To Torment You, Oh Dear Sister

CHAPTER 2

It was one grim night, the skies showed no stars and the moon was almost unseen under the heavy clouds. The atmosphere was turning frigid as the heavens roared a thunder from the distance. The sound of raindrops stridently falling from above was no less horrendous to hear.

Up ahead, a carriage was moving rapidly in the narrow streets of an impoverished village. The noises of its wheels were splashing harshly into the puddles of water along the road, before it can be seen coming to a halt in front of a small crumbling and rundown house.

A mysterious man in a hooded cloak then disembarked the front of the carriage and approached the door, opening an umbrella. He carefully tapped on the door to let them know they had arrived at their destination and, as he opened it, the man then bowed in respect to the individual who stepped out of the carriage.

The Empress of Caellimont.

Stepping out of the vehicle slowly, Her Majesty appeared a bit frustrated with the discomfort of the weather and the surface of the ground beneath her, which would shortly become mud due to the rain. She grimaced before she raised an eyebrow at the knight beside her.

“Is this the place?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Good, take me to her.”

The knight wasted no time in guiding the Empress into the decrepit residence, all while carefully positioning the umbrella in the right position to keep her from getting drenched in the rain. He unlocked the door and the two of them entered, welcoming themselves in.

Looking around, the house wasn't particularly fascinating after all, given that it appeared to be abandoned for years. It was dusty everywhere, the wood had long been decaying, and there were droplets of water pouring from the ceiling due to the severe weather today. There was little to no light as well…

…except for the low illumination from the candle on the table where a little girl was seated in.

The Empress was the first to fix her gaze on the scene, and she approached slowly so as not to startle her. It was too silent in the household, and all that could be heard was the downpour from outside. The clanking of her shoes echoed as she got closer and closer to the girl, becoming slightly perplexed as to why she wasn't turning around, knowing she would have already heard unwelcomed guests in her home.

Soon, the woman heard scratching sounds. And it wasn’t until she was right next to the girl that she noticed broken crayons and scraps of paper lying on the table. One crayon was held in her tiny hand and she continued to draw as she pleased. The child then came to a stop and she turned her head to finally look up at the Empress.

'Ha!’ Her Majesty internally sniggered as she beheld her face, a hateful sensation steadily rising up inside her as she scrutinized each of her physical attributes.

Beautiful golden hair, flawless fair skin, and cerulean blue eyes.

“The rumors were right. To believe that a lowly peasant like her could be the exact same imitation as her,” the woman's fingers slowly reached under her chin, a lethal stare tinted her eyes as she took a closer look.

If it wasn’t for the child not reacting at all and looking as if she had no life, she would be the living embodiment of her daughter, the Princess of Caellimont.

The Empress then made a swift motion with her hand, and the knight behind her bowed at her gesture, "We will prepare her to be escorted to the palace. We've also provided her father an adequate quantity of gold in exchange for her just as you've ordered, and he gladly accepted the offer."

She hummed positively at the information, although she was barely even looking at him. She then let go of the child and turned her heel as she headed towards the doorway.

"Oh, and one more thing," before the woman could approach the exit, she came to a halt in front of the knight. She opened her hand fan as she gracefully covered her face behind it. "Make sure to clean her up and brighten her mood, Claude doesn’t need to know that she isn't his real sister. Understood?"

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the man bowed one last time, and the Empress proceeded to leave the crumbling house. A few other attendants were waiting for her arrival outside as they all rushed to prevent her from becoming soaked in the terrible rain. A moment later, she was eventually seated in the carriage again and they departed back to the palace.

When the Empress left, the knight sighed as he swirled his head around, keenly staring at the girl who was seated at the table. Even after the commotion, he saw that she immediately returned to drawing as if she was completely disinterested about the world around her.

"Little girl, what's your name?" he asked as he approached her carefully and took a seat next to her.

"…Vivian…”

Her voice was like a light whisper, very low and quiet. And he blinked once, attempting to register if he had heard her name correctly, “Vivian? Well then, my name is Liam Heberns. You can just call Sir Liam, okay?”

The man anticipated for a reply, but the child merely kept drawing and fell silent once more. Because of this, he couldn’t help but acknowledge what kept her so occupied, sketching underneath the dim light of her one and only candle. It seemed to be a picture of a lake in the forest, with three people sitting at the side of the shore, one of whom was a young child.

Liam became saddened at seeing the drawing. Despite the fact that he has yet to know her and understands little about her childhood, it doesn’t take a close relationship for him to recognize what she has been through.

