Author's Note:

It has been 1 year, 3 months, and five days. Thinking about it, since this book only has 15 chapters, I'm wondering why in the world is this story still so popular?! Why are they still people reading this?!

Is it because of the lack of Japanese BL fantasy novels? (Which also makes me weep because I would stare at the Nurturing the Hero to Avoid Death novelupdate and Chrysanthemum Garden page until it updates; I'm so desperate for updates). Or is everyone just thirsty for more BL stories in general?

I'm just a little baffled by my ever-present readership 0.0

...--------...

The study was eerily quiet, save for the rustle of paper being shuffled through as Kyron Rosetta, his father, read the combined report written by Dean Armstrong, the PM (People's Militia) Lieutenant supervising the case, and Henry Volkov. Mr. Volkov had already given his official statement to one of the PM officers, but the one he had given to the Duke was more detailed with his own commentary in between the lines.

Mr. Volkov might be old, but he was a general and a war hero once. His insight into these types of situations was always valuable.

Edward stood in front of his father, ignoring his mother's caustic gaze pointed at his back and his sister's worried and cautious one. Due to the chaotic aftermath of the chase and Xander's unsubtle display of the Royal Crest, both of their families easily found out about their little afternoon 'trip' in one of the middle-class districts.

Xander was immediately taken home once their statements had been taken. Though the prince had wanted to stay behind and help with the proceedings, his mother didn't agree though.

"You have a lot of guts to go racing carriages through the streets--!" she yelled angrily through her son's royal ECoM for everyone at the scene of the crime to hear. And finished with a, "--without me!!" that had several PM officers stumble as they investigated the scene.

All the while, Xander had an exasperated expression on his face, one that was mixed with fondness and amusement. "Mother--" he tried to placate but Queen Marie wouldn't have it.

"And what was this I hear about you sitting on your high horse and letting other people do your work? I can see our dear Eddie's masterpiece from behind you--" She was probably referring to the widespread cover of icicle and frost melting onto the streets and into the alleyway. "--but where's your contribution?"

"Mother," Xander tried once again. "That's not the point--"

"What do you mean 'that's not the point'?!" she whined, her image on the ECoM shaking. "Finally something exciting happened in this goddess-damn boring city and not only did I miss it, my own kid decided to take a passive route?!" Xander's expression turned helpless, and both him and Edward tried not to sigh as they could hear King Charles trying to calm down his wife. "You better get your ass back to the training ground, Xander Charles Ricardo Lynel Hubert Windsor! Obviously, I haven't trained you well enough in urban combat!!"

So Xander went home to weather his strange punishment from his mother, but both the Queen and King gave Edward permission to use Dr. Ainsley's services, who was currently tending to his brother. She wasn't really willing at first but after another promise of alcohol and the first available body from the morgue, she became the image of professionalism, taking Thomas' vitals and checking his lungs with a serious expression on her face. It was like she hadn't thrown a tantrum, feet stomping and whining included, a few minutes ago.

While the doctor was doing her job, Edward became the liaison between the royal guards, the People's Military officers, and his own men, assembling all relevant information to deduce the goal and reasoning for his brother's abduction. There were a few points that had been made clear during his investigation:

One, Thomas was not the intended target. His involvement was entirely accidental.

Two, according to Mr. Al-Amin's accounts and interactions with Mason Smith, Edward was supposed to be the target instead.

Three, Conrad Hernandez was an unfortunate casualty, if only because his side of the garden, the one he dedicated to the youngest Rosetta full of lavender and herbs, was the least patrolled by their knights.

And lastly, today was supposed to be the day they would execute their schemes. Otherwise, why would they risk discovery by knocking out Mr. Hernandez and having a carriage readied near the estate walls?

Smith had been under their care for more than a month before then; Edward wasn't sure if he was contacted by his employer before or after his acceptance into their ranks, but the eldest son of the Rosetta didn't make an effort to hide his busy schedule. He was always moving from one place to the next, never lingering unless he was attending his classes in the academy or visiting the palace. He had never liked staying in Rosetta Manor for long-- until Thomas had gotten sick.

All of the sudden, his sporadic and often full timetable was trashed to accompany his easily lonely and clingy little brother. For a week and a half, he would leave classes just as they ended (sometimes along with Xander) and stay next to his bedside until dinner or any other appointments he couldn't avoid or push back. At the very least, he would always stay with Thomas for a few hours to help soothe his fever and his aching body, and Smith probably saw that as an opportunity.

