" My Lady, the carriage is ready." said her butler, who is standing in front of her who is staring in front of the large mirror in her mansion's front hall. With her usual emotionless expression, she ignores the old butler for a while and looks at her solemn blue dresses. Fixing her bright brown hair, while her orange-ish eyes stare into nothing, as she is contemplating.

"... Don't forget to give Raya's daily medicine," she said.

" Yes, My Lady." he lends his hand as the lady goes inside the elegant carriage. The coachman then gallops the horses toward the luxurious front gate. Passed the garden that once was her imaginary world.

Then she will run around with her brightest smile.

.

" Lady Cordelia, over here," Lady Sara's said after she just arrived at her tea party. She glances a little to where children running not far from where the table is. They are looking so happy while running around happily. " Please, have a sit."

and she nods, " Yes. Thank you, Lady Sara." as she then being greeted by many others while a nice tea is poured for her. After the tea is ready, she takes a while staring at her reflection in the tea water. Of course, after that, or even without looking at her reflection- she understands why those ladies who give her the smiles are acting awkward every time she looks at them.

She is quite understanding of how emotionless her expression is.

but,

' Even I don't know when the last time I smile.' She does not know why she is here, to a party that she never enjoys.

" It is what a noble lady should do," but again, every time she is questioning it, her deceased mother's lesson will always be depicted in her mind. ' I still did it.' even though in this entire tea party she will just sit all alone and no one will mind her, nor complained- at least in front of her- as she is the daughter of the first General, Marquess Derik Farguso, and the first commander of the elite Holy Knight's wife. Who are now on the battlefield, far from his only daughter and his grandson.

" The war is quite tense, so the capital becomes so hectic. My children become anxious as their father still not yet to be at home." some lady said.

" Well on this kind of time, a simple tea party like this will be the children's refreshment." another again said.

" Then might we hold child date again in future, how about that? they can draw, play, or even sing all the way they wanted," she said excitedly. " My daughter is quite a singer, you see, she is really clever." then the beautiful smiles of her then glances at Lady Cordelia who is calmly listening to the conversation, but turns into an uncomfortable expression "- ah, please forgive me Lady Cordelia, I don't mean-" and make the whole gathering becomes so silent,

and Lady Sara smiles faintly to her, " Well, I have prepared desserts come from the east. It is a unique delish," she said. " Lady Cordelia, you like mustardy dessert right? You might as well like this one."

and she just smiles, at her who changes the atmosphere back again, yet- she knows quite well that they will just talk about her son behind her after this and it rises her anxiety as much as maybe even she never adapted to this kind of party, she will try to come so no one will bad-mouthing her son.

"The Heir of the Farguso Family can't hear anything,"

'" he is disabled,"

'"what happened to the future Farguso Family?"

"It is surely a disappointment."

then while putting their concerned face in front of her, some then said " is it better to have another child is not it?" as it is right to say so in front of her as the mother. Yet, she could not even show her anger, " It is for the sake of the Farguso Family "

but, is it?

she could not understand even a little essence of it. Even her entire life as the sole daughter of the Farguso Family is also burdened as this 'family sake'.

" As the sole daughter of one of the distinguishes Knight Family, you should find a proper Knight to be your partner." as her mother before she passed away said to her.

" But, I want to be a knight-"

" What?! You are a woman, you are a noble lady! How could you maintain our family honour while doing that unladylike man work,"

and she closes her eyes, while she is trying to compose her stuffy heart. Maybe she is better to go, maybe she is. Yet, before she even stands, Lady Sara already stands up while looking in confusion. " Excuse me, is there something I could help?" asks her as Lady Cordelia glances at the brunette woman who stands near the garden where they hold the party. She is the one who a long time ago she met in an uncomfortable situation.

'Why are you here alone?'

and the woman smile, kinda confused when Lady Sara approaches her.

"... Is your her guest, Lady?" asked another.

and Lady Sara quite confused, " ... No, but- mm excuse me, may I know your name?"

yet the woman tries to open her bag instead of talking, of course, making people here get curious.

" Is she trespassing?" asked another.

