(Hi my love šš»š you guys really need to pay attention to this chapter and the next one to understand a lot of things and the upcoming events š¤š¤ )
"Mother, may we come in?"
Eleanor's mother gently knocked on the door, waiting a few moments, but received no reply.
She exchanged an awkward glance with Irene, then offered a small smile and said, "It seems she didn't hear me... I'll go in."
Cautiously, she pushed the door open. Irene followed her into a room plunged in shadow, where only a sliver of light from the single window managed to break through. The air was thick with a blend of old paper, ink, and wood.
Books were everywhere; lined up on shelves, stacked in messy piles across the floor, as if the room's owner had never found enough time to put them back in their places.
Yet, Irene wasn't looking at any of that.
Her eyes were fixed straight ahead. They were locked onto the woman seated behind the desk.
At last...
Irene could scarcely believe she was truly standing before her.
Emilia de Roville.
The woman she had always longed to meetāthough she never expected their first encounter to take place in a room like this, surrounded by mountains of books.
Emilia possessed an undeniable presence. Thin spectacles rested on the bridge of her nose, and she was reading a book with such intense focus that she didn't raise her head the moment they entered.
Eleanor's mother stepped forward, her voice strained as she tried to sound natural: "Mother, she is here... Princess Irene, just as I told you."
Emilia finally raised her eyes, looking first at her daughter-in-law before her gaze settled on Irene, appraising her features as if inspecting her.
Eleanor's mother's smile faltered slightly, and she cast a visibly embarrassed look at the princess, while Irene continued to stare at the woman before her for a few quiet seconds.
Suddenly, Emilia partially closed her book, turned to her daughter-in-law, and complained in a reproachful tone, "I told you I was busy! You truly never change!"
Irene's eyes widened slightly.
Anyone else in her positionāholding the same royal standingāwould have felt insulted by the way Emilia greeted them. But Irene felt no such thing.
On the contrary, she found herself admiring her.
As someone who had read her books extensively and understood Emilia's candid writing style, she was now realizing that such bluntness wasn't merely a literary device adopted when holding a pen; it was an authentic part of her character.
Emilia did not view expressing her stance as insolence or disrespect, nor was she willing to alter her words simply because the person standing before her belonged to the royal family.
She spoke her mind clearly, without fearing the consequences.
She was just like her writings...
At that moment, Eleanor's mother tried to intervene, embarrassment clear on her face. "Mother... what are you doing? Princess Irene is a member of the royal family, not just anyone..."
Before Eleanor's mother could say more, Irene gently took her hand, offering a reassuring smile.
Then, she took a small step forward.
And abruptly, she spoke in the Echo language:
"Rakediet misa, Emilia."
Eleanor's mother's eyes widened. She understood what the princess had said.
"Hello, Lady Emilia."
She hadn't spoken in the usual Imperial tongue, but in the language of the Echo!
At that exact moment, Emilia froze completely.
Her expression stiffened, and her eyes locked onto Irene, as if the few words she had heard had violently pulled her out of her own world and dragged her back into a past she had never expected anyone to unearth.
Irene did not flinch under the probing gaze that met her. Instead, she offered a slight bow, speaking in a calm and respectful voice:
"I have wanted to meet you for a very long time, Lady Emilia. You cannot imagine how happy I am to finally be able to see you. I heard from your granddaughter that you are a busy woman, but I have certain questions that no one else in this kingdom can answer except you, and therefore I truly appreciate that you have granted me a small fraction of your time."
Silence stretched for a moment.
Irene's greeting in the Echo language was like a roll of the diceācast without knowing whether it would bring her luck or turn everything against her.
She didn't know how Emilia would receive that gesture, nor whether she would see it as an attempt to cozy up to her or a deliberate provocation.
Even so, Irene was not about to back down from the risk, just as she never had.
Emilia slowly closed her book, took off her spectacles, and placed them on top of the cover.
She studied Irene for a few seconds longer, as if trying to decide whether the young woman standing before her was worth the attention she was beginning to stir.
Finally, she gestured toward the chair opposite her desk.
"Very well then, sit down, Princess."
That was the first sentence she had spoken to Irene since they had entered.
Then, she raised her eyes toward her daughter-in-law and added in an unarguable tone: "Leave us."
Eleanor's mother looked at her mother-in-law in astonishment. Emilia had seemed far more serious in her tone, as if she were about to quietly tackle some grave dilemma...
Yet, she didn't argue. She merely cast a quick glance at Irene, bowed respectfully to the princess, and left the room.
She couldn't conceal her shock at what she had just heard.... The princess had spoken in a language known only to a few.
That alone was enough to spark her curiosity, and suspicions began to creep into her mind as to whether Irene's action was spontaneous or deliberate.
