Chapter One

Waking up to the sound of my servants greeting me I sit up and look around after stretching. 

"Good Morning Master Alaric."

"Mm"

Pulling myself to the edge of the bed I stand and walk over to my main servant Lisa who was holding a wash basin that I used to clean my face off. Lisa is currently eighteen and has been with me since she was twelve. She was there and stayed until she was eventually promoted to the position she is in now.

"Master your mother would like to see you when you're done cleaning up" She said

"Mm" 

Turning to the other servant girl who is younger than Lisa and who was holding my clothes I hold my arms out while looking at her. She quickly rushed to undress me and wipe me off before dressing me all with the help of Lisa. This girl is Lisa's younger sister Rose who is fourteen and was a new to the position she is currently being trained by her sister how to properly serve me. As well as how to avoid getting dragged into marriage by people and how to stay out of trouble from the other masters, my siblings. Both girls were short at 5'2 for Lisa and 4'10 for Rose. Both with a sweet brown skin tone and glowing brown eyes that are framed by thick eyelashes. They were wearing a long blue skirt that reached to their ankles and a tight corset on top that squeezed their breast in a way so they won't move as they ran around and worked the top was white. Under the corset they had on a white long sleeve top that was thin fabric and easy to move in. This is the servant girl summer uniform due to the hot temperature. 

Coming out of my thoughts I look at the fabric outfit that Lisa and Rose helped dress me in. They first dressed me in my under garments which is white pants and a white top that has no sleeves. Before dressing me in a long blue fabric with complicated designs in swirls that was a black color that reaches my knees. They put on some loose black trousers that was cinched to hold onto my small waist before tying the fabric around my waist with soft black rope. After pulling on some soft black shoes I sat on my bronze backed chair so that my hair could be done quickly. They quickly combed my hair into a small afro before I finally started to the main room of our small villa with the girls behind me. Stepping in I find my mother sitting while sewing a small handkerchief. She is a beautiful thirty-nine year old women with her hair set in long thick braids that reached her mid back with vines braided in. She has a nice deep black skin tone that only makes her glow like a goddess and beautiful brown eyes with long thick eye lashes. She wore a nice green dress that has floral designs and is tight at the top with a soft dip to show her cleavage a bit and slowly billows out around her legs so that when she moves it moves around her legs to show hints of how beautiful she is underneath.

Looking up she smiles at me.

"Alaric! So glad that you're finally awake!"

Walking up to her I give her a quick hug before quickly stepping back as it is improper for a man of age to touch and woman unless she is his concubine or wife. 

"You have finally become of age for marriage for a young man it's time for us to start trying to find you a wife." She said as she placed the handkerchief down and stood up while looking at me.

"Mother I have only just become of age can't it wait for like a month or so?"

Smiling sadly she clasped my hand and looked me in the eyes.

"Your father told me the day of your coming of age banquet that it is time to start looking for a bride since you weren't engaged at fifteen like your brothers."

Frowning I think of how my brother were fifteen when they were engaged with their now wife's. 

"But mother since it's like this, It should be ok for me to wait a bit before finding a wife it's not like you will be able to find anyone good since they will be unfavored girls and they won't have much dowry." 

"Look, I am only looking now since your father is telling me to otherwise he will find you a woman and trust me you wouldn't like that with how he views you." She said sternly while frowning at me. Letting go of my hand she turned away and started walking outside to the garden with her servants following behind her. I rush to follow while felling slightly angry that my father is now forcing me into finding a wife but knowing I can't do anything about it. 

"Well mother if I can't find a girl can you get her to be my wife?" 

"Dear you know it doesn't work like that I will find someone and hope your father will approve." She said without turning around and continuing her stroll. We walked in silence for a while before she turned around and looked at me.

"Dear I know you have been dealing with your sibling bullying for a while now. But I need you to be super careful of everything now that your are of age to marry. This is prime time for them to attack you by getting you into a terrible marriage that could ruin you... The both of us." I frowned as she said that. 

