Chapter 05

And as the knob was completely turned, and the door was pushed open, a loud splash echoed all over the room. Followed closely by the thud of the basin hitting the floor.

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Current time...

"Put those in the garden, then bring these inside the kitchen, hurry!"

"I have finished decorating the garden gazebo."

"The flowers you asked for are here, do we have spare vases in the storage room?"

"Hurry up!"

The girls thoughts were interrupted once they reached their estates main hall, confused seeing the maid servants and butlers frantically running back and forth in the hallway.

"What is happening?"-Fiore looked around trying to find their head butler, wanting to know what the commotion is all about.

"Do you think that this has got something to do with what happened earlier?"-Lila whispered, nudging Helia's arm to get her attention.

"I don't know for sure.. but if it is, that girl jonah sure moved fast."-Helia replied, also curiously looking around. Waiting for someone to pass by them.

"Well good afternoon my little ladies, how was your day at the academy?"-A familiar voice came from behind them. Which made them turn around excitedly altogether.

"Gramps!"-They greeted the fifty nine year old head butler in unison, before lunging a hug at him. Which made the old man laugh.

Alexander Gustav, the head butler and the longest loyal servant of the Alcaeus family. The one who took great care of the three sisters in the OG novel, and now he's like the grandfather they never had. And despite the sisters vile reputation in the society, the head butler saw them as his little angels, which they truly were, when it came to him and the Alcaeus family. Knowing them since they were taken in as toddlers, the head butler, along with all the other servants, that worked for the Alcaeus family, treated them as treasures. Which contradicts how the rest of the empire sees them.

"I'm always glad to see you as well"-He laughed after they let him go, bowing his head to them as a proper greeting.

"So how was the academy today?"-He asked after bowing his head. Then gesturing for the servants who just passed by to come their way. The three of them exchanged looks, before averting their gazes from each other. Not wanting to be the one to tell what happened. But Mr Peterson caught Lila's eyes before she could even turn away. Leaving her no choice but to be the one to talk about it.

"Uhh.. it was great!"-Lila took a while before answering, trying to sound as convincing as she could. Not wanting their gramps to see through her lie.

"That's good to hear, have they started teaching you about how you take control of your manas yet?"-He asked, giving a list of tasks to the servant who came to them.

"Not yet, but I don't think we'll be able to take that class any time soon either, gramps."- Helia replied, before giving their head butler a you-know-why look.

"Sure you can, it is important to know even just the basics about mana handling. Even without mana flowing through your bodies."-The old butler smiled, before walking and gesturing them to follow him behind.

"But why do we have to learn to handle something we don't even have? It doesn't make sense."- Lila asked, confused about their old man's logic.

"And other than that, the professor who's handling the mana class, does not like being around us very much."-Fiore grimaced, remembering that terror of a professor in mana class that also happened to handle their etiquette class.. who's also the father of a classmate of theirs, who Lila happened to "talk" with, in their first day at the academy. So him 'hating' them, is an understatement. He loathes them with a passion. Even going as far as discouraging them about taking mana classes in front of the whole academy, humiliating them, about the fact that not a single drop of mana flows through their veins, calling them Voids.

Because in the novel where the world works around magic and mana progression, the people were classified by rank and class. Which was determined in a prestigious academy that only nobles and high ranking society members were allowed to study in, which is the Vires Academy, the only academy that associates with teaching how to handle manas in the whole empire of Viceres.

And in this academy, students are ranked based on the amount of mana their body possesses. Manas that they can use to conjure different types of elemental magic.

