Another sleepless night passed by. The camp slowly started to wake up, preparing to meet yet another busy day. Muffled voices came through the thin walls of the tent, like the fluttering wind in the forest thicket. Lorelei stretched beneath her blankets and growled very unladylike. She blinked several times to drive away the drowsiness and sat in her bed. It was time to get going.

Beside her Rish, who had guarded her through the night, immediately jumped up and went out to bring some water for her mistress to wash and call on Jessup for breakfast. On the other hand, Saya, who had also insisted on staying in the camp the whole time, started preparing Lorelei’s attire half yawning, remarking with a chuckle that, as usual, Lorelei is an ‘awfully early bird’ for a noble lady. The young woman didn’t pay any attention to this pretended nagging and hurriedly put on, strung, and buckled her favorite and highly functional binshi clothing. This made her friend grumble and roll her eyes, trying to explain for the umpteenth time that ‘a duchess shouldn’t dress on her own’, all while brushing and braiding her hair.

After that Lorelei wolfed down her cup of thin porridge, for which she had to fight with Jess one too many times. Apparently, it was ‘unbecoming of a duchess to eat a soldier’s meal’. She ignored the boy’s protests as per usual. What did it matter as long as it filled her belly and tasted good?

Finishing with her preparation in less than thirty minutes, she started her daily rounds. Flanked by Jessup and Saya, she talked with the guards of the camp, inquired about accidents during the night shift, commended them for their diligence, and then moved further. She entered the tent where the sisters from Widow Island were holding their morning mass and participated, as it had become her habit in the past couple of days.

When the mass ended, she greeted the few of the refugees who were also participating, chatted with the nuns and novices and discussed what needed to be done for the day – who was going to tend to the orphans, who was going to help in the field clinic, who was responsible for performing the last rites for the dying and consoling the relatives. With that done, she went back to her tents and heard the latest news from the city from the two still sleepy physicians and the old pharmacist, who commuted every day from and to Yalda. Then in end, she finally started her medical examinations.

After ten days of camping outside Lorelei was getting used to this morning routine. No, rather than that, it was better to say that she vigorously pursued this routine, desperately neglecting all of Saya’s attempts to make her return to Illdemar. Fulfilling her small tasks diligently one after the other was the only thing that kept her mind focused and not straying to other topics. For example, Noah. If she went back to the castle, she wouldn’t have anything to fill her time besides worry.

The two weeks were mostly over but there was still no news from the subjugation party. Rish and Jessup had explained to her that the lack of news is actually good news since if anything were to happen, Noah’s men would have turned heaven and earth to inform William as the duke’s second in command. Since William was sitting silently in Illdemar and had only sent a couple of servants to check on the duchess’ well-being, everything was fine.

Still, despite her best efforts, Lorelei was imagining time and time again how Noah’s party was met with a disaster – a vicious snowstorm in the mountains, an avalanche, an ambush by the enemy. What if they couldn’t send a message because they were all heavily wounded, or captured, or even worse? She told herself that it was stupid. Noah had done things like this before, right? He was a seasoned warrior and a good leader. His men were all in peak shape. But what if there was a traitor in the party like the ship’s doctor last time, plotting against the duke? What if the bandits had turned out to be stronger than anticipated? Lorelei could still clearly remember the many scars Noah was bearing. He had met stronger foes and made wrong choices before. Ones that had almost cost him his life.

She was starting to get unbearably restless.

On that particular day, her anxiety had reached its peak. Lorelei couldn’t concentrate at all on what she was doing. Luckily, all the sick were getting better and the overall condition of the refugees had drastically improved. Some of the healthiest had even started helping out as porters at the harbor. This made Lorelei really happy, but at the same time, her insides churned. This meant fewer patients to tend to. And less patients meant more free time to fill with worry. She needed something else to do! But what?

Seeing how she didn’t have much to do, Lorelei decided to take a stroll along the shore to clear her head. Unfortunately, her foul mood only deepened. She would have much preferred to be left alone but had to resign herself to Jessup’s company, lest the boy should suffer Noah’s wrath again. After getting chewed up by his master last time, Jessup had gotten even more diligent in his guarding duties, never leaving her side. Luckily, the young squire was quick enough to realize his lady’s mood, so he tactfully remained silent for most of their walk. Saya had gone to wake up Rish to have lunch after resting from her night shift, leaving the two to trample the gravel shore.

