Lady Corazòn Lys didn't greet them in the Lys-Villa within the Royal Capital, but in a manor of the countryside. Still in the Noble Realm, but given that she and her daughter were mostly the only members of House Lys to come here, it was clear for Noelle that lady Corazòn wanted to have peace while talking to them.

"Thank you all three for coming," lady Corazòn said in a warm, velvety voice. She was barely over forty and a very good looking woman. Her pale pink eyes seemed to glow between her long, black eyelashes and her dark red hair was elegantly braided, giving her a younger look, but without looking too juvenile.

"It is not really for a mission that I asked you to meet with me, but it was the only way I found to not look suspicious to my husband and Head of House."

Noelle frowned slightly t while drinking a bit of her tea.

"Then why calling us, then," Nebra asked calmly, but slightly impatient, obviously. Noelle glanced at her sister, who looked really perfectly calm, but her cheeks were red. Was it out of anger? Nebra clearly was often angry against nobles these days, especially when it was about Nozel, Vanessa and Aimée. At least, it was a proof that she now started to consider Vanessa as part of their family, part of house Silva, and that alone made Noelle really happy.

Or was it blush? Would her older sister rather be with Zora right now? Noelle couldn't help but blush as well, because her sisters own romance obviously made her think about Asta.

"Has it to do with Nozels particular situation?" Fuegoleon asked, which made the Silva sisters flinch. They were always cautious and on guard when it was about their older brother.

"Yes," Lady Corazòn replied in a sigh. "To be honest, it also has to do with the general bastard situation in the kingdom right now. But I have a secret concerning bastards myself and-"

"Are you the mother of a bastard yourself?" Noelle blurted out. Yes, she knew that it wasn't polite at all to interrupt other persons, but she was a Black Bull and she just couldn't help herself.

Thankfully, lady Corazòn just chuckled, clearly very amused.

"Oh no, my dear Noelle. I'm not the mother of a bastard. Or rather, not in the way most people would perceive it."

Noelle, Nebra and Fuegoleon all frowned. What was that supposed to mean?

"I promise I'll explain you soon what I mean with this statement. But first, you have to know that I asked you three Magic Knight specifically because you are all bonded to lord Nozel. Lord Fuegoleon, you're his rival and probably best friend. Lady Nebra, lady Noelle, you're his sisters. I would have also invited lord Solid, but apparently he's difficult to reach these days."

"Trust me, lady Corazòn, it is better that Solid isn't here," Nebra replied, a sad tone in her voice. "He, well… let's say he didn't reacted very well to Nozels very particular situation."

"Oh, I'm really sorry. Let's hope he will come around eventually."

The compassion in lady Corazòns voice was so genuine. Noelle decided that she likes her.

"Well, I never believed the contradictory rumours that are heard lately in noble circles and since it is finally official that lord Nozel truly loves his witch – Vanessa Enoteca is her name, am I right? – and wants to raise his child, I decided that I couldn't and wouldn't keep my own secret any longer. The bastard situation in the kingdom needs to change, lord Nozel and lady Vanessa deserve to raise their child without that uncertainty they most probably are in. I want do something as well for this possible outcome. I don't know if it can be of great help and I know that my husband and my father-in-law, who is also my Head of House, would be highly against it, but I've made my decision. I believe that it is for the best."

Corazòn smiled, before calling towards a door, "Now you can come in, sweetheart."

A young woman of maybe twenty-five or twenty-six entered. She was probably as tall as Vanessa without heels, her hair was a dark purple and looked like a curly mane who could let locks fall somehow cover, only a few little braids around her face seemed to stop bangs to fall all over her eyes.

Speaking of her eyes, their particular colour immediately fascinated Noelle. Never had she saw eyes like that. They had a nacreous colour and like nacre, they seem to change their shimmer depending on the light.

This must be lady Lital Lys, lady Corazòns daughter. Didn't Nebra told her once that she had been pretty sick in her childhood? Well, nothing showed to her that Lital was sick once, in fact she even looked like she had some iron health of a peasant.

