Chapter 9: Scars of The Past

A few days later.

"See!? Liam's alright with it!" Yue said enthusiastically as she hugged Liam tightly from the side.

"I did not say that. I said, 'since Yue is unwilling to change rooms, given that she is practically the mistress of the house at this point, it would likely be the best course of action for her to just sleep in my room'. Not that I am really in bed until late anyway." Liam corrected Yue.

"Same difference!" Yue said defensively. Liam and Julianna sighed. Liam looked around the room, observing everyone and their locations. Several servants at each doorway next to potted plants, fed with light magic enchanted onto the inside portion of the pot.

Sitting next to him is Yue, who is currently attached to him sitting on the couch. In front of the couch is a coffee table with tea and snacks. On the other side of the coffee table is another couch where Julianna is sat.

"That as it is, you two are not married, as such, it would be looked down upon. Even though polygamy is legal in this world, it does not mean people ignore the idea of separate until married." Julianna said as she crossed her arms and legs. 'Seriously, what are these two thinking, I get that they fucked and all of that, but they should at least have separate rooms. And no, it has nothing to do with my semi-attraction to Liam. Nothing at all.' Julianna thought to herself as she nodded.

"If that's the only barrier, then I'll marry Liam today!" Yue exclaimed as she let go of Liam and stood up. Shocked. Julianna dropped her defensive posture for a moment, then regained her composure and cleared her throat.

"Both of you, quiet for a moment, I need to think." Liam said. 'Given that I marry, who would I invite to the wedding, it's not like I know many people, and only having slaves attend the wedding would be a poor decision.' Liam thought as he put his hand on his chin in a thinking posture. 'Likely what would be necessary is a noble title. It would not only give me a certain amount of authority but also allow me to invite high-ranking individuals, garnering respect, in particular, if I can actually manage to entertain the guest. Imagine a noble of the robe inviting other nobles to their manor, they must primarily expect a poor reception and boring event, however, if I can manage to properly entertain the guests, I can manage to gain a decent amount of respect from others.' Liam thought.

"What's even going through your mind?" Julianna asked. Liam tilted his head up towards Julianna, indicating that she has his attention. "I mean, what's there to think about, if you want her in your room, just get married." Julianna said. Liam sighed.

"You are thinking too shallowly, Julianna." Liam said as he moved into a more relaxed position. Julianna showed a confused expression. He leaned forward. "Let's say I got married. Who would attend the wedding? Slaves? If my goal is authority, then what would happen if that got out?" Liam asked. For a moment, Julianna was taken aback.

"I get it... So, you gonna ask me then?" Julianna asked in response. Yue looked back and forth between them confused.

"How would they figure that out? And what is he going to ask for...?" Yue asked.

"When people figure out no one that they can find attended his wedding, they'll realize his authority is nothing but an illusion. The reason behind this is because of the emphasis that noble society places on showcasing everything that can be used to garner respect and awe." Julianna started to explain.

"Essentially, my power would be brought into question and people would begin to talk. What I need is a noble title so high-ranking individuals are willing to attend the wedding. Furthermore, if I manage to properly entertain and tend to these individuals I would be capable of garnering the respect of those individuals. Of course, this could also backfire and make enemies." Liam explained further.

"So, basically, it's about appearances, right?" Yue asked. Liam nodded.

"I guess you could say that." He said.

"If that's the case, why don't we just pay nobles to attend and promise them great gifts?" Yue asked. For a moment, both Julianna and Liam were dumbfounded.

"That... May work..." Julianna said as she and Liam went into contemplation.

"The only issue is that it would be seen as a form of bribing, they may also think of us as lower beings as we are not nobles." Liam said.

"Possibly, but I know of a few noble individuals who would be willing to attend, given the right amount is given, and won't discriminate..." Julianna said. "They're even nearby." She added.

"Alright. I'll be back later. Julianna, come with me." Liam said as he stood up. Julianna followed suit and stood up without question.

"I'll go too!" Yue said.

"No, wait here, there are some tasks we need to get done that you cannot be there for." Liam said.

"Sorry." Julianna said as she and Liam began walking to the exit. After they had entered the city, Julianna walked up to Liam to ask him a question. "I take it you need me for Yue's ring size?" She asked. Liam nodded.

They walked around and found a suitable jewelry smith. They entered the building and a few bells jingled as they entered. "What can I do for ye?" He asked, turned towards the shelves. He turned and looked at Julianna and Liam. "Oh, a noble, my apologies for being so crude." He said as he straightened his manners.

"No need for that. I need a ring made, I will be providing a gemstone." Liam said. The smith nodded.

"An engagement ring I presume." The smith said.

"Correct. If necessary I will also be supplying the metal. I want it made from the purest gold you can with engravings made of platinum." Liam said.

"Quite the difficult request you have there. Must be a special lady." He said as he made a quick sketch with a piece of chalk on a board. "Something like this? What are the engravings you want to be added, and what about the gemstone?" He asked.

"I want the word engraved on it in platinum and it will say, 'Moon'. It's what her name means. Her parents would always mention it. They said they wanted her to, just like the moon, hold her hopes for life up high." Liam said.

"Interesting choice. Alright, well, I can do that, now what kind of gemstone am I working with?" He asked.

Liam looked at Julianna. "Give him the white diamond." He said. Julianna created one as she put her hand behind her back, acting as if she was grabbing it from somewhere. She walked to the man and handed him a large, spherical diamond, about the size of a teenager's palm. "You may keep whatever is unused." He said.

"Right." He said mildly uncomfortable and surprised. He adjusted the sketch to add the word moon engraved onto the ring that he already had drawn. "What shape?" He asked.

"A dodecahedron." Liam said.

"A what?" The smith said, clearly confused. Liam sighed.

