Chapter 84
The arrival of the maids occurred in the early hours of the morning. When Adi pulled open the door, she was clad in nothing but a thin muslin gown. The grim gravity on the faces of the two women confused her, though she stepped back to permit their entry.
They carried baskets packed with measuring tapes and a wide assortment of textiles. Before she could utter a single inquiry, one of the maids seized her, forcing her upright with her arms raised. The woman gave a sharp command to inhale.
“Shouldn’t a garment like this be measured with movement and comfort in mind?” Adi asked.
The maids remained silent.
She failed to see why she needed to hold her breath for a suit of armor and cloth. A looser fit seemed far more practical; if the tailoring was too restrictive, it would surely hinder her during a fight. Without offering a real justification, the women simply informed her they would take the measurements twice.
Adi complied, lifting her limbs and drawing air into her lungs whenever prompted. The process dragged on far longer than she anticipated, sparking a worry that she might miss her scheduled training. Once the tape was put away, the maids began the tedious process of draping various swatches of colored fabric against her skin.
“Can you tell me the reason for all these specifics?” Adi pressed.
The two women traded a quick look, sharing a silent communication before one finally spoke. She explained that the primary goal was the creation of her Knight’s uniform.
“I see,” Adi replied.
Doubt lingered in her mind despite the answer. If the task was simply making a uniform, why use such weighted phrasing as an ‘ultimate purpose’? Furthermore, the colors for such attire should have been long established. Sensing Adi’s skepticism, one of the maids added a clarification.
They intended to craft a full wardrobe for her, not just the military regalia. After all, she had been making do with temporary, ill-fitting clothes since her arrival.
Hearing that, Adi found nothing else to question. It sounded reasonable enough.
“That concludes our work,” the maid announced. “The finished items will be sent to your quarters once they are ready.”
Adi gave her acknowledgment.
“We will prioritize the uniform to ensure it reaches you swiftly,” they promised.
Adi offered a nod of thanks. The timing was irrelevant to her, provided she had it before the official ceremony. True to their word, the garment arrived a mere four days later, clearly produced with great haste.
The southern sun was strikingly brilliant. The pale ivory of the local architecture always reminded her of coastal sands. It was a place that felt eternally tranquil and warm, the buildings appearing to dissolve into a blinding white glare under the midday heat. Even now, she found the scenery slightly surreal, a lingering sense of being a stranger in a beautiful land.
It wasn’t a day of rest, yet the entire Knight Order had been granted a reprieve from drills. Adi reached up to adjust her collar, feeling the unfamiliar weight of the fabric. It had been quite some time since a formal crest had been pinned over her heart. She traced the emblem with her fingers, a quiet realization dawning on her that she finally had a place where she belonged.
As she walked the passage connecting the primary estate to the western wing where the knights were stationed, she spotted several men in the uniform of the 2nd Order. They caught sight of her as well, and one figure detached himself from the group to wave. Based on the broad shoulders and slouching gait, she recognized Roy immediately.
He sauntered over with a grin. “Hanging out all by yourself?”
“Please tell me that isn’t your standard line for meeting women,” Adi remarked, looking unimpressed.
Roy let out a boisterous laugh. “God, I’m exhausted. I feel like I’m falling apart.”
“What’s there to be tired about? You don’t even have duties today.”
“I was being run through the muck until sunrise,” he complained. “You know how my unit likes to work in the shadows. They even blindfolded me, claiming I had to learn to navigate by scent and sound alone.”
He leaned in, whispering that the details were classified and he couldn’t show her the techniques. Adi simply nodded in understanding.
“I should congratulate you, Sir Adrina Dean. A knight at last.”
“The ceremony hasn’t happened yet,” she corrected.
“It’s happening today, isn’t it? Whether it’s an hour from now or this very second makes no difference.”
Roy brushed it off as a formality. Adi felt a similar detachment. Someone entering the knighthood for the first time would likely be overwhelmed with emotion, but she had already lived that life once before. Nevertheless, there was a certain novelty in finally achieving the rank under her own true identity.
“Is it true you’re heading to Ionad as well?” Roy inquired.
When she looked at him curiously, he elaborated.
“My contacts at Pallesa Palace reached out. Word is Count Grimaldi returned to his lands briefly but is now making a move toward the capital. Apparently, Lev Zid is still lingering at the palace.”
A quiet, dry laugh escaped Adi. Roy looked down at her.
“It sounds like he’s hunting for me,” she said.
“Keep your guard up. I’ve heard Lev has been acting strangely.”
The capital would likely be a hornet’s nest. However, Adi’s expression remained indifferent as she dismissed the concern. She couldn’t stay hidden forever, and it was better to face the situation head-on.
