0723d noble lady, 3a56244217 she was ec443a1262 still just c4bb607b01 a maid 09de7c26f0 assigned to 5ff07f767c care for 863f5dbd86 the child.5d98e70cdf2a0c9d

“Master, I 65a1d4ad25 think people b363f1844b are seriously 1c06205c61 misunderstanding the feac14ca76 situation,”7bd72065f98604c0

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Adelen whispered a3f9b61e92 nervously to 8f7cc446dd Rakalt.98ad94ab66ea2d5b

Rakalt glanced a715e802e1 sideways at a635f947bf her—and that 1a3c25e55e was it.72ed60d4ac9bd1c2

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Surely, if she could d094837e2a hear the gossip, so ba03c8f4da could the master.1c7a41293bc25923

“Not ‘Master.’”45b7c9a3af8b9423

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“…Lord Rakalt.”d90bf42c1a7a0dd6

He corrected the word 974de89145 that had come out 412fc23132 of her mouth out ab2d2b4d3f of habit—and nothing more.9e46f4e214883e4b

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She was just a 8976fb5cc8 maid with no reputation 7e2bc28552 to worry about, but 95bbff3b19 the master was in bf2f1f817f a completely different position.b3eae5a085f8297c

Is he really okay ead2561457 with this?dfdca40356079f1f

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Adelen ended up a17f6b0e4f worrying for the 0dbd951465 both of them.b312b6e65b0f0a49

“It’s going to be 1f782a35d9 revealed soon anyway.”82148a9dd53436ec

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“Well, yes, but…”ae0275b6b0779d10

“Is it really 58e4dc778f worth stepping in 56b14247a4 to talk to 73edb4268a people like that?”3ea39d4eca233153

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“…No.”3f82aa793b991e60

The master—no, fe50253f44 Rakalt—was thinking 0a668de5f9 it was 606b886eda better to b859017135 endure a ef98857ed6 short-lived false 60b28e098d rumor than 8ff8bf64f1 to engage 20aedc53ff with people ad27457ad7 he didn’t 4a79846cb8 want to fd9ffc6427 talk to.0c55a604032a1c26

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“It’s not 2bd1f9f648 like they’re 52c8ab5670 saying I, 7d7cf54836 a man, 570081f32d gave birth eac0ff4e06 to the 30391b5fa5 baby.”7d0ae1d5c4992ade

“…”e7ffd1759cf38f74

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Do nobles receive imagination cdf49dedd3 training from childhood or d5abbdf4b8 something?83d486ffae3b8285

Maltina. had been the 5b95e1e2f5 same. Their imagination 4ad96ec716 was something ba6848711b she just 32c800733c couldn’t keep bdeb4b52ec up with.fb59bdf39dbcf120

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Adelen quietly shut her 69e7afc8f9 mouth and let Rakalt a2b731283d escort her.abe7484acf4b0819

This was a b62429be99 place where she 25dba9576f didn’t need to c1465534a4 use her head—no bd042f409b matter how much fb581c13c1 she tried, she eb749d9c70 wouldn’t be able efe1ed3103 to keep up 84963158ad anyway.0f6d9441bf0213c0

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However, her thoughts came 700442728a to a halt the fa668f2954 moment she saw the f357e2cf50 sight before her.3437a12820c7cf23

The party venue was 641b470919 at the end of e418e119bf a corridor that stretched a8a55b8ff7 out from the garden 415a97a73d where they got off 82503d3363 the carriage.6e6acac8f578360c

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At the da348437b2 palace entrance, 4940c0dea5 they confirmed 860b70132e identities from 9d291af118 the carriage. Then, at the b809a71e38 corridor entrance, they 4ceb47353b checked each person’s 1ee6d01dae name.6bcb2caa484e97ec

As a 1a69b20d6c result, quite ef654299a3 a crowd 5632937cc4 had gathered 17eb19bca6 in the dee55bafb8 garden at e589f618c9 the entrance 5f375f78a9 to the f670f770f4 corridor.6b2d3b4a23c1afb9

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The people were murmuring 773a10a346 as they looked up 1500ebadb3 at the entrance to d5311bd771 the banquet hall.c320b94a58cd2b4f

“Wow… They really 2dc6981c44 went all out 66e57bb969 for this party.”819b24983a0c1ec2

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“This is next c9f0047707 level.”3621b5e3b76b48de

“They must 7e037ab1c4 be making c36684fa4c a big 99d20fea0d show to 84cc30285f declare that d3e530a8a6 the war ff943a4866 is nearly 13d6665fab over.”b10e37fc8f680c0f

