♦Chapter 104: A Gift of Exchange♦
[]Third Person's POV []
The chirping sound of birds and their flapping wings could be heard beyond the window, while the warm rays of sun slipped through the glass.
A new day has risen in the Empire of Asquith, just as it was at the Yreles Dukedom.
The members of the Yreles Family typically woke up early in the morning. The duke was accustomed to this kind of routine, all because of the matters to be tended or his responsibility as the head of Yreles. It was his duty to perform the stabilization of the land that he governed, with a respectable amount of care. That just proved how busy he could be at times when issues that required his assistance, arose.
Although Natasha wasn't as busy as him, she would rise up in the morning mostly at the same time as when her father begins to change into formal clothes and go straight to his workplace. During occasional times when the duke's workload was less, he would consider eating breakfast with his one and only daughter at the dining room instead of consuming it alone at the study, as per usual.
And today was another one of those special cases. So, the moment Natasha stepped into the place where she frequently ate her meals except for the times that she felt ill, she was a bit surprised to see her father's figure, sitting in front of that long, family table. But that reaction didn't last long for it wasn't something that interesting to her perspective.
A set of her portion was already prepared on top of the table, so she gently sat on her usual position before it could even get cold. She didn't have any comments of the fact that her father had already begun eating before she arrived. And she legitimately cared less about exchanging greetings nor conversations with him.
She was sure that the duke had the same thoughts as her. For in their relationship, all that remained was a slight interest in cases of necessities as most of the time, they would treat one another with indifference. The one who started this since her childhood was the duke, himself, and all she's done was follow his example or imitate his ways. Though, it couldn't be denied that they had differences in terms of their personalities no matter how much the lady tried to imitate her sole guardian, since she was of a younger age.
At most, Natasha swore to herself not to complain since her reasons would merely turn out to be trivially illogical. After all, what could be more better than to live a life without scarcity, unlike those who dwell in the dark alleys of town, wearing faces full of greed?
"I would like father to grant me permission to stop by the Imperial Capital, today."
She began to speak in the middle of their meal.
The duke stiffened up as if he heard a strange yet useless question.
"If this is about meeting up with the Crowned Prince, you would still come regardless of my denial, wouldn't you?"
"Your guess is wrong, father. My business purely concerns a purchase for the minimal tea party, tomorrow. The lady from the Shevaria Family and I had plans of exchanging gifts as a part of the fun, you see."
There wasn't anything to be suspected about the young lady's correction, yet the duke still seemed to have had an issue about this from his reluctance before he could thoroughly offer a word of approval.
"......The last time you went there, you got separated from the guards, so make sure to add an escort or two before you go.", he gave his consent with a reeking reluctance, and tucked a spoonful of soup into his mouth.
"I will gladly do as you say."
While Natasha might've responded in such a confident way in front of her father, her internal thoughts differed.
She was more or less in a bind of his advice. After all, adding another escort with her on this trip could make the difficulty higher than when she shook off her guard before.
That's right. The separation that was mentioned in the duke's story was actually something done by the lady, herself, on purpose. What she did was no other than a necessary procedure to sneak into somewhere she mustn't be seen by whoever that resides in the Yreles mansion, full of her father's faithful subjects.
If ever she fails to cover up her actions during the process with a natural look, it would be inevitable that her guards would report it to his grace. She didn't want her cover blown so fast when she just begun to make a move.
But rather than getting overly-anxious only to create a useless result of not doing anything, Natasha pushed aside such utter hindrances as she stepped down the carriage, by the public square of the Imperial Capital.
There was no point on endlessly pondering about instances after all.
"This liveliness sure is as lovable as ever.", the blonde-haired female gushed as she held down her hat from being taken away by the passing wind.
And as if she was trying to add up a few adjustments to clear up the meaning of her sentence, she thought with a smile on the surface;
~Since it makes it easier for me to blend in the crowd.
She deliberately chose a common lady's attire for this shopping just like the last time that she's done this, taking advantage of the fact that there were plenty of blonde-haired women, similarly wandering around that place.
All that's left was the timing, but... It was then that she thought of a better idea, taking into account that it could be true that the same trick wouldn't work twice.