Wait, wouldn't that mean…

"My daughter, Lital Lys. Sweetheart, let me present you lord Fuegoleon Vermillion, captain of the Crimson Lions squad, as well as the Silva sisters, lady Nebra of the Silver Eagles squad and lady Noelle of the Black Bulls squad."

Corazòn obviously loved her daughter, given the look she gave her. A rarity within nobles, especially these days.

Lital made a gentle reverence, as it was expected when you're in front of royals. Still, Noelle wasn't used to be treated that way, especially so genuinely. It was a nice feeling.

Lital smiled to all of them, although her cheeks slowly grow pink when she looked at captain Fuegoleon.

"It is a pleasure to finally really meet you, lady Lital," Nebra said with a smile. "Although I don't quite understand yet why she is present at our discussion."

"Oh, this is really simple, lady Nebra. Corazòn my mother… but she didn't gave birth to me."

Silence crossed the room. Noelle had no idea what to say and it was obvious that Nebra and Fuegoleon had no idea either. They could just stared blankly at the two Lys ladies.

It was lady Corazòn who spoke first. "Let's sit down. It's going to be kinda a long story, even though I will try to keep it as short as possible."

As they all sat down – Lital next to her mother and the three Magic Knights facing them – lady Corazòn started to tell that ominous story.

"There is an important thing you should know first-hand. I'm sterile. I can't have children on my own. Of course, my husband and I had no idea of this detail during the first months of our marriage. But we soon suspected that one of us was sterile and of course, Lorenzo wanted to make sure that it wasn't him. So… he went to see a prostitute."

"What?" Noelle asked, blushing. She glanced at Fuegoleon and her sister. They both kept quiet, but given their slightly embarrassed looks, they knew what lady Corazòn was talking about.

"It is one of the rather dark secrets within royalty and nobility, lady Noelle. I'm not proud of it, details like this can make you ashamed to be a noble. But it is the truth and it's needed to understand Litals story. When a lord suspects that he might be sterile, he pays a prostitute to sleep with him until she gets pregnant. If she is, the lord pays her again, enough so that she can came up for an abortion. Well, this is what my husband did… except that Lorenzo was so relieved that he wasn't sterile that he forgot to pay the prostitute the money for the abortion."

Wow. That sounded… rather heavy, in a way.

It was lady Lital who continued, "My, well… my biological mother was a prostitute from the slums. I was born there. As far as I remember, she never loved me. She always called me a work accident. She was obviously also angry at my father, but she couldn't get back to him, so she let it out on me. She never talked to me unless it was to insult me. I had to learn to take care of myself before I could even walk properly."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Noelle murmured. Lital told her story calmly, almost in a neutral way. But it could still be felt how hurt she was in her past.

Nebra was slightly playing with her fingers, looking sad and somewhat guilty. Like always when it was about such things.

Captain Fuegoleon nodded in understanding, and even added, "My old mentor took me once to the slums, so that I could learn how terrible life could be outside the castles. The slums are a horrible place to live in and I admire you to have survived in there, lady Lital."

"Thank you, lord Fuegoleon."

Again, Litals cheeks turned into a slight pink. Noelle frowned, why was that?

She couldn't continue those thoughts though, because lady Corazòn continued the story, "My husband was relieved that he wasn't sterile, but he didn't do anything to continue his lineage, even though his father urged him. He could have simply divorced from me, since my birth house was just low nobility and adoption is still not so well seen within a lot of noble families. But he didn't. Lorenzo is kinda… a sloth on many domains."

"I have to agree on that," Nebra added in a pout. Noelle had no idea what her sister meant with that, but she couldn't help but giggle. Lital chuckled as well and a smile appeared for a second on Fuegoleons lips.

"Of course," lady Corazòn continued "my sterility was kept as a secret by the Head of House Lys and my husband. It's the reason why most of the time, I spent my time in this country villa. But I wanted to be a mother. So, I made the drastic decision to go to the slums and search for the child my husband had with a prostitute. It hadn't been easy, many people in the slums hate nobles and anyone who aren't part of their world in general. But in the end, I found Lital… My poor girl was badly nourished, badly loved and extremely shy, but she still had a small glimmer of hope in her eyes when I found her. I wanted to save that hope and I immediately felt affection for her. So I took Lital with me and became her new mother."

