Descendants of Time (Role-Play Act 5: Revolutionary Moment)
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
For the first time Kazimir saw what Katarina might’ve seen some years ago. Neon lights extremely pleasing to the eyes; vehicles levitating, and flying past the transparent roads in the skies, long skyscrapers and high-rise buildings; and streets moving for the ease of travel for people. Speaking of people, the fashion was completely different from anything he ever saw before. The air was very clean and neither Russia nor England could hope to compete in terms of fresh atmosphere.
This was the bustling city of Tokyo in Japan, where Kazimir hoped to do much more than merely gazing at its technological majesty.
“This… this is out of the world. You really want to †˜borrow’ their strength, Kaz?” Anna asked, mouth agape from seeing the city after exiting the Magic Train.
A mad smile was on KazÃmir’s face as he inspected every single aspect with his eyes.
“Beyond expectation…” he simply remarked, wondering what other marvels he might uncover as he ventured forth.
A robot stopped in front of them.
“Sweets… want?” it said in Japanese.
The two looked at it confusedly while the robot looked down at them expectantly, somehow. On its belly were an extraordinary amount of chocolates, candies, and all kinds of confectionaries enclosed behind a window and some buttons just inside it.
“Is this a vending machine like in America?” Anna questioned. “It’s nothing like the ones we saw before.”
“That’s certainly true,” Kazimir agreed, sizing up the machine. “It’d be no surprise that Japan would be more advanced than even America. I wonder what other automations exist here.”
Anna looked around. “This is for sweets so… that one over there on the corner of the streets is for drinks I think,” she reported.
Scanning around, Kazimir could also see several smaller machines patrolling the streets. “Automatic sweepers to keep the streets clean…” He observed with a intrigued hum. “Almost fearful for Russia’s fate at the hand of such an advanced nation.”
“Fearful? They seem so much more… effective with things.”
“Indeed, is a wonder why they haven’t destroyed us already.”
“Considering we lived thanks to the alliance… I think. They’re still up against many countries. You’re right, though. If the twenty-third century has such technology for convenience, I can only imagine the kind of things they have in the army. You saw some of it in the war, right?”
“That is correct,” Kazimir answered as he pondered further. “That was already quite a while back, I’m curious as to how much further they’ve advanced from when I faced them.”
“Katarina mentioned the Japanese almost destroying London, right? There were so many wreckage sites back there now that I think about it.”
“I had heard.” Kazimir thought deeply. “I don’t wish for collateral damage, hopefully we can find something that can deal more precise strikes.”
“By the way, why do I feel like we’re always under watch? Or is that just me?”
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” he answered, keeping his eye on the surroundings. “Whether it be the Queen, making sure we don’t defect or even the Japanese government monitoring our actions, we should tread wisely here.”
“We should find a place to stay in first. The prices of things are looking mighty intimidating, though.”
“Agreed.” Kazimir sighed, he caught in his view an idle standing robot and approached it.
“Oy robotnik,” he called out to the machine. “Where is the most cost-effective hotel around here?”
The robot seemed to take a moment after listening. “Cost-effective? Cost-effective…” it spoke in English with a mechanical voice, after noting Kazimir’s language. “There are one-hundred-and-eight results based on average citizen incomes. May I know your Citizen I.D. please for proper analysis?”
“I.D.?” Kazimir questioned before showing a grim expression. “Ah, I must’ve left it in my other wallet…” He sighed, anxious of the machine’s reaction.
“Cheapest you may find in the area is to your right, then take another turn to the left. Alternatively, many hotels in Akasaka are also cheap.”
“Hmm,” Kazimir hummed in contemplation.
Suppose I’m being too paranoid about this, he remarked to himself before turning to Anna. “What do you think? Hotel nearby or A-ka-sa-ka?” he asked, somewhat tongue-tied in pronouncing the name.
“First one is cheapest here and the other one is cheapest hotels in the area. Maybe the latter one may save more money?”
“Very well.” Kazimir nodded. “Having more variety should also help us find something adequate.”
This was the bustling city of Tokyo in Japan, where Kazimir hoped to do much more than merely gazing at its technological majesty.
“This… this is out of the world. You really want to †˜borrow’ their strength, Kaz?” Anna asked, mouth agape from seeing the city after exiting the Magic Train.
A mad smile was on KazÃmir’s face as he inspected every single aspect with his eyes.
“Beyond expectation…” he simply remarked, wondering what other marvels he might uncover as he ventured forth.
A robot stopped in front of them.
“Sweets… want?” it said in Japanese.
The two looked at it confusedly while the robot looked down at them expectantly, somehow. On its belly were an extraordinary amount of chocolates, candies, and all kinds of confectionaries enclosed behind a window and some buttons just inside it.
“Is this a vending machine like in America?” Anna questioned. “It’s nothing like the ones we saw before.”
“That’s certainly true,” Kazimir agreed, sizing up the machine. “It’d be no surprise that Japan would be more advanced than even America. I wonder what other automations exist here.”
Anna looked around. “This is for sweets so… that one over there on the corner of the streets is for drinks I think,” she reported.
Scanning around, Kazimir could also see several smaller machines patrolling the streets. “Automatic sweepers to keep the streets clean…” He observed with a intrigued hum. “Almost fearful for Russia’s fate at the hand of such an advanced nation.”
“Fearful? They seem so much more… effective with things.”
“Indeed, is a wonder why they haven’t destroyed us already.”
“Considering we lived thanks to the alliance… I think. They’re still up against many countries. You’re right, though. If the twenty-third century has such technology for convenience, I can only imagine the kind of things they have in the army. You saw some of it in the war, right?”
“That is correct,” Kazimir answered as he pondered further. “That was already quite a while back, I’m curious as to how much further they’ve advanced from when I faced them.”
“Katarina mentioned the Japanese almost destroying London, right? There were so many wreckage sites back there now that I think about it.”
“I had heard.” Kazimir thought deeply. “I don’t wish for collateral damage, hopefully we can find something that can deal more precise strikes.”
“By the way, why do I feel like we’re always under watch? Or is that just me?”
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” he answered, keeping his eye on the surroundings. “Whether it be the Queen, making sure we don’t defect or even the Japanese government monitoring our actions, we should tread wisely here.”
“We should find a place to stay in first. The prices of things are looking mighty intimidating, though.”
“Agreed.” Kazimir sighed, he caught in his view an idle standing robot and approached it.
“Oy robotnik,” he called out to the machine. “Where is the most cost-effective hotel around here?”
The robot seemed to take a moment after listening. “Cost-effective? Cost-effective…” it spoke in English with a mechanical voice, after noting Kazimir’s language. “There are one-hundred-and-eight results based on average citizen incomes. May I know your Citizen I.D. please for proper analysis?”
“I.D.?” Kazimir questioned before showing a grim expression. “Ah, I must’ve left it in my other wallet…” He sighed, anxious of the machine’s reaction.
“Cheapest you may find in the area is to your right, then take another turn to the left. Alternatively, many hotels in Akasaka are also cheap.”
“Hmm,” Kazimir hummed in contemplation.
Suppose I’m being too paranoid about this, he remarked to himself before turning to Anna. “What do you think? Hotel nearby or A-ka-sa-ka?” he asked, somewhat tongue-tied in pronouncing the name.
“First one is cheapest here and the other one is cheapest hotels in the area. Maybe the latter one may save more money?”
“Very well.” Kazimir nodded. “Having more variety should also help us find something adequate.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Anna and Kazimir entered a cheap hotel in Akasaka. The two looked around the area for some time and finally found one that seemed to have really cheap prices for some reason.
“H-Hey… isn’t this what they call… a l-l-love hotel?”
Anna’s voice was very meek as she faintly whispered to Kazimir after looking at all the pink lights and decorations in the lobby. There seemed to be other couples entering too, which made her even more nervous.
“Love hotel?” Kazimir raised a brow as he observed the decorations. The concept was certainly sound though he questioned what need was there for such a thing. “A bed is a bed. Don’t let it get to you.” Kazimir tried to reassure Anna with a stoic expression.
“Y-Yes, but we have to share it,” Anna replied, her face beet red.
Kazimir sighed. “If it bothers you that much, you can take the bed for yourself,” he offered, “I’ll just sleep on the floor or something.”
“No, y-you can sleep with me if you want.” Anna herself didn’t seemed to be sure about what she was blurting out.
Kazimir let out a sigh once more. “As you wish,” he grumbled, How indecisive… he thought to himself.
When the two entered the elevator after making the decision and speaking with the receptionist, a girl walked into the counter. Her hair was as black as her eyes. The Asian paid the man a huge sum of money before making a smirk.
“Thank you.”
Kazimir and Anna entered their room and the Descendant relaxed inside, while the Princess of the exiled nobles sat at the corner of the bed all—nervous still—but eventually, she let out most of her tension with a sigh.
The room was intoxicating; the waft of perfume and the extravagant decorations made her feel slightly dizzy. Her thoughts didn’t help her feel better.
Kazimir’s nose wrinkled as he reacted badly to the smell. “It certainly will be hard to sleep like this,” he remarked as he looked over to the window.
“I… I’m going to go take a shower.”
Anna hurried to the bathroom, thinking that a good bath could calm her heart down, which was beating rather fast.
As Anna shut the bathroom door, Kazimir made his way to the single window of their room, sliding it open and embracing the crisp fresh air. He sighed in relief as he cleared his sinuses of the strong scents and stared down to the bustling, well-lit streets below him. The air of Japan was much cleaner than in Russia and he wished his country would have something like this too, one day. “I’m finally here…” he muttered to himself, contemplating on his next course of action. “I’ll need to familiarize myself with the area, perhaps tomorrow should be spent exploring.”
While contemplating, he noted the noise of the door opening. Ten minutes had flied by so fast. He looked up to Anna, who seemed have nothing but a bathrobe rolled up to cover her frail-looking body.
It may have been because he was so preoccupied with his thoughts, but the half-naked appearance of Anna took him by surprise as he turned his head back out towards the window, taking deep breaths as he tried to collect himself.
“Shouldn’t you get dressed?” he muttered in a less confident than usual tone, still keeping his eyes towards the outdoors.
“Well… I realize that I lack a change of clothes now,” she scratched the back of her head. “Been using the same thing for so long. We didn’t really end up buying anything back in London.”
“I… see.” Kazimir sighed. “Then tomorrow,” he added. “We’ll be exploring the city, we can also get you a new set of clothes then.” He cleared his throat as he distracted himself with whatever he could spot outside.
“K-Kaz… how do I look?”
Anna looked down as she squeezed the words out of her throat, just barely, her face redder than before, but Kazimir couldn’t see it. She was already just behind him and he could hear her breaths, and the fast beating heart. She couldn’t tell what this feeling she was experiencing was, and blamed herself for asking stupid things.
“How… do you look?” Kazimir said, perplexed. “You only just finished bathing, do you really need to be concerned with your appearance?” he asked, trying to dodge the question.
“Sorry… I asked a strange question.”
“It’s… fine.” He sighed, looking up at the night sky, also cloudy in this country. “Go get some rest, you must be tired from the trip.”
Someone knocked on the door just as Anna was about to speak.
Who would that be? Hotel service or… Kazimir was on alert as he approached the door, keeping to the side of it as he called out. “Who is it?”
“We’re here to clean up a bit. Are you two done †˜doing it’?” an energetic female voice asked from outside.
Anna’s heart almost skipped a beat at this question.
Kazimir’s brow twitched at her question but he restrained himself as there was no helping considering where they were. He rubbed his temples as he took a deep breath.
“We were just about to sleep,” he explained. “Sorry, but could you come back tomorrow?” he tried to sound as polite as he could though the roughness in his voice still showed.
“Ah, but we really need to clean up soon. My shift duties demand that I clean the rooms before I go home… I will leave the bed untouched, no worries.”
“Tch,” Kazimir frowned, the girl was persistent.
He gave a look to Anna as if for her to be cautious as he slowly opened the door ajar and peeked out to the person outside. Kazimir found a cannon leveled up to his face.
A laser beamed into the room and plunged into the wall as Kazimir reflexively stepped back to save his face. An explosion followed from the laser and the room was completely torn apart. The door fell flat soon and it revealed a girl equipped with countless barrels and cannons, the †˜cleaner’ herself dressed in a black tight uniform.
“I am Guardian Rika. It’s too early to sleep. Party time is only getting started.”
Kazimir pushed Anna behind him as he assumed a stance, notably annoyed by the situation.
“Looks like I’m going to have to beat some manners into you, girl.”
“Try it.”
Four of the cannons flashed and the beams raided again. Kazimir side-stepped it, but even he could tell that it would’ve melted them both if they were a second late.
The situation was dire. Unarmed against a ranged opponent, the only thing Kazimir could do was try and close the distance between them. However as much as he wanted, he couldn’t find an opening between the girl’s shots as all he could do was try to dodge them with Anna behind him.
“Come along quietly or you’re both toast, filthy foreigners!” she shouted as she fired another barrage. “Oh, should’ve said that first, huh?”
Kazimir didn’t like it but the situation was something out of his capability.
“What do you intend to do if we comply?” he asked, for all he knew this person could’ve been one of Catherine’s agents.
“Well, you’d have to stay in the jail for some time. We don’t let unauthorized foreigners stay here. Seeing your spiritual energy response, however… nah, it can’t be.”
“Tch,” He frowned again. So its the authorities, is it?” He looked back at Anna before turning to the girl, he wouldn’t have a chance of completing his objective running like a fugitive. If they were already aware of his presence here then he was better off with a direct confrontation. “Very well, I’ll comply with you.” He begrudgingly conceded as he stood back up, still keeping Anna behind him.
From outside the window apparently someone was flying and pointing a gun at Anna too. Kazimir was so focused on Rika that he didn’t notice till the time he gave up.
“Alright, come with us.”
“At least let me dress up…” Anna meekly requested.
“Bet you’re gonna try something funny.”
“I won’t…”
“Let her go, Rika,” the other girl said as she came down. “I’ll look after her.”
Kazimir found himself in a lounge rather than a prison. The one the girls arrested for illegal entry into the country turned out to be something more than just human.
“So, according to our detector,” a man in black said, who sat on the other side on a sofa. “You are a †˜Descendant’ as the Europeans would call it. Why have you come to our country, may I know?”
Kazimir leered at the man, contemplating to himself. That they have machines that can †˜detect’ that I’m a Descendant is astounding, if their technology can understand our power, they could possibly have some other goods, he thought this as he unknowingly glared the man with intimidation. Sighing, he shrugged. “Simply put, tourism.”
“Surely there are many other countries out there for you to have a tour, Mister… Kazimir? The odds do not seem to say the same. I think it would benefit both of us if you would come clean?”
Kazimir chuckled. “I had heard you Japonskies were a modest folk. The brief time I spent in your country before being violently apprehended, I can say for sure that no other country has what you offer.” He leaned forward towards the man as he gave him a purposeful glare. “I can understand you would have concerns that I may be here for espionage but I assure you that I do not answer to my nation’s government.”
“I have heard of the Zayats, your company that was recently taken down.” The man narrowed his eyes. “Is it connected to the purpose you came for? I’d think that you’d go back to Russia to deal with the issue instead.”
“Tch,” Kazimir twitched at the mention, showing a visibly unpleasant expression before taking a breath. “If I went rushing back, I’d only succeed in getting caught in the downfall myself,” he explained. “My government saw my business as a threat so for the time being, I’ve decided to lay low until I can safely return. That is all.”
“I am willing to guess that you’d want to raise back your company in the near future?”
“As any determined entrepreneur would.”
“Would you be interested in us lending a helping hand? Assuming that is what your intention was.”
“Depending on what conditions would be given. I don’t intend to become a lap dog.”
“That is fine. If you do not like the conditions, we would simply have you leave the country.”
“Heh, I would have figured.” Kazimir leaned back on the sofa. “Pretty much you’re saying this is my only choice?”
“It is unfortunate but we do need Descendants for the wars and battles to come, and it can only look like becoming a lap dog to some.”
Kazimir contemplated on the recent events and sighed. “I will admit, this is not how I would like it but it is the better of two choices.” He consigned. “Just know that this conflict will not end well for any of us.”
“It will probably not, but we have to protect ourselves too. In return for your services, what would you be seeking from us specifically?”
“That’ll be something I will discover as we continue,” he answered. “I have yet to witness everything your country has to offer, to decide now would be like committing to the first dish at a buffet table.”
“I suppose that is true. We look forward to working you.” He extended his hand. “For now, shall we have you registered as a civilian?”
Kazimir glared at his hand for a moment as he pondered about his decision. “Will there be any provisions for living expenses?” he asked.
“We will provide a monthly allowance.”
“And Anna?”
“She may assist you. The money will be given to you and you may take care of her needs with it.”
Kazimir hummed to himself before taking the man’s hand for a shake. “Well then, I can’t say the enthusiasm is shared but, hope that this goes well,” he bluntly let out with a firm grip.
After the handshake was done and the deal was set for now, the door was opened and a woman walked in. Her hair blonde and her dress flashy. Somehow she seemed familiar. It didn’t take very long for Kazimir to realize that she was present in many of the advertisements around the city. A celebrity, basically.
“Good morning,” she greeted, giving a courteous bow as expected of a Japanese. “My name is Alice.”
“Kazimir,” he replied as he stood up. “What might be the honor?”
“I am here to identify your DNA pattern, and thus register you to the country’s network. I am a fellow Time Warrior—Pisces.”
“I… see.” A slight cringe ran past his face at the name but he shrugged it aside as he walked over to her. “Then how does this work?”
“Simply relax in your seat and close your eyes. It will be over shortly.”
Kazimir complied as he sat back down again, shutting his eyes as he calmed himself taking deep breaths. Alice simply placed her hand on his forehead.
“System.” Alice’s eyes flashed blue. Kazimir’s body felt heavy for a moment. The unsettling feeling, however, lasted only for that moment. “Accessing data… information confirmed. Recording genetical information received from the analysis.” Kazimir was unable to move properly for some seconds, his body heavier than before. “It is done now.”
“Huh, that was… simpler… than I expected.” Kazimir felt underwhelmed, expecting to see more interesting machinery.
When he looked up, he saw that the eyes of the idol was still shining blue. There were small texts and numbers fluttering about repeatedly. The data could be seen on her eyes apparently, she was likely more than just a Descendant.
“You’re a rather peculiar one,” he remarked while he took his time to recover.
“Is that so?” the Time Warrior didn’t seemed to expect an answer. “And you are not?”
“Fair point.” He sighed. “Still, that there isn’t an ability granted by your Spirit, is it?”
“No, I suppose it isn’t. Why do you ask?”
“I’ve encountered other Descendants with latent abilities outside of their Spirits is all.” He shrugged.
“Japan has the technology to modify the body with machines… that has no actual drawbacks unlike the androids.”
“I see.” Kazimir hummed, “I suppose you won’t have trouble dealing with Sagittarius then,” he remarked half-heartedly.
“She is already undergoing surgery.”
“Already?” Kazimir narrowed his eyes as if not understanding what or why she would know such a thing.
“Yes.”
“H-Hey… isn’t this what they call… a l-l-love hotel?”
Anna’s voice was very meek as she faintly whispered to Kazimir after looking at all the pink lights and decorations in the lobby. There seemed to be other couples entering too, which made her even more nervous.
“Love hotel?” Kazimir raised a brow as he observed the decorations. The concept was certainly sound though he questioned what need was there for such a thing. “A bed is a bed. Don’t let it get to you.” Kazimir tried to reassure Anna with a stoic expression.
“Y-Yes, but we have to share it,” Anna replied, her face beet red.
Kazimir sighed. “If it bothers you that much, you can take the bed for yourself,” he offered, “I’ll just sleep on the floor or something.”
“No, y-you can sleep with me if you want.” Anna herself didn’t seemed to be sure about what she was blurting out.
Kazimir let out a sigh once more. “As you wish,” he grumbled, How indecisive… he thought to himself.
When the two entered the elevator after making the decision and speaking with the receptionist, a girl walked into the counter. Her hair was as black as her eyes. The Asian paid the man a huge sum of money before making a smirk.
“Thank you.”
***
Kazimir and Anna entered their room and the Descendant relaxed inside, while the Princess of the exiled nobles sat at the corner of the bed all—nervous still—but eventually, she let out most of her tension with a sigh.
The room was intoxicating; the waft of perfume and the extravagant decorations made her feel slightly dizzy. Her thoughts didn’t help her feel better.
Kazimir’s nose wrinkled as he reacted badly to the smell. “It certainly will be hard to sleep like this,” he remarked as he looked over to the window.
“I… I’m going to go take a shower.”
Anna hurried to the bathroom, thinking that a good bath could calm her heart down, which was beating rather fast.
As Anna shut the bathroom door, Kazimir made his way to the single window of their room, sliding it open and embracing the crisp fresh air. He sighed in relief as he cleared his sinuses of the strong scents and stared down to the bustling, well-lit streets below him. The air of Japan was much cleaner than in Russia and he wished his country would have something like this too, one day. “I’m finally here…” he muttered to himself, contemplating on his next course of action. “I’ll need to familiarize myself with the area, perhaps tomorrow should be spent exploring.”
While contemplating, he noted the noise of the door opening. Ten minutes had flied by so fast. He looked up to Anna, who seemed have nothing but a bathrobe rolled up to cover her frail-looking body.
It may have been because he was so preoccupied with his thoughts, but the half-naked appearance of Anna took him by surprise as he turned his head back out towards the window, taking deep breaths as he tried to collect himself.
“Shouldn’t you get dressed?” he muttered in a less confident than usual tone, still keeping his eyes towards the outdoors.
“Well… I realize that I lack a change of clothes now,” she scratched the back of her head. “Been using the same thing for so long. We didn’t really end up buying anything back in London.”
“I… see.” Kazimir sighed. “Then tomorrow,” he added. “We’ll be exploring the city, we can also get you a new set of clothes then.” He cleared his throat as he distracted himself with whatever he could spot outside.
“K-Kaz… how do I look?”
Anna looked down as she squeezed the words out of her throat, just barely, her face redder than before, but Kazimir couldn’t see it. She was already just behind him and he could hear her breaths, and the fast beating heart. She couldn’t tell what this feeling she was experiencing was, and blamed herself for asking stupid things.
“How… do you look?” Kazimir said, perplexed. “You only just finished bathing, do you really need to be concerned with your appearance?” he asked, trying to dodge the question.
“Sorry… I asked a strange question.”
“It’s… fine.” He sighed, looking up at the night sky, also cloudy in this country. “Go get some rest, you must be tired from the trip.”
Someone knocked on the door just as Anna was about to speak.
Who would that be? Hotel service or… Kazimir was on alert as he approached the door, keeping to the side of it as he called out. “Who is it?”
“We’re here to clean up a bit. Are you two done †˜doing it’?” an energetic female voice asked from outside.
Anna’s heart almost skipped a beat at this question.
Kazimir’s brow twitched at her question but he restrained himself as there was no helping considering where they were. He rubbed his temples as he took a deep breath.
“We were just about to sleep,” he explained. “Sorry, but could you come back tomorrow?” he tried to sound as polite as he could though the roughness in his voice still showed.
“Ah, but we really need to clean up soon. My shift duties demand that I clean the rooms before I go home… I will leave the bed untouched, no worries.”
“Tch,” Kazimir frowned, the girl was persistent.
He gave a look to Anna as if for her to be cautious as he slowly opened the door ajar and peeked out to the person outside. Kazimir found a cannon leveled up to his face.
A laser beamed into the room and plunged into the wall as Kazimir reflexively stepped back to save his face. An explosion followed from the laser and the room was completely torn apart. The door fell flat soon and it revealed a girl equipped with countless barrels and cannons, the †˜cleaner’ herself dressed in a black tight uniform.
“I am Guardian Rika. It’s too early to sleep. Party time is only getting started.”
Kazimir pushed Anna behind him as he assumed a stance, notably annoyed by the situation.
“Looks like I’m going to have to beat some manners into you, girl.”
“Try it.”
Four of the cannons flashed and the beams raided again. Kazimir side-stepped it, but even he could tell that it would’ve melted them both if they were a second late.
The situation was dire. Unarmed against a ranged opponent, the only thing Kazimir could do was try and close the distance between them. However as much as he wanted, he couldn’t find an opening between the girl’s shots as all he could do was try to dodge them with Anna behind him.
“Come along quietly or you’re both toast, filthy foreigners!” she shouted as she fired another barrage. “Oh, should’ve said that first, huh?”
Kazimir didn’t like it but the situation was something out of his capability.
“What do you intend to do if we comply?” he asked, for all he knew this person could’ve been one of Catherine’s agents.
“Well, you’d have to stay in the jail for some time. We don’t let unauthorized foreigners stay here. Seeing your spiritual energy response, however… nah, it can’t be.”
“Tch,” He frowned again. So its the authorities, is it?” He looked back at Anna before turning to the girl, he wouldn’t have a chance of completing his objective running like a fugitive. If they were already aware of his presence here then he was better off with a direct confrontation. “Very well, I’ll comply with you.” He begrudgingly conceded as he stood back up, still keeping Anna behind him.
From outside the window apparently someone was flying and pointing a gun at Anna too. Kazimir was so focused on Rika that he didn’t notice till the time he gave up.
“Alright, come with us.”
“At least let me dress up…” Anna meekly requested.
“Bet you’re gonna try something funny.”
“I won’t…”
“Let her go, Rika,” the other girl said as she came down. “I’ll look after her.”
***
Kazimir found himself in a lounge rather than a prison. The one the girls arrested for illegal entry into the country turned out to be something more than just human.
“So, according to our detector,” a man in black said, who sat on the other side on a sofa. “You are a †˜Descendant’ as the Europeans would call it. Why have you come to our country, may I know?”
Kazimir leered at the man, contemplating to himself. That they have machines that can †˜detect’ that I’m a Descendant is astounding, if their technology can understand our power, they could possibly have some other goods, he thought this as he unknowingly glared the man with intimidation. Sighing, he shrugged. “Simply put, tourism.”
“Surely there are many other countries out there for you to have a tour, Mister… Kazimir? The odds do not seem to say the same. I think it would benefit both of us if you would come clean?”
Kazimir chuckled. “I had heard you Japonskies were a modest folk. The brief time I spent in your country before being violently apprehended, I can say for sure that no other country has what you offer.” He leaned forward towards the man as he gave him a purposeful glare. “I can understand you would have concerns that I may be here for espionage but I assure you that I do not answer to my nation’s government.”
“I have heard of the Zayats, your company that was recently taken down.” The man narrowed his eyes. “Is it connected to the purpose you came for? I’d think that you’d go back to Russia to deal with the issue instead.”
“Tch,” Kazimir twitched at the mention, showing a visibly unpleasant expression before taking a breath. “If I went rushing back, I’d only succeed in getting caught in the downfall myself,” he explained. “My government saw my business as a threat so for the time being, I’ve decided to lay low until I can safely return. That is all.”
“I am willing to guess that you’d want to raise back your company in the near future?”
“As any determined entrepreneur would.”
“Would you be interested in us lending a helping hand? Assuming that is what your intention was.”
“Depending on what conditions would be given. I don’t intend to become a lap dog.”
“That is fine. If you do not like the conditions, we would simply have you leave the country.”
“Heh, I would have figured.” Kazimir leaned back on the sofa. “Pretty much you’re saying this is my only choice?”
“It is unfortunate but we do need Descendants for the wars and battles to come, and it can only look like becoming a lap dog to some.”
Kazimir contemplated on the recent events and sighed. “I will admit, this is not how I would like it but it is the better of two choices.” He consigned. “Just know that this conflict will not end well for any of us.”
“It will probably not, but we have to protect ourselves too. In return for your services, what would you be seeking from us specifically?”
“That’ll be something I will discover as we continue,” he answered. “I have yet to witness everything your country has to offer, to decide now would be like committing to the first dish at a buffet table.”
“I suppose that is true. We look forward to working you.” He extended his hand. “For now, shall we have you registered as a civilian?”
Kazimir glared at his hand for a moment as he pondered about his decision. “Will there be any provisions for living expenses?” he asked.
“We will provide a monthly allowance.”
“And Anna?”
“She may assist you. The money will be given to you and you may take care of her needs with it.”
Kazimir hummed to himself before taking the man’s hand for a shake. “Well then, I can’t say the enthusiasm is shared but, hope that this goes well,” he bluntly let out with a firm grip.
After the handshake was done and the deal was set for now, the door was opened and a woman walked in. Her hair blonde and her dress flashy. Somehow she seemed familiar. It didn’t take very long for Kazimir to realize that she was present in many of the advertisements around the city. A celebrity, basically.
“Good morning,” she greeted, giving a courteous bow as expected of a Japanese. “My name is Alice.”
“Kazimir,” he replied as he stood up. “What might be the honor?”
“I am here to identify your DNA pattern, and thus register you to the country’s network. I am a fellow Time Warrior—Pisces.”
“I… see.” A slight cringe ran past his face at the name but he shrugged it aside as he walked over to her. “Then how does this work?”
“Simply relax in your seat and close your eyes. It will be over shortly.”
Kazimir complied as he sat back down again, shutting his eyes as he calmed himself taking deep breaths. Alice simply placed her hand on his forehead.
“System.” Alice’s eyes flashed blue. Kazimir’s body felt heavy for a moment. The unsettling feeling, however, lasted only for that moment. “Accessing data… information confirmed. Recording genetical information received from the analysis.” Kazimir was unable to move properly for some seconds, his body heavier than before. “It is done now.”
“Huh, that was… simpler… than I expected.” Kazimir felt underwhelmed, expecting to see more interesting machinery.
When he looked up, he saw that the eyes of the idol was still shining blue. There were small texts and numbers fluttering about repeatedly. The data could be seen on her eyes apparently, she was likely more than just a Descendant.
“You’re a rather peculiar one,” he remarked while he took his time to recover.
“Is that so?” the Time Warrior didn’t seemed to expect an answer. “And you are not?”
“Fair point.” He sighed. “Still, that there isn’t an ability granted by your Spirit, is it?”
“No, I suppose it isn’t. Why do you ask?”
“I’ve encountered other Descendants with latent abilities outside of their Spirits is all.” He shrugged.
“Japan has the technology to modify the body with machines… that has no actual drawbacks unlike the androids.”
“I see.” Kazimir hummed, “I suppose you won’t have trouble dealing with Sagittarius then,” he remarked half-heartedly.
“She is already undergoing surgery.”
“Already?” Kazimir narrowed his eyes as if not understanding what or why she would know such a thing.
“Yes.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
(BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csZj-jRds38)
Aleksander strolled atop a rich red carpet. He could see people on both sides, all conversing. This was the first grand social event he had been to in a long time since childhood. His arm was linked with that of a frail, and usually introverted yet hard-working young lady—a secret housekeeper—and a member of the Aberdeen household that was famous for having an Earl with the position of Prime Minister at one point of time.
When the two finally passed through the gates to the hall, a completely different world unfolded before them, a smile naturally made it to their faces. There were Engine Lights on every corners—a testament to the improvement of technology—burning brilliantly in place of candles, illuminating the ballroom, under which many pairs could be seen dancing to the tune of the music. Speaking of the music, there were brass bands playing brass instruments.
Aleksander could see many guests, and even noted his friend Constance early. It seemed like his friend came even earlier than him. Despite being five minutes late, the halls were already seemingly full of extravagant individuals.
“It’s almost overwhelming, all these important people in one place… but I suppose we must simply find our own little niche in the grander event, and try to have fun. What say you to that, Miss Katya?” He favored her with a dazzling smile, taking advantage of the improved lighting as compared to the carriage ride, to properly take in the stunning dress that she was wearing, feeling immensely justified for dressing up to match.
Katya’s dress was a long black dress that shined with the lights of the halls. The few silver linings gleamed, showing a very skillfully applied embroidery on the dress.
She lightly smiled. “Yes, but I do not know if there is such a convenient niche group in such an event, though.”
“Well, if nothing else, my good friend Mister Constance is right over there, and I believe that it may not be a bad idea to say hello to him, and meet the ladies and gentleman he is with as well, while we scope the lay of the land.”
The pair approached Constance. With him were two ladies and another man. Aleksander realised that one was Xenia, and the other was a woman he knew not, but she was quite charming, as expected of Constance. The man was a classmate from the Royal Academy they both knew, another noble, and a Viscount.
Alek politely waited for a lull in the conversation before approaching.
“Good evening Constance, Xenia, David, and who is this vision of beauty you’ve made such fast friends with?” He directed this question at Constance, fishing for an introduction.
“Good evening, Aleksander, and Miss Katya,” Constance said, beaming at the two. “Allow me to introduce you two to Gracie Frederica of Wiltshire.”
“Good evening.” Gracie gave a respectable bow, also wearing a black dress, she seemed to appreciate Katya’s preference.
“I see you have a beauty yourself with us tonight, Aleksander,” David said. “Speak for yourself.”
Xenia’s expression was full of smugness rather than radiance or innocence. She was a very confident person, even in an event like this. Her purple hair seemed to catch the eyes of many, and she took the gazes in stride.
“Good †˜vening. It’s nice to meet you, Aleksander, been hearing about you a lot,” she said, not exactly sounding respectful but more casual unlike the nobles. It was a wonder that she was invited to this ball. Perhaps she was an affiliate of an important Magic Organization.
“A pleasure, I assure you, m’lady.” He nodded, giving a friendly, genuine smile to back up his words. “As Constance said, I recently met Lady Katya at the Academy, and we’ve been good acquaintances since. I am only all too happy to be here with her on this wondrous evening to enjoy the spectacle of a ball thrown by the Royal Family. Perhaps I may learn a thing or two for my own that I plan to throw next week? Regardless, it is, of course good to finally meet you, Miss Xenia.”He smoothly pronounced the name with no mistakes, having practiced it for just this occasion.
(GM Comment: Practiced? Seriously, Alek?)
“David Lloyd-George, otherwise known as Viscount Gwynedd,” the other man introduced himself.
Katya gave a courteous bow. “Katya Alberta of the Aberdeen. Good evening.” She was as terse as usual. It was a wonder that she could be so composed and reserved even in such an occasion.
“How goes the preparation of that ball, my friend?” Constance questioned.
“It goes well, I have my best people working on the arrangements even as we speak. I’ve already invited a goodly two-thirds of the people that I’d had in mind, with the thought that I might meet new, interesting people here this evening to liven up the atmosphere. So far, I can say that I’ve not been disappointed.” He nodded politely to David, Xenia, and finally Gracie in turn. “I think that it will be quite the to-do, but I might simply be a touch optimistic.” He smiled easily, trying to be as outgoing as he could.
“Do not fret,” David began. “Everyone has some turbulent happenings for their first times in things.”
“I am sure that it will go well, and look forward to it.” Constance laughed. “At least I hope so.”
“Oooh, more balls. Can I go?” Xenia blatantly enquired. For someone who was not a native, balls were new to her and interesting.
“Perhaps, I wish to speak with you at some greater length at another time, when it is more possible. We can discuss it at that then?” Alek offered, still unsure what to make of her yet, but trying to avoid hurt feelings. “If you’ll excuse me, I believe that I owe my partner a dance…” He bowed slightly to the assembled group. “May I have this dance, Lady Katya?” He turned to her with a smiled, finding himself oddly nervous.
Katya smiled back. “Yes, my Lor—Mister Aleksander.” Aleksander couldn’t tell if it was genuine or because she worked under him.
“Of course, my fair lady.” He agreed readily, content for the moment with good company, turning to Constance. “So, is there anybody at this ball in particular that is noteworthy beyond the norm of those who would attend a Royal Ball?”
(GM Comment: What in the name of flying bollocks? You just asked her to dance with you, and then return to converse with your peers?)
“My friend, there are too many noteworthy individuals to count. Rumours of some of the Royal family members coming here this evening is a deal big enough. I have not seen any of them yet. Alas, I am most eager.”
“I hear Duchess Cavendish Bentinck and Duchess of Edinburgh are coming.” David eyed the hall, and it felt as though he was disappoint to not have found them. “At least I hear, no sight of them so far.”
“Ahh… I wonder if Lady Edinburgh will recognise me.. I’ve actually met her once before, under less than favourable circumstances, I will admit… Still though, if that’s the kind of person in attendance this evening, we are truly among the elite of our world tonight… it’s enough to make me feel almost like a commoner.” He laughed. “I’m sure that once I’m better established that will change, but for the moment it’s still disorienting, to say the least.”
“You are a Duke now,” Constance said. “Not as old as them, but perhaps a little more backbone would take you a long way?”
“Agreed,” David added. “I am but a Viscount and to see a Duke around my age is a wonder already.”
“Of course, by the same token it would not be proper to be too brash and headstrong. Some caution is still important when it comes to these things.” He refuted. “Anyways, I must excuse myself, I’ve spent enough of your time now, and there are still countless new faces to make an acquaintance of.” He smiled slightly, and stepped away slightly.
“See you soon.”
Constance waved, while the others simply returned to their previous conversation before the pair visited them.
“Who shall we approach now?” Katya asked. “I thought we were sticking to a niche group?” she added in jest. “Anyway, we should—” she almost said but Aleksander seemed to start responding.
“I wouldn’t mind meeting some of your friends, especially if they’re half as well-mannered and beautiful…” He complimented her, already feeling that she’d just brush it off as insincere, despite the fact that the opposite was true.
(GM Comments: Thanks Alek, for telling Katya that she probably has shit-tier friends. I’m sure she takes this as a compliment.)
“I do not have many friends, unfortunately. However, I believe we should get into the dancing floor. Shall we, Mister Aleksander?”
“I think that that is a lovely idea.” He agreed, taking her hand in his, and cradling it with an incredible amount of care as he lead her to a somewhat less-packed portion of the dance floor, “What dance would you prefer to do? I’ve heard that the Viennese waltz is quite enjoyable, if somewhat overdone at these…” He suggested with a twinkle in his eye.
“I shall leave the choice to you, Mister Aleksander. I have no particular taste in dancing, in all honesty. I simply do it for fun here and there. I think I have not danced this year at all.”
“Well, hopefully I’ll be an enjoyable dancing partner, Miss Katya.” He smiled, and drew closer to her, one arm draping gently around her small back, just above the waist, and the other hand still holding her hand as he raised it slightly into the air, mindful of her comfort and shorter stature as he lead her smoothly into the first steps of the dance, proving to be an admirable partner for dancing, due to his lithe build, and well-toned muscles.
Katya placed her hand on Aleksander’s shoulder while the fingers of the other were intertwined with his.
They danced away to the melody, slowly picking up their pace with the music, the noises of the clattering of heels and shoes intensified throughout the hall and the chorus soon shifted, returning to a more relaxed pace.
“Say…” Katya began. “Do you loathe me for not speaking of my private circumstances, Mister Aleksander?”
“Of course not. I’m sure you have your reasons for keeping it to yourself. If you change your mind and want to tell me at some point, you are welcome to do so, and I’ll lend an ear and a helping hand however I can. If you prefer to keep it to yourself, I understand that it is improper for me to push matters, and I apologise for doing so as much as I have…”
“I apologise too, I might have placed you in an improper position by applying to work in your estate with my status appearing to be questionable.”
“Do not worry about it, Miss Katya. Truthfully, I may not know what’s going on with your situation, but if you need to get away from it, I’d rather have you at my estate, than somewhere else where someone of questionable ethics might take advantage of your beauty and social standing by not observing propriety.”
Katya almost found herself tilting her head quizzically. “Oh no, I was living alone before working under your estate. I do not think anyone would take advantage of me in any way,” Katya stated with assurance, finding herself chuckling at what sounded like an overstatement coming from a worried mother.
“If you’re trying to assuage my curiosity, you’re doing a terrible job of it…” Alek joked. “Nonetheless, I’m glad to have you around, and I hope that I get to see you in your uniform for some time to come…” He smiled a little, just for her as he teased her. “Though I can admit that the dress is nice as well… I hope that my ensemble is as pleasing to your eye as yours is to mine.”
“I suppose there shall be no need to prepare the alternative dress for me back in the estate, I shall do what was provided to minimise the financial burden.” She completely ignored the teasing. She did not smile as she responded, either. Instead, she held a more professional air for the moment.
Aleksander released her arm and Katya gave a pivot and came back to him as the music got dramatic and returned to its lax pace.
“Nice… I think that you’re better at dancing than I am!” He smiled. “And money isn’t as much of an issue as I made it out to be, honestly. I’ve got more of it than I honestly know what to do with, though I suspect the ball will put a dent in it for sure. If you wanted me to have a customized dress made for you, I’d be more than happy to do so, as long as you make sure to show it off for me, okay?” his grin grows a little wider.
“Oh, no no, why would you do that? I would rather buy my own dress than have my employer make one specifically for me.” So he was lying about the uniforms. He just wants the maids to wear shorter skirts…
“I suppose you could consider it a gift if you would. Is it really so unthinkable for me to buy something nice for someone I care about?” he asked with an arched eyebrow.
“I… I suppose not.”
“Did you not want me to get you a gift, perhaps?” He asked. “It might be somewhat improper for me to do so… I suppose, but I’d like to get to know you better if I can. Like, more than as a maid and her master… is that an agreeable idea for you?”
“I am not sure if I follow the idea.”
“I… I think you are very pretty, but I think you already picked up on that.” At this he had the grace to color slightly. “I guess I was asking you to be yourself around me, and I’ll do the same… if we get along, then I would like to be your friend, rather than just your employer.”
“For now, I think it is appropriate to start as an employer and employee.”
“I… see…” He nodded. “I will not press the matter then… I understand that it is easy to see me flatter other ladies, and mistake it for wanting to become involved with each of them… I guess I just have troubles with trying to commit to one person, when so far I seem to have questionable luck every time I think I’ve found someone I like. I’ll tell you a story later, if you’d like to hear it, but now is not the time for it.”
(GM’s Reaction.)
As if his time was up, the music ended and the two stopped dancing. They soon left the dance floor and walked out of it.
“If you do have issues committing to a person, I think that is fine. However, the opposite could also be very much possible.” Katya looked down as they stopped just outside the dancing stage.
“I mean… it seems like every time I get interested in trying to court someone, it seems like it turns out poorly. Admittedly it’s only happened once before now, and I don’t think she was interested in being courted in the first place. I seem to be the best I know at finding those sort of ladies. I mean, my best friend is sort of trying to woo a Princess, and seems to be having at least some success with it… and I can’t even do that much…”
“I am sorry to hear that, and I apologise if I had hurt you without knowing.”
“No, no, you’re fine. I apologise actually, since it is quite rude of me to say that much… I understand if you want me to leave now…”
“It is alright. No man should be leaving me now after coming so far,” Katya said with a chuckle. She almost sounded nervous.
“I see… so what would you like to do now? The first dance and asking if you wanted to do this again some time was about as far as my mental plan got… ehehe…”
“We came together, it would not be proper to leave unless… I go back to Constance’s group I suppose.”
Alek’s nerves suddenly became steely hard as he gained a fierce look. “Never. At least, I wouldn’t leave you alone there… I might be best friends with him… but he wouldn’t hesitate for a moment if an opportunity presented itself.”
“That is harsh. I think Constance is not that heartless and valueless?”
“Perhaps not, but it’s still an unnecessary risk that I don’t want to put you through… I’m sorry if I spoke out of turn…” He looked down at the ground.
“A risk…? With all due respect—never mind.”
He face-palmed. “Sorry… my choice of words might be not great… please forgive me.”
“It is okay, let us take a break. I do not think—”
“Oh, what a familiar face. I thought I would have mistaken. Good evening.”
Alekander looked up to a man slightly taller than him, wearing a suit that seemed more expensive than his own. His hair was blonde and his eyes a deep shade of crimson. He somehow appeared rather compelling and overwhelming to him.
“Good evening… father,” Katya greeted nervously. She appeared to be shaken by the sudden appearance of her parent.
“Good evening, Sir.” Aleksander bowed to the older man, but said nothing else, not wanting to interrupt their conversation without something important to say.
“Good evening… Mister Aleksander Fane, I assume?”
“Ahh… I’m pleased that you know of me. Sir Aberdeen, is it?” Aleksander asked. “It is good to meet you.” Aleksander extended his hand in an offer to shake Katya’s father’s hand.
The father shook his hand politely, but not with a smile. Aleksander seemed to miss a fact that people do not handshake in an event like this.
“A pleasure to meet you too, young Duke. I had heard much of you.”
Katya sighed internally after witnessing this.
“I’m glad to hear it, though I’m not in any rush to repeat such a dangerous feat. I can’t say that I’ve heard much about you from Katya, but I’m sure that she simply hasn’t had a chance to say much yet. I’d be very interested in maybe catching a horse race with you some time if you’d like…” He offered with a smile. “I was just dancing with Miss Katya, and she was simply fabulous at it.”
The Earl looked at Katya and then back to Aleksander after hearing the statement about dancing. “A dangerous feat? Anyway, I could catch a race or two. Do you enjoy jousting?”
“I’ve seen a few jousting tourneys. It’s always tough to see the horses get hurt though, since I’ve been breeding horses since I was a boy… Which I guess wasn’t that long ago.” He laughed a little.
“I happened to be active in the sport when I was young,” Aberdeen proudly stated with a laugh. “Now I run the tournaments.”
“Hmm? You might have ridden on a few of my family’s horses then!” He smiled “Do you mind if I ask you a question, sir?” Alek asked.
I do not think so… “That was a long time ago, but perhaps.” Aberdeen paused, becoming curious. “A question? I am all ears, Mistre Fane.”
“I’m not sure what’s going on, but it’s quite unusual for a young lady of high birth such as your daughter to seek work as a housekeeper… Is there something that I should be aware of?” Alek spoke quietly to avoid eavesdropping.
“I see you have grown curious. Are you her current employer now?” Aberdeen made a smirk, noting his daughter’s expression..
“Yes…?”
“I see. Currently, my daughter has done something that has caused her great disgrace. To redeem herself, the condition is for her to learn to face the hardships of life without the gifts of nobility in secrecy.”
As her father explained, Katya looked down in silence, clearly feeling ashamed.
“I see. Is it a problem for you that she is currently under my employ?” Alek asked.
“Not quite,” Aberdeen answered casually. “For her sake, however, I would recommend not letting the news get out. For your sake, too. It may generate unnecessary gossip.”
“Father, please…” Katya uttered just barely, but the sounds of the musicals drowned it out as she was full of hesitations.
“I see. What are the terms of her acceptance back into the house? I said that I’d do everything I could to help, and I don’t intend to gain a reputation as a liar.”
Aberdeen laughed. “Sure you may know. She simply has to keep living the life of a worker for some years is all. Until her engagement is settled.”
“I think I understand. So the only thing I can reasonably do is to provide a place for her to work that is relatively free of miscreants…” He thought about it, obviously seeing the other possibility, but knowing that it was unlikely, given that he was just rejected. “I think it best to change the subject before she sinks through the seams of the floorboards…” He nodded to Katya, and then addressed her directly. “Would you like to step outside to get some air, Katya?”
“It is fine…” Katya answered.
“I shall now take my leave,” Katya’s father said, giving his daughter a glance. “Take care of her.”
“Of course, Sir.” Turning to Katya, “It’s as much for my benefit as yours. I’d like to speak with more freedom than present circumstances allow..” He explained with a hint of vagueness.
“Do you wish to speak outside?”
“I do… but at the same time I’m not sure what exactly I want to say. I want to help you, but you’ve not made it easy for me to do so, so I can only assume that you must not wish for me to…”
“Can we stop obsessing over this? Please. You know all there is to know about it.”
(GM’s Reaction.)
“Fine. Did you want me to take you home then? Or did you still want to stay here?”
“It is your decision, Mister Aleksander. You are the one who wanted to come with you.”
Aleksander flinched almost imperceptibly. “I think it best that I not say anything else to get myself in further trouble… I’m sorry that I was insensitive, okay? I… I knew it was important for you, and I didn’t mean to upset you this much. Seems silly that I thought it wouldn’t I guess. I was worried about what was going on, and I guess that I just let it get the better of my common sense. If you want to go home and forget that tonight happened, I understand… I just wanted to at least try to apologise to you for my indiscretion…”
“I apologise if I had been the cause to upset you. Let us set this matter aside and relax, shall we?”
