A girl in her academic attire marched into the arena. Her name was screamed by the mass crowd of classmates. She showed no expression while enduring the rapturous chanting.
Celestia! Celestia!
The afternoon sunlight hit directly upon the arena and shone through the thick layer of magic shield that was protecting the auditorium. Celestia shaded her eyes with her arm as she gazed at her opponent who was gracefully waving at the screaming crowd. Her wavy lavender hair was put in a high ponytail as usual, along with her signature braids wrapped behind her scalp. As soon as she noticed Celestia’s arrival, she turned her head, “I know there’s no way I can outdo you, Celey. But I’ll do my best in this match for you.” Before her, stood the deadpan Celestia, who was her only classmate from their class—Class Elite of the Miscellaneous House.
Celestia had her long silky wine-coloured hair styled into low pigtails with the left side braided; her skin as white as snowfall in winter reflected in the sunlight. She was the only student in the academy with horns on her head, too. Despite the differences, her schoolmates could never look at her enough. Whether they were looking at her in a degrading way or if they were staring at her admirably.
Celestia bowed to her classmate, Princess Veronica, who grinned at her from afar. She greeted her friend back in monotone, “Thank you, Veronica. This will also hopefully be the last sparring match with you.” The girls looked around as they scanned through the royal guards that were made to station here under the commands of the Vonkovkanus. They all had their weapons in hand, ready for everything and anything…
An audio-enhanced announcement pierced through the thin air with the screeching voice howled through the megaphone. “It is time for the glorious match of the two students of Class Elite! Please welcome—Celestia Vania Warlvkus and Princess Veronica Venus Vonkovkanus!” He continued, “We all know the rules! Now, put away your weapons and give us a signal when you're ready!”
The girls dropped their weapons and commanded them to the Weapon Waiting Zone; they were secured immediately by the sealing spell that the academy had cast. They nodded at the announcer.
“Good! Now, showdown!”
Veronica was the one who began the show. She cast hundred spiky ice shards and shot them at her horned opponent who cracked the shards into a million pieces with her gust of strong wind in her comfortable stance—the ice did not intimidate her. The prideful Celestia decided to intimate her opponent by recreating her attack—spikes of ice shards rain horizontally from a magic circle she summoned behind her back.
The Princess chose not to back off, she instead generated electricity balls with her palm, ready to strike and charged at her friend at high speed. Despite all that, Celestia still did not move an inch. Instead, she summoned more ice shards with another magic circle above her.
“Fighting electricity with water? Celey…” it was then she realised her classmate had another plan for her. Another magic circle was cast underneath them. As soon as it was ready, blistering flames burst from beneath, vaporising the shards. Veronica panicked and created a rock wall instantly to block the steam from reaching her electricity balls, only to have her strong opponent crush the wall into multiple halves with her punch.
The crowd gasped as if they were about to witness a murder scene, and a sea of applause burst from them.
“That was a phenomenal move from Ms Warlvkus! It was a beautiful showcase and usage of your strength! How thoughtful that you didn’t punch our princess in the face…” the announcer snickered, “…or you’d be in trouble big time.”
The tasteless comment did not make the two participants laugh, it even silenced the crowd quickly. The announcer noticed and cleared his throat, he continued to broadcast the fight. Celestia did a double kick as she enhanced her attacks with flames, she twirled at her opponent, landing a kick on the princess who barely managed to block it by crossing her arms. The scene startled the royal guards, they quickly held their weapons in position and were ready to take down Celestia at any point of the match.
“You’re being so aggressive today. Celey.” Veronica slowly breathed in and out, she floated backwards and calmed the panicking royal guards.
“You’re being too defensive. Princess,” Celestia provoked.
A horn was blown signalling the start of phase two. With this, the weapon ban is lifted. Immediately. Veronica rushed towards her side of the Weapon Idle Zone and swiftly grabbed her bow. She began charging elemental arrows and shot them at Celestia. The horned maiden thrust herself at her side and grasped her cleaver. She swung the sword quickly and accurately, she cut the arrows in half.
“Remarkable moves for both of you! Ms Warlvkus had been extremely aggressive today, can her classmate Princess Veronica even fight back? Give us your fullest!” The announcer ridiculed the Princess successfully. Veronica focused on charging her arrows much faster than before and continuously firing at Celestia who had been slashing her arrows and rushing toward her at increasing speeds.
