Chapter 9 · Volume 1

I'm Not Feeling It

More than just expressions of their mutual love, these two glasshouses fully showcased the personalities of the first Grand Duke and the first Grand Duchess.
The first Grand Duke had planted black roses—mysterious, enchanting, and aloof. To Tyr, it felt like the first Grand Duke was the overbearing, forced-love type of male lead often found in the female-oriented novels of his past life.
The first Grand Duchess had planted forget-me-nots—innocent, holy, and pure. She felt like the “white moonlight” type of heroine commonly seen in the male-oriented novels from his past life.
Listening to his mother's words, Tyr could already visualize the scenes in his mind.
Tsk. That cloying, tooth-aching sweetness was back.
While Ivelina was still immersed in the beautiful sea of flowers, she suddenly felt someone tugging at the hem of her dress.
Looking down, she saw Tyr holding her hem with one hand, looking up at her.
“Mom, let's go somewhere else. I'm really not feeling it here.”
He was honestly exasperated. Why did he have to get a faceful of PDA wherever he went?
“Are you feeling unwell?”
Hearing Tyr's words, a worried expression immediately appeared on Ivelina's gorgeous face. She leaned down and placed her fair hand on his forehead.
“You don't have a fever.”
Tyr's temperature was perfectly normal, but Ivelina still felt uneasy. A faint golden glow emanated from her body, spreading over Tyr.
Instantly, Tyr felt a wave of warmth wash over him. It felt like snuggling in his mother's arms when he was a baby, or wrapping himself in a warm blanket on a cold winter day. It was incredibly comfortable.
“There doesn't seem to be anything wrong.”
The Holy Power circulated through Tyr's body once, but detected no issues.
“I'm fine, Mom. Let's go. I just feel out of place here. I'm probably allergic to the pollen.”
Tyr turned around, taking Ivelina's hand to pull her outside.
“Oh? Hehehe...”
Looking at Tyr's retreating back, Ivelina seemed to realize something and burst into a fit of giggles.
Tyr was speechless, speeding up his pace.
“What's going on here?”
The moment they stepped out of the forget-me-not glasshouse, they ran into Lanier.
Lanier had just returned to the bedroom when he heard that Ivelina and Tyr had gone out.
He was about to go search for them when he suddenly sensed Ivelina's Holy Power. Fearing something had happened, he rushed over immediately.
“Nothing's wrong. I just brought Tyr out for some fresh air. Do you want to join us?”
“Of course. Let's go for a walk. The market in the central city is quite nice.”
Watching the two of them make the decision, Tyr's face was written with reluctance.
Hey, hey, I really don't want to go wandering around with you two.
Every time he went out with his parents, he was relegated to being a mere background prop.
These two perfectly illustrated the saying: “The parents are true love, the child is just an accident.”
Seriously, standing next to them, he felt like a massive, glowing third wheel, brighter than a searchlight.
“Let's go. But before we head out, we need a little disguise.”
Giving Tyr absolutely no chance to refuse, Ivelina pulled his small hand and led him back toward the villa palace.
Sometime later, Tyr's family rode in a carriage from the Grand Duke's mansion, arriving in an alleyway within a commoner district.
The carriage door opened, and Tyr's family stepped down, now dressed in simple, plain clothes.
“Wait for us here.”
After giving the driver instructions, Lanier and the other two left the alley.
“Compared to the noble districts, this place is much more interesting.”
Leading Tyr by the hand, Ivelina walked at the front and turned back to smile at him.
As the three of them stepped out of the alley, a bustling, lively market came into view.
The aroma of freshly baked bread drifted through the air. Street-side vendors cried out, selling sweets, next to stalls piled high with fruit that gave off a crisp, sweet fragrance as they drew closer.
Women carrying baskets strolled along the street, children played and chased each other, carts laden with goods rolled over the pavement, and a minstrel strummed a lyre by a fountain at the end of the street.
It was indeed quite lively.
Compared to the remote Wayne Village, this market was far more bustling, with a vast variety of goods on display.
“There are street performers over there. Let's go take a look.”
The area was already crowded with onlookers, and Tyr could only see the calves of the people in front of him.
Lanier scooped Tyr up, letting him ride on his shoulders.
Looking over the crowd, Tyr saw juggling clowns, magicians performing tricks, and lions leaping through rings of fire.
For the rest of the afternoon, Ivelina and Lanier didn't ignore him to dote on each other like they usually did. Instead, they spent the entire time playing with him.
Although Tyr's mental age was long past the point of needing parental accompaniment, the feeling was actually quite nice.
...
The next day, after breakfast, Tyr was escorted out of the villa palace.
“Young Master, Lord Marquis, Lady Marchioness.”
Outside, a maid who had been waiting for a long time stepped forward and bowed respectfully to the three of them.
Tyr looked up. The maid before him had long white hair and wore a black-and-white maid uniform. Her features were delicate, her expression slightly cold, and a pair of rose-red eyes added a touch of allure to her beautiful face.
“What is your name?”
“You may call me Avia, Madam.”
“I see. You will be this child's maid from now on. I'll leave Tyr in your hands, Avia.”
Before the children of House Callis went to the Sword Prison, they would each be assigned an exclusive maid.
They were all trained by House Callis and possessed absolute loyalty to the family.
At the same time, every exclusive maid possessed the strength of the Sixth Circle.
In addition to taking care of the candidate reserves' daily lives, they were also responsible for protecting their safety.
“Madam, I will do everything in my power to take care of the young master,” Avia said, bowing slightly to the three of them with utmost respect.
Once an exclusive maid was assigned to care for a Grand Duke candidate reserve, her life would essentially be bound to the young master or young lady she served.
From then on, unless there was an order from the Head of House Callis, their sole master would be the candidate reserve they served.
Once the candidate reserve's training in the Sword Prison was complete and they became a true candidate for family head, only then would the exclusive maid truly become exclusive.
The sole target of their loyalty would be their master, and even the family head would no longer have the right to reassign them.
“Mhm.”
Ivelina nodded, then knelt down and pulled Tyr into a tight embrace.
“Tyr, you must take good care of yourself over there.”
Tyr could feel Ivelina's body trembling.
“Mom, I know.”
Tyr raised his hands and returned Ivelina's hug.

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