Chapter 331: Sworn Bonds
Edmund was silent for a while before letting out a rough sigh. "It’s about his sister, Lady Lorelle," he said at last. He guided Dante a little farther from Leofric’s horse, perhaps not wanting him to overhear.
Primrose blinked in surprise. Of all the things she expected, this wasn’t one of them. She realized then how little she truly knew about Edmund’s connection to this Lady Lorelle, and curiosity tugged at her even more.
"Are you ... close to his sister?" she asked carefully.
Edmund hesitated, his words slow and reluctant. "She ... isn’t just his sister." His blue eyes flickered with unease before he finally said it. "Lady Lorelle is also my sister."
Primrose’s jaw nearly dropped. Her mind went blank for a second. ’What kind of plot twist was that?!’
Primrose spun her head around so quickly that she almost slipped from the saddle, but Edmund’s steady arm around her waist kept her from falling. "Your sister? How ... how is that even possible?" she gasped.
Edmund barely reacted. When they had talked before about helping Lorelle find peace by letting her believe she was healthy, he hadn’t seemed to dwell on her much at all.
Or maybe he did care, but his wolf kept those feelings hidden from her, and with his mind so weighed down by the thought of Primrose facing the heavenly trial, perhaps he simply couldn’t bring himself to focus on Lorelle.
But if Lorelle was Edmund’s sister ... did that mean Leofric was his brother too?
The more she thought about it, the less sense it made, leaving her even more confused.
"We aren’t siblings by blood," Edmund explained at last. "She was a student at the magic tower back when Leofric still worked there. But because she didn’t come from a wizarding family, she was often looked down on, even though her magic was truly exceptional."
Among all the wizards, only Leofric had stepped forward to help her. At first, he had been reluctant, thinking it wasn’t worth meddling in someone else’s struggles.
"But he once told me Lorelle reminded him of his own sister who had died long ago," Edmund continued softly. "In the end, he couldn’t turn a blind eye anymore. He took her under his care and taught her things the senior wizards refused to teach."
Primrose’s eyes softened with a touch of wonder. "Is Sir Leofric really that skilled with magic?"
"He is," Edmund said with a firm nod. "His mother was a wizard who married a beast."
It finally made sense. Primrose might not have been well-versed in magic, but even she knew it was rare for beasts to study it. Most of them preferred to rely on their physical strength rather than dwell on spells and enchantments.
Edmund even had told her before that only a handful of beasts ever showed potential in magic, and he himself being one of them.
"In the end, Lorelle became his student," Edmund continued, "but to outsiders, their relationship didn’t seem appropriate because Leofric had never had a student before, and they were very close. People whispered ugly rumors, saying they were secretly lovers or, worse, that Leofric was using Lady Lorelle for his own pleasure."
As always, it was the woman who bore the heavier stain from such gossip. Leofric, unwilling to let such talk drag on, chose a bold solution: he declared Lorelle his sworn sister.
It was a rare thing for people of different genders to do, since becoming sworn siblings was seen almost the same as being bound by blood.
It wasn’t technically wrong, but it would feel morally unacceptable for anyone to pursue romance with a sworn sibling afterward.
Naturally, his decision caused an uproar in the wizarding community. Even the elders warned him to reconsider, urging him to think twice or even three times before doing something so unusual.
"Leofric isn’t the kind of man who bothers with romance," Edmund explained. "I’ve never heard of him having a partner. Honestly, I don’t think he’s ever been interested in anyone that way. So this whole sworn sibling bond didn’t really matter to him."
And the years proved Edmund right. Leofric never showed even the slightest hint of romantic feelings toward Lorelle. He cared for her, yes, but it was the protective kind of love, the kind that made him want to shield her from harm, not claim her as his mate.
Primrose let out a quiet breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.
Somehow, Edmund’s words eased the knot of unease in her chest. She had always kept a small wall of caution up whenever it came to Leofric, but hearing this side of his story painted him in a different light.
So ... maybe he wasn’t that bad after all.
"Did you also become sworn siblings after Sir Leofric helped you fight the evil wizards?" Primrose asked out of nowhere.
Edmund froze, clearly caught off guard. "How do you know he helped me? Did Sir Dorne tell you that?"
[What ... did she read my diaries again?! But that part was only written in my old journals, the ones I hid in such a safe place.]
Seriously, just how many diaries did this man keep?!
"Don’t worry, husband," Primrose said with a smile. "I don’t peek into your diaries anymore. Sir Dorne was the one who told me about your bond with Sir Leofric, especially how much he’s helped you to become this ... calm."
Edmund turned his gaze aside, almost as if ashamed to admit that he had once been nothing more than a wild, uncontrollable beast.
[Thank the heavens I didn’t meet my wife back when I was still like that,] he thought bitterly. [She would have been terrified of me ... and she probably never would have wanted to see my face again.]
Primrose didn’t know exactly how bad things had been for him in the past, especially during the time when his wolf was ruled by rage. But she couldn’t deny that if she had seen him back then, she might have been afraid of him.
But this was Edmund they were talking about. Deep down, she believed that even at his worst, even when he lost control, he would never have truly hurt her.
Still, maybe it was a good thing the Moon Goddess hadn’t revealed his mate’s name to him back then. After all ... Primrose had only been a kid at the time, and aside from his wild behavior, it would have been terribly wrong for her to become his bride so young.
"There’s no point in imagining what could have been, husband," Primrose said gently, her voice full of warmth. "What matters is that I love you now, and nothing else, no other scenario, matters anymore."