Chapter 53

At noon, the prayer shrine in the corner of the rear garden of Crescent Castle.

- Named entity: Crescent Castle. Also, the character meaning "noon" is not relevant.

In a dimly lit narrow room stood a table stained with black oil and blotchy paint, used for holy rites.

- No named entities.

One corner of the table, once used to offer sacrifices to the gods, was temporarily used as a dining table.

- No.

On the table burned a candlestick used for lighting.

- No.

On the candlestick, a poorly homemade wax candle sputtered, its blue‑green flame flickering and giving off a pungent odor.

- No.

The blue‑green light faintly illuminated the faces of two women.

- No.

One woman, about forty years old, had a pallid face with sunken eyes and cheeks from thinness; under the eerie candlelight she looked like a witch from a fairy tale.

- No.

The other woman was quite young; more accurately, she was a girl.

- No.

She was eleven or twelve, pale and slight, yet her youthful vigor gave her smooth, elastic skin and bright eyes.

- No.

This made their appearance less frightening.

- No.

The two were the widow of the old baron, Madame Sachsen, and her daughter Evelyn.

- Named entities: Old Baron, Madam Sachsen, Evelyn.

They ate lunch in silence.

- No.

The lunch consisted of meat and bread; it wasn't tasty, but it was enough to fill their stomachs.

- No.

Suddenly, Madame Sachsen snapped quietly: "Evelyn, how many times have I told you?"

- Named entities: Madam Sachsen, Evelyn.

"Fish eyeballs are edible and can even make your eyes brighter; stop feeding them to your greedy cat!"

- No.

"But Mom, I don't like eating fish eyeballs."

- No.

"Then give them to me."

- No.

"\"Mom, you clearly don't like them either, \" Evelyn objected timidly."

- Named entity: Evelyn.

Madame Sachsen hesitated, her gaze shifting over her daughter's face, then she let out a sigh.

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

"You foolish girl, the great tree that sheltered us from the storm has fallen; the good days are gone forever, and from now on it's all hardship!"

- No.

"When your uncle becomes the new baron, we'll be driven out of the castle, end up on the streets, and have to work as laundry women!"

- Named entities: uncle (generic, not a name); New Baron (title). Also castle is generic.

"Even if we wash clothes, we're neither faster nor better than others, so we'll surely starve, maybe even die on the streets."

- No.

"No one will pity us; the people of White Sturgeon Island are all heartless criminals, and the weak only get bullied."

- Named entity: White Sturgeon Island.

"At night, those men will climb on us like dogs, making us bear child after child until we die!"

- No.

The girl whispered in protest: "Uncle wouldn't be that heartless; he treats me well."

- No.

Madame Sachsen rubbed her forehead and gave a bitter smile: "Your uncle is a complete scoundrel; he's nice to you only because he lusts after your body!"

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

"And what about your uncle-in-law?"

- No.

"Your uncle-in-law is an even greater villain, having tortured your aunt to death; if he becomes the new baron, we'll suffer not only from him but also from his knights!"

- Named entities: uncle-in-law (generic), New Baron, Knight. Also aunt (generic).

"Within half a year we'll be tortured to death!"

- No.

The naive girl was frightened by her mother's words.

- No.

After a long silence, Evelyn timidly said: "But my brother wrote back, saying he'll return soon."

- Named entity: Evelyn. Also brother (generic).

"That's what people in town say too; they also claim my brother has become a big shot out there."

- No.

Hearing this, Madame Sachsen's face showed a hint of hope, but mostly pain.

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

She gave a bleak smile and self‑mocked: "Yeah, I almost forgot I still have a son."

- No.

Her husband, Baron Ted, had served as a guard for the lord of Shire County for a full ten years, giving him far more experience than the average White Sturgeon Islander.

- Named entities: Baron Ted, Shire County, Lord, White Sturgeon Island. Also husband (generic).

Over the years, influenced by her husband, she knows more than most women and sees further ahead.

- No.

She clearly knows her eldest son is a mediocrity.

- No.

At least until he was ten, she as his mother could see nothing remarkable about him.

- No.

Her husband, using his connection with a count, found a magic tutor for him, yet the boy studied for ten full years without graduating, a fact that has become a laughingstock across the island.

- Named entities: Count. Also 'whole island' is not a name. The term 'magic tutor' is generic.

The islanders say he's good for nothing, their saying goes: "Look, here's another baron's eldest son."

- Named entities: Baron. Also 'islanders' is generic.

But after all, he is her son, so deep down she still harbors some hope.

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

She does not want her eldest son to inherit the new barony; she only wishes he would return quickly to White Sturgeon Island and take them away from this hellhole.

- Named entities: New Baron, White Sturgeon Island.

Thereafter they could settle as ordinary people in Shire County or elsewhere, living peaceful, untroubled lives.

- Named entity: Shire County.

But fourteen days have passed since receiving the letter, leaving less than six days until the son's twenty‑day deadline expires.

- No.

As the days go by, Madame Sachsen's hope fades day by day.

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

Yet this remains her last hope, like the sole light in a dark night, the only reason she keeps going.

- Named entity: she (generic).

So after saying that, she stopped making sarcastic remarks.

- No.

"All right, let's just wait, but don't get your hopes up too high, after all your brother isn't having an easy time in Dawn City either."

- Named entities: brother (generic), Dawn City.

She lowered her head, scooped a mouthful of slightly spoiled wild vegetable soup with a wooden spoon, and sipped it slowly to ease her bitterness.

- No.

