Chapter 181: The New Magistrate
When Lara left the village, the sun had disappeared from the west, and a black veil shrouded the entire landscape; thick and quiet, interrupted only by the whisper of wind brushing through the trees. Shadows stretched and danced along the path like restless spirits, but they were lucky the moon gave off enough light to guide them, its silver glow filtering through the branches overhead.
By the time the carriage pulled into Narra Alley, Reya was already outside the gate. Her shoulders sagged with relief the moment she saw the familiar outline of Lara stepping down. She leaned forward, squinting into the night to confirm it was really her, and exhaled sharply, like someone had just released her from a long-held breath.
Lara’s heart warmed. Reya, her maid, was standing in front of the gate, her expression reminiscent of a worried mother waiting for her troublesome daughter to go home.
She searched her memories, sifting through years of hollow recollections, but couldn’t find a single moment where her father or the woman she was forced to call ’mother’ had ever waited like this. Not once had they stood at the gate. Not once had they left a dim light open for her when she came home from a late mission. The house would always be shrouded in cold silence, the corridors dark and indifferent.
"Miss, what took you so long?" Reya’s worried voice pulled her from her daze.
"I had a long talk with the old woman," Lara replied softly, "and lost track of time."
Lara turned and glanced back to see that Aramis was still waiting outside, standing stiffly beside his horse.
"Aren’t you going back to the inn?" She thought that they were still staying in the inn.
He shook his head once.
Lara thought he was staying to guard her. "I am already home. It is safe here. No need for you to stay."
"The prince is inside. I will wait for him here."