Ten years ago, in the year 848, King Leopold von Regnaris IV tragically died, leaving the throne to the then Prince Aricad, now King Aricad von Regnaris II. The Regnaris family ruled over the Kingdom of Arixad since as far back as our knowledge of history goes. They were even the ruling family back when the sun god, Arlin, still walked among humans. May they continue to rule over us for evermore.
A paragraph from the book "History of the Regnaris Royal Family", by Oliver Gaimley
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Liam's POV
On the same day Thandor was visiting Emily for the second time, Liam was out shopping, and he wasn't alone.
Being the capital, Arixalum was nearly never short on any type of supplies someone might need, well, usually at least.
"So you don't have any? Are you sure? Please double-check!" A vibrant 14-year-old girl with cascading red locks and striking green emerald eyes questioned the elderly spice merchant.
"I'm sorry, I've run out of Ebonfire since last month." the apologetic vendor explained. " You know how that spice is produced in the Kingdom of Storith to the west, right? The problems there have made trading a real bitch let me tell you!" He complained. The girl gasped when she heard him say that bad word, which made Liam next to her chuckle.
The girl swiftly turned her gaze up towards him, disapproval etched across her features. "Hey, don't laugh at me!" she demanded.
"Haha, sorry, Nicole." Liam chuckled, his attempt to stifle his laughter evident in the sincere twinkle of his eyes.
The elderly spice merchant observed the duo with a warm smile playing on his lips. "Aren't you two a precious couple." he remarked.
"Er, actu—" Liam began to correct, but before he could finish, Nicole interjected.
"We're not! Why would you think so?" She asked, feeling curious and and confused.
And of course, she quickly denies it.
"Well, I just often see you two here shopping together. Now, I did think you two looked a bit too young to be married, but I still thought you might be a couple at least." the merchant explained, attempting to justify his assumption.
So, Nicole and I look like a couple, huh? I wonder if others who don't know who we really are also see us that way when they look at us.
"W-We're not. We're both just on cooking duty, so we always come shopping for food ingredients." Nicole explained, shedding light on their situation to the merchant.
"Ohh, I see. I see. Excuse this old man for jumping to conclusions, okay?" the merchant apologized, feeling a bit silly for making assumptions.
Nicole wasn't lying, her and Liam were the ones on the cooking duty. Their teacher was good at many things, but cooking wasn't one of them, Jaxon hated it and did not have the patience for it, and Karl was too young to be tasked with such a duty, so it fell onto the two of them.
Lucky for the group, both Nicole and Liam didn't mind, as they had a thing for cooking.
Today was a day where he and Nicole went out to the plaza market to shop for food ingredients they needed. The plaza market sprawled out beneath a tapestry of colorful awnings, creating a lively kaleidoscope that contrasted against the backdrop of stone-paved pathways. Stalls lined the market, each a treasure trove of wares from both across the kingdom and outside of it. Brightly hued fabrics billowed in the breeze, framing the merchant stalls that offered an array of exotic spices, aromatic herbs, and vibrant produce.
The air was alive with the symphony of vendors haggling and customers bargaining. The scent of various spices intermingled, creating an olfactory journey through the flavors of the world. Though maybe the best thing about it was how close it was to home.
"Hmmmm, so he doesn't have any Ebonfire, huh? Now I can't make Karl that meal he really likes then." Nicole remarked, a hint of disappointment in her voice as she and Liam meandered through the vibrant plaza market.
"Whatever is happening in the Kingdom of Storith must be getting serious if it's effecting trade. It's not on us to worry about that though." Liam commented as tried to keep up with Nicole, all the bags he is carrying full of stuff he and Nicole bought slowing him down.
It was always like this, he'd always end up carrying most, if not all the bags, whenever they went shopping. He didn't mind it though.
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Nicole abruptly halted, her attention captivated by a stall on her right. Liam caught up as she immersed herself in the display.
"Hm? What are you looking at?" Liam asked, unsure.
"Wait right here. I'll go buy something real quick!" Nicole's voice brimmed with excitement as she darted toward the stall that had seized her interest.
There she goes...
Liam took this chance to look behind him. He saw a knight. He knew this knight would be there. He also knew who this knight was.
"Vincent Caldwell."Liam murmured under his breath, ensuring his words were lost in the bustling noise of the market.
There he is, keeping an eye on us. I know it's his job. I know they can't let witches wonder out on their own, so they need some knights to keep an eye on us, but still. It's not comfortable going about your day knowing a knight is right on your tail on every turn.
Liam was abruptly pulled from his contemplations by the sensation of someone placing a delicate item around his neck. To his surprise, it was a white lily necklace.
"N-Nicole? What's this?" he inquired, puzzled by Nicole's unexpected gesture.
