"How are you, Young Master?"

"Should I answer like I wasn't shocked by this? Or just honestly answer that question?"

​​

Allan asked with his brows shot high and his sunset eyes shook for a moment.

"It's up to you... answer what you deemed necessary."

"Is that so…? Then I would answer that I'm fine before you showed up…"

"Haa-haha"

Evelyn laughs and scoffs at the same time. She finds it funny that her brother has the same sharpness of tongue.

Allan can't take his eyes off the woman in front of her. Evelyn was sipping the tea that Allan's aide brought.

"You should drink the tea while it's hot. It would help you calm down." She gave advice to her big brother.

Cabel joined them and sits beside Evelyn so close.

Allan crumpled his face and asked.

"And what the hell are you doing here, Duke Cabel? Aren't you supposed to be in your fief?"

"I'm here because Evelyn is here… and there's things that I needed to know while I'm here."

"Is that so…? So, she's really my sister?"

Allan looked at her black hair and the silver-blue tips that were a sign of the Emsworth family lineage. Her sunset eyes were identical to his. It was something that he can't deny that the person in front of him was really his sister.

Evelyn can't help but nod to assure Allan, though she knew he would deny it for a few times before he concluded that it was really his sister that he was looking at, she knew that Allan would be confused for a while.

Cabel just smiled and replied with a sarcastic tone to Allan.

"Of course she's your blood related sister… Do you think I would follow someone just because she looks like her? My love isn't that shallow."

Evelyn almost choked.

"Stop talking unnecessary things…!"

"Oh, you're shy~"

"I'm not…!"

Cabel chuckled at how Evelyn showed her irritation, it was like he was back to the past where they are in the Academy.

Evelyn clicked her tongue and looked at the night sky outside her brother's window. She thought that it would be beneficial for both of them to discuss what is important.

"We should talk about what was happening, I'll help you behind the scenes until father comes back from the Academy."

Allan became shocked at Evelyn's words.

'Did she just mentioned Father? How did she know?' Allan thought.

"Wait a minute… how did you know that Father is in the Academy?" Allan asked.

Allan looked at Cabel with daggers and thought that he was the one who informed his sister about his father's condition.

'He's capable of knowing what happened if he gave the task to his shadow knights… this bastard!' Allan thought.

"Don't look at me like that…"

Cabel said after he saw him staring at him like he did something wrong towards him and just shrugged his shoulder as he could sense what Allan was thinking.

And as a response Allan looked at him like a leech. Sticking to his sister like an abandoned dog.

"But how did the two of you come together?" Allan became curious.

'Does it mean that he knew my sister is alive? Since when?!' Allan thought.

Cabel smiled while he stared at Evelyn lovingly.

"Isn't it obvious? Of course because Evelyn needed me…"

Evelyn almost blushed but she stopped and decided to react like she was annoyed.

"Don't talk nonsense, you came of your own accord."

Evelyn was getting more impatient with the two whose talk was not necessary for the plan. Of course, she knows that Allan and Cabel might like to catch up but not her.

She has many things to do that talking to her family and patching their relationship was the least things on her list.

'That could wait… I need to see the underground of that Cabin…!' Evelyn thought.

Her father, Duke Keene, knew that and agreed to help her because they have the same goal. Besides, they also have a small talk when she was in the Academy where he was recuperating.

Duke Keene gave her permission to do things she wanted to while he was gone to the Academy, he also asked her for a favor to help her brother because Duke Keene knew that the Emsworth family had a lot of enemies.

And Allan can't do it by himself because Duke Keene knew that he was not ready to face the enemies behind his wife's death.

And right now is not the time to talk about what happened in the past. So, Evelyn decided to tell him about what Duke Keene asks from her.

"Father, ask me that I'll help you while he is resting in the Academy. Besides. I also asked him to do me a favor while he was there."

Allan perked up and looked at his sister.

"What do you mean? Father knew that you're alive?"

"Yes, he knew for a while now."

"...and he didn't tell me anything?"

Evelyn fell silent. She has no idea that Allan would want to know that she's alive and kicking. So, she answered him honestly.

"It was me who told him not to tell you…"

Evelyn placed the cup on the saucer and looked at her brother.

"W-why? Why did you ask him that?"

Allan was shocked to his core. His father knew that Evelyn was alive… Cabel who is not a part of their family knew that she was alive… There were a lot of chances to tell him but Duke Keene didn't.

'Is it because she hates me so much that she wants to keep it a secret from me? But why would Father do that? Why would he hide it from me?'

He thought his Father would let him know about his sister because he knew about what happened to him from the time when Evelyn was said to have died alone.

Evelyn faces her brother.

"Allan, it was something that I asked Father, because I knew that you harbor hatred towards me… and I understand if you blamed me for what happened to our Mother."

"Wha-what?"

Allan's eyes become clouded with the memories of the past and the things that she said.

'It's true that I did hate her but it was because she decided to leave me with the painful memories from the time when mother died… it was because she chose to erase them that I was left alone to mourn for mother.' Allan thought inside his head.

"Now, we have important things to discuss, I would appreciate it if we set aside feelings and just talk about what is needed to do."

Allan's thoughts were cut off when he heard a tone that he was familiar with. A tone and a voice were most of the nobles used when they were talking about business with no harbor feelings attached.

Allan was dumbfounded as well as confused. His sister was someone who was emotional but looking at the person in front of him, there's no hint that she was letting her emotions show.

He was familiar with Evelyn who talked back to him and knew how to ignore him, it was what he was familiar with. However, now he can't read her. She was like a blank canvass.

'What happened to her in the past four years?'

Allan has the urgency to talk about her past, what happened to her after she was proclaimed dead, or where she went and why she did those things.

He knew that it was him who scarred her the most, there were a lot of things that he wanted to say to his sister, but seeing that she was here because she decided to talk about the administration of the fief, Allan can only laugh.

"Ha-haha!"

"Am I that useless that you decided to appear because you learned about those rumors? Is that it?"

'No, that's not what I meant!!'

Allan was trying to ask if the reason she decided to appear after so many years passed was because she was worried about the rumors and the Duchy, not because he thought that Evelyn was thinking he was useless.

Evelyn only smiled.

"I just thought that it would be easy for you if you have someone who's doing the work in the shadows while you face the nobles who would take this opportunity to attack the Duchy."

Cabel only listened to the conversation of the siblings. Even though he heard Allan's words and that he likes to joke around when Evelyn is around, he also has the etiquette to keep his mouth shut when it's necessary.

"But why now? Why did you decide to show yourself when it was you who decided to leave… "

Evelyn holds her breath and thinks about her memories in this mansion. She blinked a few times and laughed out loud.

"Allan, I'm not here to start reminiscing about the past… I'm also not here to talk about why I decided to leave. I'm here because I needed to cooperate with you because what I'm doing right now is something that I can't handle alone... "

Her brother, Allan, shut his mouth as he saw the unshakable and determined eyes of Evelyn.

"I know it's presumptuous and discourteous of me to ask something that I already abandoned. However, I needed to do this because my power alone is not enough and the enemies are targeting the family that mother has cherished the most.'

Allan creases his brows.

"You remembered mother?"

"I remembered everything, enough to hunt me in my sleep…"

Evelyn and Allan locked eyes. The sunset orbs that they inherited to their mother was something that the two were proud to have.