It was only a lucky coincidence that Edward had left earlier than expected today. In order to avoid the attention of some unsavory people, only a few people knew he left the manor in order to pick up Xander and the Royal Family's own personal doctor and therefore, his departure ruined Smith's planned just as it began.

As for who was the mastermind behind this whole fiasco? Edward had a few ideas...

After reading through Mr. Armstrong and Mr. Volkov's report, his father set them aside and picked up Edward's comprehensive statement, which was bigger than the two previous ones combined. The older man read through it quickly and thoroughly, before commenting solemnly, "It's unlike you to be so careless."

Edward restrained a flinch at the subtle admonish, lowering his head in a chastised manner. "It's my mistake, father. I should have been more careful."

"Yes," Kyron agreed as he lowered the large stack of paper down onto his desk, closing his eyes briefly. His expression was as cold as his son's, clear of anger or disappointment, but his voice was stern and severe. "The nature of the investigation aside, even if their power is steadily declining, they still held the title of Marquis. Therefore, they have more means to perform unsavory acts in the dark."

The eldest son usually blank face held a grimace. "I know, Father."

"And yet, you still underestimated them," the older man pointed out as he opened his eyes, displaying his own intimidating ice-blue orbs. "And in turn, you endangered yourself and the people around you."

Lowering his head, Edward had no viable excuse he could give. After all, he never thought that the McGowan Family would be desperate enough to hire someone to kidnap him. What little he had gained from his previous investigations over their underhanded business wasn't enough to implicate them of anything just yet. "I... didn't find anything conclusive."

"You haven't," his father allowed, crossing his worn fingers together. "But you need to take into account of Marquis McGowan's personality. He's paranoid by nature and even if you find something small, he will react to it. Combined with his detail-oriented character, there is rarely anything that slips past his control. He runs a tight ship on his businesses, which makes it difficult for us to incriminate him in anything-- if we can find anything to incriminate him with."

As Kyron then reached for some paper and a feather pen, probably to make his report to the King about his family's side of the scenario, Edward's cold eyes darkened. The McGowan family had always been shady even before he was born but no one was able to properly connect them with any criminal activities. Even now, their investigations over the attempted kidnapping had come to a dead end. The two men they had captured were recruited by two different people that they were unable to identify and Mason Smith, who seemed to be more intimate with their employer, had disappeared. He was hired previously by the McGowans before but that wouldn't be enough to suggest their involvement. "I... see. I'll make note of that, Father."

"See that you do."

"I'm sorry, but Father, don't you think it's rather farfetched that Marquis McGowan would risk his own status and reputation to kidnap Brother, an heir of the Prime Minister, a Duke's son, and also someone who has close ties to the Royal Family? Marquis McGowan may be paranoid but by no means is he suicidal!" All of the sudden, Katherine gave her own opinion of the matter, her darker blue eyes turning into a sharp sapphire. "Either he is quite confident in the help he has hired or he is confident in his abilities to weather the scrutiny towards his family!"

Edward turned around and looked at his sister in surprise while Kyron paused in mid-writing.

Katherine sat in one of their father's office chairs with a grace and dignity befitting of her social status. Her hands were placed in her lap, holding a lacy, embroidered fan that matched her intricate mauve dress. She would often use it to hide her mouth but the accessory was rather needless since his sister could adjust her expression even better than their mother.

The only young lady of the Rosetta household had her mother's beauty but her brother's and father's cold elegance, a combination which made her one of the most sought out noble ladies in the city. Unlike her brother, she seemed much more approachable, if only because she inherited her mother's gem-blue eyes and not her father's glacial ones, therefore she was quite more intimate with the affairs of many noble families. Gossip had always been her main weapon and while her type of information network was not always as thorough as her brother's, rarely was it not useful.

Their father narrowed his cold eyes and considered his daughter's statement. "What would you suggest then, Katherine?"

In response, Katherine tapped her fan against her bottom lip, a calculative gleam shading her beautiful, gem-like eyes. "Both Brother and Father are not wrong; currently, out of all the likely candidates to have planned for my brother's abduction, Marquis McGowan is the only one with a desperate enough motive."

The Rosetta's have plenty of enemies and Katherine had always made sure to pay special attention to those who had wished for her family's downfall. Regardless, barely anyone among their adversaries would be brave enough to scheme against them, much less her brother.

Edward was rather special amongst his peers if only because of the nature of his relationship with the Royal Family. Suffice to say, they treat her brother like their second son.

