Knight (42 page)

The king and Lord Gavin exchanged glances before they suddenly broke out into a fit of wild laughter. Valeriana squirmed in her seat in discomfort and stared at the two with a face as red as a tomato. Just recalling what she did to the first-ranker during that time made her more embarrassed, and to think they reacted like this to that memory . . . she never felt humiliated her entire life.

“Ah,” Gavin breathed, clutching his stomach. “Just imagining what must've happened makes me want to die of laughter.”

The servants, who stood on the sidelines and had no choice but to listen closely to their conversation, tried to hide their amusement under stoic faces but the littlest smiles curved on their lips. One had his shoulders trembling from silent laughter, and face contorted in failed attempt to hide his reaction.

“Please,” Gavin beseeched while his laughter slowly began to die down. “Tell me, you are not serious, are you?”

She looked at him with a plain, grave expression. “I don't lie.”

Everything was silent.

Gavin covered his mouth, leaned to the side and hid his face. His shoulders shook and he tried so much to hold back his laughter, but they came out in short snickers instead. He held out a hand as a sign of apology and continued his fit in his seat.

The king, however, openly showed his amusement by striking his fist on the table, making everything on the surface clatter while his laughter boomed throughout the whole room. It appeared that they found her story more than funny and interesting. Corvan would be ashamed if he knew that Valeriana told them what happened before. But, he would kill her before she even got the chance to say anything.

“Please don't tell anyone.” She told them. “Corvan's attitude is enough the way it is. I don't want him treating me worse than now. Sooner or later, I'll find myself dead.”

She gave them a soft smile and they took it as an exaggerated plea. However, they did not even know half of it.

“You can trust that not a single word will get out.”

The girl gave her attention back to the food she was eating and, unusually, began to nibble on her food when she would normally devour it in one bite.

“Valeriana,” Gavin spoke in a gentle voice.

“Hm?” She looked up at the man.

This man was flirty and liked to flatter ladies—that was obvious. Valeriana knew, though, that he was just being playful. Some men just enjoy seeing the reaction of women when they were showered with gracious words.

“So, do tell, how is the life as a student in Celeste Academy?”

“Well, there are a lot of things I need to do. Lessons and other things.” She continued. “I'm far behind and I only have a very short amount of time to catch up.”

“I see.” Gavin nodded in understanding.

The two men somewhat had a feeling that Valeriana had been through a lot more than she was letting on since she came to their world, but still managed to smile, joke, and laugh in front of them. They noticed the healing scars from the battles she fought. No doubt that they were recent and continuously healed through the hands of a skilled healer.

“I know my cousin won't like it, but let me visit you once in a while.” He grinned. “I look forward to hearing more of your stories. It would be fun to hear something new, especially since you came from a different world.”

“There's really no need for you to do that.” She told him, reaching for a glass of water and bringing it up to her lips. She started drinking off of the glass greedily.

“Are you afraid that your suitors would drive me away? I seek only companionship and nothing romantic of any sort. You are a very wonderful lady, Valeriana, don't get me wrong—but you are the kind of woman that is not within the range of my preferences.”

Well, see? At least that was a relief knowing.

“But you are exactly perfect for my cousin.”

Wait. What?

Unconsciously, Valeriana gasped while she drank the contents of her glass—which then resulted to a very unfortunate turn of events. She choked on the water she was drinking and spilled the contents on her lap.

She coughed and stood up from her seat in shock. “I'm sorry.” She covered her mouth and continued to cough some more. She just embarrassed herself in front of two very important people and she felt more than humiliated to have been in such position.

“Are you alright, my dear?” The king inquired.

“Uh,” she fanned herself. “I need to go to the restroom. Please excuse me. Where do I go from here?”

“Head to the right and turn to the left. It should not be far. Do you need someone to guide you there?”

Valeriana shook her head but smiled gratefully at Laedin. “No, thank you. I should be able to find my way around by myself.”

With that, the girl walked out of the room.

Lord Gavin turned to the king as soon she went out of sight. “I must've done something wrong.”

Chapter Forty-Two ♣ We Meet Again

Valeriana remembered telling the king that she should be able to find her way around but, alas, what grave mistake it was. She underestimated the whole thing and got lost on her way to find the restroom. With the previously beautiful, silky, sky-blue dress now drenched in water that she spewed directly from her mouth, Valeriana felt uncomfortable to have her clothes sticking to her skin.

She tugged on the wet portion of the dress's skirts and grimaced. “Agh. Genius, Valeriana. Genius!” She threw her arms in the air in annoyance. “Now, I'm lost. Why does this place have to be so freaking big?”

It was poor judgment on her part. She should've taken up the king's offer to have a servant accompany her, but the girl was so embarrassed that she wanted to have some time to herself and recover from the humiliation.

She just 
had
 to cough up water in front of the table.

