The horses carrying Cerdic and Gareth galloped through the outer perimeter of the Brightmoon estate. Gareth was finding it quite tiring."Shall we leave, Cerdic? It's not like you have never seen all of this before." Gareth shifted uncomfortably in his saddle, feeling impatient."I had been away for six years." Cerdic rolled his eyes. "I need to see what changed while I was away.""What's changed?" Gareth chuckled. "The buildings got older. A servant's quarters was demolished, and a new one was built. They also built a new guest house. Then there's the Moonshade Grove; it's no longer in use and is overgrown and infested with wolves. There, you are all caught up.""Moonshade Grove is no longer in use?" Cerdic raised an eyebrow.The Moonshade Grove, a private grove in the southwestern corner of the estate, was used as hunting grounds. This grove got its name from moonshade flowers, beautiful violet flowers found in abundance there, but they had a foul smell."Yeah. We stopped using it," Gareth said in disinterest. "There are only some deer and wolves anyway. We go to the Duskmire forest instead. There are many different types of beasts there."Cerdic remembered that his uncle used to enjoy hunting in Moonshade Grove. But Cerdic himself didn't have many memories of it. He was only ten when he left the Brightmoon estate and didn't have any hunting experience."Let's go to the western parts of the estate next," Cerdic said."Come on, there are barely any changes there," Gareth complained. If Godwin hadn't insisted, he wouldn't have agreed to accompany Cerdic. "Same old cottages, same old fields. I will give you a list if you want to know about changes.""Stop whining and follow me," Cerdic said, guiding his horse to turn westward. Gareth muttered something under his breath as he also turned his horse around.But they didn't have a chance to continue their sightseeing, as the sound of hooves hitting the ground was heard, and another horse approached. On top of it, a Brightmoon family guard was seen."Young Master Cerdic", The guard stopped the horse right before Cerdic and Gareth."What is it, Thane?' Cerdic asked curiously."Lord Regulus ordered both of you to return to the mansion immediately."Cerdic was surprised. He had left the mansion barely an hour ago. He had informed his father that he was off to visit other parts of the estate."Thank heavens," Gareth muttered. "Shall we go back now?""Well, sure. It's my father's order anyway," Cerdic sighed as he replied. "Let's go."In the Brightmoon mansion, Regulus was in his study, reading a message from the Skyreach family, his eyes narrowed. Godwin and Garon stood nearby.Godwin was fuming with anger."They have informed us that they are declining the marriage proposal. It was okay, but why did they pull out of all alliances? This is completely out of the blue."Regulus put the message away. His expression thoughtful."This is confusing indeed," Regulus said. "I didn't think of a rejection from them about Selene and Cerdic. Let alone sever all ties.""What should we do, brother?" Godwin asked, feeling indignant. "Shall we visit the Skyreach family?""Let me think," Regulus said. "I think there's more to this than what meets the eye."At that moment, the door was knocked."Father, may I come in?""Enter," Regulus said calmly.Cerdic entered the study. He sensed the atmosphere was tense."What happened, Father?" He asked, glancing at Godwin, who was still gritting his teeth.Regulus took a deep breath."The Skyreach family declined our proposal of marriage."Cerdic's eyes widened for a moment but soon returned to normal."Well, if they're not interested...""That's not all," Regulus continued. "They have pulled out of all alliances they had with us. They cut their ties entirely.""What!" Cerdic exclaimed. "Why did they do that?""No idea," Regulus said, shaking his head. "They just sent a message saying they are terminating all kinds of collaborations.""That's just unacceptable." Cerdic was stunned. "They can't ally with us and then abandon us on a whim. We are the Brightmoon family.""Of course," Godwin sneered. "Who do they think they're toying with? Regulus, we must demand an explanation. If they can't provide one, then we must show them that the Brightmoon family is not to be messed with."Regulus was still silent. Of course, when he received the news, his first reaction was just like Cerdic's and Godwin's. But as he thought things through, he felt a strange uneasiness creep into his mind. Something didn't just add up. There was no valid reason for the Skyreach family to abandon them. Not unless they were pressured by someone."Regulus, why are you silent? Say something," Godwin snapped.But right at that moment, a knock interrupted the talk."Milord, urgent message from the Velmont family."Garon stepped forward and took the sealed parchment from the merchant. He passed the parchment to Regulus, who scanned through the contents. The next moment, Regulus' eyes widened."Are they serious?" He blurted out."What happened, Regulus?" Godwin asked with concern."The Velmont family... they have also cut all ties with us," Regulus replied, his expression dark."The Velmont family too?" Godwin paled."What's going on here?" Cerdic was dumbfounded."There's someone working behind the scenes here," Regulus said. "Garon, send messengers to all the noble families we are allied with. Make sure we still have their support.""As you command, milord," Garon bowed.Regulus then thought for a second. Then he shifted his eyes towards Garon again."Keep an eye on our enemies too," he said. "Especially the Evernight family. Have we received any updates from our contact?"Cerdic's eyes turned serious. He also looked at Garon."We lost contact with him a day ago, Milord," Garon replied, feeling helpless.Godwin, as the second in command in the Brightmoon family, was also aware of the information from the Evernight family."You mean to say...that girl really has...""I am not certain," Regulus said. "But we must be prepared for the worst until we uncover the truth."Regulus then took a deep breath."Panicking will not do any good. We will talk again after we find out more information. For now, let's focus on keeping track of our allies... and enemies."Regulus looked up at the portrait of Elric Brightmoon, his eyes sharp."Whoever is behind this, if they think they can take us down that easily, they're dreaming."Cerdic stood there, unblinking. He saw the confidence in his father's expression, but he was feeling a sense of uneasiness. But for now, he could only wait and watch.