While her eldest brother was always under the humble impression that he relied on the Royal Family's kindness too much, the King, the Queen, and especially the Crown Prince thought otherwise. Those constant dinner invitations that Xander often mentioned every other day were obviously more than just a courtesy offer! The rest of their family were never given such an opportunity, only Edward! Not that Katherine was jealous or anything like that; she had been to one of those dinners once and once was already too many.

Queen Marie acted nothing like a noble lady should and her husband always indulged her in chaos. By the end of the night, Katherine was barely able to leave the palace without food on her clothes and pieces of meat in her hair. But despite Her Highness' boisterous personality, the worst thing she had to suffer during that dinner was Xander's non-subtle moon eyes at her brother, and Edward was none the wiser of the Crown Prince's apparent affections.

It was the worse case of 'third-party syndrome' she ever had the pleasure to experience.

Of course, there was no way she was going to be the one to resolve anything between the two. Frankly, it was the Crown Prince's problem if he couldn't clarify his intentions towards her brother. Furthermore, that leech of a Prince was the one hogging Edward, not the other way around! She was her brother's cute little sister and yet she could not spend any time with him alone because Xander kept acting like her brother's second shadow!

Many young noblemen and ladies were deceived into thinking that the Prime Minister's son was the one that wouldn't leave His Highness alone but it was actually the opposite! The Crown Prince they all admired and looked up to was actually a puppy that had imprinted on her brother.

In other words, blood was sure to rain if anything happened to her brother under the Royal Family's nose. There was not a single person on this continent that would dare go against Marie Windsor, a first-tier magician and the most powerful swordswoman in the country. And while Charles Windsor and their son didn't have the same might as the Queen, it would be a mistake to consider them as weak or easy to bully.

Therefore, only the foolish would try to kidnap her brother, and Marquis McGowan was not the type of person that did foolish things. If he was, then his not-quite-legal businesses would be out of business long ago.

"But?" Edward encouraged, curious about his sister's insight.

"Well, there is a chance that a third party is involved. One that is using the Marquis' own fortune to fund their schemes." Both son and father went quiet out of contemplation, though Edward had a feeling he knew where his sister was going with this conversation. Katherine kept the top of her frilly fan near the bottom of her lip, her eyes as hard and cold as diamonds. "If I recall correctly, isn't Thomas associated with Marquis McGowan's son and heir?"

Both Kyron and Edward stiffened while Lady Anais Rosetta sneered. His mother's hair was a golden wheat color, darker than her husband and her children's locks, but her eyes were the same sapphire gem as Katherine. There wasn't a part of her body that wasn't covered in embroidered cloth, fine threads, and dazzling jewels. Her make-up was heavily done but tasteful with dark reds and browns in contrast with her daughter's natural and thin foundation.

Their mother had less control of her expressions in comparison to her daughter, though the only thing she couldn't hide was her feelings of disgust and distaste. Therefore, once Thomas was mentioned in the conversation, Anais' face contorted and in order to prevent the people in the room to see such an ugly appearance, she shielded the lower part of her face with a magenta fan. "Of course that little scoundrel is involved! I thought it was too quiet lately-- but to think the rat would try to harm my son!"

"Mother, let's not make any assumptions," Katherine intercepted before they could be treated with another one of Lady Anais' 'the bastard child is a curse on this household' lecture, unaware of the strange and unusual expression on her brother's face. "But we do need to keep an eye on him and investigate his recent interactions with McGowan--"

"Thomas, he-- he has nothing to do with this," Edward blurted out clumsily and the whole room went quiet. Katherine stared at her brother with wide, shocked eyes, startled by his outburst while his mother had a similar expression but more indignant. The eldest son couldn't even begin to imagine the look on his father's face at his sudden defense for the youngest, but he instead turned towards his sister and reasoned, "Thomas hasn't interacted with McGowan in months and he has been sick for the past week; where would he find the time to make such an elaborate scheme?"

After realizing that her brother was making a serious statement, Katherine furrowed her brow together. "Isn't he faking it, Edward?" she countered, her sapphire-blue eyes striking against the eldest sibling's ice-blue orbs. "It's too much of a coincidence for him to be sick while a plan for your abduction was being made."

"It is a coincidence, regardless," Edward argued, looking at his sister calmly but determined in his stance on the matter. "Dr. Ainsley confirmed his condition to be serious and is working on a diagnosis."

Katherine narrowed her eyes, still unconvinced by their little brother's uninvolvement. Usually, if anything untoward happened to her brother, Thomas was always involved: either as the plotter or as the accomplice. And if the youngest was unrelated to the situation, he would butt in and make everything worse! "We should still investigate."

