Knight (35 page)

“Here,” he placed a hand on his chest. “My heart.”

“What are you—that's stupid.” She rolled her eyes. “Now let me go and get up. You're embarrassing yourself.”

“Listen,” he said. “You know, after you defeated me I grew surer about one thing. I want to know more about you.” He grinned.

If what he was saying was true, Valeriana had one comment for him. “What are you a masochist? Do you like being beaten up?”

He raised a brow at her question.

“Pedophile?”

“We're just the same age!” He exclaimed, horrified. “Unless you're seventeen?”

“I am seventeen!”
But thirty-four in Valemnian years.

The look of horror wasn't erased. “Nevertheless, age doesn't matter.” He said, recovering.

Ew.

“Stop kidding around!” She harshly ripped herself away from his grip and stomped towards her seat. “Besides, didn't you insult me so many times? What's this all of the sudden?”

“I just told you—”

“Shut up, you goddamn freak! Don't talk to me!” She screamed at him.

She huffed and plopped down on her chair, brows knitted together in frustration. She crossed her arms and legs and glared at Chavi, who was giggling like some lovesick teenager the whole time. She felt disgusted seeing her friend's reaction, but tried to dismiss it—as much as how she tried to dismiss the nagging questions of the twins behind her.

Fortunately, Lady Seraphina came to class and everyone fell quiet to focus on the lecture being given by the lady knight. Still, she couldn't shake off the feeling of Zion's eyes on her. The whole time, his attention was on her and not to the lesson being taught—until Seraphina scolded him.

She grunted. After all those insults, what the hell happened to him?

Chapter Thirty-Two ♣ Tradition

W
hen classes ended, Valeriana dropped by the infirmary for her healing session with Olivia. After that, her hands felt a load better and she thanked the woman a thousand times before running off to head back to the dormitories. On her way out, she saw Corvan leaning against the wall next to the door.

“What are you doing here?” She asked.

He rolled his eyes. “It's for the inauguration.”

“What inauguration?”

“Don't ask questions. Just come with me.”

He left her there, looking confused. Valeriana followed his retreating form and decided to keep quiet and do what he told her to. She couldn't help but feel curious. Still, they trod a path Valeriana remembered never taking and was more than confused when they encountered Headmaster Kylon and Lord Aeron. They were standing in front of wall with a hanging portrait of a knight holding a mystical sword—it was a dead end.

“Lord Aeron? Headmaster? What's going on?” She inquired, brows furrowing in confusion. “Did I do something wrong?”

They were staring at the picture on the wall depicting the image of a man holding a seemingly unearthly weapon. Valeriana couldn't help but feel captivated by the photo and instinctively leaned closer to examine it. The sword seemed heavenly. The surrounding glow around it was eerie and mysterious, yet Valeriana knew it was a significant characteristic to portray the power it held. The man wielding the weapon did not shine any less. The long, golden flowing locks that delicately clouded around his face due to the blowing wind and his matching golden eyes added an air of elegance and nobility around him. The regal aura would make anyone grovel at his feet.

“Do you know this man, Valeriana?” Headmaster Kylon asked.

“I don't know . . .” She trailed off. “But my guess is . . . is this King Friedel?”

“That's right.” He nodded. “The legendary man who founded the first kingdom of Valemnia which his descendants still continue to rule. The very man who put the demon lord to sleep.”

“And that weapon?”

“Ah, so you noticed it.” He said. “That's Ouranos, Heaven's Sword, the weapon given to the king by the gods to help defeat the demon lord. It contains tremendous holy power that can only be wielded only with those who has the blood of the king.”

“Where is it now?”

Lord Aeron grinned. “It's in front of you.”

“Huh?” She looked at the man disbelievingly. “What? It's just a picture.”

Looking back up at the portrait, she gave it a hard stare before looking back at the Court Leader, who smiled knowingly at her. She looked at it again and squinted until she saw a button as small as a dot on the sword's decorative guard. Curiously looking at the three men before her, they nodded at her encouragingly—except for Corvan who remained still.

