Chapter 215: The Gates of Grava Duchy

Thu— ku— thuk— Thu— ku— thuk— Thu— ku— thuk—

The rhythmic clatter of hooves echoed softly against the stone path, weaving into the gentle hush of the forest around.

A pristine white carriage, its surface gleaming in the sunlight and trimmed with elegant gold accents, glided smoothly along a winding road carved through a sea of verdant trees.

Above, the golden sun bathed the landscape in warmth, casting dappled light through the swaying branches.

Birds flitted overhead, their cheerful chirps carried on the breeze like scattered notes of a morning song.

Inside the carriage, a pair of pale pink eyes shimmered quietly with amazement, fixed on the majestic city sprawled in the valley below

.

"Heh, is this your first time seeing a place as beautiful as our duchy?"

The rude tone of a boy’s voice drifted over as the girl, looking out the window, answered in an apathetic voice without sparing him a glance, "It’s amazing..."

"I know, right? I bet a commoner like you wouldn’t even dream of seeing—"

"It’s not as grand as the Royal Capital, though."

"Eh..."

The boy felt speechless at her words.

It was not like he could say that their duchy was far superior to the Royal Capital, since such words could be seen as disrespect towards the king himself.

At this moment, Glorietta’s giggle sounded, "Son, it seems like you’ve met your match, huh?"

"No, M-Mom— Ow!" Feeling a pinch in his arm, Gustav could not help but cry out in pain.

Feeling his mother’s face near his ear, he gulped.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you shouldn’t use the word commoner as an insult? Do you think you’re father would like that? It seems like I still lack in teaching you manners..."

Her whisper made chills run down Gustav’s spine as he chose to remain silent.

Fortunately, with the effective utilization of aura to control her vocal cords, Glorietta was able to make sure that it was only he who heard her words.

"Sis, there’s no need to be too hard on him."

Except Doron, who had an inkling of what the two of them had talked about discreetly.

Feeling that his uncle was his ray of hope, Gustav’s eyes brightened.

"Why not just let the two of them spar it out, hm? After all, we warriors aren’t ones to be all bark and no bite. We speak with our fists, right, Gustav?"

"Haha..."

However, his uncle’s next words, along with his smirk, caused the boy’s black eyes to darken.

He unconsciously sneaked a glance towards the girl looking out the window, only to see her grinning towards him with an evil glint in her eyes.

’There’s no way I can win against her!’

"I-I’m sorry, Dahlia. I took my joke too far,..."

Glorietta nudged him, "I think you’re forgetting something..."

"...P-Please forgive me!"

Gustav spoke as he closed his eyes tightly, making her nod in satisfaction.

"Hm, very good. However, it’s still up to Dahlia whether she’ll forgive you or not."

"B-But I already said sorry..."

Gustav wanted to explain himself, but Glorietta’s gaze gave him every reason he needed not to continue.

Meanwhile, Doron was having a hard time suppressing his laughter as he observed on the side.

He knew the way his sister liked to discipline her son, ’She and Gareth are always swamped with work, so it’s inevitable that Gustav will pick up some bad manners...’

With so much freedom and being the only son of the duchess, one of the most powerful people in the Acheron Kingdom, was enough for Gustav to feel arrogant.

Added to this was the fact that most children his age fawned over him and readily became his lackeys, which further fueled his ego.

’...he’s smart enough not to pick fights with the other nobles, so he knows who’s safe to mess with and who isn’t.’

However, the same could not be said for Dahlia, who had appeared suddenly and excelled in almost every way.

It was a quiet pleasure for Doron and Glorietta to watch Dahlia humble Gustav’s arrogance.

Of course, Glorietta always made sure to care for her son despite her busy schedule.

Still, it was inevitable that she could not be with him all the time, especially since he also attended the Royal Academy.

Because of that, she was truly grateful for Dahlia.

At this moment, Glorietta did not pay any more mind to the sulking Gustav and instead, scooted over towards Dahlia and asked with a gentle tone.

"What is it, Sweetie? What are you thinking so hard about?"

