“?ταν χτυπ?σει ο κεραυν??, θυμ?σου με”
**
Tong…tong…
Around noon, it started to rain. The last heavy rain of the temperate spring.
Raindrops splashed onto the surface of windows, flowing down to form long lines. Water accumulates in puddles on the dirt road surface that has turned into mud.
The road became deserted, candlelight peeking out from behind the windows, making anyone who is still on the street right now feel like they’ve accidentally walked into a cursed abandoned town.
Latila port is completely closed, ships no longer passing through, the market is absent as merchants and buyers take shelter from the storm.
The sky was just pitch black, gray and gloomy.
Latila during rain would probably be no different from a ghost city, if it weren't for the lights of the two great palaces in the city lighting it up.
One of them is of course the Royal Palace of the Royal House of Latila, the other is the Palace, Grand Headquarters of the House of Voyage.
Bang!
“...it’s you..”
A single bolt of lightning struck the grand palace.
The wind gusts continuously, pruning each branch of the trees planted in front of the palace gate and smashing them into the swampy soil below.
The windward flags were torn from their poles and got lost in the air. The storm is, frankly, very strong. No one should be out in this weather.
However, on the wall surrounding the palace, amidst the rainfall, a few dim lights can be seen moving, they were soldiers of the armed guard platoon changing their shifts.
In their barrack by the palace, the National Gendarmeries are on standby, waiting to respond to any civilian-related emergency order being given to them.
As for the police cavalry team of the palace... They are, surprisingly, patrolling all around.
In this whole city, the Voyage Palace is the only place that is always on duty, no matter the weather be, or anything happening. The Palace is the watcher and order protector of the city, 24 hours everyday, all year around.
“Ah...my brother and my men have returned.”
From a room on the third floor of the palace, where a fireplace is burning and filling the space with its warmth, Lily, full name Lily Sobieski Voyage, the only daughter of the former Archduchess of Voyage, the current Archduchess, patriarch of the House of Voyage and Klein’s sister, looked out the window and saw her brother and a few dozen Royal Servicers returning to the palace in rain-soaked clothes, after a futile attempt to find the Archprince.
Things are, about an hour after Klein had returned to Latila Palace, he did not see Belisari return, so the officer panicked and immediately ran to Voyage Palace to find help from his older sister Lily, Prince Belisari’s only superior. After more than half an hour of listening to his sister argue that it would be pointless to search and that Belisari would return whenever he wanted to return, Klein still insisted on sending the cavalry to look for the prince, and with him, a team of volunteers followed. The result is as stated above.
“Ha ha, fools…”
Seeing her younger brother looking towards her room, whether accidentally or intentionally, Lily closes the curtains, then goes to the other side of the room. She sits down on the armchair, picking up a half-drunk cup of tea and takes a sip. For sure it lifted her spirit:
“Anyway...it's none of my business.”
The Archduchess rests her back along the armchair.
It seemed like the room would become quiet, but then Lily suddenly speak:
“Is there anything, Alice?”
Then the Archduchess looks toward the door of the room. Behind that door, a maid by the name of Alice was about to knock on the door:
“Ah...um..." - the maid opens the door and walks in, bowing her head - "Madame, your father just called."
“Speak the content.”
“He requested you to attend the annual command meeting. You and Archprince Belisari have been absent for 7 years.”
“Ah, I knew about that, that damn meeting where he pressured me to resign...told him that I wouldn't hand over the Patriarch position to him as long as I was alive, so don't waste my time. I don't have many days off."
As she spoke, Lily poured more tea. Tea is not suitable for drinking cold, the archduchess will certainly not leave the room and leave the cup of tea here to let it cool.
"You cannot. He told me-”
“I won't say it twice.”-The Duchess clears her throat, then says loudly-“Tell him that for as long as he lives in the palace left by my birth parents, it's advised for him to keep his mouth shut and obey my command.”
“But-”
“I have the right to remove him from his position in the army and I am being merciful not doing it. You may leave."
Having heard the order, the maid quickly backs away, but does not forget to note through the keyhole - "He also said if you change your mind, come meet him on the first floor. Goodbye.”
Alice closes the door completely.
