Chapter 121: Portrait of What His Family Could’ve Been

She could almost hear the record scratch in her head as Axton’s handsome, smiling face looked at her and told her that she had gotten heavy. From his tone, he was sincere in the same way adults complimented small children on their healthy growth when they saw them once a year, during the holidays.

It wasn’t meant to be insulting.

But it was.

Tori narrowed her eyes a bit and the smile on her face froze. You’ve gotten taller, Tori. I’m glad you’re healthy after the poachers, Tori. You’re getting stronger, Tori. There are many things that can be said other than I’ve gotten heavier. WTF, Axton.

“We are making sure she eats well,” Piers said. She slowly turned her head to look at Piers with narrowing eyes.

Et tu, Piers?

“Ow!” Axton snapped his head to the side and Tori saw her brother lower his hand with a disgusted and annoyed look on his face.

Sebastian sneered as Axton rubbed the back of his head. “No wonder you’re alone.”

It’s good to have big brothers. Tori nodded to herself, satisfied.

“Axton.” Piers put the crate down and moved towards Axton, slowly opening his arms apart.

Axton’s eyes widened and he took a step back.

“What are you doing? Don’t move,” Tori said, frowning. She gave Piers an encouraging look. “Okay, like we practiced. Just relax your shoulders and lean in. Allow your arms to slide into position.”

She saw Piers’ shoulders lower and, though he looked concentrated, he began to lean to one side. Axton’s eyes crinkled up, and for a moment, Tori thought he would try to flee. His arms were tense at his sides, and he had a wary look on his face.

Piers slowed as he approached him. “His arms are awkward.”

“Don’t worry, as long as you can get your arms around him,” Tori said. Axton cringed as Piers made contact. “Lower your shoulders. Tilt your head to the side, as if looking over his shoulder. Good, like that. Don’t lock eyes with him. Now hold for three counts.”

“It’s good that you are doing well,” Piers told Axton in a robotic, clearly forced, voice. Tori walked around, checking his posture, and nodded to herself, satisfied.

After three counts, Piers took a step back and then to the side. His arms slid away from Axton, but the movement wasn’t as if he were snatching his arms away or rejecting Axton. Piers stood to the side, as if to get out of the way and allow someone else to embrace his friend.

He looked towards Tori with expectation on his face.

“Good job!” Tori beamed. “That’s much more natural this time, don’t you think?”

The corner of his lips curled up, appearing pleased at her praise. “We practiced a lot.”

Across from them, Sebastian scowled. “That better just be ‘practicing’....” He muttered under his breath.

“What do you think?” Piers looked towards Axton with a serious expression. “Improved?”

Axton’s brows rose and he tilted his head to the side, giving a reluctant nod. “I must admit, it was much better this time compared to when I left. When I left, you were still counting to three out loud, and when you reached three, you almost shoved me away.”

“Tori, I have improved.” Piers seemed to almost report it to her, and she nodded.

“Yes, you have! Very good!” She lifted her hand and patted the side of Piers’ head. “I told you that you could do it.”

Sebastian was sneering. His eyes turned towards Axton and narrowed. “What are you doing here so soon? I thought you wouldn’t get here for another few weeks.”

“General Marquis sent me back for two things.” Axton stood up straight and faced Sebastian as if addressing a superior. “He wants me to be of assistance to Senior Kasen.”

“And second?”

Axton’s lips twitched and he almost smiled. “To clean up Sun Garden.”

Tori lowered her hand from patting Piers’ head and her eyes widened. “Are the proceedings complete?”

Axton couldn’t seem to control his smile and nodded; his eyes crinkled with joy. “The proceedings are complete. The Alvere Duchy is mine.”

Tori let out an excited cry and hobbled back to Axton to hug him again. “Congratulations!”

He laughed as he welcomed her back into his arms and nuzzled the top of her head. “I should say the same to you, Countess of Cosora.”

Tori slacked in his arms. “Please don’t remind me.”

She felt his chest vibrate against her as he laughed. “Senior Sebastian was telling me about it. You will have suitable assistance in running it. All nobles do. How well those nobles manage them depends on the individual, but if you can manage all of this, you can manage your assistants.”

Tori took a deep breath and nodded. “I hope so. “ She tilted her head to the side and looked at him curiously. “Is that what you do?”

Axton let out a small snort and looked over her shoulder to glare at Piers. “When do I have time to focus on the duchy when I have to deal with him every day?”

