Nearly four months had passed since Lady Vivienne Ashcroft disappeared from the capital.
At first the rumors were entertaining. Some swore she'd fled after a heartbreak; others claimed she was masterminding a coup from some remote location; and there were always those who insisted she'd lost her mind after selling off a large chunk of her estate to settle in a forgotten corner of the continent.
The reality was far less interesting.
Vivienne had just woken up from a nap that lasted nearly ten hours.
She opened one eye with visible effort, stared at the wooden ceiling of her villa, and let out a long yawn.
"What a hard life..."
She rolled over in bed.
"Sleeping this much is exhausting too."
She spent a few minutes hugging the pillow before mustering enough willpower to get up.
The villa was simple compared to the mansions she'd left behind, though it was still spacious. It sat on a small hill overlooking the sea and the fishing port. Every morning boats arrived with fresh fish, the neighbors greeted each other by name, and nobody talked about politics.
It was exactly the life she'd imagined.
She changed clothes at a leisurely pace and stepped out into the garden.
Her housekeeper, Mara, a woman close to fifty with a stern face and few words, was already waiting beside the breakfast table.
"Good morning, my lady."
"Good morning, Mara."
"Breakfast has gone cold."
"That means I slept a good while."
Mara sighed in resignation.
She'd gotten used to it by now.
When she'd agreed to follow Vivienne, she'd assumed she'd still be serving a busy noblewoman. She discovered, to her surprise, that her new mistress had an extraordinary talent for avoiding any kind of obligation.
Vivienne picked up a slice of bread.
"Any news?"
"Mr. Owen dropped off the fish you ordered."
"Perfect."
"Fruit came in too."
"Excellent."
"And you received three letters."
Vivienne set the bread back on the plate.
"What terrible news."
"Which part?"
"The letters."
Mara handed her the small bundle.
Vivienne recognized the seals immediately.
The capital.
The council of nobles.
A banquet invitation.
Without opening any of them, she placed them on the table.
"Should I file them?"
"No."
"Should I reply?"
"No."
Vivienne picked up all three letters and dropped them into a drawer where plenty of others already rested.
"If I never read them, they're technically still future problems."
Mara didn't even try to argue anymore.
After breakfast, Vivienne grabbed a fishing rod and walked down to a small wooden dock.
She wasn't especially good at fishing.
She didn't especially care.
She spent nearly two hours sitting with her feet dangling above the water.
She caught one fish.
Then another.
And lost three hooks.
She returned satisfied.
"It's been a productive day."
Mara looked at the two tiny fish.
"I suppose."
The peace lasted exactly three more days.
That morning, the bell towers began ringing with urgency.
The villagers poured out of their homes.
The merchants stopped selling.
The mayor ran back and forth.
Vivienne opened the window, still disheveled.
"What's going on?"
Mara had just returned from the plaza.
Her face showed an unusual concern.
"Messengers arrived from the capital."
"And?"
"The Dragon Empire has declared war."
Vivienne needed a few seconds to process the information.
"What?"
"The eastern frontier was attacked."
"Today?"
"Last night."
Silence settled between them.
Vivienne knew the game's original story.
She remembered conspiracies.
Political conflicts.
Assassination attempts.
But never a war against the Dragon Empire.
She frowned.
"That wasn't supposed to happen."
Mara looked at her without understanding.
"Did you say something?"
"Nothing."
The news kept coming for the rest of the day.
Cities destroyed.
Fortresses reduced to ashes.
Entire squadrons gone.
Dragons crossed the skies without stopping.
Nobody understood why.
The Empire hadn't started a war in decades.
Suddenly it had mobilized its entire army.
In the village, preparations began.
Some men talked about enlisting.
Families stockpiled food.
Children asked what was happening.
Vivienne listened to all of these conversations while buying bread.
"What a disaster..."
The baker sighed.
"Do you think they'll reach us here?"
"I hope not."
"They say dragons can destroy entire cities."
Vivienne took the bread.
She kept walking as if nothing had happened.
When she got back, Mara was waiting at the entrance.
"Aren't you going to prepare provisions?"
"We already have some."
"Shelters?"
"The house has a cellar. Whatever's going to happen will happen. Besides, that's the capital's problem. We're a small place in the south and we live far from trouble."
Mara closed her eyes.
"My lady..."
"If the world's going to end, at least I'll have lived peacefully for a few months."
That answer left Mara with no arguments.
After lunch, Vivienne decided to go for a walk.
The nearby forest always put her at ease.
The trees offered shade, the air was cool, and a small stream crossed the path.
As she walked, she tried to remember whether she'd forgotten some important part of the game.
She couldn't find anything related to this war.
"How strange..."
She kept walking.
Then she heard a thud.
Something heavy was slamming repeatedly against the rocks in the stream.
She approached out of curiosity.
Between the branches she spotted an enormous white sphere.
She blinked.
"What...?"
She moved a little closer.
It wasn't a rock.
It wasn't a sculpture either.
It was an egg.
A giant one.
It nearly reached her waist.
The water was slowly pushing it against several rocks, keeping it from following the current.
Vivienne stood there staring at it.
Her first reaction was very simple.
"No."
She turned around.
Walked three steps.
Stopped.
"Not my problem."
She took two more steps.
"Exactly."
She nodded, convincing herself.
"Trouble starts like this."
She kept walking away.
"You find something strange."
Another step.
"You pick it up."
Another.
"And you end up in serious trouble."
She shook her head firmly.
"I'm out."
She'd covered nearly ten meters when something inside her started nagging.
She stopped again.
Looked back.
The egg was still trapped between the rocks.
"..."
She pressed her lips together.
"No."
She tried to keep walking.
She couldn't.
She groaned under her breath.
"Damn conscience..."
She slowly made her way back to the stream.
She crouched in front of the enormous shell.
"Listen, whatever you are, I don't want responsibilities."
She placed a hand on the white surface.
At that exact moment she felt a tiny heartbeat.
Very faint.
Then another.
Vivienne pulled her hand back as if she'd been shocked.
She froze.
She touched the shell again.
The small heart was still beating.
Slowly.
With difficulty.
Her expression changed completely. It was true that the villainess had magic, though she hadn't been using it since her vacation started.
"You're still alive..."
The water kept hammering the egg again and again.
If it stayed there much longer, it would end up cracking.
Vivienne closed her eyes.
She stayed like that for several minutes.
Finally she let out a long sigh.
"If I walk away and you turn up dead tomorrow, I'm going to feel guilty for the rest of my life."
She placed both hands on the shell.
"And I hate feeling guilty."
She tried to move it.
Didn't budge an inch.
"...I also hate exercise."
Using her magic and her memories, she managed to free the egg from the rocks.
She looked at the enormous object. Its white shell gleamed like a star.
"All right. I'm taking you with me."
Half an hour later she was heading back along the trail. Beside her, the egg floated with an invisible aura.
When Mara saw the enormous thing, her eyes went wide with surprise.
"My lady... what is that?"
"Well..."
The two of them stared at the shell for a few seconds.
Vivienne looked up at the sky.
"I suppose it's the end of my vacation."
***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***
Updated 40 Episodes
Download
Like this story? Download the app to keep your reading history.
Comments