The Highest rank being Class S, which are the ones that possess a great amount of mana, surpassing a hundred percent, that can almost be compared to that of the empire's great Archmage. Which the male lead and female lead of the novel both possess, as main characters should. And just below S-ranks, is Class A, the second rank, which are the ones that possess eighty percent of mana progression. Class B, with fifty percent. Neophytes, which have less than twenty percent, and are quite slow when it comes to mana progression. Then Enigmas, that possess little to no, amount of mana, which usually gets considered as dormant manas. That may still awaken, with the help of mana handling classes. And lastly, the Voids, the people with no traces of manas or even a sign of dormant manas in their veins at all. They are simply normal human beings, which greatly categorizes the common people of the empire. A category that is considered a disgrace, once a person of noble birth, gets classified into. Which is the very class, that the sisters befell on. And being Voids, was something that always made the sisters feel lacking and insecure about.

"With or without mana, you should still partake in your mana handling class. Who knows.. some dormant manas are just hard to determine at its early stages. It's better to at least have an idea about basic mana handling for your sakes."-The head butler reasoned with enthusiasm, as they continued to walk in the direction of the garden at the back of the mansion.

"If you say so then.. wait, why are we heading here by the way gramps?"-Fiore questioned, suddenly getting distracted by the servants that kept running back and forth, to and from the gardens direction.

"Yeah, I have been wondering since earlier, is there something going on today, that we don't know about?"-Helia chimed in, looking at the servant passing by, holding a vase of flowers.

"Do we have a guest arriving or something?"-Lila guessed, after two servants holding a tray of pastries and confectionaries passed by, her hand reaching out and getting one for herself.

"As a matter of fact, yes there is. And they are heading to our estate as we speak."-The head butler replied with a happy tone. Which was completely the opposite of how the girls felt, the moment they heard his answer. Knowing that it may be a guest that is associated with Lady Janette from earlier at the academy or worse.. one of the novel characters that they have been trying to avoid for almost a year now.

"Ahm, and who are these guests we are talking about exactly?"-Lila asked, trying to sound as passive as possible. Not wanting their gramps to see through her nervousness.

"I was actually thinking about making it a pleasant surprise, but I think it is best that you do know ahead of time, so you can make some arrangements, my lady."-He spoke, before turning to Fiore and smiled.

"So it's Fiore's guests?"-Helia concluded before turning to her sisters as well, who right about that moment, had a very stiff smile on her face. Which only meant that she's having a panic attack from the inside. Overthinking what's ahead.

"But I don't recall having to invite someone.."-Fiore spoke, countless possibilities going through her head.

"It is the Young Marquis of Vaughan my lady. Your precious person just got back."-Their old head butler smiled and playfully winked. Thinking that it came as a pleasant surprise for Fiore. Which was quite the opposite.

"..H-He's back?"-Fiore asked, taken aback by the news. Since, it has been almost a year since the day, she has last seen him as well, which was the day they first woke up in the novel and caused a huge ruckus back at his estate.

Helia and Lila quietly stared at her reaction.. knowing full well that she's going to have a full-on panic about the situation later on.

"Yes, and he's heading straight here as we speak."-The head butler replied as he opened the doors heading to the garden.

"So I just brought you here to show you how we prepared the garden for his visit. In case you want to make some changes my lady."-He continued, gesturing his hand to the whole garden. That was simple but elegantly decorated.

"Oh.. it's very very pretty.."-Fiore replied shortly, not really paying attention to the details in front of her. Since her mind was far off, overthinking.

"Are you certain my lady? We can make changes if you'd like, it's not a problem at all."-The head butler assured her, after seeing her zoned out expression, thinking that she must have disliked something.

"No no, like she said, it's very pretty gramps! All of you did great, thank you! We'll just take Fiore to her room.. I think she was too surprised that she became speechless."-Lila pushed Fiore to turn around gently, while Helia pulled her hand.

"Is that so? Then please head back safely, I'll come escort you once they have arrived."-Their gramps bowed and smiled before turning the other way, heading into the garden.

"Okay! We'll see you later gramps!"-Lila smiled before pushing Fiore, who was still zoned out, to walk faster. While Helia just smiled and waved before matching their phase.

---

Fiore's room...