Edward frowned in response. "There's nothing to investigate. May I remind you that Thomas was taken by the kidnappers as a casualty. He would never plan something that would put himself at risk." At least, the old Thomas wouldn't. This new Thomas, the current Thomas, the one he had interacted with for weeks, lacked the maliciousness (and energy) to plan such an elaborate scheme.

His sister began to tap her fan in the palm of her hand, a sign of impatience and frustration even if her expression was carefully unreadable. Rarely would they argue or disagree with each other; their relationship is good even if their own interests didn't coincide with each other. While Katherine preferred the social aspect of nobility, Edward was enamored with the dutiful part of being a noble. She liked dresses and fashion; he was more partial to armor and weaponry. Their social circle rarely crossed and they never ended up meeting in the same place unless it was arranged beforehand. Of course, even if they didn't understand each other's hobbies, they still support each other's pastime nonetheless.

The only thing they had in common was their family and their hair color; the former was always something they were reluctant to address. But now that they were on the topic, it was hard to reconcile and let go.

Their little brother Thomas had always been a subject of frustration and misery. They could never talk about him without feeling uncomfortable or aggrieved, and though Edward's perspective about the youngest had changed, the usual tension in the air whenever the Second Young Lord was mentioned hadn't.

Just as Katherine was about to rise up and push (because, though she was low-keyed about it, her competitive spirit and stubbornness was as bad as her brother's, if not more vindictive), their father stopped any further arguments with a strict, "Enough."

Immediately, the two siblings fell quiet and turned their eyes away from each other. Instead, they looked directly at their father whose emotionless face held a bit of stiffness. It wasn't a surprise to both of them that their father had decided to intervene— Kyron didn't like to be reminded of his youngest's existence. He avoided anything in concern towards Thomas as if the child was a bad omen.

Edward and Katherine took one last glance at each other; their discussion was obviously not finished but they wouldn't quarrel in front of their parents any longer. Not only did their mother look unsightly, but their father suddenly seemed brittle and worn out.

With his eyes lowered, Kyron heaved out a sigh. "It was a long day and I'm sure both of you are tired." An obvious dismissal but their father wouldn't force them out of his study if they didn't want to leave. Regardless, the day's events had taken a toll on everyone's nerves and mostly everything that needed to be addressed was said.

"It is time for my beauty sleep," Katherine conceded, brushing her hair behind her ear in a sulky manner.

"We will excuse ourselves-- Father, Mother," Edward then excused for himself and his sister; he had a feeling their conversation would continue as soon as they were out of hearing distance from their parents and it would take everything he had to convince Katherine of their little brother's change of heart.

Since he was already standing, he held out a hand and helped his sister up onto her feet, which Katherine accepted and gracefully rose from her seat. Their actions were elegant and harmonious, the perfect picture of a pair of beautiful siblings, and they left side by side as if they were marching off to face the world together.

Once the children closed the door behind them, the atmosphere in the study room became stilted. Kyron ignored the elephant in the room in favor of continuing his report to the King while Anais pursed her lips, her dark-blue eyes full of spite. She tapped her fan against her lip out of aggravation, peering at her husband with some resentment.

It had been years since that harlot's child leeched onto their household like a parasite and no matter what she said, her husband would allow the little bastard to wreak havoc in their family. He already had two outstanding children very much deserving of the Rosetta heritage and yet he still kept the third one around, regardless of his magic-less condition and his disappointing attitude.

The way he pushed away the child, she had thought it wouldn't be long until Thomas was kicked out onto the street but after a year had turned into two, and two years turned into six, she realized no matter how badly her husband regarded his youngest son, however much he tried to ignore him, Kyron would not disown the boy.

Even now, when the brat was obviously a danger to their rightful son, Anais doubted her spineless husband would take any action against the parasite.

Well, that was fine. If the father of her handsome son and her beautiful daughter wouldn't protect them, then she would just have to be the one to make sure the little bastard stayed far away from them.

Adjusting her mood and her expression, Anais rose from her seat and sauntered towards her husband with shimmering eyes, her mouth curved into a tantalizing smile. The woman moved around the desk to lean against the stone-faced man's chair and placed a hand on his arm.

Almost immediately, Kyron flinched away and shrugged off the hand without much of a thought. Anais didn't falter despite so but her smile now had a tinge of bitterness. In front of that child, he was always willing to touch her but once in private, he couldn't stand even a brush of her fingers. If it wasn't for the fact that they had children, it would be hard to say whether they were actually married or not.

