Page 17 of A Yulean Sister’s Guide to Getting Kidnapped

“She’s attractive, huh?” a man asked me unprompted.

“Mhm,” I hummed, hoping he would get the idea I had no interest in conversing.

“And with her reputation, I’d say your chances are pretty good.”

I turned to look at him now. He was quite unattractive, his nose too wide and off center and his blonde hair thinning, despite us probably being a similar age. “What do you mean?”

“You don’t know?” he asked, surprised.

“Clearly.”

“Sage Yulean is known to get around, if you get what I mean.”

“I don’t,” I said, irritation starting to crawl up my neck.

“You dense or something?” he asked, before leaning in conspiratorially. “She’s a bit of a harlot, and I heard a great lay too.”

Was a grown man trying to gossip with me about someone else’s sex life? “Seems like some nasty rumors.”

He picked up on my distasteful tone at least, realizing I wasn’t the ally he thought I was. “It’s all in good jest,” he tried to defend.

“Jest?” I said with a smirk. “So if women were going around talk about how quickly you blow your load, you would consider that to be just in ‘jest?’”

His pale face turned a bright, tomato red. “I-I-” he stammered for far too long before excusing himself, probably finding someone more willing to take part in his slander.

I slammed my drink and left the bar, just about done for the night.

When I turned, planning on taking my leave, I spotted the princess out on the patio with the party host, Octavio Kalfin. I knew next to nothing about him. To me, he was just another rich, spoiled royal, probably knowing this reputation she seemed to have and taking some advantage of it. Which made him a fucking prick, but if she was consenting, there wasn’t much I could do.

What caused me to actually pause, was the laugh she let out at something he said. Her entire face lit up when she did. It seemed genuine, even from over here. Something about it instantly put me on edge. She hadn’t even cracked a smile when we spoke.

But why did that matter to me? It shouldn’t have.

I was up before the sun broke. The best time to scope the place out would be before everyone was around. Though the mission should be a simple in and out, we had to be prepared for anything that could happen, and that meant having extra escape routes especially.

I put on my full getup, wearing a black waistcoat with silver accents and a coat on top of it. If I flexed hard enough I was sure I could break out of this tight thing. Bramwell was still asleep. He’d stayed up during the night going over a set of floor plans we’d brought along and ensuring no one was catching onto us. Someone had to be awake at all times, so while he was getting some rest before the important night began, I planned to do some scouting.

After brushing my hair back I tied it in a low bun. Normally I would throw my hat on over it, but right now I couldn’t have that weighted comfort I’d become used to over the past years, so I had to make do without.

After a roll of my neck I headed to the hall.

The manor was just like any other I’d seen, though I hadn’t been in many. Most of the time, it was visiting ones with Tungesten, who used to be much more trusting in clientele. I wasn’t so keen on that. All the halls were larger than they needed to be, dark woods and that same deep green everywhere. It must have had some meaning to the family, but I had no clue what.

The sun had just started to rise as I passed by the hall to the gardens. As I moved, something golden caught my eye. I paused, taking a few steps back before I realized what I was looking at.

Was Sage Yulean down there… Pruning? At dawn?

I blinked again, confirming it wasn’t some mirage from lack of sleep. But no, below, with a slightly less large dress on, was Sage, on her hands and knees in front of a bush.

Suddenly enraptured, I turned to go down the stairs towards the garden. I slithered quickly, my tail jerking hard as I sped towards her. I opened the stained glass doors to the garden and was somehow shocked she was still there. She hadn’t heard me enter, and I decided not to move. Just let myself observe her for a moment. Her back was mostly to me, though I could catch a bit of her profile from here. Her cheeks were slightly pink from the exertion of what she was doing. It didn’t take long to realize she wasn’t just pruning. She was completely uprooting something. I watched fascinated, almost unable to tear my gaze away.

The sun glinted towards me as it moved across the sky, the rays warming my body. And subsequently, it seemed, caused my scales to shine, drawing her attention. Sage jumped, her eyes going wide and a loud gasp coming from her lips.

“How long have you been standing there?” she asked. “Are you stalking me or something?”

I had to bite my tongue to hold my laugh, knowing it would be inappropriate.

“What are you doing?” I asked instead, dodging her question.