Piers turned his head towards the water. “Don’t blame me for your lack of time management.”

Axton opened his mouth to retort, but a hand clamped over his shoulder, and he turned to look into the glowering green eyes of Sebastian. “Let my sister go.”

Axton looked down and Tori gave him a cheesy smile as she stood in place, her arms at her side as Axton still clung on to her like she was a stuffed animal. “I have things to do.”

He rolled his eyes and released her. Tori straightened out her wrinkled dress.

“Are you going to Sun Garden today?” Piers asked.

“At least let me rest! I just got back.” Axton shot him an annoyed glare.

“What ship did you take here?” Piers looked out towards the landing island. Several large vessels were anchored nearby, where there was suitable deep water.

“Osten Vass,” Axton said as he stretched his arm across his chest.

“You took the General Marquis’ naval ship?” Sebastian asked.

“It’s the fastest one.”

“Axton’s tent should be clean. It was only used for a bit when we were out of tents for guests,” Tori said as she began to walk towards the encampment. She paused after a few steps. “By the way, Axton, Piers and I need to discuss something with you.”

“All right.” Axton bent down to pick up a large bag and a sheathed sword tied securely on to it. “About what?”

“Montan Alvere,” Piers said. Axton froze with the strap of the bag still in his hand. He looked towards the two as Piers picked up the crate.

Axton’s eyes automatically narrowed at the name. His voice lowered and was cold. “What about him?”

Tori kept walking, but Piers responded in a dull voice. “Duke Alvere is abusing him.”

“Have you considered water reservoirs on the farms?” Tori asked as she walked along with Idunn and Instructor Ignatius. “Since we’re next to the river, we should prepare for occasional flooding.”

“A water reservoir isn’t a bad idea,” Idunn replied with a small, thoughtful nod. “They would help with flood control and distribution further inland.”

“I am thinking about opening an ironworks for urban and rural construction.” Tori stared straight ahead of them. “Unfortunately, the villagers don’t have much experience with that. I will need assistance from my family for human resources.”

“That would be very useful for pipes and bridges,” Idunn told her. “Have you considered where to get raw material?”

Tori shook her head. “Not yet. Currently, any time we need metalwork done, the guilds had to arrange it for us. If we are going to grow, we will need our own workshop. We can also use it to train villagers, providing another job opportunity in the future.”

“Iron ore is readily available in Nord,” Idunn said. “The quality is incredibly good. Helviti is our march’s ironworks. It may be arrogant of me to say, but Helviti is one of the most skilled ironworks in the empire in recent years. The blacksmiths are trained well, but their use is limited in Nord. We don’t have a large population that needs ironwork outside of military use. It would be mutually beneficial for them to come here.”

“Who do I have to contact to arrange that?” Tori asked.

“Jon Magnusson,” Idunn answered. She pursed her lips. “My brother’s brother-in-law. I will arrange an introduction.”

Tori smiled and thanked Idunn. They walked along some fields and continued talking about irrigation before Tori took a carriage back to Viclya. There were several test farms that were along the originally allocated land, so they weren’t close together. Following guidelines from the visiting farmers, crops were grown in varying locations.

Idunn and the farmers monitoring the land noted everything from water usage, soil quality, and weather to growth rates and estimated yield. Durum wheat was a well-used grain in Soleil and was mainly upriver. The test crops of potatoes from the Pacha Empire; squash, beans, and corn from the Tona Kingdom; and rapeseed from the east, which was already used in some parts of the empire, though not widespread, appeared on the landscape.

Tori loved rice, but it was extremely labor intensive, even in her original modern world. Farming was already labor intensive as is and she didn’t want to overcomplicate things, especially when rice was not a staple food in Soleil.

She was greedy for the food she was used to, but she’d have to make do. It wasn’t as if she were the one physically doing the work to grow the crops. What was important was that there would be food for her people and her experiments in the kitchen were to spread knowledge on how to prepare the food.

“What if, when there are more villages along the road, each village can specialize in one crop or dish to promote?”

When Tori returned to her tent, she was just in time for her meeting with Henrik to go over their recent reconnaissance on the Golden Cow. He’d just sat down when she blurted out her question. JP was also present and looked up from where he was clearing her desk and exchanged concerned looks with Henrik.

“You want each village to specialize in one product?”