Whistles and cries were heard throughout the auditorium. The audience—students of the Vonhersia Academy of Sorcery, who were still in their school uniforms. They took out silvers and golds to bet on the match. Betting was against the rules but oddly enough, it turned into a tradition during graduation seasons. They chanted the name “Celestia” as they placed their highest bet on her. Although there were loyal fans of Princess Veronica—everybody knew she would never win against the infamous “Shadow Monster”, the daughter of Duke Warlvkus, the mixed-blood Arkmagia who was a half Knokhvdiens.
Celestia grasped her sword that she named “Monody” and decided to slash through her friend’s magic shield, which was blocked by Veronica’s bow while she was holding it sideways.
“I hope you’re having fun, Celey,” the Princess growled as she was struggling to defend herself—both of her hands were stuck, holding the bow.
“Thank you, Veronica. I am having fun,” she whispered as she gazed into her friend’s eyes of jade, Celestia decided to let go of the panting Princess.
To begin with, this was never a fair match—bow users have no chance to win against a melee user. Celestia thought. These matches are fun to watch, sure. But they’re one-sided.
Veronica saw the chance to attack and she did—she pulled her bowstring and loosed dozens of elemental arrows, enhanced with strengthened magic on each of them. They were tougher, but her classmate slashed harder.
Another horn was blown indicating phase three, the special ability ban lift. “Oh my! We are about to see the real deal now! Princess’ auto-aiming and Warlvkus’ shadows? This will be legendary! Quickly, photo-framers! Frame down all these memorable scenes from the match!” the announcer screeched.
The photo-framers were let into the arena and followed the duet around at a great distance, hoping they could get some shots with their scenery framing spell—a spell where Arkmagias use an art frame to snapshot a scene to “still art,” ready to frame on the walls.
Princess Veronica hesitated not and started charging her arrows as she activated her special ability—auto-aiming. Just as her eyes started to glow bright blue, she continuously loosened dozens of arrows. Those deadly arrows aimed directly at her feisty opponent, Celestia, who rested her sword in front of her with a stance.
“Come at me, Princess.”
“Oh! Look! Ms Warlvkus is on strike with her shadow spikes!” the announcer howled. The crowd screamed even more violently.
CELESTIA! CELESTIA!
She stood still and began to summon her materialised shadow spikes that were crafted to look like arrows from the shadows. She murmured, “I’ll show all of you the horrors of my dearest Shadow Realm.”
The shadow arrows fired as Celestia commanded them by pointing at the gulping Princess with her Monody. Veronica took a deep breath and released her shots of arrows only to be pierced by the duplicating copycats from the Shadow Monster. Celestia noticed the force of her friend’s arrows was significantly weaker than before—Veronica’s stamina could not hold on any longer. With mercy, Celestia summoned waves of shadowy projectiles that would outcast the Princess’ arrows.
“The match has been fun, but let’s end the match, shall we?” Celestia announced with the crowds cheering. Rounds of applause exploded and whistles were heard throughout the arena. Veronica put on a wry smile as she stared at the spikes of shadows in front of her.
The Princess lost the match completely.
“…Cease your attack and stop! We got a clear winner and victory belongs to our fellow student Celestia Vania Warlvkus!” The announcer retrieved feedback from the teachers who were judging the match, and he screamed. The crowd exploded in joyfulness, they got their bet and all of them were winning income.
The two who just fought in a sparring match nodded at each other. Celestia put away her sword and approached Veronica steadily. They look into one another’s eyes as an agreement of it was a pleasant match for both of them, it was moments before Princess Veronica whispered “Good Luck” to her friend and was escorted away by her royal guards out of the arena.
“Remain in the arena, Ms Warlvkus. You have another opponent for the day. Though, I believe you already knew,” the man announced and so he continued, “Ladies! Gentlemen, and everybody else! Please give Warlvkus’ upcoming opponent from the High Sainkt Gohre Shrine a round of applause because she is getting eliminated! The head shrine maiden of the Execution department, Ms Delia!”
A gasp of unison from the students surprised Celestia as she thought rumours were already circulating about her replacing the current Executioner, Charlotte. She shrugged it off as if it was nothing. She gazed at the gate of the arena as it was pulled up for the shrine maiden. “Delia? So a Knokhvdiens. Huh,” she guessed, and she was correct. The shrine maiden had the same skin tone as her; had horns like her.
A voice so familiar took over the current announcer. It was Charlotte, the Executioner.
“Hello, dear Celestia. This is Charlotte. I’ve prepared a special welcoming gift for you before you officially take over my place as the next Executioner. Meet Delia, one of my trusted maidens from the department I’m in,” she greeted Celestia with her loudspeaker, “I’m sure you can handle her just fine, my lovely Shadow Monster. But this will be your entry test for the position I have. So, have fun,” she snickered.
