Lysandra's vision blurred the moment she reached the safety of the attic. Surrounded by piles of books and strange artifacts. Tea sets from a forgotten kingdom and books in languages she couldn't read. This was the legacy of her grandfather's travels. This was the safe haven Ambra and her had found.
Nothing in the attic could comfort Lysandra. Her future had been decided for her. She wrapped her arms around herself tightly, shuddering at the thought of her impending marriage. Duke Sepreth's reputation preceded him in the worst possible way. He was said to be a murdering demon.
Death, that was what was waiting for her in the north. Being married to a brute by the emperor. It sent Lysandra's mind in a spiral. She feared him. Lysandra feared the faceless man that she was sure haunted many nightmares. There hadn't been any lessons in running a duchy. Did the Northerners even speak the same language as she did?
Fearing the unknown Lysandra thought deeply.The North, from what she knew, was the complete opposite of the capital. Bare lands and its people living in poverty, whilst the capital was filled with riches.The worst part of all of this was– the cold. The North was said to be covered in snow. Snow– she had only heard of it from stories. Was there really some cold powdery substance that could make someone shiver for days?
Warm tears had been rolling down Lysandra's cheeks for the past several minutes. Pulling up her nose, spotting her own reflection in one of the old dusty mirrors letting out a sobbing laugh.
"Charming," she was an absolute mess.
After the war with the Khursh, in which imperial lands were attacked, the demon himself had defended the borders. He had slaughtered so many that the Imperial army had told stories of his bloodshed far and wide. Mothers told stories of the demon hunting their children if they misbehaved. But there was another side to the story, the demon's army came at a price. Taxes had been raised with each war just to pay the duke to have him defend the borders. The coffers of the lower ranks in society grew lighter. It created unrest and fuelled the hate towards the duke and his duchy.
Having calmed down a little, Lysandra spotted her hairclip hanging half down her hair. The butterfly shaped hair clip, it had been a present gifted to her by her grandfather. It made her smile. It brought her comfort as the clip reminded her of him.
Looking around the attic Lysandra spotted a strange box. That wasn't there before. She hadn't been up here in months. Hadn't dared to after Ambra had left, it felt lonely going up here without her. Still the box standing there piqued her curiosity. Had Ambra been up alone before she had left?
Strange—
Opening the box, Lysandra's eyes widened. Grandfather's diaries. A sense of nostalgia washed over her. She could feel herself mellow out as fond memories resurfaced. She hadn't seen these diaries in years. Grandfather's stories always made her want to explore the world, just as he had done. After his passing, the attic had been locked up and deemed forbidden by her father. Back then it didn't make sense as to why, but over the years she understood her fathers decision. Anything containing information about kingdoms outside of the empire was forbidden. There was barely any information about them in the public libraries. What little information there was, posed the other kingdoms as a threat. Wanting to claim imperial lands. Yet grandfather's stories had always illustrated the opposite.
With her curiosity never ending, Lysandra had become an avid reader of the attic books over the years. It was the reason for her questioning her teacher's beliefs at the age of fourteen. The information in the attic books did not match with any of the information her teachers provided her with. It was conflicting. Ambra and herself had spent many days trying to match the information of the books to anything that was available in the public library. To no avail.
Taking out one of the random diaries, she opened it before flipping through them until it hit her: Grandfather had been to the North. It was written down on the very page Lysandra had landed on. The North, she could read up on it! Anything that could be used as proof of how barbaric they were. Just to stop the emperor from sending her.
"I have finally made it to the North.
Dare I say that travelling here is not for those with the weakest stomach. I have been told not to talk about the journey as the forest that surrounds these lands bear an ancient secret. I didn't want to question duke Sepreth as to what this ancient secret might be but the people here are unlike anything I have come across before.
The next few paragraphs spoke of his journey to the north and the guards that guided him.
Duke Sepreth and I had dinner in town as everyone was preparing for the big celebration.
His one and only daughter is set to marry a young man, a lord from the East. I mean, Khursh. It's been so long since I have been able to refer to the East as Khrush. Once the duke's daughter would be married, she would become duchess after her father's passing.
A duchess, can you imagine it… the empire wouldn't dare to let a woman be in charge.
"A duchess?" Lysandra whispered softly, what would that mean if she'd actually marry the duke.
Duke Sepreth couldn't contain his excitement. He was a different man from how I first met him. I saved him from some con artists, we drank and I've been traveling north from time to time ever since. But this visit is an honor.
"Duke Sepreth?" Lysandra muttered to herself in shock.
Grandfather had been friends with none other than Duke Sepreth!