“I think that’s a good idea… Would you like me to get something to drink for you?” He offered, deciding to be as polite as possible and not waste this apparent olive branch.
“Perhaps we should simply have dinner.”
“...Yes.” He agreed, and offered his arm once more for her, uncertain if she’ll take it.
She accepted the hand and they left to have dinner.
“Where would you like to go to eat?”
“They serve dinner here.”
“Right…” He nodded. “Umm… yeah…”
Aleksander strolled atop a rich red carpet. He could see people on both sides, all conversing. This was the first grand social event he had been to in a long time since childhood. His arm was linked with that of a frail, and usually introverted yet hard-working young lady—a secret housekeeper—and a member of the Aberdeen household that was famous for having an Earl with the position of Prime Minister at one point of time.
When the two finally passed through the gates to the hall, a completely different world unfolded before them, a smile naturally made it to their faces. There were Engine Lights on every corners—a testament to the improvement of technology—burning brilliantly in place of candles, illuminating the ballroom, under which many pairs could be seen dancing to the tune of the music. Speaking of the music, there were brass bands playing brass instruments.
Aleksander could see many guests, and even noted his friend Constance early. It seemed like his friend came even earlier than him. Despite being five minutes late, the halls were already seemingly full of extravagant individuals.
“It’s almost overwhelming, all these important people in one place… but I suppose we must simply find our own little niche in the grander event, and try to have fun. What say you to that, Miss Katya?” He favored her with a dazzling smile, taking advantage of the improved lighting as compared to the carriage ride, to properly take in the stunning dress that she was wearing, feeling immensely justified for dressing up to match.
Katya’s dress was a long black dress that shined with the lights of the halls. The few silver linings gleamed, showing a very skillfully applied embroidery on the dress.
She lightly smiled. “Yes, but I do not know if there is such a convenient niche group in such an event, though.”
“Well, if nothing else, my good friend Mister Constance is right over there, and I believe that it may not be a bad idea to say hello to him, and meet the ladies and gentleman he is with as well, while we scope the lay of the land.”
The pair approached Constance. With him were two ladies and another man. Aleksander realised that one was Xenia, and the other was a woman he knew not, but she was quite charming, as expected of Constance. The man was a classmate from the Royal Academy they both knew, another noble, and a Viscount.
Alek politely waited for a lull in the conversation before approaching.
“Good evening Constance, Xenia, David, and who is this vision of beauty you’ve made such fast friends with?” He directed this question at Constance, fishing for an introduction.
“Good evening, Aleksander, and Miss Katya,” Constance said, beaming at the two. “Allow me to introduce you two to Gracie Frederica of Wiltshire.”
“Good evening.” Gracie gave a respectable bow, also wearing a black dress, she seemed to appreciate Katya’s preference.
“I see you have a beauty yourself with us tonight, Aleksander,” David said. “Speak for yourself.”
Xenia’s expression was full of smugness rather than radiance or innocence. She was a very confident person, even in an event like this. Her purple hair seemed to catch the eyes of many, and she took the gazes in stride.
“Good †˜vening. It’s nice to meet you, Aleksander, been hearing about you a lot,” she said, not exactly sounding respectful but more casual unlike the nobles. It was a wonder that she was invited to this ball. Perhaps she was an affiliate of an important Magic Organization.
“A pleasure, I assure you, m’lady.” He nodded, giving a friendly, genuine smile to back up his words. “As Constance said, I recently met Lady Katya at the Academy, and we’ve been good acquaintances since. I am only all too happy to be here with her on this wondrous evening to enjoy the spectacle of a ball thrown by the Royal Family. Perhaps I may learn a thing or two for my own that I plan to throw next week? Regardless, it is, of course good to finally meet you, Miss Xenia.”He smoothly pronounced the name with no mistakes, having practiced it for just this occasion.
(GM Comment: Practiced? Seriously, Alek?)
“David Lloyd-George, otherwise known as Viscount Gwynedd,” the other man introduced himself.
Katya gave a courteous bow. “Katya Alberta of the Aberdeen. Good evening.” She was as terse as usual. It was a wonder that she could be so composed and reserved even in such an occasion.
“How goes the preparation of that ball, my friend?” Constance questioned.
“It goes well, I have my best people working on the arrangements even as we speak. I’ve already invited a goodly two-thirds of the people that I’d had in mind, with the thought that I might meet new, interesting people here this evening to liven up the atmosphere. So far, I can say that I’ve not been disappointed.” He nodded politely to David, Xenia, and finally Gracie in turn. “I think that it will be quite the to-do, but I might simply be a touch optimistic.” He smiled easily, trying to be as outgoing as he could.
“Do not fret,” David began. “Everyone has some turbulent happenings for their first times in things.”
“I am sure that it will go well, and look forward to it.” Constance laughed. “At least I hope so.”
“Oooh, more balls. Can I go?” Xenia blatantly enquired. For someone who was not a native, balls were new to her and interesting.
“Perhaps, I wish to speak with you at some greater length at another time, when it is more possible. We can discuss it at that then?” Alek offered, still unsure what to make of her yet, but trying to avoid hurt feelings. “If you’ll excuse me, I believe that I owe my partner a dance…” He bowed slightly to the assembled group. “May I have this dance, Lady Katya?” He turned to her with a smiled, finding himself oddly nervous.
Katya smiled back. “Yes, my Lor—Mister Aleksander.” Aleksander couldn’t tell if it was genuine or because she worked under him.
“Of course, my fair lady.” He agreed readily, content for the moment with good company, turning to Constance. “So, is there anybody at this ball in particular that is noteworthy beyond the norm of those who would attend a Royal Ball?”
(GM Comment: What in the name of flying bollocks? You just asked her to dance with you, and then return to converse with your peers?)
“My friend, there are too many noteworthy individuals to count. Rumours of some of the Royal family members coming here this evening is a deal big enough. I have not seen any of them yet. Alas, I am most eager.”
“I hear Duchess Cavendish Bentinck and Duchess of Edinburgh are coming.” David eyed the hall, and it felt as though he was disappoint to not have found them. “At least I hear, no sight of them so far.”
“Ahh… I wonder if Lady Edinburgh will recognise me.. I’ve actually met her once before, under less than favourable circumstances, I will admit… Still though, if that’s the kind of person in attendance this evening, we are truly among the elite of our world tonight… it’s enough to make me feel almost like a commoner.” He laughed. “I’m sure that once I’m better established that will change, but for the moment it’s still disorienting, to say the least.”
“You are a Duke now,” Constance said. “Not as old as them, but perhaps a little more backbone would take you a long way?”
“Agreed,” David added. “I am but a Viscount and to see a Duke around my age is a wonder already.”
“Of course, by the same token it would not be proper to be too brash and headstrong. Some caution is still important when it comes to these things.” He refuted. “Anyways, I must excuse myself, I’ve spent enough of your time now, and there are still countless new faces to make an acquaintance of.” He smiled slightly, and stepped away slightly.
“See you soon.”
Constance waved, while the others simply returned to their previous conversation before the pair visited them.
“Who shall we approach now?” Katya asked. “I thought we were sticking to a niche group?” she added in jest. “Anyway, we should—” she almost said but Aleksander seemed to start responding.
“I wouldn’t mind meeting some of your friends, especially if they’re half as well-mannered and beautiful…” He complimented her, already feeling that she’d just brush it off as insincere, despite the fact that the opposite was true.
(GM Comments: Thanks Alek, for telling Katya that she probably has shit-tier friends. I’m sure she takes this as a compliment.)
“I do not have many friends, unfortunately. However, I believe we should get into the dancing floor. Shall we, Mister Aleksander?”
“I think that that is a lovely idea.” He agreed, taking her hand in his, and cradling it with an incredible amount of care as he lead her to a somewhat less-packed portion of the dance floor, “What dance would you prefer to do? I’ve heard that the Viennese waltz is quite enjoyable, if somewhat overdone at these…” He suggested with a twinkle in his eye.
“I shall leave the choice to you, Mister Aleksander. I have no particular taste in dancing, in all honesty. I simply do it for fun here and there. I think I have not danced this year at all.”
“Well, hopefully I’ll be an enjoyable dancing partner, Miss Katya.” He smiled, and drew closer to her, one arm draping gently around her small back, just above the waist, and the other hand still holding her hand as he raised it slightly into the air, mindful of her comfort and shorter stature as he lead her smoothly into the first steps of the dance, proving to be an admirable partner for dancing, due to his lithe build, and well-toned muscles.
Katya placed her hand on Aleksander’s shoulder while the fingers of the other were intertwined with his.
They danced away to the melody, slowly picking up their pace with the music, the noises of the clattering of heels and shoes intensified throughout the hall and the chorus soon shifted, returning to a more relaxed pace.
“Say…” Katya began. “Do you loathe me for not speaking of my private circumstances, Mister Aleksander?”
“Of course not. I’m sure you have your reasons for keeping it to yourself. If you change your mind and want to tell me at some point, you are welcome to do so, and I’ll lend an ear and a helping hand however I can. If you prefer to keep it to yourself, I understand that it is improper for me to push matters, and I apologise for doing so as much as I have…”
“I apologise too, I might have placed you in an improper position by applying to work in your estate with my status appearing to be questionable.”
“Do not worry about it, Miss Katya. Truthfully, I may not know what’s going on with your situation, but if you need to get away from it, I’d rather have you at my estate, than somewhere else where someone of questionable ethics might take advantage of your beauty and social standing by not observing propriety.”
Katya almost found herself tilting her head quizzically. “Oh no, I was living alone before working under your estate. I do not think anyone would take advantage of me in any way,” Katya stated with assurance, finding herself chuckling at what sounded like an overstatement coming from a worried mother.
“If you’re trying to assuage my curiosity, you’re doing a terrible job of it…” Alek joked. “Nonetheless, I’m glad to have you around, and I hope that I get to see you in your uniform for some time to come…” He smiled a little, just for her as he teased her. “Though I can admit that the dress is nice as well… I hope that my ensemble is as pleasing to your eye as yours is to mine.”
“I suppose there shall be no need to prepare the alternative dress for me back in the estate, I shall do what was provided to minimise the financial burden.” She completely ignored the teasing. She did not smile as she responded, either. Instead, she held a more professional air for the moment.
Aleksander released her arm and Katya gave a pivot and came back to him as the music got dramatic and returned to its lax pace.
“Nice… I think that you’re better at dancing than I am!” He smiled. “And money isn’t as much of an issue as I made it out to be, honestly. I’ve got more of it than I honestly know what to do with, though I suspect the ball will put a dent in it for sure. If you wanted me to have a customized dress made for you, I’d be more than happy to do so, as long as you make sure to show it off for me, okay?” his grin grows a little wider.
“Oh, no no, why would you do that? I would rather buy my own dress than have my employer make one specifically for me.” So he was lying about the uniforms. He just wants the maids to wear shorter skirts…
“I suppose you could consider it a gift if you would. Is it really so unthinkable for me to buy something nice for someone I care about?” he asked with an arched eyebrow.
“I… I suppose not.”
“Did you not want me to get you a gift, perhaps?” He asked. “It might be somewhat improper for me to do so… I suppose, but I’d like to get to know you better if I can. Like, more than as a maid and her master… is that an agreeable idea for you?”
“I am not sure if I follow the idea.”
“I… I think you are very pretty, but I think you already picked up on that.” At this he had the grace to color slightly. “I guess I was asking you to be yourself around me, and I’ll do the same… if we get along, then I would like to be your friend, rather than just your employer.”
“For now, I think it is appropriate to start as an employer and employee.”
“I… see…” He nodded. “I will not press the matter then… I understand that it is easy to see me flatter other ladies, and mistake it for wanting to become involved with each of them… I guess I just have troubles with trying to commit to one person, when so far I seem to have questionable luck every time I think I’ve found someone I like. I’ll tell you a story later, if you’d like to hear it, but now is not the time for it.”
(GM’s Reaction.)
As if his time was up, the music ended and the two stopped dancing. They soon left the dance floor and walked out of it.
“If you do have issues committing to a person, I think that is fine. However, the opposite could also be very much possible.” Katya looked down as they stopped just outside the dancing stage.
“I mean… it seems like every time I get interested in trying to court someone, it seems like it turns out poorly. Admittedly it’s only happened once before now, and I don’t think she was interested in being courted in the first place. I seem to be the best I know at finding those sort of ladies. I mean, my best friend is sort of trying to woo a Princess, and seems to be having at least some success with it… and I can’t even do that much…”
“I am sorry to hear that, and I apologise if I had hurt you without knowing.”
“No, no, you’re fine. I apologise actually, since it is quite rude of me to say that much… I understand if you want me to leave now…”
“It is alright. No man should be leaving me now after coming so far,” Katya said with a chuckle. She almost sounded nervous.
“I see… so what would you like to do now? The first dance and asking if you wanted to do this again some time was about as far as my mental plan got… ehehe…”
“We came together, it would not be proper to leave unless… I go back to Constance’s group I suppose.”
Alek’s nerves suddenly became steely hard as he gained a fierce look. “Never. At least, I wouldn’t leave you alone there… I might be best friends with him… but he wouldn’t hesitate for a moment if an opportunity presented itself.”
“That is harsh. I think Constance is not that heartless and valueless?”
“Perhaps not, but it’s still an unnecessary risk that I don’t want to put you through… I’m sorry if I spoke out of turn…” He looked down at the ground.
“A risk…? With all due respect—never mind.”
He face-palmed. “Sorry… my choice of words might be not great… please forgive me.”
“It is okay, let us take a break. I do not think—”
“Oh, what a familiar face. I thought I would have mistaken. Good evening.”
Alekander looked up to a man slightly taller than him, wearing a suit that seemed more expensive than his own. His hair was blonde and his eyes a deep shade of crimson. He somehow appeared rather compelling and overwhelming to him.
“Good evening… father,” Katya greeted nervously. She appeared to be shaken by the sudden appearance of her parent.
“Good evening, Sir.” Aleksander bowed to the older man, but said nothing else, not wanting to interrupt their conversation without something important to say.
“Good evening… Mister Aleksander Fane, I assume?”
“Ahh… I’m pleased that you know of me. Sir Aberdeen, is it?” Aleksander asked. “It is good to meet you.” Aleksander extended his hand in an offer to shake Katya’s father’s hand.
The father shook his hand politely, but not with a smile. Aleksander seemed to miss a fact that people do not handshake in an event like this.
“A pleasure to meet you too, young Duke. I had heard much of you.”
Katya sighed internally after witnessing this.
“I’m glad to hear it, though I’m not in any rush to repeat such a dangerous feat. I can’t say that I’ve heard much about you from Katya, but I’m sure that she simply hasn’t had a chance to say much yet. I’d be very interested in maybe catching a horse race with you some time if you’d like…” He offered with a smile. “I was just dancing with Miss Katya, and she was simply fabulous at it.”
The Earl looked at Katya and then back to Aleksander after hearing the statement about dancing. “A dangerous feat? Anyway, I could catch a race or two. Do you enjoy jousting?”
“I’ve seen a few jousting tourneys. It’s always tough to see the horses get hurt though, since I’ve been breeding horses since I was a boy… Which I guess wasn’t that long ago.” He laughed a little.
“I happened to be active in the sport when I was young,” Aberdeen proudly stated with a laugh. “Now I run the tournaments.”
“Hmm? You might have ridden on a few of my family’s horses then!” He smiled “Do you mind if I ask you a question, sir?” Alek asked.
I do not think so… “That was a long time ago, but perhaps.” Aberdeen paused, becoming curious. “A question? I am all ears, Mistre Fane.”
“I’m not sure what’s going on, but it’s quite unusual for a young lady of high birth such as your daughter to seek work as a housekeeper… Is there something that I should be aware of?” Alek spoke quietly to avoid eavesdropping.
“I see you have grown curious. Are you her current employer now?” Aberdeen made a smirk, noting his daughter’s expression..
“Yes…?”
“I see. Currently, my daughter has done something that has caused her great disgrace. To redeem herself, the condition is for her to learn to face the hardships of life without the gifts of nobility in secrecy.”
As her father explained, Katya looked down in silence, clearly feeling ashamed.
“I see. Is it a problem for you that she is currently under my employ?” Alek asked.
“Not quite,” Aberdeen answered casually. “For her sake, however, I would recommend not letting the news get out. For your sake, too. It may generate unnecessary gossip.”
“Father, please…” Katya uttered just barely, but the sounds of the musicals drowned it out as she was full of hesitations.
“I see. What are the terms of her acceptance back into the house? I said that I’d do everything I could to help, and I don’t intend to gain a reputation as a liar.”
Aberdeen laughed. “Sure you may know. She simply has to keep living the life of a worker for some years is all. Until her engagement is settled.”
“I think I understand. So the only thing I can reasonably do is to provide a place for her to work that is relatively free of miscreants…” He thought about it, obviously seeing the other possibility, but knowing that it was unlikely, given that he was just rejected. “I think it best to change the subject before she sinks through the seams of the floorboards…” He nodded to Katya, and then addressed her directly. “Would you like to step outside to get some air, Katya?”
“It is fine…” Katya answered.
“I shall now take my leave,” Katya’s father said, giving his daughter a glance. “Take care of her.”
“Of course, Sir.” Turning to Katya, “It’s as much for my benefit as yours. I’d like to speak with more freedom than present circumstances allow..” He explained with a hint of vagueness.
“Do you wish to speak outside?”
“I do… but at the same time I’m not sure what exactly I want to say. I want to help you, but you’ve not made it easy for me to do so, so I can only assume that you must not wish for me to…”
“Can we stop obsessing over this? Please. You know all there is to know about it.”
(GM’s Reaction.)
“Fine. Did you want me to take you home then? Or did you still want to stay here?”
“It is your decision, Mister Aleksander. You are the one who wanted to come with you.”
Aleksander flinched almost imperceptibly. “I think it best that I not say anything else to get myself in further trouble… I’m sorry that I was insensitive, okay? I… I knew it was important for you, and I didn’t mean to upset you this much. Seems silly that I thought it wouldn’t I guess. I was worried about what was going on, and I guess that I just let it get the better of my common sense. If you want to go home and forget that tonight happened, I understand… I just wanted to at least try to apologise to you for my indiscretion…”
“I apologise if I had been the cause to upset you. Let us set this matter aside and relax, shall we?”
“I think that’s a good idea… Would you like me to get something to drink for you?” He offered, deciding to be as polite as possible and not waste this apparent olive branch.
“Perhaps we should simply have dinner.”
“...Yes.” He agreed, and offered his arm once more for her, uncertain if she’ll take it.
She accepted the hand and they left to have dinner.
“Where would you like to go to eat?”
“They serve dinner here.”
“Right…” He nodded. “Umm… yeah…”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
“I cannot believe you are such a slacker at an important day,” Isabelle complained.
She held Svetlana’s hand, and it seemed like she was just ahead of her older sister as if she was pulling her ahead. Wearing a sleeveless ball gown of a darker shade of blue, a very frilly dress with some compartments of black layers included; it was a fashionable dress.
Meanwhile, Svetlana fancied a dark crimson red satin ball gown for the big event. It was littered with black linings, had long sleeves, and seemed to mimic a classical fashion of Marie Antoinette’s old dresses, a style that would live on for a long time.
They were a good hour late after the event had started. Svetlana underestimated the amount of time they would need to prepare, and thus the crisis took place. Right now, Svetlana was equipped with proper makeup as befitting of a noble, her Personal Maid Nancy made full sure of it. However, the quality of work required took the time.
In this ballroom, they felt like very insignificant existences when they actually entered the halls. The level of grandeur was beyond their wildest imaginations. This was the type of “fun” the nobles loved, and this was the type of “fun” Svetlana met for the first time—a large gathering of magicians, who were otherwise the majority of the aristocrats of the country. It was not strange for the Royal Council to take special measures to make sure no mundanes would ever make it to such occasions when the Magic World would have a celebration.
“This is much bigger than I had imagine,” Svetlana said as she kept looking around, amazed. There were no limit to the amount of people wherever she looked. “I think I’m getting more nervous than I should.”
“I am not surprised.”
Isabelle seemed quite amazed herself. She could keep her composure over many things recently. While she was not the best to do many things—such as managing or giving directions to servants as a child—when Svetlana met her first, they both came a long way after the passing of their mother. One’s real, and one’s foster, but they shared the sentiment to an extent.
“This place sure is amazing,” Svetlana said as she still felt completely out of place.
“Remember the few dance lessons you took, okay?” Isabelle reminded. This was the third time she said so today. “Keep those etiquettes I taught you in mind.” Also the third time. “And make sure to keep your conducts straight… as much as you can.” The fourth time.
“Yes, I know. I’ll do my best, but I sorta doubt anyone would invite me to dance since no one has ever really taken an interest in me before. By the way where are we to sit?”
“Sit? Why?” Isabelle questioned. “I am sure someone will take an interest, sister. You have to look more confident about yourself, you have everything going for you—even the dress.”
“We’ll see. Though, are we to just stand around? I would imagine we have a table of some sorts to take a sit.”
“If you would wish to rest for some tea or coffee, have dinner, or want to change… do not any of that so early. We are to stand and immerse in conversations… I hope. We just got in.”
“I see. I would think that would be difficult for us unless you have met other nobles already without my knowing. Since I sure haven’t aside from your Aunt.”
Speaking of the devil, Duchess Caroline was already found, as Isabelle faced her way instead of pointing for her sister. “Oh, our—ahem, my Aunt is here already it seems.”
“Well I think I would be more comfortable around her than being approached by complete strangers at the start. So let’s be with her.”
“I agree.”
The two approached Duchess Caroline Cavendish Bentinck. Isabelle curtsied, Svetlana did it almost a moment later as if she forgot to. Isabelle was sure that she did, sighing in her mind. The Duchess only gave a bow in return to the two.
“Good evening, Aunt,” Isabelle greeted.
“Good evening, sweetheart.” the Duchess greeted in return with a radiant smile. Her dress was a wonder to look at, a flowing long silk of light-blue with intricate pattern of red blended perfectly. Her jewelry was abundant and it added an exotic feature to herself.
“Good evening, Lady Cavendish Bentinck.” Svetlana greeted.
“Good evening, Alicia, how had you been faring?” the Duchess asked. “All going well with the new life?”
Svetlana was certainly not used to being called by the new surname. “I suppose things have been moving along better. There are, of course, many things I still must get used to,” she said as she tried to be careful how she worded things. “How have you been Lady, Cavendish Bentinck, these past few days?”
“I had been fine, thank you. I only wish that my daughter would have woken up by now, it is unfortunate that she fought for the world, but is now unable to participate in the celebration of peace,” the Duchess said, a distant look as she gave the ballroom a stare. “And my husband…” she muttered under her breath, and it was drowned by the music.
“I’m really sorry. I really I wish I could have done a better a job back then, but we underestimated her…” Svetlana said as she couldn’t think of anything else to tell her about that situation.
“It is alright. I did not expected Virgo to be… so strong, either. I fought and defeated Sagittarius myself, I thought hundreds of people together would win this.”
“Aunt…” Isabelle looked up to the once-peerless Duchess now jaded by her emotions. Somehow, it was reminding her of her own mother.
“You defeated Sagittarius?” Svetlana said, surprised upon hearing this news. “I would never have imagine considering how powerful I’ve seen Time Warriors to be.”
“Aunt is famous for that reason. She fought Sagittarius’ previous host when she was in her twenties,” Isabelle supplemented.
“Haha, I still consider it a stroke of luck. Not because of circumstances of the battlefield, but because Sagittarius’ host was not used to her own strength. I almost had the current Sagittarius—if you read the news—but it was interrupted at the very end,” the Duchess stated.
“Oh, I know the current Sagittarius. She was one of my students,” Svetlana said, surprised that she almost defeated Natsu too.
“Sagittarius herself is strong, but she is powerless if her host has not unlocked most of her powers… in all honesty, I had never loathed Sagittarius before. It was simply duty that compelled me to do what I did,” Duchess Caroline stated. “Sagittarius herself… is a good person.”
“Well, in the short time I spent with her she did seemed like one. But overall I don’t know what to think of Descendants, especially considering how Virgo has used her power.”
“Virgo’s powers seems to be in a completely different scale. She was a passing storm for sure,” Caroline claimed.
“Oh, Caroline, that was where you were.”
An unfamiliar person walked up to Duchess Caroline and the two. Her hair was longer than any of them in the group, a bright chestnut colour that gleamed with the Engine lights. Her dress was a glistening silver, long and elegant. The Silver Wanderer, Duchess Frederica of Edinburgh, made her appearance, and it wasn’t a surprise that the two Duchesses drew some stares due to their overwhelming beauty and elegance. It was now a trinity of Duchesses, with Svetlana quite obviously losing to the contest of fame.
“Frederica, I did not know you were back. It is a pleasant surprise. Might I introduce you to my old friend’s daughters? Please meet Svetlana Astakhov Alicia, and her younger sister, Isabelle Alicia.”
Isabelle gave a curtsy. “Good evening, Lady Frederica, you look simply gorgeous.”
“Good evening, Lady Frederica, as my younger sister said you do indeed look gorgeous.” Svetlana said as she curtsy.
“Thank you.” Frederica smiled and gave a curtsy as well. “I hear you’re the talk of the town now, being the new Duchess and all.”
“I am? Why would I be, though? It’s not like I’ve done anything,” Svetlana said as she was slightly confused why people would talk about her.
“You have done one thing, claim a powerful title at this age. You and that Aleksander Fane had made great strides.”
“I see. Aleksander? That name sounds familiar to me,” Svetlana said giving it some thought.
“He was accepted as a Duke right before you I hear?” Duchess Frederica seemed a little dumbfounded.
“It’s just that his name sounded familiar to me I feel like I heard it somewhere before.”
The Duchess shrugged. “Well, you two fought together against Virgo… even I was there.”
“Oh sorry about that. I can’t recall everyone’s name. So many things happened. It’s hard to recall everyone.”
“It is fine. Things happens. I would advise you to keep names in mind however… some take offense these days.”
“Understood. But enough about me. How goes your day, Lady Frederica?”
“I… ahaha, I got back from a long expedition, and then found my letter last night,” the Duchess said, feeling a little ashamed. “It was a long trip, and then the Queen decides to spring this up on me.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of expedition did you take, Lady Frederica?” Svetlana asked curiously.
“I made a trip to the Faerie Realm, with a bright young researcher who was full of curiosity. It was a bit bumpy, but we made it back.”
“That seems really interesting. I had always been curious about the Faerie Realm, considering I’m part Faerie.”
“Ah, I see,” Frederica smiled wryly. “We met a lot of your kind, and they were not necessarily kind.” She laughed at her own little joke. “I had to stop my little researcher from going amok.”
“I would imagined from what I read about the Faeries in the Faerie Realm. Though, I suppose I myself displayed a prankster type of personality.”
“Really?” The Duchess looked at her in marvel. “That is interesting.”
“Yep. I suppose I have to control those urges better now.”
“Oh you would, they know you by your horns… albeit you hid them now apparently.”
“Yeah. I didn’t know how to hide them at first once I got here, but thanks to my maid I was finally able to hide them.”
“I am going to assume she bought those invisible rings.”
“Yes, that’s what she did, considering I didn’t know where to buy them.”
Isabelle sighed internally. Her sister’s lack of a choice of words was glaringly clear. Thankfully, the Duchesses were nice people.
“Are they not rare?” Duchess Caroline asked. “I hear you may hardly find them anymore.”
“Really? I suppose she’s good at finding these kind of the thing.”
“You must have a skilled maid then,” Caroline stated, and Isabelle gave a proud nod, even if she didn’t actively claimed to have commissioned her.
“Yeah, I’m proud of her and plus it’s fun being around her.”
“That is good. It is hard to find good Personal Maids these days,” Duchess Caroline said.
“Yeah so I hope I always have her around.”
“You will if you do not have her as a vanguard in combat all the time,” Duchess Frederica stated.
“Well, she already told me that she’s more of a supporter, so I’d rather keep her at that role.”
“Now this is a rare sight to see this early in the evening.”
Svetlana saw a tall man approach them. His hair was long and grey, reaching down to his back, and his deep blue suit, with a white shirt, lace cravat, a deep blue vest, trousers, and jet black boots, giving an air of coldness that betrayed his cheerful demeanour. His eyes were like sapphire gems. There was a scar around his right cheek, but it didn’t seemed to make him any less handsome.
“Prince Leopold, I thought you would be at the conference?” Duchess Frederica asked with wide eyes. She gave a bow after clearing her mind immediately.
“I came back as soon as I had heard the news. I wish my mother would let me know of her plans more often.” The Prince laughed. Now the group drew even more attention than before as the Prince joined them.
At the sight of the Prince, Isabelle turned extremely nervous, at the same time blushed and looked down. How could such a handsome man exist on earth despite that scar? This was the first thought she had.
Svetlana became even more nervous upon hearing he was the Prince. Noticing that almost everyone’s eyes was upon the group caused Svetlana to grow even more nervous that she didn’t know what to say.
Thawing out of the surprise, Duchess Caroline calmly began, “Prince, allow me to introduce you to Duchess Svetlana Astakhov Alicia and Isabelle Alicia. They had just recently regained their nobility.”
“G-Good evening, Prince,” Isabelle curtsied but she was fidgeting.
“G-G-Good e-e-evening, P-Prince,” Svetlana said as she clumsily curtsy.
Duchess Frederica gave the pair a curious glance while Caroline snickered, finding it natural. She expected Svetlana to do better with the nervously but she was proven wrong rather fast.
“Good evening, good evening!” The Prince grasped the hand of Svetlana and shook it happily. “My mother seemed to be stressing so much about the Duchess of Norfolk’s case, I am so glad that it is resolved.”
Isabelle looked frozen. What a lucky girl her sister was tonight.
“T-T-Thank y-you f-for y-your c-concern.” Svetlana could barely manage her words again, continuing to stutter nervously, having never expected that the Prince would hold her hands.
“I also hear you did a fine job against Virgo. I commend your hard work. Of course, the same goes for you too, Miss Frederica,” Prince Leopold said, with his seemingly-innocent smile.
“While I would like to thank you, Prince, for your commendation, I had failed in the end and fell.” The Duchess looked full of despair. Somewhere inside, she was also blaming herself for being careless, especially the loss of Duke Cavendish Bentinck, Elizabeth, and the rest whom died.
“I-I-It w-wasn’t m-much, e-everyone d-did t-their b-best,” Svetlana’s face turned slightly red as she never had a man hold her hand for this long before.
Leopold finally released her hand when another figure walked up to them. The crowd were simply watching them now.
“Good evening. I see you are quite popular now,” Princess Louise greeted. Coupled with her flowing long blonde hair, porcelain face, prominent figure that could surpass a sculpture considered a masterpiece, and her shimmering pink and black dress—she was quite literally the most charming jewel next to her mother in the country. “How does it feel to have your nobility secured?” she asked Svetlana.
“I-I’m not c-certain really, considering I n-never h-held a noble position b-before,” Svetlana said, a litte bit calmer now.
Princess Louise tilted her head quizzically and raised her eyebrows. Was she always like this? She thought back to the last time they spoke, Svetlana was icy cold and full of evil powers inside.
“Are you well, Duchess Alicia? I remember you being much more composed last I met you.” She almost mentioned “aside from that kiss on the helicopter” but that would simply be inappropriate in the public, almost.
“I’m f-fine, just not u-used to s-so much attention,” Svetlana said as she could still feel everyone’s eyes upon them.
“You will get used to it over time,” the Royal Princess replied. “That said, the news states that Virgo’s presence could not be confirmed anymore in this world, so for now the situations will slowly go back to normal.”
“That is… good news?” Prince Leopold looked bewildered. The state of emergency would cease, but it didn’t exactly make him feel at peace.
“It is not, except the governments of the mundanes,” Duchess Caroline stated. “Those people do not understand the extent of the threat of the monsters. They blame us for everything instead.”
“R...Right,” Frederica said, being the only one knowing about the Queen’s identity.
Prince Leopold remade his smile. “As long as the peace has returned I do not see what is wrong with it. We would just have to double our search behind the scenes.”
“Indeed, I shall join the search soon myself,” Duchess Caroline stated with conviction.
“I would suggest that you rest easy for a bit more,” the Prince suggested.
“How could—yes, I understand…” the Duchess almost raised her voice in defiance but controlled herself. “Please excuse me.”
“I apologise, Miss Caroline…” the Prince said, but the lady had already walked away, giving a terse bow.
Seeing the old friend leave, Frederica could only looked as Caroline wallowed in despair and feelings of revenge. “Give her some time. I can sort of sympathise.”
“Aunt…” Isabelle knit her brows. “Please excuse me as well.” She followed after the Duchess and left the group.
Princess Louise shrugged. “So, what do you plan to do tonight, dear brother?”
“Now that I am here… I might as well have some fun.”
“You up for a challenge?”
“Oh, you bet I am, dear sister.”
“With that said, it is settled.” The Prince took the hand of Svetlana yet again, and kissed the back of it. “May I have the honour of dancing with you, Duchess Svetlana?”
Svetlana’s face bright red and she grew even more nervous, suddenly feeling eyes full of jealousy towards staring her down like needles on her back.
“Y-Yes,” Svetlana consented as she felt she had no way to escape this situation any longer.
“Take a deep breath now,” the Duchess whispered to Svetlana with a smile.
“Hm?” the Prince tilted his his head with curiosity and gave an even more innocent expression, looking up to the Duchess. “Pardon?”
“Do not worry, Prince. This is reserved for us ladies to speak for,” the Duchess replied.
“I see.” The Prince stood up, giving a nod. “Shall we go?”
“Yes.” Svetlana could feel her heart racing faster than usual, having never felt like this before.
“Let us have a good time. Shall we, now?” The Prince happily dragged Svetlana into the dance floor.
With the Prince noted, the musicians started playing with more vigour and joy, finding a pair interesting rather than heart-warming. Svetlana’s figure was not only the target of admiration, but also envy. Especially the latter. While Duchess Frederica was reminding herself of the good days, she hardly noted the air of jealousy afloat from the younger girls across the halls. The Prince gave a bow, and Svetlana gave a rather robotic bow, which was not exactly the correct conduct. The eyes of the women behind her seemed to intensify but the Prince seemed to only chuckle at this.
“It is an honour to dance with you tonight, Lady Alicia. Are you new to this?” Leopold enquired, placing a hand gently on her waist and deftly clasping her other hand.
“Y-Yes. I-It’s my f-first time to a b-ball like this.” Her face was an even brighter shade of red now that the Prince placed his hand on her waist.
“Place your free hand on my shoulder, and follow my lead. You do not need to worry about the little details. Just have fun! That is why we are here.”
Svetlana simply nodded as she followed the Prince’s lead. As of this moment she felt as if she was in a different world.
The two started with the harmonic tone of the music, when it actually started however, Svetlana was a little late to react, but the Prince led her along with the flow. It was clumsy on her part, the clacking noises of the heels resounded more than the music for some reason and it seemed like this was something she would remember for a long time to come. At the same time, she felt stupid for thinking about these small things more than the handsome man who held her.
She awoke from her reverie as her foot dug against the Prince’s feet. Leopold only gave a pained chuckle while Svetlana apologised quietly. She could imagine the jealous nobles wanting to burn her to shreds due to this.
He almost wanted to have her pivot, but seeing as it wouldn’t work out, he didn’t wanted to ask. However, it didn’t stop the bold Prince of Britain regardless, as his habits won over him. His love for his “fun” was strong.
“Say, shall we take it up a notch?”
“Take it up a notch?” Svetlana asked confused.
“Like this!” With a sway Svetlana was released, Svetlana could barely take in what happened and spun without even knowing how. What was this sorcery? Before she knew it, she was back to his hands where it felt as though she had made a grand return to a sanctuary.
“I would like to thank you for the honour of letting me dance with you.”
“I-I-It w-was my pleasure.”
The chorus finally ended and the Prince gave her a charming smile, while appearing to be very joyous as she was escorted out of the centre of attention. To Svetlana, it felt as though she had just exited the epicentre of the storm.
Svetlana found herself tumbling out of the crowd that surrounded the Prince eventually, as many women wanted to be his next dancing partner.
It ended all too fast somehow. Like a dream, it just felt as though she woke up now.
“What just happened?” Svetlana told herself as she walked away from the dance floor with ungraceful steps. She had to pinch herself on the cheek to really check to see if she really wasn’t dreaming or hallucinating.
“Youth, I suppose?” the Duchess Frederica guessed from behind her.
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never experienced anything like this before, and it just happened so suddenly.”
“I know how that feels. It is almost always like this for every maidens.”
“I don’t believe every maiden's first dance partner is a Prince either, which is still hard for me to believe.”
“Everyone meets their own Prince at some point in life. Some early, some late.”
“I suppose so. But this sure does feel hard to believe, especially for one who just became a noble.”
“You simply happened to have an explosive start. It will either be a great rise or a great fall. Well, you watch your toes now, but I would still wager that it was worth it if I was you.”
“Well I would hope it is a great rise then. I can’t afford a great fall at all. Though, yeah, I’ll have to watch where I step.”
“Plenty of time to learn or catch up if you ever feel the motivation. I am going to excuse myself as well now. Have fun,” the Duchess said, waving as she left.
I’d rather just rest after an experience like that right now. Svetlana thought as she was still processing what happened.
The music again rang strongly and fiercely, and the newly appointed Duchess that was Svetlana was instinctively looking back to the dance floor—her senses and attention still glued to that special place against her will. Princess Louise danced with a man in perfect tune. They were a perfect pair. They were seemingly made for each other, as if from a fairy tale, it was such an epic scene to her eyes now. This was how it seemed, anyway. She performed her steps flawlessly as she dabbled across the floor. She eventually performed the pivot perfectly too—more than one times. When the show ended, she was gracefully held under the arm of the gentleman and her beautiful blonde hair dangled. She was like the fairy itself that danced merrily. It was truly wondrous.
Maybe one day I’ll be to dance like that, Svetlana thought as she watched the danced till the end. After they were done Svetlana decided to look for Isabelle.
She held Svetlana’s hand, and it seemed like she was just ahead of her older sister as if she was pulling her ahead. Wearing a sleeveless ball gown of a darker shade of blue, a very frilly dress with some compartments of black layers included; it was a fashionable dress.
Meanwhile, Svetlana fancied a dark crimson red satin ball gown for the big event. It was littered with black linings, had long sleeves, and seemed to mimic a classical fashion of Marie Antoinette’s old dresses, a style that would live on for a long time.
They were a good hour late after the event had started. Svetlana underestimated the amount of time they would need to prepare, and thus the crisis took place. Right now, Svetlana was equipped with proper makeup as befitting of a noble, her Personal Maid Nancy made full sure of it. However, the quality of work required took the time.
In this ballroom, they felt like very insignificant existences when they actually entered the halls. The level of grandeur was beyond their wildest imaginations. This was the type of “fun” the nobles loved, and this was the type of “fun” Svetlana met for the first time—a large gathering of magicians, who were otherwise the majority of the aristocrats of the country. It was not strange for the Royal Council to take special measures to make sure no mundanes would ever make it to such occasions when the Magic World would have a celebration.
“This is much bigger than I had imagine,” Svetlana said as she kept looking around, amazed. There were no limit to the amount of people wherever she looked. “I think I’m getting more nervous than I should.”
“I am not surprised.”
Isabelle seemed quite amazed herself. She could keep her composure over many things recently. While she was not the best to do many things—such as managing or giving directions to servants as a child—when Svetlana met her first, they both came a long way after the passing of their mother. One’s real, and one’s foster, but they shared the sentiment to an extent.
“This place sure is amazing,” Svetlana said as she still felt completely out of place.
“Remember the few dance lessons you took, okay?” Isabelle reminded. This was the third time she said so today. “Keep those etiquettes I taught you in mind.” Also the third time. “And make sure to keep your conducts straight… as much as you can.” The fourth time.
“Yes, I know. I’ll do my best, but I sorta doubt anyone would invite me to dance since no one has ever really taken an interest in me before. By the way where are we to sit?”
“Sit? Why?” Isabelle questioned. “I am sure someone will take an interest, sister. You have to look more confident about yourself, you have everything going for you—even the dress.”
“We’ll see. Though, are we to just stand around? I would imagine we have a table of some sorts to take a sit.”
“If you would wish to rest for some tea or coffee, have dinner, or want to change… do not any of that so early. We are to stand and immerse in conversations… I hope. We just got in.”
“I see. I would think that would be difficult for us unless you have met other nobles already without my knowing. Since I sure haven’t aside from your Aunt.”
Speaking of the devil, Duchess Caroline was already found, as Isabelle faced her way instead of pointing for her sister. “Oh, our—ahem, my Aunt is here already it seems.”
“Well I think I would be more comfortable around her than being approached by complete strangers at the start. So let’s be with her.”
“I agree.”
The two approached Duchess Caroline Cavendish Bentinck. Isabelle curtsied, Svetlana did it almost a moment later as if she forgot to. Isabelle was sure that she did, sighing in her mind. The Duchess only gave a bow in return to the two.
“Good evening, Aunt,” Isabelle greeted.
“Good evening, sweetheart.” the Duchess greeted in return with a radiant smile. Her dress was a wonder to look at, a flowing long silk of light-blue with intricate pattern of red blended perfectly. Her jewelry was abundant and it added an exotic feature to herself.
“Good evening, Lady Cavendish Bentinck.” Svetlana greeted.
“Good evening, Alicia, how had you been faring?” the Duchess asked. “All going well with the new life?”
Svetlana was certainly not used to being called by the new surname. “I suppose things have been moving along better. There are, of course, many things I still must get used to,” she said as she tried to be careful how she worded things. “How have you been Lady, Cavendish Bentinck, these past few days?”
“I had been fine, thank you. I only wish that my daughter would have woken up by now, it is unfortunate that she fought for the world, but is now unable to participate in the celebration of peace,” the Duchess said, a distant look as she gave the ballroom a stare. “And my husband…” she muttered under her breath, and it was drowned by the music.
“I’m really sorry. I really I wish I could have done a better a job back then, but we underestimated her…” Svetlana said as she couldn’t think of anything else to tell her about that situation.
“It is alright. I did not expected Virgo to be… so strong, either. I fought and defeated Sagittarius myself, I thought hundreds of people together would win this.”
“Aunt…” Isabelle looked up to the once-peerless Duchess now jaded by her emotions. Somehow, it was reminding her of her own mother.
“You defeated Sagittarius?” Svetlana said, surprised upon hearing this news. “I would never have imagine considering how powerful I’ve seen Time Warriors to be.”
“Aunt is famous for that reason. She fought Sagittarius’ previous host when she was in her twenties,” Isabelle supplemented.
“Haha, I still consider it a stroke of luck. Not because of circumstances of the battlefield, but because Sagittarius’ host was not used to her own strength. I almost had the current Sagittarius—if you read the news—but it was interrupted at the very end,” the Duchess stated.
“Oh, I know the current Sagittarius. She was one of my students,” Svetlana said, surprised that she almost defeated Natsu too.
“Sagittarius herself is strong, but she is powerless if her host has not unlocked most of her powers… in all honesty, I had never loathed Sagittarius before. It was simply duty that compelled me to do what I did,” Duchess Caroline stated. “Sagittarius herself… is a good person.”
“Well, in the short time I spent with her she did seemed like one. But overall I don’t know what to think of Descendants, especially considering how Virgo has used her power.”
“Virgo’s powers seems to be in a completely different scale. She was a passing storm for sure,” Caroline claimed.
“Oh, Caroline, that was where you were.”
An unfamiliar person walked up to Duchess Caroline and the two. Her hair was longer than any of them in the group, a bright chestnut colour that gleamed with the Engine lights. Her dress was a glistening silver, long and elegant. The Silver Wanderer, Duchess Frederica of Edinburgh, made her appearance, and it wasn’t a surprise that the two Duchesses drew some stares due to their overwhelming beauty and elegance. It was now a trinity of Duchesses, with Svetlana quite obviously losing to the contest of fame.
“Frederica, I did not know you were back. It is a pleasant surprise. Might I introduce you to my old friend’s daughters? Please meet Svetlana Astakhov Alicia, and her younger sister, Isabelle Alicia.”
Isabelle gave a curtsy. “Good evening, Lady Frederica, you look simply gorgeous.”
“Good evening, Lady Frederica, as my younger sister said you do indeed look gorgeous.” Svetlana said as she curtsy.
“Thank you.” Frederica smiled and gave a curtsy as well. “I hear you’re the talk of the town now, being the new Duchess and all.”
“I am? Why would I be, though? It’s not like I’ve done anything,” Svetlana said as she was slightly confused why people would talk about her.
“You have done one thing, claim a powerful title at this age. You and that Aleksander Fane had made great strides.”
“I see. Aleksander? That name sounds familiar to me,” Svetlana said giving it some thought.
“He was accepted as a Duke right before you I hear?” Duchess Frederica seemed a little dumbfounded.
“It’s just that his name sounded familiar to me I feel like I heard it somewhere before.”
The Duchess shrugged. “Well, you two fought together against Virgo… even I was there.”
“Oh sorry about that. I can’t recall everyone’s name. So many things happened. It’s hard to recall everyone.”
“It is fine. Things happens. I would advise you to keep names in mind however… some take offense these days.”
“Understood. But enough about me. How goes your day, Lady Frederica?”
“I… ahaha, I got back from a long expedition, and then found my letter last night,” the Duchess said, feeling a little ashamed. “It was a long trip, and then the Queen decides to spring this up on me.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of expedition did you take, Lady Frederica?” Svetlana asked curiously.
“I made a trip to the Faerie Realm, with a bright young researcher who was full of curiosity. It was a bit bumpy, but we made it back.”
“That seems really interesting. I had always been curious about the Faerie Realm, considering I’m part Faerie.”
“Ah, I see,” Frederica smiled wryly. “We met a lot of your kind, and they were not necessarily kind.” She laughed at her own little joke. “I had to stop my little researcher from going amok.”
“I would imagined from what I read about the Faeries in the Faerie Realm. Though, I suppose I myself displayed a prankster type of personality.”
“Really?” The Duchess looked at her in marvel. “That is interesting.”
“Yep. I suppose I have to control those urges better now.”
“Oh you would, they know you by your horns… albeit you hid them now apparently.”
“Yeah. I didn’t know how to hide them at first once I got here, but thanks to my maid I was finally able to hide them.”
“I am going to assume she bought those invisible rings.”
“Yes, that’s what she did, considering I didn’t know where to buy them.”
Isabelle sighed internally. Her sister’s lack of a choice of words was glaringly clear. Thankfully, the Duchesses were nice people.
“Are they not rare?” Duchess Caroline asked. “I hear you may hardly find them anymore.”
“Really? I suppose she’s good at finding these kind of the thing.”
“You must have a skilled maid then,” Caroline stated, and Isabelle gave a proud nod, even if she didn’t actively claimed to have commissioned her.
“Yeah, I’m proud of her and plus it’s fun being around her.”
“That is good. It is hard to find good Personal Maids these days,” Duchess Caroline said.
“Yeah so I hope I always have her around.”
“You will if you do not have her as a vanguard in combat all the time,” Duchess Frederica stated.
“Well, she already told me that she’s more of a supporter, so I’d rather keep her at that role.”
“Now this is a rare sight to see this early in the evening.”
Svetlana saw a tall man approach them. His hair was long and grey, reaching down to his back, and his deep blue suit, with a white shirt, lace cravat, a deep blue vest, trousers, and jet black boots, giving an air of coldness that betrayed his cheerful demeanour. His eyes were like sapphire gems. There was a scar around his right cheek, but it didn’t seemed to make him any less handsome.
“Prince Leopold, I thought you would be at the conference?” Duchess Frederica asked with wide eyes. She gave a bow after clearing her mind immediately.