Corazòn smiled at her daughter, before continuing, "Since I was mostly at the country villa back then, it had been easy to make the rest of the family and nobility believe that Lital had been very sick during her first years. Which isn't true, Lital has an iron health."

"I suffered from other things in my early childhood," Lital said softly. Noelle couldn't help but look at her with compassion. She really felt some kinship for this woman.

"It wasn't difficult to make everyone believe that Lital was my daughter. She is the only who inherited from her famous great-grandmother Stella Lys the rare star magic – House Lys is more specialized in illusion magic and cloud magic – and those beautiful eyes. As for her hair, well… I have red hair, my husband has blue hair. Blue and red equals purple."

"How did your husband and your Head of House reacted to Lital becoming part of your family?" Fuegoleon asked, although he looked more at Lital than her mother.

"Lorenzo wasn't happy. You know how nobles aren't supposed to take care of their illegitimate offspring. Lord Nozel is judged for doing exactly that. But I took care of Litals entire education, so he didn't had to do anything. He wouldn't have treated well, anyway. As for my Head of House… Well, lord Stratus worships his mother, so it helped that Lital is the only one who inherited her magic. He is kinda fond of her because of that reason, even though he doesn't believe that she could bring more glory for House Lys given her secret… origins."

"That's not fair!" Noelle couldn't help but protest. It really wasn't and so contradictory. If the Head of house Lys was fond of Lital because she inherited the rare magic of the family, then why didn't she had a bigger role, just because of her true origins?

"I know, lady Noelle. It is unfair, especially that Lital has so much potential. And not only in magic, she can outshine lady Athénaïs Vitrail when it comes to singing… not to mention that she doesn't lack a good heart."

"Mama! Can you please stop that?"

Lital was blushing heavily now and even more when she glanced at Fuegoleon.

Lady Corazòn just laughed. Even though she wasn't Litals biological mother, she was for her adoptive daughter obviously a true mother. Not even what a noble mother would be usually for her offspring. No, she was a real, loving mother.

Noelle looked down a bit, feeling some sadness in her heart.

Was it like that to really have a mother? Had her own mother been like that?

Nozel had told her once that unlikely for most royal parents, lady Acier Silva actually was always there for her children. Despite her awfully schedule as captain of the Silver Eagles and Head of house Silva, she always found time to spend with them, watching over them when they were sick, singing them lullabies after a nightmare, make sure that they felt loved…

How much would Noelle have loved to knew that. But she had been just a baby when she died.

She shared a glance with Nebra. Her sister's eyes looked sad and nostalgic. Nebra had known those times with Acier, but their pain was still the same.

"Well, that is our secret," lady Corazòn after she stopped teasing her daughter. "Like I told you, I have no idea how this knowledge could help. How it could help lord Nozel and lady Vanessa in their situation and how it could help to stop this stupid tension in the kingdom. At least yet. My husband and some other members of our house are part of the coalition. Our Head of House isn't, at least officially. But Stratus of course doesn't disapprove their movements."

"I'm thanking you for the trust you gave us, lady Lital, lady Corazòn," captain Fuegoleon replied, somehow smiling especially towards Lital. "I promise you, by the pride of the Crimson Lions, that it won't be in wane. Sadly, I can tell you how it will help yet in this situation. But I'm sure that it'll come in handy one day. We have to be cautious, with the coalition and the bastards turned criminals. We not only have to help Nozel, Vanessa and their child, but also so many people that were born as bastards. But there's still a chance to make something more fair before this dark situation reaches the point of No Return. It might be a good thing that Damnatio hasn't chosen a side yet. Lady Corazòn, do you have entries within noble circles?"

"Of course. Not as much as most noble ladies or you, lady Nebra, but I have. Why this question?"

