Chapter 5: Chapter 4

ALA

A familiar voice breaks the silence that envelops us.

“I didn't call you here just to tell you some story you probably already know." 

“But you know that already, don’t you, Ala?” Zayen asks me in a questioning tone.

His face is tense, at least more than usual.

When Zayen is a bit stressed like right now, a few wrinkles make their way on his otherwise rigid expression.

Even though his face normally lacks them.

For most, it is a reminder that he is indeed human. They find it enchanting.

That is because the man in front of me, as I understood, has a tendency to appear absolutely unhinged.

 

"You mean to tell me those nobles have no intention of stopping, don't you?"

"Precisely." I get a peremptory reply. It was to be expected.

Then again, those people made a very fake-looking retreat. 

It was obvious from the start that they were afraid of being kicked out of school for acting up.

But I fully expect that novles who have had such harsh reactions will try to make me pay physically later.

It is what anyone would do. If you look weak, predators can smell blood in the water from far away.

 

If they find me outside these gates, then it will be problematic. 

But nothing will happen inside of the Academy.

And unfortunately it is a very real chance that they find me, as I live near here nowadays, in the royal mansion together with Domingrad. 

There are a few royal guards set up in some quite hidden places to defend Johefus’ son from harm, but I think it’s best if they don’t take action.

If there’s something I’ve learned so far, it’s that this Emperor doesn’t like diplomatic issues with other countries.

And despite not remembering any name of theirs, I am sure the situation can escalate with the power their parents have.

So much for giving Jalan important friends, huh?

 

Anyway, I’m convinced that Johefus himself would make the guards turn a blind eye.

And he would be right.

It is not worth to stir up the waters for me.

 

As for what I should do now, I don’t even have to ask. I know what everyone would suggest. 

Zayen would probably advise me to kill all these ‘worthless and puny humans’ and let him do the rest. 

Johefus would tell me to hide and never return. And that if he saw me ever again, he’d have to pretend not to know me.

Domingrad…

He would likely say that, no matter what these nobles do, I can keep my calm without any issue.

I think so too. They don’t look strong at all, and I’ve spent some time dumbing down my self defense mechanisms.

 

"I’m not scared of taking a few meaningless punches, even if that guy happens to find me.” I just answer.

“After all, I must taste them again some time, don’t I? It’s surely been a while.” I joke.

At that, Zayen laughed a bit. I’m sure he knows what I mean.

“Do you remember the last time?”

"Battle of Winweald."

"Yes, I thought so." If his face looked worried before, now it looks both worried and reminiscent.

"You still think about it at times, don't you?”

“As for me, it's still on my mind. And often, too." He adds to his sentence.

I figured. 

 

His old neighbour-looking face only ever seems modified by madness, but those who know him well can see his sensitive side.

"Is that why you never had children?"

"No. My time— it is way too late anyway."

"You have had plenty of time. And you will have plenty even now.” 

After all, a magician can take their time. Magic does wonders to one’s health. 

 

Once, Zayen himself said ‘he wouldn’t use magic to look younger because he was rocking that wise old man look by now.’

I didn’t really understand, but it seemed like a joke.

Especially since he added that ‘if he turned back now to how he looked when he was fourty, many old women in the Empire would mourn the death of their idol.’

That’s a fond memory.

 

Anyways, that same person now looks at me with a complicated expression. 

"Sorry, I just wanted to know." I respond to him seeing his reaction.

My question was harmless, I didn’t want to make him upset.

"And what about you? You are young, yet you would never have children." He strikes back.

"Bring children into this world? I'm not that cruel."

"Touché." He smiles. 

 

Yes, time may have passed, bringing death and destruction with itself, but Zayen is still the same person as before.

I got to know himat the beginning of the war. Before, it was just his name.

Ironically, back then he never had to deal with wrinkles on his forehead. 

Or with remorse.

Yet we were both used to seeing blood flow on a cold street in the middle of nowhere.

To reaping casualties.

It might be unfair to say, but some things have more impact than others despite being much of the same.

 

"If it weren't for your fake saintess behaviour, I'd say you haven't changed at all since then." He tells me.

And if it weren't for the fact that they don't have wings, rabbits would fly. 

That’s what Domingrad told me once.

But I will not declare it out loud right now, because this place is mostly made of wood and the person in front of me has an unhealthy addiction to fire.

"Seriously, take care of yourself. You remind me too much of my younger self." Zayen adds.

That's my clue to return the smile.

"I don't know if that's a good thing." I answer.

