Chapter 7

True to her words, Haku didn't show up when the night rolled around and Taylor woke up to goes to the tower to study magic with Shinki, according to her Mage Sight at the very least. And the study went through without much incidents with Shinki and her discussing improvement on her magical study.

And it was indeed much harder due to the fact that Taylor could barely advance her control from when cleaning up the cookware earlier that day. And the idea of pumping more Mana/The Force/Magic into her spell only elicited a frown from her teacher.

"Magical energy will not always be easily drawn upon, Taylor." Shinki chided Taylor as the latter tried to draw more ambient magic to fuel her spell while practicing "Although it's practically infinite, like the number of multiverses, your body can only handle so much at a time, and capping that capacity on some paltry tricks isn't the best use of it, don't you think so?"

It wasn't like Taylor could disagree with her when the reasoning made so much sense that even a complete newbie wouldn't dare argue. However, it also ends up reminding Taylor of questions she had during the day regarding Shinki, and it began to bugs her from that moment onward until the end of today's lesson.

"I think this's for today, Taylor." Shinki voice signaled the end of her practice. A dozen of thumb-size fireballs she conjured performed a spin and fly-by around them one last time before vanishing. Taylor sighed and wipe the sweat from her forehead.

"Are you all right, Taylor?"

She couldn't hide anything from her teacher/second mother at all. But it wasn't like she could hide anything from anyone in the first place. Discounting her dad who was too deep in perpetual depression to care of course.

Taylor stood up, she hesitated for a moment before she joined Shinki who was sitting on the parapet with her back facing the void below with no fear of falling. Trusting that her mistress wouldn't let her fall down.

Normally the act of servant sitting side by side with her mistress would be disrespectful and Taylor protested as such once, with a predictable result.

"I… just want to ask you something, Ma'am."

Silver eyes bore into Taylor in question "I suppose it was what troubled you during tonight's lesson isn't it?" taking silence as a confirmation, she then urged the brunette with a sincere smile "Ask away."

Silence reigned between the mistress and servant, but only for a moment before Taylor took the offer "What's god's duty? I mean, you can easily solve all the problems that people in your land suffer, preventing them from conflict, but why not? Why let them talk it out here in this gathering?"

Taylor had to give Shinki credit, from most fantasy fictions she read, godlike beings usually angry by this kind of questions from a mere mortal like her. Shinki, contrary to those fictions, only gave her a knowing smile as if this wasn't the first time she has been asked this question before.

"Hmm… let's see…" The Goddess of Makai hummed thoughtfully before clapping her hands "Let's say you have a child. That child started running in the park and tripped, fell over which leave him a bruise. Will you forbid him from going to the park from then on?"

Taylor shook her head as answers were obvious to her "No Ma'am."

"And why is that? Isn't the park dangerous to him? If so, what would you do?"

"I'll tell him to be careful and watch his step next time." The next questions also didn't take long for her to reply either. After all, it was what her mom told her when she was little "He would have to grow up and go out eventually, better let him learn the lesson than shelter him and be unprepared."

Shinki nodded in approval "Good answer." she then glanced upward to the darkened sky "It's the same reason why I will do nothing to solve the problems for the denizen of my world, Taylor. And for a being with power like me, the consequence will be much greater than unleashing one spoiled child into the harsh reality of the world."

Taylor looked at Shinki in silence, her eyes widened at the notion that she never thought of before.

But Shinki wasn't finished and continuing to explains "If I keep using my power as a 'Divine Intervention' every time some land faces famine or draught, they'll depend on me and never learn of the rain cycle, irrigation, and other methods to find and store water for use during the dry season. Same as other problems, they'll never grow up, they will never learn."

"But what about villains that cause harm to innocents? The evil country trying to conquer the defenseless who cannot save themselves?"

Shinki's smile turned bitter which made Taylor fear that she just threaded upon a touchy subject by accident.

