Chapter Text
“Aren’t you going to finish your pork?”
“No, thanks.”
Even just thinking about roasted pork sickens Emily, it’s been 3 days since the incident, the Young Master is quickly rushed into the clinic, and ever since then, he has locked himself in his room.
And Emily..
She can’t sleep.
The detail is hazy in her mind, she has always feared the Young Master, he isn’t someone you want to mess with, his tantrums are unpredictable and he won’t hesitate to hit those that are below him.
But this time..
It's an entirely different fear.
From what she had heard, apparently the master accidentally burns his hand while tending to the fireplace, but she doesn’t believe a single word of it. Her memory is hazy but she still remembered his face, the way the Young Master looks so calm as he casually burns his own hand as if the burning of the fire doesn’t hurt him, it’s uncanny.
Just remembering it brings shivers down her spine.
Emily stands up.
“What? Going to sleep already?”
Emily nodded.
“I feel sleepy, you can eat the rest of my meal.”
Greg looks at Emily, he doesn’t complain and begins to take Emily’s bowl.
“Okay, good night.”
Emily nodded, she climbed upstairs to her room.
She gently closes her door before she frantically opens her small pink notebook, pages begin to fly. Whenever something bothers her, Emily would write. It's been her lifelong dream to be a writer. She has lots of ideas in her head from drama to romance even to comedy. She writes it all, there’s just one issue though, she is way too shy to publish them.
What if her writings aren’t as good as she thought?
Her writing pace began to slow down, but she didn’t stop, even when it felt bitter, she couldn’t help but write, it’s her hobby after all.
========== ♤ ==========
Chirp Chirp
The birds began to sing, Emily mumbles.
“Birds..?”
!
She quickly sat up before running down the stairs, there it was, her brother already all geared up to go to the manor.
“WHY DIDN’T YOU WAKE ME UP!!”
“Oh, but you are sleeping so peacefully, I couldn’t bare myself too.”
Emily pouts, she doesn’t have time to eat breakfast, she needs to go now for the fear of being late, she quickly washes her face before changing into her work attire.
With haste she quickly runs to the manor, barely catching up with Greg.
“Huff.. huff..”
“There you are, Emily.”
The head maid greeted her.
“I have been searching everywhere for you.”
“I am sorry for being late, ma’am”
“Yeah, no worries, you are late just by a minute, but Emily..”
The head maid pointed at something.
“What’s that pink book in your hand?”
Emily looks at the direction the head maid was pointing, she quickly panics and tries to hide it.
“Oh sorry, I must have accidentally carried it with me while rushing towards the manor.”
The head maid raises an eyebrow but decides not to question it.
“Don’t bring your novel to work next time. Here!”
The head maid gave Emily a tray of food.
“This is the Young Masters’s breakfast, chop-chop now, bring it to him.”
Emily bowed before rushing towards Lloyd’s room.
========== ♤ ==========
“...”
Emily hesitates, her hand hovering, she wants to knock, but at the same time..
She is terrified.
Her memory is hazy but the closer she gets to his room, the more she begins to remember the details.
“Hmph!”
Emily took a deep breath, she was finally mentally able to prepare herself.
Knock
Knock
“Young Master? Are you awake? This is Emily, I have bought you your breakfast, would you like me to feed you?”
Since the Young Master injured his right hand, the kitchen maids have especially made sure that his food is bite size pieces, in the hope that he can just use his left hand to stab the food with the fork without the added stress of cutting it.
“No, no need.”
A voice finally replied from the other side.
“Just leave it by the door.”
“Alright!”
Emily answered, she puts the tray by the door, making sure that she puts it just a little bit to the side so that the Young Master wouldn’t accidentally push it in case he opens the door.
She looks at the door of the Young Master’s room again before quietly taking her leave.
========== ♤ ==========
OH NO! WHERE IS IT!?
Emily is sure she put her precious pink notebook into her pocket this morning, she even made sure she kept her apron dry during the grueling hour of doing the laundry and dishes out of fear of ruining her book.