"It's no accident that we come from the same place."

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We sit on the antique wooden tables of the cafeteria, empty at this was time of the day, and I can't stop admiring the elegance of this place.

Facing each other, he tells me stories about when he was a young magician obsessed with power and being unpredictable, and how he killed more than five hundred people during that time.

These are stories I've heard before, behind a campfire with hundreds of other soldiers.

But they have a different effect now.

I am not a better person than he is. I don't think so. 

As he said, we are much the same.

I think what is different is our age, even if that may seem simple.

I'm still young enough to be able to change my ways.

 

-=-

 

KIA

 

The outside paths of the Academy garden are slightly different from what I'm used to admiring.

Whoever built this place must have truly done a great amount of pondering.

I'm not just talking about the creaking of the stones lying under my feet, which move and play with each other after every impact of my shoes.

I am not even talking about the lights, placed with extreme precision, one two metres apart, so that even at night the garden is perfectly lit without any dark zone.

Everything here has artificiality in it.

Even the trees, which at first glance seem to be remnants of what the place was before the constructions, have a logical sense of being planted exactly where they are.

Big oaks in the distance, so that those who stand back from the pebble path can enjoy the shade of their countless leaves, carefully laid out without any of them ever falling.

Near me there are only small trees, revealing the sun and giving this place a little light, without being invasive.

I bet everything was different before. Who knows if these are even native trees?

Still, such a balance of plants and trees, with no shrubs placed too close to each other to avoid chaos and a jungle-like appearance, and everything else...

It all looks extraordinarily fake.

I don't hate it, mind you.

But I don't love it either.

 

I wouldn't know how to compare it to my homeland, that is, or if I did then it would be a biased judgement.

No one can avoid a biased judgement. 

If you are happy and you see a flower, for you that flower will be beautiful. Especially if it is in your favourite place.

If you find a flower when you are sad, or in a place you hate, chances are you won't like it. 

Even if it was the same exact flower that you praised in a different circumstance.

Humans have little opinions of their own.

Because of that, it is difficult for tastes not to spill over into one's moods. 

A person who can divide the two has a well-defined personality, I would say.

 

"Is that oak tree to your liking, Princess?"

The silence and my thoughts are both interrupted by a deep voice armed with a regal tone similar to that of my father.

But a thousand times younger, a little lacking in experience, hesitant still.

"Definitely."

I realise only now that I have placed the palm of my hand on the bark, tasting the ancient hardness of the tree.

It is my turn to continue the conversation.

"What good wind brings you here, Prince Jalan Teleling of the Black Empire?"

"The Levant, if I aim to be precise."

A plaguey grin adorns his face. 

 

I have seen Emperor Johefus before and I must admit they he and his son are like two peas in a pod.

Where time has undermined Johefus' youthful beauty, Jalan effortlessly makes up for it.

He has big emerald green eyes, long pitch-black hair and a look that is both serious and slightly playful.

But, if I'm honest, his sarcasm seems to be a weakness, because this reply was awful.

I let out a fake hearty giggle, as all royals are accustomed to.

"I've wanted to meet you for a long time. I had been told of hair as purple as the finest gems in the Lightdark Valley, blue eyes of a colour that makes the streams’ cleanest and most precious reflections envious, and a class that makes the entire world gaze—“

"And?”

"They weren't wrong.”

Good answer.

I return the smile. 

 

Just as I had become acquainted with his face before meeting him in person, I bet he too had seen me prior to this moment.

If I had to judge his conversation skills, the grade would be no higher than five out of ten.

One can be original and lie without making it obvious. What is this talk about rumours? You are definitely aware of how I look.

Doesn’t mean I can’t have a little fun, right?

"Even the rumours about you seem to be true, Prince..." 

"What rumours?" He asks curiously. His eyes show real interest, he probably doesn't really have any clue. 

Nor do I.

"A refined and friendly man, showing by his manners at least twenty more years of maturity than the few he actually boasts, skilled in magic and as handsome as his father, if not even more appealing..."

"I did not know that was said of me." He looks pleased. A smile adorns his countenance.

And that is a mistake. 

You should inform yourself of other people's opinions of you. Otherwise, you’ll never know I lied with a straight face.

In any case, those could very well be the whispers of any Academy girl as she carelessly maintains her mouth agape.

He looks like a mature boy for his age.

It's strange to say, but I can see him becoming Emperor. 

He seems to have the looks to be one.

Wait.

What was he here for again?

Oh, probably just to meet me. I forget I’m important at times.

 

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