Hey guys. Sorry about the delay. I've had a major case of writers block. Plus, I've started working on a new project that you might see in the near future. In any case, here's chapter thirteen. 

Sophia awoke to find Evangeline clinging to her like a baby koala. Even her tail had rapped itself around her legs.

“Er, Eva…” Sophia tried to peel her away, but when she tried, Evangeline simply clung tighter.

“Mn, don’t go mommy…” she grumbled.

And with that, Sophia’s fate as a hug-pillow was sealed. She’s just too adorable! Sophia squealed inwardly. It’s only seven o’clock, and the ship heading to South Sea academy doesn’t arrive until ten. It should be fine to let her sleep a little while longer.

Finally, after about an hour, Evangeline started waking up on her own.

“Mn…Eh? EH?!” Before she had even finished rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Evangeline reeled backwards and tumbled off the bed.

“F-Forgivememylady!” she stammered while bowing repeatedly.

“Ha-ha, Eva, you really need to relax.”  Seeing her antics, Sophia couldn’t help but laugh. “If you start doing that in public people will think that I abuse you.”

“EH! Ah, right, eh-hem.” Evangeline tried to assume a proper posture befitting of a lady’s maid, but with her tiny stature it only served to make her look comical.

“Ha-ha,” Sophia was suddenly possessed by the desire to dress the little succubus in various outfits like a life-sized doll. Wow! This girl really knows how to bring out the girl in me!

“Alright Eva, we’d better get ready to go, and remind me to stop somewhere and get you some real clothes.” Evangeline was still wearing the same rough dress from the auction house, which was unacceptable for someone who was going to be Sophia’s servant.

…

Sophia had nearly forgotten about her fight with Marcus the previous day, but when she stepped out the airship and found him waiting for her, it all came rushing back.

“Ugh,” Sophia knew that she had to apologize. Her pride rebelled against the notion, but fixing her relationship with Marcus was more important.

The two gradually began moving towards each other, neither one capable of looking the other in the eye. When they were about a meter apart they stopped and simply stood there.

Eventually…

“I’m sorry!”

“I’m sorry!”

“Eh?!”

“Eh?!”

The two of them spoke at the same time and completely mirrored each other.

“Wait, why are you sorry?” Marcus asked, bewildered.

“Eh, well,” Sophia fidgeted a bit before answering, “I shouldn’t have played such a cruel prank on you. You made an honest effort to be my friend, and I repaid you with lies.”

Marcus shook his head in denial. “No, no, I’m the one who should apologize! I’m not used to being tricked, so I blew everything way out of proportion! Sophia, will you forgive me?”

Sophia folded her arms stubbornly. “Only if you forgive me first!”

“…”

For a moment the two of them just stood there, staring at each other.

“…Pfft!”

“Ha-ha-ha!”

Suddenly, they both burst out laughing. “Aha, alright then,” Marcus said, wiping a tear from his eye, “I guess we’ll both have to agree to forgive each other then!”

“Agreed!”

From the shadows, Gregory smiled as Marcus made amends with Sophia. Well done, your highness!

…

“Sophia, I have to ask. Why do you dress like a boy anyway?”

Marcus, Sophia, Evangeline, and the four escorts had just stepped out of a high end clothing store. There, they had purchased some new clothes for Evangeline, which Marcus insisted on paying for.

Once the new clothes were acquired, Sophia immediately insisted on destroying the rough dress that had been provided by the auction house. Evangeline now wore a black dress that almost reached down to her knees and left the back exposed. This way, the movement of her wings wouldn’t be restricted. Unfortunately, the new attire made her even more noticeable, causing the eyes of several passersby to shine with lust.

Sophia’s lip curled in disgust. “Wow Eva, you look really pretty!” she said, rather conspicuously. “I sure hope that some sick, child molesting pervert doesn’t try to cause any trouble, OTHERWISE OUR FOUR, HIGHLY TRAINED GUARDS MIGHT HAVE TO KILL THEM!”

The bystanders quickly made themselves scarce, their faces turning red with shame.

“Hmph! Creeps!” Sophia scoffed. “So, what were you asking, Marcus?”

“Um, I was just wondering why you dress like a boy. If you had been wearing girl’s clothes when we first met, I never would have gotten so confused.”

For a moment, Sophia smirked faintly. “Boys wear pants and girls wear dresses, that’s the common wisdom, is it not? However, I don’t recall ever agreeing to such a distinction! I wear what I like, and if that leads to people making false assumptions… Well, that’s not really my problem, now is it?!”

