LBC Chapter 3: A Disruptive Letter (Patreon)

Nearly a century ago, Duchess Sigyn earned the title of the Divine Valkyrie for her sheer accomplishments in wars. My sister Helen inherited Sigyn’s passion for wars as well as her angel blood. Sigyn’s contract with the Seelie known as Archangel Justice was public knowledge. The contract that had changed her from the inside out.

Unfortunately, only females could inherit angel blood. I was a sad panda when I learned about this from the library.

Sigyn moved closer and placed her arm around my shoulder. “Wyl…”

Sigyn didn’t even open her eyes, or rather, there was no point in opening them. She had lost her eyesight years ago in a brutal battle that nobody had witnessed.

I kept a calm face. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t scared of the Duchess. Because I was. The boy Sigyn cared for died a month ago; a stranger replaced him, who didn’t even remember his previous name.

Me.

“Do you remember?” she asked in a soft voice, her hand trembling around my shoulder.

Today had to be a very important day. I just couldn’t remember it. My memories became a mess after absorbing Enwyld Agarvan’s seventeen years’ worth of memories and experience. It was already incredible I didn’t go insane or developed multiple personalities in these circumstances.

Sigyn sighed at my silence. “It’s been two years since Alf passed away…”

“Ah, I’m sorry…” I apologized with a subtle grimace. “Mother…”

My act fooled even the Duchess. She gave a soft smile and ruffled the back of my head. Why do women love rubbing my head? It felt odd to be spoiled like this as it made me forget about the grave threats to my life.

“I’m not blaming you… You were never close to him. He was a great ruler, but never a good father or husband.”

And she was true about this. A couple of years ago, the day Enwyld lost his shit after seeing a naked maid, and mainlanders lost their shit after Alf returned with a demigod frost giant’s corpse on his shoulders. He looked like an ant compared to the mountain-sized titan. That day, Alf was hailed as the strongest drow and Empire’s hero.

Of course, Alf paid the price for his arrogant act of killing a demigod.

Two years ago, on one of his trips to the capital, several frost giants cornered Alf and stomped him to death.

Alf, the greatest hero, the invincible drow, the Empire’s Greatest Warrior—the man with more titles than the emperor himself died so unceremoniously and tragically. Even his corpse got devoured without a trace. Only his broadsword remained rooted on his execution site, which Helen still carried around on her back.

Helen followed in her father’s steps to annihilate the frost giants with the passion my mother had in her younger days.

A truly scary woman.

“I’ll be gone for a few days…” Sigyn said as she passed me a black envelope. “It’s an invitation to the Capital… go there if you desire. You are an adult now… I won’t interfere in your decisions.”

My eyes opened wide in shock. Sigyn ruffled my hair for a couple of moments before she spread her wings and took off. I trailed the mark in the middle of her exposed back. A shining broadsword mark nestled within the embrace of two silver feathery wings.

It took me a minute to process her last words.

I was free…

Sigyn had become more protective of me after Alf’s death. I couldn’t blame her for this decision. People did worse things in grief, or so I could remember from my foggy hell of memories. I remembered the case of a mother abusing her daughter for years after her husband’s death. Sigyn was like a pup in comparison.

Putting those memories aside, I couldn’t get over Sigyn’s change. The deep-rooted fear of losing someone couldn’t be ridden overnight… unless an external force intervened. Crimson, her bodyguard, or Elysia, her attendant—one of them had to be behind this.

“No point thinking about it,” I whispered and opened the envelope. A delicate aroma wafted from the piece of paper lying snugly in the envelope. I read the letter written in the standard Elvish language. The letter turned out to be an invitation from the Emperor to witness a ‘revolutionary spell.’ The spell that will end our war with frost giants once and for all.

Had he finally gone senile?

Most factions in this world were locked into conflicts. The elves fought against their counterpart race, the drow. The dwarfs clashed with the frost giants. The human empire was ruled by a half-dragon, who despised the frost giants from the bottom of his heart but maintained peace with every other race.

Although nothing insignificant happened in the last two years, the tensions built up underneath the peaceful pact. Every faction could be described as a literal bomb waiting to explode. Only the harpies remained neutral in their strongholds, waiting for the war to rage so they could pick up the pieces.

“Should I go?”

I pondered over my choices in silence. As a future duke, I couldn’t miss this significant event. On the other hand, this whole invitation seemed like a big conspiracy.

What if the emperor went crazy and massacred all the nobles?

A similar massacre transpired in Northland before. The Dragon Empress massacred the royals on the supposed day of her retirement. The story spiraled in all kinds of rumors after the dragons isolated their country.

Wait, can’t I use this opportunity to reel in Elysia with me? Since Sigyn wasn’t here, her maid would be free. As a royal member, having an attendant and a protector was a must. Elysia would be a natural fit for both roles.

“Alright, it’s decided.”

I wouldn’t need to scheme so much if I had some godly cheat… Being a drow-human hybrid, I had a higher specced body than average humans. My eyesight was also superior to humans. That was everything I could brag about. I had to rely on training and my upcoming Seelie to grow strong. Magic lessons too. Let’s hope those didn’t disappoint.

“Life of a duke…” I muttered and looked down upon the duchy that would fall under my rule.

I would have never imagined myself in the role of a young duke. Especially not when I was writhing in agony from the sudden cardiac arrest.

Two black eagles suddenly flew from the western district, both holding a corner of a huge banner. It was the promotion of an auction happening tomorrow. This world also picked up on the trend of advertisements.

A rose-tinged breeze signaled the arrival of Crimson.

“Young Lord, have you decided?”