Yet, Lady Sara in the end quite a smart person to think further. Even she, herself, finds it strange for a commoner to be able to enter a place like Lady Sara's.

"... She could not hear you." she then speaks, " Just wait, she might try to find something to write."

and Lady Sara frowned for a while but recognize that the woman is not glancing for a second even they are talking about her loudly.

" Do you know her?" asked the lady who was mocking her before.

and she nods, " Yes."

and she smiles, " Sure, Lady Cordelia will be familiar with that kind of person, yes?" she said.

" What do you mean by that, Lady Blanche?"

and she frowned, " Am I wrong? Your expression is quite unpleasant." she said yet smirked, " I am just saying the truth and Lady Sara, you might as well ask your servant to kick her out. I don't know how could someone like her comes all the way to this place." Ignoring the fact that Lady Cordelia's face already changed,

and Lady Sara sure is not comfortable enough with her behavior, yet in the end, she is also could not do anything as she just does what she has to do to support her family honour. She is just a mere count compared to Lady Cordelia and Lady Blanche who is the wife of another Marquess. Both of them are from honourable families. Fortunately, before Lady Cordelia explodes, the woman gives her a paper who is her chance to avoid the chaotic situation. She reads it for quite a while and gasped. " You are, Ms.Irisha?!" as she remembers how his husband keeps saying about her name,

" Ms.Irisha will be mad if I am not finishing this one."

" Sir Higrid and Ms.Irisha told me to do it,"

" I have a meeting with Ms.Irisha."

Her husband said of how this woman becomes the center of the government after her achievement to stabilize the financial state. Yet, never stated anything about her condition. Somehow, she is still not sure whether she is even the same person, but she remembers that her husband was about learning another language that using his hands...so, " Please wait a moment, I will call my husband-" she said while looking at her servant quickly. Yet, she then being offered another paper who told her that Irisha could not understand anything and asked her to write it down. " Ah, pardon me. I will write it down for you." she said as she then write her to speak to this book,

and all of them frowned, " What makes Lady Sara so concerned about that woman?" asked Lady Blanche, who seemed deeply bothered by it.

Yet, even Lady Cordelia is getting annoyed, she just looking at the woman who smiles so gently as usual.

" Ms.Irisha!" then Lady Sara's husband runs to her quickly as he then greets her in a polite manner. He uses a hand movement that makes people look at him in curiosity while Lady Cordelia is quite familiar with it. " Please forgive me, I also just arrived and was preparing the depart. Do you want to go now?" said him while still speaking normally but moving his hand strangely.

[ Ah, before that... could you please send someone to help my carriage? We kinda have trouble with it.]

" Ah, I see. So you are walking all the way toward here? Our estate a little bit hilly, so-" while he then turns his way to his servant, " Send someone immediately."

[ Sir Higrid and Sir Asthon are also on their way. Seem their dragons will need some places to park.]

" Sir Higrid and Sir Asthon too?!" he shocked and paled, " I will prepare the necessity," he said, as he then turns to Lady Sara who stands confusedly. " Dear, ask the cook to prepare something with high care or just buy something nice. Make sure they are prepared after we do the surv-"

Whoosh!!

But then dragons fly above them quite close for the children then screaming excitedly. While the other one landed smoothly near the front yard of the mansion, another one had trouble landing and," Sir Bernard, I am not finding the right place to land!" said Sir Asthon while landing into the roof and perched.

" You can land it in front of the yard, please follow my servant!" he said while looking at his servant who is more confused than him, especially dragons are not personal transportation for major people even for noble or aristocrat, moreover commoner like his servants.

" I saw your carriage stopped, are you alright Ms.Irisha?" asked Sir Higrid, the elite official who comes to the woman immediately and talking with the sign language that is now quite fluent. Then he glances at the party who is confused, " Oh, are we bothering the ladies' party? Please forgive me and continue to do so, as we will not bother the party anymore," he said as Irisha then also bowed and being surrounded by those elite officials who seems talking about important matters. Even the duke, Sir Higrid is looking to her as well.