How arrogant! Marcus thought to himself. This girl doesn’t care about social conventions in the slightest! Marcus found himself admiring Sophia’s determination and free spirit. It wasn’t easy to say one thing when the whole world was saying something else.

“What are you waiting for? Let’s go!”

Sophia’s shout snapped Marcus out of his daze. She was already a few meters away with Evangeline, waiting for him to catch up.

“Ok! Be right there!”

…

Sophia’s group took a ferry from the Gold District down the river and into the city’s Harbor District. This was where South Sea Academy would be arriving to collect their new students.

“I still don’t see why we couldn’t have just walked there,” Sophia pouted as she leaned over the railing. The rest of South Sea city looked like so much fun with shops and vendors selling things from every corner of the three continents. Occasionally, the breeze would carry the scent of strange and exotic food from nearby restaurants. In short, it looked like a party that she wasn’t invited to.

“Sophia,” Marcus sighed, “there just isn’t enough time. It would take days to see just a fraction of everything that South Sea city has to offer.”

“Mm…” Sophia didn’t seem satisfied. If anything, she pouted even more.

“*Sigh* Look, once the semester ends, I’ll bring you back to take a look at the rest of the city. Okay?”

“You mean it!” Sophia’s attitude took such an abrupt one-eighty that it should’ve given her whiplash. “Heh-heh, you promised! And I’ll be expecting you to buy me lots of souvenirs Mr. Moneybags!”

Marcus could only gape at her for a moment. What just happened? He thought to himself.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

From his hiding place, Gregory could barely contain his laughter. “She just played you like a fiddle, your highness,” he transmitted using his Spiritual Energy. “How did you ever think that this girl was a boy?”

Marcus chuckled and didn’t say anything. He had a strange feeling that someday Sophia was going to make his life a lot more complicated.

…

When they arrived at the appropriate dock. Sophia was stunned to find that there were hundreds of kids already waiting, accompanied by various servants. Here and there figures could be seen wearing matching uniforms marked with the South Sea Academy crest, a chain of seven islands over a blue background.

“Your highness, Ms. Sophia, I’m afraid that this is as far as we go.” The guards from the South Sea Auction House were only supposed to deliver them to the rendezvous point. From there, South Sea Academy would see to their protection.

Marcus and Sophia said their goodbyes and wandered over to join the rest of the new students, followed secretly by Gregory and not-so-secretly by Evangeline.

“Sophia, from here on out we’ll have to be careful about what we say and do,” Marcus warned. “South Sea Academy is one of the highest ranked schools in all of Albion. There are people here from factions that could make our East Dragon kingdom vanish with a single word.”

“What!” Sophia was flabbergasted. She knew that East Dragon kingdom was a fairly small and weak nation, but she never would have imagined that its position would be so precarious. “Fine, I’ll do my best to keep my head down.”

While they waited for the representatives from South Sea Academy, Sophia couldn’t help but notice that her fellow new students had already begun to group themselves according to their social status as they mingled about.

On the periphery you had the children of merchants and lesser nobles who seemed content to laugh and play like normal children. Further in you had your players, the ones who’ve been trained since birth to cozy up to the rich and powerful in order to better their own standing. At the very front of the pack though, separated from the rest as if by an invisible barrier, you had the real movers and shakers. Heirs to multinational conglomerates, princes of vast empires, and young masters from ancient and mysterious clans, these lofty figures existed in a world of their own that the unwashed masses could never hope to touch.

Sophia found it a bit unnerving to see such young children behaving like slimy diplomats and pompous billionaires. Ugh, these kids are creepy! I think I’ll stay as far away from them as possible!

Turning to Marcus, Sophia found that he hadn’t taken a single step towards the high-ranking noble kids. “What’s the matter? Aren’t you going to rub elbows with the rich and powerful?”

Marcus could only chuckle and shake his head bitterly. “There wouldn’t be any point. My status as prince of East Dragon means nothing to these people. If I want their respect, I’ll have to earn it myself.”

“HA-HA, WELL SAID!”

The unexpected sound of an unfamiliar voice startled the two. Turning around they saw that the speaker was a boy with messy, bright-orange hair and a crooked grin.

“Heh, sorry about that. I didn’t mean to eaves drop, but I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation.” The boy apologized without really sounding sorry and held out his hand for an introduction. “I’m Connor Sparks.”

