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Chapter 51
In the middle of the ballroom and before the curious gazes of several dozen nobles, Ezabel struggled for air. She had bitten off more than she could chew. Rather, she bit off more than she could swallow. It was like a great lump in her throat that refused to go down. The pain was wrenching. Her arms scrambled for the glass of juice she had set on the table beside her. Funny enough, it was not the judgment of the nobles around her that she was concerned over. Rather, it was the fact that Soren began to make his way over. Concern was clear on his face as he worked his way through the crowd.
Hurry hurry hurry. Ezabel wanted nothing more than to clear her throat before he reached her. It was enough of an embarrassment to have so many people watching, she could not bear having Soren see her like this up close. - The glass flew to her lips and the amai berry juice poured into her mouth, cold and quick. She strained herself as the catch in her throat slowly began to go down. To say that it was smooth would be a lie. It hurt like an aching bruise. Yet, she forced it down to cut the scene short.
“Ezabel!”, Soren reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder.
Simultaneously, she cleared her throat and took in a great breath. Relief poured over her at once. She never appreciated air more than she did at that second. Her chin raised and her eyes coincidentally crossed Soren’s worried gaze. Her cheeks flushed instantly.
“Are you alright?”, he added.
“Y-yes! I’m fine, I’m fine.”, she hoped to play it off with a laugh.
“The food won’t be going anywhere for a while, you might want to slow down.”
Soren chuckled along, though he was still very clearly watchful of her state. He even guided her back to her feet as the chatter around began to grow slightly more potent. It was clear now that Ezael was now suddenly the topic of their gossip.
She did not think she could be any more embarrassed after choking in front of Soren like that. Now she had to steady the thought of being judged so heavily by so many different aristocrats. She stuck out like a sore thumb and she knew it. Her will was practically on the verge of running out of the ballroom.
“Ahem.”, beside them came the clicking footsteps of a tall man. From the ground, Ezabel followed his lanky frame until it came upon a thin neck. It supported a thin face and the lips upon it were tight. “Good evening, Master Soren.”
Ezabel knew not what to do at that moment. She was not the one addressed, yet she felt as much a part of the conversation as they. Still, she stood beside Soren, half hoping that she could hide behind him.
“Good evening to you as well, Lord Descra.”, Soren bowed his head. Although, it was more of a half-hearted nod than anything else.
“I only just arrived in the capital, but already word has reached me of your captain sponsoring his first ever candidate. I never thought of Leland to be so charitable.”
“Indeed, he has brought two candidates under the Aster Brigade’s wing.”
“Two? How interesting. And, what brought on this sudden change of heart, may I ask?”
“You would have to ask Leland himself, I’m not very good at reading minds.”
Ezabel did her best to make herself as small as could be amidst the conversation. Yet, even she could see the subtle disdain upon Soren’s demeanor. She may have not known him long, but this was still the first time she had seen that side of him. It was almost as if he felt little to no fear of speaking in such a way to a noble. To her best guess, such disregard would land any lowborn citizen in quite a bit of wrath.
At a glance, Lord Descra was a shrewd individual. Ezabel had no trouble imagining him with a tight grip around all that he governed. From the way he spoke to the way he adjusted his back to be even straighter than it was, everything about him brought forth an unnerving air. - Fortunately, his attention was on Soren and far away from her. That is, until her throat began to feel itchy again. She did all she could to hold back an impending cough, but it ripped through her lips in the middle of the conversation.
“And, would this young lady be one of those candidates?”, Lord Descra perked a brow as he eyed Ezabel’s uniform.
Soren sighed and took a step to the side so that Ezabel could be better introduced.
“Lord Descra, allow me to introduce you to Ezabel Grover.”, Soren turned to look at her. “Ezabel, this is Felix Descra, he is the Lord of Redwater.”
“Redwater? Isn’t that in the Valley of Lords-?”, Ezabel cut her thought short. She bowed her head, albeit nervously. “I-it is good to meet you, my lord.”
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“The pleasure is all mine, Miss Grover. - And yes, it seems you are well learned. Redwater is one of the Valley’s three major cities.”
“I-I've read about it many times before.”, Ezabel emphasized, doing her best to stay modest. “My brother is stationed there.”
“Your brother?”
“Y-yes.”, Ezabel nodded, doing her best not to stumble upon her words. “My brother is Captain Xavier Grover.”
“My, my.”, Lord Descra’s eyes widened with sudden notice. “It is no wonder then why Leland so suddenly sponsored a candidate. - Xavier and Vance are brilliant Attendants, I don’t expect you to be any different, Miss Grover.”
“Thank you..”
“Well Lord Descra, if you don’t mind, there are a few things I need to discuss with Ezabel. Trial concerns.”, Soren nodded and offered a faux smile. “If you’ll excuse us.”
“But of course.”, Lord Descra returned a nod in kind. “Give your captain my best. And, Miss Grover, I’ll be watching your career with the utmost interest. Good luck.”
Acuity never left his eyes, even as Soren guided Ezabel away from the table. She turned away, but not before catching a glimpse of Lord Descra’s last notice of her. - It felt as if her feet were in a hurry. But, Soren just had a longer stride. He also had far less trouble navigating the crowd of expensive fabrics. To think that poise alone could make such a situation that much more bearable. It was as if Soren was born into the upper echelons of society. It was a reasonable assumption judging by the way he moved. So, if Ezabel was wrong, it would have been amazing.