“Everyone is going to find out eventually, whether I travel to Ionad or stay here.”
Too many high-ranking nobles knew her face. Prince Claude and Marchioness Connolly had both seen her. There was zero chance Spencer Grimaldi would fail to recognize his own kin. Even the daughter of the Lintu family might remember her. If Adi could recall her face, the reverse was surely true.
She couldn’t predict the fallout. Perhaps the nobility would play along with the deception, or perhaps they would call out the lie and point to the mistake.
One thing was certain: Spencer Grimaldi was exactly the sort of man who would enjoy playing a part in the charade.
“Adrina!”
Ivan’s voice echoed from down the hall. Both Roy and Adi turned to see him approaching. He moved with incredible speed, yet his breathing remained perfectly steady as he reached them. Seeing him arrive so effortlessly to claim he had been searching for her only confirmed her belief that his past was rooted in the world of assassins.
“If you are prepared, we should depart,” Ivan stated.
Roy let out a low whistle of surprise. “You came to fetch a mere page yourself, Ivan?”
“It is a tradition for the head chamberlain to personally greet those being knighted,” Ivan replied smoothly. “It serves as a sign of welcome into the family’s service.”
“My mistake. I shouldn’t have questioned it,” Roy muttered.
“Of course, the high-ranking administrative leads don’t usually bother,” Ivan added.
Ivan was a mid-level chamberlain, but one the Duke kept in his inner circle. It was undeniable that Adi was being given preferential treatment.
“Adi.”
“I have received word that the Count has departed Pallesa Palace,” Ivan informed her. “He is reportedly stopping at the Grimaldi lands before he continues to the capital.”
It seemed everyone was preoccupied with her safety. Adi found herself letting out a small, bewildered laugh. “I see.”
“The Crown Prince is apparently arranging quarters for the Count within the Inner Palace itself.”
It was a bizarre sensation—knowing there were people who cared this deeply about her well-being. Even if they had their own motives, it was a level of concern she had never known within the walls of the Grimaldi home. She couldn’t quite wrap her head around it.
It wasn’t unpleasant, though. She tried to find the word for it and settled on a sense of belonging. As she pondered, she absentmindedly rubbed her chin with her thumb. Ivan’s eyes narrowed slightly. It was a specific gesture the Duke often made. It seemed that by spending so much time together, their mannerisms were beginning to bleed into one another.
“A confrontation will be impossible to avoid,” Ivan noted.
“I take it everyone would prefer I stay away from Ionad,” Adi said.
Ivan remained silent. They had all seen how the Count regarded her. The man’s obsession with reclaiming her—even to the point of staging her death—was unlike anything they had encountered.
Had it been anyone else, they likely wouldn’t have cared. But this was different.
“I have to go,” she insisted.
Her purpose was tied to her lord.
“I’m the one who has unfinished business with the Count.”
Adi Grimaldi refused to hide any longer.
“Besides…”
She wondered briefly if the Duke’s decision to travel to the capital—a place he usually avoided—was for her sake. She decided not to dwell on it, as there was no proof his movements were linked to her own.
The ceremony was held in the formal Audience Chamber.
She had expected it to take place in the woods, likely because the Duke was so intertwined with the forest in her mind. The chamber was devoid of gaudy decorations, defined instead by its soaring ceiling and massive windows. The natural light pouring in was the only adornment the room required.
Adi stood alongside three other pages. They were the original candidates for knighthood, joined now by the unexpected addition of herself. All of them were dressed in the stiff, pristine fabric of their new uniforms.
Yuls sat centered in his great chair. The Commanders of the various Orders stood flanking him, hands on their hilts. Bert was the exception, carrying two blades; one was a delicate rapier, far more ornate than any standard military weapon.
Instead of starting at the other end, Yuls walked straight toward Adi on the far right. She had assumed she was the tail of the line, but from the Duke’s perspective, she was the priority. Bert and the other commanders followed close behind their lord.
“The blade,” Yuls commanded.
Bert presented the sword.
“Adrina.”
Adi maintained eye contact with the Duke for a moment before slowly dropping to one knee.
The Duke hefted the weapon.
“I, Adrina Dean, do solemnly swear to serve His Excellency for as long as my mind remains my own,” she recited. “I pledge never to commit an act of treason and to provide a formal declaration should I ever seek to leave this service. I offer my honesty, my heart, and my total dedication to His Excellency, vowing a loyalty that shall remain unbroken until my final breath.”
The steel touched her right shoulder with a light tap. It swept over her head, coming to rest on her left.
“By the power vested in Woodpecker, I hereby grant the rank of knight to Adrina Dean.”