Marcus and Sophia were still reeling a little bit from this fellow’s abrupt entrance, but fortunately their sense of decorum took over.

“Marcus East, but please just call me Marcus.”

“Sophia. It’s… nice to meet you?”

“HA-HA, good! Now we’ve all introduced ourselves! That makes us friends!”

Sophia was having trouble keeping up with this loud boy’s pace. His surname marked him as a member of a clan with at least some heritage, but his rough appearance and boisterous attitude wasn’t the least bit in line with what was expected of the aristocracy.

“Wait, did you just say that your name was Sparks?!” Marcus seemed to recognize the boy’s clan.

“Marcus, do you know him?”

Marcus shook his head before answering. “No, but I’ve heard of his clan. The Sparks family has a heritage that’s older than most countries. As I understand it, they’re an ancient clan of blacksmiths whose ancestor was elevated to noble status by the first true king of the north.”

Sophia gaped at the messy child as she considered the implications of what she just heard. The first true king of the north was a legendary figure who unified the chaotic northern reaches more than ten-thousand years ago. His dynasty ruled the north until a war of succession tore it apart, forming the current northern kingdoms. Very few clans could boast a legacy that old, and yet…

“Ha-ha, you’re making me blush!” This boy didn’t behave like a member of an ancient noble clan at all!

“By the way…” Suddenly the boy put his arm on Marcus’ shoulder like they were old friends. “I really respect that attitude of yours. There’s nothing I hate more than seeing an arrogant prick get a swollen head just because his daddy has a fancy title!” Connor turned his head and spat on the ground as if it was the head of an arrogant noble. “It’s like my old man always says! ‘A real man doesn’t borrow another man’s face!’”

Sophia felt herself chuckle faintly. This Connor didn’t seem to have a filter, he just said whatever he wanted without a care for who he might offend. This definitely wasn’t a good strategy for navigating the world of the nobility, but Sophia couldn’t help but admire his way of doing things.

Marcus also found himself smiling at Connor’s antics. He had never met anyone who was so unapologetically genuine. “So Connor, what brings you to South Sea Academy?” he asked. “It seems strange for someone from the Sparks clan to be so far south.”

Connor scratched his head awkwardly before answering. “Well… truth be told, my family sent me here to get me away from their troubles.”

“Troubles?!” Marcus couldn’t believe it. The Sparks clan had an unshakable foundation. There wasn’t a single faction in the northern reaches who would risk offending them.

“Er, yeah. You see, my ancestor was granted nobility when he forged a sword for the first true king of the north. That sword was the one that he carried into battle as he unified the northern reaches, and eventually it became his symbol of power, the Sword of Kings. However, the sword was shattered during the war of succession five-hundred years ago. Ever since then, various powers have been pressuring my family to make a new sword, hoping to legitimize their claims to the throne.”

Sophia frowned and couldn’t help but ask, “So, what would happen if one of the northern powers were to obtain a Sword of Kings forged by your family?” She just couldn’t see how a mere symbol could have any impact on a power struggle that had already persisted for five-hundred years.

“To the people of the north, the Sword of Kings is a holy relic. Millions would flock to the banner of whoever wielded it!” Connor grimaced as he imagined the scenario. “The balance of power between nations would completely collapse!”

Sophia was horrified. To think that the fate of nations could be influenced so easily.

In her old world, such a thing would be unimaginable. People just didn’t have that kind of faith anymore.

“Ha-ha, well, it’s not as big a deal as it sound,” Connor assured. “Those wannabe kings and upstart lords are more of a nuisance than anything else. My dad just decided to send me here so that I could focus on my studies without being bothered. Besides, I’m really interested to see South Sea Academy’s forging techniques!”

Connor tried to downplay it, but Marcus wasn’t fooled. The distance from the northern reaches to the southern sea was enormous. There’s no way that the Sparks clan would send a member of their younger generation all that way unless they were facing an imminent crisis.

Marcus was beginning to feel a sense of kinship with the boy. Both of them were in rather unenviable situations. Connor was far away from home while his clan stood on the brink of disaster while Marcus was the prince of a tiny nation surrounded by powers that could crush it in the blink of an eye if they wanted to.

Our status means nothing here. If we want to have any achievements then we can only rely on ourselves!

“Connor, I think that this is the start of a beautiful friendship.”