“One product to market,” Tori said. “Each village should be able to provide itself with a variety of crops and livestock. I don’t want to make each village grow or raise one crop or animal. That can cause problems if there is a localized disaster that kills livestock or decimates a crop. It would be a loss for the entire county. But let’s say, one village has a lot of chickens and so there are a lot of eggs. They can specialize in coffee with eggs.”

The two looked at her. Henrik opened his mouth. “Then, along the entire road from the border to Viclya, there would be different specialties to lure visitors into stopping and spending money.”

“Yes.”

“We should write this down for later,” Henrik said, a bit excited. “Visitors can have an entire gastronomical experience the moment they enter the delta’s borders.”

JP let out a heavy breath, already used to Tori straying off topic at random times. “Both of you have busy schedules, can we get this meeting started?”

“Right, right, let’s review,” Tori said, scooting forward on her seat. She and Henrik opened two notebooks which they had written their notes and thoughts in regarding what they noticed in the Golden Cow stores. “Let’s start with mercantile. I didn’t know he also sold antiques there. Those are likely the items he bought from fallen wealthy households.”

“He also sells local goods from outside of Horizon, from throughout the Central Corridor. Since he has general stores along the trade routes, these can be acquired locally and then sent to the main store in Horizon,” Henrik said. “I was able to get a map of where these stores are. There are ten of them going through the Central Corridor, leading into Anlar and to the lakes.”

“Do they sell similar items?”

“It seems like it,” Henrik replied. “We have yet to visit them ourselves. It would be a good idea to do so later and get a better idea of what is sold in each.”

“I noticed that he doesn’t offer services,” Tori said, tapping her finger on the table.

“Services may be too much to manage. He seems to prefer to sell physical items: clothes, local goods, furniture, and the like.”

“Jams and preserves, honey, dried meats.” Tori read her list. “His print shop also seems to double as a stationery store, but it doesn’t have much variety.”

“His cafes have rather basic options, as well,” Henrik said. “The target demographic seems to be working folks who don’t ask for anything complicated. Keeping a limited menu helps restrict spending.”

“I’m curious about his employee retention rate. The positions seem easy to train for, but I don’t doubt he has loyal people working in more important positions.” Tori paused and looked across the desk. “Did you notice one of the gentlemen at the mercantile store following us?”

The corners of Henrik’s lips pulled up into a slight smirk. “It was a bit obvious.”

When the man approached and asked if they had any questions, she and Henrik said they were just looking. The man stayed at a distance, but he watched and wherever they went, he followed. Tori and Henrik resorted to simply taking out their notebooks and writing each other notes instead of speaking.

In the end, they walked out without buying anything.

“I don’t know if he recognized us,” Tori said. “There is a chance. I did cause quite a scene when we opened our first store.”

Henrik jutted out his lip and nodded. “If he did, what can he do? We haven’t done anything wrong, and they don’t know what we were doing.”

“What if he tries to claim you stole a product from them?” JP asked. “The cow man accused Tori of that in the beginning.”

“Then we’ll refute him in the same way,” Tori said. “We keep track of our products from conception to sale, including who has played them in regard to the games.”

“Regardless of what he tries, we’ll be prepared. I think the only place we’d have problems with is his antiques reselling.”

Tori wrinkled her nose. “To be honest, I don’t know if I feel comfortable doing that. I don’t know the circumstances of those selling their belongings. Usually, if people weren’t desperate or something terrible wasn't happening, they wouldn’t sell family heirlooms.” At least, I wouldn’t. It’s like the heirloom would have bad karma or something.

“Then, let’s set that aside for now. What about his local goods like preserves and the like?” Henrik asked. “With his general stores, he has a steady supply chain. To compete, we’d need something similar.”

“And hopefully better quality or from different places,” JP added. “I have to say it is convenient for all of those things to be sold in one place.”

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Tori narrowed her eyes. “If you’re there for one thing, but end up looking around, you’ll find something else you may want....” Like when I’m at Target.... “That is a good point, JP. Our stores are scattered at the moment. If they want furniture, they must go to a different store from the one that sells clothes. It’s not so bad if the store was next door or at least in the same shopping area, but if it was in another part of town, that’s two trips that one may not have the time to make. It’s not very convenient.”

“What do you want to do? Buy out an entire block in the fourth district and make one large shopping pavilion?” Henrik started it off as a joke, but his voice trailed off. He looked at Tori and Tori looked at him. They came to a silent consensus. “Should we call Ilyana?”