It couldn’t have fallen off, could it?
Emily’s spirit is beyond crushed, she has been searching for it everywhere in the manor, from the kitchen, the laundry room, even to the storage room. But she can’t find it.
I haven’t even finished that story, it’s actually going to the good part..
Emily’s eyes drooped, she couldn't believe it, she managed to lose her favourite item just because of her own clumsiness.
I should have just left it at home..
SLAP
Emily slaps herself.
Now is not the time for it!!
She can mop around for however long she wants later, now she has a job to do.
Emily carefully makes her way to the familiar hall again, towards the Young Master's room, it's noon again, she intends to collect the dishes.
She walks slowly, still feeling uncomfortable in the halls before she finally reaches the door.
There besides it, just like the days before, the food looks untouched, but unlike yesterday an item is there, her precious book.
MY BOOK!!!
Emily quickly grabs it before putting it into her pocket, she makes sure that it's snug and secure, she doesn't want to lose it anymore.
After the wholesome reunion, Emily suddenly feels self aware, she checks her surroundings before checking on the barely touched dishes in front of her.
She should be safe right? The young master doesn't seem to be interested in the food, she highly doubts that he even opens the door to retrieve it.
She feels both relief and worry.
I hope the Young Master will eat soon..
========== ♤ ==========
"Emily"
"Yeah?"
Unlike yesterday, she managed to come on time today, so she is surprised that she got called out by the head maid during her morning dusting routine.
"Is there anything I can help you with?"
Emily bowed, she felt nervous.
Was it because of yesterday? Will I get fired?
"Here."
Out of nervousness Emily didn't even notice the food tray the headmaid was carrying.
"Yeah?"
"The Young Master specifically asked for you, please bring it to him."
"Yes, ma'm!"
Emily quickly wipes her hand before holding the tray.
========== ♤ ==========
Emily walked slowly along the hallway, her nervousness gnawing at her.
Why did the Young Master ask for me specifically?
She couldn't think of any reason why, for as long as she remembered the young master had never been picky about the person that served him.
What changed?
Emily thought hard when it hit her.
The book!! She was sure that the master hadn't touched his tray, did he read it??
Emily suddenly feels embarrassed, but it's too late. She is now in front of the door, she couldn't escape, she jas a job to do.
Emily gulped.
Knock
Knock
She gently knocks on the Young Master's door, trying to act as normally as she could.
"Excuse me, Young Master, you asked for me?"
"Yes."
The Young Master answered, his voice sounded weak.
"Come in."
Emily felt nervous, is she going to get scolded?
Emily slowly opens the door, she gently places the tray at Lloyd's bedside table. She noted how dark and gloomy the place is, she instinctively tried to open the window when a voice stopped her.
"The book…"
Oh no, here it comes..
Emily braces herself.
"Did you write it?"
"Pardon?"
Emily took a moment to blink before she corrected herself.
"Oh yeah, I did."
"Huh, no wonder."
The Young Master chuckled weakly.
"It's so amateurish, nonsensical with bad grammar and spellings to add on to that."
Emily feels her heart stings, she doesn't know what the Young Master will throw at her, but this time it feels too personal for her writing to be judged like this, she feels like crying.
========== ♤ ==========
It's been three days since the incident now, Lloyd is terrified.
When the Doctor asked him what happened all he can muster was a lame excuse.
" I accidentally slipped as I fed the fire."
It was a lie, a really obvious one, Lloyd avoided his gaze as the doctor carefully wrapped his hand in bandages.
"..."
The Doctor hesitated.
"This is a bad burn, Young Master."
The Doctor speaks softly.
"You will need to get back here weakly for it to heal properly."
"Yeah, yeah."
The Young Master doesn't seem to care, he doesn't seem to care at all. The Doctor really wants to grab him by the collar and shake him.
Hadn't he realised that he is just speed running his own death? Can't he just take care of himself a bit better?
But alas, the doctor can only grit his teeth.
And things just get worse.
Ever since the visit he locked himself in his room, too afraid to go out, his only interaction was with Javier and the maids, but it's limited.