“I came back as soon as I had heard the news. I wish my mother would let me know of her plans more often.” The Prince laughed. Now the group drew even more attention than before as the Prince joined them.
At the sight of the Prince, Isabelle turned extremely nervous, at the same time blushed and looked down. How could such a handsome man exist on earth despite that scar? This was the first thought she had.
Svetlana became even more nervous upon hearing he was the Prince. Noticing that almost everyone’s eyes was upon the group caused Svetlana to grow even more nervous that she didn’t know what to say.
Thawing out of the surprise, Duchess Caroline calmly began, “Prince, allow me to introduce you to Duchess Svetlana Astakhov Alicia and Isabelle Alicia. They had just recently regained their nobility.”
“G-Good evening, Prince,” Isabelle curtsied but she was fidgeting.
“G-G-Good e-e-evening, P-Prince,” Svetlana said as she clumsily curtsy.
Duchess Frederica gave the pair a curious glance while Caroline snickered, finding it natural. She expected Svetlana to do better with the nervously but she was proven wrong rather fast.
“Good evening, good evening!” The Prince grasped the hand of Svetlana and shook it happily. “My mother seemed to be stressing so much about the Duchess of Norfolk’s case, I am so glad that it is resolved.”
Isabelle looked frozen. What a lucky girl her sister was tonight.
“T-T-Thank y-you f-for y-your c-concern.” Svetlana could barely manage her words again, continuing to stutter nervously, having never expected that the Prince would hold her hands.
“I also hear you did a fine job against Virgo. I commend your hard work. Of course, the same goes for you too, Miss Frederica,” Prince Leopold said, with his seemingly-innocent smile.
“While I would like to thank you, Prince, for your commendation, I had failed in the end and fell.” The Duchess looked full of despair. Somewhere inside, she was also blaming herself for being careless, especially the loss of Duke Cavendish Bentinck, Elizabeth, and the rest whom died.
“I-I-It w-wasn’t m-much, e-everyone d-did t-their b-best,” Svetlana’s face turned slightly red as she never had a man hold her hand for this long before.
Leopold finally released her hand when another figure walked up to them. The crowd were simply watching them now.
“Good evening. I see you are quite popular now,” Princess Louise greeted. Coupled with her flowing long blonde hair, porcelain face, prominent figure that could surpass a sculpture considered a masterpiece, and her shimmering pink and black dress—she was quite literally the most charming jewel next to her mother in the country. “How does it feel to have your nobility secured?” she asked Svetlana.
“I-I’m not c-certain really, considering I n-never h-held a noble position b-before,” Svetlana said, a litte bit calmer now.
Princess Louise tilted her head quizzically and raised her eyebrows. Was she always like this? She thought back to the last time they spoke, Svetlana was icy cold and full of evil powers inside.
“Are you well, Duchess Alicia? I remember you being much more composed last I met you.” She almost mentioned “aside from that kiss on the helicopter” but that would simply be inappropriate in the public, almost.
“I’m f-fine, just not u-used to s-so much attention,” Svetlana said as she could still feel everyone’s eyes upon them.
“You will get used to it over time,” the Royal Princess replied. “That said, the news states that Virgo’s presence could not be confirmed anymore in this world, so for now the situations will slowly go back to normal.”
“That is… good news?” Prince Leopold looked bewildered. The state of emergency would cease, but it didn’t exactly make him feel at peace.
“It is not, except the governments of the mundanes,” Duchess Caroline stated. “Those people do not understand the extent of the threat of the monsters. They blame us for everything instead.”
“R...Right,” Frederica said, being the only one knowing about the Queen’s identity.
Prince Leopold remade his smile. “As long as the peace has returned I do not see what is wrong with it. We would just have to double our search behind the scenes.”
“Indeed, I shall join the search soon myself,” Duchess Caroline stated with conviction.
“I would suggest that you rest easy for a bit more,” the Prince suggested.
“How could—yes, I understand…” the Duchess almost raised her voice in defiance but controlled herself. “Please excuse me.”
“I apologise, Miss Caroline…” the Prince said, but the lady had already walked away, giving a terse bow.
Seeing the old friend leave, Frederica could only looked as Caroline wallowed in despair and feelings of revenge. “Give her some time. I can sort of sympathise.”
“Aunt…” Isabelle knit her brows. “Please excuse me as well.” She followed after the Duchess and left the group.
Princess Louise shrugged. “So, what do you plan to do tonight, dear brother?”
“Now that I am here… I might as well have some fun.”
“You up for a challenge?”
“Oh, you bet I am, dear sister.”
“With that said, it is settled.” The Prince took the hand of Svetlana yet again, and kissed the back of it. “May I have the honour of dancing with you, Duchess Svetlana?”
Svetlana’s face bright red and she grew even more nervous, suddenly feeling eyes full of jealousy towards staring her down like needles on her back.
“Y-Yes,” Svetlana consented as she felt she had no way to escape this situation any longer.
“Take a deep breath now,” the Duchess whispered to Svetlana with a smile.
“Hm?” the Prince tilted his his head with curiosity and gave an even more innocent expression, looking up to the Duchess. “Pardon?”
“Do not worry, Prince. This is reserved for us ladies to speak for,” the Duchess replied.
“I see.” The Prince stood up, giving a nod. “Shall we go?”
“Yes.” Svetlana could feel her heart racing faster than usual, having never felt like this before.
“Let us have a good time. Shall we, now?” The Prince happily dragged Svetlana into the dance floor.
With the Prince noted, the musicians started playing with more vigour and joy, finding a pair interesting rather than heart-warming. Svetlana’s figure was not only the target of admiration, but also envy. Especially the latter. While Duchess Frederica was reminding herself of the good days, she hardly noted the air of jealousy afloat from the younger girls across the halls. The Prince gave a bow, and Svetlana gave a rather robotic bow, which was not exactly the correct conduct. The eyes of the women behind her seemed to intensify but the Prince seemed to only chuckle at this.
“It is an honour to dance with you tonight, Lady Alicia. Are you new to this?” Leopold enquired, placing a hand gently on her waist and deftly clasping her other hand.
“Y-Yes. I-It’s my f-first time to a b-ball like this.” Her face was an even brighter shade of red now that the Prince placed his hand on her waist.
“Place your free hand on my shoulder, and follow my lead. You do not need to worry about the little details. Just have fun! That is why we are here.”
Svetlana simply nodded as she followed the Prince’s lead. As of this moment she felt as if she was in a different world.
The two started with the harmonic tone of the music, when it actually started however, Svetlana was a little late to react, but the Prince led her along with the flow. It was clumsy on her part, the clacking noises of the heels resounded more than the music for some reason and it seemed like this was something she would remember for a long time to come. At the same time, she felt stupid for thinking about these small things more than the handsome man who held her.
She awoke from her reverie as her foot dug against the Prince’s feet. Leopold only gave a pained chuckle while Svetlana apologised quietly. She could imagine the jealous nobles wanting to burn her to shreds due to this.
He almost wanted to have her pivot, but seeing as it wouldn’t work out, he didn’t wanted to ask. However, it didn’t stop the bold Prince of Britain regardless, as his habits won over him. His love for his “fun” was strong.
“Say, shall we take it up a notch?”
“Take it up a notch?” Svetlana asked confused.
“Like this!” With a sway Svetlana was released, Svetlana could barely take in what happened and spun without even knowing how. What was this sorcery? Before she knew it, she was back to his hands where it felt as though she had made a grand return to a sanctuary.
“I would like to thank you for the honour of letting me dance with you.”
“I-I-It w-was my pleasure.”
The chorus finally ended and the Prince gave her a charming smile, while appearing to be very joyous as she was escorted out of the centre of attention. To Svetlana, it felt as though she had just exited the epicentre of the storm.
Svetlana found herself tumbling out of the crowd that surrounded the Prince eventually, as many women wanted to be his next dancing partner.
It ended all too fast somehow. Like a dream, it just felt as though she woke up now.
“What just happened?” Svetlana told herself as she walked away from the dance floor with ungraceful steps. She had to pinch herself on the cheek to really check to see if she really wasn’t dreaming or hallucinating.
“Youth, I suppose?” the Duchess Frederica guessed from behind her.
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never experienced anything like this before, and it just happened so suddenly.”
“I know how that feels. It is almost always like this for every maidens.”
“I don’t believe every maiden's first dance partner is a Prince either, which is still hard for me to believe.”
“Everyone meets their own Prince at some point in life. Some early, some late.”
“I suppose so. But this sure does feel hard to believe, especially for one who just became a noble.”
“You simply happened to have an explosive start. It will either be a great rise or a great fall. Well, you watch your toes now, but I would still wager that it was worth it if I was you.”
“Well I would hope it is a great rise then. I can’t afford a great fall at all. Though, yeah, I’ll have to watch where I step.”
“Plenty of time to learn or catch up if you ever feel the motivation. I am going to excuse myself as well now. Have fun,” the Duchess said, waving as she left.
I’d rather just rest after an experience like that right now. Svetlana thought as she was still processing what happened.
The music again rang strongly and fiercely, and the newly appointed Duchess that was Svetlana was instinctively looking back to the dance floor—her senses and attention still glued to that special place against her will. Princess Louise danced with a man in perfect tune. They were a perfect pair. They were seemingly made for each other, as if from a fairy tale, it was such an epic scene to her eyes now. This was how it seemed, anyway. She performed her steps flawlessly as she dabbled across the floor. She eventually performed the pivot perfectly too—more than one times. When the show ended, she was gracefully held under the arm of the gentleman and her beautiful blonde hair dangled. She was like the fairy itself that danced merrily. It was truly wondrous.
Maybe one day I’ll be to dance like that, Svetlana thought as she watched the danced till the end. After they were done Svetlana decided to look for Isabelle.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Aleksander had eaten enough food to be polite, but he’d even struggled to eat that much. He politely kept his silence, and waited for Constance to finish his food as he drank from the sweet wine that was at the table.
When Constance finished his meal, he got up and found Aleksander waiting for him. Having known the friend for years now, it seemed like he was not feeling well, and Constance knew it from a glance.
The old friend approached Aleksander and asked, “What is the long face about? Something happened?”
“I made a complete and utter fool of myself. I did the one thing you never do, Constance. I did the ONLY thing you never do… How is your night going through?” He tried to change the subject somewhat obviously.
“I felt as though I almost had her, but I suppose this just was not my night,” Constance said, still smiling, just not as confidently as usual. “There is always next time.”
“A Princess is pretty difficult to woo, even for someone of our status…” Aleksander pointed out. “I’m sure you did fine, and I’ve come to realise that it’s foolish to expect to win over a maiden’s heart right away. Constance? I know that we’ve been hitting on pretty girls since we were old enough to know girls didn’t have weird diseases… but… what do you think you’d do if you wanted to go further than that? I don’t mean just taking her home to do whatever, I mean like… if you wanted to seriously court someone… how do you do that? It would seem you can’t just ask them about it directly… “
“Of course you cannot ask about them directly. You should know after all this time that ladies are delicate people, and simply gunning for the flag and falling into the landmines would never do you good. When we went for the girls from our younger ages, we ignored those things. They also playfully took us up, but had they not stopped playing in tune with us—just as we did? There are only a few who understands, and some who cares not… Mayhap you landed yourself on a landmine? I believe you may have experienced such a thing?”
“I just… there’s gotta be more to life than this, you know? Did I really struggle to get my name cleared just to hit on noblewomen? I sort of feel like I wanna toss that all to the wind and just focus on doing something meaningful. Is it weird that I feel that way?”
Constance shrugged. “You already know how all of this works. What is new after all this time, friend? You cannot possibly use the same old approach at women if you are serious… yes? I would recommend focusing on something else. Not women, not noblewomen, not anyone, maybe the Magister thing. You asked Lady Violet to be your date… right? What would do about it?”
“Mmmh… I’ve already invited her, so I cannot very well back out of it. I’ll go as friends with her, and try to make sure that we both have fun. Maybe she can find time to help me catch up with the studies I missed, so I can do better on the Magister test. Plenty of time for women after I’ve graduated, I guess.”
“Good luck. The trick is to move on.”
“Yeah, I understand you, brother. I did manage to invite Sir Aberdeen to watch a horse race with me in a couple of days where one of my horses is the front runner. If Thunderhoof makes a good showing of it, maybe he’ll invest in the business. That’s probably the next big thing I’ve got going on until our ball.”
“Sir Aberdeen… that sounds nice. He is quite famous around those businesses.”
“It’ll be a good name to have for an investor, and hopefully it’ll allow me to gain more standing in society if I get into his good graces, since he’s already established. Now what do you say we get back out there and get our groove on, as the Americans I met would say?” Alek asked with a smile that’s a little less pained than it was before.
“I shall leave you to it, unfortunately I have some promises to keep despite failing of the main course.” Constance gave an apologetic smile. “Some other time, definitely.”
“Ahh, I see. I wish you luck then, and may the odds be ever in your favour.” He waved at Constance as he leaved, standing from the table he’d been seated at and looking around the dance floor for a likely looking candidate to hopefully alleviate some of his bad mood with good company and a pleasant dance.
As he looked around at the noblewomen in attendance, he saw Louise dancing with someone he didn’t recognise at first, and felt a pang of jealousy and longing at seeing his crush dancing so elegantly with another man.
What I wouldn’t give to be in his shoes right now… Alek thought to himself, before resolving that there was no reason he should shy away from at least asking for a dance, if she’d care to.
With this in mind, he angled his way through the crowd to get closer, and bided his time for the current song to be over so he might ask for the next dance. He noticed as he got closer that there were more than a few noblemen entranced by the pair’s performance, and some of them showed the exertion of having just danced, and almost seemed to be sticking around in hopes of a second dance.
There was another pair that seemed to carry the essence of the atmosphere and the mood of the passionate dances on the floor. Alek noticed Constance and a beauty in his arms aside from Louise and her partner. Based on what little bits of conversation he heard from the peers around him, this partner of his old friend was in fact the Royal Princess Beatrice.
Alek was too polite to stop and stare, but he definitely took note of the grace and composure that Constance and Beatrice displayed, noting that his own style wasn’t quite on their level yet. Alek wondered how exactly he planned to keep up with Louise then, if he was given pause by the otherworldly performance one of his best friends was giving.
Lost in watching his friend, he soon realised that Louise’s pair was done. The noble men approached her to be the next. Alek good-naturedly slipped between the advancing ranks of noblemen with an agility borne of years of dedication, and a strong desire to be the one she picked, somehow making it all the way up to the front of the crowd, and trying to catch her eye with a smile that did little to give away his nerves.
The Princess gave a glance at all the potential partners, rather lost due to the sheer amount of participants when a familiar face popped up in the gallery. Someone who felt as though he would always be a thorn in the path, somehow. It was a mysterious thought, but she chanced to entertain him once more, turning to him in expectation. She noted how he used his agility to come up to her. What a desperate man. She was sure that some was cursing Aleksander in their hearts about now.
Alek’s smile got just a tiny bit more genuine as he stepped forth from the crowd, and took her hand gently. “Do you have a preference for style of dance, M’lady? Or might I surprise you?”
“I shall leave that to you,” Princess Louise answered. It felt as though he spoke to her only yesterday. The same cold tone was almost nostalgic, even if she was smiling. This was indeed Louise. At least have some manners for the Princess… but what am I to expect?
He nodded once, bowing his head in respect to her. “Then I shall do my best, Miss Louise.” He walked her onto the floor once more, still holding her hand in his, before stopping as close to the center as he could get without interrupting other dancers.
Louise gave a graceful curtsy befitting of a Princess before they started while the men stared, rather confused at how it was being done. One was extremely formal while the other wasn’t.
With steady hands, Aleksander rested an arm across her back, slightly above the waist as the hand he was using to hold hers was raised into the air just above her head, his breathing smooth for the moment and his smile easy as he looked into her eyes.
“Does the tango suit M’lady?” He asked, before smoothly transitioning into the first steps of it—after Louise gave a small nod and a smile—the arm around her back holding her close to his body as he lead fluidly, but with a firm presence that communicated clearly what steps he was about to take.
(GM’s Comment: I honestly don’t know about Tango and Alek, especially because he had no Music Ability—which conferred dancing—but he could apparently do a dance that didn’t even exist in that era. Granted, he could’ve known of it from the modern world, but being actually able to do it when the Ability section of his profile betrayed him? I don’t even. I just let him do whatever at this point. Even the player thinks it may not have been the best idea because of Louise’s dress.)
Aleksander is pleased that so far it seemed to be going fairly well, and rather than think on it overmuch, he decided to simply put his heart and soul into it, harnessing the still raw emotions of his still-smouldering crush on Louise and spelling out these feelings with each step he took as part of the dance, matching the music as much as he could, he practically cradled the Princess in his arms. He knew she was an able dancer, but wanted her to be able to simply focus on the fluent motion of the dance and the feel of his body while he worried about steering them away from other dancing couples whenever they got too close.
“You’re every bit as good at this as I thought you would be.. how come you never said you liked to dance?” he asked in a low voice meant only for her ears, not actually expecting much of an answer.
“So, why do you want to learn the Lost Form I know?”
The ignorance to the small talk was clear. Princess Louise had not forgotten, nor had she forgiven Aleksander for his past insolences. No Princess with a sane mind would, Louise believed. She was dancing him for the sake of what little business she felt that she had with him.
“Do you remember the Void beast I fought? I wanted to be able to fight back against it if I ever find it again, I want to be strong enough to repay the favour done to me by Bjornaer. And I want to be strong enough to help others… “ he said in a near whisper, enjoying their current closeness.
“I do not think you would ever meet the Void Monster or the Bjornaer magus again. So long as you are not taken to the Void Realm. I do not have any such intention, either.”
“It would not be untruthful to say that I admired the ferocity with which you fought in that last fight either, and would like to harness that self-same power to my own ends.” Aleksander admited, as he lead her through a brisk spin, catching her with perfect precision at the completion of it.
“Truthfully, I do not want to,” Louise blatantly stated. “This is the type of power that may eat alive a man who is full of insecurities.”
“You consider me to be one-such type of man?” he enquired, more curious than offended. “I suppose that I appreciate the consideration nonetheless. I was rather certain you didn’t care…” He smiled wickedly, teasing.
“Before moving the conversation further, allow me to congratulate you for winning back your rightful title.”
“Thank you, it is good to be back under her Majesty’s purvey. If I’d known the price of it, I may have been less eager, but what’s done is done. All that remains is to make the best of what I have.”
He delicately leaned her back, supporting her body well past the point she would have fallen without his strong arms, holding her off the ground before bringing her back upright with a smile.
“The price?”
“I was rather enjoying being your guard you know. I made more than my share of mistakes I’m sure, but it was still far more exciting and enjoyable than anything I’d done before. And it was the chance of a lifetime to get to know a Princess, as I’m sure you’re well-aware. Perhaps the pressure of that fact got to me.”
“I shall give my thanks for your efforts.” Not really, you were the most detestable guard I had met. “However, the feeling was not mutual, as you may have known. Perchance you are better suited to serve this… boring country.” I do not understand why he would want to be with me more after the rejection, either. Men are at times strange people.
“Perhaps. Regardless, this matter is neither here nor there, and I’m sorry for spoiling the pleasantness of this evening with such droll conversation.” He smiled. “I have been enjoying the ball quite a lot, your family has done an excellent job in preparing this event.”
“I somewhat loathe this… perhaps I can tell you since you know a bit of my nature. We never really succeeded, the celebration of peace is a farce, even if it is a good event.”
“Perhaps, but it is important in times of distress for the peasantry to see their nobles dancing and laughing, and making merry. No matter how dire the matters may actually be, as long as we craft the illusion of tranquility, the commonwealth may live in peace, and without fear. It does feel somewhat… wrong to be part of such a sham however, you are correct.”
“My smile is good enough for the masses, do you not agree?” Louise mockingly questioned. What peasantry do you even speak of?
“It is a rare treat to behold, to be sure, and certainly worth treasuring.” he replied, partially in jest, partially truthfully.
“But are you content serving a country like this?”
“I have few people who are precious to me, and I suppose that if I had to choose, I’d rather protect them. As long as they live in this country, I will do my best to protect them, and by extent the rest of the country. But I would be hard-pressed to say that I have any special affection for our country just because.”
“A dull answer befitting of you, as expected. Do you not want to break out of that cage that makes you so… ordinary?”
“Hmmph, of course I do. What kind of soft-willed weakling would I be, if I was content with where I was and had no desire to grow, to become something more?”
“I hear you aim to become a Magic Magister. Is this true?”
“It is. Something about meeting Aramus inspired me to strive to become even stronger. Though I hope my career as Magister doesn’t end the same as his did,” Alek responded.
Alek rotated around Louise to be behind her, arm now around her abdomen as he lead from behind in the style known as “doble frente,” arms maintaining a firm grip, but not so hard as to be uncomfortable, and making sure to keep them above the waist.
“He had never lost his title.”
“I meant when he was arrested by the Queen. I would not enjoy being in his shoes, not at all…” Alek admitted. “Is it truly so strange that I believe I have the potential to become one of the leading mages in our country?”
“What if I told you to do something as daring as him that may endanger everything you worked for?” This dark smile was something he had not seen before, something that reached even deeper than Virgo in some way, but not in every way.
“I would be… supremely interested. Truth be told, I’ve no serious plans for after graduation except for the family business of thoroughbreds, and doing as the Council asks, so I’m definitely interested in hearing what you have to say…”
“You are not very ambitious, are you?”
“And what do you mean by that? Did I say I wanted to simply do the Council’s bidding? I want to get out into the world and do things, meet new people. Being in America for a mere few weeks showed me a whole other side of things besides just this stale existence we have here.” Alek refuted her conclusion. “If you’re offering a chance for me to do so, I’d jump at it.”
“Mister Fane… even if you say these word. I sense a particular substance amiss, but very well, if you so wish to impress—try and win the position of a Magister. We may speak again about the Void after you do so.”
“I’d planned to do so anyway. I suppose it’d be too much to ask for you to root for me in the upcoming trials I’m sure to face?” Alek asked.
“Rooting are for the insecure. Why would you need it if you were confident?”
“It was rhetorical, I doubt you have enough of an interest in something like that to do that for anyone participating. Speaking of which, have you thought about entering?”
“Enter?”
“To become a Magister?” Alek was confused as to what about his question was confusing to her.
The Princess chuckled for the first time. “I do not need a title like that. I am a Princess.”
“Hmm… I suppose you wouldn’t, would you? Sometimes I wonder what the futures hides from our eyes, but I know that no matter what may come, I will prevail. I sincerely hope that you do as well, for what that is worth, M’lady.” He smiled slightly, with a bit of a steely glint to his eye.
You are still too dull.
Alek released her into another twirl, raising their connected hands to the pinnacle of their range of motion to spin her like a top, before bring her back in, putting them face-to-face with maybe half a foot between them, before Alek released her hand, and dropped into a short bow to her, offering her a flower from seemingly nowhere. “Your prowess on the dance floor is unmatched, Princess Louise. I was actually holding a ball this next week, and would be honored if you would consider attending it.
What is this…? And you are—I give up on this man. “Thank you. If you send a letter, I shall consider attending.” The Princess accepted the rose, for the sake of pleasantry perhaps, before walking out of the dancing floor. The men started to approach her yet again.
He smiled and backed away to let another young suitor test his mettle with the Princess, and looked over to see if Constance was still dancing with Beatrice. Seeing that he was chatting with the Princess on the other side of the hall, he smiled, happy for his friend’s success thus far, and returned to enjoying the festivities, rubbing elbows and socializing with many of the other well-to-do socialites in attendance, taking particular attentions to seek out and secure a dance with the young Viscountess Gracie he’d met earlier, remembering how pleasant her demeanour had been, and reckoning that Katya would come get him when she was ready to leave.
“What a farce, all of it,” Princess Louise commented, the rose melting with darkness under her palm. “Soon, mother, soon all of it shall change.” With these words she returned from her brief respite to resume dancing with the nobles yet again. The challenge was yet to be over. As expected of my brother, he is quite the challenge.
“Soon indeed,” the Princess’ new dancing partner said a minute or so later, having now decided, they entered the fray that was the dance floor and the crowd was following the happenstance with even more attention now. For Prince Albert and his daughter were dancing, they were extremely good at it and even the spotlight fell onto them.
Alek happened to notice them dancing, and fell into somewhat of a trance, content to watch in silence for now, as he admired the grace and form of the dancers. “I’ve got quite a lot of practice ahead of me if I wish to be that good… no wonder she barely batted an eyelash when I was dancing with her…” He somehow felt emasculated at being so thoroughly shown up.
Aleksander continued to search for a dance, feeling like one last dance before he’d retired to chat with friends some more. Spotting a fairly high-level beauty before him, Alek approached, all smiled.
“Good evening Miss, did you lose your escort?” Aleksander asked with some amount of legitimate concern for her well-being.
Svetlana was surprised, since she wasn’t expecting someone would approach her. “I suppose you can say that,” Svetlana said as she took a closer look at the man and noticed who it was. In truth, it was the other way around regarding the escort.
“If you’d like, I could keep you company for some small while… I was looking for another dance partner and I don’t think that I’ve met you before, so it’s only proper for me to introduce myself properly… My name is Aleksander Fane, Duke of her Majesty’s court. Might I ask for yours, my fair lady?”
“I’m Duchess Alicia.” Svetlana simply said as she didn’t wanted to reveal her full name to him, since last she saw him, she still in her original appearance and wasn’t sure if he would cause a commotion.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Alicia, Have you been enjoying the ball so far?” He asked politely with a small smile.
“I guess I have,” Svetlana said giving an odd laugh. Why did I run into him from all people?!
“I’m happy to hear it… that’s what these are for, anyways. To eat, drink, talk to interesting people and be merry.” He smiled kindly. “Might I ask for your hand in a dance, Miss Alicia?”
“I don’t mind, but I’m not a very good dancer,” Svetlana said, still recalling her dance with the Prince.
“You will be fine, I assure you that you are in capable hands, Duchess.” He held out his hand, offering to take hers, and lead her onto the dance floor. “I saw you dancing with the Prince earlier, and you did a wonderful job of it.”
“Please don’t remind me, that happened so suddenly.” She took Aleksander’s hand, wondering how she even got to dance the Prince herself.
“Ahh… apologies. Dancing with him is quite the accomplishment for many of the ladies here right now, I was actually worried about how I’d fare against his experience…” Alek smiled a little, showing slight nerves. “But I digress, let us dance.” He lead her out onto the floor, making sure to be close enough to Constance for him to possibly take note of Alek’s new partner. “So are you a new Duchess? I cannot say that I’d heard of your name before this evening.” Alek queried, leading Alicia into a relatively simple dance, mindful of her skills and not wanting to push her too hard.
Constance was no longer dancing with the Princess, but Aleksander did not notice that the Princess was dancing with someone else relatively close to them regardless. Of course, the eyes of the people fell upon them.
“Yes, I only just became one. So I didn’t have much time to prepare for today,” Svetlana said as she followed his lead.
“I must say, you did an excellent job of preparing on such short notice then. Might I have the name of your tailor? I was looking to have a dress commissioned and your tailor did an excellent job on yours…” he complimented her indirectly as they danced at a sedate pace, taking time to enjoy the conversation.
“I wouldn't know. My maid handled it all for me. Aside from being a new Duchess. I am new to this country as well,” Svetlana said as she tried watching her step.
“She has a good eye then, since your dress suits you nearly perfectly… If you’d like, perhaps I could show you around sometime? I know of a few interesting sights to see around town.”
“I would have to see. I currently have a busy schedule considering all that I must learn and the things I must prepare for my family,” Svetlana said. She stepped on Alek’s foot by accident and quickly apologised.
“If you were looking to learn etiquette, I could help you with that, having received quite a lot of training myself.”
“Well, my sister already set up an entire schedule for me. I believe she would get angry if I do not follow it.”
“Alright, no worries.” Alek smiled. “Would you like some help trying to find your escort? I can at least walk with you while you do so, to make sure that you find her okay?”
“It’s fine. I believe we are safe here are we not? I should be fine.”
“It would be impolite of me to leave you here by yourself, and quite unseemly. Regardless of there being no danger here, I still wish to accompany you to watch out for your best interests…”
“Please don’t mind me. I’m certain your own company would be worried,” Svetlana said, thinking he may have come with someone, just as she did with Isabelle, and just as many of the pairs came, one an escort for a man and the other a lady.
“I… I don’t think so. I did come here with a lady, but she’s spending time with her friends right now… I… may have done something foolish to irritate her, I fear.”
“Then shouldn’t you apologise? I believe that should be your top priority would it not?”
“Yes… but I fear I did something very rude, and I don’t believe making a scene by apologising profusely would be something she would want…” Alek sighed, “I suppose I could try once more, if you really think it would help.” Alek’s smile took on a tinge of sadness. “Do you have plans to attend the Academy at all?”
“I would believe it would help somewhat at least. There’s no need for me to go, I have already finished all my studies. I would wish you luck with her,” Svetlana said as she gave a curtsy. “Thank you for the dance I suppose. I’ll see around.”
“I suppose I will. Would you be opposed to me calling on you in the future to take tea and discuss further? I am also fairly new to being a Duke, and perhaps we could learn together…” He asked, wanting to be able to spend more time with this mysterious woman, but sort of getting the feeling that she was being vague for some reason.
“Well you can contact my place I suppose, if any free time occurs I would let you know,” Svetlana said, smiling.
“I don’t believe that I have your last name, so who would I address the letter too?”
“Alicia. I’m certain that would be enough,” Svetlana simply said.
“If you say so.” Alek shrugged, and ended the dance. “I guess that was… fun?” Alekwalked away to go find Katya again.
Svetlana was a bit relieved that he didn’t ask too much about her. But still found it hard to believe he could just offer to teach someone he just met.
“I have to wonder if he wanted something else.” She wondered, and then recalled that she had to find Isabelle.
When Constance finished his meal, he got up and found Aleksander waiting for him. Having known the friend for years now, it seemed like he was not feeling well, and Constance knew it from a glance.
The old friend approached Aleksander and asked, “What is the long face about? Something happened?”
“I made a complete and utter fool of myself. I did the one thing you never do, Constance. I did the ONLY thing you never do… How is your night going through?” He tried to change the subject somewhat obviously.
“I felt as though I almost had her, but I suppose this just was not my night,” Constance said, still smiling, just not as confidently as usual. “There is always next time.”
“A Princess is pretty difficult to woo, even for someone of our status…” Aleksander pointed out. “I’m sure you did fine, and I’ve come to realise that it’s foolish to expect to win over a maiden’s heart right away. Constance? I know that we’ve been hitting on pretty girls since we were old enough to know girls didn’t have weird diseases… but… what do you think you’d do if you wanted to go further than that? I don’t mean just taking her home to do whatever, I mean like… if you wanted to seriously court someone… how do you do that? It would seem you can’t just ask them about it directly… “
“Of course you cannot ask about them directly. You should know after all this time that ladies are delicate people, and simply gunning for the flag and falling into the landmines would never do you good. When we went for the girls from our younger ages, we ignored those things. They also playfully took us up, but had they not stopped playing in tune with us—just as we did? There are only a few who understands, and some who cares not… Mayhap you landed yourself on a landmine? I believe you may have experienced such a thing?”
“I just… there’s gotta be more to life than this, you know? Did I really struggle to get my name cleared just to hit on noblewomen? I sort of feel like I wanna toss that all to the wind and just focus on doing something meaningful. Is it weird that I feel that way?”
Constance shrugged. “You already know how all of this works. What is new after all this time, friend? You cannot possibly use the same old approach at women if you are serious… yes? I would recommend focusing on something else. Not women, not noblewomen, not anyone, maybe the Magister thing. You asked Lady Violet to be your date… right? What would do about it?”
“Mmmh… I’ve already invited her, so I cannot very well back out of it. I’ll go as friends with her, and try to make sure that we both have fun. Maybe she can find time to help me catch up with the studies I missed, so I can do better on the Magister test. Plenty of time for women after I’ve graduated, I guess.”
“Good luck. The trick is to move on.”
“Yeah, I understand you, brother. I did manage to invite Sir Aberdeen to watch a horse race with me in a couple of days where one of my horses is the front runner. If Thunderhoof makes a good showing of it, maybe he’ll invest in the business. That’s probably the next big thing I’ve got going on until our ball.”
“Sir Aberdeen… that sounds nice. He is quite famous around those businesses.”
“It’ll be a good name to have for an investor, and hopefully it’ll allow me to gain more standing in society if I get into his good graces, since he’s already established. Now what do you say we get back out there and get our groove on, as the Americans I met would say?” Alek asked with a smile that’s a little less pained than it was before.
“I shall leave you to it, unfortunately I have some promises to keep despite failing of the main course.” Constance gave an apologetic smile. “Some other time, definitely.”
“Ahh, I see. I wish you luck then, and may the odds be ever in your favour.” He waved at Constance as he leaved, standing from the table he’d been seated at and looking around the dance floor for a likely looking candidate to hopefully alleviate some of his bad mood with good company and a pleasant dance.
As he looked around at the noblewomen in attendance, he saw Louise dancing with someone he didn’t recognise at first, and felt a pang of jealousy and longing at seeing his crush dancing so elegantly with another man.
What I wouldn’t give to be in his shoes right now… Alek thought to himself, before resolving that there was no reason he should shy away from at least asking for a dance, if she’d care to.
With this in mind, he angled his way through the crowd to get closer, and bided his time for the current song to be over so he might ask for the next dance. He noticed as he got closer that there were more than a few noblemen entranced by the pair’s performance, and some of them showed the exertion of having just danced, and almost seemed to be sticking around in hopes of a second dance.
There was another pair that seemed to carry the essence of the atmosphere and the mood of the passionate dances on the floor. Alek noticed Constance and a beauty in his arms aside from Louise and her partner. Based on what little bits of conversation he heard from the peers around him, this partner of his old friend was in fact the Royal Princess Beatrice.
Alek was too polite to stop and stare, but he definitely took note of the grace and composure that Constance and Beatrice displayed, noting that his own style wasn’t quite on their level yet. Alek wondered how exactly he planned to keep up with Louise then, if he was given pause by the otherworldly performance one of his best friends was giving.
Lost in watching his friend, he soon realised that Louise’s pair was done. The noble men approached her to be the next. Alek good-naturedly slipped between the advancing ranks of noblemen with an agility borne of years of dedication, and a strong desire to be the one she picked, somehow making it all the way up to the front of the crowd, and trying to catch her eye with a smile that did little to give away his nerves.
The Princess gave a glance at all the potential partners, rather lost due to the sheer amount of participants when a familiar face popped up in the gallery. Someone who felt as though he would always be a thorn in the path, somehow. It was a mysterious thought, but she chanced to entertain him once more, turning to him in expectation. She noted how he used his agility to come up to her. What a desperate man. She was sure that some was cursing Aleksander in their hearts about now.
Alek’s smile got just a tiny bit more genuine as he stepped forth from the crowd, and took her hand gently. “Do you have a preference for style of dance, M’lady? Or might I surprise you?”
“I shall leave that to you,” Princess Louise answered. It felt as though he spoke to her only yesterday. The same cold tone was almost nostalgic, even if she was smiling. This was indeed Louise. At least have some manners for the Princess… but what am I to expect?
He nodded once, bowing his head in respect to her. “Then I shall do my best, Miss Louise.” He walked her onto the floor once more, still holding her hand in his, before stopping as close to the center as he could get without interrupting other dancers.
Louise gave a graceful curtsy befitting of a Princess before they started while the men stared, rather confused at how it was being done. One was extremely formal while the other wasn’t.
With steady hands, Aleksander rested an arm across her back, slightly above the waist as the hand he was using to hold hers was raised into the air just above her head, his breathing smooth for the moment and his smile easy as he looked into her eyes.
“Does the tango suit M’lady?” He asked, before smoothly transitioning into the first steps of it—after Louise gave a small nod and a smile—the arm around her back holding her close to his body as he lead fluidly, but with a firm presence that communicated clearly what steps he was about to take.
(GM’s Comment: I honestly don’t know about Tango and Alek, especially because he had no Music Ability—which conferred dancing—but he could apparently do a dance that didn’t even exist in that era. Granted, he could’ve known of it from the modern world, but being actually able to do it when the Ability section of his profile betrayed him? I don’t even. I just let him do whatever at this point. Even the player thinks it may not have been the best idea because of Louise’s dress.)
Aleksander is pleased that so far it seemed to be going fairly well, and rather than think on it overmuch, he decided to simply put his heart and soul into it, harnessing the still raw emotions of his still-smouldering crush on Louise and spelling out these feelings with each step he took as part of the dance, matching the music as much as he could, he practically cradled the Princess in his arms. He knew she was an able dancer, but wanted her to be able to simply focus on the fluent motion of the dance and the feel of his body while he worried about steering them away from other dancing couples whenever they got too close.
“You’re every bit as good at this as I thought you would be.. how come you never said you liked to dance?” he asked in a low voice meant only for her ears, not actually expecting much of an answer.
“So, why do you want to learn the Lost Form I know?”
The ignorance to the small talk was clear. Princess Louise had not forgotten, nor had she forgiven Aleksander for his past insolences. No Princess with a sane mind would, Louise believed. She was dancing him for the sake of what little business she felt that she had with him.
“Do you remember the Void beast I fought? I wanted to be able to fight back against it if I ever find it again, I want to be strong enough to repay the favour done to me by Bjornaer. And I want to be strong enough to help others… “ he said in a near whisper, enjoying their current closeness.
“I do not think you would ever meet the Void Monster or the Bjornaer magus again. So long as you are not taken to the Void Realm. I do not have any such intention, either.”
“It would not be untruthful to say that I admired the ferocity with which you fought in that last fight either, and would like to harness that self-same power to my own ends.” Aleksander admited, as he lead her through a brisk spin, catching her with perfect precision at the completion of it.
“Truthfully, I do not want to,” Louise blatantly stated. “This is the type of power that may eat alive a man who is full of insecurities.”
“You consider me to be one-such type of man?” he enquired, more curious than offended. “I suppose that I appreciate the consideration nonetheless. I was rather certain you didn’t care…” He smiled wickedly, teasing.
“Before moving the conversation further, allow me to congratulate you for winning back your rightful title.”
“Thank you, it is good to be back under her Majesty’s purvey. If I’d known the price of it, I may have been less eager, but what’s done is done. All that remains is to make the best of what I have.”
He delicately leaned her back, supporting her body well past the point she would have fallen without his strong arms, holding her off the ground before bringing her back upright with a smile.
“The price?”
“I was rather enjoying being your guard you know. I made more than my share of mistakes I’m sure, but it was still far more exciting and enjoyable than anything I’d done before. And it was the chance of a lifetime to get to know a Princess, as I’m sure you’re well-aware. Perhaps the pressure of that fact got to me.”
“I shall give my thanks for your efforts.” Not really, you were the most detestable guard I had met. “However, the feeling was not mutual, as you may have known. Perchance you are better suited to serve this… boring country.” I do not understand why he would want to be with me more after the rejection, either. Men are at times strange people.
“Perhaps. Regardless, this matter is neither here nor there, and I’m sorry for spoiling the pleasantness of this evening with such droll conversation.” He smiled. “I have been enjoying the ball quite a lot, your family has done an excellent job in preparing this event.”
“I somewhat loathe this… perhaps I can tell you since you know a bit of my nature. We never really succeeded, the celebration of peace is a farce, even if it is a good event.”
“Perhaps, but it is important in times of distress for the peasantry to see their nobles dancing and laughing, and making merry. No matter how dire the matters may actually be, as long as we craft the illusion of tranquility, the commonwealth may live in peace, and without fear. It does feel somewhat… wrong to be part of such a sham however, you are correct.”
“My smile is good enough for the masses, do you not agree?” Louise mockingly questioned. What peasantry do you even speak of?
“It is a rare treat to behold, to be sure, and certainly worth treasuring.” he replied, partially in jest, partially truthfully.
“But are you content serving a country like this?”
“I have few people who are precious to me, and I suppose that if I had to choose, I’d rather protect them. As long as they live in this country, I will do my best to protect them, and by extent the rest of the country. But I would be hard-pressed to say that I have any special affection for our country just because.”
“A dull answer befitting of you, as expected. Do you not want to break out of that cage that makes you so… ordinary?”
“Hmmph, of course I do. What kind of soft-willed weakling would I be, if I was content with where I was and had no desire to grow, to become something more?”
“I hear you aim to become a Magic Magister. Is this true?”
“It is. Something about meeting Aramus inspired me to strive to become even stronger. Though I hope my career as Magister doesn’t end the same as his did,” Alek responded.
Alek rotated around Louise to be behind her, arm now around her abdomen as he lead from behind in the style known as “doble frente,” arms maintaining a firm grip, but not so hard as to be uncomfortable, and making sure to keep them above the waist.
“He had never lost his title.”
“I meant when he was arrested by the Queen. I would not enjoy being in his shoes, not at all…” Alek admitted. “Is it truly so strange that I believe I have the potential to become one of the leading mages in our country?”
“What if I told you to do something as daring as him that may endanger everything you worked for?” This dark smile was something he had not seen before, something that reached even deeper than Virgo in some way, but not in every way.
“I would be… supremely interested. Truth be told, I’ve no serious plans for after graduation except for the family business of thoroughbreds, and doing as the Council asks, so I’m definitely interested in hearing what you have to say…”
“You are not very ambitious, are you?”
“And what do you mean by that? Did I say I wanted to simply do the Council’s bidding? I want to get out into the world and do things, meet new people. Being in America for a mere few weeks showed me a whole other side of things besides just this stale existence we have here.” Alek refuted her conclusion. “If you’re offering a chance for me to do so, I’d jump at it.”
“Mister Fane… even if you say these word. I sense a particular substance amiss, but very well, if you so wish to impress—try and win the position of a Magister. We may speak again about the Void after you do so.”
“I’d planned to do so anyway. I suppose it’d be too much to ask for you to root for me in the upcoming trials I’m sure to face?” Alek asked.
“Rooting are for the insecure. Why would you need it if you were confident?”
“It was rhetorical, I doubt you have enough of an interest in something like that to do that for anyone participating. Speaking of which, have you thought about entering?”
“Enter?”
“To become a Magister?” Alek was confused as to what about his question was confusing to her.
The Princess chuckled for the first time. “I do not need a title like that. I am a Princess.”
“Hmm… I suppose you wouldn’t, would you? Sometimes I wonder what the futures hides from our eyes, but I know that no matter what may come, I will prevail. I sincerely hope that you do as well, for what that is worth, M’lady.” He smiled slightly, with a bit of a steely glint to his eye.
You are still too dull.
Alek released her into another twirl, raising their connected hands to the pinnacle of their range of motion to spin her like a top, before bring her back in, putting them face-to-face with maybe half a foot between them, before Alek released her hand, and dropped into a short bow to her, offering her a flower from seemingly nowhere. “Your prowess on the dance floor is unmatched, Princess Louise. I was actually holding a ball this next week, and would be honored if you would consider attending it.
What is this…? And you are—I give up on this man. “Thank you. If you send a letter, I shall consider attending.” The Princess accepted the rose, for the sake of pleasantry perhaps, before walking out of the dancing floor. The men started to approach her yet again.
He smiled and backed away to let another young suitor test his mettle with the Princess, and looked over to see if Constance was still dancing with Beatrice. Seeing that he was chatting with the Princess on the other side of the hall, he smiled, happy for his friend’s success thus far, and returned to enjoying the festivities, rubbing elbows and socializing with many of the other well-to-do socialites in attendance, taking particular attentions to seek out and secure a dance with the young Viscountess Gracie he’d met earlier, remembering how pleasant her demeanour had been, and reckoning that Katya would come get him when she was ready to leave.
“What a farce, all of it,” Princess Louise commented, the rose melting with darkness under her palm. “Soon, mother, soon all of it shall change.” With these words she returned from her brief respite to resume dancing with the nobles yet again. The challenge was yet to be over. As expected of my brother, he is quite the challenge.
“Soon indeed,” the Princess’ new dancing partner said a minute or so later, having now decided, they entered the fray that was the dance floor and the crowd was following the happenstance with even more attention now. For Prince Albert and his daughter were dancing, they were extremely good at it and even the spotlight fell onto them.
Alek happened to notice them dancing, and fell into somewhat of a trance, content to watch in silence for now, as he admired the grace and form of the dancers. “I’ve got quite a lot of practice ahead of me if I wish to be that good… no wonder she barely batted an eyelash when I was dancing with her…” He somehow felt emasculated at being so thoroughly shown up.
Aleksander continued to search for a dance, feeling like one last dance before he’d retired to chat with friends some more. Spotting a fairly high-level beauty before him, Alek approached, all smiled.
“Good evening Miss, did you lose your escort?” Aleksander asked with some amount of legitimate concern for her well-being.
Svetlana was surprised, since she wasn’t expecting someone would approach her. “I suppose you can say that,” Svetlana said as she took a closer look at the man and noticed who it was. In truth, it was the other way around regarding the escort.
“If you’d like, I could keep you company for some small while… I was looking for another dance partner and I don’t think that I’ve met you before, so it’s only proper for me to introduce myself properly… My name is Aleksander Fane, Duke of her Majesty’s court. Might I ask for yours, my fair lady?”
“I’m Duchess Alicia.” Svetlana simply said as she didn’t wanted to reveal her full name to him, since last she saw him, she still in her original appearance and wasn’t sure if he would cause a commotion.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Alicia, Have you been enjoying the ball so far?” He asked politely with a small smile.
“I guess I have,” Svetlana said giving an odd laugh. Why did I run into him from all people?!
“I’m happy to hear it… that’s what these are for, anyways. To eat, drink, talk to interesting people and be merry.” He smiled kindly. “Might I ask for your hand in a dance, Miss Alicia?”
“I don’t mind, but I’m not a very good dancer,” Svetlana said, still recalling her dance with the Prince.
“You will be fine, I assure you that you are in capable hands, Duchess.” He held out his hand, offering to take hers, and lead her onto the dance floor. “I saw you dancing with the Prince earlier, and you did a wonderful job of it.”
“Please don’t remind me, that happened so suddenly.” She took Aleksander’s hand, wondering how she even got to dance the Prince herself.
“Ahh… apologies. Dancing with him is quite the accomplishment for many of the ladies here right now, I was actually worried about how I’d fare against his experience…” Alek smiled a little, showing slight nerves. “But I digress, let us dance.” He lead her out onto the floor, making sure to be close enough to Constance for him to possibly take note of Alek’s new partner. “So are you a new Duchess? I cannot say that I’d heard of your name before this evening.” Alek queried, leading Alicia into a relatively simple dance, mindful of her skills and not wanting to push her too hard.
Constance was no longer dancing with the Princess, but Aleksander did not notice that the Princess was dancing with someone else relatively close to them regardless. Of course, the eyes of the people fell upon them.
“Yes, I only just became one. So I didn’t have much time to prepare for today,” Svetlana said as she followed his lead.
“I must say, you did an excellent job of preparing on such short notice then. Might I have the name of your tailor? I was looking to have a dress commissioned and your tailor did an excellent job on yours…” he complimented her indirectly as they danced at a sedate pace, taking time to enjoy the conversation.
“I wouldn't know. My maid handled it all for me. Aside from being a new Duchess. I am new to this country as well,” Svetlana said as she tried watching her step.
“She has a good eye then, since your dress suits you nearly perfectly… If you’d like, perhaps I could show you around sometime? I know of a few interesting sights to see around town.”
“I would have to see. I currently have a busy schedule considering all that I must learn and the things I must prepare for my family,” Svetlana said. She stepped on Alek’s foot by accident and quickly apologised.
“If you were looking to learn etiquette, I could help you with that, having received quite a lot of training myself.”
“Well, my sister already set up an entire schedule for me. I believe she would get angry if I do not follow it.”
“Alright, no worries.” Alek smiled. “Would you like some help trying to find your escort? I can at least walk with you while you do so, to make sure that you find her okay?”
“It’s fine. I believe we are safe here are we not? I should be fine.”
