As she watched Emily and Sir Rowan leave, her heartbeat quickened and she felt a rush of anxiety go through her. This was happening. Why had the Cardinal requested her and was he actually waiting for her arrival? Maybe he took an interest in her because she became friends with Rain the dragon, which probably wasn't something normal… But that didn't sound quite right either.

Minerva began moving towards the East wing, gesturing for Caroline to follow her. She seemed to be aware of the younger girl's anxieties and began to explain the rules of the East wing, as if that would somehow help. "Few are allowed in the East wing. There's me, Sir Rowan, and a few carefully selected maids that are granted access. Now, there's you, too. As such, I'm afraid your friend Emily cannot come here, at least for now," the woman tucked a strand of white hair behind her ear, leaving Caroline in suspense as she continued, "But you are more than welcome to go to the west wing: if the Cardinal permits it." Her purple eyes flickered over to meet Caroline's, "The Cardinal is now your direct patron instead of an extended one like the rest of your peers. You are actually the first person from the scholarship program the Cardinal has ever taken an interest in."

An interest? Maybe it was because of the dragon after all. But she couldn't help but feel that it still would have been a last minute change if that were the case. "W-why is that?" She couldn't keep the quiver out of her voice as she asked. If it wasn't because of Rain, why would the leader of Asura want her to work directly for him?

Minerva simply smirked and shook her head, "That's not for me to answer. You know who to ask."

That… wasn't the answer she was hoping to hear…

Before she knew it, they were in the East wing. Surprisingly, it wasn't any more dazzling than the rest of the palace. It even seemed to have some personal touches to it like a few art pieces here and there. One caught her eye. It was of a wolf pack hunting down what she assumed to be a devil, but that was just a surface level observation. It seemed almost lifelike as the wolves were bathed in the full moon's glow and she felt like she could even hear jaws snapping and voices howling as they gave chase to the devil. The wolf at the front looked more majestic and even more ruthless than the others, but she felt more drawn to it than scared. She even found herself wanting to pet its black pelt and trace the gold markings along its back.

Minerva had noticed Caroline pulling away from her to look at the artwork, and she smiled faintly, "The paintings here were all done by the Cardinal in order to preserve a bit of history. In time, you might find out what is happening in each one."

History? "Is it symbolic?" She couldn't help but ask. We're the wolves meant to represent the Asurians chasing down the devils or did the Asurians actually have wolves to do so?

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Another thing you will have to learn about in class," the woman answered, her short white hair following her shaking head before she stopped in front of two double doors with wolves carved into them. "We're here. Make sure to remember your contract and your standing at all times," Minerva warned her.

Caroline's green eyes flicked from the doors to Minerva, waiting for her to open them or something, only for her to see that the woman was walking away with her hand waving goodbye, "Don't keep the Cardinal waiting."

Now she was alone. About to meet the leader of Asura, the person she would be serving. She wished at least someone else was here. Anything to keep her from meeting the most powerful person in the world by herself.

Shakily, she raised her hand to the doors and knocked, only for the doors to open wide all by themselves afterwards. She couldn't help but gulp.

"Come," echoed a voice. In her fright, she couldn't place it, but she quickly listened and walked quickly past the doors and into a corridor that was lined with many paintings, but she couldn't enjoy those at the moment. How was she supposed to remain calm right now? Minerva didn't tell her what to do! 'I'll just bow on one knee. Yea. That's super respectful, right?' She had no idea how to address royalty.

A baby fox met her at the end of the hall. It had soft looking white fur that turned into a blue, indigo color at its feet and tail. Despite looking like a cub, its deep blue eyes looked very intelligent. It was sitting neatly, like it was waiting for her. It ran up to her and began pulling on her uniform with its sharp teeth.

"H-hey!" She didn't have another one of these! What would she do if this little thing ripped it up and the Cardinal was displeased? That wouldn't do! But before she could stop it, the little fox ran through what she thought to look like a living room and towards a hallway on the other side. It looked back at her before disappearing. 'Does it want me to follow it?' Every creature she'd met in Asura so far had extreme intelligence, so she didn't put it past this baby fox to have that same intelligence. Plus, it was in the Cardinal's residence so it must be connected to him somehow.

Quickly, she followed it, her nervousness being her fuel. She was in the Cardinal's suite. And it was massive. There were so many rooms and doors that she didn't know what to make of it. She could get lost here. Caroline's eyes trailed after the little fox who was head of her. While she didn't know where she was going, she was sure that this creature belonged to the Cardinal Majesty, otherwise it wouldn't be here. 'A familiar of his, maybe?'

The area widened up as the two of them stepped out of the hallway. Her green eyes widened and her heartbeat started thumping hard in her chest. The Cardinal was right in front of her. The room itself was large and dimly lit, a giant bed was placed near the oriel window in the back. Off to the side, there was an open door leading to what she assumed to be where the bathroom and closet was. This was clearly his bed chamber.

His figure rose from behind what seemed to be his study desk, filled with folders and documents. There was a large bookcase behind it filled with books as well as other small items. "Thank you, Hikari. Close the door on your way out." Caroline could have sworn the fox nodded before leaping away from them, the door somehow closing after it while the most powerful person in the world approached her.