As usual Javier would just knock to make sure he is awake, and Llyod would tell him to fuck off, the maids would knock to let him know that his food has arrived, but he doesn't need it, no corpse need food. He wouldn't even be bothered to open the door.
The only real interaction he gets is..
"Yeah, you are dead~"
The figure continues to hover over Lloyd.
"You don't need food or water, just hurry up and light the fireplace again, isn't it tiring? Being stuck in the world of the living when you are clearly not."
The figure guided Lloyd's body, inching him closer to the cold fireplace.
"You just need to light it up and jump in, think of it as a cremation~"
Lloyd struggles, he can barely escape its grip.
He isn't ready to go there yet, he is still in the land of the living, he doesn't want to.
He quickly hides under his blanket, everything hurts, he can feel his own stomach digesting itself, his mouth parched, but he doesn't want to, he doesn't have the right to eat, it's preserved for the living, not the dead.
Lloyd's consciousness begins to fade, he was about to sleep, when suddenly.
Knock
Knock
“Young Master? Are you awake? This is Emily, I have bought you your breakfast, would you like me to feed you?”
It's just one of the maids.
Lloyd weakly told her the same thing to the other maid, too weak to care.
But something is different today, maybe it's because he can feel the grim reapers slowly inching towards him, so he decided to open the door.
The maid had left, that's obvious, he can hear her footsteps leaving moments ago, but something is different..
"A pink notebook?"
Lloyd opens it without thinking.
It's some kind of a Journal?
Lloyd continues to read it.
No, this is fictional.
The writing is bad, amateurish, the story barely cohesive, but.. he can't stop. He needs to know what happens next, and before he knows it, he has finished the book, or at least he has reached wherever the author had left off.
========== ♤ ==========
"But it's interesting."
"Pardon?"
Emily didn't expect the sudden compliment.
"The plot is really intriguing, I can't help but read it until the end."
Emily suddenly feels embarrassed.
The Young Master read my book until the end!?
"Did you bring it?"
Emily is still too stunned to reply.
"Have you updated it yet? I would like to know what happened next."
The Young Master is many things, and him being her first reader is not something Emily had ever thought or even dreamed off.
"Uh.. I.. I didn't bring it."
Emily looks at the ground, she doesn't want to disappoint her first reader.
"I see.. What a shame."
Emily can sense that the Young Master doesn't want her presence anymore, but she doesn't want the conversation to end this way.
"Umm.. Young Master! What do you like about my story?"
Lloyd is shocked, he didn't expect the maid to be so bold, but he doesn't hate it, for the first time in a while, he feels comfortable, talking about something that actually interests him.
"Oh well.. I think the knight character is pretty cool."
And just like that, his mouth begins to speak, they talk together for a really long time, the start of an unlikely friendship.
"Nah,uh! That's unrealistic, why would the dragon have a crush on the knight?? His job is to kill it??"
"No! You don't get it Young Master! It's the beauty of forbidden love!! The way love can bloom even in the most unlikely places."
Emily flashes an innocent wide-eyed look.
"Isn't it romantic?"
"Urgh.."
Lloyd doesn't buy it.
Lloyd's throat started to burn, how long have they been talking for?
He reached towards the tray and took a sip of the water, he doesn't care anymore that a corpse shouldn't be thirsty.
That's when Emily notices the tray and how the soup has gone cold.
"Oh no, Young Master, your soup is cold now. Would you like for me to heat it up?"
"No need, just bring it back with you, I don't have an appetite."
Lloyd buried himself underneath his blanket, he was about to sleep.
Emily shot him a worried look.
"Um.. Young Master.."
"What?"
"I will bring my book tomorrow! I will be sure to update it!"
So please..
"Yeah, yeah.."
Lloyd waved his hand dismissively.
"I will be waiting."
Please eat something Young Master, don't give up, get better soon.
Emily wanted to say that, but she doesn't want to push her luck.
"Have a good rest, Young Master."