No sooner had she stepped out of the room than she pressed herself against the door, trying to eavesdrop on whatever might transpire inside.
Suddenly, a voice sounded behind her.
"Mother?"
Eleanor's mother gasped, spinning around quickly to find her daughter standing right behind her.
She placed a hand over her chest, glared at Eleanor reproachfully, and whispered, "Eleanor! Didn't I tell you to wait downstairs? Why are you here?"
Eleanor stepped closer, lowering her voice in turn. "And how do you expect me to stay downstairs motionless? I was afraid Grandmother would chase the princess away just like she does with all her guests!"
She then cast an eager look at the door and asked, "Did Grandmother agree to meet her?"
Her mother placed a finger to her lips, gesturing for silence.
"Shh!" Then she nodded in confirmation.
Eleanor's eyes widened, and without waiting another second, she rushed over to the door and pressed her ear against it as well.
Inside, a completely different conversation was about to unfold.
Emilia leaned back in her chair, sighing as she looked at Irene sitting before her.
"Now... why did you use that particular language to address me?"
Irene raised her eyes to her with keen interest, while Emilia placed her hands over the desk and asked directly:
"Where did you learn those words? No... wait."
She narrowed her eyes slightly, continuing in a sharper tone: "Since you chose to speak it, you must have a purpose behind it. Or am I wrong?"
Irene paused for a brief moment, then answered quietly: "Yes, that is correct."
She did not try to evade the question, nor did she pretend that her use of the Echo language was mere coincidence.
Emilia looked slightly surprised by her candor, but she quickly straightened up in her seat and said sharply:
"What does a princess of the House of Askard want with an old woman like me? Did you come here to threaten me as well?"
Threaten? Irene thought to herself.
"Not precisely."
Silence lingered for a moment.
Then Emilia asked coldly, "Then what do you want?"
Irene answered without hesitation: "At first, I wanted to gauge your reaction. You understood what I said from the very first moment, didn't you?"
Emilia didn't answer, so Irene continued:
"In truth, I spent nearly a month in the South. During my time there, I found something I had been searching for for many yearsāsomething that was very well hidden there, and you likely already know what it is."
She paused for a second, then added: "The Echo people."
Emilia's expression didn't change, but her fingers twitched slightly over the surface of the desk.
Irene pressed on: "I managed to find them thanks to your books, alongside a few other texts I was able to access."
Emilia raised her head slightly and asked, "Then why did you come here to hear answers about something you've already found?"
Irene let out a soft sigh, touched with a hint of irony regarding her strange luck.
"Actually, my being in the South was purely by chance, and I wanted to meet you before heading there, but..."
She smiled briefly before regaining her seriousness and continuing:
"But fortune favored me, and I managed to understand many things before I could even meet you. Then I found those inhabitants you always referenced in your books, and I even spoke with one of them. I learned roughly why you devoted your life to raising awareness about those people."
She fixed her eyes on Emilia and added, "You know precisely what I mean, don't you, my lady?"
Emilia lowered her head slightly.
For the first time since the conversation began, she looked as though Irene's words were weighing heavily upon her.
After moments of silence, she asked in a faint voice: "What do you want from me now?"
Irene answered earnestly: "I told you before, I only need answers. There are missing pieces to the puzzle I am trying to solve. First, I want to know: Are you also one of the Echo people? Or rather, one of the 'Outcast' families?"
Emilia let out a short, dry laugh and said, "I see... So you intentionally approached my granddaughter for this purpose."
She fell silent for a moment before saying, "Why go to the trouble of spending years searching for something so complex? What does it matter to a princess like you to know these things? If you came here out of curiosity, know that curiosity can sometimes kill a person."
Then her tone shifted abruptly, taking on a distinct sharpness.
"Or, are you tricking me and came here to ask me to work for a party or a faction? Get out of this room before I am forced to throw you out myself!"
Irene didn't fully understand what Emilia was driving at with her words, nor why she assumed she had come to exploit her to work for a "party" or a "faction."
Even so, she maintained her composure, refusing to let the accusation provoke her.
"Please, do not misunderstand me, my lady."
She paused briefly before continuing, "There are missing pieces to a puzzle I am trying to solve, and I need to know the complete truth. Believe me, I only came here because I need answers."
Irene leaned forward slightly, looking directly into Emilia's eyes. "Therefore, please... give me a chance, and be cooperative with me."
"Enough!"
Emilia's voice echoed through the room, cutting Irene off mid-sentence.
The old woman stood up from her seat, looking at the princess with undisguised anger.
"I don't care who you are, nor what you want! All I care about now is living the remaining days of my life in peace with my family. I refuse to drag myself into anything related to these matters ever again!"
She pointed a hand toward the door. "So, leave before you force me to throw you out!"
To be continued....