Chapter 154 - Worrying futures
Compared to the ball the night before, Scarlett felt that the noble gathering the morning after was almost underwhelmingly uneventful. She had half-expected another incident to occur, whether it was someone trying to publicly shame her again or another sudden party crasher. But instead, she found herself spending most of her time relatively peacefully with Livvi, as well as meeting up and speaking with some of the other individuals she had encountered during the ball.
To perhaps both their surprise, the two of them had also spent a decent amount of time conversing with Iyana Webb, even if it was mostly a means for the knight to avoid other guests who sought her attention. Scarlett’s initial meeting with Iyana had been cut short because of the Tribe of Sin’s attack, but from this latest interaction, she felt she had gained a better understanding of the woman’s character.
The knight didn’t seem to concern herself much with the posturing of other nobles—presumably she was one herself, considering her presence at this gathering—but she took her role as a Royal Guard seriously enough that she refrained from telling everybody to screw off at least.
That said, Iyana did appear to have an inclination towards misleading with her words, even while sounding entirely sincere. It reminded Scarlett of Fynn, though she suspected that, unlike him, the knight was fully aware of how her words might be misinterpreted. Personally, Scarlett didn’t mind it much, but she wouldn’t be surprised if Iyana lacked many real friends.
At the very least, the woman seemed to have plenty of associates, as she had eventually left Scarlett and Livvi to join a group of other knights later during the gathering.
From there, Scarlett had spent some more time with Livvi, interrupted only by the occasional person approaching her to express their gratitude for her actions the previous day—she hadn’t expected there would be this many people bothering her about it—and a few other new acquaintances. One of them was Master Arthur Windermere, one of Lord Withersworth’s gentlemen friends and sponsor of a merchant group that occasionally conducted business near Freybrook. In the end, she had directed him towards Evelyne for any further business discussions.
As for her interactions with Livvi, Scarlett was honestly surprised by how easy it was to converse with the woman, even when they were alone. Their talks didn’t revolve around a lot of important matters, mostly simple topics such as the identities of other guests and Livvi’s own work, but the conversation flowed smoothly, even when Scarlett herself didn’t really know what to talk about. There was an odd comfort—or perhaps dependability was the word—in chatting with Livvi that felt natural in a way. If she were to guess, it was another quality inherited from the original.
That was not to say there weren’t any awkward moments between them. At times, Scarlett sensed that Livvi avoided certain topics or had something on her mind, but she didn’t press the woman on it. It wasn’t as if she cared much either way.
And so, most of the morning and early afternoon had passed. Disregarding the brief encounter with Marchioness Delmon—the woman really hadn’t done much more than offer weak threats and shoot cold stares—the noble gathering drew to a close without much incident. Scarlett did meet up with Evelyne and the Withersworths one more time to exchange their final farewells, but that was all. Lady Withersworth’s words suggested she had certain expectations for the future, but although Scarlett didn’t know exactly what they were, she knew better than to reject potential allies at this point in time.
One noteworthy aspect of the event was Beldon Tyndall’s absence for most of it. Scarlett had spotted Duke Tyndall as well as what she thought were some of the man’s other children, but not Beldon. It made sense, though, considering the circumstances. Scarlett didn’t have anything more to discuss with him for the time being anyway, and he undoubtedly had more pressing matters to attend to at the moment. He had provided her with a communication artifact for their future partnership, so she would hear from him again eventually.
Finally, as they prepared to take their leave, Scarlett and Evelyne also bid their goodbyes together to Livvi. The short woman had looked a bit uncertain during the farewell, as if there was still something she wished to say, but eventually she also bid them goodbye and expressed her hope that they would get the chance to meet again sometime soon. However, Shields Guild business would probably keep her occupied for the near future.
Afterward, Scarlett and Evelyne boarded their carriage and returned to their temporary guest accommodations to complete their preparations before their departure. The coachman and handmaiden who had accompanied them were already waiting in the courtyard once they finished their tasks. With the help of two servants from the duchy, what little luggage they had was loaded onto the carriage, and soon they were on their way.