"Thalia?" Noa exclaimed, not expecting her arrival.
Still, he was delighted to see her, but after catching a trace of emotion in her voice, he narrowed his eyes and questioned,
"What happened? Where have you been?"
The maid tilted her head. She looked around the carriage for a moment, studying the surroundings.
It felt like she was checking if someone was watching or listening to them.
Only after seeing that there was no one around them did she sigh and lock her eyes with Noa.
"I-I don't know how to start," Thalia muttered, fidgeting in place.
Then she entered the carriage and closed the door.
"I am not sure if you would believe me or not, but I have been seeing things," the maid continued. "They are like visions, and every time they appear in my dreams, they always come true… always."
Thalia seemed nervous.
She had found something she couldn't solve by herself.
And as she spoke, Luna appeared beside her as well, her tiny frame and fluffy fur shifting Noa's attention.
"What vision? Can you elaborate? And don't worry, I believe in you," he asked, a theory brewing in his head.
"Really?" Thalia asked in surprise.
Yes, she wanted to help her master, but she wasn't sure that Noa would listen to her so willingly.
To assure her even further, he simply nodded and gestured for her to continue.
Thalia gulped.
She got hold of her emotions and began,
"Do you remember the day you missed the morning job for the first time and asked me to accompany you?"
Noa lowered his brows.
Of course, he knew the day she was talking about.
It was the moment when he had just transmigrated into this world.
So he nodded again, agreeing.
"That morning, I had a dream that you would do that. I even had a feeling you would end up practicing with Haric and Darrik," she paused, drawing a breath before continuing.
"The same thing happened every other night. I would dream about things you would do. And no matter how impossible they seemed, you would always do that."
Thalia wanted to say more.
She hadn't even spoken of the most important dream—the final vision she had seen this night, the most important and terrifying one yet.
But Noa beat her to it.
"Did you see the barony burning?" he asked, his voice controlled. "You and my parents died while I watched, powerless to do anything."
The maid's eyes widened.
"H-How?!" she asked in surprise. "Do you have the same dreams, Young Master?"
Noa shook his head, but his words said the opposite.
"Something like that. But I didn't know when it was going to happen, and it is the only vision I had."
He lied through his teeth, hiding the fact that he might get executed in the future.
Thalia didn't know what to do for a heartbeat.
Still, she didn't lose her cool completely and relocked her eyes with Noa, her voice weighted with conviction.
"I know how to avoid that fate. I am confident we can save both the barony and your parents. We just need to escape the city, and the attack won't happen."
Noa didn't speak.
He silently watched the girl, grinning to himself.
Then he sighed and asked, "You have a feeling that they will be safe if I am gone, right?"
Thalia nodded.
She was also confused about where Noa was trying to take this conversation.
"Why didn't you assume I caused your and their deaths? What if, in your vision, I wasn't moving because I wanted to see you burn?"
It was a sound question.
Something the maid had to consider, because even from Noa's perspective, he seemed like a culprit.
But Thalia's next reaction startled him.
She remained unaffected by his words, as if they were a load of bullshit.
All she did was glare at Noa with disappointment, her eyes piercing him for daring to entertain such an idea.
"No, of course not," she muttered finally. "I know Young Master would never do that."
Even if Noa wanted to argue, her face showed confidence and full trust in him, forcing him to swallow the words.
Still, he was surprised by her stance.
Not once in his past life had someone trusted him that much.
It was so easy to put the blame on him, perhaps even doubt him, and assume that he made a contract with demonic beasts.
But no.
His maid didn't do that.
Not only was she concerned for his well-being, but she also thought about how to protect the house.
"I-I feel with my entire being that we need to do this," she continued, her voice going lower. "Explaining why or how I know is hard, but please, we have to do it."
If it were someone else—
Or maybe even Noa before the awakening ceremony, who had no ancient knowledge—he might have doubted her claims and not even considered the idea of leaving his parents.
However, the flood of information that came from the Graveworm told him something.
Something about Thalia, but mostly about the little creature she had a bond with.
Albinoxes were irregular creatures.
Yes, they were considered to be uncommon beasts, but they still had one unusual property that separated them from others.
When the contractor and Albinoxe reached a certain bonding level, they gained a tiny chance to awaken hidden, additional abilities.
The chance was so slim that almost no one in this world knew about it.
It might happen once in ten generations, and any knowledge of it was either strictly protected or completely lost.
Yet the girl before him had such a rare condition.
Her bond with Luna was so deep that it allowed both of them to obtain a new talent.
A talent that gave her a prophetic disposition, and controlled by her emotions, it allowed Thalia to see glimpses of the future.
The fact that she had been seeing Noa meant only one thing.
He was dear to her, and there was no way she would ever betray him.
The moment Noa realized this, he smirked.
It was his first time when a trust began to grow in his heart. And as he was still savoring these unfamiliar emotions, the carriage opened without a knock, revealing Kaelor and Elara standing outside.