Chương 11: Chapter 11. Sometimes silence means more than words
There was silence on the first floor of the tavern after the words suddenly spoken by Remesis.
Remesis clutched her tightly in her arms, fearing that the princess would break free and cause bloodshed. But she remained surprisingly still. Finally, the girl slowly pulled away and looked at her.
The princess's amber eyes were wide open in shock. It was the first emotion other than rage or indifference that Remesis had seen from her.
They stared at each other in silence. Asil opened her mouth slightly, as if about to say something. But at that moment, Remesis beat her to it:
— Your Highness, I realize this may be difficult for you, but please… Be a little more restrained, okay?
The girl whispered quietly so that only she and Asil could hear. The princess stared at her, but didn't answer anything. Judging by her usual demeanor, though, it could have been taken as agreement.
Remesis, satisfied with her 'answer', turned to her hostess with a polite smile:
— I'm sorry… After everything that has happened to us, my sister is afraid of strangers. I hope you will be understanding about that.
The woman who was watching this scene in amazement quickly came to her senses.
— Yes, yes, of course… I understand! Poor child… How much has she had to endure?
«As much as you can't imagine…» — Remesis mentally answered her question.
The very birth of Asil, cursed by the death star, was considered a sin in the empire. Remesis suddenly wondered: would this woman still treat them as kindly if she knew of their origins? However, the girl had also intentionally lied to avoid finding out.
After Remesis paid the landlady's rent from her small savings, she led them to the second floor, where the living quarters were located. Of course, any amenities were not to be expected.
But Remesis didn't complain, happy to have a roof over their heads.
Since Remesis didn't want to leave Asil unattended, she immediately chose a double room. Two beds on short legs faced each other, a single old closet sat along the wall, and a thick rug covered the cold floor.
Sunlight streamed in from a large, unpleasant-looking window in the wall. It was the only source of light in the guest room. Overall, the atmosphere in the room was not very cozy.
When the landlady showed them the room, Remesis almost choked on the dust. Still, she smiled and thanked her for her hospitality.
— Thank you,» the girl bowed her head respectfully, «we will stay here for now.
— How long do you want to stay? — she asked immediately.
— Hmm… A week will be enough, I think.
— Oh, good! In that case, you can come to me for anything.
Remesis thanked her once more before the woman left. The door closed with a muffled creak. Finally left alone, the girl collapsed onto her bed, full of happiness that she wouldn't have to sleep on the cold stone tonight.
She spread her arms and legs as a pleasant drowsiness overcame her in the same instant. But Remesis didn't dare rest before she went to the bathroom and cleaned herself up. She could no longer walk around in those blood-stained clothes.
And as Remesis lay on a somewhat rough linen sheet, she finally noticed that Asil still hadn't done anything. She remained standing in the middle of the room like a ghost. The girl was surprised at first, after which she remembered something important.
«Ah, yes, Asil was injured.»
But considering that the princess hadn't given any signs of her sickly state until now, Remesis had even forgotten about it… Seriously. She was stabbed in the stomach, after all. Why is she still standing so firmly on her feet?
Remesis quietly approached her. Asil looked at her silently, expressionless as before. Though… Something about her emotions was strange.
— Your Highness, your bed is here. You may sit down.
«…»
— Are you not feeling well? I'm not sure if there's a doctor here, but I can try…
As Remesis spoke to her, she suddenly noticed that Asil's expression had darkened. Her eyes looked worried as well.
«What's the matter?»
Remesis frowned and was about to ask that when suddenly Asil was the first to break the silence.
— You… You…
«…»
— Pp… Pch… Why… Why… Why did you say that?
The princess spoke in a broken common language with an incomprehensible accent, having a lot of difficulty with words. But the general gist of her speech was clear.
Remesis shuddered involuntarily. It was the first time since their meeting that Asil had spoken such a long sentence in front of her.
Before that, all her answers had been limited to either silence or the usual short «yes, no». Remesis even thought that at that age she had not yet mastered speech enough to sustain a conversation.
So when Asil fully uttered something in front of her for the first time, it stumped her.
— Your Highness, what do you mean? — She asked slowly.
— You… You said chh… that we are sisters… Pp… Why? — After a long silence, her voice became a little hoarse.
«Ah, so that's what she means…»
Remesis was surprised that the princess remembered it and gave it any importance at all.
— It… It was necessary. I had to lie,» she excused herself.
Asil: …?
— So that the guard at the entrance wouldn't ask too many questions. And anyway… It's better if no one knows that you're a princess and I'm the Duke's daughter.
In a place like the North, where the usual laws of the Empire didn't work, it was extremely dangerous to be without guards. Especially for nobles. Since no one had been watching over these lands for a long time, over the past decades, crime and such had increased here to unimaginable proportions.
If a nobleman accidentally finds himself in the North without a proper escort, he will fall victim to the local bandit leaders at the first opportunity. And those, in turn, would decide what to do with him…
Remesis was well aware of the situation. She and Asil had encountered such people in their past lives. At least until the girl had taken over the North. When the Northern lands had a lord for the first time in a long time, Asil had organized a «bloody purge».
The new princess was obsessed with maintaining order in her lands. Everyone had to obey her exclusively. Therefore, these kinds of groups were like cesspool rats to Asil. Most of them were brutally slaughtered and their heads hung on the peaks of Castle Nord for the edification of others.
