'Oh, my head!'

Wearing a puffed-sleeved white chiffon blouse with ruffles that fell down to somewhere near her navel, the woman adjusted her glasses and tilted her head backward a little, so it looked like she was looking down on me. Her blouse was tucked in a dark blue, almost black, starched full-length skirt with only the tip of her black leather boots peeking below. Her copper hair tied neatly in a bun.

'She looks sophisticated, but she doesn't look like she's someone's wife,' I thought, because if she's really someone's wife—the Count, for example—then why is she personally waiting for me?

The carriage stopped in front of them, and Cosmo was quick on his feet to get out before I can even ask him a question. Glancing at the bunch by the stairs, I hesitantly took the knight's hand that he so kindly reached out to me with a smile. As soon as I stepped out of the carriage, my heart started pounding louder and my head felt light.

Is it because I was in the carriage for so long?

I swallowed my emotions and stood straight. I can't embarrass myself here. I'm so long away from home.

"Welcome to Castle Limont, Lady Montcroix," I flinched when the woman in front of me bowed down her head to greet me. She then gestured to the servants behind her to take my things in.

I nodded at her shyly, trying to conceal my nervousness with a smile, "Thank you for the warm welcome…" I let my sentence hang because I didn't know her name yet.

She smiled sweetly at me and introduced, "I am Jane Sinnet, the head housekeeper. The master sends his deepest apology to have missed your arrival. Something urgent came up in town that he needed to oversee."

When I heard her say she was the head housekeeper, I didn't notice I was holding my breath, so I immediately let it out discreetly, "It's okay, Jane. I can still meet him later." My smile was wider this time.

Why do I feel so relieved?

The castle I lived in was old because it was already there when my great grandfather bought the land. It wasn't as grand or any bigger as Castle Limont but it certainly is more beautiful inside than this one.

I didn't know that I was showing any displeasure as I looked around the interior leading to the great hall until I saw the head housekeeper's apologetic smile.

"I'm sure it will be livelier around here with you, Lady Montcroix." Jane told me and I blushed.

Not just the main hall, but everywhere I looked it was heavily furnished and a bit… melancholic. Everything was big and exaggerated that it hurt my eyes and head just looking at it.

At the entrance was a statue of a woman with only cloth that covered her private parts. The curtains draping from the large windows were thick and maroon in color with silver-colored tassels at the end; it was gathered to both sides with a golden-colored rope to let some breeze in; looking at the expensive antique vases, furniture and paintings, I could say that the master really loved to show off his splendor. I turned my attention straight under the arched staircase that started from one side of the hallway to the other, but I could only see closed doors ahead.

"I hope you will help me through it, Jane… And call me Isa. It will make me feel more at home." I showed a faint, understanding smile before my eyes wandered off again as Jane led me to the west side of the castle where a grand staircase leading to the second floor was.

"This way Lady Isa," Jane guided me upstairs where she said I will be staying from now on. As the head housekeeper fished the set of keys from her skirt's hidden pocket, my heart started pounding again. "Your luggage will be delivered and sorted out later. I will also introduce you to your maids who will tend to your needs." I can only nod at Jane as I calm my anxious self.

As soon as the door opened, my eyes widened and my feet started to walk on its own, straight to the balcony. The floor to ceiling glass windows were opened and the sound of the flapping curtains transported me to another world. My heart raced with excitement as I gazed at the sparkling ocean and the stretched-out horizon before my eyes.

"Is this—are we at the back of the island?" I asked, my tone a pitch higher.

Jane giggled, "Yes. Since the castle sits atop the highest peak in the island, you can see the ocean from here in between the ends of the two mountains surrounding Ozryn." I was so focused on the waters that I didn't even see the ends of the mountains on both sides. "Not only is this island big, but the castle is too. When you look at it from outside, you'd think that Ozryn is surrounded by mountains because Limont is obstructing the view of the ocean and where the mountains end." That's exactly what I thought too! I should've pestered Cosmo to tell me more about the Ozryn when we were in the carriage earlier.

But that didn't end there as Jane joined me in the balcony and pointed down. "They said that this is a cursed island since no one lived here long enough. They either die in battle or move somewhere else. But looking at all this arable land around, made Limont a paradise for us. Beyond that small piece of farmland is a forest with a small lake and a dainty waterfall. I'd bet you'd love it when you see it. Then beyond that is what we call the island's back gate. There's a small port past the gate which merchants use to come here when they travel by sea." I nodded from time to time, my heart full of expectations. Now that the port was mentioned, I did notice a number of merchant ships docked at one side of the Ozryn. I was just too engrossed on my new home to ask earlier.

Maybe it's not a bad place after all, I thought. It's like home away from home. There are workshops, a marketplace, entertainment; the plaza was bustling with people and small shops. There's a piece of farmland, some greeneries, and it's near a body of water—just like Vlona. But here, it's away from the noise of the city, the capital… especially away from him. 

As my luggage came one after the other, I continued to listen to Jane as she volunteered to help me sort things out before I decided what I wanted to keep in the room so the rest could be placed in a separate room.

Jane said that Count Astor was indirectly banished from the capital, and she came here with him along with some of his trusted knights. She also said that most of the residents of Limont are families of the knights that came with him, and then later of the army that he was able to form and organize. Though I doubted that because when she said that he was banished, she averted my gaze and was being extra careful with folding the fabrics that she repeated it thrice. The rest she was more relaxed, so I thought that that bit was the only information she wanted to hide from me.

I didn't probe further since it's just my first day here and I want to be careful around the people who have served Count Astor all these years he wasn't here. Though the castle looked dreary on the inside, outside was breathtaking. That's not something people could achieve if they hated their master—and to think he's not even home. There has to be some kind of trust and bond and loyalty tying them all behind the Count.

Yes, yes. I have to be careful if I want to live my days here peacefully. But then again, I don't have to worry if ever something wrong happens in this relationship. I have money, I have land back in Vlona, I have my connections. I don't have a title to defend or a rank that I needed to uphold. I just need to be a wife to Count Astor as was stated in his proposa—but wait… If I end up marrying him, wouldn't that make me a Countess by marriage? I'm going to be Countess Astor, which means I'll have a title and a rank to think of aside from being a wife, and possibly a mother!

Oh, my head!

"Lady Isa, are you alright?" I felt Jane's hand on my arm, but I was too occupied with my own thoughts to even notice that she stood up from her seat and called for someone else. By the time I came to, there was already at least three servants around me, plus Cosmo's towering stature looming above me that I couldn't help but look up to him so much to a point that I lost my balance and fell off the stool I was sitting on.

"Oh, dear heavens! Assist Lady Isa to the bed and clear the room. Place the unopened boxes in her study and place the opened ones over there. We'll sort it out later ourselves. And you, get her some refreshments and something light to eat." Everyone was all over the place that it was too late for me to say otherwise.

"I… I'll ride out and look for the commander!" I almost jumped out of bed to catch Cosmo to stop but he was too agile for his size, and Jane was frantically holding me down to check I've developed a fever or something. I can only sigh at the situation.

I'm not ready to meet the Count yet, but maybe after some sleep in this big, soft, and comfy bed I'd be more composed when I wake up—were my last thoughts before I blacked out.