Death Changed My Opinion Of You

Chapter Four

Luke stood in the sunbathed courtyard, awaiting the carriage of the Eunelope sisters. He had put on his best tuxedo for the occasion, which had been ironed by Bernard.

As the carriage approached, Luke adjusted his crooked tie and stood in a more upright position.

The two ladies stepped out of the carriage, Yanna wearing a soft pink lace dress and Hara wearing a black satin one piece dress. They both looked stunning.

Yanna waved at Luke, but Hara paid him no mind. Luke waved back to Yanna and gestured for them both to enter the manor.

"After you, ladies."

They stepped inside and set down their things in the parlor, before they allowed themselves to be led away to the dining area for lunch.

Luke, having eaten an early lunch, decided to take a walk in the courtyard to calm his mind and ready himself for the ladies' advances. Although, he very much doubted that Hara would even try to make moves. She'd shown him no emotion ever since they had first met in this life.

Luke sat on a bench outside and let the sun coat his skin, turning him into  a beautiful man of summer. He let out a sigh, wishing he had pre-reincarnation Yanna to be with him. At least then, he wouldn't be alone.

The rules of the ladies' contest to have him sleep with them were simple. They were not allowed to bribe Luke, beg him, or in any manner drop hints. They had to say it in some way, loud and clear. No beating around the bush.

The rules had been created by Master Yan, and he was certain that the girls would stick to them. After all, they were children of nobles. Lying and scheming would be a major embarrassment.

As the girls walked out of the manor and found him in the courtyard, their eyes locked onto each other.

Let the games begin.

Yanna skipped down the stone stairs and hurried towards him, bouquet in one hand and a bag of unsweetened cocoa powder in the other.

"Sir Luke, what a pleasure to see you here. I brought you these gifts in the hopes that you would consider coming with me to the ball."

She held them out to Luke, covering her face in embarrassment. Luke accepted them and told her that he would make them both the finest hot chocolate with the cocoa powder.

However, when Luke turned his head to the doors of the manor, Hara had already gone back inside. She clearly thought this a waste of time, and didn't look like she would be making moves on Luke any time soon.

As Luke and Yanna stepped back inside the manor, they saw Kiarha and Hara exchanging wrapped packages. When Luke asked about them, Kiarha deflected with a simple
"Mind your own business, dukey."

Slightly suspicious, Luke bid farewell to Yanna at the parlor and went back up to his room. Once there, Luke opened his bedside drawer and took out "Legendary Artifacts of the Ancients."

He flipped back to the page where the Gem of the Winds had been shown, and noticed a strange symbol on the top right corner of the page. It was a quarter of a diamond. The bottom left quarter, to be exact. It looked like it could be a piece of a puzzle.

I remember this. There was a gem that could collapse reality and rebuild it according to the user's desire. The Amarok of Dyr.

Luke flipped back and forth until he found the strange symbol again, the bottom right quarter this time. He read the gem's description.

The Traveler's Amber is the gem of the earth, and one of the four Gems of Fortune. The one who claims ownership of this gem shall have power over the stones, the grass, and the sands, and speed shall favor him.