They wandered aimlessly for a bit until a happy shout attracted their attention.

“Lady fairy!”

Jessup tensed up but soon calmed down, recognizing the little figure running energetically towards them. He only grimaced slightly as Anuk flung herself in his mistress’ hands, but Lorelei had no intention to correct her un-ladylike ways. She loved the familiarity and newfound bond with this little girl. At least, Anuk didn’t hate her guts like Shana.

Lorelei smiled brightly, pushing her dark thoughts to the back of her mind.

“Hello, little one! How have you been? I haven’t seen you lately.”

“My tummy is fine and thanks to lady fairy me and grandpa have a lot of yummy things to eat!” the girl chirped, her eyes shining. “Lady fairy, any news from big brother? Is he back with dad and the highness?”

“I am sorry, dear,” Lorelei said carefully. “They are not back yet. They have an important mission so they shouldn’t just rush it.”

“Oh, I see…” The little ash-white head sank a bit.

“Don’t worry, I am sure that they will be here soon, a day or two at most,” hastily replied Lorelei seeing the sadness in the little girl’s eyes. There was more assurance in her voice than she actually felt, but luckily Anuk didn’t notice anything. She hurriedly changed the topic.

“What are you doing here all alone, dear? Wandering around can be dangerous.”

“I am trying to hide from the scary nun,” came the short answer.

That was unexpected. Lorelei looked around and, indeed, far in the distance she could see a woman in the black and white attire of the sisters from Widow Island, surrounded by a group of children. Lorelei looked at the girl in her embrace and hardened herself to scold her.

“How can you do something like this, Anuk? The sister will be worried if you suddenly go missing.”

“But I don’t like her. Her eyes are always scary when she looks at me.” The little girl puffed her cheeks. “And she says mean things.”

“Come now, Anuk.” Lorelei tried to sound stern. “I know that you want to play, but skipping your lessons isn’t good. My master always said that learning is important for your future.”

“But I am not an orphan. I don’t want to become a nun!”

“What?” Lorelei blinked surprised by that retort.

“The mean sister said that it will be best for us orphans to join the church. She said that girls with no family will otherwise go to a bad house to play with bad men if not going to the monastery. She even convinced my friend Tasha and now she is gone to be a nun, and I can’t play with her and listen to her fairytales anymore. But I am not an orphan like Tasha. I have brother Kai and father, and I also have grandpa now! Brother and father will be back. You promised. I am not an orphan. I don’t want to be a nun!”

This made it very hard for Lorelei to find the right words, especially after seeing the girl’s tear-filled eyes. The sister was technically not wrong. Many orphaned girls were shunned by society and ended up in a whore house to escape from hunger and poverty. But to tell such a thing to a small child was too much!

“My dear, learning from the sister does not mean that you will become one. Knowledge is important. If you learn well, you can help your dad and Kai later. Look at me. I learned well from my teacher and that is why I was able to heal your tummy.”

“But you are different, lady. You are a limerian.” The child looked now even more depressed than before.

“Then what about… big sister Rish. She is binshi and is one of the duke’s most trusted warriors, working and living in his castle. Besides, it does not matter whether you are limerian or binshi. If you have the knowledge…”

“That’s not true. The sister said that we won’t be able to find decent work anywhere except in the cloister.” Anuk looked down and sucked her cheek. “Especially girls like me and Tasha.”

“What do you mean?” The young woman furrowed her brow. “What girls are you?”

“Mixed-bloods.” Mumbled the child and looked flustered. “Lady fairy, why is it a bad thing to be a mixed-blood? Did mama and papa do something bad?”

“Of course not!”