Celestia began to examine the shrine maiden who marched in holding her cerulean-coloured spear with exquisite orange-gradient designs. Delia had long greyish-blue hair that seemed to be styled into low, fluffy pigtails with her ends braided. Her fringe was styled with weave braids, too. She continued scanning the Knokhvdiens from head to toe and noticed the hemline of her uniform was burnt which she found fascinating. Clothes made with Celestinian fabric should be able to withstand fire. She thought. Maybe it was just fashion sense.
As Celestia examined Delia, the shrine maiden approached her with a gentle smile before the sparring match began. “Good afternoon, Lady Celestia. I'm pleased to meet—”
Her polite greetings were cut off by the student in front of her—Celestia stopped her with a hand sign, “Understood, hope we'll have a pleasant time together today.”
“—Oh, yes. I’ll do my best,” Delia answered. She was left speechless as her future superior walked away from her to start the sparring match. Celestia knew she wasn’t the greatest at greeting strangers. Was that a good move? Maybe not. But was that a smart move? Absolutely. Celestia thought.
Both of the Knokhvdiens’ let go of their weapons and commanded them to the Weapon Waiting Zone. They looked up at the host and signalled the judges that they were ready.
“Alright, my lovely Aurorians! The big show is here, it's Celestia Vania Warlvkus versus Delia. Now, showtime!” Charlotte announced and so the match began.
As soon as the match started, Delia kicked off the match by rushing toward Celestia at full speed with her fist clenched. Celestia took a comfortable stance and waited for the speeding opponent with a fist of flames to reach her. Delia was ready to land a hit but Celestia dodged the fist and swung her right leg, she side-kicked Delia in the waist and only followed by freezing her hands with ice sorcery.
But the ice couldn’t keep the fire in. Delia’s blistering blaze melted the breezing ice immediately. She continued shoving fire in Celestia’s face only to have her future superior realise—pure-blood Knokhvdiens’ only use of one element. The half-Knokhvdiens decided to ridicule the shrine maiden with more water sorceries.
Celestia was focused, but a familiar voice started to echo from the fond memories in the back of her head. How can an Emperor rule his empire without the power to master all elements? Sweetie.
“Are you mocking me?” Delia raised her brow and glared directly at Celestia.
“Yes, I am,” Celestia replied as she lifted herself from the ground, showing dominance, “I'll teach you what’s the deal with the Shadow Monster, dear Delia.”
The floating half-Knokhvdiens began to generate electricity with both of her hands, gradually infusing fire into the sorcery she cast. Celestia then manipulated the electro-fire she created and turned it into a whip.
“Hah. Sadists’ favourite,” Delia gazed at her opponent’s new weapon of choice and sneered, “Now you're gonna whip me with that? I didn’t know the Shadow Monster had an interest like this.”
The deadpan Celestia did not react to her question, it instead petrified her opponent. Celestia thought a whip was a good weapon and it can hurt, nothing more. She shrugged off the disrupted thoughts and used all her might to hit a strike with the sizzling whip. A wave of electricity struck Delia, who split the attack with her flames. The half-Knokhvdiens with a high ground continued striking Delia and kept her busy, only to let Celestia summon thunder and ice spike rain from two magic circles above their head. Celestia continued commanding her sorceries with her fingers pointing at Delia. It was not long until Delia realised she had been wasting time evading—it was time to strike back.
It would be beyond humiliating to be struck by large thunderbolts and ice spikes. Celestia thought. She refined her elemental magic into smaller and sheerer attacks but it did not stop Delia from dashing through the rains of spikes with flames surrounding her body, melting the pieces into liquid water that splashed the ground wet.
A horn was blown only followed by another announcement by Charlotte, “Girls! Weapon ban lift! Celestia had been at the upper hand this whole time! Will Delia get a chance to get to her opponent, Celestia?” she snickered again.
As soon as the ban got lifted, Delia got hold of her spear and immediately leapt into midair to reach Celestia, who was floating at the time. She spun her spear with her arms above her head and was ready to hit Celestia. Her powerful attack was guarded by Monody. Celestia grasped onto the Monody and struck Delia, sending her back to the ground with great force, “Stay where you belong,” Celestia glared and she followed by using a fire magic circle as a thruster, she thrust herself at Delia and struck her with full force again.
