Chapter 8 The Noble Mix-Up

Chapter 8

The Noble Mix-up

The next morning, Nya woke up early. Sunlight came through the window. She could hear the city waking up outside. Merchants were opening their shops. Cart wheels rattled on the stone streets. People called out morning greetings to each other.

Nya stretched and got dressed. She went downstairs to the common room. Owl was already there, drinking tea and reading a book.

"Good morning," Owl said without looking up from his book.

"Morning!" Nya said cheerfully. She sat down next to him. "What are you reading?"

"A book about fire magic," Owl explained. "I want to learn new spells."

A few minutes later, Kenji came down. He looked tired.

"Did you sleep well?" Nya asked.

"Not really," Kenji admitted. "The room next to mine had people partying all night."

They ate breakfast together. The innkeeper served them eggs, bread, and fruit. Everything tasted fresh and good.

"So what's the plan today?" Nya asked between bites.

"We'll go back to the guild," Kenji said. "We'll find an easy quest for you two. Something simple like

gathering herbs or delivering a message."

"That sounds boring," Nya said, pouting.

"That's how all adventurers start," Kenji said firmly. "You have to prove you can handle small quests before taking big ones. Would you trust a complete beginner to fight a dragon?"

"No," Nya admitted.

"Exactly," Kenji said.

They finished breakfast and headed back to the guild. The streets were crowded now. Nya had to be careful not to bump into people. Her tail kept getting stepped on until she learned to curl it up.

They were halfway to the guild when suddenly, trumpets sounded. The loud noise made Nya jump.

"Make way! Make way for Lady Scarlett!" voices shouted.

Everyone on the street quickly moved to the sides. Nya, Kenji, and Owl pressed against a building wall.

A fancy carriage rolled down the street. It was painted gold and red. Beautiful horses pulled it. Guards in shiny armor walked on both sides. The guards wore red capes that flowed behind them.

"Who's Lady Scarlett?" Nya whispered.

"A noble," Owl whispered back. "Probably someone important."

The carriage slowed down as it passed by them. Nya tried to peek inside through the window. She caught a glimpse of someone sitting inside. It was a young woman wearing an expensive dress. The woman had red hair tied up with jewels. She wore a fancy necklace. She looked bored.

Then the woman turned and looked out the window.

Her eyes met Nya's eyes.

Both of them gasped at the exact same time.

The woman's face looked exactly like Nya's face. Same eyes. Same nose. Same mouth. The only differences were the fancy clothes and hairstyle.

"What..." Nya breathed.

The carriage kept moving. The woman inside stared back at Nya with wide, shocked eyes. Then the carriage turned a corner and disappeared.

"Did you see that?!" Nya grabbed Kenji's arm. "That woman looked exactly like me!"

Kenji frowned. "I saw. That's... strange."

"Very strange," Owl agreed. He looked troubled. "Doppelgangers are rare. Usually only royal families or those with strong magical bloodlines have them."

"What's a doppelganger?" Nya asked.

"Someone who looks exactly like you," Owl explained. "Usually it means you share blood. Like twins, or distant relatives from the same family."

Nya's mind raced. Could she be related to a noble? Her parents never mentioned anything about nobles. They were simple village folk. But then again, her father did give her that magical crystal necklace. Maybe her family had secrets she didn't know about.

Before she could think more, shouts erupted from the direction the carriage went.

"Stop! Thief!"

"Someone stole Lady Scarlett's necklace!"

Kenji's expression changed instantly. "Stay here," he commanded. Then he ran toward the shouting.

But Nya and Owl didn't stay. They ran after him.

They turned the corner and saw chaos. The carriage had stopped. Guards were running everywhere. A small figure in a dark cloak was running away, something shiny in their hand.

"That's the thief!" a guard yelled.

The thief was fast. They jumped onto a roof and started running across the buildings. Guards tried to follow but they were too slow in their heavy armor.

Kenji drew his sword. "I'll catch them."

But before Kenji could move, someone grabbed Nya from behind.

"There she is! She's trying to run away!" a guard shouted.

"What?!" Nya yelped. "Let go of me!"

More guards surrounded her. They grabbed her arms.

"Lady Scarlett, you can't run away!" one guard said. "It's dangerous!"

"I'm not Lady Scarlett!" Nya protested. She struggled but the guards were too strong.

"Stop lying!" another guard said. "We saw you! You look exactly the same!"

"That's because we look alike!" Nya shouted. "But I'm not her! I'm Nya!"