"... Lady Sara, who is that lady actually?" asked another lady.

and Lady Sara who still speechless by such a situation needs time to then talk, " She is a right-hand of Sir Higrid, and the one who is hired under the name of The Crown Prince." she said in astonished, " My husband said that, she is the one who contributed the most in financial matters of this country." and she then said, " ... Please excuse me for a while, I have to do something important." while then calling her servant to follow her as she seems to need to prepare what her husband asked her before.

and the ladies left speechless, and Lady Blanche even could not close her gaping mouth. Yet, as though Lady Cordelia does the same with the others, different from their disbelief, she looks at the little woman who can not hear nor speak yet lead people in a very inspirational and charismatic way-with the eyes that filled with expectations..

' if it is her then, my son-' and the stuffy heart that once surrounded by the walls she has built to keep her emotion, slowly crumbled as she found the light in her dark heart.

***

" Brother Ash! Brother Ash, where are you?! Please don't hide in a place I could not reach you." shouted Arisha while holding a big picnic basket with both of her hands. It is too big as she then has a hard time for walking, " Ah-" but before she is about to fall, hands hug her from behind where she then smiles brightly. " I found you!" as the second prince, Ash Isaac Malum prevented the fall with both of his hands.

He frowned, " You are small! You can not bring a big basket like this." as he then picks it from her easily,

" I make it with my sister! She told me to eat this with you," and while frowning at him, she points her finger. " And don't ever try to play in a dangerous place!"

and he chuckled, " she is so fussy."

" You was once almost fall from the tree, you know."

" I was slipped!" and it was one of a thousand possibilities for it to happen again, yet that dramatic moment when both of them accidentally having lunch under the tree he usually sleeps on, he slipped. The moment he woke up, both of them looked at him in worry as this chubby human crying so hard while thinking he might die.

And Ash just being ash, he brushed and glared with the intention of killing. Yet, instead of running the big woman wrote down something that said,

[ Let's go to the infirmary and check yourself first,]

He then crumpled the paper and throw it away to her face before going away as they were annoyed him so much, but,

" Hold my hand." and he said to Arisha while holding her one hand and letting her jump a small mound, then, as usual, she will start singing and humming while they are going to their favorite place. Well, the place where they first met became their favorite place to hang around now.

and yes, he is indeed becoming attached to both of them as they are so stubborn.

Especially this little one, who always comes to him whenever she pleases and asked him to play with her whenever she has her time. Even though he ignored her, glared at her or showed her the killing intention, she will just lean herself on his tree and start talking, sometimes playing other times sleeping.

" I might kill you, you know." while looking at the chubby human who looks sleepy leaning to the tree.

" You are still a child, don't die..." she said.

" You are the children one here!"

and she giggled. " We are children."

then he frowned, quite blushing. " ... you are so strange," while crouching and resting his head," people run away when they meet me."

"...bad people?" she muttered.

and while poking her chubby face, " are you not?"

and she smiles in her sleep, " I am not." and she is so cute and so lovely with her blushing cheeks.

" She is so tiny," he muttered. While somehow sitting down beside her and closing his eyes as he knew her head will not fall over instead to him. Just when the sun felt so dark, and he opened her eyes, the woman who he was thrown a crumpled paper to- read a book quietly. He then realized that he was sleeping on her thigh as well as the chubby girl beside him. Both of them were covered by a warm blanket and they were a delicious smell near them.

When the woman realized that he woke up, she gave him a paper. [ I am deaf and muted, so I use this to have a proper conversation.] she said. while swiping papers that she already prepared, [ Thank you for taking care of my sister, do you want to eat lunch with us?]

Then after that, he ended up in this kind of routine to spend time with them.

" Where is Irisha going?"

" Sister said that she has to check a factory!" she said while opening the basket.

" Humph. She should just ignore my brother. He just uses her so much."

and while biting a big sandwich, she's looking at him. "... Why brother Ash hiding whenever Your Grace is there?"

" ... just shut up." he said while wiping the crumbs in her cheeks and sighing. " What is happening if I am not with you? You are so clumsy," he said.

and Arisha giggles, as they then continue their own picnic in their favorite place.

***