“It would be impolite of me to leave you here by yourself, and quite unseemly. Regardless of there being no danger here, I still wish to accompany you to watch out for your best interests…”
“Please don’t mind me. I’m certain your own company would be worried,” Svetlana said, thinking he may have come with someone, just as she did with Isabelle, and just as many of the pairs came, one an escort for a man and the other a lady.
“I… I don’t think so. I did come here with a lady, but she’s spending time with her friends right now… I… may have done something foolish to irritate her, I fear.”
“Then shouldn’t you apologise? I believe that should be your top priority would it not?”
“Yes… but I fear I did something very rude, and I don’t believe making a scene by apologising profusely would be something she would want…” Alek sighed, “I suppose I could try once more, if you really think it would help.” Alek’s smile took on a tinge of sadness. “Do you have plans to attend the Academy at all?”
“I would believe it would help somewhat at least. There’s no need for me to go, I have already finished all my studies. I would wish you luck with her,” Svetlana said as she gave a curtsy. “Thank you for the dance I suppose. I’ll see around.”
“I suppose I will. Would you be opposed to me calling on you in the future to take tea and discuss further? I am also fairly new to being a Duke, and perhaps we could learn together…” He asked, wanting to be able to spend more time with this mysterious woman, but sort of getting the feeling that she was being vague for some reason.
“Well you can contact my place I suppose, if any free time occurs I would let you know,” Svetlana said, smiling.
“I don’t believe that I have your last name, so who would I address the letter too?”
“Alicia. I’m certain that would be enough,” Svetlana simply said.
“If you say so.” Alek shrugged, and ended the dance. “I guess that was… fun?” Alekwalked away to go find Katya again.
Svetlana was a bit relieved that he didn’t ask too much about her. But still found it hard to believe he could just offer to teach someone he just met.
“I have to wonder if he wanted something else.” She wondered, and then recalled that she had to find Isabelle.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
“So, what is your impression of the ball at the end?” Duchess Frederica asked Svetlana.
An hour had passed and they witnessed many more dances. Princess Louise had danced non-stop so far, including Prince Leopold. Princess Beatrice was only seen once, which was apparently a rarity according to the Duchess. Eventually, Svetlana found Isabelle and Frederica only to learn that Duchess Caroline had retired for the evening. When Svetlana considered leaving herself, Isabelle refused.
Now she knew why, Isabelle’s eyes were sparkling, watching the Prince engage in a passionate waltz with a Viscountess. It seemed like Isabelle wanted to stay till the very end.
“Oh well, guess it can’t be helped,” Svetlana said while looking at Isabelle. “Shouldn’t you go up there and see if you can ask him to dance.?” Svetlana said jokingly at Isabelle.
“I am too unworthy, my skills are nothing like the other noblewomen here,” Isabelle calmly said, shaking her head. She wasn’t tall enough, but she didn’t wanted to admit that she was a child to her sister, who’d use her own words as a weapon for the exchange of jests to come.
“So is simply watching just enough? I was sorta dragged out there without knowing what I was doing, you know?”
“I cannot tell if you were lucky or not with that… someone almost tore their handkerchief off just looking at you. I think it was nice, though. Enough for me to tear mine off, too.”
“Don’t remind me… I felt like people were putting nails through my back.” Svetlana said feeling shivers just remembering that feeling.
“You need some dancing lessons… like, really, sister.”
“How was I supposed to know the Prince of this country was gonna be the first one to ask me to dance? I was sorta hoping no one would ask me out…”
“Why would you want that?”
“Because I still have much to learn, okay? As if I wanted to embarrass myself out there,” Svetlana said as she began twirling her fingers.
“Thank God you did embarrassed yourself, huh?” Isabelle smirked. Everyone knows you liked it, hehe. I think this will be a good motivational factor to finally learn too…
“I think my mind was more blank than anything when he took me out there. I couldn’t think straight all.”
“Huhuhu, the sign of you growing up is all,” the Duchess commented.
“The sign of… growing up?” Isabelle questioned with wide eyes.
“Yes, I am sure that this is just the beginning of a tale you would speak to your future peers one day,” the Duchess replied, nodding to herself.
“Well, I just hope it doesn’t create problems instead,” Svetlana added.
“A maiden’s life is full of problems, dear.”
“I just hope it’s not one of rumours.”
“I can confirm that it is no rumour, Duchess Alicia.” Just like that, the Queen of the country was behind Svetlana.
Svetlana turned around, and to her surprise the Queen was standing right behind her.
“G-Good e-evening, Your Majesty,” Svetlana said, before giving a curtsy. It was a little too sudden to find the ruler of the Magic World like this.
“Good evening, Your Majesty.” Frederica gave a graceful curtsy and smiled. “Gorgeous as ever.”
The Queen wore shimmering gold jewelry and a bright red dress. Her earrings, rings, necklace and all the gold items were known to be vis that made her fearsome in the Magic World, for she could literally burn anyone with them without coming close to expending all of said vis.
“G-Good evening, Y-Your Majesty.” Isabelle found herself extremely nervous. It wasn’t exactly her first time meeting Queen Victoria, yet she was still mesmerised by the appearance of such a person.
“How do you do tonight?” The Queen gave a radiant smile. If one were to compare with distance, they would say the Queen’s smile surpassed Leopold’s by a few light years. “I had spent the last few hours getting prepared. I wish some of the makeup sessions could be skipped. They do not really seem to make a difference…”
“O-Oh my, Your Majesty… pardon me but that would be being like my sister. I-I think all of it really helps to make you look stunning,” Isabelle remarked.
“Oh, but I am very confident about my natural charm!” The Queen chuckled.
“Perhaps a bit too confident, Your Majesty. Makeups seems to be worth only a fraction of your time,” Frederica joked.
“We are doing fine. How is Your Majesty?” Svetlana enquired.
“I am doing well, thank you. Seeing a battle resolved and now celebrating the return of peace heartens me. I hope you are doing well as a Duchess now, there are many duties and we expect you to work hard,” the Queen stated. “If there are some confusions, however, feel free to let me know.”
“Well, if I may ask then, what are my duties? I don’t believe I have heard of them before,” Svetlana asked, laughing.
“To protect the country, of course,” Duchess Frederica said in a matter-of-factly fashion. It came as a surprise to her that Svetlana didn’t think it was obvious.
“I suppose that is a given. There are other duties that involves keeping up appearances, answering to the calls, defeating enemy Descendants, fighting for the country against Japan… I suppose the list goes on,” Queen Victoria responded.
“I see,” Svetlana simply said as she did not feel comfortable about the last part the Queen mentioned.
“That is harsh, but I suppose we need all the help we can get for the war,” Frederica added.
“We lost another Descendant to Japan after all, it would only get worse from here on,” the Queen stated.
“I see. Well, I would say Virgo should be our biggest worry as of now,” Svetlana stated.
“There are more than Virgo on our plate,” Frederica mentioned. “Countess, Pisces, Gemini, and now Sagittarius…”
“Who was lost to Japan?” Isabelle questioned.
“This is to remain confidential, but Taurus wants to join them,” the Queen said.
“Well it’s not really a big surprise to see another join them, considering how open Japan is to Descendants.”
“They are too welcoming, I suppose,” Frederica replied. “The next battle will get tougher.”
“The next battle…?” Isabelle’s voice trailed away.
“In about a year or two…” the Queen claimed.
Svetlana simply stayed quiet upon hearing this as she herself couldn’t see herself going to war against Japan considering that Japan to her was her second home.
“And… is it true that Virgo might join them?” Frederica asked, with a grave face.
“Yes, I had confirmed it recently through my sources,” the Queen answered.
“Why would they allow a wench like her to join?!” Svetlana asked angrily. She soon realized that she lost control of herself for a bit. “Please pardon me… I didn’t mean to lose it there.”
Isabelle was startled at hearing her sister like that, while Frederica only gazed at her for half a moment, considering she already saw this side of hers in the previous fight.
“I see you are still affected by what happened. Forgive me, Margaret Alicia may have yet been with us if not for her getting exiled,” the Queen stated.
“Maybe… I must say, in a way I am grateful since I was able to meet mother and Isabelle.”
“Yes, and I am glad that you are at our side now.” Not so glad, but glad all the same…
“I suppose I would never have met my sister if not for it, but… if it is anyone, I cannot forgive Virgo,” Isabelle stated with some bitterness in her voice.
“Well, I’ll do anything in our power to stop Virgo. She’s one we can never forgive. Though, I hope I can have a private conversation with you one day.”
“You wish for a private audience?”
“If possible one day. No rush really, considering Your Majesty must have a busy schedule.”
“Considering I was mostly busy preparing today…” the Queen’s voice trailed away as she chuckled.
“She will be fully slumped with paperworks for at least the next three days,” Frederica supplemented. “That said, why not have a tea party soon? Too bad Mister Aramus is not around, I would have invite him.”
“There’s no rush really, when Your Majesty is free, it would fine.”
“Simply contact me via correspondence, and we shall discuss the time of the appointment.” The Queen soon turned to Frederica. “I agree with this tea party idea, however. I would visit your house in some days, Frederica. Would you two like to come?” she asked Svetlana and Isabelle.
“I would love to if time permits,” Svetlana said as she looked at Isabelle.
“If it is the Queen’s invitation, I would love to make some time with my sister,” Isabelle replied.
“Then it is settled,” Frederica said with a big smile. “I shall prepare some good sweets, rest assured.”
An hour had passed and they witnessed many more dances. Princess Louise had danced non-stop so far, including Prince Leopold. Princess Beatrice was only seen once, which was apparently a rarity according to the Duchess. Eventually, Svetlana found Isabelle and Frederica only to learn that Duchess Caroline had retired for the evening. When Svetlana considered leaving herself, Isabelle refused.
Now she knew why, Isabelle’s eyes were sparkling, watching the Prince engage in a passionate waltz with a Viscountess. It seemed like Isabelle wanted to stay till the very end.
“Oh well, guess it can’t be helped,” Svetlana said while looking at Isabelle. “Shouldn’t you go up there and see if you can ask him to dance.?” Svetlana said jokingly at Isabelle.
“I am too unworthy, my skills are nothing like the other noblewomen here,” Isabelle calmly said, shaking her head. She wasn’t tall enough, but she didn’t wanted to admit that she was a child to her sister, who’d use her own words as a weapon for the exchange of jests to come.
“So is simply watching just enough? I was sorta dragged out there without knowing what I was doing, you know?”
“I cannot tell if you were lucky or not with that… someone almost tore their handkerchief off just looking at you. I think it was nice, though. Enough for me to tear mine off, too.”
“Don’t remind me… I felt like people were putting nails through my back.” Svetlana said feeling shivers just remembering that feeling.
“You need some dancing lessons… like, really, sister.”
“How was I supposed to know the Prince of this country was gonna be the first one to ask me to dance? I was sorta hoping no one would ask me out…”
“Why would you want that?”
“Because I still have much to learn, okay? As if I wanted to embarrass myself out there,” Svetlana said as she began twirling her fingers.
“Thank God you did embarrassed yourself, huh?” Isabelle smirked. Everyone knows you liked it, hehe. I think this will be a good motivational factor to finally learn too…
“I think my mind was more blank than anything when he took me out there. I couldn’t think straight all.”
“Huhuhu, the sign of you growing up is all,” the Duchess commented.
“The sign of… growing up?” Isabelle questioned with wide eyes.
“Yes, I am sure that this is just the beginning of a tale you would speak to your future peers one day,” the Duchess replied, nodding to herself.
“Well, I just hope it doesn’t create problems instead,” Svetlana added.
“A maiden’s life is full of problems, dear.”
“I just hope it’s not one of rumours.”
“I can confirm that it is no rumour, Duchess Alicia.” Just like that, the Queen of the country was behind Svetlana.
Svetlana turned around, and to her surprise the Queen was standing right behind her.
“G-Good e-evening, Your Majesty,” Svetlana said, before giving a curtsy. It was a little too sudden to find the ruler of the Magic World like this.
“Good evening, Your Majesty.” Frederica gave a graceful curtsy and smiled. “Gorgeous as ever.”
The Queen wore shimmering gold jewelry and a bright red dress. Her earrings, rings, necklace and all the gold items were known to be vis that made her fearsome in the Magic World, for she could literally burn anyone with them without coming close to expending all of said vis.
“G-Good evening, Y-Your Majesty.” Isabelle found herself extremely nervous. It wasn’t exactly her first time meeting Queen Victoria, yet she was still mesmerised by the appearance of such a person.
“How do you do tonight?” The Queen gave a radiant smile. If one were to compare with distance, they would say the Queen’s smile surpassed Leopold’s by a few light years. “I had spent the last few hours getting prepared. I wish some of the makeup sessions could be skipped. They do not really seem to make a difference…”
“O-Oh my, Your Majesty… pardon me but that would be being like my sister. I-I think all of it really helps to make you look stunning,” Isabelle remarked.
“Oh, but I am very confident about my natural charm!” The Queen chuckled.
“Perhaps a bit too confident, Your Majesty. Makeups seems to be worth only a fraction of your time,” Frederica joked.
“We are doing fine. How is Your Majesty?” Svetlana enquired.
“I am doing well, thank you. Seeing a battle resolved and now celebrating the return of peace heartens me. I hope you are doing well as a Duchess now, there are many duties and we expect you to work hard,” the Queen stated. “If there are some confusions, however, feel free to let me know.”
“Well, if I may ask then, what are my duties? I don’t believe I have heard of them before,” Svetlana asked, laughing.
“To protect the country, of course,” Duchess Frederica said in a matter-of-factly fashion. It came as a surprise to her that Svetlana didn’t think it was obvious.
“I suppose that is a given. There are other duties that involves keeping up appearances, answering to the calls, defeating enemy Descendants, fighting for the country against Japan… I suppose the list goes on,” Queen Victoria responded.
“I see,” Svetlana simply said as she did not feel comfortable about the last part the Queen mentioned.
“That is harsh, but I suppose we need all the help we can get for the war,” Frederica added.
“We lost another Descendant to Japan after all, it would only get worse from here on,” the Queen stated.
“I see. Well, I would say Virgo should be our biggest worry as of now,” Svetlana stated.
“There are more than Virgo on our plate,” Frederica mentioned. “Countess, Pisces, Gemini, and now Sagittarius…”
“Who was lost to Japan?” Isabelle questioned.
“This is to remain confidential, but Taurus wants to join them,” the Queen said.
“Well it’s not really a big surprise to see another join them, considering how open Japan is to Descendants.”
“They are too welcoming, I suppose,” Frederica replied. “The next battle will get tougher.”
“The next battle…?” Isabelle’s voice trailed away.
“In about a year or two…” the Queen claimed.
Svetlana simply stayed quiet upon hearing this as she herself couldn’t see herself going to war against Japan considering that Japan to her was her second home.
“And… is it true that Virgo might join them?” Frederica asked, with a grave face.
“Yes, I had confirmed it recently through my sources,” the Queen answered.
“Why would they allow a wench like her to join?!” Svetlana asked angrily. She soon realized that she lost control of herself for a bit. “Please pardon me… I didn’t mean to lose it there.”
Isabelle was startled at hearing her sister like that, while Frederica only gazed at her for half a moment, considering she already saw this side of hers in the previous fight.
“I see you are still affected by what happened. Forgive me, Margaret Alicia may have yet been with us if not for her getting exiled,” the Queen stated.
“Maybe… I must say, in a way I am grateful since I was able to meet mother and Isabelle.”
“Yes, and I am glad that you are at our side now.” Not so glad, but glad all the same…
“I suppose I would never have met my sister if not for it, but… if it is anyone, I cannot forgive Virgo,” Isabelle stated with some bitterness in her voice.
“Well, I’ll do anything in our power to stop Virgo. She’s one we can never forgive. Though, I hope I can have a private conversation with you one day.”
“You wish for a private audience?”
“If possible one day. No rush really, considering Your Majesty must have a busy schedule.”
“Considering I was mostly busy preparing today…” the Queen’s voice trailed away as she chuckled.
“She will be fully slumped with paperworks for at least the next three days,” Frederica supplemented. “That said, why not have a tea party soon? Too bad Mister Aramus is not around, I would have invite him.”
“There’s no rush really, when Your Majesty is free, it would fine.”
“Simply contact me via correspondence, and we shall discuss the time of the appointment.” The Queen soon turned to Frederica. “I agree with this tea party idea, however. I would visit your house in some days, Frederica. Would you two like to come?” she asked Svetlana and Isabelle.
“I would love to if time permits,” Svetlana said as she looked at Isabelle.
“If it is the Queen’s invitation, I would love to make some time with my sister,” Isabelle replied.
“Then it is settled,” Frederica said with a big smile. “I shall prepare some good sweets, rest assured.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
The next day, Svetlana called Isabelle over to her own room, after ordering Nancy to bring her sister over. Apparently she wanted to talk.
When Isabelle came over, she noted the snow white walls and its intricate designs. There were some red sofas surrounding a round small table with some chairs. Furnitures aside, Svetlana’s bed seemed almost twice as large. Everyone insisted on her to have a “proper” bed as the Lady of the house. The maids also vouched for it, but Svetlana did not know that they were taking her future husband into consideration.
“Good morning, Isabelle. You slept soundly?” Svetlana asked, yawning.
“Yes, sister. Until a certain maid required my presence. Did you wished to speak with me about something?” Isabelle replied, scowling at the careless yawn, she gestured for Nancy to open the curtain just beside Svetlana, and the Personal Maid complied. Svetlana winced at the light falling onto her face. Even if it wasn’t sunlight, it was still bright.
“Could have done that afterwards,” Svetlana complained. “Anyways Nancy, make sure the door is locked. I don’t want anyone else coming in since it involves about my current appearance.”
Before Nancy moved, she saw another gesture from Isabelle, and thus the maid also pulled off Svetlana’s blanket before going to check the door.
“I believe we have privacy here, Mistress. Shall I place a magical ward just in case?” Nancy enquired.
“Yes.” Svetlana pouted.
While Nancy casted her magic, Isabelle crossed her arms.
“Why is it that you call me and lie on bed still? You should be a proper lady waiting for me by the table—fully dressed and prepared to face the day before I even greet you, sister.”
“Really? Sorry, I just woke up and the first thing that came to mind was to call you,” Svetlana said laughing.
“You are so… well,” her sister resisted the urge to sigh. “Freshen up, would you?”
“Fine, fine,” Svetlana said, stretching as she stood up. She seemed to only be wearing a red semi-transparent babydoll top. Her back wings fluttered while her tail began moving around as if they were stretching with her as well. Svetlana headed her makeup table. Nancy came along and helped Svetlana freshen up, after which she finally put on a dark blue sleeveless dress, never mind all the painful screams from putting on a corset.
“That should be better now, no?”
Isabelle looked up to Nancy, who was still combing the Lady of the house’s hair and looked down at Svetlana who asked the question.
“I guess,” she finally said, having admitted that her sister came a long way. A long way—how pitiful—but she stopped the thought. Being forgiving was part of the concept that was virtue. She sat down on a sofa beside the table. “Let us hear what it is that you have to say.”
“So, back in America I was able to meet Hades. the King of the Infernal Realm.”
“You what?” Isabelle questioned. It became apparent to Isabelle that Svetlana was not a great storyteller, seeing as she started with King Hades out of nowhere. “Sister, if you called me for a joke, I would rather have breakfast again.”
“I am sure she is not feeling well, having just woken up now. Perhaps I should prepare some medicine?” Nancy enquired.
“Please. She needs every bit of it. Maybe they will take out those wings and that tail which has a mind of its own.”
“Ah, or perhaps the Mistress simply had a nightmare.”
“Sheesh, that’s just mean you two, I’m being serious here,” Svetlana pouted, complaining at her listeners. “I really did meet King Hades. How else would you explain my complete body transformation? I’ve never heard of a spell from our Realm capable of such thing.”
“So you mean to say that the King of the Underworld actually exists?” Isabelle asked with an incredulous voice. “The real one? Or were you really dreaming in that Realm?”
“If I was dreaming I really don’t know how my body changed or even received some of the items he personally gave me.”
“What is the story anyway? How did you get there?”
“Well, I first met someone by the name Aramus, he had mentioned to me that he had met Hades. It was through him that I met someone else who took me directly to King Hades.”
“Just what kind of people are we speaking of? Only really bad people could have access to such a… bad place, right?”
“No, they were actually kind people from my experience and King Hades himself was surprisingly really kind.”
“Kind? The demons? The King of demons?” Isabelle was completely speechless. After all that she had been through, it was hard to believe that there was any Infernal creature with a spec of kindness in them. “It is not as though I do not trust you, sister. I… I just do not know what to say.”
“I could take you there, but I don’t think he would like it if I don’t have anymore stories to tell him. Granddad really seems to enjoy stories about people’s lives.”
Isabelle’s awestruck expression changed not. “And you made a family of him,” she said with her mouth still agape.
“And a demonic contract resulting in the new body,” Nancy added, her hands stuck from shock instead of combing her Mistress’ hair.
“Actually there was no contract for the body. After telling him my story, he granted how would you say five wishes, I suppose? Though, of course there were limits on things I could have asked.”
“It was not a contract, Nancy, the contract was made before she met him,” Isabelle corrected. “So, you told him everything? Even… what Virgo did?”
“Yes, since I wanted to get as many wishes as I could from him. Considering I believed what he had to give me would help me a lot in fighting in Virgo.”
“What did you wish for, sister? I assume the body was one… for whatever reasons—I am grateful to the King now otherwise everyone would make fun of a tiny Duchess.” Isabelle nodded to herself, indeed, this granddad Hades was truly a good man, hopefully.
“Tiny?” Nancy questioned.
“Her height was almost about mine.” Isabelle’s face showed disdain as she pictured Svetlana’s previous form.
“I… I cannot even imagine!” To a chaste and relatively studious maid who was a scholar dedicated to learning magic rather than reading horror stories, this was the appropriate horror story equivalent to her.
“Give me a second,” Svetlana said as she went to her closet and took out a suitcase and began to search it. She took out what seemed like a picture. “Here you go.”
“I would think it was your little sister, or a young friend, if not for the facts being told earlier,” Nancy responded from bearing witness to the photo, barely believing the statement even now. It all made sense why Svetlana wasn’t accustomed to having large breasts, or didn’t really wear undergarments before, but it still felt odd. Whoever that †˜Big Sis’ was, she was very careless for a guardian.
“Yeah. I wasn’t always this big till recently. Well, for the wishes, one wish was for knowledge, two of the wishes were for Supreme spells, third was for a stronger weapon and the final wish was for fusing with the demon I had made a contract with.”
“Supreme spells… what were you taught?” Isabelle asked with a great hint of interest in her voice.
“Well, one was like self-healing. It seemed like the other one was like a counter spell. I still need to practice them to have full mastery.”
“For a few years I am guessing… why did you do the fusion? Rather, what was fused exactly, the demon’s very… soul?”
“That would explain the wings and the tail,” Nancy added.
“You can say appearance-wise, the demon won as I took a bit more of a demonic appearance. Though it seems as though she took away anything human from me as well. So you can say I’m only part Faerie and demon now,” Svetlana said as she took a quick look at her body. “I decided to fuse with her once granddad told me I would have better access to her powers like that.”
“I see… I suppose she stopped bugging your mind too. It is strange, though. I am technically speaking to the demon that tortured me all my life and she is speaking rather normally—however regretful I am that she lacks proper manners or the knowledge to speak in proper English.”
“Hey, that wasn’t me. Plus, you don’t learn a new language in two weeks! You try learning Russian and Japanese and learn to speak with them formally.
Nancy chuckled at the exchange between the two sisters. “I suppose we are both accomplices of this little diabolic person now.”
“Tell me about it.” Isabelle looked at Svetlana’s tail and shook her head. “This will be a nightmare if people finds out, and whoever in this world actually lives without learning English? A thousand pities from me they shall have.”
“Not everyone has the luxury to learn new languages. The only reason I even learned Japanese was thanks to my big sister.”
“Speaking of which, one wish for knowledge? What knowledge?”
“I wish to speak of that matter much later if that’s okay.”
“Why?”
“It’s a matter which I believe you’re still too young to know about, but I learned that you have an older brother named Thomas.”
“I am not too young for—what?!! You mean my big brother is yet lives?”
“Oh, you still remember him. From what granddad told me, you were rather small when it happened. But yes, he’s still alive. Finding him won’t be easy, though.”
“I am small. Anyway, I sort of remember playing with him around this mansion… I almost forgot, to be honest. If I grew up a few years more without any mention of him—I would likely forget.”
“Isn’t it nice that you still have a brother to look forward to reunite with?” Svetlana asked happily.
“I do not know… I am rather afraid of finding out what type of a person he has become.”
“We can only hope that he is a good person.”
“When would you leave for Russia, Mistress?” Nancy asked. “I shall prepare myself for the trip and the tickets for the Magic Train soon. I must calculate the costs and the amount of money required to be taken for the trip as well.”
“I was hoping to depart early next week, if possible. I believe I had my mother waiting far too long already. Though, she’s gonna have a hard time believing it’s me, even though she already had a hard time believing I was her daughter before.”
“I will prepare the jokes for her at least,” Nancy said with a giggle.
“It better be nothing mean.” Svetlana said pouting.
“I am not sure if I can make guarantees about that, Mistress.”
When Isabelle came over, she noted the snow white walls and its intricate designs. There were some red sofas surrounding a round small table with some chairs. Furnitures aside, Svetlana’s bed seemed almost twice as large. Everyone insisted on her to have a “proper” bed as the Lady of the house. The maids also vouched for it, but Svetlana did not know that they were taking her future husband into consideration.
“Good morning, Isabelle. You slept soundly?” Svetlana asked, yawning.
“Yes, sister. Until a certain maid required my presence. Did you wished to speak with me about something?” Isabelle replied, scowling at the careless yawn, she gestured for Nancy to open the curtain just beside Svetlana, and the Personal Maid complied. Svetlana winced at the light falling onto her face. Even if it wasn’t sunlight, it was still bright.
“Could have done that afterwards,” Svetlana complained. “Anyways Nancy, make sure the door is locked. I don’t want anyone else coming in since it involves about my current appearance.”
Before Nancy moved, she saw another gesture from Isabelle, and thus the maid also pulled off Svetlana’s blanket before going to check the door.
“I believe we have privacy here, Mistress. Shall I place a magical ward just in case?” Nancy enquired.
“Yes.” Svetlana pouted.
While Nancy casted her magic, Isabelle crossed her arms.
“Why is it that you call me and lie on bed still? You should be a proper lady waiting for me by the table—fully dressed and prepared to face the day before I even greet you, sister.”
“Really? Sorry, I just woke up and the first thing that came to mind was to call you,” Svetlana said laughing.
“You are so… well,” her sister resisted the urge to sigh. “Freshen up, would you?”
“Fine, fine,” Svetlana said, stretching as she stood up. She seemed to only be wearing a red semi-transparent babydoll top. Her back wings fluttered while her tail began moving around as if they were stretching with her as well. Svetlana headed her makeup table. Nancy came along and helped Svetlana freshen up, after which she finally put on a dark blue sleeveless dress, never mind all the painful screams from putting on a corset.
“That should be better now, no?”
Isabelle looked up to Nancy, who was still combing the Lady of the house’s hair and looked down at Svetlana who asked the question.
“I guess,” she finally said, having admitted that her sister came a long way. A long way—how pitiful—but she stopped the thought. Being forgiving was part of the concept that was virtue. She sat down on a sofa beside the table. “Let us hear what it is that you have to say.”
“So, back in America I was able to meet Hades. the King of the Infernal Realm.”
“You what?” Isabelle questioned. It became apparent to Isabelle that Svetlana was not a great storyteller, seeing as she started with King Hades out of nowhere. “Sister, if you called me for a joke, I would rather have breakfast again.”
“I am sure she is not feeling well, having just woken up now. Perhaps I should prepare some medicine?” Nancy enquired.
“Please. She needs every bit of it. Maybe they will take out those wings and that tail which has a mind of its own.”
“Ah, or perhaps the Mistress simply had a nightmare.”
“Sheesh, that’s just mean you two, I’m being serious here,” Svetlana pouted, complaining at her listeners. “I really did meet King Hades. How else would you explain my complete body transformation? I’ve never heard of a spell from our Realm capable of such thing.”
“So you mean to say that the King of the Underworld actually exists?” Isabelle asked with an incredulous voice. “The real one? Or were you really dreaming in that Realm?”
“If I was dreaming I really don’t know how my body changed or even received some of the items he personally gave me.”
“What is the story anyway? How did you get there?”
“Well, I first met someone by the name Aramus, he had mentioned to me that he had met Hades. It was through him that I met someone else who took me directly to King Hades.”
“Just what kind of people are we speaking of? Only really bad people could have access to such a… bad place, right?”
“No, they were actually kind people from my experience and King Hades himself was surprisingly really kind.”
“Kind? The demons? The King of demons?” Isabelle was completely speechless. After all that she had been through, it was hard to believe that there was any Infernal creature with a spec of kindness in them. “It is not as though I do not trust you, sister. I… I just do not know what to say.”
“I could take you there, but I don’t think he would like it if I don’t have anymore stories to tell him. Granddad really seems to enjoy stories about people’s lives.”
Isabelle’s awestruck expression changed not. “And you made a family of him,” she said with her mouth still agape.
“And a demonic contract resulting in the new body,” Nancy added, her hands stuck from shock instead of combing her Mistress’ hair.
“Actually there was no contract for the body. After telling him my story, he granted how would you say five wishes, I suppose? Though, of course there were limits on things I could have asked.”
“It was not a contract, Nancy, the contract was made before she met him,” Isabelle corrected. “So, you told him everything? Even… what Virgo did?”
“Yes, since I wanted to get as many wishes as I could from him. Considering I believed what he had to give me would help me a lot in fighting in Virgo.”
“What did you wish for, sister? I assume the body was one… for whatever reasons—I am grateful to the King now otherwise everyone would make fun of a tiny Duchess.” Isabelle nodded to herself, indeed, this granddad Hades was truly a good man, hopefully.
“Tiny?” Nancy questioned.
“Her height was almost about mine.” Isabelle’s face showed disdain as she pictured Svetlana’s previous form.
“I… I cannot even imagine!” To a chaste and relatively studious maid who was a scholar dedicated to learning magic rather than reading horror stories, this was the appropriate horror story equivalent to her.
“Give me a second,” Svetlana said as she went to her closet and took out a suitcase and began to search it. She took out what seemed like a picture. “Here you go.”
“I would think it was your little sister, or a young friend, if not for the facts being told earlier,” Nancy responded from bearing witness to the photo, barely believing the statement even now. It all made sense why Svetlana wasn’t accustomed to having large breasts, or didn’t really wear undergarments before, but it still felt odd. Whoever that †˜Big Sis’ was, she was very careless for a guardian.
“Yeah. I wasn’t always this big till recently. Well, for the wishes, one wish was for knowledge, two of the wishes were for Supreme spells, third was for a stronger weapon and the final wish was for fusing with the demon I had made a contract with.”
“Supreme spells… what were you taught?” Isabelle asked with a great hint of interest in her voice.
“Well, one was like self-healing. It seemed like the other one was like a counter spell. I still need to practice them to have full mastery.”
“For a few years I am guessing… why did you do the fusion? Rather, what was fused exactly, the demon’s very… soul?”
“That would explain the wings and the tail,” Nancy added.
“You can say appearance-wise, the demon won as I took a bit more of a demonic appearance. Though it seems as though she took away anything human from me as well. So you can say I’m only part Faerie and demon now,” Svetlana said as she took a quick look at her body. “I decided to fuse with her once granddad told me I would have better access to her powers like that.”
“I see… I suppose she stopped bugging your mind too. It is strange, though. I am technically speaking to the demon that tortured me all my life and she is speaking rather normally—however regretful I am that she lacks proper manners or the knowledge to speak in proper English.”
“Hey, that wasn’t me. Plus, you don’t learn a new language in two weeks! You try learning Russian and Japanese and learn to speak with them formally.
Nancy chuckled at the exchange between the two sisters. “I suppose we are both accomplices of this little diabolic person now.”
“Tell me about it.” Isabelle looked at Svetlana’s tail and shook her head. “This will be a nightmare if people finds out, and whoever in this world actually lives without learning English? A thousand pities from me they shall have.”
“Not everyone has the luxury to learn new languages. The only reason I even learned Japanese was thanks to my big sister.”
“Speaking of which, one wish for knowledge? What knowledge?”
“I wish to speak of that matter much later if that’s okay.”
“Why?”
“It’s a matter which I believe you’re still too young to know about, but I learned that you have an older brother named Thomas.”
“I am not too young for—what?!! You mean my big brother is yet lives?”
“Oh, you still remember him. From what granddad told me, you were rather small when it happened. But yes, he’s still alive. Finding him won’t be easy, though.”
“I am small. Anyway, I sort of remember playing with him around this mansion… I almost forgot, to be honest. If I grew up a few years more without any mention of him—I would likely forget.”
“Isn’t it nice that you still have a brother to look forward to reunite with?” Svetlana asked happily.
“I do not know… I am rather afraid of finding out what type of a person he has become.”
“We can only hope that he is a good person.”
“When would you leave for Russia, Mistress?” Nancy asked. “I shall prepare myself for the trip and the tickets for the Magic Train soon. I must calculate the costs and the amount of money required to be taken for the trip as well.”
“I was hoping to depart early next week, if possible. I believe I had my mother waiting far too long already. Though, she’s gonna have a hard time believing it’s me, even though she already had a hard time believing I was her daughter before.”
“I will prepare the jokes for her at least,” Nancy said with a giggle.
“It better be nothing mean.” Svetlana said pouting.
“I am not sure if I can make guarantees about that, Mistress.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
In the timeless world that was Russia, the sky was as dark as ever and the clouds were as cold as Svetlana remembered. There was a blizzard when they exited the Magic Train’s station and now they were on their way to her house.
Nancy researched about Russia extensively before their trip began, so she had warm clothes prepared for both of them, hence the pair were wearing jackets as they traversed through the streets. It was undeniable that she was unable to speak the language of the region and was thus helpless without Svetlana.
Svetlana and Nancy wore their normal clothes from England—a red dress and a maid uniform, respectively—but were covered thick jackets. Of course, the maid carried a bag of clothes and necessities in case of danger. Originally, Nancy was going to bring along more luggages with the †˜just in case’ excuse for cases of emergencies, but Svetlana stopped her as it would be too much to carry.
“Is Russia always going through these rough blizzards?” Nancy asked, holding her body tight with her arms. “It is colder than I had expected… despite my preparations.”
“Does it really feel that cold? It’s pretty warm today honestly. But yeah, these blizzards happen now and then. They don’t last forever. Luckily, today’s blizzard is pretty tame. It sure does feel nice being back home for some reason.”
“W-Warm? Lucky? This?!” Nancy shouted the words of confusion as the wind carried most of her voice away. “I do not mean any offense, but you must have a skin of a polar bear or something similar, Mistress.”
“Don’t worry, none taken. I did used to walk around in just a dress before during a weather like this, you know? It’s not recommended to sleep outside.” The last bit was added as she reminded herself of Lily and the other poor people in the country. “But I suppose for people who did not grow up in this condition, this is pretty cold. I bet Isabelle would want to be covered upon layers of warm clothing.” Svetlana laughed, thinking out loud.
“The young lady would not even tolerate this weather, I would think. I am surprised that you are so resistant on the other hand, Mistress.”
“I had to be, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do my job as a mercenary properly. Those times sure were fun, even if they were dangerous.”
“You used to work as a mercenary? In these conditions?” Nancy asked, clearly impressed.
“Yep. Should’ve seen some of those jobs; they had me wait in a location for hours before the target would even showed up, and in blizzards at times, of course. I couldn’t have anything on that would slow me down, since it was either them or me.”
“That sounds terrible, Mistress. Thankfully, you have properties that holds potential for good businesses, which may in turn fund a peaceful lifetime.”
“Yeah, though in all honesty, I probably will miss the action. Spending time with you and Isabelle does sure seem more fun.”
“It is a safer form of’ fun’ indeed, and I would always recommend it. To keep my job,” Nancy said with a big smile.
“Well, let’s hurry up, even if I said this current blizzard is tame; we never know when it’d pick up and actually get much colder. Unless you’re gonna want me to keep you warm,” Svetlana said jokingly.
After an hour of walking, Svetlana and Nancy finally entered a house. It felt as though it took an eternity for Svetlana to open the door from Nancy’s perspective as she heard the tinkling noises of the key being used, while expectantly awaiting a hot atmosphere inside.
Her expectations, of course, were triumphantly betrayed, the house was dark and no one was at home. The fireplace had some wood on it, but it hadn’t been used for some days as Svetlana inspected after creating a small ball of fire atop her hand.
“Why is the house vacant, Mistress?” Nancy inquired confusedly. “Is your mother outside on an errand perhaps…?”
“It shouldn’t be… Mama always made sure to clean it everyday. She didn’t enjoy a spec of dust accumulate at all. She should’ve been here, especially considering I only left enough money for her to be on her own for a year, and there’s really nowhere to go in Russia, honestly besides here at Moscow…”
“Nowhere to go in Russia…?” Nancy questioned. “Are all the other places restricted?”
“Not really. There are small villages at best. The other big city close to here would be Saint Petersburg, but the terrain to get there is a harsh one, and the cost would be extremely high. Mama was also not in the best condition to travel last I remember,” Svetlana said as she began to fear something terrible might’ve happened to her mother.
“Perhaps go to the constables? Clearly your mother is missing. We can only hope for her to found shortly.”
“Yes. let’s head quickly.”
Nancy researched about Russia extensively before their trip began, so she had warm clothes prepared for both of them, hence the pair were wearing jackets as they traversed through the streets. It was undeniable that she was unable to speak the language of the region and was thus helpless without Svetlana.
Svetlana and Nancy wore their normal clothes from England—a red dress and a maid uniform, respectively—but were covered thick jackets. Of course, the maid carried a bag of clothes and necessities in case of danger. Originally, Nancy was going to bring along more luggages with the †˜just in case’ excuse for cases of emergencies, but Svetlana stopped her as it would be too much to carry.
“Is Russia always going through these rough blizzards?” Nancy asked, holding her body tight with her arms. “It is colder than I had expected… despite my preparations.”
“Does it really feel that cold? It’s pretty warm today honestly. But yeah, these blizzards happen now and then. They don’t last forever. Luckily, today’s blizzard is pretty tame. It sure does feel nice being back home for some reason.”
“W-Warm? Lucky? This?!” Nancy shouted the words of confusion as the wind carried most of her voice away. “I do not mean any offense, but you must have a skin of a polar bear or something similar, Mistress.”
“Don’t worry, none taken. I did used to walk around in just a dress before during a weather like this, you know? It’s not recommended to sleep outside.” The last bit was added as she reminded herself of Lily and the other poor people in the country. “But I suppose for people who did not grow up in this condition, this is pretty cold. I bet Isabelle would want to be covered upon layers of warm clothing.” Svetlana laughed, thinking out loud.
“The young lady would not even tolerate this weather, I would think. I am surprised that you are so resistant on the other hand, Mistress.”
“I had to be, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do my job as a mercenary properly. Those times sure were fun, even if they were dangerous.”
“You used to work as a mercenary? In these conditions?” Nancy asked, clearly impressed.
“Yep. Should’ve seen some of those jobs; they had me wait in a location for hours before the target would even showed up, and in blizzards at times, of course. I couldn’t have anything on that would slow me down, since it was either them or me.”
“That sounds terrible, Mistress. Thankfully, you have properties that holds potential for good businesses, which may in turn fund a peaceful lifetime.”
“Yeah, though in all honesty, I probably will miss the action. Spending time with you and Isabelle does sure seem more fun.”
“It is a safer form of’ fun’ indeed, and I would always recommend it. To keep my job,” Nancy said with a big smile.
“Well, let’s hurry up, even if I said this current blizzard is tame; we never know when it’d pick up and actually get much colder. Unless you’re gonna want me to keep you warm,” Svetlana said jokingly.
***
After an hour of walking, Svetlana and Nancy finally entered a house. It felt as though it took an eternity for Svetlana to open the door from Nancy’s perspective as she heard the tinkling noises of the key being used, while expectantly awaiting a hot atmosphere inside.
Her expectations, of course, were triumphantly betrayed, the house was dark and no one was at home. The fireplace had some wood on it, but it hadn’t been used for some days as Svetlana inspected after creating a small ball of fire atop her hand.
“Why is the house vacant, Mistress?” Nancy inquired confusedly. “Is your mother outside on an errand perhaps…?”
“It shouldn’t be… Mama always made sure to clean it everyday. She didn’t enjoy a spec of dust accumulate at all. She should’ve been here, especially considering I only left enough money for her to be on her own for a year, and there’s really nowhere to go in Russia, honestly besides here at Moscow…”
“Nowhere to go in Russia…?” Nancy questioned. “Are all the other places restricted?”
“Not really. There are small villages at best. The other big city close to here would be Saint Petersburg, but the terrain to get there is a harsh one, and the cost would be extremely high. Mama was also not in the best condition to travel last I remember,” Svetlana said as she began to fear something terrible might’ve happened to her mother.
“Perhaps go to the constables? Clearly your mother is missing. We can only hope for her to found shortly.”
“Yes. let’s head quickly.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Soviet Union’s base was a large structure that seemed to stem from below the ground. There were an iron pillar, and as it rose very up, reaching close to the sky’s clouds. There were several large iron circulat layers, each host to residential areas.
There were countless shops and a large crowd across the road as they approached the office on the ground floor of the massive tower. Nancy was almost lost and some Raider men seemed to take interest due to her beauty, but Svetlana made sure to keep her close as they grasped each other’s hands.
“This… this is a very dangerous place. I almost thought I was going to be kidnapped,” Nancy stated between her steam-like breaths, looking around herself in fear.
The two Machine Knights stood beside the door to the office, something Svetlana found familiar. They were completely motionless, but she could still feel their gaze.
“Just don’t show weakness if you show up here. Otherwise, consider yourself a goner. I just hope I can get good news from this office,” Svetlana said as she headed in with her maid.
Svetlana found the same man who handed her the S rank mission the last time they spoke. They found themselves behind a cue of at least ten big men, some of whom were very strange. One of them had the head of a pigeon and Nancy couldn’t quite tell why the people of this land were like this around this area. It took some time before they could speak face to face.
“Oh †˜ey, lass, †˜hatcha need from this †˜ol office?” the officer questioned.
“I need info about my Mama, mister. My name is Svetlana Astakhova.”
“†˜Ya ain’t that scrumpy †˜rat! …What is this sissy talk?!” the officer spat, disbelieving her without even taking a moment to think.
“Fine. Just give me a sec,” Svetlana said, taking a deep breath. “Hi, hi, mister! Last time we talked it involved that b—”
“AAAHHH!! No! Not that again! Can’t †˜ear †˜nymore †˜o that! Yer gonna kill me †˜ith it! The dreaded †˜hi hi’s,’ how the hell do you copy et so perfectly?!”
“†˜Cause that’s me, and they are not dreaded! It’s called being †˜cute’ in this cold land. Like I was saying, last we spoke, it involved an S ranked mission, about stopping slave traders. I even called you from the broom broom.”
“Me †˜ars would soon fall off than †˜ye get to sayin’ that again. So I’d just pretend that †˜ya came †˜utta the cold tomb with the corpse of a femme fatale! Uhh, †˜nyroad, you need ta find †˜ye mum?”
“Bingo!” Svetlana said as to continue her previous behaviour, not sure if he would believe her if she suddenly stopped.
“D...Dun make that face, or that tone. Be the femme fatale!”
“Well, if you believe it’s me now, then I’ll stop. I still think it’s cute, though. Anyway, mister, what can you tell about my Mama? I went to our house, and it seem like she hasn’t been there for a few days, and she’s in no condition to travel as far as I know.”
“I… I dunno kiddo. I †˜aven’t seen †˜er in days. Rather, she hardly †˜ver visited in the first place.”
“But if something happens in town, I’m certain news would come here! It’s the way it’s always been, I know that for sure. There has to be some kind of rumor or something,” Svetlana said as her eyes became teary.
“W-Wait missy, lemme ask the main central info block, †˜kay? Someone else might’ve heard somethin’. Don’t try cryin’ on me, †˜ya hear?”
The officer took up the telephone from his desk, and dialed some numbers before calling to another office on a different section. It took some time; the more he took to speak with the other officers, the grimer his voice got. When he finally dropped the phone, he simply looked at Svetlana with a cold look.
“I’ma write an address for †˜ya.” The officer wrote on a slip of paper and handed it to her. “I dunno what’s in there, but †˜ya might find somethin’.”
“Alright, thank you, mister.”
“What… would we find here?” Nancy spoke quizzically.
The two found themselves inside a storage house in the corner of the iron disc, more particularly, the third layer. In the Soviet base, these storage houses were notorious for keeping banned and confiscated goods, among other dangerous things.
“I hate to say it, but maybe my Mama…” Svetlana’s voice trailed away in a dreaded tone.
“Do not assume the worst just yet, Mistress! Let us look through these boxes and… coffins… um, pardon me but they are rather scary now that I look at them.”
“Yes…”
It seemed like Nancy was about to speak as Svetlana turned to check out one of the coffins. A moment later, she turned and found Nancy lying on the floor, her blood leaking from her hair. Svetlana looked up at a Machine Knight whose eyes seemed to glimmer with a much brighter shade of red than usual. Before she could act, the Machine Knight roared—which was unthinkable as Machine Knights were thought to lack a voice—and its blunt side of the blade bashed against her head with a loud thud. Svetlana fell down just like her maid.
“Damn it…” Svetlana’s vision started to sink into darkness as she muttered.
There were countless shops and a large crowd across the road as they approached the office on the ground floor of the massive tower. Nancy was almost lost and some Raider men seemed to take interest due to her beauty, but Svetlana made sure to keep her close as they grasped each other’s hands.
“This… this is a very dangerous place. I almost thought I was going to be kidnapped,” Nancy stated between her steam-like breaths, looking around herself in fear.
The two Machine Knights stood beside the door to the office, something Svetlana found familiar. They were completely motionless, but she could still feel their gaze.
“Just don’t show weakness if you show up here. Otherwise, consider yourself a goner. I just hope I can get good news from this office,” Svetlana said as she headed in with her maid.
Svetlana found the same man who handed her the S rank mission the last time they spoke. They found themselves behind a cue of at least ten big men, some of whom were very strange. One of them had the head of a pigeon and Nancy couldn’t quite tell why the people of this land were like this around this area. It took some time before they could speak face to face.
“Oh †˜ey, lass, †˜hatcha need from this †˜ol office?” the officer questioned.
“I need info about my Mama, mister. My name is Svetlana Astakhova.”
“†˜Ya ain’t that scrumpy †˜rat! …What is this sissy talk?!” the officer spat, disbelieving her without even taking a moment to think.
“Fine. Just give me a sec,” Svetlana said, taking a deep breath. “Hi, hi, mister! Last time we talked it involved that b—”
“AAAHHH!! No! Not that again! Can’t †˜ear †˜nymore †˜o that! Yer gonna kill me †˜ith it! The dreaded †˜hi hi’s,’ how the hell do you copy et so perfectly?!”
“†˜Cause that’s me, and they are not dreaded! It’s called being †˜cute’ in this cold land. Like I was saying, last we spoke, it involved an S ranked mission, about stopping slave traders. I even called you from the broom broom.”
“Me †˜ars would soon fall off than †˜ye get to sayin’ that again. So I’d just pretend that †˜ya came †˜utta the cold tomb with the corpse of a femme fatale! Uhh, †˜nyroad, you need ta find †˜ye mum?”
“Bingo!” Svetlana said as to continue her previous behaviour, not sure if he would believe her if she suddenly stopped.
“D...Dun make that face, or that tone. Be the femme fatale!”