But the shouting or cold lecture never come. Instead, Shinki answered her with melancholy in her voice "Again, it's the consequences that will come afterward. If I used my powers to rid my world of villainy and evil, then what's the lesson of the day that people will think afterward?"

This time, she didn't wait for Taylor who was struggling to find answer and replies "They will learn that what they did is something I do not approve of and doing it will incur my wrath. Even if I explained reasons to them, it'll be my reasons, not theirs. And thus, in the end, they will only stop out of fear of retribution from me, not because they understand that the society did not approve of such practice or civilization cannot function if this keeps going. It's up to the people in society to take responsibility and create the law and order of their own."

"But shouldn't people in power take responsibility and aid those without?" Taylor finally found her voice and argued, but her voice was subdued for someone who grew up in a land with superheroes combating supervillains and monsters on regular basis facing with such an affront to what she experienced for her entire life.

However, her mistress seems to have another idea.

"Again, do not compare my power with those paltry tricks of your so-called Parahumans, my child." Shinki's voice turned serious as she pointed her finger to the sky, causing Taylor's eyes to followed it "When your power reached the level that can create a new realm, new life, or destroying one on a whim, it becomes much harder to convince those who aware of it to not depend on you to save them from every problem without trying to solve it themselves. Tell me, my child, what kind of society that will become?"

"…They'll become complacent and only wait for aids?"

Shinki placed her hand on Taylor's and whispered "Nothing in the universe is perfect, everything has their own good and bad. Do you know how many civilizations I ruined because I helped them? I already lost count before I finally settled for just being a useless 'Goddess' who will only intervene to avert extinction-level crisis and become a mediator between civilizations to let them find answers of their own like this."

Taylor could practically feel the guilt and remorse of Shinki's failures in both her words and her sad smile. If there were any remaining doubts in her mind that the woman who was sitting next to her was just as human as everyone despite godlike power then it all but disappeared.

Taking a deep breath, Shinki composed herself and let out an awkward chuckle "Well, enough about me being a failure of a Goddess. How about you?"

Taylor was caught off-guarded by the sudden shift of topic and attention to herself and almost sputter "What is it, Ma'am?"

"I'm worried if you're letting your hatred for Haku cloud your judgment."

At Shinki's words, Taylor has to suppress her anger which threatened to come out again, but her reply still taking on a sarcastic tone "You said it yourself that she was once a bully and that her habit still persists. What else I have to think about?"

Shinki let out a sigh "From a certain point of view, Haku is actually helping you in her own way."

"If that's her helping me, I dreaded to think what's not helping will looks like." Taylor quipped with even voice, which was quite an achievement, considered the past meeting with Haku "And why is it matters?"

Shinki stood up from the parapet and began pacing in front of her maid with her hand on her chin as if in thought. Once she made the third pass in front of Taylor, she stopped and turned to speak "Remember this afternoon when Haku demonstrated illusion magic by using it on you?"

Taylor nodded and let Shinki asked "If you cannot spot the assassin who used illusion magic or disguise to distracted you while you're carrying a meal to serve our guests and slipped a poison on your dish or drink. Whom will they accuse with whatever going to happen next?"

Taylor's face paled almost instantly as her mind realized what Shinki was implying.

"I called Haku to speak with me after you left." Shinki continued without waiting for her answer "While she didn't admit it directly, she was concerned about you personally due to that exact reason you know?"

Gulping, Taylor finally found her voice once more, "I still find it hard to believe, Ma'am."

Though Taylor's wariness against the white fox chief guard still present, her tone was softened as she looked at what transpired from a new perspective that her mistress asked.

If only she'd be more tactful, Taylor might like her.

Shinki gave her an encouraging smile "All I can ask is that you try your hardest to learn from this 'test' Taylor. Even if you cannot pass it and has to be sent away for the time, I can assure you that Haku's relative is anything but…" she paused, searching for appropriate description before settled on "…like Haku. Yumeko can attest to that."

