The sun shone through the window of my room brightly enough to make me squint. The silk sheets and pillowcases caressed my skin as I sank further into the soft bed, letting it hold me in its embrace.
‘Just a bit more sleep…’
Unfortunately, there were things that needed to be done. Zeris and I had returned to Bel’s estate at night, so we only spoke briefly. He was oddly worried about us, much like how my mother would be if I came home too late.
Now that I know what I know, it’s a little off-putting. My information is still minimal, so I plan to maintain the facade of completely trusting him.
‘I will say that he does know how to pick out a bed.’
Rising from my bed, I went over to my dresser and put on a light black silk tunic. I moved to the bathroom to quickly splash some cold water on my face to wake myself up.
The cold water dripped from my face as I stared at my foreign reflection. I’m still not used to it. It has helped a lot, though; its strength and recoverability were some of the only reasons I survived our dreadful trip to the Abominable Forest.
The feeling of being on the doorstep of death is not something I think I'm going to get used to.
Shaking my head to rid myself of the grim thoughts, I heard a gentle knock on my door.
I dried my face and walked out. Standing at the door was the beautiful, petite young maid Sylvie. However, instead of her usual maid’s outfit, she was wearing a lovely white sundress with expensive-looking white heels, a black pearl necklace resting on her chest. Her olive skin made both the necklace and the dress stand out.
Her usually tied-up blonde hair was now flowing down to her shoulders. Her heavy-lidded crystal blue eyes calmly stared into mine.
“Good morning, my Lord.”
Her emotionless expression and monotone voice made conversing with her quite uncomfortable.
“Uh—morning. And please, call me Ezra. ‘Lord’ feels strange.”
Her gaze met the floor for a moment, and she shifted slightly.
“Yes, Ezra.”
I chuckled and gave her a warm smile.
“It’s okay. What can I do for you? Also, why are you dressed so—nice?”
If I’m not mistaken, I could have sworn I saw her cheeks flush slightly. She cleared her throat and took a step toward me.
“Your Royal Highness would like to celebrate your return from your travels with Lord Zeris. He asked us to fetch some pastries for dessert tonight.”
I knitted my brows and shifted from foot to foot.
“‘Us’?”
Sylvie took a deep breath.
“Yes, he understands that Lord Zeris showed you around the city a little, but he wanted me to show you more of the scenic parts and more conventional shops.”
I sighed.
“That does sound like him. Well, alright then. Let me get changed, and then we can head out.”
She nodded and left my room.
[Well, she’s a pretty lady now, isn’t she!]
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I placed my palm on my face, shaking my head.
“Let’s keep those kinds of thoughts to ourselves, please.”
***
[SYLVIE POV]
Entranced by the beautiful garden of the estate, the sound of the large front door startled me.
An evenly toned voice sounded from behind me.
“You ready?”
Turning around, I met the eyes of the man who looked slightly down at me.
The gorgeous young man stood with a warm smile on his sharp face, with midnight black hair flowing backward, creamy skin, and tantalizing pearl-like eyes.
His otherworldly presence gave me butterflies.
“Yes, our carriage is waiting.”
The ride to the city was filled with a slightly awkward silence, no thanks to me. I’m not very good with words. However, that didn’t seem to bother Ezra; he mostly just stared out through the carriage window.
I, however, was staring at an intricate tattooed dragon coiling up his right arm. He must have felt my gaze and looked at me with a bit of confusion.
“Is there something wrong?”
Extremely embarrassed, I shook my head.
“No, it’s nothing. It’s just—when did you get a tattoo?”
He looked down at his arm, shifted his position, crossed his legs, and looked into my eyes.
“Oh! Right, I forgot to mention it to you and Bel. I sort of stumbled upon a Boned Weapon, and well, it bonded with me.”
My eyes widened, and for a moment, I thought that an emotion was finally showing on my face.
“Bonded Weapon?”
Ezra smiled and rubbed the back of his neck.
“Yeah, the Abominable Forest sure was an adventure.”
His smile fell, and his eyes grew distant. Ezra shifted once more, looking back out the window.
A somber mood filled the cabin.
‘He must have gone through a lot while in that forest.’
I can understand; that place is truly dreadful. During my time as an adventurer, I encountered a truly terrifying Abomination that I still think about to this day. It almost killed me.
It had large muscles, black skin, a humanoid figure, azure blades for hands, and two crimson eyes with no irises, making them look more like two pools of blood. But the fact that it had no mouth whatsoever was what was truly terrifying.
‘But it must have been so much worse for him.’
He is just a boy, a boy not of this world to begin with. That alone has caused immense trauma, and then being thrown into one of the most dangerous places on this continent with little to no combat experience.
If I’m honest, it’s quite impressive that he even survived.
‘What was Lord Zeris thinking.’
The silver lining, though, is that he did grow quite a lot. He’s now at the Master phase of the first Threshold, which alone is extremely impressive. To ascend that quickly is truly remarkable. It is very rare to be one of the Blessed; I believe it’s one in ten thousand. The fact that he is not of this world is what truly boggles the mind.
But it’s not just his Mana Center that has changed; his presence has as well. Apart from the strange otherworldly aura he emanates, he may have only killed a few Abominations, but it changes a person.
His eyes are sharper, more calculating, colder…
It’s something I did not wish to see in him. I may not have known Ezra long, but I pity him. No one deserves to be ripped away from their family.
Family is the most important thing in the world.
I felt my heart ache as thoughts of the past filled my mind.
‘I hope Lilith is well…’
The abrupt stop of the carriage snapped me out of my daze. Ezra’s voice rang in my ear.
“Ah, we’re here. Let’s get going and get these pastries.”
***
[EZRA POV]
Once Sylvie and I returned from our outing, I quickly went to find Bel before our celebratory dinner.
Fortunately, Bel is usually in the same place all day: his study. Reaching the large door, I knocked, and a muffled voice sounded from inside.
“Come in!”
I entered, closing the door behind me. Bel stood with a warm, bright smile on his face. He was wearing a luxurious crimson silk tunic, though there were slight bags under his eyes.
“Ah, Ezra, what can I do for you? How was the outing with Sylvie?”
I smiled warmly back at him and took a seat in front of his desk.
“It was good. Sylvie is actually quite lovely to hang out with.”
His melodic laugh filled the room.
“Is she now? She is very dense and formal around me. Perhaps she has a crush on you.”
My heart skipped a beat, and I felt my cheeks grow warm. I cleared my throat.
“I’m going to have to disagree with you on that. However, there is something I’d like to ask you.”
Bel sat down, resting his elbows on his desk.
“Oh, do tell.”
I shifted slightly, crossing my legs over each other.
“Um—I’d like to enroll in the Zelrick Academy. Do you think you could make that possible?”
The corner of Bel’s eye twitched slightly. He leaned back in his chair, looking off into the distance thoughtfully.
“Hmm, I don’t see why I can’t make that happen. However, may I ask why you want to attend?”
My hands clenched, and my heart started to speed up. For some strange reason, the air in the room felt thicker. Trying to hide my nervousness, I spoke.
“In my time in the Abominable Forest, I learned a lot about myself and this world. I learned that this world is truly dangerous, and that I want to join in the effort of finding a way to get back home. So I figured going to the Academy was a good start.”
Bel nodded and lingered for a moment.
“I see… Well, if that’s what you want, I’ll make it happen. Just leave it to me!”