Just as the door closes, another bolt of lightning struck the palace, this time it struck right next to the window of the Archduchess's room.
Bang!
“Hah…”
Seeing that the fire in the fireplace is weakening, the Duchess reaches for a piece of wood next to her, breaks it in half and throws the pieces into the fireplace.
The fire blows up again in a bright orange color, and the soot flares out, making the carpet slightly burned black.
Heat rises and fills up the room. It's a bit hot, but it's better if it's warmer.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
"Damned stubborn, if only someone else had adopted me instead of him back then" - Lily takes another sip of tea-"That might have saved the trouble - Ah, come in, Klein, but if you're here to complain that I didn't help you find that Belisari, you can just turn around and leave right away."
Having just changed from his rain-soaked attire to another set, Klein opens the door and walks in:
“You are so aggressive, your voice can be heard all the way from the third floor. My father sat there, he heard it all, his blood must be boiling now. Catch.”
Klein held an apple in his hand and threw it at Lily.
"Heh, consider it a deterrent to that old man."-The duchess catches the apple flying in mid-air and places it onto the table-"And this...is from Belisari?"
"Yes, and he told me to give them to you" -Klein put the bag of apples on the table - "And don’t call the Archprince by his first name, please. Be polite.”
“I am both higher ranked and older than him.”
In the Kingdom of Latila, the title of Archduke/Archduchess held the same power as the title of Archprince, meaning that Lily and Belisari are equal in the nobility system.
In the military however, the title of Archprince of the House of Latila grants its owner no priority compared to other nobles, while those with the title of Archduke/Archduchess of the House of Voyage automatically become Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Army.
In other words, Lily is the commander in chief, and is always superior to Belisari no matter what.
As for age, Lily is 26 years old, 2 years older than Belisari:
"You are being weird"-Lily raises her hand, defending-"It's just that we are very close, so we can refer to each other as anything, as long as there is no bad intention."
"In my opinion, a standard address is an expression of minimal respect to each other. So please, refer to him by his middle name or by “Your Highness”, if you are willing to."
As mentioned before, Klein is very formal in addressing people around him, a moderate aristocrat, in contrast to his sister or the still-missing prince.
“I don’t give a damn however. Whatever, give me the flint, Klein."
Lily pulls out a cigarette from her pocket and puts it in her mouth with her left hand, and with the other hand she takes the flint that Klein gave her and smashes it against the piece of steel placed on the table.
Clink!
The flintstone got lit, the Archduchess holds it firmly against the cigarette on her mouth to lit it up, at the same time offering another to her brother:
“High-quality cigarettes from Milishila, give it a try.”
Klein politely refuses-"I think I will not, I can’t stand the smell of burning herb. I don’t even understand why you smoke.”
“What a strange question you ask? To relieve stress, what else?"
Lily exhales a breath of smoke:
“Every time I inhale, my mind becomes lighter. It's like the feeling when you stand up too quickly, the blood hasn't had time to rush to your head, you will feel lightheaded, and that the world is spinning around you, except here the feeling lasts longer... “
Lily points the burning cigarette at Klein-”Yes, smoking is like that. Everyone has their own way to relieve stress...and I chose this way, being the Archduchess and the patriarch of the House is very tiring, you know?”
The House of Voyage has been a long-standing noble family in the Kingdom of Latila since its founding in the year of 23, when the first Voyage, the founder of the House of Voyage and also later be the first patriarch, a knight named James Fortius Voyage, upon receiving a grace, swore that he and his bloodline would always be loyal to Licelia, the first queen of the country and her husband, King Konstantine the Great, and their bloodline, which later turned to be the House of Latila.
From that moment on, the House of Voyage became the trusted friends of the kings of Latila, the sword of the Kingdom, the first House to respond to any invader, the first to rush into battle and the last to leave on any battlefield across the Kingdom's territory. They served without hesitation, fearness and always were loyal, even ruled the kingdom when the kings were weak, and gave back full authority when the House of Latila had recovered from crises. Something that is almost impossible to find in the medieval back-stabbing era.