“Well, if you believe it’s me now, then I’ll stop. I still think it’s cute, though. Anyway, mister, what can you tell about my Mama? I went to our house, and it seem like she hasn’t been there for a few days, and she’s in no condition to travel as far as I know.”
“I… I dunno kiddo. I †˜aven’t seen †˜er in days. Rather, she hardly †˜ver visited in the first place.”
“But if something happens in town, I’m certain news would come here! It’s the way it’s always been, I know that for sure. There has to be some kind of rumor or something,” Svetlana said as her eyes became teary.
“W-Wait missy, lemme ask the main central info block, †˜kay? Someone else might’ve heard somethin’. Don’t try cryin’ on me, †˜ya hear?”
The officer took up the telephone from his desk, and dialed some numbers before calling to another office on a different section. It took some time; the more he took to speak with the other officers, the grimer his voice got. When he finally dropped the phone, he simply looked at Svetlana with a cold look.
“I’ma write an address for †˜ya.” The officer wrote on a slip of paper and handed it to her. “I dunno what’s in there, but †˜ya might find somethin’.”
“Alright, thank you, mister.”
***
“What… would we find here?” Nancy spoke quizzically.
The two found themselves inside a storage house in the corner of the iron disc, more particularly, the third layer. In the Soviet base, these storage houses were notorious for keeping banned and confiscated goods, among other dangerous things.
“I hate to say it, but maybe my Mama…” Svetlana’s voice trailed away in a dreaded tone.
“Do not assume the worst just yet, Mistress! Let us look through these boxes and… coffins… um, pardon me but they are rather scary now that I look at them.”
“Yes…”
It seemed like Nancy was about to speak as Svetlana turned to check out one of the coffins. A moment later, she turned and found Nancy lying on the floor, her blood leaking from her hair. Svetlana looked up at a Machine Knight whose eyes seemed to glimmer with a much brighter shade of red than usual. Before she could act, the Machine Knight roared—which was unthinkable as Machine Knights were thought to lack a voice—and its blunt side of the blade bashed against her head with a loud thud. Svetlana fell down just like her maid.
“Damn it…” Svetlana’s vision started to sink into darkness as she muttered.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Svetlana woke up. The first thing her mind registered was a green hue all around her. For some moments she pondered what took place and how she was where she ended up in. When she tried to move to yawn, she found that her arms and legs were unable to move, as if she was paralyzed. Slowly moving around her eyes, she soon realized that there were many green cubes just outside wherever she was. Each of the orbs held within themselves a black object… no, people. Apparently, she was inside one herself, due to the green light illuminating her body. Looking down, there were steam robots walking around and operating strange machines she had no idea what they were for.
…Where am I? What kind of a place is this. Svetlana thought, utterly confused. “Nancy… are you there…?” Svetlana tried shouting, unsure what to do, but her voice barely carried far and bubbles climbed up to the surface above, and she only now realized that she was inside a water cube.
She looked around again, this time facing different directions, and it seemed like Nancy was in a cube just beside her.
What’s going on? ...Who would do this?
Svetlana decided to build up her demonic mana to see if it would help her escape. Building up her Infernal powers, a black aura began to form, which fully surrounded her body. Her eyes turned black as a result. Two spikes seemed to extend thanks to this blackness and her wings were magically longer now. The bubble she was trapped under suddenly blew open, water splashing in every directions and her feet landed on cold wet steel. She flew up to the bubble where Nancy was in, and placed her hand onto the glass—transferring her Infernal mana into it, causing it to burst too.
She caught Nancy and went back down to the floor. Of course, both of them were naked.
“Nancy! Wake up!” Svetlana shook the maid’s body.
“Mn… a good coat and a good man makes the life…” Nancy was mumbling in her sleep.
“Nancy!” Svetlana raised her voice as she shook Nancy again.
“Oh… uh, Mistress? Where am I? This smell is terrible… for the health I would think…” Nancy said, rubbing her eyes, and barely moving.
“I wish I could answer that, but I have no clue. I’ve never been here before,” Svetlana said, looking around. “I’ll fly around for a bit so just look around to see if anything catches your eye.”
“I… cannot really move,” Nancy said, finally opening her eyes. “Oh dear Lord, Mistress, what happened to you?!”
“You can say I’m in the demonic form right now. Before, it’d have been the demon using my body, but it seems I have full control for now. Enough of that though, we must figure out where we are, so just look to see if anything catches your eye,” Svetlana said, flying around slowly, examining the place.
She wanted to point out to Svetlana that the first thing she noticed was that they lacked their clothings, but stopped.
“M...Mistress… we should leave somehow.” Nancy looked down. “They are aiming at us!”
When Svetlana looked down, there were steam robots aiming guns at her; round robots with round heads with red round eyes. She fluttered in the air as they shot. She wasn’t used to flying just yet. Trying to ran away, a burning stream of steam struck against her wing and she fell down to the icy cold iron floor, while Nancy fell atop one of the cubes, which broke from the force and the water leaked out. When Nancy looked up, she found a body on top of herself.
Angered, Svetlana stood up and a black sphere formed atop her right hand, electricity surrounding it. “Damn you stupid machines! Just die!” Svetlana shouted as she shot her sphere at the machine dolls. All of the bots were destroyed in an instant. She quickly shifted her attention to Nancy. “Are you okay, Nancy?” she walked over to her.
Svetlana froze as she recognized the body on top of Nancy. To her, the shape was unmistakable as well as the long silver hair, much like her previous form. The black aura around her body vanished at the moment as Svetlana fell to her knees.
“M-M-Mama!” Svetlana said as she broke into tears.
Her mother’s body twitched, and seemed to stir to life, reigniting Svetlana’s hope.
“Mama!”
“Svetlana… is that you?” somehow, her mother knew it was Svetlana, despite the differing voice and appearance. Was this the result of the strong bond she shared with her child?
“Yes, Mama it’s me.” Svetlana was shocked to see her mother move, yet she was equally glad.
Nancy smiled, moving herself out from under Svetlana’s mother somehow. It was still hard for her to move. “See? She is alive, Mistress! I told you not to assume the worst!”
“Yes, but we must hurry and get out of here. We don’t know what else will come,” Svetlana said, wiping her tears away, before helping to two stand up.
Before she touched her mother, she looked up to her with a smile.
“So it is really you.”
The red large dot on her face and the curved red line that was her mouth made Svetlana scream in utter terror. A completely black face with the red figures stood up on its own, and her mother started giving an eerie laugh. Nancy herself somehow pushed herself away on the floor in pure fear from seeing this kind of a face.
“W-What… is this?!” Nancy screamed.
Svetlana couldn’t believe her eyes, speechless after her scream subsided. Her mother face was completely gone. She couldn’t muster any words as all, looking up to her blank black face with the red ball-like mouth in horror.
The mother looked at Svetlana, and her body soon started to break apart, changing to something she could not even imagine her entire life. Black horns grew out from her head, the hair turned black, and she grew taller. From her back tore out legs made of metal and a demonic yell was heard. It sounded so much like Svetlana herself when she used to lose control of herself.
Svetlana’s mother was similar to a spider, standing up with the metallic legs that spawned off her back. Wings like that of insects grew at last, and she kept laughing maniacally—none of which made sense to either Svetlana or Nancy.
“NOOOOOooooooooo!! You’re not Mama!” Svetlana shouted out of fear, as she shot at a Flame Spear spell, but missed, not being able to aim properly due to her state of mind.
“M…Mistress, we must run!” Nancy hurriedly suggested, she could barely regain control of her body just yet. Something strong was indeed injected into both of them. While it seemed like Svetlana fought it off with her Infernal mana, Nancy couldn’t despite collecting mana into her body. Hence, she could barely reach up to her Mistress; hardly able to even walk.
“May the sinners be purged!”
A blinding light fell on Svetlana’s twisted mother—or creature—and she writhed in agony, sending a bloodcurdling cry echo against the steel walls of the room.
Svetlana could barely recognize the voice she heard—the voice of someone who served her sworn enemy. How could she forget?
The shining figure of Judgement Summoner could be seen in the distance behind her. Energies spiraled before her and lights gathered, the Life Buster Commandment was being prepared, and it was all too familiar—as if she saw it only yesterday.
“No! Please stop!” Svetlana shouted as tears flood down her eyes yet again.
The gathering of the spiritual energies stopped as Judgement Summoner noticed Svetlana and Nancy on the floor, just before the creature. With a bright flash she sped up to Svetlana, and shot a blinding beam of light at her supposed mother, before the monster used one of her legs to crush Svetlana.
The Representative immediately took up Svetlana and Nancy on her arms with ease, displaying abnormal strength before she jumped. As soon as her foot landed, she streaked across the iron clad floor and vanished—literally dashing in the speed of light.
Just outside on top of a building that was close to the ground floor of the iron layers stood Judgement Summoner. Beside her, two were dropped on the cold and snowy floor. Svetlana and Nancy were both battered and tired in more ways than one. The blizzard continued to take place, and it only seemed to have gotten stronger. As they were out in the air nude like this, the cold was extremely chilling to the skin and bones and they instinctively hugged themselves.
As the feeling of immediately thread was over, the feeling of cold started to feel like a slow-death for them. Nancy barely looked up to their savior, a woman wearing white exotic clothes. Svetlana seemed to be familiar with this person, but it seemed like she was in no proper state of mind to react to her presence now.
Svetlana was still speechless. She didn’t know what to say, or what could be said at all, now that the image of her mother’s new and grotesque form returned to her mind. She was still crying.
“M-Mama…”
“Mistress…” Nancy hugged Svetlana tight. “Let us… let us go back. This is a dangerous land for you to stay in.”
“This is the filth that we strive to remove from this world.” Judgement Summoner faced Svetlana, not looking up to the iron pillar anymore. “You saw only a small portion of it.”
“Why are you even here, Judgement Summoner?” Svetlana asked as clearly as she possibly could. Deep down, she felt that needed to get answers from her, but she couldn’t ask anything about Virgo at the current moment. All she thought about was her dead mother at the moment.
“To purge the darkness.”
“…Whatever. I just want to get away from here now,” Svetlana said as she gestured to Nancy. “I’ll deal with you another time, Virgo’s servant.”
“Do you wish to save her? Unless the holy light has been harnessed—your mother cannot be saved.”
“How could I save my mother?! You saw what she was turned into! You even killed her! How could I even save her now?!” Svetlana lashed out with teary eyes.
Judgement Summoner shook her head at these words.
“I am the Judge of Light. I could still sense it; her life yet lives and wanders the earth—her soul trapped in this world. I could not free her… thanks to your interruption.”
“How do I save her then? I don’t wish for Mama to suffer.”
“Put an end to her yourself. If you learn to wield the light of the stars, she shall be freed from this prison.”
Svetlana froze for some moments after hearing this response from Judgement Summoner. Put an end to her mother? By herself? It took some moments for her to process these words in mind.
“Then show me how to wield the light of the stars. For Mama, I shall learn whatever it takes to free her.”
“But don’t you loathe me, as I serve Virgo?”
“I hate Virgo. I despise her, that is for sure, but I want to free Mama. I can ignore the hate I feel for you—for now, if you can help me free Mama. But if it involves serving that wench, I’ll find another way to free her.”
Judgement Summoner shook her head.
“You’d not have to serve her, and I doubt she cares enough to make you. Follow me. Come to Saudi Arabia—become my apprentice—and I shall teach you to harness the light of the stars.”
“Fine. I will do it if it will allow me to save Mama,” Svetlana said resolutely, wiping away her tears.
“It is Saudi Arabia, though…” Nancy said. “I do not think we came here prepared for such a trip, Mistress.”
“Just tell us where to meet you, and we’ll head there when we’re ready.”
“Come to the Royal Palace of King Abdullah in the capital city of Riyadh. Tell the guards that the †˜Princess’ gave you permission.”
“Princess? Couldn’t anyone just say that and get in…”
Judgement Summoner smiled for the first time.
“The guards can read the truth.”
Breaking down into tiny blue particles, the form of the Representative broke and dispersed, falling into the floor and vanishing.
“Nancy, let us head back to my house first, and rest...I don’t think I can face Isabelle right away yet…”
…Where am I? What kind of a place is this. Svetlana thought, utterly confused. “Nancy… are you there…?” Svetlana tried shouting, unsure what to do, but her voice barely carried far and bubbles climbed up to the surface above, and she only now realized that she was inside a water cube.
She looked around again, this time facing different directions, and it seemed like Nancy was in a cube just beside her.
What’s going on? ...Who would do this?
Svetlana decided to build up her demonic mana to see if it would help her escape. Building up her Infernal powers, a black aura began to form, which fully surrounded her body. Her eyes turned black as a result. Two spikes seemed to extend thanks to this blackness and her wings were magically longer now. The bubble she was trapped under suddenly blew open, water splashing in every directions and her feet landed on cold wet steel. She flew up to the bubble where Nancy was in, and placed her hand onto the glass—transferring her Infernal mana into it, causing it to burst too.
She caught Nancy and went back down to the floor. Of course, both of them were naked.
“Nancy! Wake up!” Svetlana shook the maid’s body.
“Mn… a good coat and a good man makes the life…” Nancy was mumbling in her sleep.
“Nancy!” Svetlana raised her voice as she shook Nancy again.
“Oh… uh, Mistress? Where am I? This smell is terrible… for the health I would think…” Nancy said, rubbing her eyes, and barely moving.
“I wish I could answer that, but I have no clue. I’ve never been here before,” Svetlana said, looking around. “I’ll fly around for a bit so just look around to see if anything catches your eye.”
“I… cannot really move,” Nancy said, finally opening her eyes. “Oh dear Lord, Mistress, what happened to you?!”
“You can say I’m in the demonic form right now. Before, it’d have been the demon using my body, but it seems I have full control for now. Enough of that though, we must figure out where we are, so just look to see if anything catches your eye,” Svetlana said, flying around slowly, examining the place.
She wanted to point out to Svetlana that the first thing she noticed was that they lacked their clothings, but stopped.
“M...Mistress… we should leave somehow.” Nancy looked down. “They are aiming at us!”
When Svetlana looked down, there were steam robots aiming guns at her; round robots with round heads with red round eyes. She fluttered in the air as they shot. She wasn’t used to flying just yet. Trying to ran away, a burning stream of steam struck against her wing and she fell down to the icy cold iron floor, while Nancy fell atop one of the cubes, which broke from the force and the water leaked out. When Nancy looked up, she found a body on top of herself.
Angered, Svetlana stood up and a black sphere formed atop her right hand, electricity surrounding it. “Damn you stupid machines! Just die!” Svetlana shouted as she shot her sphere at the machine dolls. All of the bots were destroyed in an instant. She quickly shifted her attention to Nancy. “Are you okay, Nancy?” she walked over to her.
Svetlana froze as she recognized the body on top of Nancy. To her, the shape was unmistakable as well as the long silver hair, much like her previous form. The black aura around her body vanished at the moment as Svetlana fell to her knees.
“M-M-Mama!” Svetlana said as she broke into tears.
Her mother’s body twitched, and seemed to stir to life, reigniting Svetlana’s hope.
“Mama!”
“Svetlana… is that you?” somehow, her mother knew it was Svetlana, despite the differing voice and appearance. Was this the result of the strong bond she shared with her child?
“Yes, Mama it’s me.” Svetlana was shocked to see her mother move, yet she was equally glad.
Nancy smiled, moving herself out from under Svetlana’s mother somehow. It was still hard for her to move. “See? She is alive, Mistress! I told you not to assume the worst!”
“Yes, but we must hurry and get out of here. We don’t know what else will come,” Svetlana said, wiping her tears away, before helping to two stand up.
Before she touched her mother, she looked up to her with a smile.
“So it is really you.”
The red large dot on her face and the curved red line that was her mouth made Svetlana scream in utter terror. A completely black face with the red figures stood up on its own, and her mother started giving an eerie laugh. Nancy herself somehow pushed herself away on the floor in pure fear from seeing this kind of a face.
“W-What… is this?!” Nancy screamed.
Svetlana couldn’t believe her eyes, speechless after her scream subsided. Her mother face was completely gone. She couldn’t muster any words as all, looking up to her blank black face with the red ball-like mouth in horror.
The mother looked at Svetlana, and her body soon started to break apart, changing to something she could not even imagine her entire life. Black horns grew out from her head, the hair turned black, and she grew taller. From her back tore out legs made of metal and a demonic yell was heard. It sounded so much like Svetlana herself when she used to lose control of herself.
Svetlana’s mother was similar to a spider, standing up with the metallic legs that spawned off her back. Wings like that of insects grew at last, and she kept laughing maniacally—none of which made sense to either Svetlana or Nancy.
“NOOOOOooooooooo!! You’re not Mama!” Svetlana shouted out of fear, as she shot at a Flame Spear spell, but missed, not being able to aim properly due to her state of mind.
“M…Mistress, we must run!” Nancy hurriedly suggested, she could barely regain control of her body just yet. Something strong was indeed injected into both of them. While it seemed like Svetlana fought it off with her Infernal mana, Nancy couldn’t despite collecting mana into her body. Hence, she could barely reach up to her Mistress; hardly able to even walk.
“May the sinners be purged!”
A blinding light fell on Svetlana’s twisted mother—or creature—and she writhed in agony, sending a bloodcurdling cry echo against the steel walls of the room.
Svetlana could barely recognize the voice she heard—the voice of someone who served her sworn enemy. How could she forget?
The shining figure of Judgement Summoner could be seen in the distance behind her. Energies spiraled before her and lights gathered, the Life Buster Commandment was being prepared, and it was all too familiar—as if she saw it only yesterday.
“No! Please stop!” Svetlana shouted as tears flood down her eyes yet again.
The gathering of the spiritual energies stopped as Judgement Summoner noticed Svetlana and Nancy on the floor, just before the creature. With a bright flash she sped up to Svetlana, and shot a blinding beam of light at her supposed mother, before the monster used one of her legs to crush Svetlana.
The Representative immediately took up Svetlana and Nancy on her arms with ease, displaying abnormal strength before she jumped. As soon as her foot landed, she streaked across the iron clad floor and vanished—literally dashing in the speed of light.
***
Just outside on top of a building that was close to the ground floor of the iron layers stood Judgement Summoner. Beside her, two were dropped on the cold and snowy floor. Svetlana and Nancy were both battered and tired in more ways than one. The blizzard continued to take place, and it only seemed to have gotten stronger. As they were out in the air nude like this, the cold was extremely chilling to the skin and bones and they instinctively hugged themselves.
As the feeling of immediately thread was over, the feeling of cold started to feel like a slow-death for them. Nancy barely looked up to their savior, a woman wearing white exotic clothes. Svetlana seemed to be familiar with this person, but it seemed like she was in no proper state of mind to react to her presence now.
Svetlana was still speechless. She didn’t know what to say, or what could be said at all, now that the image of her mother’s new and grotesque form returned to her mind. She was still crying.
“M-Mama…”
“Mistress…” Nancy hugged Svetlana tight. “Let us… let us go back. This is a dangerous land for you to stay in.”
“This is the filth that we strive to remove from this world.” Judgement Summoner faced Svetlana, not looking up to the iron pillar anymore. “You saw only a small portion of it.”
“Why are you even here, Judgement Summoner?” Svetlana asked as clearly as she possibly could. Deep down, she felt that needed to get answers from her, but she couldn’t ask anything about Virgo at the current moment. All she thought about was her dead mother at the moment.
“To purge the darkness.”
“…Whatever. I just want to get away from here now,” Svetlana said as she gestured to Nancy. “I’ll deal with you another time, Virgo’s servant.”
“Do you wish to save her? Unless the holy light has been harnessed—your mother cannot be saved.”
“How could I save my mother?! You saw what she was turned into! You even killed her! How could I even save her now?!” Svetlana lashed out with teary eyes.
Judgement Summoner shook her head at these words.
“I am the Judge of Light. I could still sense it; her life yet lives and wanders the earth—her soul trapped in this world. I could not free her… thanks to your interruption.”
“How do I save her then? I don’t wish for Mama to suffer.”
“Put an end to her yourself. If you learn to wield the light of the stars, she shall be freed from this prison.”
Svetlana froze for some moments after hearing this response from Judgement Summoner. Put an end to her mother? By herself? It took some moments for her to process these words in mind.
“Then show me how to wield the light of the stars. For Mama, I shall learn whatever it takes to free her.”
“But don’t you loathe me, as I serve Virgo?”
“I hate Virgo. I despise her, that is for sure, but I want to free Mama. I can ignore the hate I feel for you—for now, if you can help me free Mama. But if it involves serving that wench, I’ll find another way to free her.”
Judgement Summoner shook her head.
“You’d not have to serve her, and I doubt she cares enough to make you. Follow me. Come to Saudi Arabia—become my apprentice—and I shall teach you to harness the light of the stars.”
“Fine. I will do it if it will allow me to save Mama,” Svetlana said resolutely, wiping away her tears.
“It is Saudi Arabia, though…” Nancy said. “I do not think we came here prepared for such a trip, Mistress.”
“Just tell us where to meet you, and we’ll head there when we’re ready.”
“Come to the Royal Palace of King Abdullah in the capital city of Riyadh. Tell the guards that the †˜Princess’ gave you permission.”
“Princess? Couldn’t anyone just say that and get in…”
Judgement Summoner smiled for the first time.
“The guards can read the truth.”
Breaking down into tiny blue particles, the form of the Representative broke and dispersed, falling into the floor and vanishing.
“Nancy, let us head back to my house first, and rest...I don’t think I can face Isabelle right away yet…”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
At the crack of dawn the Magic Train returned, the streets were yet to see the lively day that was to take place hours later.
The New Amner Hall was the abode where Isabelle was supposed to be living with her sister. The older sister was supposedly out for about three days now in Russia. It was much too early and even the little sister was not awake.
A sleepy maid finally opened the door, and Svetlana burst inside with a crazed expression—looking around to find the only remaining person close to her in the entire world, but she wasn’t there. Nancy ran up from outside the house and helped Svetlana calm down.
The maids were not sure what was going on. To add, they were only getting up about now due to the commotion their Mistress seemed to be raising out of what seemed like an emergency? Nancy swiftly gestured for them to be dismissed. She escorted her Mistress to the room of her sister with haste.
Svetlana did not even bother to knock or even bring to mind any of the mannerisms she was told to remember when she opened the doors and ran up Isabelle’s bed. The diligent girl didn’t even woke up after a groan when she found Svetlana crying, wetting her blanker.
“W-What is going on?!” Isabelle barely managed to enquire. “What happened, sister? Tell me, and stop crying already!”
The younger sister pulled herself up immediately and Svetlana hugged her.
“M-Mama, m-mama…” It was all Svetlana could muster to say, she was unable to halt her wailing.
Nancy closed the door behind herself, and approached Isabelle with a grave face, not looking at Isabelle or Svetlana, but instead she looked down.
“Mistress’ mother… is no longer who she should be,” the maid stated.
“That… that does not quite explain what happened, Miss Nancy.”
Nancy narrated the story behind what happened in Russia, including what she and her Mistress witnessed, and how Svetlana was told to learn a different set of spells to free her mother from the †˜prison.’
“Are you… really going to Saudi Arabia?” Isabelle asked with shock to her sister who was still hugging and crying, letting her let all her tears out. “Somehow, all of this worries me…”
“I-If it means saving m-mama, I will.”
“Had she mentioned how long you will have to stay there?”
“No…”
“Very well, sister, I will take care of things here. You go do what you must—save your mother, it is the least that can be done.”
“I-I will.”
“Make the preparations for the trip,” Isabelle commanded. “Take my sister to her room… she needs rest, for reasons more than one, I believe.”
“Understood.” Nancy complied, the sisters separated for the time being and a new adventure was yet to begin for Svetlana.
The New Amner Hall was the abode where Isabelle was supposed to be living with her sister. The older sister was supposedly out for about three days now in Russia. It was much too early and even the little sister was not awake.
A sleepy maid finally opened the door, and Svetlana burst inside with a crazed expression—looking around to find the only remaining person close to her in the entire world, but she wasn’t there. Nancy ran up from outside the house and helped Svetlana calm down.
The maids were not sure what was going on. To add, they were only getting up about now due to the commotion their Mistress seemed to be raising out of what seemed like an emergency? Nancy swiftly gestured for them to be dismissed. She escorted her Mistress to the room of her sister with haste.
Svetlana did not even bother to knock or even bring to mind any of the mannerisms she was told to remember when she opened the doors and ran up Isabelle’s bed. The diligent girl didn’t even woke up after a groan when she found Svetlana crying, wetting her blanker.
“W-What is going on?!” Isabelle barely managed to enquire. “What happened, sister? Tell me, and stop crying already!”
The younger sister pulled herself up immediately and Svetlana hugged her.
“M-Mama, m-mama…” It was all Svetlana could muster to say, she was unable to halt her wailing.
Nancy closed the door behind herself, and approached Isabelle with a grave face, not looking at Isabelle or Svetlana, but instead she looked down.
“Mistress’ mother… is no longer who she should be,” the maid stated.
“That… that does not quite explain what happened, Miss Nancy.”
Nancy narrated the story behind what happened in Russia, including what she and her Mistress witnessed, and how Svetlana was told to learn a different set of spells to free her mother from the †˜prison.’
“Are you… really going to Saudi Arabia?” Isabelle asked with shock to her sister who was still hugging and crying, letting her let all her tears out. “Somehow, all of this worries me…”
“I-If it means saving m-mama, I will.”
“Had she mentioned how long you will have to stay there?”
“No…”
“Very well, sister, I will take care of things here. You go do what you must—save your mother, it is the least that can be done.”
“I-I will.”
“Make the preparations for the trip,” Isabelle commanded. “Take my sister to her room… she needs rest, for reasons more than one, I believe.”
“Understood.” Nancy complied, the sisters separated for the time being and a new adventure was yet to begin for Svetlana.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
With their hands linked, Aleksander and Lady Violet entered the ballroom inside his mansion. Despite all the invitations were sent, the Duke got about seventy guests. Some left early, however, so by the time he entered fashionably late with his date, it was just about down to sixty guests.
He immediately found Constance, who simply gave a wave and smiled at him. He was surrounded with some male friends from the Royal Academy, alongside two beauties: Xenia and Gracie.
Xenia wore a red dress which did not seemed to completely fit her, while Gracie wore a long flowing purple dress that gleamed against the Engine lights. Constance’s attire was very simple but it seemed to draw attention to him regardless. David was apparently there too, but he seemed to be not noticed as much as Constance.
Lady Violet wore a purple dress. It was of a lighter shade compared to that of Gracie’s, glistening due to the materials used. It seemed like Violet donned a dress of a superior quality. Her hairdo for the night seemed to be specially prepared, with many braids adorned with accessories that attracted quite the attention from the guests.
In comparison to the lady on his arm, Alek was less radiant, and instead exuded a refined air of elegance, dressed in a simple dark blue tuxedo, with a puffy white shirt that made the vibrant sapphire-colored necktie pop all the more. He did his best to present a strong, confident aura to all the assembled attendees, despite his inner disappointment at the lack of people that showed up.
(GM Comment: I don’t exactly understand but I kind of gave it a benefit of the doubt and thus gave up. I mean, how could you imply that Violet wasn’t elegant enough due to having a dress with shiny materials? I cannot tell where to draw the line here.)
“There are fewer than I’d hoped, but perhaps a more relaxed atmosphere will be good. The food will be good, I’m sure, and we have excellent people in attendance. I know that we’ll have a good time. Would you care for some refreshment, and perhaps relax, chat with Constance a bit before we begin to socialize with the others?”
“I believe a drink should do. Simply chatting with the guests would be nice also,” Violet answered, apparently enjoying the atmosphere, perhaps it was because she hadn’t been to a social event for a long time. For some reason, she wasn’t looking much at her own escort. Normally, one wouldn’t, but even at the faintest of times would one, she seemed to ignore for some reason, yet her countenance seemed the usual.
It did not come to his attention that Aleksander’s dress code missed one important aspect of it. People actually tried to ignore looking at him. Letting his shirt out for everyone to view so openly—perhaps like an American—made others think he was practically naked.
(GM Comment: Here’s a hint: Alek forgot his bow tie and vest. Cravat done wrong basically.)
“You’re right, I suppose it would be rude to simply focus our attentions on our friends…” He agreed, “I’ll get you something right away.” He flagged down one of the servants who was walking around with a tray of drinks, taking one from the tray before asking Violet, “What would you like?”
“Anything is fine,” Violet said in a polite tone.
Alek nodded, getting her a glass of the same wine he was drinking. “You don’t mind wine, do you? It’s an excellent vintage I found in the cellar from when my father was a boy… “
“It is fine, I have wine here and there myself. Just not too much. I would end up tasting wine for my father here and there in fact.”
“Ahh, but of course. I’ve no intent of overdoing it either,” Alek admitted, “Now, who would you like to speak with first? If you’ve no preference, I know Griswold is about somewhere. Does that sound agreeable?”
“I feel like ignoring the others just around us is rude, as we just came down. Shall we simply speak to your close friends?”
“That sounds like a great idea. I’m sure you’ll enjoy talking to them well enough. Xenia can be a bit… exuberant, but she is a good person.” Alek explained in advance, so she wouldn’t be caught too off-guard by the energetic, sometimes-brash scholar.
“I… see,” Lady Violet said, noting the unnecessary comment. Violet and Xenia were actually good friends.
Alek approached his friends and begins to introduce everybody for politeness’ sake, before engaging Constance in a conversation.
“Thanks for holding down the fort for me until I got here. How are you doing tonight?” he asked in a friendly manner.
“Doing fine, why did it take you this long, though?” Constance asked. “It seemed like some people left as you were missing… I think.”
“Sorry sorry, I got a little bit wrapped up with some business documents I needed to deal with that came out of nowhere…” Alek smiled slightly in embarrassment, eyes crinkling in sincere regret as he covered for Violet.
While Alek made his excuse, Xenia and Violet already seemed to be engaged in their own conversation.
“It felt like it is still an acceptable result,” Constance said, noting Alek’s lack of a vest. He always had a screw loose or two, this old friend of mine. “Assuming the rest do not leave before dinner time actually makes it here.”
“Indeed, it could be much worse… I tried to invite Louise, but I don’t see her here, so I guess she must not have decided to come.”
“I tried my hand with Princess Beatrice too but I do not see her, either…”
“That’s a shame, you two seemed to be having a lovely time last week. I thought for sure there was at least some chemistry there…” Alek shrugged. “So, who did you bring tonight?”
“Lady Gracie,” Constance answered. “We are old friends who simply invite each other whenever we are in need of a partner.”
“Not a bad arrangement, in all honesty. I find it hard to imagine that she lacks for men vying for her attention, though,” Alek added. “I do like the brass band that Katya hired, they’re doing an excellent job on the music…” he said for lack of anything more substantial.
Let us avoid bringing Miss Katya up… we would not want anyone learning of her working here, he thought about the best interests of both Aleksander and Katya of the Aberdeen household. “I suppose we are comfortable doing it this way.” Constance leaned closer and whispered to his ear, carrying on the topic of Gracie for a suitable distraction, “She is sort of like us, just with men, if you catch my drift?”
“Really? I never noticed…” Alek seemed to actually be surprised. “Do you know if there’s anyone she actually likes?”
“No one I know of, otherwise she would likely have stopped doing so a long time ago. I suppose it is a long adventure.”
“Hmm… it must be tough. Then again, I suppose we’ve got the rest of our lives to settle down with someone, so why not live a little before we do?”
“I am sensing an arranged marriage that would finally let her settle down. I hope she does not—”
Gracie pulled Constance’s ear, albeit in a more joking manner with a smile, which seemed to scare Constance.
“I would not have a scandal, I had assured you of this before.”
“So it’s true then? You would have an arranged marriage…?” Alek asked. “Not surprising I suppose. You’re interesting to talk to, and quite easy on the eyes.”
Now, is he not fast to judge? “Nothing set to stone yet,” Gracie answered in a gentle tone. “I happen to be a very open person at the moment, but I do hope to show some loyalty in my married life.”
“That’s worthy of respect, it’s important to have a strong connection with one’s significant other. I myself grow tired of flirting with everyone I meet. It’s still fun, it just… now that I have actual responsibilities I find that it gets in the way at times.”
You seemed to be doing it quite a lot, however… “I suppose that is true for those who are the heads of their houses. I would have to be very careful if I were in your shoes, so I am thankful that I am still a Viscountess.”
Alek felt an intense guilt at that statement, remembering the very morning of the day with a slight blush. He had committed an act with his maid that could very much result in a scandal.
“You’re absolutely right. With no parents to arrange it for me, I’m in the uniquely precarious position of being able to choose who I marry, and I’m not sure who I want to live with, but it’s expected that I’ll choose somebody or the other… it’d be quite scandalous in itself if I didn’t, I feel.”
“You are probably very lucky, to the eyes of many around your age,” Constance commented. “I know I would feel that way.”
“A fair point. I know of one person in particular who I’m sure is envious. I’m not sure how to feel, though. If I already had someone I was sweet on, I suppose it’d be all too easy to enter negotiations with their house, and come to an arrangement, but I suppose I just don’t feel that way yet.” Alek simply shrugged. “There are a few I am interested in, but I do not know them well enough yet to say for sure…”
“Being in the position of choosing, wealth and standings are normally considered better factors to touch upon first, be it a noble or not,” Gracie stated.
“That is a good point. With that in mind, of the three I was thinking, one clearly pulls ahead of the others. At the same time, I’ve still got a whole year before I have to come to any kind of decision so I kind of want to take my time, and be sure of my choice before I do anything rash.”
“You would want to make sure the business is booming too, just in case,” Constance advised. “Other daughters of Dukes are always mindful of these things. Well, forget daughters, the parents themselves are very cautious of these factors.”
“Thankfully I’ve already been working to make up for lost time, we’re still not anywhere near our former glory, but I’m confident that with the right stud, our next group of foals will have some good, strong runners. Maybe even a few horses built properly for jousting. I just have to network, and try to secure access to the stud I had in mind…” He nodded. “Thank you for your counsel, Constance. I suppose I’ve got a long way to go towards making myself an attractive potential husband when you put it that way. What do you think Gracie?” Alek asks for her counsel, trying to get a woman’s perspective.
“I think flirting less might save you more considering you are the head of the house now. Well, not with me if you are discreet,” Gracie joked with a laugh. “By the by, I would want a horse soon to ride with if you do not mind discussing the matters.”
“Well, if you’re volunteering, I might be able to find just the right stud for you…” he said innocently. “He might need a little breaking in though, you don’t mind terribly, do you?”
“I do not mind. It is refreshing to have a challenge like that.”
“Were you looking to borrow his use for a short time only, or for the foreseeable future?” Alek asked, not entirely oblivious to the subtext, but he might just be reading into it too much.
“I would pay the appropriate amount and simply buy her.”
“Understandable, If you’d like to stop by the stable sometime soon, I can show you the one I had in mind, and I’ll let you give me a decision then, if it pleases you. With the matter of the horse settled for the moment, I agree that flirting less is high on the agenda, since I’ve found myself attempting to complement her and being ignored under the assumption it was false flattery.” Alek merely shrugged.
“We shall do that, then. I look forward to visiting your stable,” Gracie replied, ignoring the remark about his failures of flirting.
“Well, good luck making the right choice,” Constance said with a laugh. “Let us hope your future wife does not dismiss every compliments for the rest of your life.”
Alek laughed with him. “I was going to go speak with Griswold, if you don’t mind excusing me for a second. Would you like to come with, Violet?”
“We’re in the topic of the century!” Xenia interrupted before Violet spoke, making her giggle.
“I suppose I am too engaged in the conversation to come now,” Violet replied.
“No problem, I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself!” Alek’s smile continued, as he strolled off through the crowd, looking for Griswold.
Griswold seemed to be on the very corner of the ballroom, dressed with a simple black set of suit like any Victorian gentleman, simply enjoying a drink of wine when Alek found him, he simply seemed to be content with watching everyone else.
Alek approached him with a jovial swagger to his step. “Good evening, Mister Griswold! How are you doing, old chap?”
The teach gave one quick glance across Aleksander’s attire and smiled. “I do well, lad. What about you? Should you be coming all the way to this side to speak with the old me?”
“Tsk tsk tsk, I don’t see any gray hairs coming in yet…” Alek teased. “But seriously though, It’s good to see you again, Griswold. How have you been enjoying the party so far?”
“The same as usual for me, I am not simply very sociable, as you may see. Good food and drinks, though.”
“I think this is the first time I’ve seen you outside of the Academy in a while… what do you do outside of lessons and stuff, if you don’t mind me asking…?”
“Mostly research,” Griswold curtly answered. “I am almost always experimenting on things.”
“Umm…” Alek hummed for a moment. “You should ask someone if they want to dance, plenty of cute women here…” Alek tried to help someone he considered a friend out of his comfort zone.
(GM Comment: Teacher? Friend?)
“I am going to be alright here for now, no worries. I would do the men injustice if I dance now, anyway.” The teacher laughed. It wasn’t exactly the best idea to be one of those “wall-flowers” to wait and be willing to dance but not openly seek a dance partner. Thus Griswold understood why Aleksander was trying to help. However, it seemed like he was simply not interested in dancing for the moment.
“Alright, well I’m glad you’re enjoying the atmosphere.” Alek grinned. “I need to go mingle some more though, I’ll catch up with you again in a bit.”
Griswold simply waved lightly, but when Alek got up and turned to the ground, he found a black dressed lady staring down at him—no, his teacher. The woman with red eyes and silver hair smiled. Her ornaments were few but expensive, glimmering like the sparkles one would find in sands.
Princess Beatrice seemed to have come to his ball after all, and Alek could see Constance beside her. A crestfallen face was worn by Alek’s old friend, as if the world had ended for him—his mouth agape—breathless from the scene before him.
“Princess…” Alek bowed his head in recognition. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”
The Princess gave a smile and a nod, noting his presence, but spoke no more. She simply showed the back of her hand and Griswold knelt down and kissed it.
“I did not expect you to be here, Princess,” Griswold said, a wry smile plastered on his face, something Alek never saw before. “May I have the honour to dance, Your Highness?”
“Yes,” Beatrice consented. “Let us dance.”
Constance’s face grew grimmer as he heard these words. He had failed this evening.
“Griswold?” Alek asked, confused. Realising it was too late to get his attention, Alek turned to Constance with a sigh. “What… what just happened?”
“Like I would know?!” Constance snapped, but with a hushed tone, coming up to the corner where Alek was after Griswold headed off to the dance floor. “What in the name of bloody hell is this? Did she really just seek out a much older man as a partner as soon as she entered with her attendants after ignoring me?” Constance sat down where Griswold sat previously and sighed, while Gracie patted his back silently.
Alek sat down next to Constance and let the other young man lean on him if he wanted to. “It’s okay, man. I mean, it’s not, but it’ll get better…” He tried to comfort his friend. “That’s about as bad as things got with Louise, and I mean… I sorta moved on. Princesses are just… more than men like us are supposed to have, I guess.” he patted Constance’s back as well.
Constance didn’t even care enough to note how Alek addressed the high profile people of the country so casually due to his mood. “I knew somewhere in my head… I knew it, but it just got onto me,” Constance replied in pure disdain, feeling deep contempt for Griswold, who wooed the people with his dancing, even better than himself apparently. He looked away in frustration. “I guess I know how you had felt now, Alek.”
“Come on man… it’s not the end of the world. I doubt that she’ll dance with him for the whole night…” Alek tried to reassure Constance. “Just relax, and hang out with Gracie for a bit, and I’m sure you’ll get your chance later…” Alek nudged Gracie to remind her to help.
“It is because you were going for someone like her!” Gracie said, unexpectedly harsh. “You did not needed to go for her, I warned you before, Constance, I warned you.”
“I know… I am sorry,” Constance said, palming his face as he looked down.
“Look, Constance. I could’ve lived my whole life in Louise’s shadow, always doing what she wanted with the hope that some day she’d wake up and magically like me back. Now that I’m not so focused on just that, I see how many great women I know, that I might’ve never noticed since I was blinded by my infatuation. I’m sure the right woman for you is still out there, just… don’t give up hope. I’ll help you work through it if you want me to, since I still have a few things I need to work out of my system from being so obsessed…”
“I need to be alone, you two. I am sorry, but please excuse me,” Constance got up and walked away. It was bad enough that he almost raised a commotion in the ball. He didn’t wanted to make it worse for his friend who was hosting a ball in his abode for the first time.
“With today’s contribution the preparations are done, Princess,” Griswold said as he danced with Princess Beatrice.
“I see. That is indeed good news. Let us finally begin… Project Mordred.”
He immediately found Constance, who simply gave a wave and smiled at him. He was surrounded with some male friends from the Royal Academy, alongside two beauties: Xenia and Gracie.
Xenia wore a red dress which did not seemed to completely fit her, while Gracie wore a long flowing purple dress that gleamed against the Engine lights. Constance’s attire was very simple but it seemed to draw attention to him regardless. David was apparently there too, but he seemed to be not noticed as much as Constance.
Lady Violet wore a purple dress. It was of a lighter shade compared to that of Gracie’s, glistening due to the materials used. It seemed like Violet donned a dress of a superior quality. Her hairdo for the night seemed to be specially prepared, with many braids adorned with accessories that attracted quite the attention from the guests.
In comparison to the lady on his arm, Alek was less radiant, and instead exuded a refined air of elegance, dressed in a simple dark blue tuxedo, with a puffy white shirt that made the vibrant sapphire-colored necktie pop all the more. He did his best to present a strong, confident aura to all the assembled attendees, despite his inner disappointment at the lack of people that showed up.
(GM Comment: I don’t exactly understand but I kind of gave it a benefit of the doubt and thus gave up. I mean, how could you imply that Violet wasn’t elegant enough due to having a dress with shiny materials? I cannot tell where to draw the line here.)
“There are fewer than I’d hoped, but perhaps a more relaxed atmosphere will be good. The food will be good, I’m sure, and we have excellent people in attendance. I know that we’ll have a good time. Would you care for some refreshment, and perhaps relax, chat with Constance a bit before we begin to socialize with the others?”
“I believe a drink should do. Simply chatting with the guests would be nice also,” Violet answered, apparently enjoying the atmosphere, perhaps it was because she hadn’t been to a social event for a long time. For some reason, she wasn’t looking much at her own escort. Normally, one wouldn’t, but even at the faintest of times would one, she seemed to ignore for some reason, yet her countenance seemed the usual.
It did not come to his attention that Aleksander’s dress code missed one important aspect of it. People actually tried to ignore looking at him. Letting his shirt out for everyone to view so openly—perhaps like an American—made others think he was practically naked.
(GM Comment: Here’s a hint: Alek forgot his bow tie and vest. Cravat done wrong basically.)
“You’re right, I suppose it would be rude to simply focus our attentions on our friends…” He agreed, “I’ll get you something right away.” He flagged down one of the servants who was walking around with a tray of drinks, taking one from the tray before asking Violet, “What would you like?”
“Anything is fine,” Violet said in a polite tone.
Alek nodded, getting her a glass of the same wine he was drinking. “You don’t mind wine, do you? It’s an excellent vintage I found in the cellar from when my father was a boy… “
“It is fine, I have wine here and there myself. Just not too much. I would end up tasting wine for my father here and there in fact.”
“Ahh, but of course. I’ve no intent of overdoing it either,” Alek admitted, “Now, who would you like to speak with first? If you’ve no preference, I know Griswold is about somewhere. Does that sound agreeable?”
“I feel like ignoring the others just around us is rude, as we just came down. Shall we simply speak to your close friends?”
“That sounds like a great idea. I’m sure you’ll enjoy talking to them well enough. Xenia can be a bit… exuberant, but she is a good person.” Alek explained in advance, so she wouldn’t be caught too off-guard by the energetic, sometimes-brash scholar.
“I… see,” Lady Violet said, noting the unnecessary comment. Violet and Xenia were actually good friends.
Alek approached his friends and begins to introduce everybody for politeness’ sake, before engaging Constance in a conversation.
“Thanks for holding down the fort for me until I got here. How are you doing tonight?” he asked in a friendly manner.
“Doing fine, why did it take you this long, though?” Constance asked. “It seemed like some people left as you were missing… I think.”
“Sorry sorry, I got a little bit wrapped up with some business documents I needed to deal with that came out of nowhere…” Alek smiled slightly in embarrassment, eyes crinkling in sincere regret as he covered for Violet.
While Alek made his excuse, Xenia and Violet already seemed to be engaged in their own conversation.
“It felt like it is still an acceptable result,” Constance said, noting Alek’s lack of a vest. He always had a screw loose or two, this old friend of mine. “Assuming the rest do not leave before dinner time actually makes it here.”
“Indeed, it could be much worse… I tried to invite Louise, but I don’t see her here, so I guess she must not have decided to come.”
“I tried my hand with Princess Beatrice too but I do not see her, either…”
“That’s a shame, you two seemed to be having a lovely time last week. I thought for sure there was at least some chemistry there…” Alek shrugged. “So, who did you bring tonight?”
“Lady Gracie,” Constance answered. “We are old friends who simply invite each other whenever we are in need of a partner.”
“Not a bad arrangement, in all honesty. I find it hard to imagine that she lacks for men vying for her attention, though,” Alek added. “I do like the brass band that Katya hired, they’re doing an excellent job on the music…” he said for lack of anything more substantial.
Let us avoid bringing Miss Katya up… we would not want anyone learning of her working here, he thought about the best interests of both Aleksander and Katya of the Aberdeen household. “I suppose we are comfortable doing it this way.” Constance leaned closer and whispered to his ear, carrying on the topic of Gracie for a suitable distraction, “She is sort of like us, just with men, if you catch my drift?”
“Really? I never noticed…” Alek seemed to actually be surprised. “Do you know if there’s anyone she actually likes?”
“No one I know of, otherwise she would likely have stopped doing so a long time ago. I suppose it is a long adventure.”
“Hmm… it must be tough. Then again, I suppose we’ve got the rest of our lives to settle down with someone, so why not live a little before we do?”
“I am sensing an arranged marriage that would finally let her settle down. I hope she does not—”
Gracie pulled Constance’s ear, albeit in a more joking manner with a smile, which seemed to scare Constance.
“I would not have a scandal, I had assured you of this before.”
“So it’s true then? You would have an arranged marriage…?” Alek asked. “Not surprising I suppose. You’re interesting to talk to, and quite easy on the eyes.”
Now, is he not fast to judge? “Nothing set to stone yet,” Gracie answered in a gentle tone. “I happen to be a very open person at the moment, but I do hope to show some loyalty in my married life.”
“That’s worthy of respect, it’s important to have a strong connection with one’s significant other. I myself grow tired of flirting with everyone I meet. It’s still fun, it just… now that I have actual responsibilities I find that it gets in the way at times.”
You seemed to be doing it quite a lot, however… “I suppose that is true for those who are the heads of their houses. I would have to be very careful if I were in your shoes, so I am thankful that I am still a Viscountess.”
Alek felt an intense guilt at that statement, remembering the very morning of the day with a slight blush. He had committed an act with his maid that could very much result in a scandal.
“You’re absolutely right. With no parents to arrange it for me, I’m in the uniquely precarious position of being able to choose who I marry, and I’m not sure who I want to live with, but it’s expected that I’ll choose somebody or the other… it’d be quite scandalous in itself if I didn’t, I feel.”
“You are probably very lucky, to the eyes of many around your age,” Constance commented. “I know I would feel that way.”
“A fair point. I know of one person in particular who I’m sure is envious. I’m not sure how to feel, though. If I already had someone I was sweet on, I suppose it’d be all too easy to enter negotiations with their house, and come to an arrangement, but I suppose I just don’t feel that way yet.” Alek simply shrugged. “There are a few I am interested in, but I do not know them well enough yet to say for sure…”
“Being in the position of choosing, wealth and standings are normally considered better factors to touch upon first, be it a noble or not,” Gracie stated.
“That is a good point. With that in mind, of the three I was thinking, one clearly pulls ahead of the others. At the same time, I’ve still got a whole year before I have to come to any kind of decision so I kind of want to take my time, and be sure of my choice before I do anything rash.”