“Y-you're stronger than ah-I anticipated, Lady Celestia,” Delia stuttered as she defended herself with her spear. She struggled to stand properly as Celestia pinned her down on her knees.
“Thanks.”
Out of the blue, the half-Knokhvdiens decided to let go of Delia and swiftly, shoved Delia in the face with a beam of water blast created with a magic circle using her left hand. The crowd let out an excited noise, chanting Celestia’s name violently. The shrine maiden panicked and decided to do the most Delia thing ever—defend herself with a wall of flames. It was half effective, but water splashed through the wall and Celestia decided to infuse some electricity into the beam.
Delia got shocked by the surprise and let out a distressed face. She had her magic shield activated as soon as another beam hit her directly and she proceeded to split the beam with her spear into two halves and dash through the water beam.
Impressive, Delia. But that’s not enough. Celestia thought. That’ll never be enough to defeat me. The Shadow Monster froze the water beam into a pillar of solid ice and slashed it, creating a breezy gust of wind with her cut. Concentrated and focused, Celestia grasped the Monody with both of her hands and took a comfortable stance. She pinned Delia’s spear down on the ground as soon as Delia reached her.
Briskly, Celestia hit Delia with the blade like a bat and sent the shrine maiden across the arena. The strike cracked the shield and Delia let out a painful growl.
Another announcement was made, “Bravo, Celestia. I love that. It was breathtaking. Now Delia. Show us some of your blazes. Ability ban lifted.”
Celestia decided to attack her remotely and test out her opponent’s Unique Ability with a wave of shadow spikes. Delia struck out a wave of flames, it did not do much damage but it lit up the materialised spikes which were not expected. She decided to take advantage of it. The Shadow Monster started to pull out more waves of spikes from the “Shadow Realm,” and put on an act by commanding her shadows with her fingers. Nobody seemed to have noticed that her hand movements have no contribution to how she orders her materialised shadows, somehow.
Celestia organised her waves of sharp projectiles and let them rain. Not to her surprise, the shrine maiden was agile. She swung and spun her spear with ease, and guarded a good amount of her projectiles. It was then she decided to spice up the game a bit. She pointed her fingers downwards and shadow thorns started to creep out from Delia’s shadows and curled on her shield. The thorns began to crush her magic shield.
A sea of chanting flooded the arena again, the crowd were shouting out Celestia’s name while Delia was struggling to come up with a way out.
“I was hoping for a fair play between two Knokhvdiens’, but I don't see the point anymore,” Celestia was not amused. She decided to start up her magic circle thruster again and clunch her sword tightly. Immediately, the Shadow Monster was sent across the arena in a hot second and hit Delia’s shield with great force. The shrine maiden tried defending herself with her spear and only to get hit hard enough she was smacked and crashed onto the thick layer of the shield of the arena.
“And cease your attack, dear Celestia,” Charlotte snickered through her loudspeaker, “You’ve completely passed the test. Lady Celestia, the next Executioner of the Aurora Kingdom.”
The crowd cheered aggressively as Celestia gazed at Charlotte’s grin and nodded. The Shadow Monster then approached the shrine maiden who was surrounded by teachers that were checking if she was alright.
“She’s fine, she’s a Knokhvdiens,” Celestia commented. She reached out and Delia responded by grabbing it, “Thank you, Lady Cele—”
“See you at the shrine,” Celestia replied coldly and walked away from the arena, leaving the battleground without looking back.
There, by the gates of the arena, stood Princess Veronica holding a bouquet for Celestia and Lady Charlotte, smiling maniacally for Celestia’s victorious return.
“Welcome back, Celey. With my professional analyses—you didn’t have fun with Delia,” the Princess questioned her friend as they shook their hands celebrating her victory.
Her classmate, who had been emotionless throughout the day now seemed annoyed, “Delia didn't use all of her strength to fight me in the match, did she? Lady Charlotte, you told me that she is your trusted maiden. It seems so your sense of quality isn’t that high,” Celestia mocked.
The Executioner in the white dress giggled, “Oh, poor Celestia. I admit, Delia wasn’t the most powerful maiden we have, but she is the head shrine maiden of my department. So I wanted her to fight you,” she continued, “But I’m glad I can finally see the Shadow Monster in action, not just from gossip and rumours around the city.”
Charlotte stepped closer to Celestia, the Executioner held Celestia’s hands up, she kissed the back of her hand and grinned, “My lovely Shadow Monster; His favourite Lady Celestia. It is an honour to finally meet you in person,” her eyes sparkled, showing a dash of glow. “I’ve heard naughty things about you, young lady.”