The guards didn't listen. They started dragging her toward the carriage.

"Wait!" Owl shouted. He stepped forward with his staff. "You have the wrong person! This is Nya Flames, not your lady!"

"Nice try!" a guard said. "We know the lady likes to sneak out sometimes. We're taking her back to the manor!"

"Kenji!" Nya cried out. "Help!"

But Kenji was already far away, chasing the real thief across the rooftops. He couldn't hear her.

"Owl, do something!" Nya begged.

Owl looked torn. He could use magic to stop the guards, but attacking city guards would get them all arrested. That would be even worse.

"I'll come with you!" Owl said quickly. "I'm her companion! Where you take her, I go too!"

The guards looked at each other uncertainly.

"Fine," one guard said. "But any funny business and we'll throw you in jail!"

They pushed Nya into the fancy carriage. Owl climbed in after her. The door slammed shut. The carriage started moving immediately.

Inside the carriage, Nya sat down on the soft cushions. Her heart was beating fast. This was bad. Very bad.

"What do we do?" she whispered to Owl.

"We'll explain at the manor," Owl whispered back. "Surely the real Lady Scarlett will clear this up."

Nya hoped he was right.

The carriage rolled through the city streets. After about fifteen minutes, it stopped in front of a huge mansion. The mansion was even bigger than anything Nya had ever seen. It had three floors and was made of white stone. Beautiful gardens surrounded it. Fountains sprayed water into the air. Peacocks walked across the lawn.

"Whoa," Nya breathed. "Rich people really do live differently."

Guards opened the carriage door. "This way, my lady," one said politely but firmly.

Nya and Owl were led inside. The inside of the mansion was even more amazing. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Paintings covered the walls. The floors were so shiny that Nya could see her reflection.

They were taken upstairs to a large bedroom. The room was huge! It had a bed big enough for five people. It had a wardrobe bigger than Nya's old house. It had a balcony with a view of the whole city.

"Please wait here, Lady Scarlett," a guard said. "We'll inform your father that you've returned safely. He was very worried."

The guards left and locked the door behind them.

Nya ran to the door and tried the handle. Locked.

"We're trapped," she said, panicking a little.

"Stay calm," Owl said. He walked around the room, examining everything. "When the father arrives, we'll explain. He'll recognize that you're not his daughter."

"I hope so," Nya said. She sat down on the bed. It was so soft! Like sitting on a cloud!

Ten minutes passed. Then the door burst open.

An older man walked in. He wore expensive clothes and had gray hair. He looked angry and worried at the same time.

"Scarlett!" he said. "How many times must I tell you? You cannot sneak out of the mansion! It's dangerous! What if something happened to you?"

"Um," Nya started. "Actually, I'm not -"

"Don't even try to make excuses!" the man interrupted. He wasn't really listening. "The city is full of thieves and criminals! A young lady of your status cannot wander around like a common peasant!"

"But I am a common peasant!" Nya blurted out.

The man stopped. He looked at her carefully for the first time.

His eyes widened.

"You're... you're not Scarlett," he said slowly.

"No! I'm Nya!" Nya said. "I tried to tell the guards but they wouldn't listen!"

The man's face went pale. "Who are you? Why do you look exactly like my daughter?"

"I don't know!" Nya said honestly. "I saw her in her carriage and she looked like me too! We were both shocked!"

Before anyone could say more, a young woman ran into the room.

It was Lady Scarlett. The real one.

She stopped when she saw Nya. Both girls stared at each other.

It was like looking in a mirror. Except the reflection wore a fancy dress while Nya wore simple adventurer clothes.

"Father," Scarlett said quietly. "Who is she?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing," the father said. He looked confused and troubled.

The two girls kept staring at each other.

Finally, Scarlett spoke. "What's your name?"

"Nya Flames," Nya said. "From Hoshi Village. Or what's left of it anyway."

"Hoshi Village," the father repeated. Something flashed across his face. Recognition? Guilt? Nya couldn't tell.

"Do you know anything about my village?" Nya asked hopefully.

The father hesitated. "I... I need to think. This is very complicated. Scarlett, take this girl to get cleaned up. We'll discuss this at dinner."

"But Father -" Scarlett started.

"At dinner," the father said firmly. Then he left the room quickly.

Scarlett looked at Nya. "Well, this is strange," she said. "But Father is right. You need to clean up. You smell like forest and dirt."

"Hey!" Nya protested. But it was true. She had been traveling for days.

