Knight (20 page)

Gunfire erupted that made Valeriana literally jump. The twins hastily moved to the side to dodge the bullets fired at them. “Hey! What's the big idea?”

“Aneeka!” Charles scolded. “How many times do I have to tell you do not shoot indoors? Goodness.” He brought out a small notebook and started writing down something. “Who knows when I can get that hole fixed!”

Valeriana directed her gaze to the sound and spotted a girl blowing off the smoke from a pistol. “I apologize. It just happened. My hand just pulled the trigger since these two really annoyed me.”

“What kind of reason is that?” Tamara asked in horror. “You can’t just go shooting down things! Or people!”

What Valeriana noticed about her first was her eyes. They were a beautiful and soft shade of purplish blue that almost seemed like the color of lavender. They were certainly one-of-a-kind. Her hair fell in waves around her shoulder. Normally, she would see it as brown—but under the light, there were hints of red.

“Aneeka and Elfre. Peas of the same pod.” Said Rowe with a smile. “Both of them do not have much patience. Aneeka is our tenth-ranker, and, as you can see, she specializes in guns. Unfortunately, she has a bad habit of shooting down things she doesn’t like.”

“And to end all this, I'm Keelan von Keiffer de la Kaiven, eleventh-ranker.” A guy raised his hands cheerfully before he went up at Valeriana and leaned close, scrutinizing her face. “Can you cook?”

His forest-green eyes twinkled excitedly before combed back the strawberry-blond hair that fell on his face. Valeriana would rather call him cute than handsome. This boy before her possessed some kind of childish innocence that he failed to grow out of.

“I . . . basically, I can . . . I guess.”

“Great! My favorites are grilled sirloin steak dipped in gravy with a side-dish of broccoli—” He was cut off when a loud gunshot echoed in the room. Valeriana covered her ears as something quickly wheezed past the side of the eleventh-ranker's head.

“Whoa!” Tamara exclaimed.

Heart pounding, she looked at the wall where the shot was fired and saw a hole on it. She gulped while Keelan pouted childishly and glanced at Aneeka's direction with tear-filled eyes. “W-what was that for?” He sniffed.

“Stop it. Hand that over.” Elfre confiscated the pistol she was holding.

Aneeka glared impatiently at the poor boy and seethed at Elfre after having her gun seized.

“Everyone!” Charles chided, making everybody shut their mouth. “This is not how the Celestial Circle is supposed to act! Such childish actions make you look undignified!”

“Let them do what they want.” Corvan said dismissively.

“Surely you don't mean that, Lord Corvan.” Charles annoyingly pushed his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose. “How do you expect for these fools to act? Like they were raised from the streets, taught no proper manners?”

Tamara grimaced at that statement, but made no move to stop him as he continued speaking. Instead, landed tiredly on an open seat and examined her nails.

“How are they supposed to be good examples to the other students?”

Valeriana stared at everyone with wide, curious eyes and mouth slacked open. Things were getting weirder by the minute. The poor girl was beginning to doubt if the circle truly lived up to their name. Charles was currently like a scolding mother lecturing her poorly disciplined children while Corvan acted like an uncaring father. Tamara was the boisterous aunt spoiling her nieces and nephews while everyone acted like playful children, each with distinct personalities.

“Anyway,” Charles breathed deeply. “You've met Brindon, right?”

“Yes, I have.”

“Then that's about all.” Corvan said. “Let's settle this.”

“Settle what?”

“Well, we do have obligations here. Corvan's assigned for Command while Rowe is in Vice Command. Charles's the Advisor, I'm our Tactician and Organizer, Raziel's the Public Relations Officer, Elfre and the others are members at our disposal that do most of the work.” Tamara said.

“Am I a member, too?”

“No, not quite. As the fifth-ranker, you're supposed to be the one acting like the officer.” She explained. “Not to worry, you only have to act like that during special occasions.”

“What occasions?”

Her question went unheard.

“I don't think she deserves that position.” Elfre stated. “She's still under-qualified for that kind of work.”