“You would want to make sure the business is booming too, just in case,” Constance advised. “Other daughters of Dukes are always mindful of these things. Well, forget daughters, the parents themselves are very cautious of these factors.”
“Thankfully I’ve already been working to make up for lost time, we’re still not anywhere near our former glory, but I’m confident that with the right stud, our next group of foals will have some good, strong runners. Maybe even a few horses built properly for jousting. I just have to network, and try to secure access to the stud I had in mind…” He nodded. “Thank you for your counsel, Constance. I suppose I’ve got a long way to go towards making myself an attractive potential husband when you put it that way. What do you think Gracie?” Alek asks for her counsel, trying to get a woman’s perspective.
“I think flirting less might save you more considering you are the head of the house now. Well, not with me if you are discreet,” Gracie joked with a laugh. “By the by, I would want a horse soon to ride with if you do not mind discussing the matters.”
“Well, if you’re volunteering, I might be able to find just the right stud for you…” he said innocently. “He might need a little breaking in though, you don’t mind terribly, do you?”
“I do not mind. It is refreshing to have a challenge like that.”
“Were you looking to borrow his use for a short time only, or for the foreseeable future?” Alek asked, not entirely oblivious to the subtext, but he might just be reading into it too much.
“I would pay the appropriate amount and simply buy her.”
“Understandable, If you’d like to stop by the stable sometime soon, I can show you the one I had in mind, and I’ll let you give me a decision then, if it pleases you. With the matter of the horse settled for the moment, I agree that flirting less is high on the agenda, since I’ve found myself attempting to complement her and being ignored under the assumption it was false flattery.” Alek merely shrugged.
“We shall do that, then. I look forward to visiting your stable,” Gracie replied, ignoring the remark about his failures of flirting.
“Well, good luck making the right choice,” Constance said with a laugh. “Let us hope your future wife does not dismiss every compliments for the rest of your life.”
Alek laughed with him. “I was going to go speak with Griswold, if you don’t mind excusing me for a second. Would you like to come with, Violet?”
“We’re in the topic of the century!” Xenia interrupted before Violet spoke, making her giggle.
“I suppose I am too engaged in the conversation to come now,” Violet replied.
“No problem, I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself!” Alek’s smile continued, as he strolled off through the crowd, looking for Griswold.
Griswold seemed to be on the very corner of the ballroom, dressed with a simple black set of suit like any Victorian gentleman, simply enjoying a drink of wine when Alek found him, he simply seemed to be content with watching everyone else.
Alek approached him with a jovial swagger to his step. “Good evening, Mister Griswold! How are you doing, old chap?”
The teach gave one quick glance across Aleksander’s attire and smiled. “I do well, lad. What about you? Should you be coming all the way to this side to speak with the old me?”
“Tsk tsk tsk, I don’t see any gray hairs coming in yet…” Alek teased. “But seriously though, It’s good to see you again, Griswold. How have you been enjoying the party so far?”
“The same as usual for me, I am not simply very sociable, as you may see. Good food and drinks, though.”
“I think this is the first time I’ve seen you outside of the Academy in a while… what do you do outside of lessons and stuff, if you don’t mind me asking…?”
“Mostly research,” Griswold curtly answered. “I am almost always experimenting on things.”
“Umm…” Alek hummed for a moment. “You should ask someone if they want to dance, plenty of cute women here…” Alek tried to help someone he considered a friend out of his comfort zone.
(GM Comment: Teacher? Friend?)
“I am going to be alright here for now, no worries. I would do the men injustice if I dance now, anyway.” The teacher laughed. It wasn’t exactly the best idea to be one of those “wall-flowers” to wait and be willing to dance but not openly seek a dance partner. Thus Griswold understood why Aleksander was trying to help. However, it seemed like he was simply not interested in dancing for the moment.
“Alright, well I’m glad you’re enjoying the atmosphere.” Alek grinned. “I need to go mingle some more though, I’ll catch up with you again in a bit.”
Griswold simply waved lightly, but when Alek got up and turned to the ground, he found a black dressed lady staring down at him—no, his teacher. The woman with red eyes and silver hair smiled. Her ornaments were few but expensive, glimmering like the sparkles one would find in sands.
Princess Beatrice seemed to have come to his ball after all, and Alek could see Constance beside her. A crestfallen face was worn by Alek’s old friend, as if the world had ended for him—his mouth agape—breathless from the scene before him.
“Princess…” Alek bowed his head in recognition. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”
The Princess gave a smile and a nod, noting his presence, but spoke no more. She simply showed the back of her hand and Griswold knelt down and kissed it.
“I did not expect you to be here, Princess,” Griswold said, a wry smile plastered on his face, something Alek never saw before. “May I have the honour to dance, Your Highness?”
“Yes,” Beatrice consented. “Let us dance.”
Constance’s face grew grimmer as he heard these words. He had failed this evening.
“Griswold?” Alek asked, confused. Realising it was too late to get his attention, Alek turned to Constance with a sigh. “What… what just happened?”
“Like I would know?!” Constance snapped, but with a hushed tone, coming up to the corner where Alek was after Griswold headed off to the dance floor. “What in the name of bloody hell is this? Did she really just seek out a much older man as a partner as soon as she entered with her attendants after ignoring me?” Constance sat down where Griswold sat previously and sighed, while Gracie patted his back silently.
Alek sat down next to Constance and let the other young man lean on him if he wanted to. “It’s okay, man. I mean, it’s not, but it’ll get better…” He tried to comfort his friend. “That’s about as bad as things got with Louise, and I mean… I sorta moved on. Princesses are just… more than men like us are supposed to have, I guess.” he patted Constance’s back as well.
Constance didn’t even care enough to note how Alek addressed the high profile people of the country so casually due to his mood. “I knew somewhere in my head… I knew it, but it just got onto me,” Constance replied in pure disdain, feeling deep contempt for Griswold, who wooed the people with his dancing, even better than himself apparently. He looked away in frustration. “I guess I know how you had felt now, Alek.”
“Come on man… it’s not the end of the world. I doubt that she’ll dance with him for the whole night…” Alek tried to reassure Constance. “Just relax, and hang out with Gracie for a bit, and I’m sure you’ll get your chance later…” Alek nudged Gracie to remind her to help.
“It is because you were going for someone like her!” Gracie said, unexpectedly harsh. “You did not needed to go for her, I warned you before, Constance, I warned you.”
“I know… I am sorry,” Constance said, palming his face as he looked down.
“Look, Constance. I could’ve lived my whole life in Louise’s shadow, always doing what she wanted with the hope that some day she’d wake up and magically like me back. Now that I’m not so focused on just that, I see how many great women I know, that I might’ve never noticed since I was blinded by my infatuation. I’m sure the right woman for you is still out there, just… don’t give up hope. I’ll help you work through it if you want me to, since I still have a few things I need to work out of my system from being so obsessed…”
“I need to be alone, you two. I am sorry, but please excuse me,” Constance got up and walked away. It was bad enough that he almost raised a commotion in the ball. He didn’t wanted to make it worse for his friend who was hosting a ball in his abode for the first time.
“With today’s contribution the preparations are done, Princess,” Griswold said as he danced with Princess Beatrice.
“I see. That is indeed good news. Let us finally begin… Project Mordred.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
(Note that some of Aramus’ scenes here happened a little earlier between the other scenes posted above. I just decided to keep Aramus parts together that took place in Saudi Arabia, more or less, until Claudia comes along.)
“This better be worth it,” Chris mumbled.
Aramus was in yet another private room in an airplane. This time, traveling to a country he hadn’t been to before. The journey had started some time ago, but it seemed like they weren’t reaching their destination anytime soon.
Christopher, one of the nine remaining Archmages in the world seemed to have went great lengths to ensure they’d have privacy here.
“So anyway, food aside, I wanted to tell you more about the Lost Form you were interested in,” Chris started, taking out a completely blank piece of paper. “I’m going to make it simple for you. Just place your palm here.” He handed Aramus the paper.
Aramus held his hand over the paper as instructed, wondering what was going to happen.
“See? Nothing happens, right?”
“Uh, yeah. Was something supposed to?” Aramus asked, tilting his head in confusion.
“Watch.” Chris smiled, taking the paper from Aramus’ hand. The Archmage then placed his own palm over it. There was a very strange mark over the paper as soon as he took his palm off. He handed the paper back to the Magister.
Aramus peered down at the page. There was a pattern of round lines that seemed to penetrate the paper. It was an elaborate spiral symbol, to be specific.
“Neat. Is that your Mage’s Sigil?” Aramus asked, running a thumb along the spiral.
“No, this is the Dragon’s Sigil.”
”Wow. Each Dragon’s Sigil is different?” Aramus said with a smile, looking at Christopher expectantly.
“Apparently,” Chris answered, returning the smile. “The Fist of the Dragon lets you cultivate the Dragon’s Sigil. I guess that’s the second—never mind, third step.”
“So, what’s the first step of this Lost Form?” Aramus inquired, eager to start. “You said something about growing a dragon within you?”
“Yes, that one. It’s tough, though.” Unlike Aramus, Chris didn’t seemed to be looking forward to this step. “Feels like a boiling fruit put inside your gut, that thing.”
Aramus made a face at how he described it, or rather, how strange that description sounded.
“So how does this thing begin growing anyway? Like, do we channel mana into a certain portion of ourselves?”
“Actually, it’s a bit of a pain, but you have to go through an entire Ritual of the Dragon. Lots of mana to channel, yes.”
“Will we be able to get that started once we touchdown?”
“Yeah. It won’t be pretty, though.”
“I’m prepared for it. I don’t think it could beat what Sagittarius did to me back when I fought her, that was terrible…” Aramus blanched, making a face at the memory.
“That’s a Descendant for †˜ya. Anyway, I want to tell you about the legend. When I met the old monk he seemed to think that learning the concept from the legend helps. Something like that. Not that I know if it did, but I guess I’m doing it for the tradition.”
“This can all be learned from a legend?” Aramus said, raising an eyebrow questioningly. “You learnt it the same way master?”
“Yes, I had to even make diagrams to illustrate the happenings to solve the puzzle.”
“So they’re like pictograms?” Aramus pursed his lips.
“I just made it that way, really.” Chris cleared his throat after he paused. “Anyway, it all started when a woman travelled to the Eastern continents from somewhere in Europe. They called her the Mother of the Dragons later in the story. In other words, she was the Goddess who was revered in the legend. She seemed to come in the form of a young girl who held infinitely great talents.”
“Alright…” Aramus was not quite sure where Christopher was going.
“She was planning to simply pass by, but one day… she saw a sailor. You might be thinking †˜what does a sailor got to do with some crazy dragon arts?’ I know I did. The sailor was being beaten up by a bunch of men. Basically, they were all doing things now considered illegal, smuggling and stuff. The legend doesn’t specify, but even at that age the thing was likely banned too.
“Contrary to most stories, the Goddess didn’t save the boy, and watched him suffer from afar. Bored, the Goddess decided to see how he lived everyday. The sailor barely had any money with him, ever. He had no family or friends. He had nothing, and he didn’t have love in his life. He was alive for the sake of it. So, how do you think this sailor became the man who cut the sea in two?”
“Did he become a Representative of the Goddess?” Aramus guessed. The legend had him stumped, how did one man managed to divide the sea?
“I wonder about that myself, son. The Goddess watched him suffer left and right. The smugglers he worked with betrayed him. Even if they didn’t get him imprisoned, everyone simply hated his face in the neighborhood, cursing at him in public sometimes. One day, some kids just went to his little hut to ransack his sparse belongings, and that was when he was truly left with nothing to spare.
“Eventually, he decided to leave his homeland. Just as he was about begin his venture, the Goddess approached him, asking if he wanted to become †˜what he was not.’ It was there that his long journey began. The sailor at first was skeptical, but the Goddess showed arts that were out of the world, with a kick she cracked the earth—swallowing the town whole—with a thrusting palm she leveled the mountains… sounds crazy, right?”
“So she removed everybody that was hurting the sailor, nifty. I guess there’s something to be said about having too much power… like the World Buster.”
“I think she was only trying to prove herself as †˜not normal’, but who knows when to hold themselves back? I doubt the Goddess did. Anyway, after all was said and done, the sailor was taken to a place called the Dragon’s Temple, where he learned to create and tame his inner dragon. At the time the temple was abandoned and unclean, but the sailor worked on it alone. The Goddess would only ever watch, never doing anything, or helping him in time of need. It seemed like the Mother was the paragon of observers. The first skill that he learned was the Fist of the Dragon. After we go through your ritual, that’s what I’ll be teaching you.”
“Maybe that Goddess is still alive somewhere, who knows. She might even be a Descendant, but that was a pretty interesting story. I’m not sure how that translates to us now considering there isn’t really a temple to clean but I’d imagine it was referring to something more spiritual…” Aramus said with a frown.
“The legend mentioned that the Fist could wipe out a legion, but that’s bullshit, because I sure as heck can’t do that, but the legend teaches us about how the whole thing works. I’ll just break it down for you. The first part is getting the dragon in you. It grows as you train, there is a spell that lets your dragon activate. At least I think it does; it is a rumored †˜stance’ spell.’ After that, it starts building up your temperature. The mana basically starts fluctuating inside you and your inner cycle where it circulates, building frictions with said mana—generating heat and power. So, it’s up to your fists to discharge them, otherwise you cook yourself over.”
“So we’re kind of like biological reactors? This is a lot more dangerous than many of the other Forms if not controlled properly…”
“Yeah, that might be why it’s a Lost Form. The thing got me into many fevers and I don’t think it’ll be any different for you. Anyway, this is what you’re getting into in a nutshell. You’re gonna be fine proceeding or try some other stuff?”
“I’ll do it or die trying. Now that you’ve presented it before me, there’s no way I can walk away. Might be able to work some of my own magic into the Lost Form and it’s good considering I lack close combat options,” Aramus said enthusiastically.
“Careful about trying your own thing with the Lost Form. Each of the existing spells actually considers factors even I don’t understand to this day. Let’s just say that I almost tore a city off by experimenting.”
“I-I’ll be careful.”
“This better be worth it,” Chris mumbled.
Aramus was in yet another private room in an airplane. This time, traveling to a country he hadn’t been to before. The journey had started some time ago, but it seemed like they weren’t reaching their destination anytime soon.
Christopher, one of the nine remaining Archmages in the world seemed to have went great lengths to ensure they’d have privacy here.
“So anyway, food aside, I wanted to tell you more about the Lost Form you were interested in,” Chris started, taking out a completely blank piece of paper. “I’m going to make it simple for you. Just place your palm here.” He handed Aramus the paper.
Aramus held his hand over the paper as instructed, wondering what was going to happen.
“See? Nothing happens, right?”
“Uh, yeah. Was something supposed to?” Aramus asked, tilting his head in confusion.
“Watch.” Chris smiled, taking the paper from Aramus’ hand. The Archmage then placed his own palm over it. There was a very strange mark over the paper as soon as he took his palm off. He handed the paper back to the Magister.
Aramus peered down at the page. There was a pattern of round lines that seemed to penetrate the paper. It was an elaborate spiral symbol, to be specific.
“Neat. Is that your Mage’s Sigil?” Aramus asked, running a thumb along the spiral.
“No, this is the Dragon’s Sigil.”
”Wow. Each Dragon’s Sigil is different?” Aramus said with a smile, looking at Christopher expectantly.
“Apparently,” Chris answered, returning the smile. “The Fist of the Dragon lets you cultivate the Dragon’s Sigil. I guess that’s the second—never mind, third step.”
“So, what’s the first step of this Lost Form?” Aramus inquired, eager to start. “You said something about growing a dragon within you?”
“Yes, that one. It’s tough, though.” Unlike Aramus, Chris didn’t seemed to be looking forward to this step. “Feels like a boiling fruit put inside your gut, that thing.”
Aramus made a face at how he described it, or rather, how strange that description sounded.
“So how does this thing begin growing anyway? Like, do we channel mana into a certain portion of ourselves?”
“Actually, it’s a bit of a pain, but you have to go through an entire Ritual of the Dragon. Lots of mana to channel, yes.”
“Will we be able to get that started once we touchdown?”
“Yeah. It won’t be pretty, though.”
“I’m prepared for it. I don’t think it could beat what Sagittarius did to me back when I fought her, that was terrible…” Aramus blanched, making a face at the memory.
“That’s a Descendant for †˜ya. Anyway, I want to tell you about the legend. When I met the old monk he seemed to think that learning the concept from the legend helps. Something like that. Not that I know if it did, but I guess I’m doing it for the tradition.”
“This can all be learned from a legend?” Aramus said, raising an eyebrow questioningly. “You learnt it the same way master?”
“Yes, I had to even make diagrams to illustrate the happenings to solve the puzzle.”
“So they’re like pictograms?” Aramus pursed his lips.
“I just made it that way, really.” Chris cleared his throat after he paused. “Anyway, it all started when a woman travelled to the Eastern continents from somewhere in Europe. They called her the Mother of the Dragons later in the story. In other words, she was the Goddess who was revered in the legend. She seemed to come in the form of a young girl who held infinitely great talents.”
“Alright…” Aramus was not quite sure where Christopher was going.
“She was planning to simply pass by, but one day… she saw a sailor. You might be thinking †˜what does a sailor got to do with some crazy dragon arts?’ I know I did. The sailor was being beaten up by a bunch of men. Basically, they were all doing things now considered illegal, smuggling and stuff. The legend doesn’t specify, but even at that age the thing was likely banned too.
“Contrary to most stories, the Goddess didn’t save the boy, and watched him suffer from afar. Bored, the Goddess decided to see how he lived everyday. The sailor barely had any money with him, ever. He had no family or friends. He had nothing, and he didn’t have love in his life. He was alive for the sake of it. So, how do you think this sailor became the man who cut the sea in two?”
“Did he become a Representative of the Goddess?” Aramus guessed. The legend had him stumped, how did one man managed to divide the sea?
“I wonder about that myself, son. The Goddess watched him suffer left and right. The smugglers he worked with betrayed him. Even if they didn’t get him imprisoned, everyone simply hated his face in the neighborhood, cursing at him in public sometimes. One day, some kids just went to his little hut to ransack his sparse belongings, and that was when he was truly left with nothing to spare.
“Eventually, he decided to leave his homeland. Just as he was about begin his venture, the Goddess approached him, asking if he wanted to become †˜what he was not.’ It was there that his long journey began. The sailor at first was skeptical, but the Goddess showed arts that were out of the world, with a kick she cracked the earth—swallowing the town whole—with a thrusting palm she leveled the mountains… sounds crazy, right?”
“So she removed everybody that was hurting the sailor, nifty. I guess there’s something to be said about having too much power… like the World Buster.”
“I think she was only trying to prove herself as †˜not normal’, but who knows when to hold themselves back? I doubt the Goddess did. Anyway, after all was said and done, the sailor was taken to a place called the Dragon’s Temple, where he learned to create and tame his inner dragon. At the time the temple was abandoned and unclean, but the sailor worked on it alone. The Goddess would only ever watch, never doing anything, or helping him in time of need. It seemed like the Mother was the paragon of observers. The first skill that he learned was the Fist of the Dragon. After we go through your ritual, that’s what I’ll be teaching you.”
“Maybe that Goddess is still alive somewhere, who knows. She might even be a Descendant, but that was a pretty interesting story. I’m not sure how that translates to us now considering there isn’t really a temple to clean but I’d imagine it was referring to something more spiritual…” Aramus said with a frown.
“The legend mentioned that the Fist could wipe out a legion, but that’s bullshit, because I sure as heck can’t do that, but the legend teaches us about how the whole thing works. I’ll just break it down for you. The first part is getting the dragon in you. It grows as you train, there is a spell that lets your dragon activate. At least I think it does; it is a rumored †˜stance’ spell.’ After that, it starts building up your temperature. The mana basically starts fluctuating inside you and your inner cycle where it circulates, building frictions with said mana—generating heat and power. So, it’s up to your fists to discharge them, otherwise you cook yourself over.”
“So we’re kind of like biological reactors? This is a lot more dangerous than many of the other Forms if not controlled properly…”
“Yeah, that might be why it’s a Lost Form. The thing got me into many fevers and I don’t think it’ll be any different for you. Anyway, this is what you’re getting into in a nutshell. You’re gonna be fine proceeding or try some other stuff?”
“I’ll do it or die trying. Now that you’ve presented it before me, there’s no way I can walk away. Might be able to work some of my own magic into the Lost Form and it’s good considering I lack close combat options,” Aramus said enthusiastically.
“Careful about trying your own thing with the Lost Form. Each of the existing spells actually considers factors even I don’t understand to this day. Let’s just say that I almost tore a city off by experimenting.”
“I-I’ll be careful.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Aramus and Christopher got off the plane and were well on their way to the King’s Palace in Riyadh. Contrary to what he expected, Aramus found that Saudi Arabia was modern. There were high-rise buildings interspersed amongst the smaller traditional buildings and certain plots of land were dedicated towards their mosques.
The attires were varied as well, certain youngsters wore clothings he witnessed back in the USA, slightly more fashionable clothing whereas others were dressed extremely modestly or for the weather. Even the men had flowing garments to deal with the hot desert climate with a special headdress that seemed to block sand. What surprised him the most were the women, dressed entirely in body covering black garment. The only part revealed to Aramus was the face and other times, just a slit for the eyes.
But if there was one thing that made him feel right at home, it was the smell of food. The fragrance of spices could be smelt every time he passed a restaurant, the ethnic cuisine making his mouth water. It was close enough to Indian food and therefore would be something close to a favorite in his books.
When the two entered the King’s Royal Palace, Christopher skipped all kinds of formalities and pleasantries to save time, rushing all the way to the throne room.
“The mundanes are so good at using that †˜busy’ excuse but we all know that the King has patrons doing his work,” Chris said in irritation. “Only to kill the time that could be spent eating.”
“We could eat here. I believe their cuisine could be just as good,” Aramus suggested, though he snickered a little at the way Chris spoke.
“Yeah but even a great man understands when’s the time for that, and whatnot. I damn well expect the King to treat us to a banquet. Good stuff to have after a talk, always.”
“The faster we get this over with, the more time we have for a banquet then?” Aramus quipped.
“That, and you have to spend a considerable time on that ritual, lad. I want to get to that part and be done with it.”
“I’ll try to make the wait less excruciating, Master.” The Magister laughed as he followed behind his Master.
Soon, the doors opened as the King gave consent. The Archmage and the Magister entered the throne room. When they looked around, aside from the intricate designs and the exquisite carpet, the attendants of the King were dismissed for whatever discussion they’d have.
Before Chris even thought to show some more pleasantries, the King simply raised his hand to stop him.
“We share the same rank, no need to kneel,” the King said, but only looking at Christopher. “I am glad to see that you came far after so long, however.”
“What can I say? Gotta do what I must,” Chris said with a wry smile, kneeling down for show anyway.
The King had dark skin and was surprisingly young, contrary to what Aramus heard. Perhaps this was a result of tampering with magic. Whatever the case, the King was an exotic and charming man that even Aramus could appreciate from sight alone. His air itself seemingly majestic, slightly reminding him of how one could feel just gazing up to Queen Victoria.
“I have already prepared some of my subjects for the apprehension of the vampires. There are some routes we believe are used by them for the illegal trades. The Space Police seems to have a want for involving themselves with the case so I believe you would very much be interested.”
“...Now that is indeed interesting,” Chris said, having not expected the Space Police involved. “How do we get on this case exactly?”
“I shall have my men pass on the documented information,” King Abdullah stated. “How about you two join us for the banquet? We have prepared a fine one to sate your tongue, Christopher.”
“Now we’re talking.”
“It would be an honor, King Abdullah.” Aramus said but otherwise didn’t say anything.
After the banquet, Chris almost suggested going to sleep but that was the worst idea he had, for they were handed the documents about the mission. The two were offered a room in the palace and were now resting there.
“They literally have these routes all across the country. Just great. Seems like we have to pick where to raid.”
“The King mentioned that he had some subordinates ready to be used, perhaps we could use them to minimize the area we ourselves need to search?”
“Yeah. The problem is finding where we’re needed. The most dangerous is what they’re wanting us to cover, but there’s not enough information to determine that.”
“I can provide another pair of eyes using a Shadow Partner. It’s not much but at least anything it sees will be transmitted back to me. Otherwise, should we send in a smaller number of men and act based on the vampires’ response?”
“Can you send that clone all the way to the borders? Rather, can you do such a thing with the ritual we start soon?”
“It is possible with concentration, but combined with the ritual, I doubt it,” Aramus said with a sigh. “I suppose we will have to rely on the King’s men.”
“Let’s do that. Might as well start the ritual… this room is good as any. Don’t blame me if you die. I’m gonna hope for the best.” Chris drew a magic circle on the floor with a paint brush. He used a very special kind of paint for it. “This is currently the best magic ink. I’ll give you some for the future later.” When he was done drawing it, he then blew with his mouth on it, and a great gale was generated. That was apparently enough to make the painted floor dry. “Alright, get in the middle of it.”
The Archmage then handed Aramus something like a berry. “That’s the Dragon’s seed. Consume it, it’s got a nice herbal flavor. After that, start meditating.” Chris sat next to Aramus just outside the circle on a meditation form. “You have to gather Aurum, Terram, and Ignem aspected mana simultaneously. Can you handle it?”
“I can handle the first two, but I don’t know Ignem. Is it possible to supplant it with another form?” Aramus asked as he popped the seed into his mouth.
“The Dragon uses these Forms. Supplementing will kill the it before it’s even born.”
“Well shit. I can’t channel Ignem so this is going to be a problem.”
Chris took out the paint brush, dipped the pastel and drew a symbol of Ignem on one side before blowing on it to make it dry. He then took out something like a piece of ornament and placed it atop the symbol.
“I’ll just supplement the Ignem for †˜ya. Was planning to provide some raw mana as part of the ritual anyway. Just make sure you absorb the mana into yourself when I channel it.”
“Thank you.”
Aramus closed his eyes and began to gather the required mana. Aurum, his core; the one that he was linked to since young. Terram, the opposite of his specialty; nary a single spell in his repertoire used it and thus he felt unused to gathering it. Finally, Ignem; the fiery mana could be felt like an ethereal cord as it poured into him from outside and Aramus drew it into himself, letting the three aspects of mana flow in a circle.
As the mana converged together in his core, tt started to make sense what Chris mentioned about feeling a burning fruit stuck in the stomach. He was in the meditation pose and was sweating profusely, feeling like vomiting all that he ate in the banquet. He almost let out his breath while Christopher started to chant in Chinese.
Each of the marks on the magic circle glowed in turn. The symbol to the east of the Magister signified rest, the symbol to the west signified aggression, the symbol to the south meant something that could be interpreted as the flowing of energy, while the north signified the will to press forward, at least this was what Christopher was telling him earlier. Each of these symbols shined in turn as the ritual progressed. This was because Aramus was had to channel the mana back and forth between these symbols, as instructed by his Master.
Pure and raw mana were given to him for the symbol of flowing energy. Terram mana were channeled to the symbol of rest. The Aurum mana were channeled to the northern symbol. Lastly, the Ignem mana was the hardest as the transfer involved moving the mana from the vis to the aggression symbol to his own body at last.
Aramus was feeling as though his internal organs were being scalded and ruptured as something round inside him was slowly stabilizing through this process. He had to keep supplying mana from the two Realms simultaneously along with the Infernal mana and the raw mana from the few vis that Christopher provided. It was extremely taxing but little did he knew that he’d be doing this for the next eight hours.
The attires were varied as well, certain youngsters wore clothings he witnessed back in the USA, slightly more fashionable clothing whereas others were dressed extremely modestly or for the weather. Even the men had flowing garments to deal with the hot desert climate with a special headdress that seemed to block sand. What surprised him the most were the women, dressed entirely in body covering black garment. The only part revealed to Aramus was the face and other times, just a slit for the eyes.
But if there was one thing that made him feel right at home, it was the smell of food. The fragrance of spices could be smelt every time he passed a restaurant, the ethnic cuisine making his mouth water. It was close enough to Indian food and therefore would be something close to a favorite in his books.
When the two entered the King’s Royal Palace, Christopher skipped all kinds of formalities and pleasantries to save time, rushing all the way to the throne room.
“The mundanes are so good at using that †˜busy’ excuse but we all know that the King has patrons doing his work,” Chris said in irritation. “Only to kill the time that could be spent eating.”
“We could eat here. I believe their cuisine could be just as good,” Aramus suggested, though he snickered a little at the way Chris spoke.
“Yeah but even a great man understands when’s the time for that, and whatnot. I damn well expect the King to treat us to a banquet. Good stuff to have after a talk, always.”
“The faster we get this over with, the more time we have for a banquet then?” Aramus quipped.
“That, and you have to spend a considerable time on that ritual, lad. I want to get to that part and be done with it.”
“I’ll try to make the wait less excruciating, Master.” The Magister laughed as he followed behind his Master.
Soon, the doors opened as the King gave consent. The Archmage and the Magister entered the throne room. When they looked around, aside from the intricate designs and the exquisite carpet, the attendants of the King were dismissed for whatever discussion they’d have.
Before Chris even thought to show some more pleasantries, the King simply raised his hand to stop him.
“We share the same rank, no need to kneel,” the King said, but only looking at Christopher. “I am glad to see that you came far after so long, however.”
“What can I say? Gotta do what I must,” Chris said with a wry smile, kneeling down for show anyway.
The King had dark skin and was surprisingly young, contrary to what Aramus heard. Perhaps this was a result of tampering with magic. Whatever the case, the King was an exotic and charming man that even Aramus could appreciate from sight alone. His air itself seemingly majestic, slightly reminding him of how one could feel just gazing up to Queen Victoria.
“I have already prepared some of my subjects for the apprehension of the vampires. There are some routes we believe are used by them for the illegal trades. The Space Police seems to have a want for involving themselves with the case so I believe you would very much be interested.”
“...Now that is indeed interesting,” Chris said, having not expected the Space Police involved. “How do we get on this case exactly?”
“I shall have my men pass on the documented information,” King Abdullah stated. “How about you two join us for the banquet? We have prepared a fine one to sate your tongue, Christopher.”
“Now we’re talking.”
“It would be an honor, King Abdullah.” Aramus said but otherwise didn’t say anything.
***
After the banquet, Chris almost suggested going to sleep but that was the worst idea he had, for they were handed the documents about the mission. The two were offered a room in the palace and were now resting there.
“They literally have these routes all across the country. Just great. Seems like we have to pick where to raid.”
“The King mentioned that he had some subordinates ready to be used, perhaps we could use them to minimize the area we ourselves need to search?”
“Yeah. The problem is finding where we’re needed. The most dangerous is what they’re wanting us to cover, but there’s not enough information to determine that.”
“I can provide another pair of eyes using a Shadow Partner. It’s not much but at least anything it sees will be transmitted back to me. Otherwise, should we send in a smaller number of men and act based on the vampires’ response?”
“Can you send that clone all the way to the borders? Rather, can you do such a thing with the ritual we start soon?”
“It is possible with concentration, but combined with the ritual, I doubt it,” Aramus said with a sigh. “I suppose we will have to rely on the King’s men.”
“Let’s do that. Might as well start the ritual… this room is good as any. Don’t blame me if you die. I’m gonna hope for the best.” Chris drew a magic circle on the floor with a paint brush. He used a very special kind of paint for it. “This is currently the best magic ink. I’ll give you some for the future later.” When he was done drawing it, he then blew with his mouth on it, and a great gale was generated. That was apparently enough to make the painted floor dry. “Alright, get in the middle of it.”
The Archmage then handed Aramus something like a berry. “That’s the Dragon’s seed. Consume it, it’s got a nice herbal flavor. After that, start meditating.” Chris sat next to Aramus just outside the circle on a meditation form. “You have to gather Aurum, Terram, and Ignem aspected mana simultaneously. Can you handle it?”
“I can handle the first two, but I don’t know Ignem. Is it possible to supplant it with another form?” Aramus asked as he popped the seed into his mouth.
“The Dragon uses these Forms. Supplementing will kill the it before it’s even born.”
“Well shit. I can’t channel Ignem so this is going to be a problem.”
Chris took out the paint brush, dipped the pastel and drew a symbol of Ignem on one side before blowing on it to make it dry. He then took out something like a piece of ornament and placed it atop the symbol.
“I’ll just supplement the Ignem for †˜ya. Was planning to provide some raw mana as part of the ritual anyway. Just make sure you absorb the mana into yourself when I channel it.”
“Thank you.”
Aramus closed his eyes and began to gather the required mana. Aurum, his core; the one that he was linked to since young. Terram, the opposite of his specialty; nary a single spell in his repertoire used it and thus he felt unused to gathering it. Finally, Ignem; the fiery mana could be felt like an ethereal cord as it poured into him from outside and Aramus drew it into himself, letting the three aspects of mana flow in a circle.
As the mana converged together in his core, tt started to make sense what Chris mentioned about feeling a burning fruit stuck in the stomach. He was in the meditation pose and was sweating profusely, feeling like vomiting all that he ate in the banquet. He almost let out his breath while Christopher started to chant in Chinese.
Each of the marks on the magic circle glowed in turn. The symbol to the east of the Magister signified rest, the symbol to the west signified aggression, the symbol to the south meant something that could be interpreted as the flowing of energy, while the north signified the will to press forward, at least this was what Christopher was telling him earlier. Each of these symbols shined in turn as the ritual progressed. This was because Aramus was had to channel the mana back and forth between these symbols, as instructed by his Master.
Pure and raw mana were given to him for the symbol of flowing energy. Terram mana were channeled to the symbol of rest. The Aurum mana were channeled to the northern symbol. Lastly, the Ignem mana was the hardest as the transfer involved moving the mana from the vis to the aggression symbol to his own body at last.
Aramus was feeling as though his internal organs were being scalded and ruptured as something round inside him was slowly stabilizing through this process. He had to keep supplying mana from the two Realms simultaneously along with the Infernal mana and the raw mana from the few vis that Christopher provided. It was extremely taxing but little did he knew that he’d be doing this for the next eight hours.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
After eight hours were spent and the ritual was finished, Aramus was almost literally cooked. His body was aching and steam was oozing out of him. Having finally contained the Dragon in him, he could feel a small orb just behind his bellybutton. It was quite the hassle that surprisingly involved his life as he fought tooth and nail with the Dragon that was first forming inside him. Relieved that it was finally over, he fell down to the floor, not caring about the magic circle under him anymore.
Christopher, on the other hand, was still in his meditation form like a statue, simply staring down at the exhausted Magister.
“It seems like it’ll take some time for the Dragon inside you to come alive,” the Archmage said. “You probably will not hear from it any time soon.”
“S-So… the thing stays dormant? Phew… that was… one hell of a ritual… Give me… some time to catch my breath.”
Aramus panted as the effects of the exhausting ritual hit him in full force. It was a fascinating experience to say the least. He had never attempted to merge three different Forms of mana with raw mana into a mass of roiling energy before.
“Stays dormant? Yes. Its growth? You’ll have to figure something out,” Chris answered.
“Alright. I suppose I’ll try feeding it mana daily or something,” Aramus decided, wiping away some of the sweat. His sleeve came away drenched and there was nary a part of him that stick to his body.
“No, don’t do anything. Let the Dragon inform you what it wants in due time.”
“Wait, what? It just wakes up on its own?”
“Yep. You gave her enough mana to last for a month at least. If the Dragon don’t try to communicate by then… I guess that’s a big failure.”
“Huh? Her? Wait, wait, wait, how do you even know…?” Aramus said, pulling himself up to look at Christopher. “If it doesn’t, will we be able to try again?”
“Hm? Dunno, just taking a wild guess. It’s always nice to have a cute little daughter that might tear you to pieces, right?” Christopher joked and thought hard for a moment. “Maybe? It took me a lot of trouble to find that seed.”
“Hope for the best then. I don’t think we have the luxury of going to look for another seed with the assignment given to us. Wait, will I be able to learn the Ancient Dragon’s Fist now?”
“Yes, as long as the Dragon is in you… in fact, nothing will probably happen if you don’t start working on that technique.”
“So it could act as a stimulant for it to wake up then? I think I might have to write all these down, form up a research paper for it. How the techniques directly affect the growth of the Dragon...”
“Yeah, channeling mana and the frictions are good stimulants for it. Not exactly the food it’ll need, but it might cause a reaction. I got a reaction from mine in five days.”
“Meditation… did you actually fight during that time period? I’m not sure if conflict with the vampires is the first thing I want it to see as it wakes…” Aramus said with a frown.
“I was fighting vampires then too. My dragon loves to see them going down for a reason.”
“Blimey. My dragon is going to grow up be violent.” Aramus shook his head as he thought about the implications considering it was going inside him after all.
“My old master monk warned that dragons are best violent than kind. Kindness never gets work done, ever.”
“That is… true. I don’t think I’d want a pacifistic dragon either. What would be the point of having a dragon then?”
“Indeed. The point is to have a battle partner, you want it to grow watching battles, however gory they are. Can’t let yourself slide into a kind arse father, that will make the entire point moot. Now…” Chris got up and hoisted a box over to Aramus and opened it. “These are yours to keep.” Inside the box were a pair of gauntlets that seemed to be particularly hard around the knuckles.
Aramus received the box, looking at the silver gauntlets with appreciation. To think that Christopher had these already prepared, he must’ve taken the disciple thing very seriously despite his demeanour.
“These are beautiful, thank you Master. I will put them to good use.”
“You better, lad. These things costed a—anyway, these are gonna be your lifelong punching buddies,” Chris showed his fists and a pair of shinier silver gauntlets materialized. Relic weapons with star symbols on the back of the gauntlets. “Just like mine.”
“Wow, these last for that long?” Aramus admired both his and his master's pair of gauntlets, imagining how much blood would be shed between the two. “On that topic, it’s going to be difficult using the gauntlets effectively considering I already have these...”
Aramus called upon the two Relic weapons bound to him, Paimon’s Fan coming in a burst of wind and the jet black sword Achtstraum hovering silently. He grasped both, showing them to his Master.
“I’m sure you recognize these.”
“I do?”
Aramus blinked, lifting the Fan. “Just thought you would have heard of them. This one is Paimon’s Fan, I… stole it as a child without knowing any better, but the recent trip to the Infernal Realm was to redeem myself for that. King Solomon tasked me with retrieving another Relic as penance. Turns out Paimon herself resided within it, it wasn’t just a name.”
“Relics aren’t always popular, son. Unlike Gungnir or something, then you hear about them. I guess I remember you explaining about the task a bit, so that’s what it was. My pair of gauntlets was also from King Solomon. I had to hit up the Magical Forests for my trial.” Christopher scratched his hair. “Some relics happen to have a conscious spirit, while others are dormant spirits. King Solomon created the relics by entrapping spirits into the weapons, compared to how that black sword of yours was crafted, this was a more straightforward method. Hence you got to know Paimon.”
“It just seemed to me that everyone at this level had a Relic or another, I apologize for assuming. Yeah, Asteria was none too happy that I made off with her sword…” Thinking back, the Magister felt she had paid him back with interest with her literal earth-shattering punch. “Paimon has been protecting me since I became a mage and with King Solomon’s approval, she is now formally my partner.”
“I know the Archmages wield relics, as well as the Descendants. Dunno about the rest. Relics are rare and there are only a few like King Solomon or King Hades that may lend some out.”
“King Hades offered me some of Thor’s items too… but anyway, this black sword belongs to my mother. Achtstraum, her one and only inheritance to me.” Aramus gave it a couple of swings, still loving the way it cut through the air so easily. “The edge on it is second to none. Just that using all these at the same time is going to be another matter entirely.”
“That… really does sound crazy.” Christopher thumbed the black sword for a second and it cut his skin. “This sword is too sharp for its own good. I wonder where she even got it from. Pretty sweet for an inheritance if you ask me, son.”
“I’ll get her back… I will never forget so long as I wield this sword as her son,” Aramus said before trying to take his mind off things by dual wielding the relics. It was messy.
“Wielding a fan and a sword and a pair of gauntlets… no matter how I look at it you can’t use the Lost Form with those, so maybe you’ll have to desummon them and use the ancient art if you need it.”
“Ugh… This is going to be harder than I thought,” Aramus said. “This is a clash of styles all around. Does the Lost Form require the use of both fists or will one suffice?”
“You could try with one hand, but I’m not sure if it will work.”
“Do you have any other suggestions? It’d be a waste to have two Relics and not use them. Perhaps there’s a way to incorporate them into the Lost Form, channel the heat through the Relic…?”
“Pretty sure your relics will tell you to disown them if you do that. Maaaaaybe fuse them both? So, let’s say your fan-sword in one hand and fists in another? Sounds like a crazy idea, though. Get a new limb eh?”
Aramus flinched slightly at hearing the word “disown,” enough to make him abandon the thought. “Fan-sword and fists sounds… reasonable. Both gauntlets on but only channel through one, might be something worth experimenting. But wait, how does one go about fusing Relics? I thought each one was a unique existence?”
“It’s a bit of an experimental thing across the Magic World, but apparently, you can fuse relics. Chances are it works or it doesn’t. You never know what’s the result of doing so but one thing for sure, more power.”
“Sounds interesting. So considering Paimon’s Fan hosts her Spirit, maybe it’d just involve her being transferred? Won’t know till we try anyway.”
“I hear that’s not exactly how it goes, so probably not. Paimon could change based on whatever that’s inside Achtstraum.”
“I suppose. Maybe if I can find someone able to do the fusion then we could attempt it and see the results. After that, it’s practising it together with the Lost Form if the fusion goes well.”
“If you need someone to try the fusion ritual, you got one of those mad men right here, son,” Christopher said with a big smile.
“Is there anything you can’t do!?” Aramus said as he threw his hands up in the air before looking at the two Relics. “I just hope it goes well, losing them both would be devastating.”
“It’s just another magic circle. Nothing too great.” Chris was already busy drawing a circle on the floor next to the one they performed the Dragon’s ritual earlier. “We need to call the clean-up service after this, huh?”
”The King won’t be too happy if we ruin much more of his floor.” Aramus chuckled before going to aid his Master.
“Okay, there.” Christopher looked down at a magic circle drawn by himself that depicted some strange letters Aramus wasn’t familiar with. “Burn this thing into your mind. On that note, burn that other circle into your mind too.”
“Understood.” Aramus said, memorizing the ritual circles. Both would come in handy in the future. They immediately registered in his mind, something he noted seemed to be happening extremely often ever since that bout of Twilight.
“Because we have the annoying tradition of having to get an apprentice to teach the Lost Form to, and pass it on. So you’d need it for your future disciple.”
“Ah, something like that is definitely one of the East’s traditions. They have that in Japan as well.”
“And for every Lost Forms too. Can’t a man die in peace lazily?”
“Hahaha, the longer you live, the more Indian food you can eat,” Aramus added with a snicker. “I think I’d want to make use of my life as long as I have it, regardless of how much trouble it is.”
“Alright, alright. Jokes aside, place the two relics atop this magic circle. It’s time to do this.” Chris pointed at the circle he drew impatiently.
Aramus did as his Master instructed, stepping back once he had placed them beside each other. He was worried now that he could look down at them properly. What if the ritual turned out badly? He could gain a powerful fused relic but at the same time, have a chance of losing both. The pair basically represented his sense of self, a memento of his mother in the form of Achtstraum, the familial bond. Paimon’s Fan, the embodiment of his duty as an arm of the Crown. All he could do now was trust Christopher and it set him on edge. Not being able to do anything was one of the worst feelings a person could feel.
“Here goes nothing.” Christopher channeled some mana into the magic circle and it lit up.
The relics flew up into the air and they were flowing side by side. Aramus saw some electric-like pulsing from Paimon’s Fan and a dark aura escape the sword. These auras minged, and there was an explosion with a resounding noise and smoke before they knew it.
The two were coughing and Chris hurriedly told Aramus to open the windows.
Aramus rushed there as he coughed, pushing open the windows with a bang. Using Aurum, he began to funnel the smoke out of the room so that the both of them could breath.
“What… happened to them?” the Magister asked, his fear rising.
Chris looked down and started laughing.
“You lucky dog, we did it!”
Aramus also looked down. He found an unfamiliar sword on the floor.
Achtstraum and Paimon’s Fan were successfully fused.
Aramus crouched down, running a hand over his new Relic.
The sword was still black, but one side of it was adorned with what seemed like feathers, just like his old fan, but they were smaller, and of a darker shade. The guard of the sword was completely unlike any sword he ever saw. He saw one round hole—a mouthpiece—that reminded him of a flute. Looking up to the blade, there were small dot-like holes similarly all the way to the tip on the other side of the steel not covered by feathers—which meant that he could play the music from the entire sword. How he’d play and swing was another mystery of its own. The best aspects of both had been combined lending elements of each to its aesthetics.
The Magic Magister gave it a swing thoughtlessly, and the bed was cut in two. Chris just looked at the bisected bed and looked back to Aramus, expecting him to make an excuse at least.
“It’s beautiful.”
“It’s horrible! Can’t a man sleep in peace now?”
“You can take my bed. I’ll find some hay,” Aramus said giddily. “Thank you Master.”
“No, dude. We’re just gonna tell the many servant’s of His Majesty to prepare another bed while… we go out. This room still stinks.”
“That sounds like an even better idea. Lead the way, Master!”
“You go call up a servant and tell them what to do first. We don’t want to come back to find this place the same.”
Aramus sped off after a quick “Yes!”, almost leaving burn marks behind with his speed.
“Kids these days… never old enough to stop having Indian foods.”
After a few minutes, Aramus ran back all giddy and excited still, even holding the sword and not calling it away to his soul.
“I told them! Some of them looked at me funny, I wonder why!?” Aramus said as he flicked the sword around. “They’ll be coming to clear up the mess in a moment.”
“Boy, calm down!” Chris said, throwing his hands up in exasperation. “That sword’s gonna scare the mommy’s delicious food memories out of people, put it away!”
“O-Oh!” Aramus said as he realized that he still hadn’t put it away. Power corrupts indeed. The Magister hurriedly put it away, the Relic dissolving into motes of energy as it vanished. “Sorry Master!”
Chris palmed the back of his head as he watched Aramus. He faced the broken bed and took up his finger. He ran it down in the air slowly, a trail of black ran down and soon a portal flicked open. It was reminiscent of all those times Aramus saw Virgo escape, even in the recent battle Princess Louise opened a portal to summon a puppet, of sorts.
“Does this lead to the Void?” Aramus asked, walking over beside his Master.
“This is the Void Realm, yes. Come, we have a lot to do.” Chris stepped in fearlessly into the darkness.
Aramus followed a moment later, the portal swallowing him whole.
Christopher, on the other hand, was still in his meditation form like a statue, simply staring down at the exhausted Magister.
“It seems like it’ll take some time for the Dragon inside you to come alive,” the Archmage said. “You probably will not hear from it any time soon.”
“S-So… the thing stays dormant? Phew… that was… one hell of a ritual… Give me… some time to catch my breath.”
Aramus panted as the effects of the exhausting ritual hit him in full force. It was a fascinating experience to say the least. He had never attempted to merge three different Forms of mana with raw mana into a mass of roiling energy before.
“Stays dormant? Yes. Its growth? You’ll have to figure something out,” Chris answered.
“Alright. I suppose I’ll try feeding it mana daily or something,” Aramus decided, wiping away some of the sweat. His sleeve came away drenched and there was nary a part of him that stick to his body.
“No, don’t do anything. Let the Dragon inform you what it wants in due time.”
“Wait, what? It just wakes up on its own?”
“Yep. You gave her enough mana to last for a month at least. If the Dragon don’t try to communicate by then… I guess that’s a big failure.”
“Huh? Her? Wait, wait, wait, how do you even know…?” Aramus said, pulling himself up to look at Christopher. “If it doesn’t, will we be able to try again?”
“Hm? Dunno, just taking a wild guess. It’s always nice to have a cute little daughter that might tear you to pieces, right?” Christopher joked and thought hard for a moment. “Maybe? It took me a lot of trouble to find that seed.”