"Kyron~" she called out soothingly, and though she did not touch him any longer, his body remained stiff and the feather pen he was holding stopped moving. Anais bent closer to his ear and started whispering. "As part of my dowry, my mother gave me her uncle's estate near the edge of the city..."

--------------

Halfway into the west wing, Katherine finally realized that they were not heading for their rooms, which were on the other side of the manor in the opposite direction. Admittedly, she had been following her brother blindly, but she didn't think he would be heading toward Thomas' room!

With a strength of an ox, she pulled back on his collar as if she was pulling back a leash, causing Edward to cough partly out of surprise but mostly out of near suffocation. Out of everything that had happened today, this was the first time he was so close to death.

"Kathy--" Edward coughed a few more times before glaring at his sister's innocent-looking expression, "--was that really necessary?!"

"Of course it was," Katherine hmmp'ed, unrepentant in how she had manhandled her brother. "You might not have noticed, but the further we enter into the west wing, the larger your strides become. I'm not wearing my walking shoes today so it is very difficult for me to match your pace right now!"

"...Walking shoes," Edward deadpanned with a raised eyebrow as he massaged his throat.

In response to her brother's disbelieving expression, Katherine rolled her eyes before placing her hands on her hips. "Don't give me that look, Edward. I have shoes strutting, shoes for showing off, and shoes for walking. I have many shoes for many things."

"I'm well aware..." the eldest grumbled underneath his breath, blocking out the painful shopping-with-his-sister memories. By now, he knew better than to bet against Katherine— sadly, the same thing couldn't be said for Xander...

"We're getting off-topic— what was that back there?"

"...What was what?" Edward slowly asked, fixing his collar as he stared at his sister with cold, steady eyes.

Unintimidated, Katherine stares back at her brother, somehow significantly more menacing than her dead-face sibling, probably because she had more flexibility with her facial muscles. "You, defending Thomas!" she elaborated, using the fan in her hand to hit the other's shoulder. Edward yelped as he was smacked but the young lady wasn't about to let him off just yet. "Do you really think Thomas is innocent in all of this? Need I remind you who has sworn 'to ruin your reputation and take everything that you love'?"

Edward scowled faintly; he did recall the old Thomas saying such nonsense but he couldn't relate it to the new Thomas, who could barely say three words without yawning in between. "That is in the past now."

This time, it was Katherine's turn to look incredulous. "It was five months ago when he said that."

"Therefore, in the past."

Katherine's eyes almost rolled to the back of her head once again, still unsatisfied by the other's answer. A frown marred her beautiful features as she crossed her arms across her chest. "You're always so soft on him. I never understand why," she scoffed, looking back at years of one-sided fights between the two brothers. Most of the time, Thomas' schemes usually bit the little imp in the ass, but she would have to be blind if she didn't see how troubled Edward was over the youngest's hostility. "Changed? The only thing that really changes is his hair! And now, Father can't look at him without making this ugly face!"

"He's thirteen now. He's not a child anymore," Edward tried to reason, almost pleading for his sister to understand. "He's grown past all of those childish nonsenses."

"You know, most people call it malicious. Maybe even vindictive-- but definitely not childish! And they definitely wouldn't call his behavior nonsense!"

"Kathy," he beseeched, his ice-blue eyes filled with trepidation. "He's not the same Thomas as we know. He's-- He's really different."

"He can't be that different," she sneered. Almost a decade full of bad impressions but of course, her kind and sometimes naive elder brother, who was always at the brunt of Thomas' hatred, had already forgiven all of their little brother's spiteful antics. If it wasn't for the fact that Edward enjoyed politics, she would have been wondering whether he was a good fit for it.

"Just-- Just talk to him, Kathy. You'll understand what I mean." Edward was usually not the type to ask anything of her. Whether it was male pride or something else, he was the type to do everything on his own. He was very untypical from other young lords due to his humble mannerisms. He never acted spoiled or pampered and had an independent mindset from a young age. So for the first time in a long time, her stoic and uncute brother made a request, one that she was rather unwilling to fulfill.

Being in the same room as Thomas would make her feel uncomfortable and whenever they actually talked to each other, antagonistic words would fall out of their mouths like heavy rain from dark storm clouds. She didn't have her brother's poise and softness so if the youngest decided to act nasty, then she would be nasty back. And now, Edward was encouraging her to interact with this bad air in between them?