The half-Knokhvdiens raised her brow, “What kind of naughty things about me? Smiling Deviant,” She asked, hoping for a satisfying answer.
Charlotte giggled and proceeded to follow their way to the cafeteria, “Oh, my love. It was nothing much, don’t worry about it. The only naughty thing about you was the fact you already knew the Soul-Destruction Spell at a young age by heart,” Charlotte’s eerie smile did not startle the two ladies in their school uniform, “How you’ve executed those poor Abyssians brutally under his commands. How I wish I could witness a pretty face like you could be so…unbelievably cruel to those peasants.”
“Those were roots and seeds of absolute filth which were rising from the dark in the society. They deserve nothing but cleansing. I was being merciful, not cruel,” Celestia frowned at the woman who was challenging her and his ruling. Veronica was displeased that the woman in white was picking on Celestia and demanded an apology from her.
Charlotte put on a pleading face, “I’m so terribly sorry, Princess Veronica. Please forgive me!” She continued to explain her reasons for picking the infamous Shadow Monster as her successor, “It was then I knew in my heart that I had no choice but to choose you as the next Executioner. You are too good to pass on.”
“Though I’d love to talk more with you, my beloved. I have to go. The next execution is in two hours, I better get ready,” Charlotte grinned and shook Celestia’s hands, “I’ll catch up with you the day you start working. I’ll see you soon, then.”
Charlotte winked at Princess Veronica and left in a hurry, leaving the duet at the cafeteria doors. Throughout the entire conversation they had, Celestia still noticed her schoolmates staring at them as if they were still upset that the Shadow Monster was allowed to walk side by side with the Kingdom’s precious third princess, Princess Veronica. No nobles dared to walk side by side, equally with the Princess. But the bastard could. It was unpleasant for the nobles who thrived among others in society just by pleasing the Vonkovkanus family.
Rage, jealousy, and disgust of the noble students started to surface when they found out the daughter of the damned Duke Warlvkus could even talk to the Princess equally as peers. The students tried to talk Princess Veronica out of she had to stop talking to the impure. Princess Veronica was upset and punished the said nobles for name-calling and interfering with her social and personal life.
“Celey.”
“Yes?”
“Which cake are you going to choose for the very last time we're going to have together at this school?” Veronica asked while she observed the glass cake cabinet at the dessert counter.
“Probably the strawberry rose cheesecake. You?”
“Pink cake, I see. Of course, it had to be pink,” the Princess giggled while covering her mouth with a handkerchief, “I'll have a chocolate pie.”
Celestia raised her brow and questioned, “What other things do I need to be in pink? Mind explaining? Princess.”
The Princess snickered, “Him.”
Celestia raised her brow for a moment. A sudden voice interrupted the duet's conversation, “Welcome! What would you like for your last meal in the Academy today? Princess Veronica, Lady Celestia,” it was the cake lady who was decorating her cupcakes at the counter.
“A slice of strawberry rose cake and a piece of chocolate pie, please,” Celestia placed an order for both of them.
The cake lady nodded, “Very well!” She reached into the iced pastry cabinet and brought out two pieces of their desired desserts. “Enjoy! Here's your usual pot of black tea, with a bowl of sugar cubes. I’ll sure miss both of you, my dear customers,” the cake lady had a moment and wept for a bit. The girls thanked the lady and her services and off they went to their Elite Class corner, which was located on the second floor of the cafeteria, where the mood of the lights was always calm and made the duet drowsy. It was a nice, quiet corner for the Elite girls.
Celestia placed Monody next to the table gently while the Princess set her bow aside. Gradually, they settled down comfortably in their seats. As usual, before they dig in, they would pray with both hands covering their chests and eyes shut.
“We are grateful for the benevolent gifts from the merciful Ba’al, our Lord who gave us the World. We praise the Creator’s virtue; we pray for Ba’al to give us his forevermore love song tomorrow.”
Afterwards, Celestia poured themselves a cup of steaming tea with a rich fragrance and dropped a sugar cube for sweetening. She knew Veronica had a sweet tooth so she always added two cubes for her friend instead. Veronica sniffed her tea and beamed with joy, “Today! Today is the day our dear Celestia secures her place as the Executioner! As expected!” She lifted her cup of tea, mimicking the tone of the announcer of today's sparring matches, “What a wonderful day for both of us! Yes!” She rejoiced as she tilted her head, “Toast?”