"Ok mother."

..........

"Oh goodness Regina I can't believe you snuck out with us even though you are of age of marriage."

"Come now Crystal I only just turned sixteen two weeks ago I'm still technically fifteen. So I should be fine as long as my father doesn't know and besides he is having a meeting with Archibald of the Pier family he should be full and well distracted until I make it home." I said as I pulled my long gown up and away from the ground so as not to get mud on it since it misted last night. I'm wearing a long royal blue dress with gold frills on it and down the middle it had brown flowers and blue and gold interlocking to connect all of them. On the back of my sleeves that reach my elbows and came out a bit with frills I have two bows one on each side with my hair down and held away from my face with thick headband that looked like it has strips of baby blue and dark blue. I even made sure to put on a bit of rouge to give the inner part of my lips a pink look.

"How where you able to sneak out this time I mean look at how you are dressed." She said indicating my dress.

"It wasn't that hard since the guards were mainly focused on my father and Archibald's men. I don't know if your heard or not but Archibald brought over at least ten men. That's a lot just to come over to our small merchant family." I said as we quickly walked to the location of the small gathering.

"Oh my I can't believe he brought so many people over!" Looking over at Isabelle I nod my head hard. 

"Yes it is quite crazy. I wonder what is happening for him to have to come to your family and with so many guards." Crystal said using one hand to hold up her gown and her other to cover her mouth in shock. As we started to approach a building we slowed down out steps and took out some golden tokens to show at the door.

"Do you think Mr. Archibald is trying to win your hand in marriage before anyone else?" Isabelle asked with a sly smile while softly poking me in the side. Blushing I push her hand away and shake my head.

"Its not possible my mother told me that we are nothing but a poor merchant family and to not have high expectations for my engagement." I said before we all went silent and changed our facial expressions to that akin to ice and showed our tokens to the guards before they let us in. We are currently in the Torin household. The Eldest son is having a small gathering with some of the unfavored children. My name is Regina Winifred I am the eldest and only child of the Winifred family and they are placing all hopes on who I marry to bring them great wealth. The two girl with me are my childhood friends Crystal and Isabelle, both of which are from poor noble family's and aren't favored by their fathers. As we slowly walked down the long corridor with a maid guiding us to the main ballroom for the gathering I took a deep breath softly and held myself up higher this is going to be my first social gathering as an official young woman eligible for marriage. As we stood in front of the door I wondered who would end up being my husband by the time I turn seventeen. 

"Young mam Isabelle, Young mam Crystal, and Lady Regina!"

As we stepped in me in the front as I'm the eldest we were sure to hold our head up high and slowly walk into the ballroom. We all approached Mark Torin and gently nodded our heads at him to greet him.

"That you for inviting us to this gathering." I said as we looked up.

"Oh you're very much welcome. I know that your mother and father wouldn't want you out and about now that you are of age. I wonder if you find a good man here will you be able to convince your father to marry him?" He said rubbing his chin and looking me up and down completely ignoring the two behind me as they weren't of age to talk with for too long. 

"Oh Sir Mark You know that he would never and I'm only here to relax before I have to start stressing too much over my future husband." I said with a smile to hide my irritation at him for already talking about marriage, when I hear enough of that at home from my mother. With that I quickly left the conversation before it got to inappropriate for an unwed girl such as myself. After we reached a sofa to sit at the girls started whispering. 

"Did you hear him? That was quite rude of him to question you and to have the nerve to try and pressure out who you have a crush on, goodness." Crystal said frowning and being sure to cover her face with a fan. 

"Maybe he wants to marry you himself?" Isabelle said looking confused which made both me and Crystal look at her in horror.

"Oh I hope not he is already married and at most I could be a concubine that sounds terrible." Feeling faint from the thought of becoming a concubine. Looking around Crystal pointed out another man.