She quietly took the tray, leaving the water behind, before she made her way out of his room silently.
========== ♤ ==========
And maybe it's a miracle, Lloyd actually managed to rest peacefully, not only that night, but even the night after, whenever Emily visited, his complexion got better. He still refuses to eat cause no corpse needed that, but Emily insisted, feeding him.
It's a slow progress from a couple of spoonful to finally half a plate, he is showing progress.
This feels nice, so is this how it feels to have a friend?
"Say, Emily."
"Yes, Young Master?"
"I need to go to the clinic today, I would like you to accompany me."
"Alright!!"
They both walk slowly towards the clinic, while doing so, they both kept on chattering about the small world she had created for herself.
"Now that I think of it.."
"?"
Emily eyed Lloyd, curious about what input he might give her.
"Why an orc specifically?"
Emily suddenly blushed deep red.
"Well, you know.. it's rumoured that they are brutes, but I like to believe that they are actually a hard-working race with a kind heart and big muscles…"
That makes sense.
Lloyd thinks to himself.
"... And green skin."
!?
Lloyd looks at the blushing maid beside him.
"Huh?"
"Yeah! Green skin!!"
Emily shot another innocent big-eyed look, like someone who is love-struck.
"Green skin…"
Lloyd looks at her in disbelief.
Is this what younger people are into right now?
Lloyd wanted to question her, but they had finally arrived at the clinic.
"I will be going in now, give me a minute, you can just wait outside."
Emily nodded.
========== ♤ ==========
The doctor inspects the man in front of him, he is significantly better than he was a week ago, he actually feels a sigh of relief.
He still looks sickly and his burn is nowhere near close to healing, but a small improvement is still an improvement.
"How are you, Young Master?"
"Still feels like shit."
Lloyd twitched as the Doctor gently removed his bandage. He was delirious when he was burned before, he hadn't had the chance to actually take a look at it.
And it looks…
bad.
He can barely see any skin, it's entirely red, as if his hand isn't part of his body, a befitting look for a corpse.
Lloyd twitched again as the Doctor applied an ointment, he could somehow still feel from the burned hand, the ointment is cold.
The Doctor sighed.
The ointment is the best thing he can do, he is not a wizard nor a witch, there are limits to his ability, and looking at the burned hand, he worries that it might be too far gone.
"You might need to hire a magician."
The Doctor looks at the hand.
"I worry that the burn is more severe than I thought, if we keep on going this way.."
The Doctor gulped.
"Your hand might not be able to heal properly, and even if it did, it won't work as it used to before."
Lloyd thought about it, but magicians are too expensive, and he is already dead, what's the point? A walking corpse without a hand, losing it is the least of his worries.
"No, this is fine."
"Are you sure, Young Master?"
Lloyd just nods, the Doctor couldn't argue anymore, he just quietly changed his bandage.
Lloyd went out of the clinic, he looked around.
Where is that Emily?
He continues to search when he can finally see her, she is talking casually with the Shepard's boy.
What is this feeling..
Lloyd feels betrayed.
Emily notices Lloyd and rushes to his side.
"How was the check-up?"
Lloyd didn't answer, he just clicked his tongue.
"Good."
Emily looks at him, she wonders why he suddenly feels so cold.
========== ♤ ==========
"WHAT!? YOU HAD A FIGHT WITH YOUR FRIEND?"
Greg asked Emily, he felt perplexed.
Emily has been brighter lately, she would come home with a smile, talking about a friend that really enjoyed her stories, Greg is just happy that Emily is finally confident enough to open up her shell and share her stories with another person, although she still hides it from him.
"Yeah, I helped him to go to the clinic, but then he suddenly started to act cold, I wonder why."
Emily looks worried, the Young Master is really unpredictable.
"Maybe he is lonely?"
Emily raises an eyebrow towards Greg.
She was about to dismiss his casual remark when..
It's actually plausible.
Emily thinks back to the afternoon, Lloyd suddenly looks sad when he sees her talking to another person.
"I wonder what can I do.."