"What? We had extra money, now that we don't need to buy any Ebonfire spice anymore. Might as well spend it!" she replied, a cheerful smile gracing her face. The two suns up at the sky making her green emerald eyes sparkle.
"You really ARE bad with money." Liam said, not looking too pleased with the girl. " And why did you buy this?" He asked.
"Didn't you say the other day you wanted one? It's really not a big deal, Liam. I doubt the others will object or have anything to say. Do you not like it?" she deftly attempted to change the topic about her being bad with money.
"No...No, it's not that. I do like it. Thank you." Liam admitted, examining the delicate necklace in his hands. It was normal for those who fellow the Arlinite faith to wear a white lily necklace.
Though a witch wearing a white lily necklace is a bit ironic.
"See? Now put a smile on your face!" Nicole insisted, a radiant smile lighting up her features.
You can be so kind, yet so cruel, Nicole. You do things like this, and yet still somehow fail to realize how Jaxon, or I for that matter, feel about you. Or maybe you purposely don't want to realize it. I'm not sure.
Liam smiled, though it was the type of smile that someone hid pain behind it. Nicole did not notice.
"Hey, are you two done now?" A knight asked as he approached them. It was Vincent. He did not look nor sound pleased.
What's his problem?
"Yes, I believe we are." Liam responded, trying to hide how annoyed he was with this knight.
"Then it's time for you two to head home now. You've been out long enough!" Vincent spoke.
"A-Alright. Let's go home, Liam." Nicole said, sounding nervous.
"Sure." Liam responded.
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"There you two are!" Jaxon let out the moment Liam and Nicole took a step inside their home.
"Sorry we were late!" Nicole apologized, trying to make Jaxon feel less irritated.
"We'll start cooking right no-" Liam stopped speaking as he noticed their teacher sitting on a chair next to a table, looking serious. Thandor Whitethorn was his name, and he's 10 years older than Liam.
"Teacher here has something he wants to talk to us about. Something important he says, where all of us need to be present." Jaxon explained, sounding irritated and serious.
Is it a mission, perhaps?
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Soon everyone took a seat around a wooden table in the kitchen. Thandor, Liam, Nicole, Jaxon, and Karl were all present.
Karl, at the tender age of 9, was the youngest person there. His short deep black hair framed his face, and though he was the quietest of the group, Liam always thought of him as a sweet kid.
"So? What's the matter?" Jaxon was the first to break the silence, curiosity painted on his face.
"I know this is about to sound sudden, but Aludell is on the verge of getting its final member tomorrow." Thandor declared, prompting gasps from everyone except Karl.
"W-What?!" Liam exclaimed
"Our final member? Tomorrow?" Nicole repeated his words, as if unsure what they meant.
"T-That is very sudden!" Jaxon voiced his protest.
"I know, I'm sorry. Sorry for not telling you all earlier, but it all happened so fast on my end too." Thandor apologized, his guilt apparent.
A few minutes of heavy silence passed before Thandor resumed speaking.
"This new member, she's a girl, so you finally won't be the only girl here, Nicole." Thandor said, glancing at Nicole before turning to Jaxon. "She's also your age, Jaxon."
Upon hearing the news, Nicole's face lit up with a smile.
"I was hoping our last member would be a girl!" she expressed with genuine happiness.
"A girl....will she sleep in our room?" Karl finally spoke.
"No, no, she won't sleep with you boys. Nicole, you'll have to share your room with her from now on." Thandor explained the living arrangements.
There were 3 bedrooms in their house. One for Thandor, one for the other boys, and the last one for Nicole.
Liam and Jaxon now seemed like the only two still taken aback by how sudden this was.
"Thandor, can you explain more? More about this girl and less about where she'll be sleeping, please." Liam requested, sounding annoyed. Jaxon nodded in agreement as Liam spoke.
"Well....I'm not sure how much of her personal background I should share." Thandor replied, displaying hesitation and conflict.
"Just share what you can!" Jaxon shouted, his frustration evident.
"Oh alright, alright. No need to shout, Jaxon. As for this girl, her name is Emily." Thandor began as everyone looked at him. "She's from....well, WAS from a small small village. Tragedy stuck though, which caused her power to awaken, but it also made it so she has no one left in this world who will look out for her. Now she's locked in a cell over here at the capital."
The mood around the table turned somber.
Poor girl...
"I...I see." Jaxon said, feeling a twinge of guilt for pressing Thandor to divulge such details.
"So you see, I need everyone here to be very nice to her, okay? I'm especially talking to you here, Jaxon." Thandor said as looked at the boy, waiting for him to respond.
"Y-You don't have to tell me that! I know!" Jaxon lashed out.
"I have one more question, teacher, what is her power? What is her magic?" Liam asked, feeling curious.
Thandor smiled before answering.
"Glad you asked. She can control water, just like you, Liam."