She reached towards the portrait and pressed the small button before pulling back her arm slowly. Nothing happened for the first few moments until the stone wall suddenly rumbled and moved, revealing a pathway that led to a very dark basement.

Valeriana cringed and jumped back. “I should've known. Where a castle is, there are always secret passages.” She gulped. “What's down there?”

“Lord Corvan?” The headmaster smirked as he looked at Corvan, who nodded.

Despite looking annoyed, the first-ranker lifted his hand. In his palms flared a bright, orange flame which illuminated the dark path ahead of them. Valeriana enviously glared at the fire in Corvan's hands and pouted childishly, huffing.

“So no need for torches, huh? Damn. Why can't I have one of those?” She asked, sulking.

She looked back down at the dark pathway and curiously began to descend down the stairs made of aged stone slabs. The walls were narrow and were made up of rough-surfaced stone bricks one could usually see in stereotypical medieval dungeons. In this case though, she somehow was sure they weren't going to any dungeons. This was more like some sort of secret door leading to some room that contained piles and piles of blinding treasures.

“Are we going somewhere with lots and lots of shiny treasures? There are no dragons, are there?” She asked.

“Pfft.” Corvan rolled his eyes. “Where did you get that idea?”

“I was just thinking, you know. Don't dragons typically like shiny treasures?”

“Think what you like.” The first-ranker replied.

“We'll see when we get down, Valeriana.” Lord Aeron said.

They all slowly made their way down the stairs, Corvan's fire serving as their light along the way. The stone wall closed behind them, caging them in darkness. Valeriana sort of felt excited. This was like one of those typical historical movies she watched on TV—when castles have secret passages. It was cliché but ridiculously amusing. Now that she was treading a path kings and queens probably took long before, she was feeling thrilled to see where they were exactly headed.

Once the seemingly endless stairs ended, Valeriana felt her feet landing on hard ground. She walked ahead of everyone until she hit something solid. A small sound escaped her mouth as her head collided against a hard object. Frowning, she stepped back, rubbing the part where she was hurt. She glared at the object in front of her unknowingly.

Corvan's fire illuminated the area and Valeriana screamed.

She dashed back towards the three men and hid behind someone's back. The thing she bumped against was the fang of a dragon's open mouth. The creature's head was even bigger than she was. Its eyes were fierce and its face was decorated with hard scales.

“What are you screaming about?” A voice grumbled above her. “It's only a rock carving.”

She realized she had hidden herself behind Corvan and immediately pulled away, brows knitting in frustration. She crossed her arms over her chest. “I didn't know. I thought it was a real dragon.” She said.

Lord Aeron and Headmaster Kylon chuckled at her reaction. “It's a sculpture depicting the holy dragon that guards the tomb.”

“A tomb?” She looked incredulously at the two. “What tomb? Like Cleopatra's tomb?”

“I suppose you're right.” Headmaster Kylon nodded.

“Whose tomb is this then?” She asked.

“Who else's?”

“Wait.” She held a hand up to stop them from answering question. She wanted to figure it out herself. “The painting outside. Is this tomb . . . ?” She gulped. “The king's tomb?”

Lord Aeron smiled at her.

“Oh my god! Seriously?” She gasped.

“Let's go this way.” Headmaster Kylon steered her towards their right.

They walked through a seemingly long hallway and ended up facing two, large, towering doors. It didn't look like a typical door. Instead of knobs, in place was the similar sculpture of the dragon she saw before. It was a dull grey color and the intricate carvings on it made it look somewhat intimidating. Valeriana went forward and ran her fingertips over the door. She recognized the strange words written in a very odd language she never saw before, but somehow, she had a feeling she knew what it said.

The rock was cold and smooth. She tried pushing it open to no avail—since she hurt her hand in the process, apparently forgetting she was injured. It was as heavy as it looked. She glanced back and saw the headmaster holding out a key for her to take. It was no plain key. It was gold and had some semi-precious gems embedded in it.

Hesitantly looking up at the Headmaster, she stared at him questioningly before nodding down towards her bandaged hands.