Greg looks at the perplexed Emily before he flashes a smile towards her.
"It's a he, isn't he?"
Emily looks at him, confused.
"If he's a he, then why don't you introduce him to me? I have a cool collection of ideas, I bet he will enjoy looking at it!!"
Emily looks at Greg
"That's not a bad idea, actually!!"
Emily quickly rose up to her feet, she was excited to invite the Young Master…
"..."
She paused.
"But promise you won't be surprised?"
Greg looks at Emily.
Had she finally found a friendly orc?
Greg looks at her suspiciously before he answers slowly.
"Su…re…."
========== ♤ ==========
"..."
He didn't know what to expect, even an orc is less shocking.
"Tadaa!!"
Emily showed Greg to Lloyd excitedly.
"This is my elder brother, Greg. I am not sure if you have met him, but he is one of the soldiers who works in your manor."
Emily nudges on the shocked Greg, bringing him back to earth.
"Oh, yeah, nice to meet you, sir!"
Greg quickly bowed, he felt uncomfortable.
"Yeah, yeah."
Lloyd casually went inside their house before plopping himself into one of the chairs.
"So what are we going to do?"
The sibling looks at the listless man before Emily nudges Greg again.
"Didn't you say you want to show off your ideas?"
Emily shouts-whispers, Greg feels defeated, but he doesn't know what else to do.
He let out a small cough.
"Um.. Young Master, right this way."
Greg points to his room, where papers are clustered all over the floor, the wall, and even the ceiling.
"What's this?"
"This is my ideas, sir, or what I would refer to as my mind castle."
Greg is still nervous but he decided to swallow it, it's not every day that he can show off his idea to another person.
He quickly took the board that is located at the corner of his room.
"?"
Lloyd looks at him, confused before floods, floods of information pour out of Greg's mouth, he always wanted to tell someone about his crazy invention.
Lloyd is taken aback at first, but the more Greg talks and the more sketches and blueprints Greg shows Lloyd couldn't help but feel amazed.
"This.. this is actually genius.."
Lloyd looks at the strange design in his hand, it is unusual, but Greg explained it in such a way that Lloyd could clearly see it as something that can actually exist.
Lloyd couldn't believe it, he is actually praising a commoner, both siblings really amazed him, they are blessed by creativity for sure.
"I wonder if everyone in the fiefdom is like you both."
Lloyd casually drinks tea that Emily has served up, it's noon now, Greg had showed him his inventions all morning.
"What do you mean by that?"
Greg leans in, curious.
"Creative people, I thought this Barony is dull and hopeless."
Lloyd took a sip.
"But seeing you both made me question myself."
Greg and Emily look at each other, a small blush appears on their cheek.
"Oh, gosh, Young Master, you don't have to flatter us that much, we don't deserve such high praise."
Emily giggled.
"But you know, you are right."
Greg took a sip.
"I wonder if there are other weirdoes in this Barony."
Emily took a sip too, before she finally stopped.
"Oh! I have an idea!"
She slammed her hand onto the table.
"Why don't we have a show-and-tell contest?"
The cups clatter from her slam, she suddenly feels embarrassed, she has been too relaxed lately.
Lloyd took her words in.
"That's actually a wonderful idea."
"Really!?"
"YEAH!!"
Greg reaches his hand up, cheering for his sister.
"Let's do itt!!"
Greg quickly stands up.
"I have a bunch of spare wood, we can spread the news by word!"
Greg starts to make the sign while Emily begins to spread the news.
And just so suddenly, Lloyd is now sitting on the dueling ground, in the place where they would sit in case a duel were to happen.
"I guess it's too spontaneous."
Emily sighed sadly, the ground was empty.
Greg sighed beside her.
"In hindsight, we should have dated it to be next week or even next month."
Both siblings sighed, they sounded defeated.
Lloyd looks at them and at the empty field.
I guess it can't be helped.
Lloyd was about to leave when suddenly..
"Excuse me.. is this where the talent show is held?"
Lloyd quickly jerks his head, he couldn't believe his ears, someone actually came.