“We should call Ilyana.”

A few minutes later, Ilyana rushed in, dressed in a dress with her hair wet with sea water. She was out of breath as she stumbled into the tent. Tori furrowed her brows. “We said we could talk about it later.”

“No...it sounds...important!” Ilyana huffed and JP had her take the seat he was on.

“JP, go and ask for another towel for her,” Tori said. JP nodded and headed out.

“So, what’s this about buying a block of stores?” Ilyana asked. Her face was red, and her hair clung to her. She had been at the beach with her family and her mother told her that Tori was calling.

“I know it sounds crazy,” Tori said, careful. “But Henrik and I were discussing....”

The two went over their theory and Tori watched Ilyana’s eyes grow bigger and bigger.

“There are three concerns,” Henrik said. “First, availability of location. It was difficult enough just finding a location for Duel. The larger the space, the more difficult it is to find. Second is, of course, the cost of building such a thing. Third, is time and effort. All of us are busy, Lycée starts in a few weeks and we’re still working on our projects. Tori’s a countess and that’s more work for her.”

“I have no doubt that we can get the products we want. But this is going to be expensive and time consuming. I’m also worried that if we try to buy one store at a time to acquire land, the cow man will suspect something and may try to get in our way,” Tori said.

“Land purchases in urban areas like Horizon aren’t secrets,” Henrik told them. “It would be easy for someone to find out who bought what. If we bought property, it’s obvious what we’d do with it.”

“What if someone bought property for us?” Ilyana asked. “Like my father?”

“The degree of separation is almost non-existent. If Baron Agafonov bought land in Horizon, who is the most likely person to use it? You,” Tori told her. Ilyana slumped her shoulders and wrinkled her nose, acknowledging that was the case.

“It’s the same if one of Tori’s relatives bought it or if my parents had a hand in it,” Henrik said. “It would be best to buy it all at once.”

“It’s still a good idea and we should keep it in mind, but for now, let’s concentrate on Duel and the cafes and print shop. I’m going to talk to Mama J about letting Lukas work at Cafe Duel.”

Ilyana sucked in a sharp breath. “Will Mama J be all right with that?”

“We will find out.”

“Tori!” JP’s voice sounded from outside and he stuck his head in. “I know you’re busy, but the person I told you about has arrived.”

Tori leaned to the side to look past Henrik and towards the tent flap. “What person?”

“The one who can help Sonia and I practice hunting,” JP said. “I want to introduce you before we settle him in. He came all the way from the western Alvere Duchy.” Tori’s brows rose. She looked at the other two, who nodded.

“All right, send him in.”

JP nodded and entered. There was a spare towel over one of his shoulders and he held back the flap. An old man walked in with gray hair and a beard. His eyes were dark, and he was holding a worn hat in his hands. He was dressed like an average villager with leathery skin, and looked like he worked a lot outdoors.

Sonia followed behind with a proud smile. “Tori, this is our grandfather on our mom’s side. Dede, this is Tori, the Countess of Cosora.”

The old man’s dark eyes crinkled up into smiles as he lowered his head and gave her a bow. “Good afternoon, my lady. I am Jean Paul and Sonia’s grandfather. They call me Dede. Please call me Dede if you so wish.”

“Dede, a pleasure to meet you,” Tori said as she rose from her seat. She took her cane and walked over to greet him. “This is Henrik.”

“I remember Henrik,” Dede chuckled as he gave Henrik a small nod.

“And this is Ilyana.” Tori motioned to Ilyana, who put the towel JP handed her around her neck. Ilyana smiled back brightly in greeting.

“Oh, such pretty girls.” Dede looked at Sonia and JP. “Why are you two still single?” The twins’ smiles froze.

“Dede, it’s different now. People don’t get engaged young all the time,” Sonia said with a slight cringe. She looked at Tori. “Dede is descended from the Hanra in Alvere. They were one of the nomadic groups that the Duraga Federation forced out a few hundred years ago. Soleil settled them on the Sur-Alvere border.”

Dede looked proud. “But our riding skills have not diminished!”

“Dede, Mom can’t ride.” Sonia reminded him with a tired look. The old man didn’t seem bothered by that.

“Your mother doesn’t like horses.” Dede said it, but he looked almost pained. “That aside, did you tell the Countess why I have come?”

