Why The Hell is Fate Trying to Kill Me?

Chapter 70 An Invitation to Burn

I closed the book. The plan was set. I didn't just need bodyguards anymore; I needed to create a council, a war council.

I turned to Adel. "Preparation for dinner," I commanded. "Set four places?"

"Four places, my lady?"

"Yes," I said, walking past her toward the door. "As my parents are still at the Royal Encampment dealing with the fallout of the Hunt, they won't be coming home tonight. I am the Lady of the House."

I stopped at the threshold and looked back at her.

"Invite Octavi. And invite Cassius and Valerie."

"To the dining table?" Adel asked.

"Is there any problem with that?" I stared at her fiercely and coldly.

"As you wish," Adel bowed low. "I will inform the kitchen. And prepare the dining table, my lady."

"Great, you may inform them now... As I want to change into my nightgown."

Adel quickly scurried off to carry out my orders, leaving me alone in my room.

I waited in my room for Adel, as she would be the one to help me change into my nightgown. After a few minutes, she returned and assisted me with changing.

Thirty minutes later, I descended the grand staircase. I had changed into a simpler evening gown, dark velvet, suitable for mourning a reputation, or perhaps for plotting a war. The house was unnaturally quiet.

"My lady," the Chamberlain stammered as I entered. "The guests... they are waiting."

I looked towards the shadows near the entrance.

Octavi stood there. Beside her stood Cassius and Valerie. They had washed the mud off their faces, but they still wore their leather armour.

"Come," I commanded, walking to the head of the table.

I sat down, placing my hands on the table.

"Sit," I ordered.

Octavi took the command and took a seat on my right. However, Valerie and Cassius just stood beside the entrance and didn't take a single step into the dining hall. Looking at that, I picked up my silver fork and tapped it against the rim of the glass.

Clink. Clink. Clink.

The sharp sound cut through the suffocating silence of the room.

"Valeire," I called out, my voice echoing in the vast hall. "Are you waiting for a written invitation to just come here and take a seat?"

The silence stretched.

"No..." A simple word broke the silence from Valerie. "What I am waiting for is a simple reason."

"A reason." I looked at the glass of wine, its surface reflecting the flickering candlelight. "A reason for what?"

"Why are you inviting us to have dinner?"

"My parents are still in encampment, and I am the Lady of the House, right now..." I started, but the words felt hollow even as I said them.

"That is an excuse, not a reason," Valerie cut in, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed. "You must already know about my origin and my family's status. So, why the sudden invitation?"

She tilted her head, her grey eyes piercing through the candlelight.

"You think I am trying to buy a connection to the Duchess?" I asked calmly, meeting her gaze. "You think this is a bribe? Roast duck in exchange for a favour from the North?"