"We Magic Knights do everything we can in this situation. But most nobles, especially those in the coalition, don't trust us and I won't be even surprised if they would try to make their own justice. It might be helpful to have allies outside of our ranks. Do you know some other nobles who aren't sharing the views of the coalition?"

"Yes, I do. They're very cautious with their views, especially these days. But I think I can convince them to raise their voices."

"Still be cautious, lady Corazòn," Nebra intervened. "You seem to be a clever woman, you might have realized that my father is one mastermind behind the coalition. He is sadly far from stupid. Any move that is too straightforward, he can use it to his advantage, especially if it's to make Nozel fall and lose."

"If I may," Noelle interjected and the four other persons turned to her. "I'm not an expert on how noble circles work, so I don't know if it's a good idea, but… what if we can start to talk positively about bastards and Nozel and Vanessa in a very subtle way? Nebra, you told me that tiny, seemingly unimportant details can discreetly get their grip in their minds. Do you think that we might start to change some minds that way? That we might slowly change their prejudices towards bastards somehow."

There was silence and for a moment, Noelle feared to have said something naïve and stupid.

But then, Nebra smiled at her. "It sounds simple and honestly, kinda naïve. But it might be worth a try. I don't know if I can do it myself, though. It is almost an open secret that I took Nozels side in this situation."

"Lital and I could try something like that, the next time we go to noble circles. An insignificant small stone can provoke an avalanche."

Fuegoleon only nodded, looking like he was deeply in thoughts.

"It might be a start," he finally spoke. "Anything that could help us take a step forward is welcomed. Lady Lital, lady Corazòn, I thank you again for the trust you given us. I'll talk about your story at the next meeting of squad captains. Be sure that we'll highly appreciate your help and that we would love to contact you again, as soon as you can help us."

For some reason, Litals beautiful nacreous eyes began to shine at his statement.

Noelle smiled. It was a small thing, honestly. But still bigger than anything she'd recently hoped for. Maybe this was the first silver lining, for Nozel and Vanessa, for Aimée and for any bastards they still could save in the kingdom.

Noelle wanted to hope. No, Noelle just hoped.

Nozel knew he was early, even for his standards. Well, his standards had lost a lot of their habit since he was with Vanessa and even more since their whole situation escalated, but that was a detail.

But he was waiting for his Vermillion aunt and they would go to the cottage together. Océane told him that she was now ready to talk about her late brother Fer and his wife Émeraude to him and Vanessa.

In all honesty, Nozel had no idea what he hoped to gain with this information. He had no idea how it could even help him and Vanessa to win their fight. But he knew that at this point, he was probably desperate for any small, tiny thing that could maybe bring them forward by even a baby step.

But he was also curious. His other Silva aunts and uncles all died before he was born. Neither his mother nor Océane talked much about them. As for his grandparents, his grandfather died when he was just a toddler. Only his grandmother lived long enough so that he actually had precise memories of her. But even she never talked much about her late children. Well, to be fair, lady Eislyn Silva had always been rather dreamy and never always there with them. Some pretended that she was mad. Nozel wouldn't be surprised, that poor woman lost four of five children and her surviving daughter married into another royal house.

His curiosity might be sated. What he would gain for his fight from the stories was another topic. All he could hope for was to give Vanessa and Aimée the happy life they deserved. He was hoping beyond reason at this point.

"Oh, look who's there. The handsome and young captain of the Silver Eagles and Head of House Silva who throw everything away for a witch and a bastard child."

Nozel flinched. He recognize that kind of sentence. Usually, only his father would talk to him like that.

But it wasn't his father's voice. It wasn't even the voice of a man. In fact, it was the voice of the only other person in the whole Kingdom of Clover who would dare to talk to him like that.

Lady Athénaïs Vitrail.

The very woman majority of nobility considered one of the most perfect matches for a royal. One of the perfect matches for him.

He refused to turn to face her. He refused to look at her.

"What are you doing here?"

Nozel couldn't tell if Athénaïs was here on her own accord or if it was another indirect message from his father. Either way was very possible.

