Chapter 86: Back to the Academy (Part 1)
[If you consider this as our bargaining chip, then it is what it is…]
It had been ages since we left the Royal Palace, but Viki’s words have been echoing in my mind ever since, her slightly surprised expression, followed by a dazed look and then a resolute gaze that almost screamed, “I’m too cool for this!” It wouldn’t leave me alone.
The whole thing was a mixed bag of feelings, muddled and unclear, like a fish bone painfully lodged in my throat, uncomfortable and prickly.
[I’m preparing for that unfortunate day, and this might help me.]
That was the answer I finally gave her after much deliberation.
After hearing it, Viki didn’t hesitate for long and immediately wrote a letter for me to take to the academy, instructing me to find the current principal, Mr. Melville, to share my thoughts initially.
After that, we hardly exchanged more than a few words before Little Reikmon rushed in looking all frantic, accompanied by a gaggle of people. Seeing her busy, I stood up to leave.
Viki nodded and didn’t try to keep me there.
It seemed she wasn’t as attentive to my feelings as before.
I guess that was the source of that complex feeling stirring in my heart.
But…~
When I gave her the answer she wanted to hear in the end, Viki squinted at me, her sharp eyes boring into me as if she could see right through my mind—at that moment, I nearly felt like she had figured out my intentions.
But she didn’t…
Viki was probably just checking if I was lying.
She was really good at picking up on people’s true feelings through accidental expressions or subtle movements. I knew this, so I had no intention of deceiving her, even though I might have actually pulled it off this time.
I genuinely needed “the ancient divine words” to deal with “the Mother Deity.”
But I didn’t tell her I planned to try swallowing them whole.
That wasn’t really a lie to her.
So, she couldn’t see through it…
…………
Royal Academy, Training Grounds.
In the vast training field, only a handful of students dotted the area, working in groups of three to five, practicing the Power of Order, flinging small flames from their hands to hit targets ten meters away, or huddling together to spar and exchange sword techniques with a “clang clang” of metal.
Sara and Daisy were strolling at the edge of the grounds, meandering around the iron fence.
Both girls looked a bit glum, with the delicate Daisy walking ahead, her head down and arms crossed, projecting a vibe that screamed “I have deep, dark thoughts.”
Trailing just a step behind her, Sara glanced at Daisy’s back, a few times opening her mouth to say something but stopping short, her doll-like face etched with worry and concern.
They were dressed in the academy uniforms, seemingly wandering aimlessly. After a while, a sudden “boom” resonated from not far away, startling the two girls.
Sara immediately shot a fierce glare towards the source of the sound and saw clouds of smoke billowing up from the target range, where the flames had twisted a metallic target out of shape. Some people were scrambling to extinguish the fire, and nearby boys noticed Sara glaring at them, chuckling and waving back.
One of them called out, “Sorry, sorry! Got a bit too carried away! Didn’t see the great lady Sara passing by, so sorry~”
“Very respectful…”
“Are you guys alright—?!”
Others chimed in, their tone laced with mockery, and not a hint of genuine apology.
“Peter!”
Sara glared and jumped up, yelling back, “Is that how you hit a target? Why not blow up the teaching building next door too, while you’re at it? Was that deliberate?! Did the last thrashing not teach you enough? Is your skin itching again, you idiot?!”
“Ha ha—”
The boy being scolded just grinned awkwardly, unfazed.
Daisy, not wanting to get tangled up with them, tugged at Sara’s sleeve, trying to pull her away. But with Sara’s mood dampened, she decided not to hold it against the boys any longer. Just as she was preparing to leave, that boy came over and tossed her a bag wrapped in brown paper.
“Here, spicy almonds from Felo Street. Took me half an afternoon of waiting in line, just for you, great lady!”
“Oh ho.”
Sara reached out, sniffed it, shot the boy a glance, accepted it, and nodded in satisfaction, “Now we’re talking!”
“When are you guys going home?” The boy named Peter asked again, “Great lady, you live in the Royal City, right? What about Daisy? A lot of us from this year have already left, and you’re still hanging around the training grounds. Not planning to go back this year, are you?”
“Well, we’ll meet you guys at the tower sometime soon and hang out!”
He invited enthusiastically, but Sara didn’t seem too interested in engaging with him. She turned and began to walk away with Daisy, waving her head back at them, “We’ll talk later, later! Daisy is not in the best mood right now, so I’m sticking with her. You guys keep your distance, okay? Be quiet and don’t irritate us.”
Her attitude seemed cold, but anyone familiar with her would know if she really wanted nothing to do with the boys, she wouldn’t have said a single word more. If she didn’t want to go, she’d make it clear in no uncertain terms; ambiguity wasn’t her style.
That boy clearly understood Sara, shrugging with a smile, “I’ll catch you later then!”
And he stopped bothering the two girls.
If the girl named Peilo had been there, she might have thought that boy named Peter looked familiar, or maybe she wouldn’t recognize him at all—he was one of the boys who had gotten his leg broken outside of school because of her. The two boys had a spat with the girls of 1504 during the opening ceremony.
Sometimes, in the blink of an eye, certain things fade into the past.
“Daisy…”
The two girls walked a bit further, and Sara finally couldn’t hold it in and tried to comfort Daisy, “Worrying like this doesn’t help at all…”
“Don’t think too much about it. If worse comes to worst, just wait for your father to come for you. If he can really get through these academy gates, you can just hide quietly. This place is huge; he won’t find you right away. Leave the rest to me.”
“……”
Daisy remained silent, head down and trudging forward.
“Or there’s another plan.”
Sara frowned and bit her nails while brainstorming, wondering when she had picked up this bad habit from Peilo, “What if we talk to Peter and his crew? You know, his father is a general in Ethanbel, one of Her Majesty’s confidants. If we mention it to him, he can probably hide you in the palace. Your father wouldn’t dare just barge in and grab you.”
“……”
Still no response from Daisy.
“Why not just come along to the Knights Order for an internship!!”
Seeing her like this, Sara was running out of ideas, so she started throwing out random suggestions, “Your herbology skills are in high demand these days! You could get special training as a nurse! We can go to my dad at the Fifth Knights Order, you know, there are plenty of ways to help your father, you…”
“Don’t be so scared about it…”
“Stop thinking too much; let’s go grab some food?”
“…I’m not scared.”
All of a sudden, Daisy finally spoke up, her voice a bit hoarse.
Her eyes red, she turned back to look at her worried friend, realizing Sara truly cared, but she really didn’t understand anything. She wasn’t afraid of meeting her father; she was terrified of the consequences if she really tried to escape this marriage—consequences that neither she nor her family could bear.
Just days ago, Daisy had met Sophia.
Gathering her courage, she shared her situation with Sophia in hopes of finding help.
What she didn’t want to hear was the advice to listen to her father and go back home with him.
Sophia didn’t explain much, but she was serious when she said it.
Daisy felt a bit hopeless.
“Sara, I’ve made up my mind…”
She crossed her arms, lifted her head, and looked at Sara’s anxious, doll-like face, her expression sorrowful.
Stomp, stomp, stomp—
Suddenly, before Daisy could finish her sentence, they heard hoofbeats resonating from the distant stone path outside the training field, mixed with the rumbling of a war chariot, approaching swiftly with a grand commotion.
