Bidding Farewell

Kalina returned to her estate in a good mood. Throughout dinner, she had a bright smile plastered on her face. Everyone couldn't help but wonder what had happened to make her so happy. Usually, she would be calm and expressionless, like a beautiful marble statue.

"What's wrong with you? Yesterday you were acting so rudely, yet today you're smiling so brightly." The Duke scoffed upon seeing her joyous state. For some reason, he felt uncomfortable seeing Kalina looking happy after he scolded her yesterday.

"Father, I'm just so excited that I'll be able to meet Prince Heinrich soon!" Kalina turned to the head of the table and took in the Duke's uneasy expression with a grin.

The Duchess felt warm seeing Kalina looking genuinely happy. "See, I told you that you would change your mind. Later, I'll send my maids over to help you pack for the journey. Don't bring too much, we can always buy more clothes in the capital."

Nessa felt excluded from the conversation and cut in: "Could I trouble the Duchess to lend me a few maids? I'm afraid that packing my luggage will be too much work for my group of little maids."

A mistress more than one maid was uncommon, yet Nessa had several. A few serving maids who stood nearby began whispering among themselves.

"Of course. It'll be troubling if the journey gets held up. I'll ask some of my maids to go help you." The Duchess was unfazed as usual. She paid close attention to her choice of words–instead of saying that she would have her maids go over like she had said to Kalina, she said that she would ask her maids to help. Basically, if they refused to help, what could she do?

The maids of the Duchess were prideful, especially those who had served her personally for a long time. They would never willingly go from serving a Duchess to serving a mistress.

In the end, none of the Duchess's maids were willing to help Nessa and she was forced to pack her luggage with the help of a few laundry maids that didn't care who they served, as long as they were rewarded.

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"Lady Kalina, we'll all miss you so much."

"Make sure to write to us! I want to know all about what the capital is like!"

"I hope you'll come back and visit soon. The debutante is still years away, who knows if we'll be able to see each other again before then."

The noble ladies all crowded around Kalina with teary eyes. They held numerous gift boxes wrapped in colorful paper and tied with gauzy ribbons. Inside were small trinkets that had been handmade by them, like an embroidered handkerchief or a bracelet with rhinestones.

Kalina had no interest in little tokens like these but she felt especially touched that her friends would go out of their way to prepare gifts for her. Who knew how many times they had pricked their fingers while embroidering the flowery white handkerchief in her hand.

"Thank you, everyone. I'll write to you often and send you all fun things to play with." Kalina gave her friends a quick squeeze. Although she wasn't very affectionate, her friends understood her aloof nature and were even more moved.

After another round of hugging and crying, the red-eyed girls sat down to have tea. Kalina had prepared an exquisite array of desserts to lift her friends' spirits, but no one was touching the snacks.

"Have some," Kalina pushed a plate of cream-filled pastry puffs towards the girls sitting around the circular table covered with white cloth, taking one for herself. Seeing that no one moved, she said: "Is everything alright? Everyone seems strange today. Are the desserts not to your liking?"

The girls exchanged glances and seemed hesitant to speak, as if they were afraid that they would offend Kalina. Finally, after a bit of silence, Holly spoke up: "It's not that. Honestly, I'm worried about Lady Kalina."

Kalina was surprised. Worried? She held the highest status of an unmarried woman in the Empire. Even if someone wanted to harm her, it would be extremely difficult to do so.

"Yes, me too. We've seen how Lady Lucille acts. I'm afraid that once Lady Kalina is no longer in the territory controlled by her family, Lady Lucille won't hold back." Another noble lady added. The other girls at the table also nodded in agreement.

'Their intuition is quite good. Lucille originally ended up targeting me when we went to the capital.' The corners of Kalina's lips curled up faintly, causing the girls to cease their comments.

"It's nothing to worry about. Lucille wouldn't do that to me. I believe in her," Kalina rubbed her ring in her slender finger. She was extra careful not to touch the gemstone and accidentally use her power. She wouldn't put it to use until she needed it, since she didn't know how severe side effects would be.

The noble ladies wanted to say more but it would look bad if they kept insisting when Kalina seemed so firm. They reluctantly put a few cookies in their mouths and steered the topic away.

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The next day, a stream of white and gold carriages trickled down the long driveway that lead to the grand entrance of the mansion. The bulky luggage had been tied together with rope and was being loaded onto the designated carriages by the workers. On the side of the road stood a group of young knights, elated that they had been picked by their master to be a part of the entourage heading to the capital.

"Lady Kalina, please travel safely." Malcolm bowed at the waist to the girl standing on the stairs front of him. "Rest assured, I'll manage everything well."

"Good." Kalina nodded with a satisfied look. Malcolm was a trustworthy and talented servant. With him taking care of the dukedom's matters, her mother wouldn't have to worry about work and could finally take a break. "If anything happens, send me a message. There's no need to disturb Mother."

Malcolm knew very well how hard the Duchess worked. He promptly agreed and stepped aside so that Kalina could walk past him. Kalina was a capable master, albeit a young one. He knew that she would become a prominent person one day.

Kalina stepped past Malcolm and moved towards the line of carriages. One of the carriages in the front was evidently fancier and larger than the others. It was the carriage that had been prepared for the Duchess and Kalina.

Nessa had been arranged to ride in one of the smaller carriages, along with Lucille. Even though it was less luxurious than the Duchess's, it was nothing short of comfortable.

She was about complain when Lucille brushed past her and sat down in the carriage, smoothing out her dress neatly. "Mama, if you don't want to get on, then they'll probably make you ride with the maids."

Nessa humphed, lifting up her skirt to sit next to her daughter. "Don't talk to me like that again. Remember, I'm the one who made it possible for you to sit here."

"Okay, Mama." Lucille rolled her eyes and turned in the opposite direction as the carriage began to move.

In the other carriage, there was a much more harmonious atmosphere. Kalina and her mother sat across from each other in a pleasant silence.

Kalina watched her mother's serene look. When she next returned to her family's estate, what would her life be like? Would she ever be able to return, safe and sound?

She shifted to look out the window at the familiar scenery that flashed by. A smile formed on her lips. Whatever the answer was, she was prepared to find out what awaited her in the capital.