“I won't be able to deny that.” Valeriana admitted.

A sinister smirk curved on Elfre's face. “Shall we fix that then?”

Valeriana didn't like the way that girl looked at her one bit. “I don't think I like what you're thinking.”

“What's on your mind, Elfre?” Corvan asked, folding his arms.

“That girl can do all the chores around for the mean time.”

“What in the—”

“That is reasonable. She lacks experience.”

“Why would I ever agree with that?” Valeriana scowled. “I’m not some maid!”

“Now, see here, Valeriana.” Corvan rose from his seat and stood in front of Valeriana dauntingly. He towered over her with a glare, which made the poor girl feel awfully small. “Do you even know a single thing about Valemnia's History?”

She cowered. “Shut up! I know about King Friederly something signing vienne, che!”

“Do you know alchemy, then?”

“I know the word.”

“Have you stayed in Valemnia for more than a week?”

“Um . . .”

“Do you see the point where I'm getting at?”

“Ugh.”

“How useful do you think you will be if I make you the General Officer?” He questioned.

She failed to answer.

“That's just it.”

Valeriana glared at Corvan indignantly. “Demon. Devil.”

Corvan's brow made a visible twitch as he shot a glare to her direction. She must've hit a nerve. “The first thing I'm going to make you do is take back what you just said.”

“No!” Valeriana shouted bravely.

“Take it back.”

“No. Way.”

Corvan began to shake with rage. Valeriana surely knew how to be stubborn. No matter how frightened she started to feel, she did not waver.

“That's it. Do you really want me to be a devil that much?” Corvan's shoulder shook in anger as his fists clenched. Smoke started to simmer from his closed palms and everyone within the whole room backed away in obvious precaution. Valeriana looked between all of them, confused.

When she heard a crackling sound and smelled something burning, she glanced at Corvan's hands which appeared to have caught fire. She began panicking.

“Oh my god!”

Unexpectedly, she snatched the glass of water Keelan was drinking and splashed it on Corvan. Silence settled dauntingly and Valeriana stared awkwardly at Corvan, whose long hair fell on his face as droplets of water trickled from its strands. The fire on his hands was put out and smoke curled in the air with a sizzling sound.

“Now you've done it!” Corvan yelled. “Fire is ineffective when wet!”

“What kind of idiot uses fire anyway?!” Valeriana bit back. “Don't you know how dangerous that is?”

“Stop the nonsense! This is Valemnia. Do you even know how long it takes to dry this hair?”

“Then just how stupid are you to grow it that long anyway? You're a dude.” Valeriana crossed her arms over her chest and scowled at Corvan. “Whatever. I'm leaving.” Valeriana began to run out towards the door when Elfre blocked her path and held out a hand to push her back.

Corvan sauntered towards Valeriana with a scowl. “Not quite. You can't leave until I say so.” Droplets of water trickled down the sides of his face. His hands had locked around the slim wrists of Valeriana, and he had immobilized her in place with a piercing glare.

The girl broke away and started struggling. “I am not going to stay here! I'm leaving!”

“If you are planning on returning to that room, know that you're now a member of the Celestial Circle. You’re relocated to a room in this building.”

“What?!”

“So, it seems you won't be going anywhere.”

It was supposed to be good news. If Valeriana would've been told about it earlier, she would've jumped up and down knowing she would be able to leave that dump. However, she started to dread that fact already. The small room she was given the first time started to seem like a heavenly sanctuary.

“I haven't even moved my things!” She stammered, trying to find a reasonable cause to leave.

“You came here with nothing but the clothes on your back.” He pointed out bluntly.

Valeriana wanted to cry. “Well, damn you to hell!”

“Are you already forgetting?” Corvan grinned menacingly at Valeriana. “You can't damn what cannot be damned. Aren't I the devil?
”

“Alright.” Charles shoved a long list of chores in Valeriana's hands. “You need to dust all the surfaces, clean the storage room and place everything in proper order. After that, put away the old carpet in the hallway and sweep away all the dirt under it, then roll the new carpet which you can find in the storage room. Don’t forget to wipe all the portraits clean and don't leave a spot of dirt.”

