The Courtesan

Chapter 19

The Middleton Estate was even more luxurious than the Horps Estate. It was to be expected as the Dunhall family held the largest financial power in the kingdom. According to my knowledge, they owned fleets, a great deal of land and controlled about 45 percent of the aristocrats. That was a lot, the Horps Estate coming second with about 30 percent. 

It seemed their wealth only grew larger in the new regime, under the hand of Lord Erik. He was so young, yet so capable. Whereas I was... well, nothing like my parents planned. The gap was too wide. 

While disembarking, Lord Erik also insisted on helping me down the carriage. I had no excuse to refuse him but when I got down, he refused to let go of my hand. Prince Miyon quickly took hold of my hand when the footman brought him down. 

“Uh... Lord Erik, y-you can let go now.”

“The Mansion is huge. I’m afraid Miss Greycastle would get lost in it so I’m going to lead you myself.”

“I can just follow you behind.”

“I’m sorry, I can’t do that. You wouldn’t want his highness to get lost, would you?”

Why was he going through the elaborate process of making things up just to hold my hand?

Do you fancy me?

No, no, no, no, that was a crazy idea! It was too much of a risk. If I was still a courtesan, he could be my patron but now that I worked in the palace, his reputation would be widely at risk. Still, his grip was firm on my hands, like I would disappear the moment he took his eyes off me. 

Heat rose to my cheeks. I looked at Prince Miyon to distract myself. He was excited but his hands felt a little too warm. 

“Can we go now, my lord? His highness is cold.”

“Of course. Let’s go.”

Again, we resembled a family, walking through the vast mansion. 

“How has your stay in the palace been?”

There was no way I could tell him we were being picked on, could I?

“... Eventful.”

A long awkward silence followed. 

“Miss Greycastle, I’ve heard unfavorable rumors surrounding his highness. Perhaps -”

“Lord Erik, you wouldn’t be asking me to leave him, would you?”

“... If it is unsafe for you, then I would advise you to do so.”

“Lord Erik, please let us not discuss this. I would rather not argue with you.”

“I can offer you a better position here,” he said quietly. 

“And what would I be doing, my lord? Do you know a thing about me?”

He didn’t reply but it seemed we had reached where we were going. We were out in the open again but just in front of us was the entrance to a greenhouse. He asked me to wait and walked off. 

I sighed, feeling a weight on my shoulder. How did we even get here?

“Ah... Hmm...”

“Your highness, what’s the matter?”

He didn’t reply, squirming and jumping on one feet. 

“Do you... want to use the bathroom?”

He pouted, shaking his head. 

“Come on your highness, you can use it now and come back for your candy.”

‘Really?’ his eyes portrayed. I nodded. 

So, where’s the bathroom?

As I was a guest in another man’s house, finding it was going to be hard. There was no servant around either. I resolved to walking around till I found one that would lead me to it and hopefully inform Lord Erik where we went. It all sounded troublesome. 

I took the way we went since that was the only direction I recognized. It soon became apparent that I had no clue where I was going. The path we came through was distorted and I had somehow ended up somewhere else. I mean, when we came in, there were no doors!

Rows of red doors lined the corridors, all engraved with a seal, most likely the seal of the Middleton Estate. At that time, I thought nothing of it, assuming they were servants quarters. It was very strange that seals were imprinted on the door but as I had never been to the Middleton Estate before, I couldn’t tell if they were normal or not. My assumption was based on the fact that the doors were numerous. 

I knocked on a few but got no answers. I assumed they were distributed around the estate, busy. After going through a few more doors and getting no answers, I was impatient. The prince was squirming harder too. If he wet the pants he wore, there were no extras. Plus, it would be embarrassing. I decided to open one of the doors and see if there was anyone in there. 

Stopping in front of it, I asked the prince to wait and pushed it open. It was NOT the room of a servant. Instead of the beds and old fireplace I was expecting, rows and rows of sabers, swords and daggers lined the wall. The floor was packed with wooden crates and from the open one close to the entrance, they were filled with swords too. 

Further into the room, there was something strange hanging on the wall. It was a big black round ball with what was a thick white thread sticking out of one end. I covered my mouth in alarm. That was...

"Ariana, gods, don’t touch that carelessly!"

"What’s that, father?"

"It’s a sample I got from the military. Apparently, it’s a more powerful explosive than the one we use. They called it a bomb. It can easily kill a hundred men. More can bring down a ship!"

"Wow! Can I have one?"

"Of course not! Go meet your mother."

My father repeatedly warned me about the dangers of a bomb. He got so tired of tiptoeing around me that it outlawed it completely. If it was used carelessly, it could easily level a sizable part of the town. I wondered why Lord Erik would have such a thing. According to my knowledge, the men from the Middleton Estate occupied government positions. None of them were involved with the military. 

So, how? Why? And more importantly, what was he planning to do with them?

“Oi! You there! What are you doing there?! That area is outlawed!”

I shut the door in a hurry, pulling the prince behind my back. A man dressed in a black tailcoat and a monocle stalked up to us, a crossed look on his face. He eyed me suspiciously. 

“I came in with Lord Erik but I got lost looking for the bathroom.”

He gave me a once over, disbelief in his eyes. Given how I was dressed, it was impossible to tell I was associated with a noble, a duke no less. 

“Please believe me. I wasn’t trying to steal anything.”

“... Are you Miss Greycastle?”

“Yes!”

“His grace has been looking all over for you. Please follow me.” 

There was still disdain in his eyes but I didn’t care. However, before we could go see Lord Erik...

“Pardon me, can you show us to the bathroom? His highness really needs to use the bathroom... Your highness! You cannot just do that anywhere!”