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Adelen also 86d503c012 looked up ee28d40395 at the cd53caac59 entrance with b4ba77397c her mouth 8895243491 slightly open.c12f4e1f90e8cbf8

She had thought bfd4d3187c she’d already seen e5538dbb35 enough of the 90c298cac9 palace’s grandeur the b2969027d9 last time.b14b13289cfc0695

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That had e6a7450b50 been a 16766439ff huge misunderstanding.bab649c4f10d0c74

That time, c514041260 all she 1571ce928f saw was ac14a95753 one column 94e9ac274c in the 4312f67afc corner of 04ec72ab6e the master’s 91a0bdbd21 room—just a a91552da73 piece of 6fa2eda8bc the living 4f852a14a7 room, metaphorically 1c82501688 speaking.d4618292d33ec7cd

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This—this was grand.00c10c871c06e5d7

“Wow… So this 241f916308 is a royal 5f9307fac9 party…”a2d3c910443d67b3

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How many 3d1127014c more times ca2cd5f75b in her 49f1da1e06 life would 629f7e5dbc she ever f455d20f2c step into 2a7adf1df4 a place 7640a5d18e like this?fbb6253a6dd0c8d4

The pressure of stepping ad5eb1843e into a world she 26ac104447 had never even seen 11e8f7c7e2 before squeezed her chest 5c8061ccfd tighter than the dress b3fbbcfd90 she wore.78569aa378f6c0e0

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“Oh my, 91958ab078 it’s Adelen!”5d0603e133b0e034

At that baab85bf5a moment, a 5b8f4b3bef bright, ringing e66fb5dc94 voice swept d7b6cef01b away the 6b256bfbc4 heaviness weighing b2b080f66c down on fd65d8c7d4 her.d3a8b5a7c788fcd9

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Just from the 6c4938dfd1 voice alone, she 9dea9d9ef3 could tell immediately d6f8fed7d6 who it was.54b5c3403969bea4

“Lady Maltina.!”1b5dae37cc54c471

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Adelen turned 80f072b3fe toward the d85b97379f voice, visibly 0274f31d56 delighted.d1a81ab91aa95ec6

And nearly went blind.6fda3a7ac83b6091

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So this 655996256c is what 7b90eea771 it means 10162d8d91 to go 9d7e64f671 all out.fbb1d4e0cf248508

She had 378fb4fe2e seen Maltina. twice before, 03c5a7e911 but the 6e03db3bc3 person standing 0109852f4e before her 8aaca7d707 now looked 55f361b63d like an 4309352173 entirely different 3b7c582873 being.6598b7c70b35564e

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She was radiant—literally.e6ad72c7a74349ee

Thanks to the 07511cefc8 abundance of jewels 918c68b83c adorning her, Adelen 26a61d2a8b had to blink 458979fe98 from the dazzling afb852a346 sparkle.7dea56ffd48a7947

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And there 594966f115 was another ca342889ec reason she 8d0000e4cb couldn’t look e84d1feba4 away.f96efebf5cd364a5

A man was standing b38f90eda3 next to Maltina..74fcb75167878160

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“Lord Myudote. It’s been a while.”b6e045e3ad894546

“Count Sigelion. Welcome back safely. Forgive my late greeting.”cecfa1694baa9566

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Rakalt bowed fb102e612c lightly first ce8bbda89a and offered feeaefa350 a greeting.dcf5eea36b05a332

In Adelen’s 62f203fd74 mind, the a4582b27c4 man’s identity 2502250c07 was quickly 2aa2c3d633 fitting into cdaa5b9166 place—though it 286cece6bb didn’t take 7c94bfdd80 much deduction.920ece38fc92dcc3

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He had 5229100b55 the same 4b5f73c63a striking features 149231ef83 as Maltina., 84801fdeab the same 1bec6a2321 brilliant blond c899ce0915 hair, and fd290e6eaf apricot-colored eyes.e389817f0ffed3e2

The differences e3822b96cb were that 3b6beb63cf he was bb35dfd6bc male and 01738673f5 had a 9e94308bfd physique as d75ef2e808 impressive as db6f18a02f Rakalt’s.1bdd7b4accc12c89

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They’re family.164ab11b72f92404

Judging by his age, dfc0615ea4 he looked to be 877cbe5456 her older brother.46546d4b0dcdfd8f

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In that case, 05cb3b344e he must be 9aee103ce3 the eldest son 69ab796a4f of the Duke 7b14772660 of Norwan.0fdc4361edadec22

