Rueln Layheart

I push the eggs around my plate with a fork, my elbow on the table so I can rest my cheek against the palm of my hand. Despite how good the breakfast looked, I wasn’t feeling hungry this morning. Finnley had already finished and was working on his slate, bragging to me about how he could already write his name.

I glanced over at him to see him leaning over his work, his tongue sticking out to one side as he concentrated. Sighing, I looked back down at my food, tempted to push the whole thing away, but knew Master Esra wouldn’t like that I hadn’t touched it.

It’s been a month since I started at West Point Academy, and already I could tell that it interfered with my apprenticeship lessons with Master Esra. Finnley was jumping ahead of me during practice. Despite how much time I tried to put into the lessons, it did me little good.

We would train in the morning before breakfast, then he would start his lessons, and I would leave to go to mine. When I got back, I had to do anything the teachers assigned me, chores, and then my evening training. Finnley’s lessons ended around noon, so he had more time to practice between lessons. I felt like my time was being wasted with a dozen other things while Finn grew his talent.

Lord Balec stole what little free time I had. My life was all turned around now, and I didn’t like it, though after we signed his contract, he was proving to keep to his word. The noble made no move to take me from Master Esra and never treated me as a lesser. He hadn’t asked me to do anything so far.

What did he want? That first night we spoke, he had mentioned something about getting close to a few students who attended the academy, but there hadn’t been another word about it. Who was it that was so important that the noble felt he needed to look in on them? The only one I could think of was Bria Gracy, but I hadn’t even tried to approach her.

I was thankful that the most useful thing Lord Balec had done was ask the administration to not tell the students that I was ‘Lanarie Aairith’ until I told them myself. It at least was giving me a grace period to adjust to everything, but I had a feeling it wasn’t about when I chose to tell people and more about when he wanted me to reveal it. What was his plan? I couldn’t figure it out.

I’ve wanted to look into who Lord Balec was, to learn more about him now that I was stuck with him, but when I ask around, there is little to be shared. He apparently is high in status, his father being on the council with the Emperor, but few know anything else. The problem was, Threa was across the continent from the capital, and there were fewer nobles who dwelled here. If I wanted to know anything significant, then I would have to go to the capital and play with the nobles myself, which is exactly what I didn’t want to do.

I supposed for now, I would have to just take it day by day.

“Rueln,” Master Esra’s voice broke my train of thought. I looked up to see her standing behind Finnley, having just shown him something new when she noticed I wasn’t eating. “Are you nervous that Lord Balec is coming today?”

I sunk down in my chair at her assumption. “No…” I mumbled, not sure if it was a lie or not.

“Would you like me to go with you?” She asked, offering to come to the meeting with the director without a second thought.

Finnley looked up at that and grinned, “Does that mean I can come too?”

“No. You will not get out of your lessons that easily,” Master Esra was quick to deny him, smiling down at his disappointed expression.

Finnley grumbled, then got back to work.

“No,” I answered her. Considering her expression, my response did not surprise her. “It’s fine with just Lord Balec.” I doubt he would speak freely around Master Esra, anyway. He needed to tell me what he wanted me to do. I figured that was why he had sent a letter by courier to tell us he would arrive this morning and walk with me to school.

“Very well then,” Master Esra said, accepting my choice. That had been too easy, like she had planned not to accept from the beginning. I narrowed my eyes in her direction and scooped up a fork full of food and shoved it into my mouth. It was cold, but I chewed it anyway and tried to eat more, though I still wasn’t hungry. “You better go clean up, Rueln,” she said when she noticed I’d gone through most of my plate. “He should be here any minute.”

I plucked my plate from the table and set it on the counter before hurrying away to my room to change and wash up. I swear I have never been so clean, washing away the sweat and dirt nearly every day while I lived with Master Esra. Finnley was much the same, though he chose when to clean himself up since he didn’t have to go to the academy.

I just finished pulling my boots onto my feet when I heard Master Esra called my name, telling me Lord Balec had arrived. I grabbed my book bag and pulled it over my shoulders before hurrying up the hall to see Lord Balec standing by the door. He wore a black suit tailored to fit him perfectly and trimmed with gold. The one set of clothes was probably worth more than Master Esra’s entire estate, if I had to guess.

What was he so dressed up for? We were just going to see the director, weren’t we? Or was there something more to this little escort thing he had planned than that?

Waving to Finnley, who came to see me off, I followed Lord Balec out the door and into the street. “Where’s your horse?” I asked when I didn’t see him.

Balec glanced over at me, raising a brow. “Too good to walk with me?”

“I didn’t say that,” I protested, knowing he was only teasing me.

The start of a smile slipped around the edges of his lips at my response. “I wanted time to talk with you,” he admitted. “Which is why I asked your master to have you ready so early.” I thought so. School didn’t even start for a few hours. The walk to the gates would only be fifteen minutes and that’s if I took my time.

“Well, talk then,” I stated bluntly, glancing back as two riders passed us.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“Impatient?”

“I don’t like being kept in the dark,” I answered, looking up at him and frowning.

“I don’t plan on leaving you in the dark, Rueln,” he said, though nothing he had done so far suggested it.

“Then what do you want from me?” I demanded, then looked around as if someone would overhear us.

“It’s not safe to talk just now,” Lord Balec said. “Wait until we stop at a wonderful little cafe I found. I’ll order some tea and secure a room so we may talk in private.”

“Do all nobles treat kids like this?” I sure didn’t think I was special just because I was reincarnated. It didn’t change my actual age at all and to anyone else, I wasn’t an adult. Though even Master Esra has been treating me differently since that first day I met Lord Balec.