The poor girl almost fainted as she listened to Charles enumerate all the tasks being expected of her to accomplish. She wearily stared at the long list of chores he wrote down for her and sobbed inwardly.

“You expect me to do all of this?”

“We expect nothing less.” Charles answered. “Though that list goes on, you'll be happy to hear that you aren't required to finish all of that today. Those are the main tasks you need to finish this week. If you don't, Corvan and I agreed we'll kick you out.”

“Ha . . .” She laughed. “I'll be happy to go back to my first room.”

“Unfortunately, that place is back to being a dump.”

When he broke the news, it took all of the girl's willpower not to scream. “No freaking way! I cleaned that up for hours!”

Valeriana felt blood rushing to her brain. She was so pissed off getting told to do this and to do that. The way they acted was getting on her nerves.

“They're probably used to have someone serving them.” She rolled her eyes.

She irritably washed the dishes in the sink. It was such a shame that such a great building was wasted on such people. They had a lobby, kitchen, den, and all sorts of rooms that satisfy their own hobbies—and they had it all to themselves.

Still, she didn't get the reason why she had to do everything.

“Damn. My. Life.” She grumbled indignantly.

When she was dismissed, she was already worn out. Tamara showed her the way to her new room and patted her shoulder.

“Enjoy what you're about to see.” Tamara grinned. “You deserve it.”

As she was about to leave, she seemed to have remembered something and turned back to tell her. “By the way, the whole floor is yours.”

“The whole
what
?!”

She then left her standing in front of the door to a room in the floor that was supposed to be hers.

Sighing, Valeriana clamped a heavy hand around the knob of the door and turned it. Carefully pushing it open, she stepped inside with her eyes on the ground. She lifted her gaze and felt her jaw drop at the sight. She quietly closed the door behind her before letting her eyes feast on the view.

“This may not be a bad idea after all.” She muttered, dazed.

Valeriana removed her boots and placed them in the shoe-rack by the door. The floor was carpeted so she figured she needn't wear any shoes inside. The floor was fluffy and was a bit ticklish on the soles of her feet, which made her giggle. The first thing that caught her eyes was the bed with four posts. Squealing like a little girl, she ran towards it and jumped, doing the
superman
pose in the process.

“Oh yeah!” She cried before landing on the soft mattress. She buried her face on the comfy sheets and inhaled the sweet scent it emanated.

She lifted herself and used her elbows as support, brushing the strands of hair that wandered on her face. Looking around the room, she spotted a neat fireplace on the other side. There was one armchair seated just a little away from it. It looked like a decent place to read books on or to relax.

Valeriana stood with a sigh and allowed her eyes to further scan the room. End tables were placed on either side of the bed. They were decorated with fresh flowers and some antique lamp as well.

“This room is simply amazing.” She gasped.

She had her own shelf of books and an armoire, which held real weapons. She found a door that led to a balcony outside her room. There was not a word to describe it better than
splendid
.

She stood there sightseeing for a while until she felt the weariness catching up. She felt tired after a long day. Her lids felt heavy, yet all of her exhaustion was drained away when she saw a familiar object standing a few steps away from the bed. She rubbed her eyes.

“Is that my luggage? That's my luggage, right?”

Standing up, she reached out and brushed the tip of her fingers against the zipper then flinched back. When she realized she was being delusional, she smacked her head in frustration before excitedly grabbing the bag and throwing it on her bed.

When she opened it, the first things she saw were her clothes and her personal things. She withheld the scream that was on the tip of her tongue and started taking them all out. As she did, an envelope fell out and landed on the floor.

Valeriana, noticing the letter, placed her clothes on top of the bed and bent down. She clipped the letter between her fingers and eyed the words scribbled on the surface of the envelope. It was her mother's handwriting, addressed to her.

She felt an overwhelming sensation bubble from her chest. The strange constraints tightened around her heart and her eyes felt teary.