“Indeed. What a wonderful day for both of us,” Celestia picked up her teacup and gave her friend a toast. The first sip of the tea was always calming and warming to the heart. The duet started digging into their desserts. Bites and bits, they devoured their pieces. The cakes were not the heaviest meals they could have in the cafeteria, but it was tea time, so they had to enjoy the last day at school with delight.
Veronica wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and proceeded with her talk, “Now that you’ve secured your status with your ability, please continue to support mine as well, my best friend,” she smiled, “Authority maintenance is hard, especially when you’re the third Princess.”
“My pleasure, Veronica. It's a privilege to be your most trustworthy friend,” Celestia answered, “I'm sure he’ll be as pleased as you too.”
The Princess rested her arms on her thighs, “Of course, He’ll certainly be extremely pleased to see your success here in the Aurora Kingdom and thrives among us,” she continued, “Also, do keep in mind: your enemies will always be my enemies, Celey.”
Celestia took a sip of her tea and replied with a simple “yes”.
“The King had expressed his mixed feelings on letting you take the role, but Charlotte and I persuaded him anyway,” she informed and continued, “He thought it would be a great mistake for agreeing with it, although it’s true, I know from the bottom of my heart that you won’t take advantage of it,” Veronica took a look at the vase of Datura on the table which had been sitting here for the past weeks. The duet changed the flowers a lot since they never last long. It was nicely put inside a glass vase that had leaf carvings on it. The Princess watered the flower as she questioned her friend, “Would you?”
Celestia reassured Veronica seriously, “I have no intentions of slaughtering anyone that is strictly following and obeying the law.”
The royal nodded, “Of course. But what if I’m the one who isn’t following the law, Celey?” It was then the air between them intensified. It was not the first time Veronica challenged her law enforcement maniac friend with the “what if” questions.
“Then try following the law and not breaking any of them. Princess,” Celestia simply replied.
Veronica smirked, “If you say so,” she replied with a playful tone. But she quickly switched topics, “To be honest with you, I didn’t want to graduate. Graduation means more time being locked in the castle—and I despise spending time with my family.”
The half-Knokhvdiens took another sip of her tea, “Feel free to use me as an excuse for a brief moment of fresh air, I’m sure that won’t harm anyone.” Celestia’s idea brightened up the upset Princess, she let out a giggle.
At the time Princess Veronica finished giggling, a sudden muffled ring could be heard between the duet—it was Celestia’s communicator. The maiden reached into the inner pocket of her blazer and took out a cuffed earring from it and proceeded to put it on, his voice finally popping up.
“Sweetie? Come see me after your cup of tea.”
“Yes, will do.”
Celestia quickly finished the rest of her cup of black tea, she got on her feet and bowed to the Princess, “As you can hear, I have a date. Have a lovely day, Veronica. I'll see you next time,” Celestia wanted to linger longer in the cafeteria, but it was time to go. “May I be excused.”
“Just go, Celey. It’s an order,” Veronica grinned.
Celestia picked up Monody from the side of the table, waved her dearest friend goodbye and left the cafeteria in a hurry.
But as she was leaving the cafeteria, she didn’t notice the presence of Delia, who was trying to reach out to her by calling her name. Delia gazed into the hallway and her future superior was already gone. Delia sighed and was ready to leave the cafeteria as well. But as soon as she stepped aside, a voice called to her, “You must be Delia. Would you mind spending a moment with me?”
Delia turned her head and saw the third Princess of the Aurora Kingdom, Princess Veronica, waving at her with a sweet smile.
“Y-yes, Your Highness,” Delia replied as she bowed to the Princess. Never have Delia ever thought she would be sitting down with a royal as a peasant. But here she was. Delia could never turn down such a request, so she approached the Princess. The shrine maiden’s heart was pounding, beating at an incredible speed. Nobody told her she would face the Princess alone since Charlotte and Deschuas told her she’ll only need to fight Celestia as she recalled.
“Good evening, Your Highness,” she greeted the Princess, who was drinking her tea with her eyes closed.
“Evening, dear Delia. Come, take a seat.”
So she did. As soon as Delia sat down, the Princess questioned, “A cup of tea? Do you need a new cup as well?”
“I can use the other side of the cup that Lady Celestia didn’t touch. Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Very well,” the Princess started pouring a cup of steaming tea with a pleasant scent that permeated the air with a sweet aroma. She enjoyed these fond memories with Celestia a lot. “If you like, you may add sugar cubes too, as many as you like.”