“Quite the opposite,” Lord Balec told me, unabashed. “You would be like any other child if you had another sponsor.”

“Then what’s the deal?”

“Do you want to be treated like a child?” He asked, raising a brow questioningly.

“No.”

“Then why do you ask?”

“Because I want to understand. Master Esra is doing the same thing lately, and it’s weird.”

“Ah, I see. Well, to put it simply, perhaps your master and I saw the same thing.”

“What’s that?” I looked down, frowning at my feet as we walked, trying to hide the uncertainty I knew was on my face.

He acted like he was going to answer, then just smiled and said, “Maybe you’ll figure it out.” What a load of crap.

We stopped at a cafe called Cup and Plate. With my lessons in recall, reading was growing progressively easier over the days and I was proud to say I read the sign above the door. It was a white building with a cozy feel to it, with tables and chairs under a balcony outside with dozens of tea options inside. There were cakes and other desserts on a display to have with the tea as well, and from the looks of the place, it was pretty popular.

A waiter greeted us and offered us a table, but one look at Lord Balec and he instead offered us a private area upstairs. Lord Balec gave him our order, paying for privacy as well, and then started up the stairs with me at his heels. It wasn’t until our drinks were served and they sat a cake between us that Lord Balec spoke.

“You said before that you dislike being in the dark,” he said, cutting a piece of cake for himself, then another for me. I stared at the thing, never having seen something that looked so delicious. My mouth was already watering. “I can respect that. I dislike it as well, which is why I am going to explain what is about to happen.”

Well, that didn’t sound ominous at all. What are you trying to do? Bribe me with a piece of heaven? Well, it won’t work, I decided while I shoved the first bite into my mouth and nearly melted right there in the seat. Not. At. All. I took another bite.

“I have been getting regular reports from the academy since I registered you under my sponsorship. They have told me you are doing well, so well in fact that a few of your classes pose no challenge for you.”

Mouth full of cake, I had to take a moment to wash it all down with the steaming milk he had ordered for me before I could speak. “What do you mean?”

“Your lessons in recall,” he explained, sipping regally at his own tea. “You’re quite advanced in accessing what you wish from your past life’s memory. I supposed I should have guessed as much when I sensed you use your soulforce.”

I nearly dropped my glass, spilling some of the milk onto the table. “What?” I exclaimed.

Lord Balec smirked. “I have my magic, Rueln, though it is extremely limited compared to most. I can sense when others are using their soulforce to access their memories. It is rather useful but again, limiting.”

“I’ve never heard of anyone who could do that before,” I admitted.

“I am the only one that I know of, but since the ability is in the magical registry, I am not the first.”

“Does it have a name?”

“A name?” Lord Balec asked, looking at me curiously.

“Yeah, in the magic registry,” I confirmed.

“I believe they wrote it as ‘Hue’. It is a sensory ability type.”

“Can you do any other magic?”

“No.” He answered simply, then took another drink. I grumbled into my cup, curious for more, but the subject was apparently closed. “Returning to the subject at hand, the director wishes to speak with us about accelerating your education. Not in every subject, but those you’re gifted in. It will simply mean that you aren’t wasting your time in the academy.”

“But I feel like there is more to it than that,” I said dryly, earning a smirk from Lord Balec when I hit the nail on the head.

“You are quite right, Rueln. I want you to accept the advanced placement. It will give us the opportunity I’ve been waiting for.”

“What exactly have you been waiting for?” I demanded. “What do you want me to do?”

“I want you to be friendly toward Bria Gracy,” Lord Balec said.

So my suspicions about what he wanted me for were right. “Why her? There’s no reason she would want anything to do with me. I’ve seen her around, but she has her own circle of friends.”

“Your job is to let it slip in class who you are the reincarnation of. I believe that alone will pique her interest enough to approach you. She needs connections, and being the child I sponsor, you will have what she wants. Besides, who wouldn’t want to reunite the famous Vhal Aairith with her mother?”

“Ew. Don’t call it that,” I said, wrinkling my nose.

Lord Balec laughed. “It is how society will see it, Rueln. I’m sure the news pamphlets will delight in relaying the story to every aristocratic house in the capital if they were to catch on.”

I was suddenly unsure about that. “They won’t, will they?” I asked. “I don’t want to be talked about or written about.”

“Our intention here isn’t to make you the subject of gossip,” Lord Balec assured me. “It is simply to get to know Bria Gracy.”

“Why are you so interested in her, anyway? Isn’t she supposed to be the national treasure of walking history? I don’t know of anyone who has a bad thing to say about her.” Well, excluding Finnley and me, since we both know she’s a dirty liar.

“I have my reasons,” Lord Balec said evasively.

“You’re not going to hurt her, are you?” I couldn’t keep the suspicion out of my expression.

“No. Not at all. That is not my intention,” he said quickly, surprise flickering over his eyes. “She’s a child, just as you are. I have no interest in harming her.”

Well, you acted like I wasn’t a child earlier. Are you taking that back? “Then what is your plan?” I asked again.

Lord Balec took a second slice for himself, this one smaller than the first. “I believe there might be someone pulling her strings,” he said at last. “I simply wish to know who it is.”

I didn’t know what it was about Lord Balec, but I didn’t feel like he was lying to me about any of it. Vhal had enough political experience that I understood the need to know who was really directing certain events and people. Usually, it meant that they were seeking something or wanting to control events in their favor. It could easily be they were doing what was best, but it could also mean the downfall of a country, depending on what it was. There had to be more than that, though he was omitting.

“Wouldn’t it be the noble who is sponsoring her?” I asked. It would be the most obvious choice.

“That, Rueln, is what I wish to confirm.”