Citadel of Desire - Chapter 4

Chapter 4 – Forbidden Place

The stubborn rain refused to let up, casting a dark shadow all over the ground. The siblings’s mood was becoming one with the gloomy weather, their already sparse conversation dissipating into nothing. Heish was especially affected by it, his usually energetic smile fading into a stoic face.

“I know they’re from the countryside, but how could they have such bad manners?!”

The menu frustrated him the most. It wasn’t suited to his preferences at all! The person in charge of the kitchen ignored every single one of Heish’s requests and cooked with different ingredients everyday. The fact that they weren’t accommodating towards his picky taste annoyed him to no end.

Despite him clearly telling them that he didn’t like the sight of carrots, they gave him a dish garnished with them. When he said he didn’t want the broccoli to be put on his plate, they served it to him as a pickle. No matter what he asked, they did the exact opposite of it. Heish couldn’t bear it anymore and began to complain.

“Just don’t eat it then.”

In return, all he got were apathetic answers. He knew he was in no situation to throw tantrums, but his whining increased day by day. First, he grumbled about the number of people serving him. Such a low number just wasn’t enough!

But other than Jack, who took care of the stables, Mary, who was in charge of the kitchen, Philip, the one who took the siblings inside the manor and the gardener staying at the annex, there were no other servants in the manor. Moreover, Heish’s aristocratic pride received a detrimental blow when the servants treated him in a discourteous manner, as if he was a mere pebble lying on the side of the road.

After that, he began having troubles with Lord Clodan. The lord had started to become more and more particular about them. He was kind, but at the same time, he seemed uncaring. It was as if he was keeping them at a distance, an invisible wall blocking them from approaching too close.

After about four days of their stay, they accidentally wandered into a forbidden place. They were never told about those restrictions before, so it came as a surprise when the next morning, Lord Clodan told them this.

“Do not go to the third floor.”

It was their first time having breakfast together. He was always so busy with duties as a lord that he barely showed up to meet them. And now, that’s the first thing he was telling them? This didn’t sit well with Heish. His lips twisted into a frown, upset with the way the lord was treating him. But Clodan couldn’t care less.

“I stay there.”

Clodan never directed his words at Heish, at least… that’s what it felt like to Rei. Even though she was sitting right next to Heish, she could tell that Clodan refused to look at him. He leaned forward, raising his hands towards Rei’s hair, his slender fingers running through its ends. His piercing gaze shifted towards her neck. It looked so tantalizing. Suddenly, his eyes fell on her lips.

His words were contradictory, just like his attitude. He forbade them from coming upstairs, but then told them that he stayed there? What exactly did he want?!

“I have a suggestion.”

“A suggestion?” For the first time, Clodan bothered to look at Heish. Excited about the attention, Heish excitedly spoke.

“I have an idea for a business. I don’t want to speak of it in front of everybody, but would you like to see it?”

Heish enthusiastically pushed a pile of documents across the table. Rei knew he would come up with something like that, but she didn’t have any faith in him. The sight of him excitedly trying to sell his foolish idea made her lose her appetite. Her hands clenched tightly around the knife and fork as the bass steak she’d been cutting before ended up being crushed to bits.

“As you can see, my friend, the one who’s supplying the goods, has some pretty impressive connections! Thanks to him, we can earn a great profit, even during this war! I can guarantee it. If you invest in this business, you definitely won’t regret it.”

Heish’s chest swelled with pride, but Clodan continued to calmly flip through the pages, his chin balanced on the palm of his hand. Rei already knew Clodan’s answer. Heish’s idea was so absurd that even a child would laugh about it. One look at the documents and Clodan could easily tell that the confidence voice bragging about the enormous amount of funds was only a bluff.

There was no measure to the amount of embarrassment Rei was feeling. She wanted to drown her face in the cup of water in front of her!

“Alright.”

Rei couldn’t believe her ears. Her head jerked up, eyes wide with disbelief.

“W-why?”

Clodan looked at Rei, mirth dancing in his eyes. She opened her mouth to question him again, confused as to why he agreed. But Heish interrupted her, just like always.

“I knew it! You’ve made an excellent choice. Please tell me when you’ll have free time, you can visit the place yourself-”

“But before that-”Clodan gave back the documents he had not even read through, “I have a condition.”

Heish’s surprised face turned ashen. He must have imagined something unfathomable.

“If my investment is not paid back as promised, you have to return it to me.” Heish immediately turned on a pleasant face. It seemed to be an expected line.

“Haha! You are talking about that condition. Of course! I will definitely promise that.”

Heish laughed, Clodan smiled. The only one who could not smile was Rei.