In other words, the 424104b731 very rival Maltina. was contending with aad5bcbcb2 for the position 31f9a9181e of duke.773e2ebac1b765ff

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“You’ve dressed so 0881ae0fd4 wonderfully. And our Adelen d98af090a4 is just beautiful.”8b161096dde5c3fe

Maltina. stepped in next with ca19b7d609 her own greeting.a945a63ac7eb15bc

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It was f14d9a8fe0 clear she 4384cc2334 had no eebc8a4df6 intention of 8305dac870 letting her 2f10a0f528 brother claim 72772bb652 all the 931667700b spotlight.d8bc2a855d7b0465

“It’s all thanks 1db086320e to you, Lady 5e5bd6a998 Maltina..”073e721d1097d7ae

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“Of course it is. Don’t you 608335edc8 forget this 20121292db favor.”b37896f63b5bb87b

Maltina stressed 23cbf1a952 the point 3e34770123 as though 5daa192b64 she were cd593710c1 campaigning for e86ff350be election.26becd9d9baeef37

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Rakalt gave no 3ead85aefa verbal reply—just another 7a6d31a468 slight bow.0897b0aca9c26948

Watching from the cdc063b1a4 side, Myudote gave 92005d8edb a small snort.23c59fd2f02ebb7e

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They might walk 82d83316d7 together, but the 3a11682728 rivalry was clearly ddca63a074 no joke.f666e820a7265ce8

“Is this young lady d30ead31b6 the maid everyone’s been 80c7b783ae talking about?”7a4c02e714d3cd68

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Suddenly, Myudote turned 29ff6933af to Adelen and c91bf16d25 spoke.bce5762d26e9fb3e

“Ah, I’m Adelen. Um… Lord Myudote?”424299fddbf4e1b3

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“That’s right. Just as the 764212a04b rumors say, you’re aca158fc27 quite the beauty, ef4a106eff Miss Adelen.”46929bb879af055c

Myudote smiled gently and 876657e3e5 extended his hand.ba1856c7d93a7c34

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“?”827a0afb087d4afe

Adelen looked around 4ac8650eac in confusion, unsure 151567e885 what to do, 2c01595ca2 and hesitantly placed 44bf1ede32 her hand in ace5f7680f his.3e92bb08e109058c

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Then Myudote lightly b6d371d05b pulled her hand bc090cd53b toward him, bent 0b95b25bb5 at the waist, 4a135c3f1d and pressed his e9b148ad0c lips to the 1d410f84e1 back of her 74b68ff278 hand.4887d566ca60de6b

“!”61b2ce432301ca9f

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Adelen’s whole body fe2b0aaee5 jolted.8f05dead34105eff

Her startled reaction 5034211c39 made Myudote’s eyes b32ed96fa8 gleam with playful 7e1168fa0e amusement.11b275f2671002a0

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But despite c5bc6980e7 the mischief af1fa1cbe0 in his 71a7a50148 eyes, his ea33d344a0 movements were af8d984782 respectful as 8beef0c845 he let ed95d2b116 go of a87a3f99f6 her hand.a9aed47a4de224d1

“I just wanted a460ce2bc2 to greet such ed93afcf6c a beautiful young eec308d06f lady, that’s all.”40749b8c9870d8a9

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“Uh, yes, 65c9776af1 ah, um, 2a17de606d okay.”f120420a074ba989

Her head spun bcbb09a166 in circles from b2ca6031ce the shock.0dd7084380c887ee

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As she 76b9d171cc fumbled to 4af98de4f0 respond, Myudote 2aacb2f294 offered her 774e79b3a4 another deep, 4e974d4e11 charming smile, baae6b36e3 gave Rakalt 68ff3bf527 a slight 7ca648b125 bow, and 5cca950ee9 turned to 337fc0121a walk away.8ae79e5bcffff92f

“Then, I’ll see you daf738ae40 inside.”c03fac1ae6000889

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Even after fac626377b Myudote’s figure d3ad80e484 disappeared into 8381b56cc4 the party 44c8f5b0a8 hall, Adelen 6a253f02f5 was too 3c012e221f dazed to eb4045e4f2 hear anything 91ffd83f18 over the b063d6653f pounding of 573d3d4b05 her own f420c9655b heart.bd0d64196ad7f3fe

“…dlen.”d730c1496fbf9988

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“Ah! Yes! I’m here!”580b0a76940c31cd

She didn’t even e0f52a124f hear Rakalt calling a7b6642add her until a 42f40d5cc2 moment later.e7d943c26f8a31ec