While it was a relief that even the unflappable Yumeko once faced the same thing as she was about to face from tomorrow onward, Taylor couldn't help but ask "Why are you giving Haku this much authority in the first place?"

Shinki's smile never fade as she replied "Because she properly doing her job and still looking after the wellbeing of everyone here." before Taylor could protest, Shinki quickly cut her off "Even if you resented her for being nasty to you, please keep in mind that she's trying to protect you from a far worse fate with a limited options she has on hands..."

"But you can easily clear me of the accusation regardless of evidence!"

Shinki frowned for the first time in that night and countered smoothly "And abuse my authority like how your old school's principal abused hers to shielded your bullies from any punishment?"

That gave Taylor a pause, as she averted her mistress's eyes and mumbled with shame-filled voice, her rage all but forgotten "I'm sorry, Ma'am…"

Even though some of Taylor's dark thought wished for such favoritism, another good and dominant part clamped it down with prejudice, she will never stoop down to their level!

Her mistress made her way to the door before turned to addressed Taylor the final time "It's late and you should be tired by now. Let's head back and rest while you still can and prepare for tomorrow." and then she was gone, leaving Taylor alone on the tower.

It didn't take long for Taylor to quickly rushed back to her quarter and used magic-assist jump to land on her bunk, fast asleep without bother to change nor greet Yumeko who was waiting at the table.

Yumeko decided to let it slide this time, knowing how stressful it will be for Taylor dealing with Haku first-handed.

Sound of chirping birds woke Taylor from her late-night slumber. She stretched her arms up and let out a yawn before lifting herself out of bed. But as she fumbling around, a hand was placed on her shoulder to keep her from falling to which she mumbled a small "thank you" to someone who was standing next to her bed…

…But her bed was a top bunk…

Taylor's eyes widen as she jolted awake and looked at the person hovering next to her bunk. She rubbed her eyes to clear her vision, and the image didn't change, the woman was still there.

And logically, the first thing that came out from the surprised maid's mouth was "Why are you… no, how can you get in here?"

Indeed, standing in mid-air next to her bunk was none other than the nasty guard chief herself who didn't so much as quirking her eyebrow at the questions and proceeded to say that she sucks in a roundabout way in that same annoying apathetic voice "If I am an assassin, then you're already dead, Taylor."

That provoked a response from the maid in form of snarking "It's not like we don't need to sleep!" she glared at the fluffy tails before adding "…or nocturnal."

If Haku felt insulted, she didn't show it outwardly at all as she continued emotionlessly "That's what locks, barriers, and magical perimeter defenses are for." then she quickly preempted Taylor's response by saying "It's an improvement that you should consider in the future. It'll take time to unravel its complexity and adopt for yourself. Just remember that this room is a safe haven thanks to your senior."

At that mention of her senior, Taylor's immediately alarmed and about to demand her whereabouts until the maid in red showed up out of their tiny kitchen carrying a tray of simple breakfast which was slightly more than they usually had.

Taylor realized the implication before Yumeko even spelled it out.

"Haku will be joining us for breakfast."

That spiked Taylor's wariness and it showed, from when she went to the bathroom to wash and change, or throughout the breakfast by signs of her covertly using Mage Sight and inspecting everything all the time. The other two didn't comment on it nor did they strike any conversation during the meal only added to the tension.

As the meal finished and Taylor was about to take the dishes to wash, Haku decided to break the silence first "Your observation should be more subtle. Because an alerted spy may find it necessary to eliminate you first if he felt threatened."

Taylor's face heated up, but her angry throwback was preempted by the fox who suddenly complimented her "But keeping your vigilant and there's little you have to fear of spies finding you the best target to impersonate or trick."

She then stood up and bowed slightly at Yumeko who was glaring at the fox "Thanks for the meal. I'll be going then." However, when her hand reached the doorknob, she turned around and faced Taylor again with a serious look of a professional "I'll be watching you throughout the weeks. Taylor. That's all of my lessons… and a test. Can you spot lies from the truth? Can you know time and place to act? We shall see…"

Once she was gone, Taylor let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Yumeko came over and squeezed her shoulder encouragingly.