“Ah, I forgot. Allow me.” He said and walked towards the doors. She watched him insert the object in a keyhole on the middle of the second door and turn it. Valeriana then heard a loud click and the markings it bore glowed momentarily before parting and opening a path.

Valeriana's mouth fell open.

The king's burial chamber was circular. In the middle of the room was a coffin with an elegant sculpture of a very handsome man on top. Valeriana appreciated the art and the smallest details the statue offered. It seemed to be a work of masterpiece solely created to be dedicated to this place. Valeriana looked at it admiringly, thinking that this man—who probably was the king—looked undoubtedly attractive with his fine features.

She looked around and saw twelve different statues occupying the areas by the wall. There was at least one statue in each direction, each making their designated poses. They seemed like guardian, wing-less angels looking after the king's tomb. Valeriana also noticed that there was one common thing about them—the key-shaped holes carved on their chests.

“This is awesome!” She said and jumped excitedly on the balls of her toes.

“In the middle of this room lays the king.” Lord Aeron's said, his voice making noticeable echoes within the room. “The carving on that coffin signifies it's his resting place.” He continued.

“Then what are those other statues about?” She asked.

“Do you know where the position of the Celestial Circle came from, Valeriana?” Headmaster Kylon queried.

Valeriana took a three hundred sixty degree turn before looking at the headmaster. Her long hair swished around her in slow, sweeping motions. “Not really. I haven't read much about the history of the academy, sorry.”

“The Celestial Circle or Twelve came from the position of these honorable knights around you, Valeriana.” Headmaster Kylon said as he pointed on each of the sculptures. “The king could not have fought alone, you see. One hero cannot take all of his enemies. He needed allies—comrades to aid him in battle.”

“Whoa. So these are the original Celestial Twelve? Awesome.” She gushed before going over to the nearest statue and scrutinizing it closely.

“They were called the
Celestial Knights
, Valeriana.” Headmaster chuckled. “With the king himself leading them—but that was before he became king, of course.”

“Cool.” She said and poked the statue she was currently examining.

“That is Abelard Keiffer.”

She went still and scratched her head. “Keiffer? I heard that name somewhere before. I think that's a part of Keelan's name.”

“That's correct. After the Great War, the Celestial Knights were rewarded with aristocracy. In order to distinguish them from the rest, they were given their current names. For example, Abelard Keiffer became Abelard von Keiffer de la Kaiven.”

“I don't get it, where did the Kaiven come from?” She asked.

“Kaiven of the earth.” He answered. “Abelard was the representative of Denovega. He wielded the element of earth.”

“I see.” She rubbed her chin. “So are you telling me that this is the great-great-great-great thousand times something grandfather of Keelan?”

“That's correct.”

“Figures.” She squinted, looking the statue eye-to-eye. “They have the same smile and that happy-go-lucky expression.”

“Are you done sightseeing?” Corvan asked, irritated.

“Oh! I gotta see this! Which one is Corvan's ancestor?” She jumped between statue to statue, inspecting each and everything. She stopped in front of a man with a solemn expression on his face, his eyes staring at the ground. “Neh. Probably not this one. It looks more like Brindon.” She muttered, before turning to one which looked like it had an angry expression. “But Brindon's not nobility, is he?”

She furrowed her brows and inspected the statue closely. Glancing over her shoulders to look at Corvan, she began comparing. She frowned and thoughtfully nodded, concluding that the resemblance between them was enough evidence.

“I guess it's this one.”

“What makes you think that?” Lord Aeron asked, cocking a brow.

“Well, one reason is that they have the same frown on their faces. See?” She pointed out how they looked the same with the face Corvan was making. The wrinkles of the first-ranker's face made him bear a great resemblance to the statue Valeriana was referring to.

Long hair.

Angry frown.

Impatient face.

“And this here. They look so much a like it's scary.” She pushed her brows together with her forefingers, creating wrinkles between her eyes—a great imitation of the frown the first-ranker had on his face at the moment.

Headmaster Kylon and Lord Aeron glanced between the statue, Valeriana, and Corvan before they burst out laughing.