Delia stared at the pot of sugar cubes and picked up one, two, three, four, and five sugar cubes and dumped them into the tea. It was not long before she realised she added way too many sugar cubes. She took a sip of the sugar-loaded tea and let out a distressed face. The Princess giggled, “Nervous, much? Don’t worry, I’ll get you another cup,” the Princess took out a bell and rang it gently. Soon later, two royal guards approached them. “Please bring me a new cup for my guest,” she commanded.
The guards bowed and headed off to the pastry counter for a clean cup while Delia’s face turned unbelievably red as she saw the reflection of the tea.
“There’s no need to feel embarrassed, dear,” the Princess opened her eyes, and she looked directly into Delia’s eyes, “So. How are you?”
Delia cleared her throat and shook her head, “I always thought Lady Celestia’s strength was just an enhanced rumour to scare people off,” she replied.
“Oh, no. Her nickname isn’t a bluff,” the Princess giggled, “People believed she was the evil incarnate. But she could be docile with the right people.”
Docile? “She glared at me with her cold stare like I’m trash! My sincere apologies, Princess. But I don't believe you,” Delia expressed her mixed feelings with her statement.
The Princess retrieved the cup and poured Delia another cup of tea and added two sugar cubes for her, she explained, “She’s only that because she never talks much with strangers. Adding onto her collar contributed a lot to her minimal facial expressions. Forgive my dearest friend, will you?”
Delia paused. She did notice Lady Celestia had a collar on but never thought of anything bad about it, “I’m sorry for being nosey, Princess. But may I know more about the collar?”
Veronica nodded. “Celey was forced to wear the collar at a young age when she discovered her ability, shadow manipulation. The Ability Suppression and Security-Enhanced Defensive Neck Collar was designed solely for Celey to restrict her abilities in the name of national security,” the Princess explained in further detail, “The collar was first designed to have Soul-Destruction implemented in it, but not everybody was happy about the decision so the idea was scrapped.”
Soul-Destruction? On a child? Delia shivered, “Did the Vonkovkanus come up with this idea? Place a spell that can kill a Celestinian completely? On a child?” She teared up and wept. I would never wish for a child’s death or even anybody's death. This is just horrible! Delia thought.
Veronica nodded again, “Yes. My family came up with the idea of forcing it on a child. It was horrible, I understand if you started to have a bad impression on me and my household. But I tried my best to dismiss all the possibilities that could lead to my dearest friend’s death,” she continued, “So here's my request: Please protect Celestia when I’m not around. Will you?”
“Me? To protect Lady Celestia? But I’m just a peasant who works for the shrine…” Delia was hesitant about the request.
“All you have to do is to stay beside her and make sure she feels comfortable. Nothing much. Is this too much for you?” the Princess questioned the shrine maiden with a serious face. No way Delia could turn down this, could she? Delia took a deep breath and replied, “No, not at all. I will take good care of Lady Celestia. You need not worry. Princess.”
The Princess smiled with a satisfied look, “Good. Very well!” She took a sip of her tea and began to recall her fond memories with Celestia…
“Celey and I met at the ball my family held on the first night of Snowfell, long ago at the castle. There was a furious storm the night before, but the ball was held successfully due to the calm weather. The castle was drowned in melodies and scrumptious treats,” Princess Veronica first described the night they met, she continued, “Celestia was easy to spot despite being just as small as me for her lime-coloured horns and white skin. I was curious about the girl who happened to be around my age and approached her, she greeted me with the brightest smile.”
“We started chatting. She told me she doesn’t talk to strangers much since all they do is raise their eyebrows when they hear she’s mixed-blood. She had nobody to play with so she spent all of her time reading. She was beyond knowledgeable at her age with all the books she read. She even knew how to cast advanced magic at that time already.”
Delia gulped, but she decided to ask anyway, “Did you make friends with her because you pity her?”
Veronica giggled, “Yes, I did. But I treasure every moment with her, even now. She’s my dearest friend and I will do anything to protect my precious. So please, be my helping hand,” she reached out for a handshake. Delia shook her hands and nodded, “That’s a deal, then.”
As they shook hands, she apologised, “Oh, that reminds me of something. I got a business to finish. Sorry. Delia, but I must go,” she said, “Please finish the tea before you leave. Also, take good care of our Datura, will you? Until next time, dear Delia.”
Delia noticed her royal guards were already standing by, waiting for Princess Veronica’s return. The two ladies stood up. Princess Veronica combed her hair with her nails painted in jade nail polish as she picked up her bow, “Goodbye, Delia. Have a good night.”
