Knight (22 page)

A
fter classes, Valeriana was immediately dragged into the meeting room of the Celestial Circle for three reasons—
errands, errands, and errands.

Valeriana went over to Corvan, with a pile of heavy books in hand. He was reclining on the sofa with his feet perched on the arms of the chair, ankles crossed. She placed all the books down on the coffee table in front of him.

“Is that everything I asked for?”

“Yes, it's everything you asked for. Doulhette Dunheely, Hampson Jamison, Verhemalon Theodore, and Noulouere Hertioure.” Valeriana breathed deeply, mildly exhausted. “You really like reading, don’t you? So much you get hit on the head unaware?”

He glared at her, mainly because of what she said and another thing. “There's one thing missing.” Corvan said, flipping the book he was reading to the next page.

“What?”

“Dantalion Wisperia. Weapon Handling, volume four.”

Valeriana facepalmed and found herself exasperatedly trudging the path back to where she just came from. It was tiresome since it took five minutes to get to where she was.

Sighing, she entered the library, pulling the old and wooden door open which made groaning noises when bothered. Because of her frequent visits, the librarian didn't even need to look up to know she had come back.

“You forgot something, didn't you?” The librarian said in a soft and low voice. Valeriana slightly flinched at her sudden inquiry but stopped at her tracks to answer her question.

The librarian, named Rinda, was working behind her desk at some corner in the library near the entrance. Her wrinkled fingers were noisily working on a few documents in front of her and the round spectacles which framed her wise, brown eyes hang on the tip of her high-bridged nose.

“Yeah, Dantalion Wisperia's Weapon Handling, volume four.” She shyly stated, matching how hushed the librarian's voice sounded.

“Lord Corvan.”

“That's right.”

“As I thought.” She sighed. “You don’t have to do what they ask you to do. You are no slave.”

Valeriana blinked at her comment. “I don’t really want to make any more trouble. I don’t want the incident with Courtney happening again.”

Rinda gave her a once over before tipping her head to the direction of the shelves. “Alright, go on then.”

Despite being confused by her sudden interest, Valeriana did not linger and sauntered quietly towards the section of the library where the book she was sent for was put in. She began her search for it quietly, letting her eyes scan through the whole collection of a variety of skill-related books.

“Weasel Hunting . . . aha! Weapon Handling! Volume four! Here it is!” Valeriana grabbed the book from the shelf and stared at it curiously. “What's in these books that Corvan's so interested about?” She muttered.

She hatched the book open and scanned through it, but, unfortunately, she understood nothing in the end.

“There are a variety of cleaving weapons that . . .” Valeriana trailed off as she stared at the following words written down. She skipped the next few sentences since the things being described were beyond her understanding. “There are different crucial points in the body to aim for to ensure . . . death. The heck? So this is basically a manual for killing somebody . . . I never even thought that existed . . .” She muttered, snapping the book close and turning to leave. “Well, I figured Corvan was interested.”

Just as she was about to head out, a group of male students came and blocked her path. Valeriana stopped immediately and stared at all of them, a wave of confusion washing through her. They all held mocking smirks on their faces and the look on their eyes held malice. They all looked like mean bullies, and judging by the way they appeared, they probably were.

“Hey.” The one on the middle greeted.

Valeriana cringed at the spiteful tone of his voice and took a step back. “What can I do for you?” She greeted back. Their intentions were unclear but it gave Valeriana a bad feeling.

“Don't tell me you don't recognize me.”

“You?” She scrutinized his appearance.

This guy had chocolate brown hair that was cut around his shoulders. His brown eyes were sharp complemented by his caterpillar brows and high-bridged nose. His jaws were muscular and he also had slight stubble on his chin.

“I'm sorry. I don't remember you.” She told him.

“Are you that stupid? You can't remember the face of the guy who you
accidentally
punched?”

“You mean—oh! I see now!”

“Are you still mocking me?” He growled.

“No . . . I'm sorry. I didn't really recognize you. I can swear on my dead father's name.” She told him earnestly.

“Well, it doesn't matter now, really.” He tucked his hands into his pockets as he sauntered forward with confident strides. “Because girl or not, you're going to pay.”

“Listen,” Valeriana said. “I don't want any trouble.”

“Then you should've known not to oppose me.”

“Are you some sort of coward?” She asked daringly, glowering at the direction of the arrogant jerk.

“What? You dare—”

“Why do you prey on people obviously weaker than you? If there's anyone I hate, it's somebody who preys on other people who they can overpower just to prove that they are strong.”

Julian gritted his teeth and brought out his fists from his pockets only to clench them. “You . . . how dare you . . . I'm going to rip your throat out!” He stepped forward and placed a hand around Valeriana's neck, squeezing them tightly.

The human girl grabbed his wrists and prepared to wrench it off when suddenly, a familiar voice suddenly yelled out and stopped him.

“That's enough!”

Julian tore his hand off and harshly pushed the girl back, making her slightly stagger. Valeriana curiously followed the direction of the voice as she massaged the area where she was roughly handled. There, she spotted Charles walking down the aisle with the usual air of elegance and nobility around him.

Suddenly, the group of boys who looked confident a while ago were scared out of their wits. They took several steps back, wary of his sudden appearance.

Charles continued. “Do you not have any respect considering who you're talking so rashly to?”

The fourth-ranker gave no room for the poor guy to speak and went on with his lecture. “There is no excuse when disrespecting one of the Twelve.” He said as he stopped right beside Valeriana with a displeased frown. “If you want to settle something with Valeriana, challenge her to a duel. Any other impertinent actions of yours will be punished severely without question.”