"Such an impolite attitude to talk to a lady of high nobility, even for a royal and a Head of House."

It costed him, but he turned to face her. Athénaïs smiled smugly, playing with one of her golden locks in a seductive way. Nozel almost puked. He hated that she was doing it. Vanessa did that trick to him too once in a while, but always in an innocent teasing way, just for the fun of seeing him blushing.

With Vanessa, it was refreshing and sweet.

With Athénaïs, it was just disgusting.

"Well, your father was wrong then," the blond woman snapped, dropping the act immediately. "If that trick didn't work on you, it can only mean that you really fell in love… Who would have thought that you, of all people, would fell so low?"

"Don't act like you know me. You have no idea who I really am."

"Well, that is true. You were always so closed up and distant. If you ask me, you should have stayed that way. It is just a disappointment since you opened up a bit."

"As if I care what you, my father or the coalition would think of me."

"You should. Lord Nozel, many nobles actually consider to stop making an alliance with house Silva these days. Do you realize if you marry her, nobles could possibly stop sending you advantageous marriage proposals for you and your siblings?"

"I wish, so I could finally be free from those. But knowing many nobles, they would never stop."

He heard Athénaïs sigh and hated that it sounded like she was dealing with a stubborn toddler. But Nozel needed to stay calm. He refused to bent.

"Why are you here? Have been sent by my father or are you here at your own account? If you think you can just threaten me and intimidate me, you're wrong. You're wasting your time. I will never give up on Vanessa and my child."

He didn't precise that it was his daughter. The longer the coalition fooled themselves that he had a son and not a daughter, the better.

"I admit that he sent me, but just to show you what you're missing by giving up on any noble ladies, like me. Your father believes that one day, you will bent and finally come back on the right path, it doesn't matter how. But I'm honestly not so sure about it."

Nozel didn't replied. Athénaïs Vitrail was many things, but she wasn't dumb. Sadly.

"I honestly believe you're dumb, lord Nozel," she said, shaking her head slightly. "You're a royal. It gives you prestige, a certain aura even most nobles could only dream of, if they don't married into royalty. If you lose your royal status, that aura would disappear. You really think that the witch would continue to stay with you once you lost it?"

"Yes."

Athénaïs was visibly taken aback that he answered without any hesitation. But it was normal. Nozel knew Vanessa better than the woman in front of him ever would.

But before she was about to reply again, another person intervened in their rather tense conversation.

"Trust me, lady Athénaïs. My dear nephew could lose even his magic and status within the next hour and Vanessa would still hopelessly love him. On the contrary on most nobles, who would just turned their backs to him, when he won't have any interests for them anymore. But I suppose that I don't tell you anything new, my dear."

His aunt was here.

Nozel sighed deeply in relief. If he would have stand alone with Athénaïs Vitrail, he clearly would have done something he would probably not regret, but would have too heavy consequences, especially for Vanessa and Aimée.

Océane took his arm before turning towards Athénaïs with a stern look. "I'll be honest with you. You're mostly upset because it is a Black Bull witch who took the place at my nephews side and not you. Everyone knows that you're considered a perfect match for him and you're not the last one to believe that. But you're not upset because you love Nozel, but more because Vanessa took away your chances to become a royal, a powerful royal. I don't know what my brother-in-law told you, but I assure you, Nozel is forever out of your reach."

Athénaïs looks shocked and offended by his aunts harsh words. But she soon regain her affected and snobbish attitude. "You are very clever, lady Océane. But you shouldn't forget that you're a Vermillion now and not a Silva anymore. Since years. I would have known my place. Well, it's no use to deny it. I'm indeed upset, because that whore of a witch," – his aunt had to hold him back at this point – "took a place that shouldn't belong to her. So, even if it's love or not, what does it matter? She is no fit for a royal, she has obviously no idea what it means and what you should do. Some royals these days obviously have no idea to hold their rank like they should. Lord Lac does and so do I. I'm maybe not born into royalty, but I'm more a royal yet than many of you, especially you Silvas. And one day, I will take my rank. Be it at lord Nozels side or not, but that place shall belong to me."