She shakily tore the top of the envelope and fished out the letter folded inside. As she scanned the words, a sob ripped through her chest and a fountain of tears began streaming from her eyes.

'To my dearest little baby girl,

So you found a very nice academy where you can study in. Honestly, Val, you shouldn't go along with people you hardly know! I don't care if their offer sounds legit! Who knows if they're actually fakes? I was worried sick when you didn't come home. I thought you were going to find a part time job. I feel so betrayed, Valery.’

Valeriana could imagine her mother sighing to herself as she wrote the last letters of that paragraph. She was an overdramatic woman when she was composing letters. She wouldn't blame her mother, though.

'In any case, you don't have to be so hard on yourself. I'm not asking you to shoulder all the burdens. Share some with your brother and me. We're all in this together, right? You take after your father so much it's so scary—acting like the strong one all the time. You don't have to feel responsible for every single mistake you do. You’re overdoing it. Worrying for those small things will only make the problem bigger. Leave me, your mother, to handle it.

I always tell you this, Valeriana. I guess that with you having such a thick, stubborn head, it's impossible to say it once. I already said over a million times, yet you can't shove it into that skull of yours. There's no helping it, though.

I know that when we lost your father, the aftershock of knowing that he's gone affected you greater than me. I love you so much, Valeriana. Always remember that. I know I must’ve not been the best mom, but, still.

Finally, before I end this letter. DO NOT FORGET THAT I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR LEAVING HOME WITHOUT TELLING ME! YOU READING ME, YOUNG LADY?! YOU AREN'T EVEN OF LEGAL AGE TO DECIDE FOR YOURSELF!'

“Damn, she's angry.” Valeriana muttered to herself.

'I asked a special favor from that Aeron LaVallene guy and that headmaster of your school.'

“I wouldn't want to ask how she did that.” She shivered.

'I'm so happy they agreed to let me send you your things. Otherwise, I would've thrown a fit. Did you know how hard it is to get in touch with them? It's almost like you've gone into another world or something.'

“You've hit bulls eye, mom.” Valeriana did not know if she was going to smile or sigh. “You're seriously unexpected. You should've gotten me out of here instead of encouraging me to stay.”

'I've put all the things you need. I also threw in your laptop in there. If you have internet, try to send me a message.

And as much as I want to say this personally, I am guessing that the chances I was given had already slipped by, so I'm giving this to you now. Under those pile of clothes, there is a box. Before I gave it to you, your father owned it. He specifically told me in his will that I should give it to you when you become eighteen. Since I don't know if I'll get to see you (since your school is apparently strict and does not allow the students' parents to visit them unless they are invited or something) I'm going to give it to you now. Seriously, I never even knew your father possessed a girly stuff like that. I'm guessing it belonged to his mother.

I guess that's all. Be safe, baby girl. Make sure to send a letter back to me if you can.

Your mother,

Lily.'

Curious about the box, Valeriana rummaged through her bag and sniffed. Her nose became stuffy from crying, and though she took half of the time pausing to wipe her nose, this did not stop her from gingerly taking out all of the clothes from her bag.

After losing herself to her deep thoughts, Valeriana's knuckles brushed against a cold metal. She looked down slowly and ran her fingertips over the surface of an antique-looking box with engravings of roses.

Taking it into her hands, Valeriana felt a warm feeling emanating from it. It was somehow like it was more valuable than it looked. All she knew right now was that it probably held a mysteriously important object, knowing that her father considered giving it to her on her eighteenth birthday.

But then again, her father had that quirkiness of his.

She scrutinized every side of the box and found no key or lock. When she tried opening it, she couldn't either.

“How the heck am I going to open this, then?”

She didn't want to give up so soon, but weariness started to take a toll on her and she sighed. She ultimately decided to continue this tomorrow and shoved all of her carefully folded clothes inside the dresser of her room. She placed the box on top of her dresser in front of the mirror and ran her fingertips over the surface, feeling utterly nostalgic.