The next morning, warm sunlight spilled through the window. Vivian's eyelashes fluttered as she began to wake.
She had never slept so soundly before. The bed beneath her was impossibly soft, and the faint fragrance in the room was something she had never experienced in the dark, damp shack where she had lived.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Vivian realized something and quickly opened her eyes. She had completely forgotten that this was the lord's bedroom.
She sat up quickly and only then noticed the brand-new wool blanket covering her. She hurriedly lifted it to check her clothes.
Her clothes were just as they had been, and only then did Vivian breathe a little easier.
But the next moment, her eyes dimmed again. She was the Daughter of Misfortune. The lord had washed her and brought her to his bedroom, yet he hadn't...
That meant the things the lord had said last night must have been lies, too.
Vivian wasn't really afraid of dying. She was only worried about her younger sister, who was just twelve.
She remembered how, after their heartless father abandoned them, her sister followed her around picking wild greens and berries to eat. She had never cried from hunger. Instead, she had always been sensible, forcing herself to smile and laugh to cheer Vivian up.
"Little sister! I'm sorry I failed you! You have to live!"
Vivian prayed silently in her heart. If the gods hated her, then let all the misfortune fall upon her. Please let her sister be lucky enough to live!
"You're awake!"
Just as Vivian wondered whether to leave the bedroom or wait where she was, a gentle voice came from the doorway. It was the handsome, kind-hearted lord.
"My... my lord!" Vivian hurried off the sofa and knelt on the floor barefoot.
"Get up," Nalant said gently, then continued, "Vivian, look who's here!"
"Sister!"
As Vivian stood there in confusion, a familiar voice suddenly came from the doorway.
"Lilia!"
She looked up. A girl dressed in a brand-new maid's uniform stood at the bedroom entrance. It was her younger sister, Lilia.
Vivian's face instantly lit up with joy. She had thought she would never see her sister again.
"Sister, the lord said I can work as a maid in the castle from now on! He said he'll pay me ten Copper Coins a day!"
"What? You're going to be a maid?"
Vivian could hardly believe it. Being a castle maid was a highly esteemed job. How could a relative of the Daughter of Misfortune possibly become one?
Vivian couldn't help looking at Nalant.
Nalant smiled and nodded. "From now on, you'll be my guard captain, and your sister will become a castle maid. I thought that would help you serve me with greater peace of mind. Vivian, are you willing?"
"I... I am. Thank you, my lord..."
Vivian's eyes reddened slightly. She finally knew that the lord's words last night had been true.
"But, my lord, I... I don't know how to fight!"
Even an ordinary guard needed to be strong and burly, let alone a guard captain. Vivian wasn't sure she was up to it.
Ding! System side quest: Help the Daughter of Luck, Vivian, understand her abilities! System reward: Information about the second Sprite!
"Hmm? It can do that?"
The system had issued another quest.
But to Nalant, this side quest was basically a freebie. He had already planned to have Vivian demonstrate her abilities.
He hadn't expected to receive information about a second Sprite, though. That was a delightful surprise.
"Vivian, you don't need to worry about that. You'll find out what you can do soon enough! Come on, the castle servants are having breakfast. You two should go eat. Once you're done, I'll officially appoint you guard captain!"
"Yes, my lord!" Vivian replied nervously.
Nalant then took the two sisters to the first floor and left them in the care of Thomas, the steward.
In this world, commoners couldn't sit at the nobles' long table in the castle dining hall. Doing so would earn them a death sentence for showing contempt for the nobility. Nobles, too, had to remember this rule.
Sitting alone at the six-meter-long table, Nalant ate what was probably the most sumptuous breakfast in all of Storm Territory: a piece of white bread and some smoked roast meat. Just as he was about to finish, a castle servant brought Captain Quick into the dining hall.
"Did you take care of it?"
Nalant looked at Quick. He took the white towel the servant handed him and wiped his hands before speaking unhurriedly.
"Yes, my lord. The ten young serfs you asked for are here. Four of them used to be hunters, and the others are the strongest young men in the territory!"
"Good." Nalant nodded.
These ten young serfs were the people Nalant had chosen to form his second guard squad.
He had told Quick to arrange the second guard squad on his very first day in the territory. The aim was to keep Anthony in check.
After all, Anthony had five guards of his own. Nalant needed another squad of men, bringing his total to twenty, to keep Anthony effectively under control.
After that, Nalant picked up an exquisite mask from beside the table and left the dining hall.
When he arrived in the castle courtyard, Vivian had already finished breakfast. She was watching Thomas teach Lilia how to become a proper maid.
"My lord!"
Vivian, who had been wearing a faint smile, immediately sobered when Nalant came out and knelt respectfully.
"Get up, Vivian. Put on this mask! From now on, wear it whenever you go outside the castle. You don't need to wear it inside."
The mask had been found in the castle storeroom. It had been used at balls held by nobles in the past.
Four barons had lived in this castle, and all of them had met their downfall here. They had left behind quite a few odds and ends.
Nobody cared to claim these nearly worthless things. Everyone worried that the objects in the castle might have been tainted by misfortune, so they ended up being a boon for Nalant.
"Yes, my lord!"
Vivian knew that if she went outside the castle, she would frighten everyone who knew her. She took the mask and obediently put it on.
"Damn, no wonder nobles like this sort of thing!"
When Vivian put on the mask, Nalant was dazzled.
The mask was exquisitely made and covered only the area around her eyes. It was made from intricately cut copper.
Its openwork patterns were breathtaking. It wasn't stifling to wear; instead, it looked extraordinarily elegant. Paired with Vivian's unusually fair skin for a serf, it gave her an appearance that was graceful with a hint of wildness, poised between temptation and modesty. It was the sort of look that made your heart race...
"Greetings, my lord!"
Outside the castle, ten shabbily dressed young men around eighteen or nineteen years old knelt in a row and called out loudly.
Their faces showed barely contained delight.
The lord's personal guards were arguably the most prestigious profession in the territory. Not only did they earn good pay and enjoy high status, but they also got to accompany the lord.
Being selected by Quick felt to them like winning the grand prize in the lottery.
"Do you all know what you're here to do?"
"We do, my lord!"
"Good! Then I hereby declare that from this moment on, you are officially my subordinates, Nalant Berwick's guards in Storm Territory!"
"Thank you, my lord! We swear to serve you to the death!"
At Nalant's words, all the young men grew excited and shouted their oaths of loyalty with all their might.
Their oaths of allegiance to Nalant meant that from that moment on, they had the right to leave their status as serfs behind.
If they were lucky enough, earned enough merit, and proved capable enough, they might have the chance to become commoners, or even receive a plot of farmland.
Not one in a hundred would ever achieve that, but at least they had something to hope for. That was why the guards serving minor nobles were so loyal.
"Good. Now, let's meet your captain!"
"Vivian, come here!"
Whoosh!
As Nalant's words fell, everyone at the castle entrance erupted into an uproar.
The young serfs weren't the only ones stunned. Even Quick and the other guards looked as if they'd seen a ghost.