"She's being serious, nothing to be afraid of."

"She's still a bitch though…"

Taylor vulgar remark was met with disapproval from her senior whose response was obvious "Watch your language." but her tone and look softened when she withdrew her hand and let Taylor continued with dishwashing "Think of it as learning through real experience instead of lessons in a classroom like you did with Milady. As I told you last night. Be vigilant."

Taylor could only mutter with a strained smile "I'll try."

And as soon as the dish was done, the two of them grabbed their tools before going their separate ways to attend to their respective duties of the day. Taylor made her way to the main library of the castle while Yumeko handles the rest.

As she pushed the double door open wide, she was greeted by sight of countless four stories bookshelves reached to the ceiling with various reading materials imaginable kept on it in various state of neatness. And her work today is to help cleaning around this place.

No matter how much she wanted to sit down and read them, there's a job to be done.

After greeting the librarian who looked like a kind, hunchback old man with pointy ears and horns dressed in a dark baggy robe like wizards in fantasy fiction, Taylor quickly went to work. Carefully dusting off precious tomes and books by either hand or magic. But it was mostly by hand as some of the artifacts here looked so fragile that she was afraid that a momentary slip-up would wreck them. Not to mention that there was a certain fox waiting to screw her up somewhere close by.

She had enough false accusations thrown her way to last an entire lifetime, thank you very much.

'Speak of the devil' Taylor was alarmed as her Mage Sight detected an anomaly slowly creeping in from the corner of her eyes. With a focus on her eyes, she quietly continued her works despite the illusion overlapping everything in her sight. There was no use trying to search and confront the caster when she didn't have any skills to fight them with.

Carefully, she thoroughly performed her cleaning duty, albeit at a slower pace as she had to divert attention to attempts at sabotages from both invisible assailants trying to trick her into messing up her cleaning or damage something, and the usual childish fairies that populated the place.

Granted, if they really wanted to sabotage her that badly they'd have ruined the tomes and undone all the works after she finished for the day and left. But given how priceless these artifacts are, and how Haku still under service of Shinki, along with the objective of this test was to notice spies and assassins that infiltrated the castle, it was unlikely that Haku would do that.

It didn't comfort her much though, as no matter how much assurances from Yumeko and Shinki told her, Haku still reminded Taylor too much of her painful past.

When she finished cleaning out the dust on the last pile of paper and arranged all of them back neatly on the shelf it was already noon, way too slow compared to when cleaning another section of the library the other day. When that was done, Taylor made her way to the librarian at the front of the library to report her work for today and apologize for taking too long.

The demon librarian looked up from his tome when he heard Taylor's footsteps and greeted her with a smile "Is everything in order?"

Taylor nodded and replied while suppressing an annoyed huff that the old man only sits here and didn't do anything at all "Yes, I'm a bit late, but I just finished for today."

"Anything else to report?"

At that question, Taylor hesitated, should she tell the man that there was someone unsavory person hiding here and tried to pull a prank on her? Or should she pretend nothing happen and only tell Shinki and Yumeko about it? After all, he's sitting here being useless while she has done all the work for him… or was he?

The old man squinted his eyes at her when she didn't reply and not leaving, making her struggled with how to respond.

"There's… someone is casting illusion magic around this library, sir. I'm not sure who or why they did it, but please be careful."

In the end, the good nature part of her won out. After all, Haku said to learn from real experiences, hasn't she? What kind of a woman she will be if she left other clueless and vulnerable to the one wish people here harm?

The old librarian's eyes opened up slightly more but didn't comment anything except waving his hand in a universal sign of dismissing her, to which she obliged without further conversation.