Being loved by every king that had ever ruled, around the 9th century, among the five aristocratic Houses in the Kingdom, the patriarch of the House of Voyage was honored to be given the title of Archduke/Archduchess, a title second to only the king of the country.
That title, with its militaristic nature, was passed down across patriarchs of the House, ending up in Lily’s hand after her birth parents, the previous patriarchs, Archduke and Archduchess, died in the war ten years ago.
Of course, with a high position such as Archduke/Archduchess, the patriarchs of Voyage, including Lily, will alone have to handle the national affairs of the Royal Army, managing the military's activities outside the kingdom's sovereignty and at the same time, resolve internal conflicts in between branches of the armed forces, either by negotiation or by violence, depending on the situation. All of which can be very tiring, thus, not only this generation’s Archduchess-patriarch, but also in previous generations, every patriarch, every single one of them, was addicted to something to struggle against their built up stress.
There is one Archduke who is said to be addicted to alcohol, another Archduchess who consumed more black tea than water, and there is an Archduke who…adopted five dozen cats. Anyhow, in short, all kinds of things to make people forget their fatigue and work efficiently.
“Cigarettes are fuel for me to work, fulfill my responsibilities to the House, to my honor...yeah. And in the future, my children who shall inherit this title will suffer the same as I have..."
“As if anyone would marry you-”
Bonk!
The total time it took for the apple on the table to fly and hit Klein's head was 0.12 seconds.
“Ouch, it hurts!”-The apple bounces out, but the impact remains on Klein’s forehead.
“Say another word and I'll throw you out the window.”
As Lily speaks, the hot-tempered Archduchess clenches her hands into fists.
As she does that, the veins on her muscles bulge out from underneath the layer of her shirt as blood flows into her standby arms, which looks terrifying to be honest.
Lily wasn't kidding, just one punch of her will be enough to send Klein flying out the window:
“Stop, stop” -Klein waves his hand in panic, comforting - “I'm just kidding. We are still family, don’t kill me just for that.”
“Hah…fine.”
Lily puffs a cloud of smoke into Klein’s face, making him cough and choking as a punishment. Luckily for the young soldier, his older sister was hot-tempered but also easily forgiving of others, especially her two stepbrothers, and more especially Klein because he was the youngest among them.
Even though, there was something the Archduchess still couldn't understand:
“Why are you only kidding with your sister and your twin brother? I’ve never seen you kidding with Belis- His Highness.”
“We’re family, I find it comfortable acting naturally among you two.”
Klein giggles. He rarely express those emotion in front of others:
“Sorry about what I said. Actually, I think you have a pretty face. People, men or women, will fall in love with you if you try to seduce them with effort.”
“I know I am not attractive, no need to sugarcoat it.”
“Aha, I guess.”
Quietly looking at the firelight in the room, Klein felt relaxed, probably because this was his home and not the office in Latila Palace where he eats and sleeps there for the last month.
Sitting by the fire, enjoying a few apples and a cup of tea in hand, if only his smoking sister wasn't around. But this is her room, she has the authority, who can blame her?
The air is turning cool, so Lily picks up another large piece of wood, breaks it into parts and throws all into the furnace.
The fire lit up, throwing up a pile of ash that covered the floor, hoping that it wouldn't burn.
Outside, it's still raining, even heavier than before, but the wind has weakened.
Really peaceful.
“Klein”
Suddenly Lily breaks the quiet space:
"What?"-Klein replies.
“Can you guess where His Highness is now?”
“Uh”- Klein wasn’t prepared for this question to come up, so he answered with a lurch:
“...around the harbor...he's probably sheltering from the rain at some military post right now, he doesn't have much money with him.”
“Hmm...that sounds reasonable, but it's wrong.”
Lily suddenly bursts out laughing, the laugh was not loud, rather it was a giggle, contemptuous smirk:
“You've lived with Beli- His Highness for almost your whole life and you are still not familiar with his presence, huh? But then there were footsteps in the hallway, maybe your ears are faulty as well.”
Knock knock
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door from outside. It can’t be...
“Ah, here he is”
The Archduchess gently throws the cigarette butt into the fire in the fireplace and stands up from her armchair- "Come in Your Highness, introduce your new friend to me."
