Sun rays brushed against her eyes, jolting her awake. The aftertaste of the potion still lingered on her tongue.
'Did I fall asleep?'
"Took you long enough," an old, tired voice said.
Her eyes spun towards it and landed on Sir Alaric on the other sofa.
"I was wondering when you were going to wake up," he said before closing the book in his hands.
"…How long have I been asleep for?"
"An hour and some change, I think?" Sir Alaric sipped on his tea.
Adria sat up straight—her body still sore from sleeping on the sofa. "Where's Charles?"
"Some of the knights of the estate got into a fight, so he left a while ago to stop them." His eyes stayed on Adria for a moment, as if he were searching for something.
"My lady, can I ask you a question?" he said.
"…Sure."
"Oh, but before that, let me tell you your results. Miraculously, your legs are now significantly better. You won't need that cane or the servants to support you anymore."
Sir Alaric glanced at Adria. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"
Shivers ran down her spine.
"Lady Katherine, do you know what I discovered today?"
Adria kept quiet, her eyes trying to avoid meeting his.
"You have a high amount of god essence in your blood."
Her eyes shot up. "What?"
"You seem pretty surprised, so I guess you didn't know about that." Sir Alaric stroked his chin. "So I suppose you wouldn't know which god chose you."
"…No."
"Let me be blunt with you, Lady Katherine." Sir Alaric breathed out. "You might die."
Her eyes rattled at those words. "What do you mean?"
"Almost every person who was chosen to be an avatar at a later point in their life couldn't manage the power and ended up meeting their demise. Last time I was here, you didn't have a drop of god essence in you." Sir Alaric took another sip of his tea. "When's your birthday, my lady?"
Adria hesitated for a second, trying to remember the date. "…The 15th of Edis."
His eyes widened. "It's that close?! Do your parents know that you were chosen?"
"…No. I don't think they do."
"Are you going to tell them?" he said.
"I'm not sure."
Sir Alaric slumped into the couch as if being devoured by it. "If you're worried about whether I'll tell, don't be."
"You won't tell them?"
A weak smile left his lips. "If that's what you want, then no, I won't."
"But why?" she asked.
"Well, I don't really want to be on the bad side of the gods, and since you are the vessel for one, I wouldn't want to be on your bad side by extension." He laughed.
"Does Charles know that my legs are better?"
"No. I told him I would disclose the results once you woke up," he said. "You had to see how impatient he was."
"…Thank you, Sir Alaric," Adria said as she clenched her dress.
"Just promise me that you'll take care of your health, my lady. Your body is in an extremely weakened state right now as it is trying to assimilate with that power before you come of age." His face suddenly turned grim, "Any slip-up in your health can lead you to death's door."
'He really cares about you, doesn't he?'
"Oh, look at the time, my lady. I'm afraid I've got to go," Sir Alaric began standing up. "Take good care of yourself, ok?"
Adria stood up and bowed lightly, "I'll make sure to do so."
A set of footsteps began approaching the door as Sir Alaric left—it was Lucie.
"Good afternoon, my lady," she said. "His Lordship and her Ladyship are wondering if you'll be able to have lunch with them later."
'Again? What did I ever do to deserve this?!'
"Tell them I'll be there."
"Yes, my lady. Should I get your bath ready?"
A sigh escaped her mouth, "…Sure."
***
The maids began putting on her dress and brushing her hair as if she were a doll.
'But I'm just going for a family lunch. Did Katherine have to suffer with this every day?'
Adria's eyes were fixed on the mirror in front of her. 'But I've got to admit, they're pretty good at their job.'
'But what did he mean by "chosen by a god"? Does that mean that Katherine was chosen or that I was chosen and brought here by a god?'
'If it's the former, that would mean that a god somewhere is enraged that Katherine's soul isn't here anymore.'
'If it's the latter, then that would explain why I'm here, and it would also mean that my soul is just a puppet in a massive play. Both of those are pretty bad scenarios, but there is a silver lining to it—there's a chance that I can go back home.'
'I've been stuck in this house for 3 days now, so I haven't had the chance to look for a way to go back, but now that the physician confirmed that my legs are better, it wouldn't be weird for me to get out once in a while, would it?'
"We're finished, my lady," the maids said.
"Thank you. You can leave now."
The footsteps of the maids grew fainter as they left, but Lucie stayed behind. Her reflection was visible to Adria from the mirror, and her face looked conflicted—like she wanted to say something but was hesitating.
"Lucie, is there something wrong?"
"Pardon? Oh, no, my lady. There's nothing wrong." Lucie was fidgeting awkwardly with her fingers.
"If you aren't feeling well, you can tell me, Lucie. I'll give you the day off, ok?" Adria's eyes were filled with worry.
"No. It's nothing like that, Lady Katherine. It's just-" she clenched her eyes as if to stop herself. "I don't mean to pry, but can I ask you something, my lady?"
"Go ahead."
"…My lady, who's Judy?"
Those four words made her blood run cold, draining the life out of her in the process.