Lunch became a stressful affair for Taylor who was expecting an attack or prank at any moment despite her usual eating spot was her quarter shared with Yumeko. But the problem was Yumeko wasn't present today, probably due to some stupid fairies again, causing Taylor to eat her lunch alone, and it made her nervous as the defensive measures Yumeko placed on the quarter could only help so much.

In the end, there was nothing out of the ordinary that she could detect and she left for work in the left wing of the castle in the afternoon without waiting for Yumeko to show up knowing from past experiences that sometime she couldn't make it.

Again, she couldn't shake off the feeling of certain someone watching her every move, waiting to exploit an opening to cause some harms and thus keeping her Mage Sight opened. By the end of the day, she could barely bring her tired and exhausted body back to her room. The only comfort is that apart from illusion spell trying to affect her multiple times during the day, nothing happens so far…

…or was it? Taylor's tired mind once again started to get uncomfortable when she realized that since that one incident in the library, she couldn't locate or catch sight of the perpetrator at all despite meeting with her in the morning and know exactly who's behind it.

Also, hiding behind illusion spell wasn't an excuse for her in Taylor's mind, not when she learned the exact ability to counter that a month prior and even noticed it yesterday!

But the moment she walked into her quarter and saw the old demon librarian sitting at the table with Yumeko cooking in the kitchen, she realized immediately that something was wrong.

Still, her training etiquette kicked in and she greeted the old man politely "Is there anything we can help you with?"

The old man looked at her with calculating, piercing eyes, before a smirk formed on his lip and spoke to the tired but alerted Taylor in his usual old man voice "So you don't even bother to learn about him at all…"

Then the old man used his hand to slowly peeled his skin out, paying no heed to Taylor's horrified look. But that horror soon turned into surprise when she saw what lies beneath that she didn't notice the door closing on its own behind her.

Another face, a face she comes to loathe over the span of two days was smirking back at her, with two fox ears popping up over snowy white hair removed any doubts she had.

"My Mage Sight didn't see anything!"

"Of course, it didn't, Mage Sight detect only magical usage, it didn't let you see through clothing unless you modify it for that."

The first word that left Taylor's mouth elicited a snort from Haku who took off her baggy robe to let her fluffy tails which disguised as a hunched back free of its confinement in the meantime. Once they were freed, she quickly went on to criticize Taylor's performance on her first day of the test.

"You're expecting too much from someone who's unfamiliar with this place!"

Naturally, Taylor did not take it well and predictably shouted back, her anger barely restrained by the memory of how the last time she tried shutting this fox up the violent way went.

"Of course, the world isn't fair! It never was, and never be! Do you think spies will act honorable and make it easy for you to notice just because you're new here?"

And just like the last time, her angry shout did not faze Haku at all as she proceeds to dismantled Taylor's argument with cold-calculating voice.

"What I did today is something that you should notice had you ever socialize with people in the castle outside of Milady and Yumeko, I deliberately behaved differently than the librarian whom I asked to move elsewhere for the day that you wouldn't miss it, but you did."

Taylor could only open and closed her mouth for a moment searching for argument before she settled on telling Haku that she asked for the impossible.

Haku shook her head "I'm not asking you to become a social butterfly, but you should at least acquaint with key personnel in the castle more than just knowing their name and their professions. You have months of a head start before I returned here. Milady did not prevent you from making friends and you have free time after your works."

She paused and looked at Taylor who was looking down at the floor unable to argue before continued with a slightly softer tone despite her almost emotionless face "I'm vaguely aware of your traumatic past making you paranoid of others. But it's detrimental to the security of everyone if you let it dictate your interaction like this."

Eyes narrowed, Haku glanced at the approaching Yumeko before focusing back on Taylor again "I hope for your sake that you seek to realize why it was wrong to distance yourself from others and rectify it before it's too late, Taylor Hebert."

With that parting word delivered in the same emotionless tone, Haku nodded at Yumeko and made for the exit to leave without waiting for complaints from her quarry.

Once the door shut quietly, Yumeko let out a sigh and put down the dinner tray on the table before turning to Taylor who stood still since the fox left. "Are you all right?"