"What will I do? What do I say? What kind of excuse will I use this time?"-Fiore kept going on and on, after they got inside her room. Pacing back and forth countless of times, while her sisters are quietly sitting on her bed, observing her, not really sure how to calm her down.

"It's been like what.. almost a year, since I last saw him. And the last time we saw each other wasn't a very pleasant time either."-Fiore continued pacing around, thinking about what happened almost a year ago.

"His training overseas should have lasted for another year.. why is he back already?"-She added, sulking.

Given that Aidan Vaughan was one of the secondary leads, his character was supposed to surface much later in the novel. Which was also the case for their characters.

Who were only mentioned in the first few chapters of the novel.. In a newspaper headline titled, "Alcaeus sisters, carriage accident" that the female lead happened to read as her storyline progressed, In Aidan Vaughan's short introduction in the beginning of the story, which also mentioned the carriage incident that her fiancee and her sisters were involved in, right before he was deployed to train, and in brief moments in parts of the novel where their characters were only mentioned, to connect their roles to the story. Which they thought was probably the author's way of giving the villain characters a momentary introduction, for they were about to play important parts in the novel later on.

On the other hand, Aidan Vaughan's character was supposed to enter the story line again after two years of training in a foreign country, which also included the Imperial knights. And he was supposed to encounter the female lead a month, after his return. Which also marked the beginning of OG Fiore's hatred for the female lead. After seeing how her fiance, who she patiently waited for, for years, looked fondly at her, even after only meeting her for the first time at a banquet. Which is supposed to take place, a year from their current timeline.

So Fiore made sure to avoid him until he went away for his travel, no matter how many times he tried to talk to her, after the incident that happened with his maids. Making sure that she will muster enough courage to face him and end their engagement by the time he gets back after those two years.. Which was sadly cut short by his unexpected early arrival.

"Well.. we stuck with the excuse of not having our memories back until now.. so just stick with that for now Fiore."-Lila suggested, sounding uncertain herself. Anxious about the sudden change of the story's course of events.

"You're right.. but I don't think that I'll be able to even talk to him right now, not after what happened back then.."-Fiore trailed off, before heavily sighing.

"And we were just thinking about it earlier too.. I think that was supposed to be a sign, you guys."-Helia concluded trying to joke around, but didn't find it funny herself.

"Yeah that was a mess.. and that came from someone who loves making a mess."-Lila joked, trying to laugh off the situation.

".. But to be honest, I'd do it again just to see their reactions."-Helia nonchalantly added, which made Fiore and Lila laugh, remembering the day of the incident.. especially how it ended.

Flashback...

And as the knob was completely turned, and the door was pushed open, a loud splash echoed all over the room. Followed closely by the thud of the basin hitting the floor.

"What the hell.."-Aidan Percival Vaughan's voice echoed, as he looked at the mess in front of him.

The Alcaeus sisters were drenched with water from head to toe.. while his maid servants were sitting on the floor, an empty basin, just laying beside them.

"Oh my.."-The elderly woman, who wore a physician's attire gasped, along with the two other physicians who stood next to her, just right behind the Marquis.

"Young master.. w-we can explain!"- The head maid and maids, who were not expecting the girls' sudden actions, stuttered. Not sure how to explain the situation, after the girls poured the basin of water on themselves instead.

"You were supposed to bring the things I asked for in the room, then immediately leave, how the hell did this happen?"-He questioned before striding over to the sisters, who were quietly standing while huddled closely to each other.

"D-Don't come any closer!"-Erin shouted, pulling Nina and Ines behind her. Like she was protecting them.

Nina and Ines looked at each other knowingly before nodding.. instantly understanding what Erin meant to do. Which was to take their "amnesia act" up a notch.

"You two will be handling the talking.."-Ines whispered, while hiding her face behind Erin.

"What do you mean?"-Nina questioned, making sure to whisper as quietly as she could.

