Chapter 167: Sister’s meet
Ariana was silent as the two of them locked gazes. Even though Ariana was shocked, the person who was even more shocked was Ava. She was surprised to hear her sister speak—was that from her head?
Was she hearing things now? No, she had heard her name, and she was sure no one here knew her name except her sister.
But one thing she was truly curious about was her sister’s voice. She remembered clearly that when they were little, Ariana could speak properly. But then something had happened, and she had lost her voice.
The local physician had told them she was unable to speak, which had been very shocking news. He had mentioned that there was a small possibility her voice could return, but the chances were very low.
So actually hearing her name now—it left Ava shaken. She didn’t know if her mind was playing tricks on her, but it felt far too real to dismiss as just her imagination.
Her heart raced. It had been so long, and so much had changed. Her sister looked so different from what she remembered. She had convinced herself that if they ever met again, it would be fine. She would talk to her and apologise. But now that the moment had come, she realized just how much she had actually missed her.
And how wicked she had been as a sister.
"Ariana..." she spoke again. The guard’s eyes widened, and even the lady who had been lightly sobbing stopped for a moment, surprised by her words.
"Luna Ariana," she corrected softly with a small smile.
The guard then turned to the queen, bowed, and then looked toward Raven as he spoke.
"These two ladies were caught fighting at the royal village, which is not acceptable."
Raven stared at them. Ava straightened her clothes and glanced at the lady who continued sobbing. If you looked at them closely, it didn’t seem like two people had fought.
It looked more like only the lady had been in a fight—her dress was covered in sand and water, and her hair looked like it had been roughly scattered for some kind of madwoman cosplay. On the other hand, Ava looked calm and composed her gown neat.
She smiled at Ariana, whose body stilled. Ariana hadn’t expected that at all. Her sister had really changed—not in a bad way, but enough for Ariana to feel the many months that had passed. She couldn’t believe how much had changed between them.
Lady Stephanie, who was inside, curiously wondered why the queen hadn’t stepped in yet.
Raven, noticing Ariana still standing, finally spoke.
"Luna Ariana, do you want to handle this?"
Ariana nodded. She was here, and it was only right to handle it.
"Very well then..." Just before she could finish, Ava gasped, her eyes widening as her hand flew to her mouth in shock. Ariana knew exactly why—Ava had no idea her voice was back.
The rest turned to her, surprised by her reaction. Raven raised an eyebrow.
"Oh my days..." Ava whispered before straightening and curtsying in apology. The grace in her curtsy shocked Raven, the guard, and even the lady.
After her earlier unladylike behavior, the elegance she displayed was astonishing. It was the curtsy of someone trained like royalty—shocking, but undeniably impressive. Ariana herself was moved; a small smile curled her lips as she spoke softly.
"What caused the fight?" she asked. Just as the sobbing lady was about to speak, Ariana raised her hand, and that alone silenced her.
Ava wanted to roll her eyes. Was this lady not already tired of sobbing? How many hours could she keep it up? At least make it realistic. She thought this to herself, annoyed.
Yet, as Ariana’s raised hand silenced the woman, Ava felt a rush of sweet happiness. She had to hold back her laughter—it was funny, especially with the shocked look on the lady’s face.
Ariana turned to the guard.
"I want you to tell me how the fight began. You brought them here, so I suppose you must know all that happened."
The guard bowed, his face pale. That alone showed he had no idea. He spoke, his voice respectful.
"Luna Ariana, I had just brought them out to handle the case, and luckily, I met Mister Raven and you as well." His face paled even more, as if realizing he should have asked before bringing them out.
"What would you have done if Mister Raven or I weren’t here?" Ariana asked calmly.
The guard’s body stilled. Come to think of it, he didn’t know what he would have done. Maybe he would have asked what happened... or simply punished them.
"I would have asked what had happened and punished the wrong one accordingly," he finally replied with another bow.