But before she could finish the spoonful of soup, the old steward Ah Fu came running in to report: "Madam, Sir Ales has arrived."

- Named entities: Ah Fu, Knight Ales. (Old steward and madam are generic and excluded.)

Madame Sachsen startled, nearly dropping her spoon: "How dare he come again?!"

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

Ales is her brother; at first things were okay, but lately he's been coming almost every other day just to cause trouble.

- Named entity: Ales. Also brother (generic).

Although she always manages to fend him off strangely, the frequent visits make her increasingly anxious, and she doesn't know how long her luck will last.

- No.

"'Mother Nature can't possibly keep protecting me forever, can she?' she thought."

- Named entity: Mother Nature.

Just then a hoarse laugh came from the doorway: "Sister, I've come to see you."

- Named entity: sister (generic).

Following those words, a short, sturdy man with a goat‑like beard appeared in the doorway.

- No.

His body was so massive that head‑on he looked like a door panel, and his presence made the room's light grow even dimmer.

- No.

He didn't enter, just stood in the doorway, his spur lightly tapping the rotten doorstep, idly playing with his whip, his amiable gaze lingering on his niece. "My patience is running out; it's time for me to get a clear answer, sister."

- Named entities: niece (generic), sister (generic).

Madame Sachsen felt her heart pounding like it might burst from her throat, but she forced herself to stay calm, at least on the surface.

- Named entity: Madam Sachsen.

The other party is indeed her brother, but not a blood brother; he is her stepmother's child. He has bullied her since childhood, but after she grew up and had a husband to back her up, he no longer dared to bully her, yet their relationship became very bad.

Thus, the superficial family ties gave her no psychological comfort.

After another sip of the now‑cool vegetable soup to calm her nerves, she said: "Ales, you're too impatient; only ten days have passed."

Ales grinned: "Sister, I know what you're hoping for, but I'm telling you, it's pointless."

"Even if he returns, he can't change anything."

"If he dares to resist, I, his uncle, will tie him with a rope and drag him behind a warhorse across several fields; he'll surely not dare to speak."

"If he still dares to resist, I'll strip him naked and drag him a few more miles; then even if he opposes, he won't be able to speak, ha ha."

Madame Sachsen noticed her hand trembling, and she couldn't stop it.

The Crescent Castle knights loyal to the Sachsen family have all left; only the faithful old steward Ah Fu remains on guard, but he's just an ordinary person.

His guard is meaningless.

The former baroness's sole reliance is her son, who is still away traveling.

Thus she heard herself pleading: "Ales, my brother, for our father's sake, please don't push me like this, okay?"

She hadn't used that tone in over twenty years; the last time was before she married Ted.

Ales seemed satisfied and burst out laughing.

"Sister~ I want to remind you that our shared father has been dead for five years. That old guy wasn't any good either—he died on a woman's belly, ha ha ha."

"When he died, his toy was still stiff and couldn't be pulled off, which terrified that poor woman enough to make her choke."

"Guess what I did?"

"I don't know. I don't even want to know!"

Madame Sachsen felt she was about to break, knowing he was about to boast again about that shameful past.

"'Ah ha ha ha~~'"

Ales laughed triumphantly.

"But I insist on telling you!"

"I ran her through with a sword, then chopped her into two pieces; I buried her lower half with our father, so even if he goes to hell he can still enjoy himself."

"I took the upper half and fed it to the dogs to appease our father's legitimate wives' jealousy."

"Sister, don't you think I did that splendidly?"

Listening to this nonsense and seeing her brother's smug face, Madame Sachsen felt as if she were looking at a demon escaped into the mortal world.

She couldn't help but silently pray in her heart.

"Merciful Mother Nature, please help me—at least help my daughter escape this earthly hell."

"I was born into a sinful family, bearing original sin, so my suffering is deserved, but my daughter is innocent, so young and kind; she shouldn't have to endure such hardship."

But Mother Nature seemed not to have heard her prayer at all, or perhaps she heard it but simply chose not to respond.

The demon blocking the doorway kicked the shrine's wall with his spur, knocking a large chunk of plaster loose with a loud "thud."

"Sister, tonight I want to be intimate with my niece."

He seemed to be issuing an ultimatum.

This crossed Madame Sachsen's bottom line.

So she responded without hesitation, growling low.

"If you dare to do that, when Evelyn's brother returns he will surely tear you to pieces!"

She knew her words carried little weight, since even she lacked confidence in them.

But she had to say it; at this moment she was like a mother wolf desperately protecting her cubs.

And remarkably, whenever she does this, her shameless brother always yields.

This time was no exception.

Ales's attitude indeed softened; he shrugged and said, "Sister, don't get worked up, I was just joking, ha ha. What about the day after tomorrow?"

"Shall I be intimate with my niece again the day after tomorrow?"

"Get lost!"

"Sister, I mean what I say; when my dear nephew returns, I, his uncle, will surely give him a proper lesson."

"Get out of here, quick!"

Ales finally left.

"'My brother may be shameless, but he's not stupid; he must surely fear my son.'"

"'Rosen, my child, you won't really become a big shot, will you?'"

No answer came, and she had little confidence; she could only try to calm her emotions and prepare to continue lunch.

But at that very moment, a young man's voice suddenly rose from Madame Sachsen's heart.

"\"Mother, it looks like I've returned just in time. \""

"The voice was unfamiliar, yet the tone was gentle, and the address was strange—he actually called her mother."

Madame Sachsen paused slightly, turned her head in all directions, but saw no one in the room.

She sighed inwardly: "Did I just hear wrong?"

(End of chapter)