Nonetheless, there was a need to make sure to keep any sort of suspicions from rising among the guards' heads. Which was why, Natasha prioritized to look around for a while, continuing the act of searching for a suitable gift for the lady from the Shevaria Ducal Household.
And after a few moments of going on around with a hesitant, troubled mask on her face, she stopped by the front of a peculiar store, where men would be relatively reluctant to enter. It was then that she started launching her attack to the duo that followed her up until this time wherever she went to, to fulfill their duties.
"Hey, would Lady Melissa like it if I present her a nightgown?", she called out to her escorts, pretending to ask for their opinion.
The two froze out in an instant as soon as they heard her question. It was quite a difficult topic to be discussed, specially to men that didn't particularly know a lot about a youthful lady's preferences. That's why, the answer that came out from their lips was no less than natural.
It could've been a different case if they had known something about it based from their own experiences. But even then, Natasha was already more than aware of that flaw, so she also had a back-up plan prepared in her hands, for safety measures.
Thankfully, there was nothing of the sort that wasted any more of her precious time.
"I-I'm somewhat unsure about that choice, milady.", one of them stuttered as he replied.
"E~h, but you never know if we could have the chance to host our own sleepover, right? We're friends, after all."
"S-still, buying one for the other person is a bit-"
"What's the issue? Just when I thought we'd be wearing in pairs...", the female with amber-colored eyes pouted.
The duo was pressured by Natasha's expression, thinking that they've crossed the line for displeasing the lady that they served with their personal opinions regarding the matter. And what finished the blow for them to burst out, trying to prevent the lady from going inside the store since they wouldn't be able to defend herself from there, were the words that she phrased, that followed.
"Hmph! Regardless of what you guys say, I favor this idea by now, so I'll be doing as I please!!"
"M-milady?!"
"What about us?"
The blonde immediately stopped making her steps midway the attempt of entering the boutique, and glared back at them with a certain amount of disgust mixed on her face.
"Don't tell me the two of you still plan to continue on following me even in a place like this?"
""Please enjoy your shopping, milady!!"", they straightforwardly shouted in sync as they lowered their heads in front of her presence.
The first stage of the plan was initiated successfully. All that's left was for her to sneak out of the store without being seen by her people. And the key items for this idea were orderly prepared within the paper bag that she brought with her inside.
Without further ado, she called out to the saleswoman nearby so she could be provided of a fair guidance to fulfill her original motive there.
"Excuse me, ma'am. Where can I find the fitting room?", she politely asked with an innocent smile.
The heat that the sun was emitting gradually became more crueler to the skin. The two guards that waited for Natasha to appear outside suffered from this, also due to their long-sleeved outfits, mismatched with the season as of today. And while they complained how hot the temperature was with their heads facing toward the broad path, a certain lady with a wider, white hat and a different outfit used this opening to mix among the passing individuals by the side road.
It was the lady Natasha that they've long-anticipated to arrive. And yet they missed this chance for they couldn't recognize her from her current inconspicuous attire.
Not long after the person managed turned right from the corner without attracting the attention of the duo that she wished to avoid, she quickly let out a sigh of relief, relaxing her tense shoulders. And right after she kept up a serious demeanor as she proceeded to walk ahead, the pacing of her journey went as fast as a blink of an eye.
Then, there, she stopped in front of a desolate yet neatly-furnished café, and quickly made her way inside it.
*Cling-cling-cling!*
The bells by the doorway rang meanwhile the lady entered with courtesy, alongside the gaze from the counter that was set on her appearance.
The old man that polished the coffee cup in his grasp smiled at the customer and said;
"Welcome, young miss. The seats are open, so feel free to sit wherever you want."
His kind gesture was repaid back with a gentle smile from the blonde.
"I'll refrain from doing that, mister. Since, I only came to retrieve a forgotten item from when I tested the taste of the new product.", Natasha replied, all according to the conditions that must be met in one's speech.
The old man stared at her with a profound kind of face for a second and led her to an appropriate place for things to be discussed with propriety.
"If it is about that, I stored it well inside guessing that you would come to pick it up on a later date. Please allow me to guide you there.", he replied, following the arrangement of the script.