"Isn't that the kings son from a maid? He is quite handsome what do you think of him?" She asked looking over I see a young man wish black hair and snow white skin, he was quite tall as well in his dashing black and red clothing. 

"Oh my he is quite handsome." I said a blush coming over my face that I quickly covered with a fan of my own to avoid any drama involving me and the royal family.

"You know that he is already engaged to Karla of the hood family." I said giving her a glance. Karla is a fifteen year old girl already engaged as she is from a high ranking noble family she is to be a princess when she turns sixteen and is of age for marriage.

"Ok well you can just seduce him like the concubine from the Pire family did to join the family." Isabelle said indicating the man the young prince is talking to. Looking over I see a black man whos skin seemed to swallow all the light with bright brown eyes that lights up his whole face. He wore a blue outfit that make his skin tone pop more and his hair is in a nice and simple afro.

"You know that he is unfavored because of his mother and besides I already said I don't want to be a concubine." I said giving him one more glance forgetting to cover my face before frowning at Isabelle.

"I didn't mean to try and force you to become a concubine I.." Quickly cutting her off with a frown I stood up.

"Unlike you not all of us are engaged at fifteen to be a wife as an unfavored child. So don't try and make us be under you as a concubine. At the rate you're going and engaged girl out and about your father might just force you into marriage early." I said threatening her to tell her father and force her to get married at fifteen. Gasping she stood up in a rage and quickly walked away while saying.

"You're such a snake Regina hope you end up in a terrible marriage." Everyone in the room looked at her is shock for she wished bad luck on an unwed lady at such a young age. Then turned and looked at me in wonder trying to figure out what we are fighting about this time. 

"Come Crystal we shall head home before it gets late and my father finds I'm gone." I said before we also left.

....................

Looking at the young girls leaving I turn to my friend Prince Henry.

"I wonder what that is about? " I said

"Who knows women always have something to fight about when they are childless." He said with a sigh and shook his head.

"Well isn't that the daughter of the Winifred family who recently became of age?" I asked nodding my head in the direction the left to. 

"Yes it is, oh is it time for you to find a wife now? You have never shown an interest in how women are until now." He said smirking and waving his eyebrows. Laughing I wave him off and nod my head.

"Yes My father told my mother that it is time for me to find a wife now that I am of age. I wanted to wait longer but you know how my father is with me I just think he wants me to have a life where struggle forever." I said shaking my head

"Well if you are considering in asking your parent to marry Lady Regina I recommend not doing so she has been quite wild and hard to deal with since now you know she is quite skilled in sneaking out the house. Imagine you marry her and she is out with another man before you know it you're going to be raising someone else's child." He said being sure to whisper. With a nod we both switch the conversation to the drama of his family before Mark Torin comes and joins the conversation. The Prince and I give each other glances before looking at him.

"Hello Prince Henry." He started with a bow

"Sir Alaric,"

"Did you see the drama with the girls? How did you like my work?" Looking at each other in confusion we turn to Sis Mark.

"How did you start some drama with the lady and mam's?" I asked

"It wasn't that hard I just poked at the fact that she has to marry and made it seem as if I wanted her. By the time they left the topic of marriage was their main focus and since its Lady Regina in line for a husband she was the main focus of the conversation. By the end they must have ben talking about different men and since she got so mad the girl to have left first might have been talking of her becoming a concubine." He said all this with a smile 

"Hmm, that is an interesting thing to do to the girls. Not very nice though seeing as this is the most stressful time for a young man and woman." Prince Henry said as I nodded next to him with a frown.

"Oh come now I just wanted to mess with someone else besides my wife and concubines." He said with and eye roll. The topic continued for a little while before the discussion changed.

................

"Welcome Sir Archibald to my home how can I help you?" Roger said.

"Mr. Roger I have a proposition for you to help you get some money flowing into your pockets and it involves my newly of age brother and your daughter." He said with a sly smile while leaning back and sipping on some tea.