Now Lorelei was angry. Servant of the Holy Church or not, this sister was allowing herself too much. She grabbed Anuk’s tiny hand and motioned to Jessup to follow them. She then stomped straight to the nun. Seeing them closing in, the sister exchanged a few quiet words with the other children and turned to meet them. Lorelei could see that she was right about in her early thirties and still pretty, despite her modest attire, with a charming warm smile and dimples on her cheeks. Her innocent look, however, didn’t lessen Lorelei’s anger.

“Good day, honorable lady, how can I help you?” the sister asked politely. Then her eyes fell on Anuk, who was hiding behind Lorelei. “Anuk!? There you are. Where have you been? I was beginning to worry. Are you bothering the lady?”

“I apologize if I have disturbed your work, honorable sister.” Lorelei nodded unexpectedly cold at the other woman. “Forgive my insolence, I didn’t know that there is a person of such high status currently residing on Widow Island. We were never informed that a relative of his majesty the emperor has graced us with her presence.”

The woman blinked, not quite sure how to understand Lorelei’s words but then the always so helpful Jessup stepped in. His expression was also grim.

“Sister, is this how you act before the duchess Norden? Even the abbess and the mother prioress bow when they meet her. To not even properly address her… such impudence!”

The realization slowly sank into the sister’s confused mind. Her eyes widened.

“Thousand apologies to her Ladyship. I haven’t greeted you properly. It is a grave sin! Sister Simone pays respect to her highness, the duchess Norden. May the Two Gods watch over you and your kin.”

The frightened nun bowed deeply. Behind her, the children were scared stiff but then one by one they followed the sister’s lead and lowered their small ash-white heads, uttering a greeting. Lorelei felt ashamed for a second for frightening them but then remembered why she had come. She took a deep breath and calmed her thoughts.

“Lift your head, sister. I accept the apology.” She tried to imitate the noble demeanor she had seen from Noah. It worked! She then patted the little girl’s head with a sweet smile. “Anuk, dear, please stay here. I need to exchange privately some words with sister Simone.”

Followed by the curious gazes of the children, Lorelei stepped to the side, accompanied by the nun, with Jessup shadowing them close by.

“Sister Simone, I have heard a very disturbing thing today,” began Lorelei. “I would like you to lend me your ear on the matter and perhaps share your wisdom with me.”

“But of course! As long as I am of help to her highness.” The woman looked somewhat relieved.

“Very well.”

Nodding at her, Lorelei recapped what she heard from Anuk word for word. With every past sentence, the nun’s face was getting paler and paler. Her cheerfulness quickly wilted away. When she finished, Lorelei stood there, measuring her up. Recalling the little girl’s words made her even angrier now.

“So, sister, what do you have to say for yourself?” Her voice was icy. “How can you condemn the future of these children like that?”

“With all due respect, duchess, I stand by my words.” To Lorelei’s surprise, the other woman looked at her, her face pale but firm. “You come from the mainland, your highness, so you might not know this, but here in Norden orphans of mixed blood have few chances in life. No matter how unfair it might seem, mixed-bloods are often shunned and despised as impure. That’s the reality. Young girls like Tasha and Anuk are much better in the monastery than in a brothel.”

“The duke has proclaimed such segregation illegal.” Lorelei’s tone was resolute. “Besides, Anuk has a father and an older brother. She is not an orphan.”

“I beg for forgiveness, but her Ladyship is too naïve.” Sister Simone shook her head, ignoring Jessup, who was staring daggers at her. Her words were getting bolder. “The duke, as noble and righteous as he is, is but a single man. Has the duchess heard of the Red Hands?”

“You mean the Cult of Pure Blood?” The nun’s words made the young woman’s expression darken even further. “They were fanatics eradicated by my husband six years ago.”

“So, her highness knows of them. This will make matters easier. There have been rumors recently that the Cult has re-surfaced.”

“What does this have to do with Anuk?”

“The red hands kill mixed-bloods and everyone even remotely associated with them. I know that personally. My own brother was tortured and his binshi wife was raped and killed before his very eyes. He too died a few days after that.”