With that, lady Athénaïs turned her back and went away quickly. Nozel would have thrown some of his mightiest on her if his aunt wasn't holding him back.

"Don't let her words get to you, Nozel dear. Athénaïs might have some reach and she is sadly clever, but she doesn't have that much power she believes to have. Your situation is difficult and she knows that, but she won't win. Your father and the coalition won't win. You'll get your happiness with Vanessa and Aimée, I'm sure of it."

Nozel just nodded. It was good to hear it, to have someone to remind him his reasons to fight while he was angry.

"Let's go now, my dear nephew. There's a lot I have to tell Vanessa and you."

He nodded again, summoning his mercury eagle. While he and his aunt flew away, Nozel still tried to calm down his anger. His conversation with Athénaïs just reminded him that because of people like her, especially of his father, because of the stupid prejudices within the nobility of the Clover Kingdom, he was forced to hide Vanessa somewhere in the middle of nowhere, in order to protect her and their child.

Yes, it was her idea, but Nozel just hated it. Because Vanessa deserved to be free, at his side. In his eyes and heart, she deserved the world and if he could, he would not hesitate to give it to her.

Vanessa felt that something was off. She didn't even why and what was off exactly. She just knew because Noelle and Finral told her that the rumours had been more awful than usual during the last three days and because lately, her unborn child was moving a lot in her womb.

She put a hand on her belly and caressed it, in an attempt to calm the little one. The baby continued to move, though. It didn't hurt, but Vanessa had the feeling that her child was nervous.

"What am I thinking? I feel nervous and it has repercussions on my body and so, on the baby," Vanessa scolded herself, while caressing her belly. "I'm sorry, little one. Mommy's going to calm down now."

Which was easier said than done.

Vanessa sighed while grabbing her needlework. Sewing and embroidering always calmed her, especially the clothes and blankets she was doing for her baby. She even went a bit overboard with it, given the many things she made during the last months, giving her room more chaos than it already had.

Blankets, any kind of clothes were around her in a mess. A mess colourful fabric, with any kind of embroidery she loved. Bulls, eagles, cats, clovers, flowers, plants and trees, stars, moons and suns, seashells and grimoires… Vanessa even made two tiny knight robes, a Black Bull one and a Silver Eagle one.

Normally, it would have calmed her down to sew all those things, to find any new motive to try for her embroideries.

But not this time. This time, she just did her needlework while waiting. Waiting for what exactly?

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Or rather, three short knocks and four long ones. Their signal.

"Honey?"

She thought that he was in the capital, dealing with his jerk of a father. Something must have happened. Nozel looked tired, sad and even sorry and a bit desperate. Vanessa didn't like it when he had that kind of look.

"Nozel, what happened?"

She couldn't hide her worry and Nozel realized that, of course he did. He quickly sat down beside her and pulled her into a tight hug, as good as he could with the big belly Vanessa had right now.

"I'm sorry…"

"Honey…"

"Our father found out about us… and our secret… isn't a secret anymore."

Which meant… The whole nobility, the whole kingdom must know about them, about their unborn child. Vanessa gasped, clinging now onto Nozel. The whole world finding out right now, while the anti-bastard feeling seemed just to become louder and louder… this was a worst-case scenario. That happened in reality.

The baby was still moving. Vanessa put her hands on her belly and Nozel put his over hers. She hoped it would help her to calm down, so that the baby won't be moving too much and become calmer. The last thing she needed now was to give birth way too soon.

"I'm so sorry Vanessa…"

"Nozel, don't apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for. I love you."

It was so random to say it like that, in this situation, but she also need to stop Nozel to get overwhelmed with guilt. It truly wasn't his fault. It was his fathers…

Nozel sighed sadly and nudged softly her cheek with his nose. Vanessa angled her head to him and put her lips on his. The kiss was incredibly soft, but somehow still a bit desperate, trying so much to not stop hoping. At least, the baby seemed to calm down while they kissed.