Dahlia glanced at her for a moment and smiled before staring at the Grava Duchy in the distance.

"Nothing, Auntie. It’s just that..."

Dahlia did not continue as hesitation appeared on her face, "Can you promise that you won’t be mad?"

"Oh?" Her words made Glorietta raise her brow, "Of course."

On the side, Doron also had an interested expression on his face as he leaned forward.

After a momentary pause, Dahlia spoke, "It’s just that the layout of the Grava Duchy kind of bothers me."

"During our Estate Studies, we studied Ringed Cities, areas where the wealthy live behind walls that divide them from the middle class, which is also separated from the lower class."

"Not to be disrespectful, but does the Grava Duchy operate in the same manner?"

Dahlia did not really have any problem with it.

It was just that, as someone who was born in the slums and had been a victim of discrimination, she would be a little disappointed.

A light flashed in Glorietta’s eyes as she smiled, "So you’re meaning to ask if the Grava Duchy operates strictly on the Caste-Based System where we discriminate those with lower statuses than us, right?"

"Y..." Dahlia gulped silently before responding, "Yes..."

Her nervous expression made Glorietta giggle, "No, it’s not. The multiple rings of walls you can see in the duchy are because of the ongoing expansion that we are currently working on."

"Expansion?"

"Yes. You see, demolishing the walls every time we expanded our lands is too impractical in both resources and labor. So my husband thought of just leaving them as they are..."

Doron leaned towards the sulking Gustav and nudged him with his elbow, "What the hell are they talking about?"

"I-I don’t know, Uncle..."

"You brat, what are you going to school for if you don’t know, huh?"

Feeling the muscular arm locked around his neck, Gustav squirmed in protest as his uncle gave him a noogie.

"B-But y-you attended the Royal Academy too... W-Why don’t you know it..."

Glorietta glanced at them with disgust before flipping her hair back over her shoulder, "Sweetie, don’t mind them. Those boys’ heads are full of muscles."

However, Dahlia only remained silent before posing another question.

"But how was he able to make sure that the citizens would be fine? Surely some sort of alienation would be present among them due to the walls."

"Eh?"

Doron sharply noticed his sister’s confused expression before using his other hand to flick her forehead.

Thwack—

"We’re siblings, remember? So it means your head is full of muscle, too! Haha!!"

Glorietta glared at him, "How dare you—"

Looking at the ensuing chaos in the carriage, Dahlia could not help but smile.

’They really are a family, huh?’

The faces of her mother, father, and grandfather all flashed in her mind.

However, their blurred faces stirred a bittersweet feeling in her chest, and for a moment, her heartbeat echoed loud enough to drown out everything else.

An awkward chuckle left her lips, but it was drowned by the ongoing chaos.

’I can’t even remember their faces anymore...’

Dahlia thought as overwhelming guilt gripped her heart, making it feel as if it were about to be crushed.

However, the ever-so-familiar pair of blood red eyes that appeared in her mind calmed her thumping heart down.

Amid chaos, the little girl twirled a strand of her hair, its color matching the deep, vibrant shade of dahlias, while daydreaming about the blood red eyes that she had longed for all this time.

It did not take long before the carriage arrived in front of the pristine, towering gates of Grava Duchy.

The stationed guards saluted the carriage as the grand gate with the carving of the Grava Familia’s emblem opened.

Knock— Knock—

Noticing the knock on the tinted carriage window, Glorietta felt puzzled, "Don’t they know who this carriage belongs to?"

As soon as she rolled down the window, the guard who had knocked gave a salute, "Please forgive the intrusion, Duchess, but the Duke instructed me to deliver this to you without delay."

Afterwards, he followed with a bow, extending the letter in his hands as he did so.

The carriage then continued moving forward and entered the gates, revealing the grandeur and liveliness of the Grava Duchy.

Meanwhile, Doron frowned, "What’s that for?"

"I don’t know..." Glorietta replied with a hint of uncertainty in her voice as she opened the letter.

Gustav watched her with interest while Dahlia gazed curiously out the window, her eyes fixed on the people of the duchy.