Free Web NovelChapter 545: Until We Meet Again (II)
The boy’s expression immediately brightened a little. Primrose then lifted her head and looked toward Salem, who was standing among the children.
A small smile tugged at her lips. When they had first met, most of the children had been frightened of him.
Now, however, they gathered around him naturally, as if his presence had become something familiar and comforting. It seemed that with each passing day, the children were becoming more and more comfortable around him.
"But don’t worry," Primrose said gently. "I’ll definitely come back here someday. I promise."
The boy stared at her for a moment before slowly nodding. Soon, the other children began stepping forward as well, gathering around her.
"Really?" one of them asked hopefully.
[I doubted her at first, but now that I’m sure she’s not a bad person, I feel so sad.]
[She gave me those puppet dolls, but I haven’t even performed my puppet show for her yet.]
[Why does she have to leave so soon? What if everything changes after she leaves?]
Hearing their thoughts made Primrose’s heart ache. These children had already lost so much in their lives, so no wonder they were afraid of losing more.
"Yes, really," Primrose reassured them once again. "And I promise that the people here will continue to treat you well."
The children exchanged uncertain glances, and then a small girl nervously raised her hand. "What... what if they don’t?"
The question made the others fall silent. Clearly, it was a fear many of them shared.
Primrose’s smile softened. "If someone treats you badly, you can write a letter to me," she said. "You can send me a letter every week if you’d like. That way, I’ll always know how you’re doing."
She pointed toward Salem. "If you can’t write, you can ask Sir Vesper to help you."
The children seemed comforted by that answer. However, one boy still looked worried. "But what if they force me to write a fake letter?"
Primrose paused. For a moment, sadness flashed through her eyes because that wasn’t the kind of question a child should have to ask, but these children had experienced things no child ever should.
Some of them had likely been forced to send fake letters to their families before, pretending that everything was fine when it wasn’t.
Fortunately, Primrose had already thought about that possibility. "I’ll know immediately," she said calmly.
The children blinked in confusion. Primrose tapped the side of her head with a small smile. "Unlike most people, I’m very good at spotting lies. So you don’t need to worry."
The children immediately looked relieved by her words.
What they didn’t know was that Primrose had already prepared for exactly this situation. She had asked Edmund to assign two trusted soldiers whose only job would be handling letters sent from Illvaris.
Whenever the children wrote to her, those soldiers would be there to witness it. Afterward, they would swear to Primrose that the letters contained exactly what the children wanted to say.
And if anyone tried to lie? Primrose would know immediately because people wouldn’t be able to lie in their minds.
"Are you sure you really have to leave?" Lazarus asked once again.
This time, there was no dramatic crying or loud complaints in his voice. Instead, he sounded like he was genuinely pleading with her.
"Please..." he said softly. "Can’t you stay here for a few more days and let your husband return first?"
Primrose glanced at the beastwomen as they climbed into the carriages one by one. Some looked nervous, some looked uncertain, and some looked as though they still couldn’t believe they were finally free.
After a moment, she turned back to her father. "You know I can’t do that."
Her voice was gentle, but firm. "These beastwomen need my help," she continued. "And I need to tell their families what has happened to them all these years."
Lazarus fell silent because he knew she was right.
Some of the women had been bought from slave markets long ago. Others, however, still had families somewhere out there waiting for them.
They probably had families who might still be searching, families who might still be hoping, just like Evelia’s family.
That was why Primrose couldn’t simply leave everything to someone else.
She needed to search for their relatives one by one, and for those whose memories had been damaged by years of trauma, she would have to rely on old missing persons reports and any clues she could find.
It would be a difficult task, a slow one, even.
There would be countless records to read, countless names to search through, and countless dead ends along the way, but that didn’t matter.
If there was even a chance she could help them reunite with their families, then she would do everything she could.
After all, these fifteen beastwomen were her people. They had suffered for years while nobody came to save them. Now that they were finally free, Primrose refused to abandon them.
She had promised to help them, and she intended to keep that promise.
"Don’t worry, Father," Primrose said softly. She took Lazarus’ hands in hers and looked directly into his eyes. "If everything goes well, there will come a day when we can see each other whenever we want without having to worry about diplomatic problems."
A small smile appeared on her face. "A day when I can visit Illvaris freely, and you can visit Noctvaris whenever you miss me."
Lazarus remained silent, listening carefully. Primrose gently squeezed his hands.
"I know the reason you don’t want me to leave so soon is because you’re worried about me, and I’m grateful for that."
She took a small step closer. "But Father... besides being your daughter, I’m also the Queen of Noctvaris." For a moment, her expression became serious. "There are people waiting for me. There are responsibilities that only I can fulfill."
She glanced toward the carriages where the beastwomen were waiting. "They need my help." Then she looked back at him. "And I can’t turn my back on them."
Lazarus lowered his gaze. Deep down, he had always known this.
The daughter standing before him was no longer just the little girl he used to protect, but she was a queen now.
A queen who carried the hopes of many people on her shoulders.
Primrose smiled gently. "So until the day comes when we can meet whenever we want, I hope you can understand that we have to be apart for a little while." She paused before adding quietly, "After all, no matter where I go, I’ll always be your daughter."
Those words finally made Lazarus’ eyes turn red again, and for the first time since this farewell began, he found himself unable to argue back.
"Just please... be careful, my daughter," he said softly.
Primrose nodded with a smile. "I will, Father."
