Soleia’s new ho was a small, well-kept estate next to the edge of the woods. There was a wooden fence marking the periter of their land, and there were several other smaller houses in the vicinity. It wasn’t comparable to Vramid’s royal palace, but compared to the dilapidated disaster that was Drankenmire before she showed up to fix it, this new estate was simply a godsend.
Soleia had honestly expected the worst― thinking that Sir Ralph’s noble friend might have simply thrown one of his dying properties at Sir Ralph, demanding that he fix it in return for letting them stay.
Instead, what Soleia saw was a cozy ho she could imagine herself living in for the rest of her days. From the outside, their grounds weren’t filled with overgrown weeds, and the fences were solid without decay. As they walked closer to the door, Soleia saw a brown tabby cat with bright green eyes that sat in front of her door like she was magically welcoming them.
"Oh hello, sweetheart," Soleia imdiately couldn’t help cooing at their newest house guest, who eagerly jumped into her arms. "Do you live here?"
While Soleia began conversing with the cat, Rafael opened the door, looked around, and ntally applauded his n for a job well done. They had cleaned up his sumr estate well enough that Soleia and he could move in imdiately.
The floorboards were clean, the walls weren’t moldy, and there were no holes in the roof.
He checked out the bedroom and internally cheered. There was only one huge double bed. He made a note to himself to give Oliver a hefty bonus. He quickly invited Soleia inside.
"It’s a bit small," Rafael said with false humility, "But there are enough rooms for you to banish if you get angry with , and we can even hire servants if you need the help."
Soleia entered the ho with wide eyes, along with her new cat in her arms. Her eyes darted around the estate and she too was pleased with how it looked. But she couldn’t help worrying.
"Do we need to pay rent?" Soleia asked. This place almost seed too nice for a noble to loan out for free. "What jobs do we have to do for the noble? Who is this generous noble to begin with?"
"That would be ." A man cleared his throat as he stood outside the wooden fence, his voice carrying inside. He was dressed in finery, which was strangely at odds with the fact that he showed up alone, with only his own horse for company. "I am Duke Kinsley. Sir Ralph is an old friend of mine."
Soleia and Sir Ralph went out to greet him. Soleia needed him to have a good impression of them. What if they got tossed aside?
"Old friend! Yes indeed!" Rafael said, slapping his hands on his thighs as he strode up to embrace Oliver, who nearly turned into a statue upon receiving a hug from his prince. "It’s so nice to see you!" Rafael emphasized, patting Oliver’s back none too gently.
Oliver coughed as he got the hint. "Yes. That’s right. We are old friends. Ever since Sir Ralph helped out of a few scrapes. Yes. Are you his wife?"
Rafael winced at Oliver’s acting. They wouldn’t be able to make a theatre perforr out of him. But then again, it wasn’t as though Rafael’s n were good enough for the stage. Rafael had predicted that Soleia would have questions and hence decided to choose the best man to impersonate said noble.
As far as Raxuvian royalty was concerned, Duke Kinsley did exist. He was a real person. He had also vanished one day while boating with a close female friend, and no one spoke of him ever again, which made him the perfect alibi since no one had seen him in years.
"I see! It’s nice to et you, Duke Kinsley," Soleia smiled, glad to et a friendly face. Their new landlord had a pleasant-looking face, with brown hair and brown eyes. He had a kind smile too when he addressed the cat. "Sir Ralph is courting at the mont."
A frown crossed Duke Kinsley’s face. "That won’t do. I will only allow Sir Ralph to stay with a woman if she is his lawfully wedded wife. He has already had too many negative rumors with won as it is."
Rafael was torn between the urge to kiss Oliver’s face in sheer gratitude or smack him for the insult. This was not the right ti to remind Soleia of his manwhore past!
Soleia’s face purpled and she hastily tried to find a way to resolve this situation. They needed a place to stay! But Sir Ralph quickly wrapped an arm around her waist and laughed.
"My wife misspoke! Of course we are married, Duke Kinsley. I wouldn’t dream of living in sin with such a lovely lady. Isn’t that right, dear?" Sir Ralph winked aggressively.
"Yes, that’s right. We are married," Soleia bluffed easily. "It slipped my mind since it happened too recently."
"That’s good to hear," Duke Kinsley’s face cleared up, but he still gave them a doubtful look, as though he suspected they were lying to him.
Almost at once, Soleia and Sir Ralph purposely shifted closer together, so that their sides were pressing against each other, the very picture of a loving, devoted couple that could not dream of being split apart.
In her arms, the cat owed as though she was also doubtful of their claims.
"I see Coco has found a new owner," Duke Kinsley’s face finally broke into a smile
"Her na is Coco?" Soleia cooed in delight. "It’s nice to et you, Coco!"
Coco owed in greeting.
"As for rent..."
Rafael made winking motions behind Soleia’s back.
"You can pay it by helping manage the estate, and the other tenants living around the property," Oliver coughed. "I am a lazy man who lives like a prince. I don’t want to deal with this."
"Oh!" Soleia blinked in surprise. "That can be arranged."
Rafael continued to wink frantically, as though a whole host of dandelion seeds had entered his eye.
Oliver got the hint. "The best paynt would be a child," Oliver said after clearing his throat. "We as nobles have to ensure our tenants are... productive mbers of the kingdom. As most of my tenants are single n, it is hard to encourage them to settle down and produce children."
Atta boy. Rafael nodded approvingly. Of course the tenants were single n. They were Rafael’s n.
Soleia choked, and Coco owed irritably when she felt herself getting crushed by her new servant. "I see... Sorry Coco," Soleia wheezed. "I’ll keep that in mind."
"I hope to hear good news soon," Duke Kingsley said gravely before he turned and got back on his horse, riding off before they could get another word in. Soleia could only stare at the retreating back of his horse, dumbfounded by his request.
A baby?
Was Raxuvia having a population crisis?!
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