The reluctance on her face wasn't subtle, but Edward didn't give up and told her once again to 'talk to their little brother' before bidding her goodnight. She was stubborn and it would take more than just his word for her to meet with their younger brother out of her own volition. All he could do was plant a seed of doubt in her mind, but whether it grew was entirely up to his sister.

Aware that she wouldn't be following him to their youngest brother's room, Edward told her to rest and continued his trek down the west wing. Katherine stood still as the eldest turned his back towards her before she told him one last thing.

"I just don't want you to get hurt."

Thomas was a child so all of his schemes so far were rudimentary, but if Edward was right and the youngest did mature, who was to say that his tactics hadn't matured as well? What if Thomas finally realized their seemingly cold and distant brother was actually a soft-hearted young man who loved his family and his friends blindly and decided to use his favor against him?

But Edward just looked back at her with an amused expression, as if the idea of Thomas hurting him was silly, which made her feel as if she had missed something in their conversation.

--------------

Thomas' room was one of the largest in the west wing and yet, with so many people in one area, it was unusually cramped. There were maids and butlers hovering outside the room and Edward could only imagine how many more were settled inside the bedroom.

Mr. Hughes was standing outside near the door with his co-workers and though he maintained the image of professionalism, he was obviously uncomfortable with so many people around. He looked baffled by the youngest's popularity though it was no secret how well-liked Thomas was with the staff.

Edward had assigned Mr. Hughes to take care of Dr. Ainsley and to escort her back to her estate near the Royal Palace whenever her work was done. If his butler was still present, then most likely than not, the doctor was still attending to his brother. He wasn't sure whether this was a good thing or not.

As he approached the room, many of the maids and butlers saw him coming and every single one of them created a path into the bedroom for him. He bypassed them without so much of a glance or greeting and made a gesture for Mr. Hughes to stay outside of the room.

Once he entered, he was hit with a strong scent of herbs and the scene of a sobbing Mr. Hernandez cooing nonsense all into the little one's bedsheets. If it wasn't for Ms. Baker's serene appearance and Ms. Antonia's irritable but exasperated expression, he would have thought something was wrong with Thomas.

"Mi pequeña lavanda perezosa, esta bien ahora. No te marchites. Te regaré todos los días..." the Bayan man mumbled loudly as he patted the lump where Thomas' leg should be.

Ms. Antonia: "......"

Edward: "....." He didn't understand anything that the gardener had said but judging by Ms. Antonia's pinched and strained expression, it probably wasn't anything sensible.

Obviously, after being hit on the head too many times, Mr. Hernandez became confused and muddle-headed. Anyone could see how much his bright-green eyes had dulled and glazed over as if he was half-asleep, even if they were somehow still focused on the little master's deadly still form on the bed.

Much of the staff were circled around the bed, but only Ms. Baker and Mr. Hernandez were on the large bed with the child. The dead-faced maid was in charge of changing the towel on Thomas' forehead while the gardener was too out of it to care about what was proper. He was an injured patient in the first place so he should have been resting inside of his own bed, but one of the maids made the mistake to announce the little master's return within his vicinity. Once he heard the news, the Bayan had made a huge fuss until they had no choice but to let him see the young master. Since then, they weren't able to pry the man away from the little one.

Looking away from the babbling gardener and the exasperated maid, Edward saw Dr. Ainsley, Mr. Volkov, and Mr. Sven near the fireplace, their discussion hushed but calm. Promptly, he advanced toward the trio in hopes for an update and some good news about his brother's condition.

The doctor and the two butlers paused in their conversation as they saw the eldest young master approach with a variety of expressions. Out of all of them, Dr. Ainsley looked the most relaxed and least grim, which could mean a lot of things considering the elder woman's personality.

"How's Thomas," he asked as soon as he was close enough to them. Mr. Volkov and Mr. Sven shared a couple of glances at each other while Dr. Ainsley hmmp'ed with all the arrogance and haughtiness in her aging figure.

"Well, first of all, it would have been great to know that the little master has a negative reaction to medical concoctions," the doctor began with a rather judgemental look towards the eldest Rosetta. Edward said nothing, too weary to refute anything Dr. Ainsley implied, and wordlessly gestured for her to continue. "Secondly, just so that the reST OF YOU MOTHER BEARS COULD GET OFF MY BACK!" She raised her voice to where everyone inside the room and outside in the hallway could hear her, puffing her cheeks as she grumbled about 'hovering hens' and 'rude servants'. "There were some residues around the boy's mouth and in his nose. A quick study of the substance brought me to believe that the reason why he hasn't woken up was because a sleeping potion he was fed before his... uh... abduction."