“I…” Lorelei’s heart sank but she tried to keep her composed mask on. “You have my condolences, sister”

“It was a tribulation sent by the Gods, my lady.” Unexpectedly, unbecoming to a holy servant there was anger in the woman’s gaze as she continued. “It taught me the true nature of humans. Many people have lost loved ones just like me. And many see children of mixed blood as the living proof of the nightmare they have been through. These children are bringers of disaster, especially if the Pure Blood starts cleansing again. That is why I can’t lie to these children by telling them that they would be accepted. The wounds are fresh and pain runs too deep. Society will reject them despite all honey-coated words and promises you make. And furthermore, I don’t want to give Anuk false hope about her father. Being captured by the Pure Blood is as good as being dead. She should face the truth as soon as possible.”

Lorelei just stared at her. Sister Simone gave her a benign smile.

“I know that her ladyship’s intentions were pure.” The nun threw a glance at the children standing nearby. “But I believe that the truth is better than sweet dreams that will never come true. It hurts less, at least. Now please excuse me, duchess, I have to continue my work.”

She politely said goodbye and left. Lorelei looked after her for some time, without actually seeing anything. Her thoughts were chaotic. She suddenly sensed a movement to her left that brought her back to her senses. Lorelei instinctively stretched her hand out and grabbed Jessup’s sleeve.

“Let go of me, my lady!” The boy protested. “How dare she act and talk to you like that! She should be punish-”

“Enough, Jess!” The firmness in his mistress’ tone was sudden, almost scary, and reminded him of his master. “Think before you act. You can’t behave like this towards a member of the Church. Besides, there is merit in what sister Simone said. I have acted too rash myself in this case.”

Seeing his mistress so dejected and regretful made the young squire even angrier.

“No, my lady, you haven’t done anything wrong. You had only good intentions about Anuk’s future and the future of all mixed-blood children in Norden!”

“There is a saying in Shareeba.” Lorelei went silent for a moment. “The way to Hell is covered with good intentions. We do live in reality and not in a fairytale.”

“No!” Jessup almost shouted and squeezed her palms in a sudden burst of passion, not caring about social status and propriety at the moment. “The sister is wrong, lady Lorelei! What you said to Anuk is correct. There is nothing wrong in being a mixed-blood! Everyone should be judged on merit and not based on blood. As long as we continue to live in the past nothing will change, there will be no future, no progress. And the Pure Blood Massacre is in the past!”

The boy finished talking, but his face was still burning with firm determination. To his delight and relief, a small smile lifted the corners of his mistress’ lips.

“That was unexpectedly deep, dear Jess.”

“Well,” the young squire blushed and scratched his head, “these are just some words master often says. But I totally agree with him to the letter. Now, let’s take little Anuk and go back to the camp before that nun fills her head with more nonsense.”

The three of them went back to the camp, accompanied by the secret looks of sister Simone and her wards. Lorelei tried to ignore them. Anuk and Jessup were playfully teasing each other and laughing the whole time, lifting her spirit a little bit. Still, looking at the carefree girl beside her, she couldn’t help but feel pain. Was there really nothing she could do as duchess Norden to help children like Anuk? She felt so powerless, despite everything. Why was it so difficult for people to accept mixed-bloods? It was not like these little ones had any say in the matters of their birth. No, that dreadful cult was the source of all this misery. And now there were rumors of its re-surfacing. Lorelei shuddered. Everything was going to be fine. Noah would never tolerate the likes of them, she was sure of it. She would talk to him the moment he was back. Maybe he would find a way to break the grim fate of these orphans. He was the duke Norden after all.

As they entered the slum, the three’s attention was attracted by an unusual commotion. Seeing the people gathered in front of her tent, Lorelei hurried her steps. They arrived at the scene only to see a binshi woman kneeling on the ground, surrounded by some knights. In the first moment, Lorelei thought it was Rish, but then she spotted her escort standing together with Saya just nearby. Their faces were dark. This could only mean that something bad had happened. And indeed, even from the distance, the sobs of the kneeling woman could be heard.

“What is going on here!?” Lorelei raised her voice managing to attract everyone’s attention.

“My lady, it’s just…” Rish tried to answer but was interrupted.

“Your highness, please show mercy!” The binshi woman on the ground wailed desperately. “I beg you, duchess Norden, bring justice for my poor child!”