Chapter 36
"Why do you suddenly want your own room, Elyra?" Damnern asked, his blue eyes brimming with unshed tears.
Is she trying to distance herself from me now? Does she really hate her Papa that much? But if I refuse, won't she only grow to resent me even more?
A chaotic whirlwind of anxious thoughts tore through Damnern's mind, leaving him visibly distraught.
"Can I, Mama?" Elyra asked, turning her wide, innocent gaze toward Elina, who was quietly reading a book nearby.
"Elyra is still so small," Elina remarked softly, glancing up from her pages to observe her husband.
Though Damnern was forcing a cheerful smile onto his face, Elina knew him far too well—he was still bleeding internally from having his birthday gift rejected by their daughter the night before.
Elina's mind drifted back to a year ago, on Elyra's first official birthday.
Damnern had been practically glowing with joy that day. Seeing his radiant expression, Elina had smiled and asked, "What has made you so delightfully happy, darling?"
With great pride, Damnern had retrieved a custom-crafted silver locket from his pocket. "Isn't it beautiful?" he had asked, his voice full of wonder. "It's perfectly suited for a little girl, don't you think?"
Elina had nodded warmly. "Yes, it is exquisite. Elyra will surely love it."
A few minutes later, while Elyra was sitting on the rug drawing intently alongside Eldern, Damnern had crept up behind her to clasp the delicate silver chain around her neck.
"Bwa!" a tiny Elyra had squawked, instantly grabbing the locket and hurling it across the floor with surprising force.
"Eh!?" Elina had gasped, utterly bewildered.
Later that night, around two in the morning, Elina had stirred from her sleep to find Damnern sitting silently by the window, drowned in heavy, troubled thoughts.
"Why did Elyra reject it?" Damnern had whispered the moment he felt Elina wake. "Eldern has never once turned down a gift from me."
He had turned to her, his gaze glassy and vulnerable.
Elina had gently pulled his head down against her chest, holding him close. "Little girls are just a bit more complicated, darling," she had murmured softly, trying to soothe his bruised heart.
The vivid memory dissolved as Damnern's quiet voice pulled Elina back to the present.
"You may..." Damnern uttered softly.
Eh? Elina blinked in surprise. Why was he agreeing so easily?
"B-But... only if Papa gets to stroke Elyra's head first," Damnern added, pouting like a sulking child trying to bargain for a small comfort.
Without a single word of complaint, Elyra immediately stepped forward and offered her head.
Damnern froze. From his perspective, the sight of his tiny daughter offering her head so piteously was so overwhelmingly adorable that he was struck completely speechless.
"My daughter is just the cutest!" Damnern burst out, his heart soaring as he tenderly stroked her silky blonde hair.
In an instant, every ounce of lingering heartache inside him melted away like snow under a warm sun.
Watching the dramatic shift, Elina smiled fondly to herself. You really are a simple man, Damnern...
Her mind flicked back once more to the day following that first rejected gift a year ago.
Damnern had just returned home from his duties. The moment he opened the doors to their room, a tiny creature had suddenly stumbled forward and latched onto his leg.
At the time, Elyra was just learning how to walk and had lost her balance. Seeing Damnern within arm's reach, she had reflexively grabbed his left leg to break her fall.
"Eyya is so smart!" Eldern had cheered loudly, clapping his hands while playing nearby.
Thank goodness this idiot was standing here, a tiny Elyra had thought internally, looking up at Damnern with her striking blue eyes, looking remarkably smug—as if she had just accomplished a grand tactical victory by capturing his lightning-fast leg.
"Bwaa!" Elyra had squeaked in surprise as Damnern suddenly scooped her up into the air.
"My daughter is the most precious thing in the world!" Damnern had declared ecstatically, looking as overjoyed as if the painful rejection of the previous night had never even happened.
Elina had been a silent witness to it all.
Returning to the present, Elina watched Damnern blissfully stroking Elyra's blonde hair and shook her head with a soft smile.
Elyra really plays dirty, Elina thought. Her unpredictable behavior is just far too adorable to resist.
Meanwhile, beneath her father's affectionate hand, Elyra remained completely focused on her ultimate goal. I will do whatever it takes to secure my own room...
"Alright!" Damnern stood up abruptly, hoisting Elyra up onto his broad shoulders with a flourish. "Papa will personally prepare the finest room for you! You can choose whichever one you want!"
Eldern, who had just entered the corridor, widened his eyes upon seeing his sister riding atop their father's shoulders.
"Eldern want to come too!" Eldern yelled, tagging along without the slightest clue of what was happening.
After touring the grand halls of the manor and inspecting countless vacant suites—passing bowing guards along the way—Elyra finally halted before a room facing the serene back gardens.
"Eh!? Elyra wants to live in her own room?!" Eldern finally blurted out, his jaw dropping in utter shock as the reality hit him.
"Are you truly sure about this room, Elyra?" Damnern asked hesitantly.