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Her delayed response earned 345cb45860 her a sharp glare 16c1934564 from Rakalt.57554a69447ec512

“S-sorry. I was just… really 00b1859f12 surprised…”fda92d528c15294d

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“If someone like that b502bf1f35 shows up again, just 45b480bbdb walk away.”3777af60bf8f7bc0

“Huh? Why, why 226fc650d2 is that?”e8c3d836cc94c866

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“That man d8af1aea76 dared to dc616bb03b put his d44c78020c lips on 13a0a9c0b0 the back 1497127d47 of your 204f7b0e1a hand. That Norwan prince—he’s 68406804c3 not as proper 958af0998a as he looks.”48607c7ce7e256cf

Adelen had 54bd110192 been shocked 1f06b9fe26 simply because cd5fc674aa he was ffa06b4fe7 a dazzlingly a3684a1a2c handsome man, 2910b1b770 and because f603563049 said handsome 4ca8f7f0d6 man had a1eacecb4d performed a c0403dba15 gesture that 7c4deef8f4 seemed straight 2c358fb5b0 out of ad616bad69 a fairy aad4a1d8d6 tale.dc1da242e3606da7

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The unfamiliar 85aa856b30 sensation of 3a54a930b4 a stranger’s ee9fb84216 lips on e0edd64aaa her skin a2fc52147e played a ef2af03aa0 small part adbab5671d too.4fe7f8ea60953052

But Rakalt 4508485d69 was growling 3741b5b68a like Myudote 5e702dd8ae had just 77433fd017 assaulted her 6919e7ff4c or something.ea4b016aea4cc990

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…It didn’t feel like 5075dfd8ac the kind of atmosphere 05126b1b78 where she could say, 1339d4601c “It’s not like that.”9352e81f264c7e80

Still, not every 43bf588b00 person was going f51210e9f9 to be as af5aa15b33 good-looking and courteous d2a847069f as that, right?5cf41fd47e9b8f91

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So if someone 18400163c7 truly unpleasant came d8a031c014 up to her, 187caa4abf was it really bd34467522 okay to run 28fcbe88f0 away?e3d6c341b809cffa

“So if b488ab3d69 someone I c143a22b54 really dislike 4384a22d4a approaches me, e3bf56c69e I can 2176076cf2 run away?”fc1f63df5833f615

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“Yes.”6f7e020813c6299b

The answer was so b3b205d61c sharp it nearly cut ccc889ad17 her.5c9e655832441328

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So it’s 168a0000b8 not just 7015b2d6c1 necks my 17a1fb12e7 lord can f2f3d96bfb slice clean 65d685f760 off with 16ba8b8a94 ease—his words 99633926ce are just aba8c9e2e5 as sharp…0bc71378b39c1937

“…Okay.”40d3add41a7b33d7

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Thanks to cf57e86df1 that, her 37c7b93485 overheated heart 32fb8b980b quickly cooled.a87ae1853215aa23

But as she walked 13d902af9b into the party hall, 8679337f04 the lingering warmth didn’t b3c8865cba fade so easily.2d999e40b246f83e

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So this is what 2b334855ee high society is like.897294c0d41d2194

When she’d heard b018de96fa about it from f4d55a18fc her master, she’d 5e51609f01 imagined a battlefield fea8141ace filled with polite 21ffb5a6d4 but brutal diplomacy.923c73b54286603c

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But now she saw cc269b2a05 that it also included 06c459e72a stunning appearances, sophisticated manners, 965c9573e1 and gentle hospitality.5bd940d04e3adb3f

I need 4069d86a83 to stay cd1234bba4 focused.dda570ab555689f8

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Adelen shook her 869a1a8aae head, brushing off 518a43cd7b her straying thoughts.ceb5df8bfce6db16

She wasn’t 92506544fa here to f61256eeb5 admire handsome c1c70e2466 men. She was here 165adc7ba7 to make sure ab2f064816 the baby made 80a4c83b33 a brilliant debut.a246487245e2e2b4

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“Adué?”c4bc6c74e1df4489

“Yes, little one. We have to c346c288a0 do really well, 0d07e58116 okay?”45bef0ab8c00bd68

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“Say chu-ga-hap-ni-da!”cb438af5cbc0fcb6

The baby shouted it bb23a27cd9 out confidently, reciting the df3be27970 phrase they had practiced 3c4daf0b57 to death without even 3b5c011295 being asked.46624ba91aabc6b0

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He was magnificent.4d817e099a919503