Thinking of another subject, he suddenly had an idea and smiled at her as he tried to uplift the mood. "Do you enjoy drawing? Back at the palace, there are many different art supplies that I'm sure you'll love! Would you like to come with me?"

As he mentioned that, Vivian peered up at him with the same dead appearance she showed the Empress. However, as he looked more closely, he caught a little glimmer of curiosity in her eyes. And, while he still had a lot to work through, Liam thought it was already progress when she showed a small emotion.

"Would I really find more crayons there, Mister?" she said rather innocently, her tone somewhat louder than before and his smile grew wider at her confidence boost.

"Of course! Wait here and I'll get something for you first," he then rose up, the chair's feet making a screeching sound against the wooden floor. He then strolled outside the door, looking from side to side for something. Until he spotted his horse, which had been tied to a hook by another servant from earlier.

He reached the horse and ran his fingers over the saddle bag that was on its side, unzipping it and pulling out what seemed to be a piece of fabric. When he turned around to return to the house, he noticed the young girl already peeking by the door. Liam then chuckled slightly and motioned with his hands for her to come forward to him, and she did as she was told.

"Now, you need this first before we get back to the palace," he kneeled down to her level, extending his arms around her and placing a coat over her shoulders. It was similar to the cloak that he was wearing himself—except that it was smaller—and he pulled its hood above her fragile head.

“There we go, now you're all set to travel in the rain. Are you ready, Vivian?"

Vivian only nodded her and he hoisted her up to place her on the horse’s saddle. For a moment, she became fascinated. Because not only that she was able to see a horse for the first time in her life, she also had the opportunity to ride such a beautiful creature.

Liam was the next to lift himself on to the horse after unhooking the tether. Once everything seemed to be in order, he lifted the reins and they took off.

***

Knock. Knock.

A noise was heard from the front door, and a middle-aged woman who was sleeping, gently awoke and rubbed her eyes with her fingers. She stood up, wondering who could be knocking at the door at this hour, but she wasn't afraid because she knew the entire palace was tightly secured. Suddenly, a second set of knocking came from the door which startled her a little.

"Please wait!" she exclaimed in a whisper, albeit loud enough to be heard from just outside the entryway. She grabbed her robe that was on her desk chair to cover up her nightwear, then she put on her slippers and proceeded to open the door.

“Madam Evelyn..,” muttering her name, there revealed a man in a mask clad in dark attire who appeared to be completely soaked in water. He was carrying something in his arms which was wrapped delicately in linen, and he carefully unfolded the wrapped fabric to reveal a child.

"Oh my goodness, Sir Liam!" Evelyn almost yelled in surprise, but soon clasped her mouth shut with her hand when Liam told her to be a little quiet, since it was late in the night.

She soon recovered and immediately took the girl from his arms, checking her condition. It seemed that she had fallen asleep because of a long ride, but she assumed that he protected her from the rain because the clothes that she was wearing were all dry.

"Is this her? She resembles so much like the Princess, it's hard to believe she isn't her," she gently brushed the child's cheek, causing her to move slightly at the touch but still remained asleep. Liam then took off his mask and looked at the woman apologetically.

“Her name is Vivian. The Empress said she is to be presented in two weeks and that her behavior should have been better by then. She doesn’t react much, but please be patient with her. She feels emotions, but I believe she doesn't know how to express them well because of what she has experienced.”

He gazed at the sleeping girl, remembering how she looked at Her Majesty with a lifeless appearance, but was soon countered when he remembered her looking at him with interest as he mentioned that she could find more art materials in the palace.

“Ah, that reminds me, when you go to the shack, could you also give her some drawing supplies? I noticed that she enjoys drawing.”

Evelyn hummed, already knowing the assignment she had to do, “Of course, I'll see what I can come up with. It is my responsibility to provide as I was delegated to, but she also deserves the best in life.”

She then looked at the man, who was still a little wet from the rain, and was about to welcome him in to offer him a towel to dry himself with, but Liam already bowed to her as an indication that he was leaving soon.

“Thank you, Madam Evelyn. I apologize for troubling you at this time of the night. Then, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be going now,” Liam declared, and she bowed to him as well. He then turned around and left the place, while Evelyn carefully shut the door behind her.

Because the girl in her arms felt to be slipping, she pulled her higher so she could get a more secure hold on her and keep her from falling. Slowly walking back to the bed, the woman laid the girl on it so she could sleep more peacefully. She delicately removed the fabric that was wrapped around her, putting it on the nearby table and instead snuggling her into her bed’s blanket.

"So, this dear child's name is Vivian..." Evelyn murmured, softly running the tips of her fingers through her hair. "Welcome to the family, it would be a pleasure to serve you, Princess."