That snapped Taylor out of her inner thought and quickly rounded on her senior, her pent-up frustration simmering just beneath her calm surface "Is this a setup?"

"What?"

"Setup so that I fail this test no matter what I did!" Taylor snapped at Yumeko despite the latter had no hand in her current predicament at all out of anger before realizing what she just did and fell silent.

The blonde maid didn't say anything for minutes despite it was her right to reprimand this uncouth behavior of her junior. Both did not dare to touch the food or drink on the table as they tried to find a way to address the situation. But finally, Yumeko broke the silence first.

"While she was aware of you since you set foot into Makai, she didn't influence any decisions you made during the Winter."

"How can you be so sure about that?"

Taylor responded immediately, cutting Yumeko off, but her voice now has a hint of uncertainty.

If Yumeko noticed it, she didn't act on it and continued her explanation "Because there was no point? Or because what Haku did earlier was an almost exact thing happened to me in the past." she closed her eyes for a moment, likely reminiscing "…and it's also the first time I failed Milady."

Hearing the shame in her senior's voice was all it took to convince Taylor to accept it as truth however hard it is to swallow.

"If it's any consolation, your outburst right now couldn't compare to my temper tantrum back then, thanks to my inherent abilities. And I have even fewer excuses for how I behave around others too."

Taylor wasn't sure if Yumeko was trying to lighten the mood or not, but it was indeed a consolation to hear the confirmation from her mouth about what Shinki told her the other night.

However, that was where the depressing thought hit her and it reflected in her next whisper.

"So, I'm expected to fail after all… just like you did, right?"

Yumeko didn't say anything except gestured at the empty seat that Haku sat earlier. The depressed Taylor took a seat and begin eating without complaint alongside her senior.

Their meal stayed silent for a few minutes before Yumeko finally gathered her thoughts together enough to try talking to Taylor again "My first failure was a… humbling experience, Taylor."

Taylor slowly put down her spoon and asked bitterly, no doubt feeling betrayed that she didn't help her earlier "Are you trying to make me feel better?"

Yumeko shook her head slightly "No, I'm just stating the fact."

"What fact?"

"The fact that no one is perfect and it takes time to excel in any given task. Without putting effort or preparation, this is always the result."

Taylor let out a mirthless chuckle while staring at her vegetable soup "Then what's the point of this test?" she then quickly adds and looked at Yumeko who was shooting her a questioning glance "…I know I fell for Haku's provocation and accepted it myself, but still, why?"

What she didn't say was 'Why not simply fire her the moment she acted out of line, just like how Principal Blackwell simply dismissed all her complaints in her past live right until her death?'

Yumeko didn't know what Taylor was thinking when she answered "I think she wants to see how you perform. Sometimes it's the journey that matters more than the result because the most valuable lessons were learned during it, not after." she paused to gather her thought and continued "Besides, you will not regret anything even when you fail, as your heart knows that you've tried your best."

Taylor blinked at the sudden insight from her senior who never said something like this before "That's… rather …"

"It's just something Haku's relative love to say." Yumeko quickly corrected her and then looked at the half-filled dishes before them "Let's finish our dinner, you still have a lesson with Milady tonight, remember? Or would you prefer to rest? I can tell Milady that you're too tired and she won't be upset about it."

In the end, Taylor silently finished her meal and prepare for the magical lesson with Shinki that night as if everything was normal. And despite one part of her mind keeps telling her to just quit since this test was rigged from the start, another part of her mind also told her that Yumeko did fail in the past and still around because she gave it her all.

Taylor still detests the nine-tails fox nonetheless…

"…I'd recommend sending her away until the Gathering is concluded. Milady."