“Since he’s the Lord of Redwater, wouldn’t that mean he knows Xavier well?”, Ezabel asked as she walked beside Soren.
It was a reasonable assumption to make. As captain of the Rose Brigade, Xavier would have plenty of contact with the aristocracy of the city he operated out of.
“Yes and no.”, Soren answered, but his attention remained forward to avoid bumping any shifting bodies.
“What do you mean by that?”
“As I am told, Xavier has placed several members of House Descra under investigation.”
“Investigation?”, Ezabel nearly stopped in her tracks. “For what?”
“That information has not been made public. Though, the situation has certainly developed into something loud. - It seems Lord Descra is making a plea to have the Rose Brigade moved away from Redwater.”
At once, a swarm of curiosities flooded Ezabel’s mind. And, each was far more urgent than ever as her brother was the topic of concern. But, before she could even decide upon which to ask first, Soren came to a slow halt and offered his arm. Ezabel looked down at it, unsure of his intentions.
“I’m sure you are curious about it. But, you of all people should know that Xavier is more than capable of taking care of himself. - You, on the other hand, have quite the week ahead of you.”, Soren gestured for her to take his arm. “Come on, there are a few things I want to talk to you about.”
Soren was right. Despite all of her curiosities, there was nothing Ezabel could do from here. She did not even have the bare minimum of information needed to help. The best thing for her now was to focus on her own situation. Which brought her attention back to Soren’s arm. She hesitated at the thought of holding on to him. But, all around her, it was the norm. Simply put, it was something she had never done, although she wanted to. So, with all the courage she could muster, Ezabel weaved her arm through his own.
°°
Walking the floor of the ballroom was like traversing a field of waving tall grass. Only, the grass here was far less likely to fold over for you. Each blade was an unknown, and Ezabel was doubtful of her ability to handle and amount of wrath she could incur. So, as she walked alongside Soren, she did her best to keep a good distance from anyone she passed.
In time, she grew comfortable with their linked arms. It certainly helped seeing everyone else around doing much the same. Not to mention the fact that Soren was incredibly accommodating, making sure to go on at a pace that she was comfortable with. That in itself was an incredible feat on his part. Ezabel was entirely sure of herself when it came to making the rounds. Whenever she felt one too many pairs of eyes on her, she wished to move quicker. But, when she found even the slightest bit of interest in a scene, she made sure to slow herself down to take in as much as she could. To keep up would be a challenging task. Luckily, it was Soren at her side and not anyone else.
“I know there’s a lot going on tonight, but make sure you get to bed early.”, Soren turned to gaze upon her. “Your training starts tomorrow.”
“R-really!?”, Ezabel lit up with excitement. She practically wrung his arm.
“The first part of the trials will be this time tomorrow evening. We’ll need to start bright and early if you want to have any chance of making an impact.”
“What will we be doing?”
“I’ll leave that as a surprise.”
Ezabel pouted. Less like a child and more like a woman who was beginning to tire. For the past half hour or so, Soren had helped her acquaint herself with several individuals of interest. Not personally, of course. She was much too nervous. Instead, he described them from a distance; their names, who they were, and what their significance was. For instance, stood beside the string ensemble was a man named Roman Vardas, Lord of Violere. It was another city that Ezabel knew little about. As Soren described, it was a far off municipality whose concerns were just as remote. He only mentioned him because of his strange habit of wincing at every high note that the ensemble played. No one could tell if he enjoyed it or not. Yet, he remained front and center at all times. Most thought his old age was beginning to get to him. Then, there were those that would say he had done the same in his youth. Whatever the case, Ezabel made it a point to stay clear of the bizarre fellow.
There were many others, most of which Ezabel had trouble remembering. If she was ever asked, all of them were very much the same. Raised well fed and well spoiled. She did not think that there was a day of struggle between any of them. So, her interest slowly waned as their walk through the ballroom continued.
“Boring as they might seem, it’s important to remember that these are the people who hold sway on your future here.”
“Sway? You mean in the trials?”
“Not in the trials. That success will come based on your own talents. - I mean after the trials. Attendants are often at the whim of the nobles they are stationed under. It doesn’t happen all the time, but a bad relationship with any one of these people could mean the difference between hardship and success.”
It was a difficult concept to grasp. On one hand, Ezabel firmly believed that Attendant’s were masters of their own fate. They were powerful and iconic, afterall. Then again, she would be a fool to underestimate the influence any noble could have on the layout of someone's life.
“Maybe I’ll just stay away from their judgment then..”, Ezabel muttered. “..it would probably be easier that way.”
“I’m sure that would work in some cases.”, Soren then gestured for Ezabel to look toward the head of the ballroom. There, upon a raised balcony that overlooked the entire space, a group of the king’s advisors watched. “But, there are some that you will never be able to hide from.”
Ezabel raised her head to follow him. She peered at the balcony in the distance, only to be met with a sudden bout of tension. Standing amidst the advisors, hardly impressed, was Atalanta Silverton. A crimson dress flowed down her figure and hugged her arms with two tight sleeves. She leaned elegantly against the balcony ledge. Ezabel watched from behind Soren’s shoulder as Atalanta’s intimating amber stare passed over them. Upon the start of the first trial, Ezabel would forever be under the Cardinal’s scrutiny. She dreaded the thought.
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