In the northern part of the town of Hollowstone lay a mansion that had been standing on the land for many decades, with a vastness and grandeur that could easily rival a palace. In one of the rooms sat a man in front of a glass of drink, though his attention was not on what lay on the table but on the dainty handkerchief he held between his fingers.
The other man in the room, who was standing by the window, spoke.
"I was enticed to return promptly upon hearing the news of our mansion hosting the first ball of Halcyon, which I find intriguing. Did our dear sister finally decide to play the hostess? I highly doubt it was Father."
The one who was sitting smiled despite the lack of humor in his silver eyes. "Not Father, of course. He has taken himself a new wife to be the lady of the house. A stepmother—isn't that what you need? Our dear father must have realized you are in serious need of some motherly guidance."
Though the two gentlemen appeared to be of the same age, the man standing was actually younger.
He spoke to his older brother with a dark smile, knowing well it was a joke. "I'm afraid it is a bit too late to have a stepmother now. Even an angel cannot fix what is damaged beyond repair."
"Surely you are speaking only of yourself. I am perfectly fine as I am and in no need of the fixing you speak of."
The younger brother chuckled, while the older one smirked, his eyes never leaving the handkerchief he held as he said, "It is I who will be hosting the ball."
"Oh?" The younger brother's eyebrow rose in surprise before his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You? Hosting a ball?" He chuckled as if finding the idea ridiculous. "Why the sudden interest in social functions? I doubt it has anything to do with socializing, as we both know you are not very fond of it."
"Isn't hosting a ball the most effective way to invite someone into your home?"
The younger man's gaze fell upon the handkerchief his older brother held, his eyes glinting with interest.
"A female human? Her scent is very sweet, but it does not seem to bear any special qualities." He tilted his head, puzzled for a moment, then smirked. "Unless, to you… her scent is different from others."
The older brother did not speak, still staring intently at the pastel handkerchief with an embroidered lilac rose above a lady's initials. It had turned out that his short trip to the countryside in the past week had become more meaningful than he had planned it to be.
Back at the Blythmor mansion in Ferrygrove, Elain was in her room, busy searching for something in her wardrobe. She could not find a precious belonging that held sentimental value to her.
Where did she put it? she asked herself, feeling frustrated.
She remembered bringing it to the countryside last week, and when she got home, she thought it had been taken by the servants along with her other clothes to be washed. Only when the servant returned her clothes did she notice that her handkerchief was not among them.
She had spent hours searching her room, thinking she had misplaced it somewhere, only to find nothing.
After dinner, she went to Rory's bedroom and asked her cousin about it, but Rory said she remembered Elain putting it in the pocket of her dress on the day they left the countryside. But the dress she wore that day had been washed, while the handkerchief remained missing.
The next day, right after breakfast, Elain spoke to the maid who had washed her clothes, but the maid claimed she had not seen the handkerchief.
Elain knew there was no reason for the maid to lie, as she had always treated the servants more amiably than other young ladies, and in return, they treated her with the utmost care.
"Could I have dropped it somewhere while washing the clothes?" the maid looked at Elain with horror, thinking that she might be responsible for the lady's lost handkerchief, which she knew was most precious to her. "L-let me take a look at the washing area, milady. I am so sorry—"
"It is fine," Elain said. "Nothing like this has happened before, so it must not be your fault or the others'. If it was lost, I must have dropped it on the way back here." Though she wanted to hope it was lost in the mansion, she did not want to put pressure on the maid.
Although Elain had told the maid not to worry too much about it, the maid still promised she would search the mansion.
While the maid was busy, Elain was dragged by Rory out of the residence to a fair in the next town.
When they arrived at the fair, most people walking around were from high society, as this part of the city belonged to the upper districts. While some wanted to see if the traveling merchants had brought something new from other cities, others were like Rory, who simply wanted to wander through bustling places without looking to buy anything in particular.
"Why do you think the Greyfords are hosting the first ball?" Rory asked out of the blue, her arm linked with Elain's.
Though the two young women lived in the same house as ladies of the Blythmor family, there was a stark contrast in the way they dressed. Though cut from fabrics of the same quality, the designs and colors differed greatly.
While Rory wore bright and lively colors with exquisite threadwork and styled her hair with ornaments, Elain wore a dull, very plain dress that did not accentuate the womanly curves of her body, her hair braided into a simple bun.
"Everyone is talking about it, so I cannot help but wonder," Rory continued, glancing around before looking at Elain. "Have you seen them? I know you are not an active participant in society events, but the Greyfords live in the same city, after all, and their mansion is just in the town next to ours. Perhaps you have come across them somewhere."
"I have only heard of them," Elain replied, her mind still occupied by her missing handkerchief.
"Or perhaps you did, but did not recognize them." Cynthia was a strict aunt to Elain, but she was allowed to leave the residence whenever she pleased, as long as she returned before dinner.
"Anyway, not seeing them doesn't matter," Rory said not to appease Elain, but because it was what she truly thought. "They are very wealthy and beautiful people that's why they matter to high society. But I cannot say it is wise to get close to them."
Elain knew why. Despite not meeting the Greyfords personally, she had heard many things about them, both good and bad, but it was hard to say that the good outweighed the bad.
With influence and wealth that people claimed could rival the royal family's, the Greyfords were rumored to have a history of twisting truths and manipulating events to make what they wanted happen, without caring who paid the price. They could have someone thrown into the dungeon or sent to the gallows with a mere flick of their fingers.
However, it was not only their wealth and power that made people wary of them but also their twisted characters.
And more importantly… the rumor that they were far from ordinary humans.