“Yes, Dede,” JP said. He looked at Tori. “The Sur-Alvere border is mountainous with hills at its base. I talked to some people, and they said that the Fekete Duchy’s hunting grounds are similar, so Dede will be able to guide us. He brought some horses with him for hunting, as Ciel Noir and Nuage aren’t suitable.”

“Dede, I am counting on JP and Sonia to represent me in the Empress’ birthday hunt,” Tori said, firmly. “Will you be able to guide them in the next few weeks?”

Dede bowed his head once more. “Leave them to me, my lady. I will ensure that they will be able to track, shoot, and skin anything they set their eyes on.”

Henrik didn’t appear convinced, but Tori nodded. “Then, what time would be best for them to go?”

“Mornings would be good, my lady.”

“JP, your morning duties will be on hold. We can work in the evenings,” Tori told him. “Take Dede to discuss with Margo Sima on suitable locations for hunting. She monitors where our villagers go to hunt. Make sure the location is suitable for horses.”

The twins nodded and Sonia led their grandfather out of the tent. JP confirmed his schedule with Tori and then followed.

Ilyana looked at Tori with a quizzical expression. “I thought the hunters were supposed to represent the Empress.”

“I thought that would be too much pressure,” Tori said. “Besides, their spots were reserved by me to represent the Empress. Axton says he’s only so-so at archery and unless Piers is going to slay animals with a sword, I don’t see him bringing in the necessary game to beat the second prince’s party.”

“They represent the Emperor, right?” Henrik asked. Tori nodded.

She narrowed her eyes. “He has a lot of confidence in his second son. I want them both to be disappointed.”

Many of the original staff of Sun Garden had left in the years following his mother’s death and he had done his part to keep track of them. Most of them now worked at his local inns. A few remained, including the head butler, who had served under his mother.

Axton hadn’t seen him for many years and as Blue River stopped in front of the closed iron gates leading to the sprawling, wheat-colored stone estate beyond it, Axton’s eyes reddened. The head butler was already going gray when he was a child. Seeing the man now, Axton’s heart twisted.

Time had not been good to Mr. Merced. His hair was all white and he looked thin, with bags beneath his eyes and wrinkles all over his face. He seemed to stoop forward; different from the upright gentleman in a crisp suit that Axton remembered from his childhood.

He swallowed hard.

He watched the old man slowly bend down and lower his knee. Axton’s eyes widened and he jumped off Blue River.

“Mr. Merced, there is no need to kneel.”

“It is your first-time home in so long, Your Grace,” Mr. Merced said in a shaking voice. “I must kneel.”

Axton bit his lips and took a step back to allow the old man to do what he wished. “In the future, a bow will suffice, Mr. Merced. Please rise.”

“Yes, Your Grace.” The old man pushed himself up slowly and brushed his knee with one hand before lifting his head. “Welcome to Sun Garden, Duke Alvere.” As he said the title, Axton could see the glint of joy and pride in his eyes. How long had he waited for this day?

Axton gave him a solemn nod. “Have they left?”

“Yes, Your Grace. Mr. Alvere has left with only his belongings, which were listed in the marriage contract between him and the late Duchess. Mr. Tills and the knights sent by Her Majesty ensured that he took nothing that belonged to you. That woman has also left, and all her things bought with Alvere money have been confiscated.”

Axton nodded, satisfied. “What about their son?”

“Young Mr. Alvere has not returned to Sun Garden since the early winter.” Mr. Merced’s eyes flashed with discomfort. He seemed to want to say more, but held his tongue.

“Then, take me inside.”

Mr. Merced nodded, and he turned and unlocked the iron gate. The two imperial knights escorting Axton at the order of the Empress followed behind them as they walked up the gravel path, towards the intimidating manor house. In its very center were the oldest parts of the estate, from the unification period of the empire.

That center area was where the family crypt was. However, the buildings outside of it were built in a later, peaceful period, when the Alvere family focused on showing its influence through extravagance. The main estate was surrounded by a thick stone wall with iron prongs sticking out.

However, the estate itself was more a palace than a fortified castle. As Axton passed the once green and manicured garden with Blue River in tow, his eyes narrowed. The plants were overgrown and some of the fountains he remembered there being had been covered by them.

“When Mr. Alvere began to run out of money, the first servants sent away were the gardeners,” Mr. Merced said. “Sun Garden was not receiving visitors. Only essential staff were retained.”

