Ash-colored despair (3)
— Outwardly it may seem a little rough, but the interior is not inferior in magnificence to any castle in the central regions. “You will be quite comfortable here,” the man said soothingly, carefully watching her expression.
Thalia responded with a doubtful look on her face.
“Has this hillbilly ever seen the imperial palace or the castles of the nobility at least once in his life?” - With such thoughts, she cast a sidelong glance at him. It seems that the man caught the mockery in her eyes - his eyebrows knitted in displeasure.
He added clearly, with emphasis on every word:
— Raedgo Castle was built by dwarves back in the era of kingdoms. The pride of our lands, in scale and convenience not inferior to the imperial palace itself...
“I know,” Thalia interrupted him sharply. “Your people, the Kans, built this castle by driving dwarves from the northeast into slavery.
At her caustic remark, the man immediately stopped short, his lips tightly closed.
Talia deliberately said this coldly in order to knock down his arrogance and make it clear that he should not have pointless conversations with her.
“If you spoke on a topic that you weren’t asked about, please step away,” she said.
“Ha... well, well...” muttered the man, shaking his head in shock. - Your Highness, do you know the meaning of the word “sociability”?
- Do you know what “obsessiveness” means? — Thalia’s voice became cold as ice. — Or “tactlessness”?
Realizing that it was pointless to continue, the man pulled the reins and hastily retreated.
Talia followed him with her gaze until he was out of sight, and then she slammed the shutters.
Those who try to be nice for no reason almost always have an ulterior motive. Especially this oriental man - he only smiled with his lips and carefully studied her with his eyes, assessing her from head to toe. Surely he wanted to find out what kind of woman would become the next Duchess of Siekan.
Thalia snorted and pulled the heavy curtains shut, sinking deeper into the seat.
We must not let our guard down for a moment. The Siekan clan definitely doesn't like her.
Former Empress Bernadette and Duke Siekan, being cousins, were close. How can he like it that instead of his relative Ayla, the daughter of the current empress, with whom they are waging a hidden political war, will become the Grand Duchess?
Thalia squeezed her temples, trying to calm the growing pain.
It is quite possible that she will be greeted here colder than she expected.
Didn’t she have to endure humiliation even in the palace where Senevier dominated? Raedgo Castle will be no better.
Talia scratched her nails at her lips, cracked from severe bites.
My throat was sore from thirst. She reached over to the cabinet built into the carriage, pulled out a bottle of water and took a few sips, moistening her dry mouth.
Suddenly, a loud trumpet sound was heard from outside.
Thalia pulled back the curtain and looked out the window. The carriage has already arrived at the majestic fortress. The speed of movement slowed down - a check was in progress. Finally, the heavy gates opened and the carriage drove inside.
Looking around, the girl involuntarily gasped.
Tyrone, that eastern man, didn't lie. Despite the rustic exterior, the interior of the castle was striking in its exquisite beauty. Her gaze slid along the perfectly paved streets, over the towers reaching into the heavenly heights, over the graceful buildings. It seemed that the entire space had been carved by one master.
Structures made of gray stone and black marble were amazingly combined, creating a harmonious, strict and at the same time majestic appearance. Arched bridges stretched between the buildings, like arteries, connecting different parts of the fortress.
Looking at all this with delight, Talia noticed a large fountain in the center of the square - her eyes opened wide. It was much larger and more elegant than those that stood in the imperial palace. Strong streams of pure water flowed from the white marble - a clear sign of an abundant water supply.
The streams that spilled along the edges flowed down specially cut gutters into the drains. Thalia could not take her eyes off the magnificent picture - stone, marble, steel and water merged here into an ideal ensemble, thought out to the smallest detail.
At this moment, the column of horsemen stopped in front of a majestic structure, probably the main castle.
Thalia looked ahead.
In front of her lay a beautiful building, the architecture of which intertwined the elegance of the Roem Empire style and special, oriental sophistication.
At the entrance stood smartly dressed people lined up in a row.
The longboat stopped his horse in front of the entrance, dismounted and shouted something in the eastern dialect. Immediately the people standing on the steps ran down in a crowd and surrounded him.
“Relatives of Barkas?” - Thalia thought curiously, looking at them.
Having driven away the fussy crowd, Barkas immediately went to her carriage. She hastily closed the curtains and was about to pretend to be asleep, lying down on the seat - but the door swung open without warning, and Longboat easily climbed inside.
Thalia looked up at him with a tense face.
As always after leaving the Knights of Roem, he was wearing armor made of black iron, over which was thrown a loose oriental cloak. His large body smelled of dry grass - this smell filled the entire space of the carriage.
- How are you feeling? - he asked, taking off his gloves and placing his palm on her forehead. A light sigh escaped his lips. - Still hot.
- …Nothing. “Not for the first time,” Talia muttered, lowering her gaze with an annoyed expression.
She seemed to be getting used to it - now when he touched her, she no longer flinched as much as before. But awkwardness and internal resistance have not gone away.
With an anxious face, she watched as his long, strong fingers tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.
Taking the cloak off his shoulder, Barkas threw it over her and, as a matter of course, put his hand under her knees to lift her. Thalia immediately jerked, tucking her legs under her and wrapping her arms around them.
- Don't you dare! Do you want to make me a laughing stock in front of all your relatives?
Longboat frowned slightly, bowing his head to his shoulder, as if he didn’t understand.
- Why should a husband’s concern for his wife be something shameful?
Thalia stared at him with a face full of bewilderment.
She knew from the very beginning that he was a man of duty. But even in this forced marriage, imposed by the emperor, he would try to fulfill the “duties of a spouse”... she did not expect this.
“Did Ayla teach you this?” That a husband should take care of his wife? - she said, glaring at him with an angry look.
Hearing the sharp voice, Barkas frowned, and then answered in an even, almost lifeless voice:
“Didn’t I swear in church that I would take care of my wife as I would take care of myself?”
- It's funny. You don't take care of yourself at all.
-...
“And in general, I’m not going to play the role of the “submissive wife” that the priest talked about. So you too can stop pretending to be a devoted husband.
With these words, she stood up, staggering, about to get out of the carriage, but Longboat deftly grabbed her from behind, no matter how much she resisted.
- What are you doing?! - Thalia flushed, looking at him angrily. But before she could say anything else, Longboat spoke first:
- Do I look like a fool who expects “obedience” from you?
- What do you mean...!
- I don't expect anything from you. Do what you want,” he said dispassionately, straightening it in his hands. - I will also do it my way.
With these words, he threw a hood over her head and easily jumped off the carriage.
The blinding sun made her close her eyes. The whitish veil gradually dissipated, and her gaze came across many unfamiliar faces looking at her with a wary and curious expression.
Cheeks flushed with shame. Instead of appearing before them with the dignity of a princess, she hung helplessly in his arms like a baby - it was humiliating to the point of pain.
- Here she is? The one who supplanted the first princess and took the place of her brother's wife?
Thalia reflexively pressed her face against Longboat's shoulder when a clear, neutral voice reached her ears.
The girl looked around carefully. A teenager with thick black hair and large amber-gold eyes was looking at her, his hands behind his head. He looked no more than fifteen - the youthful fluff on his cheeks had not yet faded, and a lively curiosity played on his face.
“Eyes... just like lapis lazuli,” he muttered, and then without ceremony he reached out his hand to pull off her hood.
Numb from such insolence—no one had ever allowed this to happen to her—Talia instinctively pulled her head into her shoulders.
And then Longboat abruptly grabbed the boy’s wrist.
— Lucas.
An terribly cold voice sounded.