"Do you know you can be punished accordingly for not even knowing what to do with your role?" Ariana asked. The guard knew she was right. Ariana herself wondered if she was saying this because her sister was involved. Either way, she was still correct.
She finally turned to Ava and spoke softly.
"What happened?"
Ava nodded with a soft bow, cleared her throat, and spoke. She had enjoyed every scolding the guard received—he deserved it for underestimating a lady.
"Queen Ariana, I had been on my own, fetching water for my husband. I reached the place, and no one was there—"
Ava then turned to the lady as she continued, "I had been on my very own, as I said earlier, and just when I thought things were going to be normal, the devil sent me a test. Out of nowhere, this lady showed up. She picked up her bucket and came right to where mine was, not even waiting for my water to finish. She pushed my bucket aside just to fetch hers.
Ariana was shocked. This whole thing made no sense. Even Ava herself couldn’t fully understand it. She had been minding her business, and suddenly this lady appeared.
Maybe she had been planning to pull this stunt on someone, and Ava just happened to be her target. Or maybe she was simply a natural-born troublemaker.
Ava paused when she noticed Ariana was about to speak. Ariana then turned to the lady, whose face was pale as she was shivering lightly. Ava rolled her eyes internally and muttered under her breath, "What an actress." Did the girl realize how easily she got under people’s skin?
Ariana then asked, "Is that what you did?"
The lady shook her head softly, then broke into sobs. "Yes, my queen, that was exactly what I did. But the truth is, I was running a fever and wanted to bathe. Since her bucket was bigger than mine, I thought I could just fetch some quick water and leave, so I could take my medication afterward."
Ava frowned. She couldn’t believe this lady. Why was she acting like this now?
Ariana stared at the woman before speaking again. "Then why didn’t you ask?"
The woman trembled as she replied, "I apologize, my queen, but I had been too scared earlier."
Ava knew that if anyone else saw this scene, they would think she was the bad one. The woman’s clothes were messy and covered in sand, while Ava stood clean and composed. To an outsider, it would look as if Ava had truly mistreated her.
Ariana then turned to Ava as she spoke.
"Did you push her"
Ava lowered her gaze and spoke softly.
"Yes, my queen, I apologize for that."
Ariana gave a quiet nod. She understood Ava wasn’t really the one stirring things up—it was the lady. Turning gracefully toward the woman, Ariana spoke in an elegant, composed tone.
"Next time, before you act, make sure to ask the person involved. Do not assume."
The woman bowed her head and nodded.
"Dismissed," Ariana said her voice calm but firm. "This must not happen again. Otherwise, punishment will follow."
Both Ava and the woman bowed respectfully. At Ariana’s signal, the guard opened the gate, and the lady stepped in.
But Ava stayed behind. She looked at Ariana and asked softly, "My queen, may I speak with you for a little while?"
Ariana’s expression softened, and she gave a small nod.
They walked to a quiet corner, even though the carriage was already waiting and Raven stood on the other side. Stephanie, however, understood the queen needed her private time.
Ava spoke softly. After a long pause, she lowered her gaze before finally finding the courage to speak.
"Queen Ariana, I want to use this opportunity to apologize for all my wrongdoings. I’ve made many mistakes in the past as a sister, and I haven’t been a very good—"
But Ariana gently interrupted her.
"You don’t have to worry about that, Ava," she said quietly. Deep down, she knew the truth—she too hadn’t been a good sister either. She hadn’t even sent Ava a letter. None of it was really Ava’s fault.
Ava hesitated, then asked softly, "Queen Ariana...?"
Ariana nodded with a smile, encouraging her to continue.
"Have you given birth?" Ava finally asked.
Ava was simply curious because she remembered that Ariana had been pregnant back then. But now, from the way the queen was dressed—in a beautiful, body-hugging gown—it didn’t seem possible that she was still expecting. Her curiosity grew.
Ariana then nodded softly. "Yes... yes, sister, I have a baby girl."
Ava’s body stiffened at the words.