"Aren't you scared?" Eldern chimed in, looking at her with genuine concern. "This room is pretty far from Papa's and mine!"
In truth, the suite was merely six doors down the same corridor.
"It's basically like living all by yourself!" Eldern exaggerated solemnly.
What do you mean 'living by yourself'? We're still under the exact same roof, Elyra deadpanned internally.
"Eyya wikes this room!" she declared firmly, her baby voice carrying an underlying authority that left no room for debate.
"A-All right then..." Damnern conceded defeatingly.
At that moment, a maid with long black hair and dark, composed eyes stepped forward, bowing gracefully. She appeared to be in her late twenties.
"Forgive the interruption, Lord Count, but breakfast has been served," she announced smoothly.
"Ah, yes. What is your name?" Damnern asked, looking at her.
"My name is Irybelle, My Lord. You may call me Iry," she replied respectfully.
"Please gather a few others and clean this room thoroughly," Damnern instructed her.
"Eden! Let's go eat!" Eldern whispered urgently, tugging at Elyra's sleeve.
Elyra nodded, and the two children scurried off down the hall, leaving Damnern behind with the staff.
"Ensure this room is fit for my precious little daughter!" Damnern's boisterous voice echoed down the corridor behind them. "You're a woman, so surely you know what kind of decor..."
Upon reaching the grand dining hall, Elyra's eyes sparkled at the lavish feast laid out across the long table. Forgetting her usual stoicism for a brief moment, she scrambled up into the chair beside Elina. Within minutes, the family finished their morning meal.
"Eden! Let's go to the libwawy!" Elyra chimed as soon as she wiped her mouth.
"Okay!" Eldern agreed enthusiastically, and the two darted straight for the archives.
The atmosphere inside the grand library was thick with an ancient, peaceful quiet. Surrounded by thousands of legendary texts and towering shelves of leather-bound manuscripts, the room smelled comfortably of aged paper and dried ink.
Elyra pulled out whichever heavy history books her tiny hands could reach. "Eden! Read this to Eyya!"
They spent hours tucked away in a cozy reading corner. Eldern eagerly read through nearly four full volumes for his sister—sweeping through colorful storybooks, grand history texts, and even basic primer books to help teach her how to read. His voice brimmed with pride with every turned page, while Elyra listened with sharp, absolute focus, absorbing every single detail that left his lips.
"Elyra! Your room is ready!"
Damnern's booming, excited voice shattered the quiet as he burst through the library doors.
Eldern and Elyra snapped their heads toward him, and before they knew it, they were standing right outside the chosen suite. Irybelle was waiting respectfully by the grand wooden doors.
"Ready?" Damnern asked, practically vibrating with anticipation.
Elyra nodded with feigned childish excitement.
At Damnern's signal, Irybelle pushed the doors wide open. Inside, four additional maids were putting the final touches on the decor, ensuring not a single speck of dust remained.
"Welcome to your room, Young Lady Elyra," the maids chorused in unison, bowing deeply.
The room had been transformed into a soft, pastel-pink sanctuary, decorated with delicate drapes and an array of plush toys resting atop a plush, oversized bed. It was the quintessential room for a young noble girl.
"How is it?" Damnern asked, dropping down onto his knees so he was at eye level with her. "Papa even helped renovate it himself!" he boasted proudly.
"This room is so cool, Papa! It suits Elyra perfectly!" Eldern exclaimed, his green eyes shining with awe as he looked around.
Elyra stood frozen on the threshold, completely rendered speechless.
My own room... she thought, her internal walls fracturing slightly.
In her past life as Ryudien, she had never owned a place to call her own.
In her earliest memories as Ryudien, he had slept on the freezing stone floor of a bare living room. Later, at the Willoreach Welfare House, he had been shoved into a rotted wooden bunk that left his skin itching every night, sharing a cramped, filthy room with dozens of neglected orphans. And within the shadowy confines of the Noxes organization, he had merely occupied an empty, desolate cell alongside the nine other Seeds of Noxes.
She had never known what it felt like to have a space that belonged entirely to her.
A sudden, overwhelming wave of emotion swelled deep within her chest. Before her cold, rational mind could stop her, her body moved entirely on instinct—she leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on Damnern's cheek.
Damnern froze mid-breath, turning entirely to stone.
"Eldern wants one too!" her brother protested instantly, pouting his cheeks.
This kid...? Elyra thought, exasperated, but she turned and planted a quick kiss on Eldern's cheek as well.
"Yay!" Eldern cheered, instantly wrapping his arms around her in a triumphant hug.
"I... I can't believe this..." Damnern whimpered, his eyes swelling with massive tears of pure, unadulterated bliss, looking as though he had just achieved the absolute pinnacle of his life's existence.
"M-My Lord Count...?" another maid asked cautiously, eyeing her master's bizarre, tearful expression with deep confusion.
Only Damnern himself could truly comprehend the overwhelming weight of that single, unexpected gesture.
To be continued...