After that, of course, few others dared to do something like that… Asil managed to cleanse the North of all sorts of criminals in just a year. Ironically, she was the biggest criminal in her lands.
However, that didn't matter now. After all, all these reforms were still a long way off.
If someone found out about their noble origins, they would definitely use it to rob them or use it as blackmail for their families. However, since they were cursed children abandoned by their families, no one would bargain for them. In that case, either death or a torturous life as slaves in the North awaited them.
Remesis, of course, wanted to avoid both of those options.
Therefore, until they arrived in the capital and Asil could officially claim his powers, it would be safer for them to pretend to be ordinary children.
Remesis sighed.
Explaining all of this to a child was too difficult. Especially to Asil, who struggled to speak the common tongue and woe betide her thoughts. Remesis had reduced her story down to this: that there were bad people in the North who must not learn of their existence.
Asil opened and closed her mouth. Her gaze became thoughtful.
After a while, she looked at her warily:
— Why… Why are you dd… doing this?
— What?
— You're dd… with me… Why?
This time Asil said it all in one breath. It seemed as if she had wanted to ask it for a long time, but had only decided to ask it now. Remesis blinked in surprise.
— Well, because you're my wife… Aren't you?
— Wife…? — The princess's lips moved.
Remesis felt some awkwardness because she had to clarify the status of their relationship. She had originally intended to put this conversation off until later, when Asil had more confidence in her. But since she was the first to bring it up…
The girl sighed and looked at her carefully.
— That's right,» she nodded her head slowly, «we are married. At least for the next few years.
Asil focused all her attention on Remesis as she didn't understand what she was talking about.
— It's not a real marriage, so you don't have to worry. Even if we don't like each other, it doesn't matter.
The expression on the princess's face seemed puzzled. «She hasn't heard of the existence of a fake marriage before?»
— Uh… It's a mutually beneficial arrangement,» the girl tried to explain, «You know, when people don't have real feelings and are more like business partners.
«…»
The princess was silent for a while, pondering her words.
Her amber eyes were like shards of sunlight, from which a glow emanated. It intensified as Remesis got closer to her.
The girl held her breath as well, waiting for her answer.
Finally, Asil Nara Asheloth slowly opened her mouth.
— So… So… It's not nn… for real? — she muttered.
Remesis pressed her lips together and nodded.
Instead of deceiving her or delaying this conversation, Remesis decided to tell her everything honestly. Because she really didn't want any misunderstandings to arise.
Princess Asil had never liked Remesis. The feelings she had for her were hard to describe in one word. As far as hatred, resentment, or fear. But it certainly wasn't love. Nevertheless, as paradoxical as it may sound, it was the princess that she needed in order to survive.
Besides, having lived with her for twelve years, the girl knew well what kind of person the monstrous princess really was.
Asil could neither love nor appreciate human life. A devil in human form, devoid of emotions and sincere feelings. The girl was never interested in anything but her own ambitions and interests. So, aware of this, Remesis had no intention of having anything more than a business relationship with her from the start.
«It would be convenient for both of us, wouldn't it?»
The princess kept her silent gaze on her. Obviously, some gears were turning in her head at this moment.
Even though Asil was acting like a beast, and due to her long years of living in confinement, she knew almost nothing about this world, she was still well aware of her situation. In this world, in this empire, she was a nobody.
And suddenly, this girl they had been married to without asking, talking to her about some sort of 'contract'… It sounded pointless. No, it was insane.
Asil had absolutely no idea that Remesis had essentially bet everything on her.
The lowly princess, left for dead in the north, would be the one in the future — the one the ruler of this country couldn't even come close to. The stakes were obviously high.
And Remesis felt that all her suffering and hardship was worth it.
The reason she'd given up a quiet life in the capital city under the wing of the Institute. The reason why she had abandoned everything and traveled into the abyss of danger in the northern lands was this.
This desire was born in her in the last moments of her past life. When she realized that everything she had done before was meaningless.
And in this land, among millions of people, only Asil Nara Asheloth could fulfill her wish.
The woman who would become her instrument of vengeance, the woman who would be labeled the «Northern Devil,» would drown this empire in blood. It is impossible to create a new order without destroying the old one. Asil will be her main piece in this chess game.
These thoughts made the cold heart of the Duke's daughter beat faster.
She was no longer that naive girl who spent her whole life trying to atone for mistakes she didn't even make. She no longer considered her birth a sin.
Therefore, Remesis didn't hesitate at all when she said those words. Her voice was soft and melted like honey.
— What do you think, Your Highness?
Sometimes silence meant more than words. Remesis waited for the princess to ask her something, but she remained silent. Finally, Asil slowly looked her straight in the eye.
As always, Remesis couldn't guess what she was thinking at that moment. And yet…
— I count on your cooperation, Your Highness.
She took a single step and held out her hand. Asil, out of habit, should have recoiled, but didn't. She stared silently at Remesis, who was expecting a handshake.
The girl was calm, and waited for the princess to make up her mind. Still, any bodily contact was stressful for her.
«…»
Finally, the princess' cold hand made contact with her warm hand. Remesis felt a tingling sensation and a strange shiver. Despite that, her face brightened into a smile.
— I promise, once you regain your throne and my family is destroyed, we will divorce.
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