Small note

As I sat at the dining table, I couldn't help but notice the unease in my father's voice. "What is it, Father?" I asked, my stomach sinking with each passing second.

My father hesitated for a moment, and then spoke in a distant tone. "Ah, never mind. You'll find out tomorrow," he said as he finished his coffee and got up from his seat. He then walked out of the room leaving me with a deafening silence.

I heard a soft thud as the door closed behind him, and I was left feeling lost and confused. Why couldn't he just tell me now? I thought to myself, sighing.

Desperate for answers, I turned my head to look at my mother, who was still seated, enjoying her aromatic cup of tea. As I pondered asking her, she looked at me and smiled. "No, I won't tell you," she said, anticipating my question.

Feeling stuck and frustrated, I decided to give up on finding out what was going on. Slowly, I got up from my seat and started making my way out of the dining room.

Feeling deflated, I dragged my feet towards my room. Upon entering, I quickly made my way towards my bed and collapsed onto it. I noticed the book I had left on my bed earlier and picked it up, holding it close to my chest.

The words on the pages started to blur as my mind raced, trying to guess what my father was hiding. But no matter how hard I tried, my thoughts would only circle back to the same question "What was my father planning to tell me tomorrow?"

With my attention wavering, I allowed myself to get lost in the pages. The storyline entranced me, disconnecting me from the world outside of my book.

Hours passed by, as I flipped through the pages of the book, the story started to unfold before my eyes. The plot twists and character arcs kept me on the edge of my seat, and before I knew it, I had reached the last page.

"Aah, that's a shame," I grumbled, my excitement building with every turn of the page. "Why does it have to be at the most interesting part of the story?"

With a heavy heart, I closed the book and lay on my back, staring at the ceiling for a few minutes. I couldn't help but wonder if I should make my way towards the library to search for the continuation of the book.

As I lay there, lost in thought, I could feel the room growing colder around me. Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine as I heard a faint whisper in my ear.

"Go to the library," the voice whispered.

Jumping up in surprise, I searched the room but found no one there. I was alone with my thoughts, yet I felt a newfound sense of determination. I had to find the continuation of the book!

As I rushed out of my room and made my way towards the library, I passed by a lot of castle staff who greeted me cheerfully. Despite my urgency, their greetings and kind words put a smile on my face.

Once I reached the library, I began frantically searching through the shelves for the next book in the series. As I scanned the spines of the books, my heart sank as I could not find what I was looking for.

Just as I was about to give up hope, my eyes landed on the book I had been searching for. Relief filled my chest as I quickly reached for it and pulled it off the shelf.

As I was about to leave the library and head back to my room, I glanced back at the shelf where I had found the book. My gaze lingered on the empty space left behind.

Suddenly, my curiosity got the best of me and I made my way back over to the shelf. As I looked closer, I noticed something strange. There was a small note tucked in the space where the book I had taken had been.

I was perplexed by what I saw on the empty shelf. I wondered why there was a small note tucked away there. As I picked up the note, my heart started racing, and my mind was filled with questions.

Curiosity getting the best of me, I unfolded the note and read its contents. The note contained a cryptic message, which piqued my curiosity even further. It seemed like a clue to uncovering something secret.

My excitement now mounting, I made up my mind to follow the trail of clues and see where it would lead me. I quickly collected the book I had been searching for and headed back to my room to ponder on the clues and solve the mystery. 

As I sat in my room, I studied the note in detail, and the more I read it, the more I felt like I was onto something. It was like a puzzle, and I was determined to put all the pieces together.

As I gazed at the cryptic message on the small note, my mind drew a blank, and I couldn't make sense of it. Frustration consumed me as I realized I had hit a dead end, and I had no leads on what it could mean.

Without giving up, I decided to go back to the library and retrace my steps, hoping to find some clues that I had missed before. I scoured the shelves, peeking between books, scrutinizing every nook and corner. Hours passed, and my search yielded nothing.

Feeling dejected after a long day of searching to no avail, I dragged myself out of the library and trudged all the way back to my room. As soon as I got in, I threw myself onto the bed, feeling exhausted and frazzled.

My mind was still racing with the possibilities of what the cryptic message could mean, and my desire to solve the mystery only grew stronger with each passing moment.

But I knew I needed to take a break. I closed my eyes, trying to silence my thoughts and let my mind rest for a while.

After some time had passed, I got up from the bed and decided to spend the rest of the night catching up on some much-needed sleep.

The next morning, I woke up feeling refreshed and renewed. I had a new sense of determination to solve the mystery.

Without wasting any time, I headed back to the library, determined to pick up where I had left off the previous day.

As the hours passed by, my search for any leads on the cryptic message proved to be fruitless. I felt my energy draining, and my mind couldn't focus on the task at hand. Eventually, I conceded defeat and made my way back to my room, feeling dejected and deflated.

Once I got to my room, I flopped on top of my bed, feeling defeated and exhausted. The thought of giving up on the search started to creep through my mind, and I found myself regretting all the time I had spent in the library.

"Why bother wasting so much time chasing this dead-end?" I thought to myself. "I could've spent that time doing something more productive or enjoyable."

As I lay there, wallowing in my frustration, a faint glimmer of hope flickered in my mind- "what if I hadn't tried everything yet? What if I missed out on some vital clues?"

Suddenly, it occurred to me that if the key clue wasn't in the library, where else could it be? 

I ruminated on that thought for a while before an idea dawned on me. "Maybe the key to the riddle wasn't in the library at all, but in the book that I had searched yesterday."

I glanced towards the study desk, and my eyes fell upon a book lying there. Just as I was about to reach out and grab it, a sharp knock resounded through the room, jarring me from my thoughts.

As I opened the door, I found myself face to face with a familiar young maid. She had called upon me yesterday at the request of my parents.

"Young master, your father has requested your presence immediately at the castle entrance gate." said the young maid.

I already expected this, so I calmly gathered my belongings and followed her out of the room. As we made our way down the long, winding corridors of the castle, my mind raced with thoughts about what could be so important that my father would summon me at this moment.

As we approached the gate, I noticed my father standing there with a stern expression on his face. My mother, just behind him, gave me a warm smile which eased my nerves. I greeted them both with a respectful bow before addressing my father, "Father, may I ask what is the matter that brings you here?" 

"It's good that you are here," he replied with a hint of relief. "The person we are waiting for should be arriving at any moment."

As he spoke those words, I heard the sound of hooves and wheels approaching the entrance. I turned my head and saw a carriage, with a familiar looking crest attached to it, slowly making its way inside the castle.

As the carriage came to a stop, I noticed the crest on the flag, and to my surprise, it was my mother's family's crest. I felt a knot form in my stomach as I wondered what could have brought them to the castle unannounced.

The door of the carriage was opened by rushing servants, as a woman could be seen stepped out of it - a woman who was very familiar.

Upon seeing the woman, my mind began to race and sweat profusely started to appear. I couldn't believe it. Now I knew why I had felt knot form in my stomach was coming from.

Why did my aunt have to be here!