“I’m—”

“Bow.” Charles commanded.

“What . . .”

“Bow.” He emphasized the word assertively, glaring at each of them with ice-cold eyes.

The pressure on Charles's gaze was so heavy that none of them could protest.

“Wait, Charles. It's alright. I don’t need trouble.”

“Disrespecting calls for much serious offence and you're telling me to wait?”

“I know that.” She said. “I've humiliated him enough the last time. I even returned the favor twice as big. I don’t want any more trouble.”

“You! I don't regret what I've done one bit!”

“Geez.” Valeriana rolled her eyes. “Just shut up for a moment! If you don’t shut it, I’ll cut your foot off and shove it down your throat!”

The fourth-ranker glanced questioningly at Valeriana's direction. This girl had menacing threats of her own. “If you wish to no longer push this, then . . . Valeriana, let us go. Corvan's getting impatient.”

“Oh, um . . . alright.”

As Valeriana and Charles passed by the librarian on their way out, Rinda spoke in a flat, but warning tone. “Next time, do you mind taking your fight out of my library?”

“We'll try, ma'am.” Charles answered. “Please pardon us for today.”

Rinda did not speak further and continued focusing on the documents she was working on. Valeriana uttered a small apology to the woman before following the fourth-ranker out of the library. Charles opened the door for them and closed it behind him gently, making no unnecessary noises except for the creaking.

“Next time,” he started, and gave Valeriana a stern look. “Bring a sword with you. The academy's regulation does not forbid its student to carry around a weapon which they are comfortable with, so long as you don't draw it without valid reasons.”

“I see . . . I'll keep that in mind, then.” She muttered. “Thank you for back there, but that wasn't necessary. I would've been able to handle it myself just fine.” She told Charles.

“I shall try my best.” He replied soft-spokenly. “It's just an old habit of mine.”

“Interfering?”

Charles raised a brow at her. “Not . . . exactly . . .” He trailed off, pushing back the glasses on his nose. Surely, he wasn't pleased by the girl's straightforward comments. “But if there's a person I can't stand, it's someone who does not act properly, so you can say I just did that by instinct.”

“Alright. If you say so.”

Charles was expecting for the girl to look like she was scared to the boot, but the calm expression on her face completely thwarted his expectations. She was truly an unpredictable lady.

“How can you be so calm after being threatened like that?”

“I've been bullied before and it wasn't exactly a pleasant experience.” She shrugged. “I’ve been in fights before . . . and people say I pack quite a punch. Besides, I've decided to attend this academy and choices always come in package.”

“So you're fine with the fact that practically every student in this academy scorns you?”

“I'm not fine with it.” She answered. “That's why I'm going to change it.” She quickly added.

Charles curiously stared at the girl for a moment, taken aback by her words. This human might seem idiotic and stupid at first. Despite that, she was determined, strong-willed, and very optimistic.

She was, as one would say, weird.

“After you give that book to Corvan, why don't you accompany me to the kitchen and help me cook?” Charles asked.

“What? Really? But I thought the kitchen was off-limits.”

“It's alright. You have my permission.”

“Okay. I'll help cook dinner then. Is it alright if I change clothes first, though? I don't want to get this stained.”

“That'll be fine.”

When they arrived, Charles headed to the kitchen without other detours. Valeriana handed the book to Corvan quietly and headed to her room right after. She changed into a loose beige blouse which said
come and get this
and paired it with her hello kitty boxers.

When she came down from her room, everyone gave her the
what-the-hell
look while staring at her outfit. She disregarded their ridiculing gazes and headed right for the kitchen to see Charles with an apron tied around his waist holding up a cooking ladle. When the fourth-ranker sensed her presence, he threw an apron to her direction without looking her way.

The girl was awed. She slowly closed the door behind her so as not to make a sound and looked around freely. The lighting was dim. Add in the detail that everything was made out of wood; it made it seem darker.

The floors and counters were spotless that it made Valeriana afraid to do anything. Each cooking instrument was put neatly in their places, and the tableware and glassware were arranged inside an antique china cabinet.

She figured it was better to stay away from it to prevent meeting an accident. Sadly, Valeriana could be a real klutz, so she needed to be extra careful around the kitchen. She always got an earful from her mother when she would break something and all her reprimanding would leave her ears ringing.

“What dishes can you cook?” He asked.             

Valeriana tied the apron around her waist. “Quite a few.”

“Give me an example.”

“I forgot their names but I know how to prepare a soup, chicken and rice, broccoli spears for the side and pumpkin pecan cheesecake!”

“So this is practically a dinner plan with an appetizer, entrée, and dessert, is that it?”

“It feels incomplete when the other is served without the other. My mother usually serves them as a group.”

“It is important for all the dishes to properly complement the other to make dinner much more enjoyable and scrumptious. I usually have no problems with eating a heavy dinner since I use up all my energy easily. In that case, your suggestion is accepted. We'll be having what you say for dinner, in exchange, you will be taking the lead in the preparations.”

“What? I'm taking the lead?”

“I'll be assisting you any way I can.”

“Alright.” She said with a smile. “I usually just assist my mother when preparing dinner. Bring it on!”

“First things first, let's see if you have the ingredients you need.”

Valeriana wasn't exactly sure what kind of technology they were using, but they didn't seem to be fond of using electricity. The type of energy they use to power up their equipment was magic—or power control as they preferred to call it—which was something the poor human girl didn't have so she needed the guidance of Charles.