The streets were filled with stone buildings, no wooden houses could be seen between them.
It was crowded—not as packed as Antoria, but it was still full of people.
Smiling people.
While Antoria gathered all kinds of people, all the people here looked the same—carrying the same skin tone Edward did.
"Katherine, why are you so pale compared to Edward and the others here?" I asked her.
She didn't try to hold her laughter in as she said,
"Hahaha, because I am from the north—just like you are."
"But you two will probably gain a color unlike me, after all your dad is from here."
"Really? I sadly don't really know anything about the north..." The floorboards came into sight as my gaze lowered.
"Does it work like that...?"
"Where I am from is a simple town—it was nothing special."
"Yes, it really does. I am sure you will find out later as well if you stay in this warmth for a while longer."
"Even though winter is coming?"
"Winter here is almost as hot as the northern summers"
"Really!? That's too hot..." I pulled my collar, letting the air enter past my chest.
"Hahaha, I had the same thought at the start, but you will get accustomed to it."
"I hope so..." I slowed the fanning down, realizing something,
"The heat isn't reaching us—is that because of the spirit's language?"
"Exactly, our home is cooled as well." She smiled with her thumbs raised.
"That makes it easier—a lot easier!" I let go of my collar and raised both thumbs as well.
"I completely agree," she said, making small nods as she smiled.
That same moment Mim woke up, her eyes had shot open as she lay against the carriage wall, met with the view outside.
"THIS PLACE IS SOO BIG!"
As we kept riding deeper into the capital, I started to realize just how big it was—big enough to hide the walls on the other sides—the only thing that stood out was the big building in the middle.
The biggest building I had ever seen.
"What is that building in the middle?" I asked.
"It's the palace—the building the king resides in," Edward said.
Katherine had cast a sigh of relief as she looked away from him.
"Really, does the king live in such a big place!? What does he even do in there?"
"He rules over this entire country."
"When you become a knight, you will go there, and receive the honors from the king himself."
"I would love to see it once..." We followed the road towards the palace.
It looks amazing.
Towers as high as the city walls on every side, casting the same white lights down onto the city.
It felt as if it said that with the king there—nothing will fall beneath the dark.
I kept staring at it almost opening the curtains to keep looking as we took a turn, I was unable to see the palace floors—covered by the gates and garden surrounding it.
We continued onward to the west. Another building came into sight after passing the palace.
One smaller than the palace, but bigger than all the houses I'd ever visited before—even bigger than where Edward stayed.
Few people started to appear on the streets as we came closer to the building.
Katherine took hold of the curtain I peeked through.
"Tjer, I think it's better if you were to close the curtains for now..."
I just followed along and let go.
It was unclear but I could hear screams from outside.
And with each step the horses took, the louder it became, multiple voices were intertwining—all said the same thing.
"Commander Cross! Commander Cross!" I tried to glance outside, but the moment I met Katherine's and Edward's faces they shook their heads.
I turned to Mim who sat still, tapping her feet—she forced me back.
Even when I couldn't see them, different voices could be heard—young and old, man and woman.
Even with all those differences one thing was sure—everybody had come for Edward.
"Do you want to ask me something?" Edward asked, after he caught my stares.
"Uhm... why are they screaming your name—are you loved here?"
"Loved? It's just that I am their protector—their knight commander."
"Isn't this love?" I asked, taken aback by his response.
The voices of those people were filled with warmth, not a speck of disgust.
"It is in a way, but there is still a difference." He smiled gently as he spoke.
"I don't understand what you mean..." I felt uncomfortable hearing it.
"I did not expect you to—it's something that will come with time, Tjer."
I simply nodded to him, to which he broadened his smile.
I heard the scraping of the gates as they were opened up for us.
Katherine nodded as I looked at her, making me peek outside again.
It was a garden we passed through, approaching a building.
It did not look like the one I saw from outside. It was a stone building, with an opening in the middle, the entire building surrounding this yard.
Specks of light were slowly reaching us—reflections of metal.
People were sparring—light was reflecting off their armor and blades.
We finally passed the trees, reached the open yard in front of the building, and took a turn to the right.
The towers I had seen from far—the building wasn't just big in height, but in width as well.
It was something special, a distance away from the people sparring—requiring us to pass through another gate.
But I didn't look at the gate, only at the white light that reflected from the top of the tower.
The rest of the building was made of grey bricks.
The interest I felt was natural—not just for me, Mim had been staring out of the window on her side.
We passed through a colorful yard, a beautiful yard, filled with flowers—red and white, ones I had never seen before.
With a small fountain in the midst of it all.
"Welcome, this is your new home!" Katherine said, pointing at the coach door, revealing Albert who opened it.
As I stepped out, I heard Edward from behind me,
"Tjer, we need to make sure the outside will not find out about you—okay?"
"Yes, I understand."
"Let's start off with the first thing—you will call me father, sir, or lord when we are outside."
"There is not a son that calls their father by their name after all." He said, from next to me.
"Okay, I'll do so Edw—sir."
"...better than before." He smiled, but his eyes were neither on me nor Mim.
"Follow me, let me give you a tour of the house," Albert said.
"Okay, thank you sir."
"You should just call me Albert."
"Okay... thank you Albert."
"So normally there would be people waiting for our arrival—other servants like me."
"Because of our arrival they're not here?"
We had passed from the gravel onto the cobblestone.
"Exactly, the house will slowly start to fill up as we decide who to trust."
He opened the double door, and we entered the house.
We stood in front of a gigantic staircase, that led to a banner before it split to both sides.
"We will start with the first floor," Albert said.
We walked through the house and started off at the open space on the left—the main hall, a place where events are held, from celebrations, to dinners, and all else people would be invited for.
We kept walking through the room, one filled with swords, portraits, and banners, surrounded by decorations, chairs, and couches—completed by the dinner table in the middle.
It filled the entire wing of this house.
I took a second look at the portraits, and kept walking, recognizing no one.
We entered the door left of us, and arrived at a hallway, right of it was a kitchen, left was another staircase—downstairs one.
Straight ahead was the dining hall, it was twice as big as the one in Antoria—with an open doorway leading into the sitting room, connecting it to the central yard as well.
As we passed the sitting room we were back in the hallway, we went upstairs now.
I looked left to me, at Mim who was huffing with each step we climbed.
This house is bigger than anything we have ever seen... I could feel a slight tremble in my own knee, forcing me to stretch them.
He showed us to our rooms and the other facilities here.
We started off with the bathroom, it was a room with a gigantic bath from the middle to the all three walls—one big enough to fit the ocean in.
We continued to our room, and Albert said,
"Tjer this is your room, and next door you can find Mim's room."
"So if you need an—"
"I'm not sleeping with brother..."
"W-Why?" She said, choking in the clot forming in her throat as she started to talk—her eyes filling up with tears.
"We thought it would be nice f—"
"NOO!"
"I WANT TO SLEEP WITH BROTHER!" She cried out.
"If you want to you still can..." I caught him glancing at me from the corner of my eye, but I had no time to register it before it all went wrong.
"NO NO NO NO, I need to sleep with my brother!"
As she cried the volume slowly faded,
"Please..."
Until she was unable to finish her words,
"ple..."
Followed by silence as her eyes closed—she fell over.
Albert crouched as he held her head right before it hit the floor.
A visible drop of sweat ran down his face.
I was stuck there.
I couldn't move anymore.
Unable to even move my gaze.
I just stared at the prints she left on the carpet where she once stood.
Until a sound broke through,
"TJER! CALL KATHERINE AND EDWARD—NOW!" Albert screamed, carrying Mim in both arms towards her room.