Chapter 144 - Lucien’s Fiancée

Chapter 144: 144 - Lucien’s Fiancée

The city looked more ordinary than Adrien had expected after everything he had seen since entering Sylvamir.

No enormous trees carried entire districts the way they did in Elyndor, and nothing here needed studying before he understood it, since streets, houses, shops and public buildings shaped the place in familiar ways.

The differences showed in how everything had been built. Pale stone and dark wood ran through most structures, with plants worked into balconies, walls and courtyards instead of growing wherever they pleased. Mana lights sat evenly along the streets, and the roads stayed clean despite the constant traffic of pedestrians and vehicles.

Everything felt organised, down to the waterways cut into narrow channels that carried clear water beneath small bridges while trees shaded the wider streets.

platforms filled the area, along with mana vehicles arriving from different routes, and farther off Adrien noticed long metal tracks running between buildings, though he could not work out what they were for.

The driver brought the vehicle to a smooth stop. "We’ve arrived. I’ll help with your luggage."

"Thank you," Amelia said.

They climbed out while the driver opened the storage compartment. Adrien took his suitcase, Lucien his own smaller bag, and Amelia ended up with considerably more luggage than either of them. Once everything stood on the platform, the driver bowed to her.

"I’ll return to Elyndor and inform Lord Vael that you arrived safely. When you’re ready to return, word can be sent ahead. I’ll wait for you here."

"Understood. Have a safe journey back."

The driver got back in and pulled away, leaving the three of them beside their luggage.

Adrien looked toward Amelia. "Alright. What now?"

"We stay here tonight. Tomorrow morning we’ll take the first train heading toward the capital."

Adrien glanced toward the metal tracks he had noticed earlier. "Train?"

Amelia looked mildly surprised. "You’ve never used one?"

"No. Valleroy doesn’t have anything like that."

"The dwarves helped Sylvamir build the network generations ago. It’s been expanded several times since then, so now most major cities are connected."

Adrien studied the tracks again with far more interest than before. "They shared that technology with Sylvamir but not the human kingdom?"

"Relations between dwarves and elves have historically been better than their relations with most human kingdoms. That probably had something to do with it."

Adrien could already picture a mana-powered railway in motion. "Wouldn’t teleportation still be faster?"

"We could use a teleportation port..." Amelia admitted.

Before she could finish, Lucien spoke from beside his luggage. "She wants you to see Sylvamir from the train."

Amelia turned sharply toward him. "Lucien."

There was enough embarrassment in her voice that Adrien understood why she had left that part out. He smiled slightly. "Then I don’t see any reason not to take the train."

Her cheeks stayed faintly red, though she seemed satisfied enough with the answer.

Adrien looked around the transport district again. "So where are we staying tonight?"

"Someone should be here any moment."

As though the sentence had called her, a young woman came out of one of the nearby streets seconds later. Adrien did not recognise her. Lucien clearly did, and his expression barely moved, yet Adrien had spent enough time around him to see whatever interest he carried about arriving in Sylvamir drain out of him.

Amelia reacted very differently. "Cordelia!"

The woman smiled as Amelia crossed to her, and the two embraced immediately. Cordelia looked close to their age, with long silver-blonde hair gathered partly behind her head, clear green eyes and the sharp elven features Adrien had grown used to since crossing the border.

Her clothes were expensive without being formal, and the quality alone said she came from a family with real standing.

Adrien watched them talk for a few moments before leaning toward Lucien. "Who is she?"

Lucien kept his eyes forward. "My fiancée."

Adrien turned toward him. "You have a fiancée?"

Lucien finally looked at him. "She’s standing right in front of you."

"I can see that. I just didn’t know you had one."

"I wasn’t expecting her to be here either."

Adrien looked back at Cordelia, and the news proved harder to take in than crossing into another kingdom.

Lucien had never once mentioned an engagement, and Adrien struggled to picture anyone choosing to marry the same man who calmly put extra arrows into corpses to be sure they were finished.

Yet apparently somebody had, and she was beautiful. Adrien looked between the two of them and privately decided Cordelia was several leagues above where Lucien should reasonably have been playing.

Amelia finally brought her over. "Cordelia, this is Adrien. He’s the one who helped with everything involving Elowen, and he was there when Lucien and I were trapped as well."

Adrien inclined his head politely. "Nice to meet you. Adrien Clairmont."

"Cordelia Aerwyn. I’ve heard quite a bit about you."

Before Adrien could ask who from, Cordelia’s attention moved to Lucien and she walked straight over to him. Lucien did not move. She stopped in front of him, stared for two full seconds, then caught him by the ear.

"You weren’t planning to greet your fiancée?"

Lucien’s face barely changed despite his head being pulled to one side. "I was waiting for you to finish speaking with Amelia."

"You’ve been looking at me since I arrived."

"I noticed you."

"That’s not a greeting."

Adrien watched without a word, since this was nowhere near the dynamic he had imagined Lucien having with anybody. He leaned closer to Amelia. "Is this normal?"

Amelia watched them with the calm of somebody who had seen it many times. "Yes. They’ve always been like this."

After another moment Cordelia released his ear and turned back to the rest of them as though nothing had happened. "Come on. You’re staying at my place tonight."

They gathered their luggage and followed her through the city.

Adrien had assumed "my place" meant a comfortable house somewhere nearby. It did not. After nearly twenty minutes Cordelia led them through private gates and onto an enormous estate ringed by maintained gardens, with a mansion of pale stone and dark timber at its centre, large enough to make several noble residences in Valleroy look modest.

Adrien glanced at Lucien again. Being adopted into House Edevane still meant carrying the Edevane name, and whoever arranged his engagement had clearly not chosen a minor family.

Adrien watched Cordelia walking ahead, then looked back at Lucien.

’I still think she’s several leagues above him.’