Chapter 1: Prologue
A youthful boy had recently marked the beginning of his adulthood at fourteen-years-of-age as the lord of Ilyanna Castle—an old castle in the Far East.
He and his younger sister, Aelia Elgar Ilyanna had, too, turned thirteen-years-of-age. Alongside her brother, she received ownership of Ilyanna Castle after the death of her father who died in battle two-some years ago.
Aelia, who was to leave her respected home, left her most treasured necklace with her older brother, Cyril. It was made of ruby and encased with diamonds—a valuable necklace unbefitting the shabby pair of siblings.
“Give this to Sophie when she turns of age, brother.”
Cyril nodded. “Alright.”
Their bedridden mother and younger siblings were much too weak to tend to housekeeping duties and their late father, Ron Elgar Ilyanna, a man of integrity, left a few acres of land gifted by the Emperor and a dilapidated castle for his children. Though he received more land and another castle as a reward for his heroic contributions to the war efforts, those possessions had been taken by enemy troops.
Regardless of their young age, Cyril and Aelia, the firstborns of the family, were forced to inherit the position of their deceased father as head of the house per Teniac tradition. But no matter how much the pairs struggled to keep the family afloat, they fell deeper into poverty.
Then one day, a letter arrived before the Elgar Family from the Teniac Emperor, Murray Theresia de Calise.
The letter spoke of the promised engagement between the Crown Prince, Lawrence Theresia de Calise, and the daughter of the Hero of Teniac, Aelia Elgar Ilyanna. It was the greatest reward offered to the empire’s hero.
On the day of Aelia’s departure, a mirthful celebration was held at Ilyanna Castle.
That night, she sought the presence of Cyril, now the only sole overseer of the castle, and said, “Brother, you must not expect anything from me because I am engaged to the Crown Prince. Father would not have wanted this. Even if Sophie gets married, I won’t give her another piece of jewelry. That necklace is the only one, truly. Okay?”
Cyril looked at his sister and smiled woefully. She was younger than him by a year, but she played the part of an older, mature sibling more than he did.
Used to her constant nagging, he shrugged, and said, “We’ll be fine. Worry about yourself. Don’t act like a country bumpkin in front of them just because you grew up in a small castle, you got that?”
“…How can I ever entrust mother to a jester like you?” Aelia chuckled.
“Aelia, dear sister, I am Cyril Elgar Ilyanna,” seeking to emphasize his trustworthiness, he stuck his chest out and thumped it with a fist and continued, “father was able to protect the entire empire, yet I can’t protect one family? Do you think that lowly of me?”
Aelia clapped her hands. “Wow. Big Brother’s all grown up.”
“I’ll look after the family. Don’t worry too much, sister. Live happily, my dear precious sister.”
He donned a cheeky smile and Aelia laughed and nodded.
Not wanting to see the sad and solemn gazes of her bedridden mother and younger siblings, Aelia bade Cyril a farewell and asked that he passes on her farewell greetings to them before sneaking out of the castle late in the night.
As the young girl stepped foot into the carriage, she gave the castle she called her home one final glance and one final wave to her loving brother before turning her head forward.
It was as if her heart had been torn in two.