"A sphere with twelve flat sides, I do not want it to be overly large, that would make performing any task involving the hands annoying, furthermore, the weight of the ring would likely annoy her." Liam said. The jeweler nodded.

"Alright, I'll get that done, I would say that I require half the payment upfront, but looking at this diamond, I think it'll be fine. It should be finished in a couple of days." He said as he added the gem to the ring sketch. Liam nodded and left the building, Julianna following behind him.

"Was all of what you said true?" Julianna asked. Liam nodded.

"I can only imagine what her suicide did to her parents. They didn't have good lives growing up, so they named Yue something symbolic to represent their own hopefulness for the future. Of course, this was never shared with Yue. Do not tell her." Liam said.

"Why not?" Julianna asked. Liam stopped, causing Julianna to stop immediately. Julianna showed a confused expression as she tilted her head.

"Imagine how that would emotionally affect her, Julianna. She didn't know this, and realizing that she committed suicide despite this hope that her parents had, how would you feel at that moment?" Liam explained with a question.

"Oh..." Julianna said as she lowered her head. "I didn't think about that. I would feel horrible... She would probably feel something similar..." Julianna said.

"Right, so don't tell her. Let's go get our other tasks done." Liam said as he continued walking. Julianna followed shortly after. Julianna and Liam continued doing some errands, picking up some items, and generally being generous. Although the generosity that Liam showed is not fake, he is also using it to garner the affection of the townspeople.

After a while, Liam and Julianna arrived back at the estate. Liam went straight to the lounge and sat down. "Welcome home!" Yue said happily as she opened the door behind the couch Liam is currently on quickly.

"Thanks." Liam said as he gave a small wave with the back of his hand.

"Hey, Liam." She said as she walked to the other side of the couch to sit.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Back when I came to this world. You were wondering, weren't you?" Yue asked as she sat down on the couch next to him.

"About?" Liam asked with a curious expression.

"I... If he attended..." Yue said as she faced the fireplace on the other side of the coffee table. Liam realized what she was talking about.

"Oh..." He said.

"Y-you don't have to say. Not if you don't want to. It's just... I know you two aren't on the best of terms, so..." Yue began rambling.

"It's fine. I was. Though I'm sure he didn't attend." Liam said.

"That assertion... Is correct..." Yue said. "I emailed him, sent him letters, texted him... He wouldn't respond. When he did, he said that..." Yue stopped for a moment.

"I know." Liam said. "So do I." He added.

"But it wasn't your fault! There was nothing you could have done. All he did was make the pain worse. So much was going on at that site, you couldn't have known." Yue said. Liam turned to face Yue and placed his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him.

"Yue. I made the choice. I was a coward, I didn't do what I knew was the right choice. I understand that you want me to take solace in thinking it wasn't my fault but it was. People died because of my actions. He has every right to hate me." Liam said. Liam took his hands off of her shoulders.

"B-but..." Yue said as she started tearing up. "He should've at least attended your funeral! He's still your brother!" Yue said as she began to cry.

"And the ones who died were everything to him." Liam said. "It's my fault that his world collapsed." Liam added.

"It's not your fault! If you had taken the time to go, then you all would have died! Liam, you would have died. What use would you have been then!? Suppose you managed to wake them all up, how would you have escaped!?" Yue practically screamed as she cried. Liam placed his hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes.

"At least I could have saved them. One life is worth less than four." Liam said.

"And if all but one died!? You would have just traded one life for one. Or what if all of them died!?" Yue asked. "There was a fire, the exit would have been blocked off, That's not even mentioning the gunfire!" Yue tried appealing to logic as she stopped herself from crying.

"I get what you are saying. The point is that I didn't try, so I wouldn't know." Liam said. After a few moments of silence, the door was suddenly pushed open as a loud bang was heard coming from the ground.

Julianna quickly stood up and attempted to defend. "You see, I saw some dust on the door frame, so of course I wanted to clean it!" Julianna said.

"You don't have a rag or duster." Liam said as he stared blankly at Julianna.

"Keh, fine. I was listening. Who died?" Julianna asked.

"You can't just ask that!" Yue yelled.

"My parents, sister, and soon-to-be sister-in-law," Liam answered in order.

"I see. Though, Yue is right. From what I've garnered about the situation, odds are all of you would have died. You had a very slim chance of having one person survive, let alone five." Julianna said. Liam sighed.

"Yeah, alright." Liam said. Yue hugged him.

"Even though I know you're just saying that to stop the argument, it still makes me happy." She said.

"Yeah." Liam said dismissively.

"Anyway~..." Julianna said. "With you planning what you are, you must be a bit stressed, I'm sure Yue and I wouldn't mind doing something to help ease your mind." Julianna said.

"Oh, yes, I think that is a wonderful idea, Julianna!" Yue said happily.

"Ah, I see. I agree yoga is very stress-relieving." Liam said.

"You big dummy! She's talking about sexual favors!" Yue said angrily.

"I find that highly unlikely, I don't think she particularly thinks highly of me. She is very... how do I put it... Unhappy with me. She seems to enjoy constantly calling me a pervert, lolicon, and various other nicknames." Liam stated flatly.

"Wait, lolicon? I'm not that small!" Yue yelled. Julianna laughed as she walked over to the other side of the couch.

"No, she just seems to think that just because you get a young female slave that it automatically means you are sexually attracted to them." Liam said as he turned to face Yue.

"Oh, I see. As long as I'm not being compared to a child. Even if you were, I'd still love you." Yue said.

"As comforting as that is, I am not a lolicon." Liam said.

"Hey, Liam." Julianna said.

"Yeah?" Liam said as he turned in the direction of Julianna, who is now standing in front of the coffee table.

"Just fuck us." She said.