It's a small boy, he carried with him some hula-hoops and young lambs.
Lloyd recognized him to be the shepherd's boy.
Lloyd let out a small cough.
"Yes, it is."
He nudged at Greg to ask him to start writing before asking.
"Can you state your name and tell me what you are about to perform?"
The boy scratches the back of his neck, feeling shy.
"My name is Habel, and today I will be showing my tricks!!"
The boy holds the hula-hoops up.
"Come on boy, don't be shy."
He waves at the lambs who refuses to co-operate.
"You can do this."
But the lambs just hides behind him.
The boy flashes a toothy smile at Lloyd.
"I am sorry, Young Master, they are a bit shy."
And the same thing keeps on happening, 15 minutes have passed, Lloyd couldn't take it anymore, he wanted to leave.
But just then, something miraculous happened.
The lambs jump synchronously, they manages to jump into the loop.
"Well, I guess that's interesting."
Lloyd said without feeling that amused.
"Wait! But there's more!!"
The boy held the hula-hoop high up towards the sky, the little lambs made a noise before it got itself ready.
Lloyd gulped.
The lamb jumped.
And all of them..
Manage to jump through the hoop.
"W- "
"WOAHHH!!"
His cheer is overpowered by Greg's and Emily's.
"That's soo cool!!"
"Do more, show us more tricks!!"
The shepherd's boy suddenly feels shy.
He let out a small cough.
"Ehem, come on boy! You can do it!!"
The Shepard's boy cheered on his lambs.
And just like that, more and more tricks are shown, the lambs could do a back flip, they can dance while going through the hoop.
What was once a quiet field begins to be filled by their loud cheers and laughter, amused by the Lamb's antics.
Lloyd begins to chuckle.
Their noise attracts the other members of the fiefdom, especially the young ones.
"What are you guys doing?"
A group of kids begins to gather, they have been fooling around before, and now they got curious.
"We are doing a show and tell, some kind of talent show."
"Hooh!?"
The kids begin to coo.
"Oh, I know!! I have a talent!!"
One of the kids raised their hand as he jumped excitedly.
"Oh yeah? What's your name and what's your talent?"
"It's Axel and my talent is…"
Hoards of kids begins to show up, they state their names and show off their random talents, most of it doesn't really makes sense, but Lloyd enjoyed it.
"I CAN EAT A PIE IN 5 SECONDS!!"
One kid exclaimed as he buried his face into the pie.
"I CAN DO SOUMERSOULT!!
One kid exclaimed before he face planted himself into the soft grass.
"I CAN DO A BACKFLIP!!"
The same kid face planted himself back to the grass.
"I CAN SING WHILE SKIPPING!!"
The kids sang, it sounded funny.
"I CAN CONTROL BIRDS!!"
One of the kids exclaimed, he swished his hand around and a bunch of birds started to gather.
…
Wait..
That's actually amazing.
The crowd began to attract more people, it was just kids at first, but older people started to gather, they showed off their skills pridefully.
"Look, Young Master! I could eat this turkey leg in one bite!"
"Impressive, but it's not a talent."
"I could locate exactly where a root vegetable is!"
The woman concentrated hard before she finally stopped.
"There aren't any in this perimeter."
"Next."
"I CAN BREATH UNDERWATER!!"
"What are you? A mermaid?"
The crowd gets bigger, some stayed to show off, and some just to watch.
One of the kids approaches Lloyd.
"Say, say, Young Master, since this is a competition, what's the price?"
The kid whispers.
Lloyd looks at her and lifts an eyebrow.
"What, can't I just see how talented my people are?"
The kid pouts.
"Tch, and here I thought I would win a pot of gold."
"With your barely audible singing?"
The kid gasped, offended.
Lloyd surprises himself, he can recognize his people now, they aren't just a mass with a single identity anymore, they have a voice, a face, and a name.
Lloyd looked at the piling stack of paper and gave off a small smile.
But just then, the crowd suddenly splits, making way for something, a someone.
"What do you think you are doing?"
