The property was large, there were five large halls on the first floor and the main building had seven floors.
The duke lived on the seventh floor and therefore Ilyin could only go up to the sixth floor.
Lizzie's words were short in relation to the seventh:
“Only Red Delroses can enter.
You can enter when you get married.”
This meant that guests were prohibited from entering and Ilyin wondered why there was only one large mansion.
There were many areas reserved just for the Red Delroses and this meant they had more authority than everyone else, even some of the corridors leading to these areas were implicitly off limits.
“Thank you for guiding me.” Ilyin thanked him and Lizzie bowed.
Walking around the mansion had been hard work and after a few rests, it was already night.
“Things are different here, aren’t they?” Lizzie placed a small glass in front of Ilyin and she nodded.
However, Ilyin knew that the Blue North and the Red Delroses were enemies, she would have to maintain the balance between the two if she wanted to live here in peace.
“I want to meet other families tomorrow.” Ilyin spoke in a modulated voice as he did not have enough information to consolidate his position.
She was surrounded by Blue North maids and it wasn't a coincidence that she hadn't met any other family members except Den.
Blue North was blocking her from the others and if things were like this, Ilyin would be considered one of the blues.
The lands were ruled by Aden Biflten, a Red Delrose and Ilyin asked:
“Would he like someone close to Blue North?”
'No.' she thought to herself.
“That’s…” Lizzie said and then hesitated.
Ilyin watched his answer with a smile:
“Would that be a problem?”
“Since I belong to the Blue North, I would need to ask our elder first.” Lizzie continued, sounding like she was tripping over her tongue.
Ilyin hid his smile upon hearing these words and spoke with a disappointed face:
"Since there are other families on this property, I want to meet someone from one of them.
I'm curious to see who they are, but you don't need to bring someone high up."
“I'll try to set up a meeting,” Lizzie said smiling and Ilyin knew she wouldn't do such a thing.
Ilyin would have to find another way or simply walk around the estate.
“I’ll be waiting.” Ilyin kept her thoughts to herself and turned her gaze to the window with a smile on her face.
***
Night fell, and only the Biflten estate was lit by torches that burned at regular intervals, but only dimly, looking like a faint speck in the dark blizzard.
Ilyin looked away as Lizzie gave him a sideways glance.
“Isso vai aliviar o frio.”
“Thank you,” she said, taking a sip, thinking it was small for a cup of tea and almost spitting it out.
"Liquor?" It was not tea, but a strong liquor.
“This is a wine that the ladies usually drink around here,” explained Lizzie.
It seemed that women in the winterlands could drink and Ilyin drank just enough to wet his lips and felt as if a fire spread through his body instantly.
Ilyin's gaze turned to the window by chance and she saw one of the torches suddenly being extinguished.
“A messenger came, probably to apologize for the ambush,” Lizzie enlightened her.
‘A messenger?’ The silhouette Ilyin saw didn’t look human.
As he approached with soldiers keeping watch, he saw red scales shining in the light of the property.
Ilyin set the cup down with a loud clink and she then saw a man walk out of the property and although she couldn't see his face, she saw that he was a tall man.
She could see from the silhouettes of those around her that they were wearing thick clothes, while she only wore a light coat.
Then, everyone bowed to him and Ilyin could see that the monster turned its gaze specifically to him.
“Who is this?” Ilyin half expected Lizzie's response and the maid told him it was Duke Biflten.
She could see that no one could meet her eyes and she would have done the same if she had been in that situation.
The Duke and the monster were silent for a while.
“Can you communicate with a monster?” asked Ilyin.
Lizzie nodded:
“Of course, they are different from those in the sunny lands.” Ilyin was surprised by Lizzie's direct answer.
The monster bowed and she could see it was an apologetic gesture.
Then, something beyond its red scales flashed and Ilyin's eyes widened as the Duke quickly drew his sword and the monster collapsed in front of him.
Although Ilyin did not know the lands of the Biflten, she knew that killing a messenger meant war.
As if Lizzie knew what she was thinking, she said:
“Please don’t worry, we are safe here.”
Ilyin drank from the cup again and felt the fire flow through her, it seemed like she was the only one surprised by what had happened.
‘It’s different here.’
The peaceful atmosphere of the capital, where words were the only sharp things, was nowhere to be seen.
While people were surprised to be injured in the capital, here people ignored the dead bodies.
That monster would be buried in the snow tomorrow.
Ilyin now realized how cold and strange this place was.