“Hope for the best then. I don’t think we have the luxury of going to look for another seed with the assignment given to us. Wait, will I be able to learn the Ancient Dragon’s Fist now?”
“Yes, as long as the Dragon is in you… in fact, nothing will probably happen if you don’t start working on that technique.”
“So it could act as a stimulant for it to wake up then? I think I might have to write all these down, form up a research paper for it. How the techniques directly affect the growth of the Dragon...”
“Yeah, channeling mana and the frictions are good stimulants for it. Not exactly the food it’ll need, but it might cause a reaction. I got a reaction from mine in five days.”
“Meditation… did you actually fight during that time period? I’m not sure if conflict with the vampires is the first thing I want it to see as it wakes…” Aramus said with a frown.
“I was fighting vampires then too. My dragon loves to see them going down for a reason.”
“Blimey. My dragon is going to grow up be violent.” Aramus shook his head as he thought about the implications considering it was going inside him after all.
“My old master monk warned that dragons are best violent than kind. Kindness never gets work done, ever.”
“That is… true. I don’t think I’d want a pacifistic dragon either. What would be the point of having a dragon then?”
“Indeed. The point is to have a battle partner, you want it to grow watching battles, however gory they are. Can’t let yourself slide into a kind arse father, that will make the entire point moot. Now…” Chris got up and hoisted a box over to Aramus and opened it. “These are yours to keep.” Inside the box were a pair of gauntlets that seemed to be particularly hard around the knuckles.
Aramus received the box, looking at the silver gauntlets with appreciation. To think that Christopher had these already prepared, he must’ve taken the disciple thing very seriously despite his demeanour.
“These are beautiful, thank you Master. I will put them to good use.”
“You better, lad. These things costed a—anyway, these are gonna be your lifelong punching buddies,” Chris showed his fists and a pair of shinier silver gauntlets materialized. Relic weapons with star symbols on the back of the gauntlets. “Just like mine.”
“Wow, these last for that long?” Aramus admired both his and his master's pair of gauntlets, imagining how much blood would be shed between the two. “On that topic, it’s going to be difficult using the gauntlets effectively considering I already have these...”
Aramus called upon the two Relic weapons bound to him, Paimon’s Fan coming in a burst of wind and the jet black sword Achtstraum hovering silently. He grasped both, showing them to his Master.
“I’m sure you recognize these.”
“I do?”
Aramus blinked, lifting the Fan. “Just thought you would have heard of them. This one is Paimon’s Fan, I… stole it as a child without knowing any better, but the recent trip to the Infernal Realm was to redeem myself for that. King Solomon tasked me with retrieving another Relic as penance. Turns out Paimon herself resided within it, it wasn’t just a name.”
“Relics aren’t always popular, son. Unlike Gungnir or something, then you hear about them. I guess I remember you explaining about the task a bit, so that’s what it was. My pair of gauntlets was also from King Solomon. I had to hit up the Magical Forests for my trial.” Christopher scratched his hair. “Some relics happen to have a conscious spirit, while others are dormant spirits. King Solomon created the relics by entrapping spirits into the weapons, compared to how that black sword of yours was crafted, this was a more straightforward method. Hence you got to know Paimon.”
“It just seemed to me that everyone at this level had a Relic or another, I apologize for assuming. Yeah, Asteria was none too happy that I made off with her sword…” Thinking back, the Magister felt she had paid him back with interest with her literal earth-shattering punch. “Paimon has been protecting me since I became a mage and with King Solomon’s approval, she is now formally my partner.”
“I know the Archmages wield relics, as well as the Descendants. Dunno about the rest. Relics are rare and there are only a few like King Solomon or King Hades that may lend some out.”
“King Hades offered me some of Thor’s items too… but anyway, this black sword belongs to my mother. Achtstraum, her one and only inheritance to me.” Aramus gave it a couple of swings, still loving the way it cut through the air so easily. “The edge on it is second to none. Just that using all these at the same time is going to be another matter entirely.”
“That… really does sound crazy.” Christopher thumbed the black sword for a second and it cut his skin. “This sword is too sharp for its own good. I wonder where she even got it from. Pretty sweet for an inheritance if you ask me, son.”
“I’ll get her back… I will never forget so long as I wield this sword as her son,” Aramus said before trying to take his mind off things by dual wielding the relics. It was messy.
“Wielding a fan and a sword and a pair of gauntlets… no matter how I look at it you can’t use the Lost Form with those, so maybe you’ll have to desummon them and use the ancient art if you need it.”
“Ugh… This is going to be harder than I thought,” Aramus said. “This is a clash of styles all around. Does the Lost Form require the use of both fists or will one suffice?”
“You could try with one hand, but I’m not sure if it will work.”
“Do you have any other suggestions? It’d be a waste to have two Relics and not use them. Perhaps there’s a way to incorporate them into the Lost Form, channel the heat through the Relic…?”
“Pretty sure your relics will tell you to disown them if you do that. Maaaaaybe fuse them both? So, let’s say your fan-sword in one hand and fists in another? Sounds like a crazy idea, though. Get a new limb eh?”
Aramus flinched slightly at hearing the word “disown,” enough to make him abandon the thought. “Fan-sword and fists sounds… reasonable. Both gauntlets on but only channel through one, might be something worth experimenting. But wait, how does one go about fusing Relics? I thought each one was a unique existence?”
“It’s a bit of an experimental thing across the Magic World, but apparently, you can fuse relics. Chances are it works or it doesn’t. You never know what’s the result of doing so but one thing for sure, more power.”
“Sounds interesting. So considering Paimon’s Fan hosts her Spirit, maybe it’d just involve her being transferred? Won’t know till we try anyway.”
“I hear that’s not exactly how it goes, so probably not. Paimon could change based on whatever that’s inside Achtstraum.”
“I suppose. Maybe if I can find someone able to do the fusion then we could attempt it and see the results. After that, it’s practising it together with the Lost Form if the fusion goes well.”
“If you need someone to try the fusion ritual, you got one of those mad men right here, son,” Christopher said with a big smile.
“Is there anything you can’t do!?” Aramus said as he threw his hands up in the air before looking at the two Relics. “I just hope it goes well, losing them both would be devastating.”
“It’s just another magic circle. Nothing too great.” Chris was already busy drawing a circle on the floor next to the one they performed the Dragon’s ritual earlier. “We need to call the clean-up service after this, huh?”
”The King won’t be too happy if we ruin much more of his floor.” Aramus chuckled before going to aid his Master.
“Okay, there.” Christopher looked down at a magic circle drawn by himself that depicted some strange letters Aramus wasn’t familiar with. “Burn this thing into your mind. On that note, burn that other circle into your mind too.”
“Understood.” Aramus said, memorizing the ritual circles. Both would come in handy in the future. They immediately registered in his mind, something he noted seemed to be happening extremely often ever since that bout of Twilight.
“Because we have the annoying tradition of having to get an apprentice to teach the Lost Form to, and pass it on. So you’d need it for your future disciple.”
“Ah, something like that is definitely one of the East’s traditions. They have that in Japan as well.”
“And for every Lost Forms too. Can’t a man die in peace lazily?”
“Hahaha, the longer you live, the more Indian food you can eat,” Aramus added with a snicker. “I think I’d want to make use of my life as long as I have it, regardless of how much trouble it is.”
“Alright, alright. Jokes aside, place the two relics atop this magic circle. It’s time to do this.” Chris pointed at the circle he drew impatiently.
Aramus did as his Master instructed, stepping back once he had placed them beside each other. He was worried now that he could look down at them properly. What if the ritual turned out badly? He could gain a powerful fused relic but at the same time, have a chance of losing both. The pair basically represented his sense of self, a memento of his mother in the form of Achtstraum, the familial bond. Paimon’s Fan, the embodiment of his duty as an arm of the Crown. All he could do now was trust Christopher and it set him on edge. Not being able to do anything was one of the worst feelings a person could feel.
“Here goes nothing.” Christopher channeled some mana into the magic circle and it lit up.
The relics flew up into the air and they were flowing side by side. Aramus saw some electric-like pulsing from Paimon’s Fan and a dark aura escape the sword. These auras minged, and there was an explosion with a resounding noise and smoke before they knew it.
The two were coughing and Chris hurriedly told Aramus to open the windows.
Aramus rushed there as he coughed, pushing open the windows with a bang. Using Aurum, he began to funnel the smoke out of the room so that the both of them could breath.
“What… happened to them?” the Magister asked, his fear rising.
Chris looked down and started laughing.
“You lucky dog, we did it!”
Aramus also looked down. He found an unfamiliar sword on the floor.
Achtstraum and Paimon’s Fan were successfully fused.
Aramus crouched down, running a hand over his new Relic.
The sword was still black, but one side of it was adorned with what seemed like feathers, just like his old fan, but they were smaller, and of a darker shade. The guard of the sword was completely unlike any sword he ever saw. He saw one round hole—a mouthpiece—that reminded him of a flute. Looking up to the blade, there were small dot-like holes similarly all the way to the tip on the other side of the steel not covered by feathers—which meant that he could play the music from the entire sword. How he’d play and swing was another mystery of its own. The best aspects of both had been combined lending elements of each to its aesthetics.
The Magic Magister gave it a swing thoughtlessly, and the bed was cut in two. Chris just looked at the bisected bed and looked back to Aramus, expecting him to make an excuse at least.
“It’s beautiful.”
“It’s horrible! Can’t a man sleep in peace now?”
“You can take my bed. I’ll find some hay,” Aramus said giddily. “Thank you Master.”
“No, dude. We’re just gonna tell the many servant’s of His Majesty to prepare another bed while… we go out. This room still stinks.”
“That sounds like an even better idea. Lead the way, Master!”
“You go call up a servant and tell them what to do first. We don’t want to come back to find this place the same.”
Aramus sped off after a quick “Yes!”, almost leaving burn marks behind with his speed.
“Kids these days… never old enough to stop having Indian foods.”
After a few minutes, Aramus ran back all giddy and excited still, even holding the sword and not calling it away to his soul.
“I told them! Some of them looked at me funny, I wonder why!?” Aramus said as he flicked the sword around. “They’ll be coming to clear up the mess in a moment.”
“Boy, calm down!” Chris said, throwing his hands up in exasperation. “That sword’s gonna scare the mommy’s delicious food memories out of people, put it away!”
“O-Oh!” Aramus said as he realized that he still hadn’t put it away. Power corrupts indeed. The Magister hurriedly put it away, the Relic dissolving into motes of energy as it vanished. “Sorry Master!”
Chris palmed the back of his head as he watched Aramus. He faced the broken bed and took up his finger. He ran it down in the air slowly, a trail of black ran down and soon a portal flicked open. It was reminiscent of all those times Aramus saw Virgo escape, even in the recent battle Princess Louise opened a portal to summon a puppet, of sorts.
“Does this lead to the Void?” Aramus asked, walking over beside his Master.
“This is the Void Realm, yes. Come, we have a lot to do.” Chris stepped in fearlessly into the darkness.
Aramus followed a moment later, the portal swallowing him whole.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
In the Void Realm, everything was indeed darkness itself. Aramus could hardly survey at first, but he finally noted a blue mysterious hue coming from somewhere. He couldn’t identify the source of the light but it was there, just barely illuminating the Realm. The portal closed behind him and Christopher seemed to be taking big breaths.
“Feels like I just returned home after a long time.”
“Home? Master, do you actively travel like this?” Aramus asked.
“Yeah, I used to. There are some stupid laws now but man those were the good days.” Chris took in the air of the Realm again, simply taking in the atmosphere in bliss. “It’s so unfortunate that you’ll have to deal with those rules from the get-go.”
“Quite alright. If there’s nothing here that’s suffocating like Japan was, I’ll manage. Those Japanese had endless rules and regulations,” Aramus said, looking around the Void.
“Yeah, it’s not that free here either… even if it looks like it is. This here is a cool place and you can come to test your mettle in the future one day. Albeit you might get killed and no one would ever see your corpse again. All fun, though.”
Aramus cringed but remembered what his Master had said about the Dragon inside and its growth. “Maybe… see how far we can push the bar with the Lost Form and that new Relic.”
“Now, now, that could be a little too early. Anyway, w’re here on an important business. Let’s go.”
Chris led the way as Aramus followed. The floor was invisible with the exception of showing a blue crystal-like passage here and there. Sometimes he’d notice some shadows that the Archmage would ignore and avoid on their passage. They spent some hours walking like this.
“Say, you like to drink, right?” the Magister’s Master asked.
“I prefer to eat but I wouldn’t turn away liquor. Some food tastes better with it too,” Aramus answered.
“Then I think you’ll like it.”
They came up to a signpost, and it pointed at two directions. One faced left and the other faced right. The one on the left seemed to simply say “the bar” while the other was unreadable as far as the Magister could see.
“We’re going drinking now?” Aramus said, confused by this turn of events.
“Drinking comes later,” Chris said as he walked down the left path. Aramus hurried after as he knew not what was going on, better to let his Master do the talking.
They soon reached a house. Aramus looked up and down, it was literally a house floating in the middle of nowhere, which made no sense. Not that magic ever truly made sense, but this was quite the bizarre spectacle as he witnessed the wooden two-storey house where his Master was going to.
“The Void has all kinds of weird things eh…”
Inside, there was a very old-fashioned image that Aramus had certainly missed from his days in London. Old wooden walls, chairs, tables, and more importantly, the expected bar on the very right with a silent bartender wiping a glass clean.
“Feels just like home, I swear it,” his Master said.
“Aye, you and me both Master. I wonder what they have?” Aramus said as he tried to look behind the bartender at the spirits on display.
“They have almost everything. Your Queen drinks some of the strongest stuff here sometimes. A scary sight.”
“Her Majesty comes here!?” Aramus said, inadvertently raising his voice.
“In her off times she sneaks into this place. I met her on several occasions here, trust me. Hell, even her daughter raids the place—more often than her own mother. The Void quite literally flows through that young Princess Louise.”
“Runs in the blood?” Never would have thought that they would visit a bar in the Void of all places to unwind, especially Royal Princess Louise. Still, with positions such as theirs, one needed time alone.
“Well, just the two of them. I haven’t heard of the other Royal members coming here. Louise is the user of the Lost Form that is, unsurprisingly, called the Void. You can kind of think this Realm as the home ground of that Lost Form, I guess.”
“Ah, so that’s what she was using in the conflict against Virgo. I see,” Aramus said, placing his right fist in the cup of his left palm.
“If you get lucky, you might just see the Bjornaer magus here. He is the user of the famous Lost Form Heartbeast. He is, unfortunately, wanted officially in the Magic World, but no one cares about those things here.”
“Now these Lost Forms are crawling out from the woodwork… Basically, what happens in the Void stays in the Void?”
“This was an escape from the world for the criminals at first. The Bjornaers were exiled long ago for their magic going out of control. Currently, the Bjornaer I spoke of is the final survivor, but his ancestors actions still haunts him. He is strong, but no one can escape from the past forever.”
“Curse of the forefathers… does he ever leave this place?”
“Nope. As a result he doesn’t age either. He is looking for something here, but I don’t know what… the guy has been here over a hundred years now.”
“Damn. I hope he finds it sometime soon, but the Void feels… endless. One man can only do so much.”
“It’s a large place and no one really knows its limits, either.”
Chris was walking up to a staircase on the corner of the house, signalling for Aramus to come with him with a gesture.
Aramus quickly followed, climbing the staircase. Christopher simply opened a door and gestured for Aramus to go in first. The Magister tilted his head in confusion but followed before the Archmage entered and closed the door behind them.
“Feels like I just returned home after a long time.”
“Home? Master, do you actively travel like this?” Aramus asked.
“Yeah, I used to. There are some stupid laws now but man those were the good days.” Chris took in the air of the Realm again, simply taking in the atmosphere in bliss. “It’s so unfortunate that you’ll have to deal with those rules from the get-go.”
“Quite alright. If there’s nothing here that’s suffocating like Japan was, I’ll manage. Those Japanese had endless rules and regulations,” Aramus said, looking around the Void.
“Yeah, it’s not that free here either… even if it looks like it is. This here is a cool place and you can come to test your mettle in the future one day. Albeit you might get killed and no one would ever see your corpse again. All fun, though.”
Aramus cringed but remembered what his Master had said about the Dragon inside and its growth. “Maybe… see how far we can push the bar with the Lost Form and that new Relic.”
“Now, now, that could be a little too early. Anyway, w’re here on an important business. Let’s go.”
Chris led the way as Aramus followed. The floor was invisible with the exception of showing a blue crystal-like passage here and there. Sometimes he’d notice some shadows that the Archmage would ignore and avoid on their passage. They spent some hours walking like this.
***
“Say, you like to drink, right?” the Magister’s Master asked.
“I prefer to eat but I wouldn’t turn away liquor. Some food tastes better with it too,” Aramus answered.
“Then I think you’ll like it.”
They came up to a signpost, and it pointed at two directions. One faced left and the other faced right. The one on the left seemed to simply say “the bar” while the other was unreadable as far as the Magister could see.
“We’re going drinking now?” Aramus said, confused by this turn of events.
“Drinking comes later,” Chris said as he walked down the left path. Aramus hurried after as he knew not what was going on, better to let his Master do the talking.
They soon reached a house. Aramus looked up and down, it was literally a house floating in the middle of nowhere, which made no sense. Not that magic ever truly made sense, but this was quite the bizarre spectacle as he witnessed the wooden two-storey house where his Master was going to.
“The Void has all kinds of weird things eh…”
Inside, there was a very old-fashioned image that Aramus had certainly missed from his days in London. Old wooden walls, chairs, tables, and more importantly, the expected bar on the very right with a silent bartender wiping a glass clean.
“Feels just like home, I swear it,” his Master said.
“Aye, you and me both Master. I wonder what they have?” Aramus said as he tried to look behind the bartender at the spirits on display.
“They have almost everything. Your Queen drinks some of the strongest stuff here sometimes. A scary sight.”
“Her Majesty comes here!?” Aramus said, inadvertently raising his voice.
“In her off times she sneaks into this place. I met her on several occasions here, trust me. Hell, even her daughter raids the place—more often than her own mother. The Void quite literally flows through that young Princess Louise.”
“Runs in the blood?” Never would have thought that they would visit a bar in the Void of all places to unwind, especially Royal Princess Louise. Still, with positions such as theirs, one needed time alone.
“Well, just the two of them. I haven’t heard of the other Royal members coming here. Louise is the user of the Lost Form that is, unsurprisingly, called the Void. You can kind of think this Realm as the home ground of that Lost Form, I guess.”
“Ah, so that’s what she was using in the conflict against Virgo. I see,” Aramus said, placing his right fist in the cup of his left palm.
“If you get lucky, you might just see the Bjornaer magus here. He is the user of the famous Lost Form Heartbeast. He is, unfortunately, wanted officially in the Magic World, but no one cares about those things here.”
“Now these Lost Forms are crawling out from the woodwork… Basically, what happens in the Void stays in the Void?”
“This was an escape from the world for the criminals at first. The Bjornaers were exiled long ago for their magic going out of control. Currently, the Bjornaer I spoke of is the final survivor, but his ancestors actions still haunts him. He is strong, but no one can escape from the past forever.”
“Curse of the forefathers… does he ever leave this place?”
“Nope. As a result he doesn’t age either. He is looking for something here, but I don’t know what… the guy has been here over a hundred years now.”
“Damn. I hope he finds it sometime soon, but the Void feels… endless. One man can only do so much.”
“It’s a large place and no one really knows its limits, either.”
Chris was walking up to a staircase on the corner of the house, signalling for Aramus to come with him with a gesture.
Aramus quickly followed, climbing the staircase. Christopher simply opened a door and gestured for Aramus to go in first. The Magister tilted his head in confusion but followed before the Archmage entered and closed the door behind them.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Inside the room, Aramus looked around and found one big table and a set of chairs, on the wall was a large green board with a lot of writing from most likely a chalk stick. He couldn’t make the heads or tails of it, but it simply seemed long and incomprehensible. There was a desk on the very left and someone turned from the chair—which was surprisingly not wooden, but made with steel that could help one turn with ease—and looked up.
“Welcome, what brings you to the Space Police?” a young girl—just about the age of Aozora Linfield or Elizabeth Cavendish Bentinck—said. Her hair was silver, similar to Aramus’, but of a more darker shade. She seemed to wear earrings consisting of dices, and even tied some of her long flowing hair with accessories consisting of dices, the same was for the bow tie across her neck too. It was strange. Her golden eyes were piercing to say the least.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Magic Magister Aramus Linfield, here with my Master Christopher. I think I’m the newest recruit here,” Aramus said with a smile, unsure of how to answer. Space Police had been mentioned before but Christopher had never really elaborated much on it.
“He sorta had his name changed, was Valmark instead of Linfield…” Christopher made a gesture implying that it was a long story.
“Ah, Master Christopher, I almost missed you,” the girl said, getting off the chair, her tone was very calm and casual. “I have not heard of a new recruit with a long story. Anyway, I am called the Witness DKD. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Aramus noted her shiny swallowtail tuxedo with golden shawl lapels, and a matching golden skirt.
Who was this person?!
The suit was raising his jealousy levels to the maximum.
“Pleasure is all mine, Witness DKD.” Aramus found the name a little strange, perhaps a codename of sorts? “I haven’t actually been told much either,” he muttered, in between looking at Christopher and admiring Witness’s suit.
Christopher shrugged at Aramus’ gaze.
“I can tell you why, it’s against their rules for me to blabber. Anyway, DKD, I promised Aramus here—my disciple—and the Archmages in the Crystal Summit to let him pay for his uhh… crimes? By working here.”
“Work here, you say? You of all people know what kind of a place this is, Master Christopher.” The girl raised her brows.
“C’mon, remember the times we had those good Indian food?” Christopher plead to DKD. “Think of all the good times I gave you those treats. Please help a man out, eh?”
“Alright, alright,” the girl said, conceding, trying to stop Christopher from requesting desperately like this. It looked odd to her that an adult was begging a young girl to help. “Take a seat,” she told Aramus.
“I’ll be going off to drink, then!” Chris immediately said, becoming jolly again from DKD’s acceptance before walking out of the room.
Aramus watched his Master go before complying with DKD’s request. He felt like a lamb left out to be slaughtered.
“So you want to join the Space Police… how much did the Master say?” DKD leaned against her desk and crossed her legs.
“He only mentioned that the Space Police consisted of criminals. I haven’t heard much else of what the organization actually does besides that,” Aramus replied.
“Well, what did you do? What are you going to atone for?” she fetched a paper before handing it to Aramus.
It was a recruitment form of sorts and he’d have to fill it out apparently. When the Magister accepted the form, she handed him a golden plated pen from her suit’s breast pocket.
“I failed in my duty. Vital information was not passed on but worse than that, I—” Aramus took the pen and wrote as he spoke but wavered at this point. Calming himself, he continued writing. “New York is gone because of me. Nothing I do will ever be enough to atone for that act but I must try.”
“Oh, so you were partially involved with the destruction of South America as well I am guessing?”
Aramus’s slumped shoulders were all the answer DKD needed.
“And what of your skills? I am aware that Master Christopher took you up, but perhaps you had past achievements? Ranks?”
“Graduated from Royal Academy and was a former Enforcer of the Royal Council. I was granted the title of Magic Magister and assigned to the Eastern Academy after that. More recently, I’ve been fighting Descendants left and right and… Asteria, a denizen of the Infernal Realm.”
“I see, so you have half the achievements required,” DKD said, sounding a little disappointed. “We cannot accept you as a full-fledged member, unfortunately. Tick the apprentice bubble when you see it in the form.”
“Alright. May I ask what are the requirements for full membership?” Aramus ticked the bubble when it appeared.
“A good amount of sin and the skills required to be on par with a Duke or a Duchess.”
“Sin…” Aramus mumbled, the only thing coming to mind was his penchant for pigging out. “I tend to lose myself when eating but that aside, my skills come short when compared to Dukes and Duchesses. There is yet much I have to learn.”
“You got people killed. A lot of them, apparently, one way or the other. Good enough for us.”
“Committing mass homicide without intending to do so… No two ways around it. Millions died due to one stupid mistake, it had better be good enough,” Aramus said with a pained expression.
“I hope you don’t mind me saying, but you really need a better suit, my good junior. Even if I think a woman needs one from time to time, it’s not quite excusable for a man—who should be wearing them more than the likes of me—to have one so badly treated a suit as this one here.”
Aramus looked appalled at her statement, looking at DKD in horror. Yes, he knew that he looked bad in his suit. All too well in fact but to have a woman point that out to him reminded the Magister of his inability to buy anything but the most basic of clothing. It is and always has been a sore point for the Magic Magister.
“I… I can’t afford it. It’s embarrassing but even with the Magister title, I barely earn enough to get by.”
“A pity. Tell you what, if we make you my apprentice Space Police after the meeting, I might just gift you one,” DKD stated, looking up to Aramus’ silver hair. “I feel like we’ll get along.”
“That would be great,” Aramus admitted, silently feeling ashamed that he couldn’t even take care of himself. “I just hope to join the Space Police one way or another. It would help if someone was there to show me the ropes. Thank you, DKD.”
“We always pick someone to show things to a newcomer, no worries. We have to wait for the meeting for you to be officially granted a senior who’d help you, however.”
“Ah, I understand. Until then, is there anything for me to do? Stuff I can help with or what not?” Aramus inquired.
“If anything comes up I suppose I could take you. Tell me, what type of a sense of justice do you have? We have to ask a potential member every time because people have differing views and opinions.”
“My sense of justice? I’ve never really thought much on the subject to be honest. I run into trouble often enough to not have to think about it actually… If it’s something that harms the greater whole then I’m all for subjugating it, but there should definitely be ways to go about it than just force. Virgo would be a good example. However, there are two things I cannot stand. One would be deliberately harming innocents. The other would be an act of aggression against Her Majesty, my Liege. As a Magister, it is a given with regard to my students and the Crown.”
“I see. You are so loyal.” DKD shrugged. “You feel that there are ways to go about Virgo other than force, though?”
“Her Majesty has saved my life on more than one occasion,” Aramus replied with the same shrug but frowned regarding Virgo. “There might not be. It is more difficult to restrain rather than kill someone of her power. Even without that, her threat to life is enough for me to not consider keeping her alive.”
“Virgo is kind of whimsical, after all. Once she decides to break some mountains, she just will.”
“Of course, there will be repercussions to that. You can’t just expect to get away scot free when you do as you like. If it was someone lesser, I think we might have more options.”
“The Space Police was trying to stop her before the operation by Queen Victoria began. Alas, we didn’t wanted to risk our already small club to be completely diminished. One of her Commandment is problematic for us, as it causes disturbances in the flow of mana in the nature.”
“Ah… Yeah, that was nasty. It cancelled a number of our spells in the fight.”
“Oh yes it does. That thing breaks connections to a specified Realm. What a nasty thing indeed.”
“There’s one more called Chaos Utopia, that thing is almost if not potentially worse. Basically, nothing will happen as it stops anything that might damage her. She can stop anything, no matter how absurd that sounds.”
“And I am guessing you forgot to deliver that essential information to your Queen?”
Another sigh was the only answer she got before Aramus opened his mouth again.
“That was just one of them. I’m an idiot.”
“Well, are you sure about joining us? Everyone have their own style of getting things done, but there are some rules and etiquettes. As a proper member you’d be tasked with solving the assigned cases all by yourself when you’re a full-fledged member.”
“That is fine with me. I’m a magnet for trouble so it’s probably the best for everyone if I did work alone.”
“We all are like that over here. You should’ve seen me when I was having a strawberry shortcake and the whole neighborhood ended up getting a government’s emergency warning.”
“S-Strawberry shortcake,” Aramus muttered, momentarily wondering how DKD could have managed to procure one in the Void before focusing. “What was the warning for?”
“Bomb of a terrorist or something. It was a mundane matter in Italy. I still went and kicked some criminal butts that day. Indirectly, of course,” she said with a playful smirk.
Aramus couldn’t resist chuckling to himself, imagining her running around in that suit eating shortcake and blasting baddies. It was surreal.
“I liked Italy, I wonder if I’ll be able to go back sometime.”
“It’s my good old homeland, even if I am not Italian. They have good food, but perhaps they’re not too good on the sweets.”
“Italians? Not good with sweets? Are you referring to pastry or actual candy?” Aramus said as he once again gave DKD an appalled look.
“Well, after I tried the sweets of Japan…”
“Japan is special. They’ve got this… way of making things that is so unique,” Aramus said as he made weird gestures and shapes with his hands. “Like this kind of gummy or that kind of traditional sweet. I admit that our Western confectionaries are hard pressed to keep up but it could be due to their technology.”
“All hail technology then. I would happily ignore the ancients in preference to the new overlords of sweets. Damn the world—I feel like visiting again.”
“With all their tech though, Japan’s cakes aren’t as good as making it the old way. There’s a special flavor when made by hand rather than machine.”
“I do not agree with this statement. Have you seen the patissiers making cakes with the latest devices? They are out of the world. Seeing as you didn’t from the answer, I believe you have a lot to learn.”
“It comes to the point whether it’s truly the man or the machine making the cake. The world is vast, there is always something to learn. I have yet to taste the flavors of many other countries, even the one we’re currently residing in.”
“At the end of the day the man is still doing all the work, even if they use machine to do it the easier way. Skills would still matter. Better technology only augments the effects. Thus, I find that I should simply judge based on tastes rather than methods. Not everyone wants to go to the kitchen for the cake, do they?”
“Well, if you only want to eat then I guess that is fine too. I’ll admit I’m an old-fashioned person, given the chance I’d probably bake by hand for those that I love. It’s that same love, the one that brings a smile to a person’s face that makes it so fulfilling.
“I am sure chefs are doing their job as long as you like what you eat, right?”
“Precisely the point. It’s just that in recent years, most of it has become mechanized. Not many chefs are able to demonstrate individual flair anymore.”
DKD shrugged. “Anyway, while we wait for the other members to pop by, shall we talk a bit more about your profession-to-be? For starters… I think we told you some of the basic parts. If you have questions, now is the time to ask them.”
“Of course. You mentioned there are rules and regulations to follow, are there sanctions on anything we can do or not do in the †˜pursuit of justice’ so to speak?”
“Yes, there are many restrictions that you’d have to keep in mind, actually,” DKD said, sitting down back on her chair. “The rules state that you cannot take any actions unless the Space Time Laws are broken. This is the first big rule you must follow. There are many actions that may break this law, and I will show you that list after some time. We get requests to track down criminals from time to time by the Royal Council, if this happens, we assign the case to a member and they are free to use any means to capture, or kill the criminal—based on the given request. Note that as the Space Police, our priorities are to protect the world from distortions and side-effects that the use of magic and other abnormal forces brings.”
“It’s a bit different from regular law enforcement then… most times, we’re more concerned with danger to lives. Still, if anyone is willing to break those Space Time Laws, they have to be prepared to get screwed one way or another.”
“We have enough people for the general law enforcement. It is a shame that we still receive requests to capture †˜dangerous’ criminals, albeit we cannot turn them down as we require the funds.”
“Does the Space Police not have any supporters amongst the countries?”
“No, we are on our own, and our Founder Calamity Witch is usually supplying us… some funds.”
“I see. That in itself is good since the organization is not affiliated with any particular nation. The Calamity Witch is the founder?”
“Yes, Calamity Witch has made it for the sake of nature… and to find an excuse to say that she does not slack—when she still does.”
“Just like my Master then, maybe he runs the MVA for that same reason and makes Nicholas do all the work. Who knows.”
“That is the rumor I believe everyone knows.”
“Yeah. How long more until the meeting? Do I wait here till then or am I allowed downstairs?”
“Feel free to drink downstairs. I was, however, hoping to show some documents that describes the laws.”
“That takes precedence, the drink can wait,” Aramus said with a smile.
“I was hoping that you would say that.” DKD handed Aramus some papers from the desk. “Give them a read.”
Taking the sheet, Aramus ran over the major points and committed them to memory. Any lapses here would also be very grave. There were many important points to note, some of them even hinting at things that were way beyond his control.
The Space Time Act Laws basically said that Aramus had to be very discreet with his job. He couldn’t let anyone know that he is a member of the Space Police unless an emergency would take place when people require his instructions or warnings. Usually, Space Police members would only allowed to take official actions when spatial issues would be noted, normally to do with the Void Realm, or the other Realms, aside from their given missions. Personal life and profession life matters were asked to be kept separate to the members.
Next was the Boundary Space Act. The rules here stated that no one was allowed to create a Boundary on their own without official approval of the Royal Council and the Space Police Organizations. In the human world, only the Royal Council would receive the request to create a Boundary—the mini-Realms like the one that kept the Eastern Magic Academy within. The Council would forward the documents and other related information about the applicant to the Space Police.
Both Organizations would carefully make the decision after reviewing the documents. If either one Organization would deny, the Boundary’s creation would be rejected. Apparently, it didn’t seemed like the applicant would be aware of the Space Police checking for approval, unless privy to the matter in great detail. Normally, both Organizations would discuss it, but ultimately it seemed like the weight of the Space Police Organization’s words would be greater than that of the Council according to the boasts in the papers the Magister held.
If a Space Police member detects an illegal Boundary, their job would be to warn the residents before destroying it, especially if said residents were deemed innocent. Otherwise, the police member may need to terminate the protesters. The papers seemed to mention that a full-fledged member would be taught how to break a Boundary.
Lastly, there was the Void Space Act. Those without the full membership to the Space Police Organization were basically not allowed to use the Astral Venture spell to frequently travel across the world. Albeit the members would be taught to use it apparently. The members would have the approval to travel for work-related purposes usually. Traveling for convenience was allowed but the papers made a note to not make it frequent, otherwise some paperwork punishments would be in order.
Aramus assumed that it would be a few hundreds of papers if anything. Little did he know that there would be mountains and mountains of work to cover.
Moving on, the laws described that some “special sponsors” who were allowed to travel with the Astral Venture spell across the world as exceptions. Others were allowed to use the spells but there was a catch, if the creators of the portals were overusing it, the Space Police would be required to take action and execute them. How the Organization would identity these overusage was unknown to him. The paper seemed to describe that the easiest methods to creating portals with spells were the worst, while the spiritually-made portals appeared to be safest to utilize.
The reason to terminate people for these frequent uses was apparently noted to be distortions which comes from most magical portals as a side-effect, something that the Space Police were supposed to keep to a minimum in the human world, as they’d create problems to the nature of the world.
“So, what do you think?”
“Easy enough to understand. Adhering to it might be a bit more difficult, given the nature of our job and targets,” Aramus said, lowering the stack of papers once he was done reading.
“Yes. In reality, having a bad sense of justice is better than having a sound one for this job.”
“We’re all warped enough for this, huh?” Aramus said sardonically. “At least we’re still doing good.”
“As a bonus, we do provide these occasionally,” DKD took out a potion bottle from the desk. “You would never find this anywhere else. Except maybe some folks in High Places.” She handed it to Aramus.
A bottle for taking down the Warping in a person to avoid the Twilight phase. What a gift of the Lord indeed.
“That is… an extremely valuable item,” Aramus said, covering his mouth with a hand. “Are all agents provided with one?”
“See that little disc on the floor over there?” DKD said, pointing over to something that appeared akin to a sci-fi portal from the fictitious works of Japan. “If you stand on it, it shall measure your Warped level. If it is too high then we lease you a potion. They are very valuable so we do not give them out often.”
Aramus stood over it as she instructed, the little portal fluctuating around him as it worked. He hoped it wouldn’t be too high but there was that one time in the Infernal Realm...
On the counter beside him, a number popped up. Aramus peered with fear, it said eight.
“Well, aren’t you adventurous?”
“It can be fixed right…?” Aramus looked at DKD, his eyes searching for comfort.
“Let’s see now… they say that the truly dangerous stages are the fourth or fifth. You are staring at the third stage in the face I believe.”
“Cutting it close then…” Aramus said, pulling on his collar to loosen it a tad. “Doesn’t staying here too long corrupt as well?”
“Not inside this house.” DKD then pointed at the potion. “Feel free to use it.”
“Phew… So this is the only safe zone in the Void I take it?” Aramus said as he popped the potion open and drank it, the concoction going down his throat. It had a strange artificial flavor, probably the result of how it was made or rather, with what it was made of. “Thank you.”
“Yes, you should not traverse in the uncharted territory of the Void Realm. The Void Monsters might make a meal of you.”
“Master Christopher mentioned those. Said that it is possible to test one's strength against those creatures. Though, there was a chance you’d end up… dead.”
“Well, at your level I wouldn’t recommend it just yet. By the way, your magic should feel very weak and drawing mana should feel like very much a chore for the duration of a day due to this potion as a side-effect. It’s how it works to reduce the Warping levels.”
Aramus silently thanked Christopher for doing the Ancient Dragon Ritual before he drank it. No doubt it would’ve been nigh impossible with those aftereffects.
“I’ll bear that in mind. In time it should be alright, but I don’t think disturbing them is… wise. I mean no one likes being disturbed in the middle of their nap.”
“Yes. I personally like to respect their space and be on my way. I have once made the mistake of fighting one though. I was such a naive girl.”
“In our line of work, I believe there are plenty of other poor saps to test our new toys on. How did it go with the monster though?”
“My spells were not working at all with that damn thing. Only my sword was a thing that worked. It was a frustrating battle. That thing was good at blocking my exits too.”
“Well, you’re here now so I guess it turned out alright in the end?” Aramus noted what she said, it might come in handy for fighting in the Void if it came down to it.
“I tore through the mouth of that overgrown worm so I found a chance to escape.”
Aramus cringed, not expecting the bloodthirsty answer.
“One hell of an ending.”
There was a noise and DKD took out what seemed like a laptop. “Oh, the meeting is planned to start in an hour.”
“Alright. Is there anything for me to do until then?”
“Some things could be been done, but we can’t, not until you are formally accepted anyway. Want to go for a drink?”
“Sure. Any recommendations for what’s good in the Void?” Aramus laughed as he asked.
“I particularly enjoy whiskey here. They have all kinds of drinks, fruity ones, wine, cider, beer, tequila, vodka, and whatnot. They are trying to get the Japanese labels here but with how the world is it is rather hard and may need smuggling… something no one wants to try.”
“I’ll see what tickles my fancy then. Shall we, Witness DKD?” Aramus said, opening the door leading downstairs for her.
“Just don’t try moonshine or everclear like Queen Victoria. That would put you off commission for a while,” DKD said, passing by the door.
“Welcome, what brings you to the Space Police?” a young girl—just about the age of Aozora Linfield or Elizabeth Cavendish Bentinck—said. Her hair was silver, similar to Aramus’, but of a more darker shade. She seemed to wear earrings consisting of dices, and even tied some of her long flowing hair with accessories consisting of dices, the same was for the bow tie across her neck too. It was strange. Her golden eyes were piercing to say the least.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Magic Magister Aramus Linfield, here with my Master Christopher. I think I’m the newest recruit here,” Aramus said with a smile, unsure of how to answer. Space Police had been mentioned before but Christopher had never really elaborated much on it.
“He sorta had his name changed, was Valmark instead of Linfield…” Christopher made a gesture implying that it was a long story.
“Ah, Master Christopher, I almost missed you,” the girl said, getting off the chair, her tone was very calm and casual. “I have not heard of a new recruit with a long story. Anyway, I am called the Witness DKD. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Aramus noted her shiny swallowtail tuxedo with golden shawl lapels, and a matching golden skirt.
Who was this person?!
The suit was raising his jealousy levels to the maximum.
“Pleasure is all mine, Witness DKD.” Aramus found the name a little strange, perhaps a codename of sorts? “I haven’t actually been told much either,” he muttered, in between looking at Christopher and admiring Witness’s suit.
Christopher shrugged at Aramus’ gaze.
“I can tell you why, it’s against their rules for me to blabber. Anyway, DKD, I promised Aramus here—my disciple—and the Archmages in the Crystal Summit to let him pay for his uhh… crimes? By working here.”
“Work here, you say? You of all people know what kind of a place this is, Master Christopher.” The girl raised her brows.
“C’mon, remember the times we had those good Indian food?” Christopher plead to DKD. “Think of all the good times I gave you those treats. Please help a man out, eh?”
“Alright, alright,” the girl said, conceding, trying to stop Christopher from requesting desperately like this. It looked odd to her that an adult was begging a young girl to help. “Take a seat,” she told Aramus.
“I’ll be going off to drink, then!” Chris immediately said, becoming jolly again from DKD’s acceptance before walking out of the room.
Aramus watched his Master go before complying with DKD’s request. He felt like a lamb left out to be slaughtered.
“So you want to join the Space Police… how much did the Master say?” DKD leaned against her desk and crossed her legs.
“He only mentioned that the Space Police consisted of criminals. I haven’t heard much else of what the organization actually does besides that,” Aramus replied.
“Well, what did you do? What are you going to atone for?” she fetched a paper before handing it to Aramus.
It was a recruitment form of sorts and he’d have to fill it out apparently. When the Magister accepted the form, she handed him a golden plated pen from her suit’s breast pocket.
“I failed in my duty. Vital information was not passed on but worse than that, I—” Aramus took the pen and wrote as he spoke but wavered at this point. Calming himself, he continued writing. “New York is gone because of me. Nothing I do will ever be enough to atone for that act but I must try.”
“Oh, so you were partially involved with the destruction of South America as well I am guessing?”
Aramus’s slumped shoulders were all the answer DKD needed.
“And what of your skills? I am aware that Master Christopher took you up, but perhaps you had past achievements? Ranks?”
“Graduated from Royal Academy and was a former Enforcer of the Royal Council. I was granted the title of Magic Magister and assigned to the Eastern Academy after that. More recently, I’ve been fighting Descendants left and right and… Asteria, a denizen of the Infernal Realm.”
“I see, so you have half the achievements required,” DKD said, sounding a little disappointed. “We cannot accept you as a full-fledged member, unfortunately. Tick the apprentice bubble when you see it in the form.”
“Alright. May I ask what are the requirements for full membership?” Aramus ticked the bubble when it appeared.
“A good amount of sin and the skills required to be on par with a Duke or a Duchess.”
“Sin…” Aramus mumbled, the only thing coming to mind was his penchant for pigging out. “I tend to lose myself when eating but that aside, my skills come short when compared to Dukes and Duchesses. There is yet much I have to learn.”
“You got people killed. A lot of them, apparently, one way or the other. Good enough for us.”
“Committing mass homicide without intending to do so… No two ways around it. Millions died due to one stupid mistake, it had better be good enough,” Aramus said with a pained expression.
“I hope you don’t mind me saying, but you really need a better suit, my good junior. Even if I think a woman needs one from time to time, it’s not quite excusable for a man—who should be wearing them more than the likes of me—to have one so badly treated a suit as this one here.”
Aramus looked appalled at her statement, looking at DKD in horror. Yes, he knew that he looked bad in his suit. All too well in fact but to have a woman point that out to him reminded the Magister of his inability to buy anything but the most basic of clothing. It is and always has been a sore point for the Magic Magister.
“I… I can’t afford it. It’s embarrassing but even with the Magister title, I barely earn enough to get by.”
“A pity. Tell you what, if we make you my apprentice Space Police after the meeting, I might just gift you one,” DKD stated, looking up to Aramus’ silver hair. “I feel like we’ll get along.”
“That would be great,” Aramus admitted, silently feeling ashamed that he couldn’t even take care of himself. “I just hope to join the Space Police one way or another. It would help if someone was there to show me the ropes. Thank you, DKD.”
“We always pick someone to show things to a newcomer, no worries. We have to wait for the meeting for you to be officially granted a senior who’d help you, however.”
“Ah, I understand. Until then, is there anything for me to do? Stuff I can help with or what not?” Aramus inquired.
“If anything comes up I suppose I could take you. Tell me, what type of a sense of justice do you have? We have to ask a potential member every time because people have differing views and opinions.”
“My sense of justice? I’ve never really thought much on the subject to be honest. I run into trouble often enough to not have to think about it actually… If it’s something that harms the greater whole then I’m all for subjugating it, but there should definitely be ways to go about it than just force. Virgo would be a good example. However, there are two things I cannot stand. One would be deliberately harming innocents. The other would be an act of aggression against Her Majesty, my Liege. As a Magister, it is a given with regard to my students and the Crown.”
“I see. You are so loyal.” DKD shrugged. “You feel that there are ways to go about Virgo other than force, though?”
“Her Majesty has saved my life on more than one occasion,” Aramus replied with the same shrug but frowned regarding Virgo. “There might not be. It is more difficult to restrain rather than kill someone of her power. Even without that, her threat to life is enough for me to not consider keeping her alive.”
“Virgo is kind of whimsical, after all. Once she decides to break some mountains, she just will.”
“Of course, there will be repercussions to that. You can’t just expect to get away scot free when you do as you like. If it was someone lesser, I think we might have more options.”
“The Space Police was trying to stop her before the operation by Queen Victoria began. Alas, we didn’t wanted to risk our already small club to be completely diminished. One of her Commandment is problematic for us, as it causes disturbances in the flow of mana in the nature.”
“Ah… Yeah, that was nasty. It cancelled a number of our spells in the fight.”
“Oh yes it does. That thing breaks connections to a specified Realm. What a nasty thing indeed.”
“There’s one more called Chaos Utopia, that thing is almost if not potentially worse. Basically, nothing will happen as it stops anything that might damage her. She can stop anything, no matter how absurd that sounds.”
“And I am guessing you forgot to deliver that essential information to your Queen?”
Another sigh was the only answer she got before Aramus opened his mouth again.
“That was just one of them. I’m an idiot.”
“Well, are you sure about joining us? Everyone have their own style of getting things done, but there are some rules and etiquettes. As a proper member you’d be tasked with solving the assigned cases all by yourself when you’re a full-fledged member.”
“That is fine with me. I’m a magnet for trouble so it’s probably the best for everyone if I did work alone.”
“We all are like that over here. You should’ve seen me when I was having a strawberry shortcake and the whole neighborhood ended up getting a government’s emergency warning.”
“S-Strawberry shortcake,” Aramus muttered, momentarily wondering how DKD could have managed to procure one in the Void before focusing. “What was the warning for?”
“Bomb of a terrorist or something. It was a mundane matter in Italy. I still went and kicked some criminal butts that day. Indirectly, of course,” she said with a playful smirk.
Aramus couldn’t resist chuckling to himself, imagining her running around in that suit eating shortcake and blasting baddies. It was surreal.
“I liked Italy, I wonder if I’ll be able to go back sometime.”
“It’s my good old homeland, even if I am not Italian. They have good food, but perhaps they’re not too good on the sweets.”
“Italians? Not good with sweets? Are you referring to pastry or actual candy?” Aramus said as he once again gave DKD an appalled look.
“Well, after I tried the sweets of Japan…”
“Japan is special. They’ve got this… way of making things that is so unique,” Aramus said as he made weird gestures and shapes with his hands. “Like this kind of gummy or that kind of traditional sweet. I admit that our Western confectionaries are hard pressed to keep up but it could be due to their technology.”
“All hail technology then. I would happily ignore the ancients in preference to the new overlords of sweets. Damn the world—I feel like visiting again.”
“With all their tech though, Japan’s cakes aren’t as good as making it the old way. There’s a special flavor when made by hand rather than machine.”
“I do not agree with this statement. Have you seen the patissiers making cakes with the latest devices? They are out of the world. Seeing as you didn’t from the answer, I believe you have a lot to learn.”
“It comes to the point whether it’s truly the man or the machine making the cake. The world is vast, there is always something to learn. I have yet to taste the flavors of many other countries, even the one we’re currently residing in.”
“At the end of the day the man is still doing all the work, even if they use machine to do it the easier way. Skills would still matter. Better technology only augments the effects. Thus, I find that I should simply judge based on tastes rather than methods. Not everyone wants to go to the kitchen for the cake, do they?”