Scarlett smiled a little. "Come on. I'll show you the bath. Your friend can wait here."

Owl nodded. "I'll be fine. Go ahead, Nya."

Nya followed Scarlett to another room. This room had a huge bathtub. The tub was big enough for three people! Steam rose from the hot water already inside.

"Servants prepared this for me," Scarlett explained. "But you can use it. I'll have them prepare another bath for me."

"Thank you," Nya said, surprised by the kindness.

Scarlett left. Nya undressed and got into the bath.

"Oh wow," Nya sighed. The hot water felt amazing on her tired muscles. She hadn't had a proper bath since leaving Theo's house. She scrubbed all the dirt and sweat away. She washed her hair until it was clean and shiny.

When she got out, she found new clothes laid out for her. Not adventurer clothes. A dress. A fancy noble dress.

"Oh no," Nya said out loud.

The dress was beautiful. It was light blue with white lace. But Nya had never worn a dress before in her life. She didn't even know how to put it on.

She struggled with it for several minutes. Finally, she managed to get it on. But it felt weird. The dress was tight around her waist and loose everywhere else. She couldn't move her arms properly. And she kept stepping on the bottom part.

Scarlett came back. She took one look at Nya and burst out laughing.

"You put it on backwards!" Scarlett said between giggles.

"What?!" Nya looked down. Sure enough, the fancy part was in the back instead of the front.

Her face turned bright red. "I've never worn a dress before!"

"Clearly!" Scarlett said. But she wasn't being mean. She was genuinely amused. "Here, let me help."

She helped Nya take off the dress and put it on correctly. Then she did Nya's hair, brushing it and styling it with pins and ribbons.

When she was done, she held up a mirror.

Nya gasped.

She looked completely different. Like a noble lady. Like... like Scarlett.

"We really do look exactly the same," Scarlett whispered. "It's almost scary."

"Yeah," Nya agreed.

"Come on," Scarlett said. "It's time for dinner. Father wants to talk to us."

They went downstairs to the dining room. Owl was already there, sitting at a huge table. His eyes widened when he saw Nya in the dress.

"Nya?" he said uncertainly.

"It's me," Nya said, feeling embarrassed. "I look weird, right?"

"No," Owl said. "You look... very nice."

Nya's face felt hot. She quickly sat down.

The father came in a moment later. He sat at the head of the table. Servants brought out food. So much food! Roasted meat, bread, vegetables, fruits, and desserts. Everything looked delicious.

Nya's stomach growled loudly.

Everyone heard it.

Scarlett giggled. The father raised an eyebrow. Owl tried not to smile.

"Please, eat," the father said.

Nya didn't need to be told twice. She grabbed some food and started eating. The food was amazing! Better than anything she'd ever tasted!

After a few bites, the father cleared his throat.

"Nya Flames," he said seriously. "I need to tell you something important. Something about your village. And about your family."

Nya stopped eating. She looked at him with wide eyes.

"What do you know?" she asked.

The father sighed deeply.

"Your village, Hoshi, was not just a normal village. It was a hidden sanctuary for a special bloodline. A bloodline that was hunted and feared. The bloodline of the Red Fox Clan."

Nya's hand touched her red hair instinctively.

"The Red Fox Clan," the father continued, "once ruled these lands. They were powerful. They could use ancient magic that others couldn't. But they were betrayed and nearly wiped out. The survivors went into hiding. They created villages like Hoshi to stay safe."

"My family..." Nya whispered.

"Your father was probably a descendant of this clan," the father said. "And so is my family. That's why you and Scarlett look the same. You are distant relatives. Very distant, but still connected by blood."

Scarlett gasped. "We're related?"

"It appears so," the father said.

Nya's mind was spinning. She had family she never knew about. Noble family.

"What happened to my village?" Nya asked quietly. "Do you know why they attacked us?"

The father's face became sad. "The Destro army learned about your village's location. They attacked because they feared the Red Fox Clan's power. They wanted to make sure the bloodline died out completely."

Tears formed in Nya's eyes. "My mother... my friend Brownie... where are they?"

"I don't know," the father admitted. "But I promise you, I will use my resources to find out. As family, it's my duty to help you."

Nya wiped her eyes. "Thank you."

Scarlett reached over and squeezed Nya's hand. "Don't worry, cousin. We'll find them together."

Cousin. Nya had a cousin now. She had family.

For the first time since losing her parents, Nya felt a small spark of hope.

Maybe, just maybe, things would be okay.