After the end of the second week, Taylor and Yumeko were summoned to Shinki's office once again, and predictably, Haku was there to give reports on her progress…

Which was not satisfying, to say the least…

'How the hell one can please this bloody fox!?' Part of Taylor's mind angrily whispered as Yumeko squeezed her shoulder lightly, perhaps to tell her to keep cool and not lash out. Even Shinki, sitting behind her desk, looking at her with encouraging smile instead of disappointment, as if silently saying "You've done your best, do better next time" to her, or so she thought.

"I… understand…"

Words pushed through her mouth, like all people, Taylor hates failing her task especially when things look like the other party rigged or cheated her to fail. Even if it was to make her reflecting her problems, she should've done it in a gentler manner!

It was a miracle that she didn't quit after she couldn't spot Haku dressing as important castle's residents for the fifth time in a row, which the nine tails fox casually reminded her every dinner by dismantling her disguises in front of her without fail. Her performance will not improve at all to the end of the second week because she didn't know those people well enough to spot the differences, and socializing with them right now will only add to her paranoia whether the one she converses with was the real one or not.

'If only she'd try to disguise as Yumeko or Shinki...' was one of her thought, but when thinking about it carefully she find it improbable because if the enemy can subvert those two then they'd be more than powerful enough to make everyone on this world submit to them, no need for subtlety at all.

But on the other hand, Taylor could spot and identify Haku's familiar disguising as people most of the time after a week of stumbling, which was just a consolation prize at best, all things considered.

Also, two weeks was enough time for her to cool her head and thought things over, thus while upset, she didn't explode at Haku who was standing at her usual spot next to Shinki yet.

Shinki broke Taylor out of her brooding a moment after with a question "If what Haku said about your performance is true, then I'll have no choice but to do as she suggested. Taylor, are you all right with this?"

Taylor wanted to complain, wanted to tell Shinki how unfair it was, but Haku's and Shinki's words of wisdom rang in her mind, it wasn't like they had a choice if they wanted to be respected and acknowledged as impartial host during the negotiations that will soon take place here lest conflict broke out. And Taylor did not want to be held accountable for responsible for starting a war just because she asked for a favor to stay despite how unprepared she was.

"I… do not like this… Ma'am, it feels unfair…"

Taylor paused to take a deep breath a moment before continuing while looking at her mistress "But I guess that's the point, isn't it?"

In the end, what more she could say?

Shinki's silver eyes glanced at Haku which also drew Taylor's eyes toward the fox she detested, perhaps it was an illusion but Taylor swore that Haku seems to briefly gave her an approving look for a second before it was replaced with the near-emotionless mask she always wearing.

A cough from Shinki drew Taylor's attention back "I only confine you to the castle to give you time to adjust to your new life, you'll eventually have to go out there and make more friends, not just Yumeko or myself. Try to think of this as an opportunity to do so, all right?"

When Shinki worded it like that, Taylor couldn't help but agreed with her, why the hell she still let her distrust born in her old life influencing her to this day anyway?

"Yes, Ma'am, when do I leave?"

The one who answered was Haku in her trademark apathetic voice "I'll be bringing you to my relative's residence by tomorrow afternoon. Please pack your belonging and ready to leave by then."

"I'll escort you there." Yumeko quickly chimed in "It's been a while since I visited him."

While the red-clad maid's face was schooled into a stoic mask, her blue eyes that briefly looked at Taylor was enough to make her grateful as it spoke well of concern to her wellbeing and what she said was just an excuse to help her.

Taylor could only hope that things will turn out all right and that she will be back by the end of the Gathering. There still a lot of interesting books in the library waiting for her to read... er clean, yes clean!

Do you expect her to pass this test with the baggages from her past live still fresh? Fat Chance!

Anyway, this's so that she'll be moving away from the castle temporarily and meet new characters. This's going to be tough as I have to invent more OCs as things went along.

Haku's personality was partially inspired by everyone's favorite, Paul von Oberstein, only partially though, as her Social Darwinist part was inspired by other nine-tails fox ) (whose appearance was also inspired how Haku's look like too) instead.

I hope everyone enjoy. Leave a comments or criticisms as you see fit. Until next time.