The Duke chuckled lightly. "I am being too sentimental again, aren't I?" He huffed and waved his hand dismissively. "Anyway, I didn't call you here to lecture you about what you did today."
"You didn't?" Ashelia asked, a little confused. "Why then?"
"Hmm... where do I begin?" Duke Alistair mused, leaning back on his chair, he sighed for what seemed to be the hundredth time. "I intend to take you to Lavim with me."
Ashelia's breath caught when she heard his words. "Why are you going there, father?"
The Duke had a sad look in his eyes. "One of my knight commanders, Count Kisel, has fallen very ill. I want to go and see him."
Ashelia frowned. Count Kisel Donovan, the reigning count of the Varihm county, a small territory within the Wynford duchy in the large trade city of Lavim.
Apart from his name, Ashelia didn't know much else about him. It made her feel a little bad.
"Are... are you alright?" she managed to ask, concerned for the Duke's well-being.
"I would be lying if I said I was," Duke Alistair admitted truthfully. "But it is a part of life I must accept. People come and people go."
Ashelia pursed her lips "Why do you want me to come with you?"
The Duke tilted his head thoughtfully. "I'm convinced you found the manor stuffy which was why you ran away through a secret passage. So let me take you out, my dear. It might make you feel a little better."
Ashelia revealed a small smile. She didn't want to look too happy, they were going to visit a sick person, after all. "Thank you, father!"
Still, she was excited. Nothing was better than leaving that suffocating manor and breathing in some fresh air once in a while! Things couldn't have turned out better!
"When do we leave?" She asked.
The Duke didn't hesitate. "We will be going to visit the old Count tomorrow. So go and get yourself ready."
* * *
Fabian's eyebrows twitched at the building before him. Right in front of him was an old, rundown inn. It had definitely seen better days, and was severely lacking in security.
What was the Archduke thinking when he selected a place like this for them to rest in?
He looked back at the two Knights standing behind him, who were now wearing commoners' clothes. He could instantly tell that they shared his thoughts from the looks on their faces.
Fabian stared down at what he was wearing. It was a simple brown tunic with black linen trousers and worn leather boots. His nose slightly wrinkled in displeasure.
He turned his attention to the man who stood beside him who was an inch or two taller than him. He wore the same kind of tunic but in white, black linen trousers and leather boots that looked new, unlike his.
Azrael always appeared regal, but now, he couldn't even look more like a commoner if he tried.
"We have stumbled upon quite the place, haven't we, Fabian?" Azrael asked as his lips twitched slightly in amusement.
Fabian fought the urge to groan loudly in exasperation. "Honestly, Milord," he started. "Is all this really necessary? We could have had things easier residing at Count Donovan's estate."
"That defeats the whole point." Azrael told him simply.
His aide's eyes twitched in mild irritation. "The whole point of what exactly, Milord?"
"The whole point of keeping my arrival in Dalniar a secret." Azrael told him. "I would rather remain undetected for now."
Fabian huffed. "And why would you want to keep it a secret?" He asked. "Does your arrival cause any problems for them?"
Azrael stopped to think for a moment, tilting his head to the side slightly before chuckling. "Yes it does. I believe they see me as some sort of threat."
"Tsk." Fabian clicked his tongue. "That does not stop you from making your arrival known. They invited you this time."
He peered at his master suspiciously through his thin framed glasses. "But this is quite unlike you, Milord. Is there something you're not telling me?"
Azrael hesitated for a long moment, then smirked. "...Yes," he answered bluntly. "Now come, the sooner we go in the sooner we get to rest."
He started to walk toward the inn's doors without sparing a single glance behind him.
"Hah…" Fabian sighed and started to follow suit, accompanied by the two Knights in their commoner disguises.
When they got in, Fabian couldn't help but scrunch up his nose once again at how unimpressive the place looked. It was filled with the stench of alcohol and body odor, he could hardly bear it.
He looked over the Archduke and saw that the man didn't even appear the least affected by the condition and smell of the place.
Fabian couldn't help but wonder how he managed it, since his nose was far more sensitive.
Just at the corner of the big space, past all the tables and chairs, was what seemed to be a front desk that had a stone-faced man sitting behind it.
"What are you still standing here for?" Azrael asked suddenly, giving his aide beside him an expectant look. "Go and get rooms for us."
Fabian barely managed not to retort and slowly walked toward the inn's front desk.
He truly wished the inn was full already. In fact, he wished all the inns in Lavim were full, then they would have no other choice but to stay at the Count's manor.
But to his disappointment, even the first floor looked nearly empty. Only a few peasants were present and they gave him disinterested looks as he walked past.
'Honestly,' Fabian thought. 'If we are going to stay in an Inn, why couldn't he have chosen a more comfortable one? If only it was completely occupied…"
But his hopes were totally dashed the moment he stood in front of the desk to make his requirements. "Two rooms," He stated. "Each for two."
The stone-faced man at the front desk eyed his clothes skeptically.
What the man in front of him wore didn't particularly make him look poor, but the inn manager had enough experience to know that some commoners usually dressed clean enough for people to believe they could pay for something they could not.
"That would be five copper coins," he grunted, then eyed him again. "Sure you can pay, lad?"
Fabian raised a brow and slipped a hand into a small leather pouch hanging from his belt before tossing a single gold coin on the desk.
"Two rooms, each for two." He repeated.