Axton nodded once more. They reached the front steps of the estate and there were two more Imperial Knights. Several had been sent to guard Sun Garden in case his father tried to break in and steal things. His godmother was careful about this.

Mr. Merced unlocked and opened the heavy double doors. A loud creak seemed to echo through the interior. Axton looked up and raised his hand to signal the light crystals. Only two of them above the vaulted ceiling foyer turned on.

“Is every room like this?” he asked.

Mr. Merced shook his head. “No, Your Grace. To save money, Mr. Alvere and his family lived on the second floor of the east wing. The other wings were closed off to his family.”

Axton narrowed his eyes. The east wing was the wing where the mistress lived with her son. Axton and his mother lived in the more lavish west wing up until the day she died. Before his father strayed, he also lived in the west wing.

Axton walked through the halls. Most of the expensive furniture and decorations had been confiscated by the Empress, and were stored elsewhere. He planned to go through the items for furniture for his own home later. As such, the halls of Sun Garden were relatively bare.

The gilded frames, tapestries, statues, and so forth that lined the halls of the four other duchies were missing in Sun Garden. Some rooms didn’t even have furniture. It seemed that only the rooms that were necessary, such as the kitchen, were stocked.

Axton didn’t go into the east wing. He slowly climbed the curved staircase leading to the upper floor and had Mr. Merced unlock the door to the west wing. Axton expected it to be as desolate and dark as the lower level, but when the door was opened, it was brightly lit with furniture and wall decorations.

He narrowed his eyes and stopped at the doorway, looking at Mr. Merced with questions.

The old man looked conflicted. “Mr. Alvere lived in the east wing, but he slept in the Duchess’ room.”

“What?” Axton couldn’t contain the disgust on his face. He marched through the west wing’s hall, passing various paintings and tapestries that were similar, but different from what he remembered. He was also sure that the Empress had confiscated all the expensive items in this wing, as well.

Why was it so well decorated compared to the rest of Sun Garden? In addition, some areas were lined with dust and this wing was spotless. Even the deep green rug that ran along the hallway was well kept. It was as if he stepped back in time, before he left to live in the palace.

His face grew darker with each step, but he said nothing. Mr. Merced didn’t stop him.

Axton stopped in front of a gilded door and lifted his hand over the handle.

He froze and his breath shook. No dust on the handle. No dust on the carvings on the door. He could feel his heart beating quickly. His hand squeezed the handle of his late mother’s bedroom.

The door didn’t creak. It opened smoothly, as if well-oiled and brand new.

It swung open and he saw the familiar wooden frame of his mother’s canopy bed in a room where the heavy hunter green drapes were pulled to the side to fill the room with bright sunlight.

Axton stood at the door frame.

When he left, there was a small chair by his mother’s bedside. It was where he sat, holding her hand, as she breathed her last breath and told him she loved him. It was where his godmother found him, sitting in a daze while outside the door, his father fought against guards and servants to get in and see his mother.

He did not let him see her. From her death to her burial, he did not let that man see the Duchess.

Axton stepped into the room and quietly walked around, over the parquet floor. His usually quiet footsteps were heavy. He touched the soft sheets of the bed. They were the same ones he remembered. Alvere’s colors were green and yellow, so much of the fabrics were green and yellow.

He turned around and faced the massive hearth. Before his father betrayed his mother, above it had been a family portrait of the three of them: his father standing proudly behind a seated Duchess with a baby boy on her lap. They were once a beautiful, perfect family.

The portrait was one of the first things his mother removed when she found out that his father was with another woman. He was certain that portrait was burned. Afterwards, nothing hung over the hearth again.

His eyes narrowed and he looked at a massive portrait.

“Is he crazy?” Axton’s voice was tight.

The portrait was of a beautiful, perfect family of three. A lovely woman with wavy dark hair and blue-gray eyes seated on a gilded chair. His mother’s warm smile was familiar. Behind her was a man with curly black hair, smiling fondly as one hand rested on her shoulder. Her hand was on his. The man’s other hand was on the shoulder of the young man standing next to him.

Axton took a step forward, unable to take his eyes off the painting.

The young man was tall and upright, wearing a familiar imperial knight’s formal uniform worn at palace balls. There was the sash, the sword, and every insignia pin he had in the correct place. It was as if he’d stepped into the painting from the ballroom.

Axton let out a heavy, shaking breath as he took a step back and looked at the fabricated portrait of what his family could’ve been.

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