Chapter 78 - Sister

After seeing off Nigel, Adeline went back to her own quarter to have a light breakfast before she went to her class. She forced the food down her throat and gathered her scrolls and books.

And slowly Adeline proceeded to the group training session even though she did not want to. She even contemplated about pretending to be sick and taking a leave for the day. However, she remembered what Nigel had said to her before leaving. So even though she did not have any will, she dragged her feet towards the training ground. 

Adeline attended the training session with five of her other half-siblings – Nefriti, Raphael, Claudia, Kaela, and Gustin. But she never really talked with either of them other than while exchanging simple greetings and a few other words while dueling with them.

She also never focused on building a good relationship with any other of her half-siblings because she didn't really feel the need to. She was already close to Nigel and he was more than enough for Adeline.

Today's session was a theory one, where one of the councilmen was teaching them a topic about the importance of trade with other Kingdoms.

The councilman was explaining the topic in simpler terms, "If we are able to produce goods that the other Kingdoms don't have, then we can trade those goods with those Kingdoms. Similarly, if those Kingdoms have something which we don't have, we can still have those goods by buying from them."

Adeline was trying hard to focus on what the councilman was saying but no matter how hard she tried, her mind kept on wandering. She was clenching her teeth and digging her nails in her palm in the hopes of trying to focus on the lecture.

"In this way, if our Kingdoms are co-dependent, then there is a less chance that other Kingdoms will wage wars against us just for the sake of obtaining the resources in our disposal." The councilmen kept on speaking but all of it was just becoming a background noise to Adeline.

If it was physical training session then maybe her mind wouldn't have wandered so much. Physical training required complete presence of mind or else there was a high chance of them getting hurt in the field.

But the theory class was making it very hard for her. She had to sit in one place for two hours and that gave her more time to think about how her daily routine would change from today onwards.

After sitting in the class for what felt like an eternity, the torture was finally over. Adeline quickly gathered her scrolls and books, and prepared to leave for her own quarter.

But she was interrupted by Nefriti, who came to her and started to ask questions, "Hey Adeline, I heard that Prince Nigel left for Aberdeen. Is it true?"

The question hit Adeline right on the spot. She was trying not to be too conscious about Nigel's departure but her question brought her back to the same thought.

Even though she was trying hard to hide the fact that she was sad because of it, she was really bad at hiding her feelings. And she spoke in a downhearted tone, "Yes, he left this morning."

"You must be feeling really sad then. You were close to him, weren't you?" Nefriti question empathetically.

Adeline gave a mirthless smile and then nodded her head. "I am a little sad that I won't be seeing him for some time, but I am also happy for him. He is going to get personal training and hopefully he will return back as an improved person."

Adeline wanted to get out of the class as soon as she could because all the questioning from Nefriti was making her feel really uncomfortable and restless.

On top of that, Adeline also noticed that for some reason, no one were leaving the class. The others were all talking with each other; they seemed well acquainted with each other.

"Am I just overthinking or do they really look pretentious?" For some reason, Adeline felt as if all the others were actually listening to the conversation between Nefriti and her, and were just acting like they were talking about something else.

But Adeline did not know if this was what they normally did after class because she would always rush out of the class as soon as it was over. She was a person who stuck to strict routine. She believed that staying back in the class even after it was over was just a waste of time, time that could be utilized in other useful tasks.

Adeline thought that Nefriti would leave her once she answered her questions. But it seemed like she was not done yet. Adeline was now frantically fidgeting with her fingers and was trying to think of a way to get away from the uncomfortable situation.

However, Nefriti was not leaving her side. She was standing in front of Adeline's desk, blocking her way, and kept on questioning Adeline, "So, what do you usually do after your personal training session?" It was an open knowledge that Adeline trained with General Osmond.

Adeline was starting to get a little agitated with all the interrogation. But she did not want to be rude so she answered her, "Umm… I don't really do anything special. I take my horse for a ride sometimes, and umm… I used to roam around with Nigel." Adeline puckered her lips and looked down.

Nefriti tried to cheer Adeline up by inviting her to the group, "If you don't have much to do then why don't you join us in the evening? We are planning to go to the nearby market today." She smiled and then held Adeline's hand.

And she started to sway Adeline's hands and tried her best to persuade her, "It will be fun. You should join us. We will dress up as commoners and go around tasting the dishes of the commoners, buying things from the vendors, and running around the market."

Adeline chuckled nervously and thought, "Why is she being so nice to me? Or was I the grumpy one who never gave them a chance to open up to me?" It was true that Adeline had built up wall around her and never really let anyone inside her safe space other than Nigel.

All Adeline ever cared about was reading and training. She did not have the luxury to waste her time by running around in the market. And because she never did that before, she was not sure if going out in disguise was even allowed. "You all are planning to go to the market in disguise? Are we even allowed to leave the Palace?"

Nefriti was stunned to hear that from Adeline. She felt like Adeline had been living under a rock until now. "You mean you have never left the Palace on your own before?" She raised her brows and tried to confirm something, "You know that only the maids and servants are not allowed to leave the Palace but others are allowed, right?"

Adeline never stepped her feet outside the Palace that much, except when she would be teleported by Theodore. And she had already forgotten whether they were not allowed to go outside or it was her own choice to isolate herself from the world outside of the Palace.

"So we are allowed huh?" Adeline chuckled again thinking she must have looked like a fool to the others.

"We are Princesses, of course we are allowed to do as we please." Nefriti tried to enlighten the naïve Adeline.

And Nefriti was now not just suggesting but she was demanding Adeline to come along, "I will personally show you around the market as well as the village. Meet us at the Palace gate at 5 in the evening. And don't forget to wear something a little less conspicuous. We don't want eyes gawking at us."

Nefriti was being so persistent that Adeline thought she was not allowed to refuse her after all this talks. So she smiled and accepted to come, "At 5 huh? Sure. I will be looking forward to it."

"That's my sister!" Nefriti giggled and then hugged Adeline.

But Adeline stiffened her body because she was shocked rather than warmed by that gesture from Nefriti. She was shocked because, first of all, Nefriti called her 'sister' which sounded weird when she heard it from someone other than Nigel's mouth. And second of all, Nefriti hugged her so easily as if they had been doing that since their childhood.

"See you later then. We will all be waiting for you." Nefriti smiled at Adeline and went back to join the others in the class.

Adeline picked up her belongings and walked out of the class without sparing any look at the others. She already had enough awkward interaction for now.

As Adeline was walking back to her quarter, she remembered the very first day that she attended the training session. She remembered how she was treated like some trash by Margery and Muriel, and how Nigel and Edwin fought because of her.

As the first day went downhill, she was afraid to open up to anyone else besides Nigel, whom she was already close with. As time went by, she had become an introvert in others' eyes and they had also stopped approaching Adeline.

Adeline whispered to herself subconsciously, "Maybe it isn't such a bad thing to get to know other brothers and sisters. I would love to know how they really are. I don't think everyone are as bad as Margery and Muriel."

Adeline disliked the twins because every time she would meet them, they would try to create problems for her or cause a scene. It was like they repelled each other. And after the twins completed their group training, Adeline was the happiest one as she didn't have to bear their idiocy anymore.

Now that her other brothers and sisters were holding out their hands towards Adeline, she did not want to decline them. "Who knows, they might turn out to be as good as Nigel…"

The more Adeline thought back to how sweet Nefriti was to her, the more she wanted to go to the market with them.. She didn't realize it, but she was smiling.