“Well, if you only want to eat then I guess that is fine too. I’ll admit I’m an old-fashioned person, given the chance I’d probably bake by hand for those that I love. It’s that same love, the one that brings a smile to a person’s face that makes it so fulfilling.
“I am sure chefs are doing their job as long as you like what you eat, right?”
“Precisely the point. It’s just that in recent years, most of it has become mechanized. Not many chefs are able to demonstrate individual flair anymore.”
DKD shrugged. “Anyway, while we wait for the other members to pop by, shall we talk a bit more about your profession-to-be? For starters… I think we told you some of the basic parts. If you have questions, now is the time to ask them.”
“Of course. You mentioned there are rules and regulations to follow, are there sanctions on anything we can do or not do in the †˜pursuit of justice’ so to speak?”
“Yes, there are many restrictions that you’d have to keep in mind, actually,” DKD said, sitting down back on her chair. “The rules state that you cannot take any actions unless the Space Time Laws are broken. This is the first big rule you must follow. There are many actions that may break this law, and I will show you that list after some time. We get requests to track down criminals from time to time by the Royal Council, if this happens, we assign the case to a member and they are free to use any means to capture, or kill the criminal—based on the given request. Note that as the Space Police, our priorities are to protect the world from distortions and side-effects that the use of magic and other abnormal forces brings.”
“It’s a bit different from regular law enforcement then… most times, we’re more concerned with danger to lives. Still, if anyone is willing to break those Space Time Laws, they have to be prepared to get screwed one way or another.”
“We have enough people for the general law enforcement. It is a shame that we still receive requests to capture †˜dangerous’ criminals, albeit we cannot turn them down as we require the funds.”
“Does the Space Police not have any supporters amongst the countries?”
“No, we are on our own, and our Founder Calamity Witch is usually supplying us… some funds.”
“I see. That in itself is good since the organization is not affiliated with any particular nation. The Calamity Witch is the founder?”
“Yes, Calamity Witch has made it for the sake of nature… and to find an excuse to say that she does not slack—when she still does.”
“Just like my Master then, maybe he runs the MVA for that same reason and makes Nicholas do all the work. Who knows.”
“That is the rumor I believe everyone knows.”
“Yeah. How long more until the meeting? Do I wait here till then or am I allowed downstairs?”
“Feel free to drink downstairs. I was, however, hoping to show some documents that describes the laws.”
“That takes precedence, the drink can wait,” Aramus said with a smile.
“I was hoping that you would say that.” DKD handed Aramus some papers from the desk. “Give them a read.”
Taking the sheet, Aramus ran over the major points and committed them to memory. Any lapses here would also be very grave. There were many important points to note, some of them even hinting at things that were way beyond his control.
The Space Time Act Laws basically said that Aramus had to be very discreet with his job. He couldn’t let anyone know that he is a member of the Space Police unless an emergency would take place when people require his instructions or warnings. Usually, Space Police members would only allowed to take official actions when spatial issues would be noted, normally to do with the Void Realm, or the other Realms, aside from their given missions. Personal life and profession life matters were asked to be kept separate to the members.
Next was the Boundary Space Act. The rules here stated that no one was allowed to create a Boundary on their own without official approval of the Royal Council and the Space Police Organizations. In the human world, only the Royal Council would receive the request to create a Boundary—the mini-Realms like the one that kept the Eastern Magic Academy within. The Council would forward the documents and other related information about the applicant to the Space Police.
Both Organizations would carefully make the decision after reviewing the documents. If either one Organization would deny, the Boundary’s creation would be rejected. Apparently, it didn’t seemed like the applicant would be aware of the Space Police checking for approval, unless privy to the matter in great detail. Normally, both Organizations would discuss it, but ultimately it seemed like the weight of the Space Police Organization’s words would be greater than that of the Council according to the boasts in the papers the Magister held.
If a Space Police member detects an illegal Boundary, their job would be to warn the residents before destroying it, especially if said residents were deemed innocent. Otherwise, the police member may need to terminate the protesters. The papers seemed to mention that a full-fledged member would be taught how to break a Boundary.
Lastly, there was the Void Space Act. Those without the full membership to the Space Police Organization were basically not allowed to use the Astral Venture spell to frequently travel across the world. Albeit the members would be taught to use it apparently. The members would have the approval to travel for work-related purposes usually. Traveling for convenience was allowed but the papers made a note to not make it frequent, otherwise some paperwork punishments would be in order.
Aramus assumed that it would be a few hundreds of papers if anything. Little did he know that there would be mountains and mountains of work to cover.
Moving on, the laws described that some “special sponsors” who were allowed to travel with the Astral Venture spell across the world as exceptions. Others were allowed to use the spells but there was a catch, if the creators of the portals were overusing it, the Space Police would be required to take action and execute them. How the Organization would identity these overusage was unknown to him. The paper seemed to describe that the easiest methods to creating portals with spells were the worst, while the spiritually-made portals appeared to be safest to utilize.
The reason to terminate people for these frequent uses was apparently noted to be distortions which comes from most magical portals as a side-effect, something that the Space Police were supposed to keep to a minimum in the human world, as they’d create problems to the nature of the world.
“So, what do you think?”
“Easy enough to understand. Adhering to it might be a bit more difficult, given the nature of our job and targets,” Aramus said, lowering the stack of papers once he was done reading.
“Yes. In reality, having a bad sense of justice is better than having a sound one for this job.”
“We’re all warped enough for this, huh?” Aramus said sardonically. “At least we’re still doing good.”
“As a bonus, we do provide these occasionally,” DKD took out a potion bottle from the desk. “You would never find this anywhere else. Except maybe some folks in High Places.” She handed it to Aramus.
A bottle for taking down the Warping in a person to avoid the Twilight phase. What a gift of the Lord indeed.
“That is… an extremely valuable item,” Aramus said, covering his mouth with a hand. “Are all agents provided with one?”
“See that little disc on the floor over there?” DKD said, pointing over to something that appeared akin to a sci-fi portal from the fictitious works of Japan. “If you stand on it, it shall measure your Warped level. If it is too high then we lease you a potion. They are very valuable so we do not give them out often.”
Aramus stood over it as she instructed, the little portal fluctuating around him as it worked. He hoped it wouldn’t be too high but there was that one time in the Infernal Realm...
On the counter beside him, a number popped up. Aramus peered with fear, it said eight.
“Well, aren’t you adventurous?”
“It can be fixed right…?” Aramus looked at DKD, his eyes searching for comfort.
“Let’s see now… they say that the truly dangerous stages are the fourth or fifth. You are staring at the third stage in the face I believe.”
“Cutting it close then…” Aramus said, pulling on his collar to loosen it a tad. “Doesn’t staying here too long corrupt as well?”
“Not inside this house.” DKD then pointed at the potion. “Feel free to use it.”
“Phew… So this is the only safe zone in the Void I take it?” Aramus said as he popped the potion open and drank it, the concoction going down his throat. It had a strange artificial flavor, probably the result of how it was made or rather, with what it was made of. “Thank you.”
“Yes, you should not traverse in the uncharted territory of the Void Realm. The Void Monsters might make a meal of you.”
“Master Christopher mentioned those. Said that it is possible to test one's strength against those creatures. Though, there was a chance you’d end up… dead.”
“Well, at your level I wouldn’t recommend it just yet. By the way, your magic should feel very weak and drawing mana should feel like very much a chore for the duration of a day due to this potion as a side-effect. It’s how it works to reduce the Warping levels.”
Aramus silently thanked Christopher for doing the Ancient Dragon Ritual before he drank it. No doubt it would’ve been nigh impossible with those aftereffects.
“I’ll bear that in mind. In time it should be alright, but I don’t think disturbing them is… wise. I mean no one likes being disturbed in the middle of their nap.”
“Yes. I personally like to respect their space and be on my way. I have once made the mistake of fighting one though. I was such a naive girl.”
“In our line of work, I believe there are plenty of other poor saps to test our new toys on. How did it go with the monster though?”
“My spells were not working at all with that damn thing. Only my sword was a thing that worked. It was a frustrating battle. That thing was good at blocking my exits too.”
“Well, you’re here now so I guess it turned out alright in the end?” Aramus noted what she said, it might come in handy for fighting in the Void if it came down to it.
“I tore through the mouth of that overgrown worm so I found a chance to escape.”
Aramus cringed, not expecting the bloodthirsty answer.
“One hell of an ending.”
There was a noise and DKD took out what seemed like a laptop. “Oh, the meeting is planned to start in an hour.”
“Alright. Is there anything for me to do until then?”
“Some things could be been done, but we can’t, not until you are formally accepted anyway. Want to go for a drink?”
“Sure. Any recommendations for what’s good in the Void?” Aramus laughed as he asked.
“I particularly enjoy whiskey here. They have all kinds of drinks, fruity ones, wine, cider, beer, tequila, vodka, and whatnot. They are trying to get the Japanese labels here but with how the world is it is rather hard and may need smuggling… something no one wants to try.”
“I’ll see what tickles my fancy then. Shall we, Witness DKD?” Aramus said, opening the door leading downstairs for her.
“Just don’t try moonshine or everclear like Queen Victoria. That would put you off commission for a while,” DKD said, passing by the door.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
Back in the ground floor now, DKD was holding a glass of whiskey while Christopher was already busy drinking champagne. The bartender was as silent as ever and the quaint feeling of the place made Aramus feel more relaxed now.
Leaving the two to chat and catch up, Aramus made his way away from the counter to a sofa by the side, setting his drink down on the table. He had ordered the same drink as DKD upon her suggestion, not really having a chance to drink liquor often meant that he knew little about the finer beverages. Aramus swirled the liquid in his glass, ice clinking softly against each other before he took a small sip of the golden liquid. Unlike the cheap swill he had at taverns in England or the dry beers the Japanese preferred, this one was smooth yet smoky, going down his throat with nary a burn.
Laughter from the counter proved that at least someone was enjoying himself and a bitter smile unwittingly made itself known on Aramus’ face despite himself. It had been a rollercoaster ride the past few days, being tossed out from his homeland and Japan within a day. Heck, he hadn’t even been able to visit either before coming here. Even if he didn’t show it, it had worn down the Magister mentally.
Now that he was given the time to think and brood, all the thoughts flooded out unbidden. It was easy to go over some of the minor ones but others that concerned people like Elizabeth, Almond and Takeru—they were the ones that mattered. His teeth lightly touched against ice and Aramus noticed that he had unknowingly finished his whisky while he thought of all this, signalling to the bartender to prepare another with a raise of his glass.
Here again on another rollercoaster ride, and it somehow felt that he wasn’t securely strapped in. Granted, the blame was his to bear and it was precisely because of it that he was bitter. A strong sense of self-loathing lingered in him ever since the misstep. DKD said everyone in the Space Police was a little off-kilter, him included. Perhaps she may have been too right with that assessment.
Soon, a second round was delivered and he thanked the bartender for going out of his way, the gentleman taking a hint from the way Aramus had been slouched over.
It had been alright to think he had been doing fine in the Eastern Academy, but that had probably dulled his senses, made him complacent when he was required to take up arms once more. It had proven true with the many occasions others had to pull him out of the fire despite his best efforts. Could he really call that his best then if he required saving so often?
Aramus shook his head clear of these thoughts. The Space Police would do good for him, teach him to stand on his two legs again or face the consequences. Since they operated alone, there wouldn’t be a time when others would face danger trying to help him out. He could help the world from the shadows and no one would be wiser. Yet no matter how many times he told himself it was for the best, why did his own words feel so hollow?
“You sure know when to drop us a bomb, Master Christopher. Bringing that Magister here at a time like this. Were you calculating all this?” DKD asked.
Christopher laughed, shaking his head.
“I can’t be that good. I’m only good for the ladies, and the food.”
“You don’t change, do you?”
“Do I need to?”
“Of course not.”
“So, how are things going around here?”
“The usual. Just once did some newcomer rile up some Void Monster, but Bjornaer was nice enough to save him. He ranted all day about Princess Louise and even insulted her, I hear.”
“That’s one uncouth person. I would be too busy praising the Princess if I were there.”
“Oh, you sure would be. I myself think she is strange, however.
“Strange, you say? How so?”
“Nothing, you could just chalk it up to intuition. We former criminals can tell these sort of things.”
“I’ll take that as the next global warming warning news or something.”
“Now, now, if I said that the world is ending tomorrow, surely you wouldn’t believe me?”
“I would. You and your gang had the craziest world enders and messiahs. No jokes there, lass.”
“Surely you jest.”
DKD was already in the fifth drink, but she didn’t seem to waver so much from the intake. Aramus couldn’t even tell how much Chris had drank by now. Perhaps they were used to drinking. Whatever the case, the Magister gave a dull look at the door on the corner that opened and someone was walking up to the counter.
He looked down at her sparkling blonde hair and the majestic, deep rose-colored dress. Something was very familiar about it. The crown she wore was also something he knew, but he couldn’t quite string it all together in his mind.
The Royal Queen of Britain sat down beside his Master, and by this time it finally dawned to him after he remembered what his Master was telling him about †˜his Queen’ occasionally visiting this Realm.
Aramus made a sour face, making to move away. He couldn’t bear to let the Queen see him in this state, not after what had happened. She had vouched for him at the Crystal Summit and it was her faith in him that helped the Magister cope but right now, this was a side of him that he didn’t want her to see. Hopefully, the bartender wouldn’t mind if he took the glass outside, maybe there might even be a breeze in the Void. It was strange that way. Those at the counter could catch up on things whilst Aramus made himself scarce, he had bothered enough people already.
The Queen only gave Aramus a glance from the corner of her eye as he left.
“Will he be fine like that?” DKD inquired. “Unlike most of our members, he is feeling very guilty about this.”
“I’m sure that will prompt him to work harder,” Chris said. “Give him time. The man needs it.”
“I feel as though I am responsible for all of this somehow,” the Queen stated, a melancholic smile as she was holding a glass of a strong alcohol. “I will have to make it up to him one day.”
“I’m sure he wouldn’t agree with that, Your Majesty.” Chris finished another glass of his drink. “You both love to blame yourselves for everything.”
“Mister Christopher.”
“Yes?”
“Please look after him.”
“You know I will, Your Majesty.”
Leaving the two to chat and catch up, Aramus made his way away from the counter to a sofa by the side, setting his drink down on the table. He had ordered the same drink as DKD upon her suggestion, not really having a chance to drink liquor often meant that he knew little about the finer beverages. Aramus swirled the liquid in his glass, ice clinking softly against each other before he took a small sip of the golden liquid. Unlike the cheap swill he had at taverns in England or the dry beers the Japanese preferred, this one was smooth yet smoky, going down his throat with nary a burn.
Laughter from the counter proved that at least someone was enjoying himself and a bitter smile unwittingly made itself known on Aramus’ face despite himself. It had been a rollercoaster ride the past few days, being tossed out from his homeland and Japan within a day. Heck, he hadn’t even been able to visit either before coming here. Even if he didn’t show it, it had worn down the Magister mentally.
Now that he was given the time to think and brood, all the thoughts flooded out unbidden. It was easy to go over some of the minor ones but others that concerned people like Elizabeth, Almond and Takeru—they were the ones that mattered. His teeth lightly touched against ice and Aramus noticed that he had unknowingly finished his whisky while he thought of all this, signalling to the bartender to prepare another with a raise of his glass.
Here again on another rollercoaster ride, and it somehow felt that he wasn’t securely strapped in. Granted, the blame was his to bear and it was precisely because of it that he was bitter. A strong sense of self-loathing lingered in him ever since the misstep. DKD said everyone in the Space Police was a little off-kilter, him included. Perhaps she may have been too right with that assessment.
Soon, a second round was delivered and he thanked the bartender for going out of his way, the gentleman taking a hint from the way Aramus had been slouched over.
It had been alright to think he had been doing fine in the Eastern Academy, but that had probably dulled his senses, made him complacent when he was required to take up arms once more. It had proven true with the many occasions others had to pull him out of the fire despite his best efforts. Could he really call that his best then if he required saving so often?
Aramus shook his head clear of these thoughts. The Space Police would do good for him, teach him to stand on his two legs again or face the consequences. Since they operated alone, there wouldn’t be a time when others would face danger trying to help him out. He could help the world from the shadows and no one would be wiser. Yet no matter how many times he told himself it was for the best, why did his own words feel so hollow?
“You sure know when to drop us a bomb, Master Christopher. Bringing that Magister here at a time like this. Were you calculating all this?” DKD asked.
Christopher laughed, shaking his head.
“I can’t be that good. I’m only good for the ladies, and the food.”
“You don’t change, do you?”
“Do I need to?”
“Of course not.”
“So, how are things going around here?”
“The usual. Just once did some newcomer rile up some Void Monster, but Bjornaer was nice enough to save him. He ranted all day about Princess Louise and even insulted her, I hear.”
“That’s one uncouth person. I would be too busy praising the Princess if I were there.”
“Oh, you sure would be. I myself think she is strange, however.
“Strange, you say? How so?”
“Nothing, you could just chalk it up to intuition. We former criminals can tell these sort of things.”
“I’ll take that as the next global warming warning news or something.”
“Now, now, if I said that the world is ending tomorrow, surely you wouldn’t believe me?”
“I would. You and your gang had the craziest world enders and messiahs. No jokes there, lass.”
“Surely you jest.”
DKD was already in the fifth drink, but she didn’t seem to waver so much from the intake. Aramus couldn’t even tell how much Chris had drank by now. Perhaps they were used to drinking. Whatever the case, the Magister gave a dull look at the door on the corner that opened and someone was walking up to the counter.
He looked down at her sparkling blonde hair and the majestic, deep rose-colored dress. Something was very familiar about it. The crown she wore was also something he knew, but he couldn’t quite string it all together in his mind.
The Royal Queen of Britain sat down beside his Master, and by this time it finally dawned to him after he remembered what his Master was telling him about †˜his Queen’ occasionally visiting this Realm.
Aramus made a sour face, making to move away. He couldn’t bear to let the Queen see him in this state, not after what had happened. She had vouched for him at the Crystal Summit and it was her faith in him that helped the Magister cope but right now, this was a side of him that he didn’t want her to see. Hopefully, the bartender wouldn’t mind if he took the glass outside, maybe there might even be a breeze in the Void. It was strange that way. Those at the counter could catch up on things whilst Aramus made himself scarce, he had bothered enough people already.
The Queen only gave Aramus a glance from the corner of her eye as he left.
“Will he be fine like that?” DKD inquired. “Unlike most of our members, he is feeling very guilty about this.”
“I’m sure that will prompt him to work harder,” Chris said. “Give him time. The man needs it.”
“I feel as though I am responsible for all of this somehow,” the Queen stated, a melancholic smile as she was holding a glass of a strong alcohol. “I will have to make it up to him one day.”
“I’m sure he wouldn’t agree with that, Your Majesty.” Chris finished another glass of his drink. “You both love to blame yourselves for everything.”
“Mister Christopher.”
“Yes?”
“Please look after him.”
“You know I will, Your Majesty.”
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
After the hour finally passed, Witness DKD finally beckoned the Magister inside the house. When he walked in, he still saw the Queen drinking beside his Master as he followed DKD to the upper floor.
The room had many people he didn’t know, and he didn’t see any of them enter the house when he was just outside of it. Perhaps he was too out of it, or they simply came here through the portals. Regardless, Aramus surveyed the room again despite his mood.
Witness DKD spoke first, “So this is our latest recruit. An apprentice Space Police who was placed under our care by Master Christopher Bradley, our Administrator had already accepted him and formalized his entry into our Organization.”
“I am Magic Magister Aramus Linfield. Although I am inexperienced, I will try my best to catch up to everyone. I look forward to working with you,” Aramus introduced himself, lowering his head in respect as the newest member of the group.
The members gave him a nod, more or less. These people all seemed eccentric from their looks.
“I am Witness DDD,” a masked man said, his body was completely locked in armory and his voice was rather intimidating.
“I am Witness DDK,” the Chinese man in white clothes said, his voice sounded faint. Aramus felt as though he could disappear into the air any time.
“Witness DDS here,” another girl as young as DKD said with a wave of her hand and a cheerful smile. Her hair was notably sky-blue tied in a twintail and she wore a sailor uniform, but it was bold and revealed her shoulders completely.
“I am called Witness DBD,” another faint voice of a man, but he was very handsome, yet melancholic. He wore a jet black suit and had long, silky black hair.
“Witness DND,” a tall woman who wore a pink masquerade mask said, her voice seductive enough to poison the Magister’s imaginations. Her attire was not modest at all to say the least.
“And I’m DTD,” the last one said, having a shade of yellow hair that seemed almost lemon color. One of her eye was red while the other was blue. Her attire was very revealing as she fancied shorts and what seemed like a coat barely covering her upper torso with nothing seemingly underneath.
“So, DKD, you’re saying he wants to join us, but are you sure he is eligible? He looks scrawny,” DTD commented.
Witness DKD smiled wryly, gesturing at Aramus.
Tilting his head at her, Aramus nonetheless complied and stepped forward.
“Let them know why I said you’re qualified earlier,” DKD whispered to him.
Aramus took a deep breath, feeling very much like he was preaching to the wrong crowd. “Graduate of the Royal Academy, former Enforcer of the Royal Council and currently Magic Magister. I was a teacher up until recently at the Eastern Academy but since then, have been battling Descendants left, right and center. My… claim to fame is wiping New York and South America off the face of the earth. Unintentionally at that…” Aramus added with a sigh.
“You’ll fit right in,” DDD said.
“That is a little… too much,” DBD remarked.
“Sounds normal to me.” DDS laughed, but it sounded like mockery.
DND shrugged. “Business as every day would have it.”
“Let’s not talk about us ruining the world more than we should be now,” DKD said. They all found themselves bursting out and laughing.
Aramus fidgeted a little as they treated ruining the earth like it was a normal thing but Christopher had mentioned it so it made sense. “Pardon me for asking but has everyone here… caused something similar?” Aramus asked, wanting very much to know more about them or more specifically, their crimes.
“We’re mostly blacklisted people,” DND answered.
“For good reason, I guess,” DDS added.
“Truth be told, you’re not so bad since you didn’t commit the supposed †˜crimes’ things intentionally,” DDD said in a very serious tone. “We’re the true savages here, even if we don’t look like it.”
“No, you do, DDD, you really are one. Mostly just you,” DBD corrected. DDD seemed to scoff but he wore a helm, thus no one could truly tell.
“I see. Thanks for answering my question.” Aramus said, stealing a quick glance at the one called DDD. His armor did indeed make him look savage and Aramus couldn’t help but wonder what the man looked like under all that.
“Have you heard of the project in America that involved taking the people outside the world?” DBD asked. “Not for visiting, but for occupying in the moon.”
“Or the incident where an entire forest was buried under the grounds?” DDS contributed.
“Or maybe the one incident the… Mage’s War was started for?” DKD also asked.
“We’re responsible for some of those horrible problems, definitely,” DDD said.
“Suddenly, I don’t feel so bad anymore.” Aramus chuckled. “Doesn’t change anything that’s happened but at least, I have seniors in the business.”
“Good, the last thing we want is for you to not feel too down; you wouldn’t be able to do things straight,” DDD stated.
“Bury your feelings, junior.” DKD took out some papers, and handed one of them to Aramus. “You’re officially a part of the group now.”
On the paper, Aramus looked for his name but he couldn’t find it anywhere. He found a new name, in fact: Witness DAD.
“Really? DAD?” Aramus said in dismay, pronouncing it with proper English. “I know I’ve got some foster kids but…”
“Well, we don’t say †˜DAD’ but instead we say †˜D-A-D.’ I guess it’s a good joke as any, though,” DKD replied with a grin.
“D-A-D.” Aramus said, somewhat lost for words. “Well, it doesn’t get any better than this.”
“You’re not exactly the †˜Witness’ yet, but we’ll get to that eventually.” DKD looked down at the script on her hand. “We’ll be having you as one of the member’s apprentice here. I suppose that makes you an apprentice of two person, including Master Christopher. Your senior will be teaching you about the work and show you the ropes until he or she thinks you are ready to work on your own and become a proper member. You will be taught the Astral Venture Supreme Spell for the sake of traveling for business. You will also be taught the Boundary Diminisher Supreme Spell in time. Any questions?”
“When can I start?” Aramus asked.
“When do you want to start?” DDD asked. “You’d have a bit of a turbulent schedule from what I see, going out with the senior and then returning to Master Christopher sounds like a chore.”
“Master Christopher and I are currently on assignment so yes, that might prove a bit difficult. Will there be a point of contact I can use without having to travel to the Void?”
“Actually, when I spoke to Master Christopher earlier, we decided that I’ll be paying a helping hand,” Witness DKD revealed. “How about you join me for it? It could be good experience.”
“I’m fine with it,” Chris said from just behind Aramus, and he found himself started. Since when did his Master enter the room at all?
“Master!” Aramus said, giving the MVA Director a look that said he didn’t enjoy being startled before sighing. There was no helping the man. “Kill two birds with one stone as the saying goes. I think it’s a good idea.”
“That said, DKD, this means he is your apprentice, riiiight?” DND asked.
“Uh, no, I…”
“That settles it then.” DBD nodded.
“Good luck!” DDS exclaimed.
“You two wearing suits would make a fine pair,” DDD too, agreed.
“Allow me to begin how wrong that sounds from my perspective—” DKD began, but was interrupted.
“I don’t want another lecture about the materials and the work that a suit requires, thank you,” DDD said, Aramus couldn’t see it but the smirk under the helm was apparent.
“Oh, fine. We’ll have it your way,” DKD conceded. “We’re working together officially it seems,” she said, shaking hands with Aramus. It wasn’t the best handshake, for either of them.
Aramus looked at DKD apologetically, feeling bad that he was the cause of her troubles. “I’ll try to make it up to you one way or another.”
“I don’t need any of that. You better make the experience count since I’m on your case now,” DKD said with a rare savage smile. “I suppose you can start going back and forth from your Master and our little headquarters here after you learn the Astral Venture spell—which lets you travel across the Realms.”
“The faster I learn that, the less trouble I’ll cause for everyone, I suppose.”
“So, what are the missions about this time?” DDS asked.
DKD placed some papers on the big table and everyone leaned forward to take a look.
“We have some cases here. One in Saudi Arabia that DAD was talking about, then there’s one in the USA about the distortions forming due excessive summons of Hell’s Fires.” Chris clapped his hand at the members apologetically as DKD read that part out.
“Sorry! The MVA would appreciate the help,” the Archmage said.
“Then there is the mysterious situation in England where random people are disappearing. The Queen herself requested this and it will be my next case after Saudi Arabia’s one. Oh, DND, the Witch wants you to keep going with the French Artist Murderer case.”
“Eeeeh? I wanted to stop working on that, it’s so boring.” Witness DND sighed.
“I’ll be dealing with America’s problem,” DDD claimed.
“I’ll be continuing on my case in Italy and aid the Witch. I think this is a really big problem,” DBD stated.
“What about you, DDS?” DKD asked.
“I’m actually done with my work, here’s the report,” DDS said. The girl handed a piece of paper which DKD read. DKD only seemed to give it a glance before giving a nod.
“I think you’ll like this one here…” DKD then handed DDS a paper. Aramus could only see the letter †˜NORTH’ in red text as if it was extremely dangerous.
“What about me?” DDK finally spoke again.
“I forgot about you,” DKD frankly stated.
“Not again.”
“Don’t blame me.”
“Well?”
“Your next assignment is… well, don’t be surprised, at China. None of us want to deal with that.”
“It’s fine.”
“Alright, with that decided… meeting adjourned!”
Everyone except Witness DDD and DKD were gone in an instant, entering portals and taking leave. DKD then showed Aramus one of the documents she held. It was a report on Saudi Arabia’s problems with the vampires.
The report dated back ten years and potentially even longer. Who knew how long the vampires had been operating before being discovered? Aramus shook his head, wondering why anyone had let this problem go on for as long as it did. “This is has been going on for far too long.”
“Well, the vampires are as elusive as ever,” Christopher commented. “The King has been dealing with them for so long, but they’re still persistent.”
“We’ll be going to Diriya, under the Ar Riyad Province,” DKD announced to the Archmage. “There we will pursue the vampires, according to the reports they have a trade route of sorts there. One that has abnormally less amount of vampires.”
“And turn them into paste. Intending to capture any †˜alive’ for information?” Aramus asked.
“We need to capture at least one of them alive. The rest may be fried on some electric conductor or something.”
“Sounds like a job perfectly suited for me. Hopefully, we’ll get some good intel on the rest of their operation.” Aramus turned to face Christopher. “It’ll be a good time to test everything out.”
“I have this feeling that you’re gonna get a toootally different lesson. It’ll be worth it if I think I know how she’ll handle things.”
“We never change, if that’s what you wanted to know.” DKD gave a wink to the Archmage. It looked similar to how Chris would give winks when joking around.
“Uh, okay. So long as the job gets done at the end of the day.” Aramus said, not knowing what to expect but from the way his Master spoke, it might be a good learning experience.
The room had many people he didn’t know, and he didn’t see any of them enter the house when he was just outside of it. Perhaps he was too out of it, or they simply came here through the portals. Regardless, Aramus surveyed the room again despite his mood.
Witness DKD spoke first, “So this is our latest recruit. An apprentice Space Police who was placed under our care by Master Christopher Bradley, our Administrator had already accepted him and formalized his entry into our Organization.”
“I am Magic Magister Aramus Linfield. Although I am inexperienced, I will try my best to catch up to everyone. I look forward to working with you,” Aramus introduced himself, lowering his head in respect as the newest member of the group.
The members gave him a nod, more or less. These people all seemed eccentric from their looks.
“I am Witness DDD,” a masked man said, his body was completely locked in armory and his voice was rather intimidating.
“I am Witness DDK,” the Chinese man in white clothes said, his voice sounded faint. Aramus felt as though he could disappear into the air any time.
“Witness DDS here,” another girl as young as DKD said with a wave of her hand and a cheerful smile. Her hair was notably sky-blue tied in a twintail and she wore a sailor uniform, but it was bold and revealed her shoulders completely.
“I am called Witness DBD,” another faint voice of a man, but he was very handsome, yet melancholic. He wore a jet black suit and had long, silky black hair.
“Witness DND,” a tall woman who wore a pink masquerade mask said, her voice seductive enough to poison the Magister’s imaginations. Her attire was not modest at all to say the least.
“And I’m DTD,” the last one said, having a shade of yellow hair that seemed almost lemon color. One of her eye was red while the other was blue. Her attire was very revealing as she fancied shorts and what seemed like a coat barely covering her upper torso with nothing seemingly underneath.
“So, DKD, you’re saying he wants to join us, but are you sure he is eligible? He looks scrawny,” DTD commented.
Witness DKD smiled wryly, gesturing at Aramus.
Tilting his head at her, Aramus nonetheless complied and stepped forward.
“Let them know why I said you’re qualified earlier,” DKD whispered to him.
Aramus took a deep breath, feeling very much like he was preaching to the wrong crowd. “Graduate of the Royal Academy, former Enforcer of the Royal Council and currently Magic Magister. I was a teacher up until recently at the Eastern Academy but since then, have been battling Descendants left, right and center. My… claim to fame is wiping New York and South America off the face of the earth. Unintentionally at that…” Aramus added with a sigh.
“You’ll fit right in,” DDD said.
“That is a little… too much,” DBD remarked.
“Sounds normal to me.” DDS laughed, but it sounded like mockery.
DND shrugged. “Business as every day would have it.”
“Let’s not talk about us ruining the world more than we should be now,” DKD said. They all found themselves bursting out and laughing.
Aramus fidgeted a little as they treated ruining the earth like it was a normal thing but Christopher had mentioned it so it made sense. “Pardon me for asking but has everyone here… caused something similar?” Aramus asked, wanting very much to know more about them or more specifically, their crimes.
“We’re mostly blacklisted people,” DND answered.
“For good reason, I guess,” DDS added.
“Truth be told, you’re not so bad since you didn’t commit the supposed †˜crimes’ things intentionally,” DDD said in a very serious tone. “We’re the true savages here, even if we don’t look like it.”
“No, you do, DDD, you really are one. Mostly just you,” DBD corrected. DDD seemed to scoff but he wore a helm, thus no one could truly tell.
“I see. Thanks for answering my question.” Aramus said, stealing a quick glance at the one called DDD. His armor did indeed make him look savage and Aramus couldn’t help but wonder what the man looked like under all that.
“Have you heard of the project in America that involved taking the people outside the world?” DBD asked. “Not for visiting, but for occupying in the moon.”
“Or the incident where an entire forest was buried under the grounds?” DDS contributed.
“Or maybe the one incident the… Mage’s War was started for?” DKD also asked.
“We’re responsible for some of those horrible problems, definitely,” DDD said.
“Suddenly, I don’t feel so bad anymore.” Aramus chuckled. “Doesn’t change anything that’s happened but at least, I have seniors in the business.”
“Good, the last thing we want is for you to not feel too down; you wouldn’t be able to do things straight,” DDD stated.
“Bury your feelings, junior.” DKD took out some papers, and handed one of them to Aramus. “You’re officially a part of the group now.”
On the paper, Aramus looked for his name but he couldn’t find it anywhere. He found a new name, in fact: Witness DAD.
“Really? DAD?” Aramus said in dismay, pronouncing it with proper English. “I know I’ve got some foster kids but…”
“Well, we don’t say †˜DAD’ but instead we say †˜D-A-D.’ I guess it’s a good joke as any, though,” DKD replied with a grin.
“D-A-D.” Aramus said, somewhat lost for words. “Well, it doesn’t get any better than this.”
“You’re not exactly the †˜Witness’ yet, but we’ll get to that eventually.” DKD looked down at the script on her hand. “We’ll be having you as one of the member’s apprentice here. I suppose that makes you an apprentice of two person, including Master Christopher. Your senior will be teaching you about the work and show you the ropes until he or she thinks you are ready to work on your own and become a proper member. You will be taught the Astral Venture Supreme Spell for the sake of traveling for business. You will also be taught the Boundary Diminisher Supreme Spell in time. Any questions?”
“When can I start?” Aramus asked.
“When do you want to start?” DDD asked. “You’d have a bit of a turbulent schedule from what I see, going out with the senior and then returning to Master Christopher sounds like a chore.”
“Master Christopher and I are currently on assignment so yes, that might prove a bit difficult. Will there be a point of contact I can use without having to travel to the Void?”
“Actually, when I spoke to Master Christopher earlier, we decided that I’ll be paying a helping hand,” Witness DKD revealed. “How about you join me for it? It could be good experience.”
“I’m fine with it,” Chris said from just behind Aramus, and he found himself started. Since when did his Master enter the room at all?
“Master!” Aramus said, giving the MVA Director a look that said he didn’t enjoy being startled before sighing. There was no helping the man. “Kill two birds with one stone as the saying goes. I think it’s a good idea.”
“That said, DKD, this means he is your apprentice, riiiight?” DND asked.
“Uh, no, I…”
“That settles it then.” DBD nodded.
“Good luck!” DDS exclaimed.
“You two wearing suits would make a fine pair,” DDD too, agreed.
“Allow me to begin how wrong that sounds from my perspective—” DKD began, but was interrupted.
“I don’t want another lecture about the materials and the work that a suit requires, thank you,” DDD said, Aramus couldn’t see it but the smirk under the helm was apparent.
“Oh, fine. We’ll have it your way,” DKD conceded. “We’re working together officially it seems,” she said, shaking hands with Aramus. It wasn’t the best handshake, for either of them.
Aramus looked at DKD apologetically, feeling bad that he was the cause of her troubles. “I’ll try to make it up to you one way or another.”
“I don’t need any of that. You better make the experience count since I’m on your case now,” DKD said with a rare savage smile. “I suppose you can start going back and forth from your Master and our little headquarters here after you learn the Astral Venture spell—which lets you travel across the Realms.”
“The faster I learn that, the less trouble I’ll cause for everyone, I suppose.”
“So, what are the missions about this time?” DDS asked.
DKD placed some papers on the big table and everyone leaned forward to take a look.
“We have some cases here. One in Saudi Arabia that DAD was talking about, then there’s one in the USA about the distortions forming due excessive summons of Hell’s Fires.” Chris clapped his hand at the members apologetically as DKD read that part out.
“Sorry! The MVA would appreciate the help,” the Archmage said.
“Then there is the mysterious situation in England where random people are disappearing. The Queen herself requested this and it will be my next case after Saudi Arabia’s one. Oh, DND, the Witch wants you to keep going with the French Artist Murderer case.”
“Eeeeh? I wanted to stop working on that, it’s so boring.” Witness DND sighed.
“I’ll be dealing with America’s problem,” DDD claimed.
“I’ll be continuing on my case in Italy and aid the Witch. I think this is a really big problem,” DBD stated.
“What about you, DDS?” DKD asked.
“I’m actually done with my work, here’s the report,” DDS said. The girl handed a piece of paper which DKD read. DKD only seemed to give it a glance before giving a nod.
“I think you’ll like this one here…” DKD then handed DDS a paper. Aramus could only see the letter †˜NORTH’ in red text as if it was extremely dangerous.
“What about me?” DDK finally spoke again.
“I forgot about you,” DKD frankly stated.
“Not again.”
“Don’t blame me.”
“Well?”
“Your next assignment is… well, don’t be surprised, at China. None of us want to deal with that.”
“It’s fine.”
“Alright, with that decided… meeting adjourned!”
Everyone except Witness DDD and DKD were gone in an instant, entering portals and taking leave. DKD then showed Aramus one of the documents she held. It was a report on Saudi Arabia’s problems with the vampires.
The report dated back ten years and potentially even longer. Who knew how long the vampires had been operating before being discovered? Aramus shook his head, wondering why anyone had let this problem go on for as long as it did. “This is has been going on for far too long.”
“Well, the vampires are as elusive as ever,” Christopher commented. “The King has been dealing with them for so long, but they’re still persistent.”
“We’ll be going to Diriya, under the Ar Riyad Province,” DKD announced to the Archmage. “There we will pursue the vampires, according to the reports they have a trade route of sorts there. One that has abnormally less amount of vampires.”
“And turn them into paste. Intending to capture any †˜alive’ for information?” Aramus asked.
“We need to capture at least one of them alive. The rest may be fried on some electric conductor or something.”
“Sounds like a job perfectly suited for me. Hopefully, we’ll get some good intel on the rest of their operation.” Aramus turned to face Christopher. “It’ll be a good time to test everything out.”
“I have this feeling that you’re gonna get a toootally different lesson. It’ll be worth it if I think I know how she’ll handle things.”
“We never change, if that’s what you wanted to know.” DKD gave a wink to the Archmage. It looked similar to how Chris would give winks when joking around.
“Uh, okay. So long as the job gets done at the end of the day.” Aramus said, not knowing what to expect but from the way his Master spoke, it might be a good learning experience.
1
Cinia Pacifica
Ojou-sama Writer
“How on earth do the men here find the women attractive with something that covers so much?” Claudia complained as she looked on at the citizens of the country that was completely new to her. “They literally look like someone put a blanket overtop a coat hanger and it grew eyes or some shit.”
“I do not think they show themselves till they marry,” Rafflesia said, who was walking just before her. “They are very religious.”
“There are a few things I hate. Women who are so chaste, religion, and the heat. I fucking love how all three of those things are rolled up into one country,” Claudia said, taking a drag of her cigarette with a grimace.
“You should learn some sense of restraint from them. They are good examples of well-behaved people, with a better tongue if anything.”
“Right– restraint, restraint,” Claudia repeated to herself. “Well-behaved I cannot be, but restraint is something I can practice, Master.”
“I suppose being a good girl for the Countess is too much to ask for a spoiled person. Say, how much cigarettes did you bring?”
“Enough to keep me calmed down—which is a lot if you wanna actually count.”
“You do know that they would arrest you for having over six-hundred cigarettes, yes? We cannot have alcohol or drugs with us, either.”
“...And just like that, I fucking hate this country.”
“Play along with the laws you must. For if you are truly accused of a fault, the truth will protect you.”
With a sigh, Claudia dropped the death stick from her mouth and promptly stomped it out. “Just to be safe, I’ll humor this for now. Can’t risk getting arrested, especially at high stakes.”
“How’s your training progressing with the Hearing sessions?” Rafflesia asked.
In truth, being busy preparing for the trip back in Russia, and doing other things without telling Claudia and leaving her back in the attic room for practicing, Claudia hadn’t seen her Master for some time till it was the moment to go off for them to board the Magic Train.
“Better than before, I’m happy to say.” Claudia wished she had said that a bit more enthused, but her sudden dislike for this country had just stopped her straight off. “Other than the souls insulting me half the time, I’m enjoying it so far.”
“Hmm… how often do you hear their voices now?”
“More frequently, now that I’ve gotten the jist of it.”
“Then perhaps we shall move to the next phase soon.”
Claudia would have given a whimsical response, but instead she gave a wordless head nod.
“Yes, Master.”
The two entered a hotel and it seemed like her Master had already booked a room and they were already going up through an elevator with a staff member carrying the luggage. Rafflesia spoke no word while they were accompanied by the bell boy. They were then escorted to their room before they settled into their next temporary living place.
“We shall have you learn the first spell. This will be essential for casting the other spells you learn in time.”
“Gladly.” Claudia took a seat and sat up straight. “What spell is this, Master?”
“I had shown you this before.” Weaving the index finger in the air, Rafflesia drew a word of an unknown language in the air, leaving a deep blue blazing trail. “This is the Undertaker’s Vodun. When cast, however, you will not be able to cast your other spells. This is what they call the †˜stance’ spell.”
“I see. So working as a †˜stance’ spell, which you called it, I am able to switch back to my ordinary stance, in which, to use my other spells, right?”
“Unfortunately, that is not how a †˜stance’ spell works. When you take on a stance with such a spell, it lasts for an entire day, until the next sunrise. All other spells will be inaccessible during this time. Thus, you must carefully decide when you want to use your Undertaker spells. Note that the †˜stance’ spells only exists in the Lost Forms.”
“Right. That may or may not trouble me in the future, but I’ll manage.” Claudia put a hand to her chin and thought to herself on a few scenarios where using such a Lost Form could help, albeit, strategically.
“Unlike most, however, I am almost always in this stance. I am an Undertaker through and through now… having forgotten most of the old spells I used to wield.”
Claudia hummed. “Do you sometimes wish to go back and learn those spells over again? Or do you prefer being primarily an Undertaker?”
“I am more comfortable being an Undertaker, yes. In your case, however, perhaps being versatile will help.”
“I thought that myself… alright, so I really have to be careful then.”
“I would advise using the power of Undertaker as a last resort, especially after you master all of its spells.”
“Will do. I can’t imagine being stuck using only one spell, especially at my level.”
“Vodun will take some time to commit to memory, considering that you need to learn to write scripts of a new language. Did you know where this word †˜Vodun’ originated from?”
“Can’t say I have, really,” Claudia said.
“Have you heard of voodoo?
“Somewhat. I hear that they are similar to hexes, or something along those lines.”
“Vodun is the same word from the African side. The word means †˜spirit’ and it is a unique language for communicating with the spirits. Much of the spiritual words are lost to the users of the modern day. However, the Undertakers understand the ancients’ words even now.”
“Ah, I understand. So, modern users aside, do you know these words?”
“Yes, I am versed in the ancient dialect. To start, you will have to read the books.” Rafflesia took out some books from a bag the escort placed inside the room, and handed her a bunch of these textbooks for her to learn the language with.
Claudia nodded. “Bien noté.” I guess I will have to take a break from all those doujins tonight, then.
“I do not think they show themselves till they marry,” Rafflesia said, who was walking just before her. “They are very religious.”
“There are a few things I hate. Women who are so chaste, religion, and the heat. I fucking love how all three of those things are rolled up into one country,” Claudia said, taking a drag of her cigarette with a grimace.
“You should learn some sense of restraint from them. They are good examples of well-behaved people, with a better tongue if anything.”
“Right– restraint, restraint,” Claudia repeated to herself. “Well-behaved I cannot be, but restraint is something I can practice, Master.”
“I suppose being a good girl for the Countess is too much to ask for a spoiled person. Say, how much cigarettes did you bring?”
“Enough to keep me calmed down—which is a lot if you wanna actually count.”
“You do know that they would arrest you for having over six-hundred cigarettes, yes? We cannot have alcohol or drugs with us, either.”
“...And just like that, I fucking hate this country.”
“Play along with the laws you must. For if you are truly accused of a fault, the truth will protect you.”
With a sigh, Claudia dropped the death stick from her mouth and promptly stomped it out. “Just to be safe, I’ll humor this for now. Can’t risk getting arrested, especially at high stakes.”
“How’s your training progressing with the Hearing sessions?” Rafflesia asked.
In truth, being busy preparing for the trip back in Russia, and doing other things without telling Claudia and leaving her back in the attic room for practicing, Claudia hadn’t seen her Master for some time till it was the moment to go off for them to board the Magic Train.
“Better than before, I’m happy to say.” Claudia wished she had said that a bit more enthused, but her sudden dislike for this country had just stopped her straight off. “Other than the souls insulting me half the time, I’m enjoying it so far.”
“Hmm… how often do you hear their voices now?”
“More frequently, now that I’ve gotten the jist of it.”
“Then perhaps we shall move to the next phase soon.”
Claudia would have given a whimsical response, but instead she gave a wordless head nod.
“Yes, Master.”
***
The two entered a hotel and it seemed like her Master had already booked a room and they were already going up through an elevator with a staff member carrying the luggage. Rafflesia spoke no word while they were accompanied by the bell boy. They were then escorted to their room before they settled into their next temporary living place.
“We shall have you learn the first spell. This will be essential for casting the other spells you learn in time.”
“Gladly.” Claudia took a seat and sat up straight. “What spell is this, Master?”
“I had shown you this before.” Weaving the index finger in the air, Rafflesia drew a word of an unknown language in the air, leaving a deep blue blazing trail. “This is the Undertaker’s Vodun. When cast, however, you will not be able to cast your other spells. This is what they call the †˜stance’ spell.”
“I see. So working as a †˜stance’ spell, which you called it, I am able to switch back to my ordinary stance, in which, to use my other spells, right?”
“Unfortunately, that is not how a †˜stance’ spell works. When you take on a stance with such a spell, it lasts for an entire day, until the next sunrise. All other spells will be inaccessible during this time. Thus, you must carefully decide when you want to use your Undertaker spells. Note that the †˜stance’ spells only exists in the Lost Forms.”
“Right. That may or may not trouble me in the future, but I’ll manage.” Claudia put a hand to her chin and thought to herself on a few scenarios where using such a Lost Form could help, albeit, strategically.
“Unlike most, however, I am almost always in this stance. I am an Undertaker through and through now… having forgotten most of the old spells I used to wield.”
Claudia hummed. “Do you sometimes wish to go back and learn those spells over again? Or do you prefer being primarily an Undertaker?”
“I am more comfortable being an Undertaker, yes. In your case, however, perhaps being versatile will help.”
“I thought that myself… alright, so I really have to be careful then.”
“I would advise using the power of Undertaker as a last resort, especially after you master all of its spells.”
“Will do. I can’t imagine being stuck using only one spell, especially at my level.”
“Vodun will take some time to commit to memory, considering that you need to learn to write scripts of a new language. Did you know where this word †˜Vodun’ originated from?”
“Can’t say I have, really,” Claudia said.
“Have you heard of voodoo?
“Somewhat. I hear that they are similar to hexes, or something along those lines.”
“Vodun is the same word from the African side. The word means †˜spirit’ and it is a unique language for communicating with the spirits. Much of the spiritual words are lost to the users of the modern day. However, the Undertakers understand the ancients’ words even now.”
“Ah, I understand. So, modern users aside, do you know these words?”
“Yes, I am versed in the ancient dialect. To start, you will have to read the books.” Rafflesia took out some books from a bag the escort placed inside the room, and handed her a bunch of these textbooks for her to learn the language with.
Claudia nodded. “Bien noté.” I guess I will have to take a break from all those doujins tonight, then.