Though Dr. Ainsley was the type of person that lacked the ability to read the atmosphere, even she could feel how the temperature had dropped after her announcement.

"...What does that mean for Young Master Thomas?" Ms. Baker then asked. Her facial muscles hadn't twitched in the slightest but her voice was full of worry. She hovered over her young master as if she hoped to shield him from all of his hurts and her bare gaze pierced the doctor from the other side of the room.

Being well-acquainted with the Queen, Dr. Ainsley wasn't cowed by this level of intimidation but she knew better than to provoke a woman with strong maternal instincts. "Just like with medicine, everyone metabolizes magic brews differently within their bodies. But unlike with medicine, we're not sure why some people are more resilient or more susceptible to the nature of magic brews. The general trend is that those with better magical capabilities tend to be more resistant than those with little to no magical capabilities-- of course this was data provided by the Church's Healers Department and let me tell you, those flower-sniffing, cauldron-headed, potion-snorkeling quacks don't know the meaning of analytical statistics even if it bit them in the--"

"Edna," Henry warned while clearing his throat, well aware how long she could rant about the 'Church's phony-baloney all-cure, rainbow fairy glitter light magic' if anyone didn't try to stop her. Along with the Queen, they were old war buddies from Dominus' reign, though both he and Edna had only met Marie during the latter half of the war when the so-called fearsome 'Brimstone Dragon' was barely an adult fresh out of training.

Dr. Ainsley paused in mid-speech, her mouth still hanging open as she made a quick glance towards the head butler, before clearing her throat as well. "Anyway, everyone reacts differently to magic brews and considering what this guy-- Stan--"

"Sven," the young butler corrected quietly, his voice as soft as a feather in comparison to Dr. Ainsley's booming decibels.

"--said, Young Master Thomas has a very negative response to magic-containing consumables. He's not in danger right now," she quickly reassured since she could see a few panicked expressions from the surrounding people. "But you'll have to watch what he eats and drinks in the future. The majority of our medicines currently have a magic component to them, so it's better to continue what you folks are doing and use herbal remedies to keep his fever down."

"Noted," Edward agreed for everyone inside and outside the room. "But Thomas' condition...?"

"I need to do further testing to know the content of the sleeping potion. I can smell the faint sweet-sour scent of the Moon Lily's nectar, which is the common ingredient in every sleeping potion marketed in both the Church's Brewer Market and the Doctor's Guild's Pharmaceutical branch, but obviously since the young master hasn't woken up yet, he was either given a large dose or an illegally distributed more potent version." The wrinkles on Dr. Ainsley's face deepened as she frowned, a hint of frustration on her face "Either way, if he's not awake by morning, send someone to get me. I'd rather let the potion's effect naturally drain out of his system, but if the kid ends up comatose for too long, it'll impact his health."

A cold, tense silence blanketed the room after the doctor's report. The majority of the maids and butlers had a dire expression on their face while a few others looked back at the too-still child lying on the bed. It was not unusual to see the youngest Rosetta child sleeping in some form or fashion, but now it looked abnormal with the little one's pallor and terribly frequent pants.

Distressed, Clarisse brushed back her charge's curly hair away from his sweaty forehead in a futile attempt to comfort him while Edward dug his nails into his fleshy palm without a single change to his expression. His eyes turned darker into a deeper icy-blue as he looked down at his feet momentarily before returning his gaze back to the doctor. "And his illness?"

In response to the question, Dr. Ainsley made a grimace, which had everyone bracing themselves for the coming news. "Right now, nothing obvious. I gave the boy a thorough examination; his lungs, throat, and nasal passages are cleared, his heartbeat is normal, blood pressure's normal, pupil dilation's normal, and there is no obvious skin discoloration other than paleness. Stan here—" Sven made a face but didn't try to correct her again since she was in the middle of saying something important. "—said the young master was feeling a lot of tenderness everywhere, which makes it difficult to pinpoint the source of his discomfort— you get the point. The preliminary examination is giving me shit, but with the young master's blood sample, I should have something conclusive in a week."

"Then I'll let you get started," Edward finalized, anxious and a little impatient because it had been a week and a half since Thomas was sick and the sooner they obtained a diagnosis, the sooner they could treat his younger brother. "Mr. Hughes will escort you to one of our carriages to bring you back to your estate."

At his employer's prompt, Mr. Hughes made his presence known by showing up in front of the door, his hands behind his back and his head lowered in a servitude manner.