A familiar voice.
Lloyd looks up. It's his father, accompanied by Javier.
========== ♤ ==========
Clatter
Before he knew it, the sun had gone far to the west, his father and Javier had collected him back to the manor.
"So, how are you feeling? Is your hand alright?"
It's been approximately one week since the incident, Lloyd changed his gaze from his father to his right arm.
It stings..
"It has seen better days."
Lloyd quickly answered.
It's awkward, without Emily, eating just feels weird, he ate cause Emily forces him to, but in general, he just doesn't think he needs to.
"Why aren't you eating?"
His mother chimes in.
"I can't use my right arm."
"..."
Marbella noticed that the food was uncut, it must have slipped off the chef's head.
Marbella stands up, she approaches Lloyd's chair before cutting up the steak for him.
"You don't have to, you know-"
Lloyd was about to speak, but Marbella shoved a piece of the steak into his mouth.
"Come on, eat, you need to eat to heal from your injury."
Arcos coughed.
"Did you really injure your arm because you tried to feed the fire?"
Lloyd chews before he answers.
"Yeah, sorry, I was cold and drunk, I wasn't thinking straight."
Marbella's hand twitched, she hated it when her son was drunk.
"You need to stop drinking."
Marbella spoke softly as she put another piece of meat into Lloyd's mouth.
"Yeah.."
Lloyd says as he chews.
In truth, he hasn't been drinking, not even a single drop, even before he injured his hand, alcohol just doesn't mix well with his body anymore.
Lloyd continues to chew.
"So what were you doing with the villagers, just now?"
Lloyd pauses, he tries to think of an excuse, but he couldn't think of one.
"Hanging out."
Lloyd replied coldly.
This shocked both Arcos and Marbella, their eyes widened as they looked at each other.
"Hanging out?'
"Yes."
Lloyd said as he continued to chew.
"What do you mean hanging out?"
This is so out of character for Lloyd that they are both stunned.
"You know.."
Lloyd finally swallowed.
"I want to know if there are any other talents in this fiefdom."
"Talents?"
"Emily, she is really good at writing, albeit kind of amateurish, and Greg, he has some wild inventions, you should take a look at it by yourself."
"…"
Marbella tries to feed him again, but Lloyd refuses, he blocks her attempt.
"In fact, she is the one who suggested the talent show. You are a good writer, father, why don't you take her under your wing?"
Arcos is stunned, to see his son care about this fiefdom feels like a dream.
Arcos swallows dryly.
"I.. I will think about it."
Lloyd stands up.
Marbella quickly grabs his arm.
"Where are you going? You haven't finished your food, you barely ate half!"
Lloyd tries to shake her hand away.
"I don't like the food, it's greasy!"
Marbella lets go of his hand, her face is filled with obvious worry.
========== ♤ ==========
Lloyd lies on his bed, head empty, but his mind wanders.
That's when he hears a knock.
Who would visit him this late?
Lloyd opens the door cautiously.
"Mom?"
Marbella lets herself in before sitting on his bed, with her she carries a small salad bowl of tomatoes and eggs.
"Come here."
Lloyd wanted to protest, but he follows, he sat beside her.
"..."
"Why were you lying?"
It's not obvious at first glance, but Marbella knows her son.
"You weren't drunk, were you? Was the injury even an accident?"
Marbella talks fast, she is riddled with anxiety.
What is her son up to these time?
Marbella's eyes pierced through Lloyd's.
"I am sorry.. but really, I just slipped and fell, doing it sober just sounded more embarrassing than drunk."
Marbella sighed, she looked at the floor. Her son is lying again, but she decided not to push it.
"Open your mouth."
Marbella shoved a spoonful of the salad into Lloyd's mouth, he quickly chewed it before hiding his mouth behind his hand.
"Mom, please, I can feed myself."
But Marbella didn't answer, she took another spoonful.
"Eat."
Lloyd wanted to protest, but he could sense that his mom was not in a good mood.
He continues to eat as Marbella feeds him, finally finishing a bowl.