"Acting is not for me.. you want me to laugh while acting scared?--ow"-she retorted, before feeling a pinch on her arm that Erin was holding. Which was Erin's way of telling them to zip it, while still keeping her eyes at the Marquis who looked confusedly at them, after they stepped back, acting scared.

"Please excuse my rudeness, but the young ladies of Alcaeus seem to be suffering from memory loss due to the accident, Young Marquis."-Bane stepped up, while bowing his head. Trying to fulfill his promise earlier.

"What?"-Aidan Vaughan furrowed his brows. Before looking at the three. Trying to assess how to approach the situation.

"Please do not fall for their act, Young Master Aidan!"-The head maid interrupted his thoughts.

"They are just doing this for mere attention.. please keep in mind, that this is not the first time they have done something like this!"-She added, pointing her finger rudely at the three.

"Irene, tell me exactly what happened here."-He firmly spoke, ignoring her words.

"They.. they attacked us.. we only entered the room to bring in what you asked for, Young master, but they suddenly acted violently towards us."-The head maid acted hurt, and so did her little underlings. Which almost made Ines, who was still hiding behind Erin, scoff out loud.

"Is this true?"-The Marquis turned to Bane, asking him to confirm whether it is the truth or not.

"It is not.. they entered the room and acted rudely in front of the young mistresses. They even went as far as grabbing Lady Agnes' hair."-Bane replied, still keeping his head bowed.

"How dare you lie in front of his grace?!"-The head maid yelled, failing to control her anger.

"Irene.."-The Marquis' warned, not even looking at his head maid, who suddenly fell quiet.

"How did you get drenched in water?"-The Marquis turned to the sisters.. trying to look at his fiancee, but Nina was busy trying to hide herself behind Erin, like Ines was doing.

"They tried pouring it on us, so we tried to push them off, but it still fell on us.."-Erin spoke slowly.. trying to sound as wary as she could.

"We swore that we didn't know what they were talking about but they kept on accusing us of fabricating lies.."-Erin continued sounding like she was in the brink of tears. Making Ines and Nina almost laugh in the middle of a serious situation. Knowing that Erin can pull the most serious acts if she had to, even in their past lives. Like she is doing now. Completely flipping the cards on the maids, who just tried to victimize themselves earlier.

"You're lyin--"-The head maid suddenly interfered but was cut off by the Marquis.

"Irene.. please do not make me repeat myself."-He warned once again. Making the head maid and the maids with her bow their head in shame, but still dared to glare at the three's direction.

"Please forgive my peoples rude behavior. I take the blame for not educating them properly."-The Marquis bowed his head.

"But for now, please let these physicians aid you, you've been through a rough accident, they will just need to examine you to make sure that you do not have any injuries that we should be concerned of."-He calmly stated, gesturing to the people behind him.

"Would that be alright with you?"-He added, his face still serious.. making it hard for Erin to read, what he was thinking about.

Erin looked back at the two behind her and gestured for them to come forward. Which took a bit while but, Ines slowly and awkwardly came to Erin's side eventually.. Nina on the other hand felt reluctant, knowing that the man in front of them loathed her character.

"Agnes?"-Aidan called out her name, his voice calm, like he was trying to sound as gentle as he could, to not scare her. But Nina didn't budge. Feeling overwhelming nervousness.

"If you are not comfortable around me, I will step out of the room.. just let the physicians look after you."-He sighed, before turning around to head to the door, but was greeted by a servant who looked like he ran a marathon.

"Young master Aidan!"-He stopped, catching his breath.

"What is it?"-He questioned, but the answer he was looking for was already standing furiously at the door.

"What the hell happened to my daughters?"

A man with light blonde hair, deep blue eyes, a strong build and rough facial features, who looked like he was in his mid forty's, towered over the Marquis.. fuming.

"I am to blame for all of this Your Grace, I failed to properly care for your precious daughters."-The Marquis bowed his head upon his presence. Making Erin, Nina and Ines stare directly at the person who just arrived.. It was none other than the Duke of House Alcaeus.. their father.

To be continued...