Faust heard his stepmother’s rough explanation of the mark. Augustine was still asking questions, but he listened with one ear. Even more intriguing than the mark was the Duke’s reaction to it.
Henric was not an easy-going person from any angle. It wasn’t that he never smiled, but such moments were few and far between. There was always something he needed to deal with. A lord’s face.
Right now he looked annoyed, like a common office worker who had to report something troubling to the boss.
Faust interrupted his mother mid-sentence, "Everyone knows about you, right?"
His parents gave him a look that roughly translated to, ’Hmm.. Not exactly.’
"Why would you keep it a secret?" Augustine asked.
Faust had some inkling as to why. Ilmestys was one of the old noble houses that rebelled against the previous king of Calystria and tried to put his daughter on the throne. The king had named his eldest son his heir, despite circumstances.
So it was indeed not really a just cause, as some in Calystria’s history may have believed.
The Mark of Purity, added with Zisel’s brilliance, will certainly earn her a place in the Tower of Morane. But if that were to happen, it would also be a headache for all parties involved, considering the Tower was the main reason the rebellion started in the first place.
Not to mention, one of the closest allies of the rebel princess was someone called Ivar Six Lies. There was only one book containing a few lines in the library, but Faust remembered it clearly. Ivar Six Lies had relations with someone called Ilaine Ilmestys.
It would all mean nothing but nonsense historical crap before, but now with Mark of Purity... the reminder would be right before all eyes.
Helena blushed a little, "Because... my family was part of the rebellion. Your father was part of the army stationed at our borders. When an enemy Duke tried to attack our land in the absence of my father and brothers... your father went against his own king’s orders to save us."
Augustine’s eyes widened. "The Great Western Expedition!" Then he turned towards the Duke, "The Calystrian land you won, which was later given back to the Calystrian king as part of the treaty."
"If I hadn’t acted at that time, we wouldn’t be able to get into such an advantageous position to win so many castles." The Duke sighed.
’Even though you only wished to impress the infamous beauty called the Red Flower.’
His stepmother downplayed her role, but Faust had read about the expedition. Helena was one of the best Channelers of her generation. Top of her class in Tower of Morane. The Wisdom, a title used for the highest-ranking channeler in the tower, had offered her a position on her council.
Helena refused it and chose to return to her family instead, along with her best friend Varshini Ilmestys. Her family knew the enemy Duke would attack, yet they believed Helena would manage somehow and left her alone to defend their home.
"I came East with your father. Lord Whitaker was kind enough to adopt me as one of his daughters, which allowed me to be your mother." She smiled, then looked at the Duke with warmth,
"Your grandpa was against us at first, but it all worked out in the end."
Even Henric, for a moment, forgot all his worries and returned the smile.
Augustine and Faust shared an awkward but happy look and let the couple have their moment. After a minute during which the Duke wrapped his arm around his wife, she continued,
"The blossoming valley belongs to someone else now. None of my family survived the rebellion. At least none that could find their way back home."
Augustine offered few words to console her, but Faust’s mind was scanning for any details that didn’t fit. There was one thing. He probably shouldn’t have asked, but he did anyway.
"What happened to Varshini Ilmestys? She should have been the one to defend the valley, right? Why were you put in charge?"
All three members of his family looked at him, each with a slightly different expression. Augustine was confused, which made sense. The Duke narrowed his eyes as if trying to remember where he had heard the name.
Helena, however, stared at him blankly. Her eyes betrayed no emotions. As if the warm mother and dutiful wife from earlier were replaced by an ice-cold sculpture.
"She... disappeared a day before we received the news of the attack." At last she replied, then her usual expressions returned on her face, and she added, "Faust, you shouldn’t believe everything you have read in the books. Most are written by nobles with money to spare who wish to appear good in the eyes of others."
He nodded obediently.
The expedition records he read were written by scholars from Calystria. She was right. It could not be fully trusted. So he decided to ask someone who was there at the time.
"Is it true what they say about the tower? Did Delayna Levitharos truly had the support of every single channeler in the tower?"
"Enough history lessons!" The Duke said in his authoritative voice and held his two sons by the shoulders. "Leave us now, especially since I don’t recall inviting either of you here. You are not toddlers anymore. Have you no shame to barge in your parents’ chambers like this?"
Helena chuckled behind everyone as the Duke pushed them out and slammed the door right on their faces.
"Unbelievable!" Augustine exclaimed.
"Right?" Faust fumed beside him, "A boy can’t even ask questions anymore."
Augustine narrowed his eyes at him. "You and your annoying questions! Can’t you be a little subtle? Read the room?"
"Hey! I’m twelve years old. I don’t know how to sweet-talk the way a scummy noble like you does!"
Augustine made a face and then grabbed him by the neck, dragging Faust beside him into the hallway.
"Come with me. It’s time I punch some tact and manners into you."