Dr. Ainsley gave the young butler a critical eye before snorting. She turned towards Ms. Antonia and Ms. Herring, not even blinking when she saw the latter carrying the gardener guy over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. As they were talking, the Bayan had finally fallen unconscious and was ready to be taken back to his shared room with one of the other gardeners. Bestowing one last glance at the drooping man, the doctor looked towards the Bayan maid with some amusement in her expression. "Make sure he drinks every single drop of the elixir I gave you; two teaspoons every six hours. The blue potion is only for his headaches and general pain-- one teaspoon every 12 hours. No more."

Ms. Antonia nodded to her instructions before bowing: "We are grateful for the Royal Doctor's gracious advice. This servant speaks for her co-worker and hopes to repay the Doctor for her kindness in the near future."

"Bah," Dr. Ainsley scoffed with a scrunched up nose. "Drop the formalities; I get enough of that from those snooty aristocrats."

"We're very grateful regardless, Edna," Mr. Volkov then added, his old face full of gratitude. "Not only with Mr. Hernandez, but with Young Master Thomas as well."

Now the elder woman looked sheepish, almost embarrassed by the appreciation. She waved her hand as if to wave away the awkward she was feeling before grabbing her suitcase from Sven's hands. Coughing into her fist, she said her farewell to her old friend and then the eldest young lord before marching out with a, "Let's make a stop at the bar!" to her assigned butler, who followed along at a distance.

Ms. Antonia, along with Ms. Herring, then stepped up to say their farewells, along with Mr. Sven right behind them. The girls wouldn't be allowed to stay in the men's quarters so most likely than not, the young butler would be the one checking up on Mr. Hernandez and helping him through recovery.

As they left the room with the gardener carefully dangled over Ms. Herring's shoulder, Mr. Volkov started to shoo the rest of the staff back to their rooms and disperse the crowd in the hallway.

Despite the long day, everyone moved swiftly and to Edward's exhausted mind, they seemed to blur before his eyes, but he ignored them as he trudged himself towards Thomas' bed. Taking over the spot where Mr. Hernandez had lain, he looked up at his sleeping brother with bleary eyes.

So many things had happened in between getting a doctor to his younger brother but finally, they could see the light at the end of the tunnel. The tension seeped out from his body and he found himself sinking into the mattress. The only one left in the room was Ms. Baker, who was humming a soft melody for Thomas even if the child wasn't conscious to hear it. She sat on the other side of the bed with no intentions of going back to her own bedroom.

No one tried to move her. Though she was calm now, one could only imagine how frantic she was earlier knowing that the child she had raised and loved was maliciously taken from under her care.

Gradually, Edward conscious faded and the warmth nearby reminded him that both he and his little brother are now safe and sound.

...--------...

"Mi pequeña lavanda perezosa, esta bien ahora. No te marchites. Te regaré todos los días..."/ "My little lazy lavender, it's okay now. Do not wilt. I will water you every day." -- By Google-sensei.

Yoho's Lazy Life Encyclopedia:

Magic Brews: a general term for liquid products made from magically-charged materials such as magic herbs, bodily segments from magical beasts, holy water, etc.

Concoction: 1. a brew for medical purposes; mostly plant-based (use to treat sickness but not to heal wounds) 2. magic-based medicine

Tonic: 1. a restorative concoction. 2. a magic-based stimulant

Elixir: 1. a brew for healing purposes; a complex combination of both animal and plant reagents; can be consumed or applied externally (can use to heal wounds but not treat sickness) 2. magic salve for external injuries

Potion: 1. a brew that has a variety of effects depending on the content: e.g. sleeping potion made from the crushed eggshell of a Luun bird.

Author's Note:

Have I mentioned how much I love world-building? o(≧∇≦o) I love making up stuff right out of my... *cough* um, you get it.

Also, have I mentioned how much I appreciate Johanna? She carrying Conrad on her shoulder gives me life. （*'∀'人）♥

Anyway, I was busy with a lot of family problems and some personal problems in the last two months so that was why I haven't been able to update lately. Almost everything has been resolved so you guys shouldn't have to wait too long for the next chapter. >.> I have every intention of getting Tanaka kicked out soon!

But I promise Editor-chan the next chapter of Good-Looking, my zombie book, so I will have to update that first.

ꉂ (′ ॢꇴ ॢ‵๑)) Kukukukuku. Please anticipate Chapter 17 because it's the beginning of everything. Kukukukukukuku~