Kapitel 2: Flower That Could Not Bloom (Part 2)
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Once again, Lucia stood in front of those vast gates of the palace. Clenching her fists, she muttered under her breath, "I will find out what happened to you Dahlia, no matter the cost." And moved forward with determination.
Inside the castle courtyard everyone was busy laughing, chatting and without a care roaming. They waited for the inner gates to be opened and begin the festival of Saria.
As soon as the gates opened, everyone excitedly went inside with great haste. Alongside the group of people, Lucia also went in. The main hall was laced with every kind of jewel and a huge chandelier hung above us. The hallways on both sides were so vast and long it took a while to adapt to the view. In the center, were the great stairs that lead to the second floor.
"Wow, this is really amazing..." Lucia silently whispered to herself.
The floors were shining and were so clear that we could see our reflections. Each ornament that was placed in the hallways seemed precious and pricey. Marvelous and stunning designs on the walls made it look even more fascinating.
Taking advantage of every opportunity she could, Lucia asked all the maids she came across with about what happened but none of them were even looked up when it was mentioned. They gave her a cold shoulder, ignored completely or shrugged off her question.
A few that did respond, said random things they knew about Dahlia and went away in a panicked state avoiding any further discussion.
After getting such dry response, she gave up and went outside of the hall, the moonlight glistened upon her. It was already dark outside and everyone else started to leave. She looked exhausted but then she picked up a strong and sweet fragrance of flowers.
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The Garden
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She glanced over her shoulder and saw the beautiful garden, flowers slowly swaying in night air and glittering under the moonlight. A thought crossed her mind to make one last visit inside the garden area. The one she always wanted to visit once in her life and now she had her chance.
But when she entered the garden, a shadowy figure loomed behind her without any notice.
She randomly touched the flowers and smelled them occasionally. A light breeze making the atmosphere soothing.
She came across the rose beds. There were all kinds and colors of roses. She bent over and looked closely at them.
"I don't know what happened to you Dahlia... But I know that you were a cheerful person who loved her life." she whispered to the flower, gently caressing it.
Tears welled up from deep inside and in her eyes a solemn tear fell down her cheek. Her body looked calm compared to how tangled her mind was. Quickly wiping it away with her sleeve, she straightened herself up but to her surprise there was a person standing in-front of her.
Her eyes widened in surprise and she stumbled backwards on her feet. Startled she asked quickly, "Who are you?"
There was a man with a slumped posture and in dark, rugged clothes. After a short pause he came a little closer. She didn't let down her guard even though he looked extremely frail and old.
"I was following you, you... were asking about that girl.... t-that that that girl...from the maids." He spoke out loud but was struggling with words.
"You know Dahlia? If you know anything please tell me what happened?" she frantically took steps towards him. But he backed away in distress. The look in his eyes was unbearably sad and lonely.
"Listen I won't harm you so tell me if you know anything, all right?" Lucia tried to calm him down by holding out her hand and telling him to sit down on the moist grass. Gently placing her hand on his right shoulder she said, "I'm listening."
He somehow managed to calm down a bit and her soft touch reassured him that she wasn't going to hurt or force him to spit out what he saw.
'He is a witness' Lucia thought ‘but how did he come all the way here?’ Shaking off these thoughts she listened to him intently.
"T-those girls...girls were working h-here. They threatened them... They were here..." he stuttered a lot but tried telling her something. Lucia frowned at his statement.
Suddenly he grabbed her shoulders and uttered some suspicious words with a trembling voice,
"Roses... cut...k-kill... Not to trust them..." she tried to listen to him closely but was interrupted by someone.
"Well what a great coincidence." spoke a loud voice breaking the unknown tension around them. Lucia looked up as she could sense the stranger tighten up in that person's presence.
The stranger suddenly hid behind her which was a little weird.
"So, we meet again mister caretaker. After we kicked you out for what you did. What are you doing here again?" the voice demanded an answer.
'Caretaker? Kicked out? Who is he anyway?' she pondered but stared sharply at the kid in front of her.
When he noticed Lucia he sighed,
"How rude of me not to introduce myself in-front of a lady." he smiled and said, "I am Stanford.S.Louis, the 3rd prince of this kingdom and you are?" He tilted his head slightly.
His silver hair glimmered under the moonlight giving him an angelic look but somehow his smile gave off a strange feeling that disturbed her thoughts.
Keeping her calm, she stood up and answered him, "Lucia Dawn, from Han village. I apologize for taking so long. I got lost and this kind man was helping me with the directions." she lied.
"No, I apologize for not having a proper guide to this garden right now." he looked at the stranger, "You see, he was our garden caretaker but now he has... A condition. And cannot perform his duty any further." he explained.
"I guess he has some feelings attached to this place and came back wandering even when we told him not to come back anymore."
Something about his smile gave her chills and his actions did not seem to match his words. It was like he felt great hostility towards that stranger.
"If only we could find some more people who knows about the garden and all that." he said rather carelessly.
Then one thing came to her mind.
Something happened here or might it still be going on... Something dreadful.
And she can confirm it by how the stranger was desperately grasping her shoulders while not even looking at someone who he formerly used to work for.
Just what in the world happened that made him like that. And what’s with the maids committing suicide one by one.
"I volunteer." she stood up and bowed slightly. "I am the Han village herbalist and known for taking great care of flowers. I will be at your service if you like."
“Han village...?” he seemed to have some doubt. But let it slide and advised her to follow him.
She shut her eyes tight knowing she is getting herself involved in the matter, the complete opposite of what she promised her mother.
'I'm sorry mother but I must do it, for my friend and everyone else's sake.'
Geschenke
-- Geschenk
erhalten Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein