Lahat ng Kabanata ng Astral Odyssey: Dying Ember: Kabanata 111 - Kabanata 120

Now that everyone got their books, except the three people who either had no interest in reading or did not know how to read, they settled down. Esmeralda and Dylan sat beside each other on a couch near a large window. Austin sat across Esmeralda with a short coffee table between them. Saddie intentionally sat beside Austin. Briana and Eva leaned against the window sill, while all the other servants stood behind their masters. Only after their masters got absorbed into their books, did they start to relax and find an appropriate place for themselves to sit as well.Unbeknownst to everyone, Austin had been covertly keeping his attention on Eva, even though his eyes stayed on his book. It was a very convincing act, completed with a perfectly timed flip of a page. So, he noticed the little nudge and teasing grin that Saddie's attendant gave Dylan's butler before she left him alone. What disgruntled him further was the blush that Dylan's butler had while he approached Eva. Austin

Days crawled by for those watching over Esmeralda's estate.Nobody stayed as vigilant as Austin. Many began dozing off or chatting in hushed tones. Whereas, Austin laid in wait for an infiltration, no matter how uneventful a day may seem. Sounds of crashes and things dropping in the estate occasionally rang out and broke the silence in the area./Was there someone so clumsy in this household all this time?/A bad premonition slowly grew in his heart.It had been another mundane day of observation when Austin saw something that made his heart drop. Although he could only see the back view of the person falling out of the window, he dashed to the window before his mind even registered the identity of the person. He stood below the window, ready to catch her in case she failed to pull herself back in. The sight of him shocked the servants in the room below the room that the trio was in, and delayed their response in running to the source of the loud

The entire ride to Austin's mansion was silent. There was only the clip clopping of horse hooves, the rickety sound of the moving bandwagon, and the chirping of crickets. The atmosphere felt incredibly heavy.Most of the men hopped off their bandwagons along the way back to Austin's mansion. In a bandwagon of their own, Eva sat beside Austin. Opposite them were more men who were in charge of keeping watch over her parents, while her parents laid unconscious on the floor of the bandwagon.The sky was already dark by the time they reached back. While the drivers returned the bandwagons to the person who supplied them, the four people in charge of Eva's parents brought them to the basement of the west wing that had been prepared to hold them. Austin continued to hold Eva by her elbow and brought her to the second level of the central wing and into a room to the right of the staircase. Nobody, including his dumbfounded butler, understood Austin's intentions or

Eva felt like she cried for a very long while before she finally calmed down. Her nose was completely blocked, her eyes felt puffy and sore, and she felt completely drained. She had really cried with everything she had. /Damn it... I must look unsightly now.../She kept her face angled down while she leaned back and away from Austin. So, she was met with the mess on Austin's shirt that she was responsible for. /Oh, god./She kept her head hanging low in embarrassment and wiped whatever was remaining on her face with her long sleeves.Austin looked down but could only see the back of her head. Realising that she would not look up at him anytime soon, he lightly rested his head against hers. He did not remember exactly how or when but some time while they were crying in each other's arms, they shifted into a more comfortable position. He now sat with his legs apart and bent, with Eva between his legs, and her forehead against his sho

The new butler of Esmeralda's estate received Austin and Eva at the front gate."Austin?" Esmeralda appeared at the doorway to the sitting room on the first level. There was no cheer or liveliness in her tone. Her eyes were dull. There were dark circles around her eyes. It was obvious that she was still mourning her parents death. After a short pause, Esmeralda acknowledged Eva's presence as well. "Eva."Esmeralda took in a measured breath. "This is rare. What brought the both of you here?" She asked with a small smile."Sorry that I did not turn up at your parents' funeral... I should have known better than anyone else that you'd need support the most at this time."Esmeralda shook her head while she sat down with them. "Don't mention it. You and Eva were having it rough too, isn't it? While the both of you had to deal with things by yourself, at least I have Dylan here with me. He helped me settle and rebuild everything while I was down and out."