The shrine maiden bowed for the departure of the third Princess of the Aurora Kingdom. Not long after, she collapsed onto the chair. That was intense! She thought. Delia drank all of her tea in one sitting. The table was right at the corner with minimal dim lighting, she felt drowsy for a hot moment. She gazed at the flower. It was called...a Datura? It was a white blossom, left alone in the vase with exquisite carvings. As she was observing the flower, her communicator rang.
“Delia, are you on your way back home?” the voice inside the communicator questioned.
The maiden jumped, “No, Lady Deschuas. I just had a conversation with Princess Veronica. I’ll be leaving now,” she answered and put away her communicator afterwards. She picked up both the vase and her spear and left the cafeteria.
The Vonhersia Academy of Sorcery, the pinnacle of high education in the Kingdom—a school that only accepted students from the middle-class or above—was the selective school that every noble family forced their children to partake in the admission exams, only to be declined. Only the elites from the society could set their foot in this school as a student. To think Lady Celestia and Princess Veronica were the only two students from their year that got put into the Class Elite of the Miscellaneous House—the house that every student dreamt of getting in—was mind-blowing.
As Delia walked through the corridors, she observed the interior of this academy. Everything here was resplendent—the tiles, the walls; they were all screaming “we are opulent” at Delia, who was a peasant. This school reminded her of the saddening truth of the extreme wealth gap of the Kingdom between the main province versus the rest of the Kingdom. Vonhersia, the Metropolitan Area of the Aurora Kingdom, was concentrated with nobles—it was the happy place for all Aurorians who desired to thrive in business and live a luxurious life.
To the point where all this glamour was suffocating her, constantly reminding her of the roots she came from and no matter what she does—she will never escape the terrors and nightmares she endured throughout her life.
Delia shook her head and took a deep breath. She made it out of the school with all of her limbs attached. She was beyond grateful. The shrine maiden walked to the nearest bus station and got on one to return home—the High Sainkt Gohre Shrine.
On her way back to the shrine, the sky had already darkened. Delia gazed aimlessly out of the windows. All of the street lights were lit, glowing under the silvery moon. Delia, who had been living in the extravagant city of Vonhersia, had already grown numb to the brilliant, yet shallow night views. She would spend time being cynical on the bus, but something occupied Delia’s mind that night.
Celestia.
She recalled how she was requested to visit the academy to have a sparring match with her future superior by Lady Deschuas and Lady Charlotte. They only told Delia her basic background: how she was infamous for being a mixed-blood bastard; how she was named the Shadow Monster. Delia was doubtful of being the representative of the Execution Department. But she accepted anyway. She sighed cheerlessly, yet she was glad that she made it. The short interactions with Celestia today had already left an oddly sweet impression on her. Even if Celestia was utterly rude and glared at her like she was trash.
Delia had already forgotten the feeling of caring for another person. But Celestia reignited something deep in her heart, something that she thought she sealed off completely long ago. The shrine maiden noticed she couldn’t stop thinking about her.
Delia had completely fallen for her.
Her elegance; her look during the fight, her everything…just seemed extremely out of this world. Her name, even. Celestia—must be a product of the world itself—Celestinia. Who would’ve thought and had the guts to name their child after the World that Ba’al created?
The world that left Delia suffering agony and yet that man, who ruined her family was still out and about—being praised by his people every moment of their pitiful lives?
“Excuse me. Is this your stop?”
“W-what? Yes! Thank you!” Delia panicked as soon as a passenger reminded her the shrine stop was here. She got off the bus quickly.
“Delia! Finally, you’re back.”
“Huh? Oh, Lady Deschuas. Why are you out here? Were you waiting for me?” Delia panted as she looked up from the ground after she heard a familiar voice in front of her. It was Lady Deschuas, the master of the High Sainkt Gohre Shrine.
“Yes, I am,” she answered. Deschuas noticed her hand was full, “You did a little flower shopping? How unusual.”
Delia looked at the vase of Datura she was holding, “Oh, this? This was from Princess Veronica and Lady Celestia. The Princess wished to have me take good care of this, so I brought it home,” she explained.
Lady Deschuas approved of the flower, “Alright, then. Ah, yes. Remember you still have some paperwork left to do. Settle down and come see me later,” She reminded the shrine maiden.
“Yes, Lady Deschuas.”
Lady Deschuas’ office was in a different direction so they separated their ways. She got to the dormitory and tidied up her bedroom; she settled down the flower on her nightstand and secured the spear in the cabinet. After she was satisfied with the state of her room, she beamed and headed off to Lady Deschuas’ room for work
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