Letting her eyes get a gist of her surroundings, she found herself in a long and seemingly endless corridor with limitless options of twists and turns. The wall on her right side had large and arched windows in which the moonlight beamed through. The floor was the color of jade, made entirely out of polished marble. Although the interior of the palace was a sight to behold, her attention was once again captured by the sight of its exterior.

Why was it that the meadow of flowers right outside the palace seemed to bring her to a state of euphoria? She eyed the finite field of brightly-colored flowers of all variety. Unconsciously, she moved towards the window and placed her hand on the glass which felt cold. It was strangely comforting.

She saw a figure move from the corner of her eye. Valeriana instinctively followed the source and she saw a figure, draped in an elegant cloak of white silk trimmed with gold at the ends standing amongst the flowers. A wind blew and the cloth fluttered around the mysterious person, framing the figure of his legs from waist down. He held his hood in place, afraid that the wind would blow it off.

There was something familiar about him . . .

Curious, Valeriana looked around for a way outside. She walked, glancing about in search for a door but failed. She turned her attention to the windows again and got an idea. Eagerly walking towards the window closest to her, she unbolted and opened it wide before slipping through the narrow passage it managed to provide.

Once her feet landed on solid ground, she hiked up the skirt of her dress and started approach the lonely figure. She had a feeling she knew who it was, but it seemed unlikely and this could be another person for all she cared. Besides, judging from the clothes he was wearing, he must not be just anyone.

As she neared, the sound of her feet crushing the blades of grass gave her away. The mysterious figure turned in alarm at her presence and his feet shifted very lightly in attempt to flee, but when he saw it was Valeriana, he stilled.

The girl squinted in order to make out the face of the man before her under the darkness offered by his cloak. “Kyrell?” She gasped.

He looked equally taken aback. “Valeriana?”

“Oh my gosh!” She jumped excitedly. “I never thought I'd see you here!”

“I . . . are you the guest King Laedin said was coming?” He asked.

“I'm not just the only guest, though.” She told him, standing beside him. “What are you doing here by the way? Do you live here? Are you secretly the prince or something?” She jokingly nudged him with her elbow.

“Uh . . .” He looked at her. “You look stunning today. But why are you drenched in water?”

She glanced down at her wet dress and shrugged. “I completely embarrassed myself in front of King Laedin and Lord Gavin by choking on my water and spilling it to my lap.”

He chuckled. “Really?”

“I know.” She told him gravely. “I wanted to go to the restroom but I got lost on the way.”

“Well, would you like me to take you?” He offered her.

“Sure, why not. I don't have any clothes to change into, though.” She replied, releasing a guttural sound in the back of her throat as a sign of irritation.

“Let me take care of that.” He extended out his right hand, making flawless gestures in the air.

Valeriana raised a brow, curious about his actions. No sooner than a second later, she heard something gurgling. The girl looked down at her drenched clothes only to see the water being sucked off of it. It floated along the direction Kyrell was waving to.

“Wow.” She gushed, watching him work.

Once Kyrell managed to completely take the water away, he flicked his wrist towards the direction of the flowers and it sprayed, raining droplets among the plants. It was evenly distributed, every drop flying towards different directions. Valeriana couldn't help but feel awed by the sight.

“You're awesome, Kyrell! Thank you very much!” She smoothed down the wrinkles that appeared from the wet spot before and cursed when her efforts went in vain. “Anyway, this is better than walking around wet.”

“I'm sorry for disappearing so suddenly after the duel. I had to leave.” He told her. “I heard you won, though. Congratulations.”

“I didn't even realize that you were gone. I was too caught up in the battle.”

“Well, I can't blame you. A warrior's focus must always be n the fight.” Kyrell looked ahead of him and sighed.

“How are you doing, though?” She queried. “And what are you doing here?”

“Well, I . . .”

“And those clothes . . . do you always wear a cloak?”

“I have to.”

“Are you a part of the Court or something? Even Lord Aeron takes off his cloak when he's outside.”

“No . . . I . . .”

“Then, why?”

Kyrell sighed and looked ahead of him, seeming reluctant to tell. “Uh . . .”

“Alright!” Valeriana held her hands up and patted the boy at the back good-naturedly. “I'm sorry for being a prying bit—no, I shouldn't say that . . .” She trailed off. “Anyway, it's not my place to know. If you don't want to tell me, then it's alright. It's not like it's any of my business.”

“I'm sorry, Valeriana.” Kyrell muttered apologetically. “I hope you're not upset.”

“Why would I be upset?” The girl bent down and hugged her knees as she stared at a flower closely. “Everyone has their own reasons. We all have our secrets we want to keep.”

They didn't speak for a few moments. Valeriana continued to observe the flower, her fingertips tracing its velvety petals. The color of the flower was unique. It was purple around the center, gradually fading in white as it reached the round tips of its petals. It was undoubtedly captivating unlike any other flowers Valeriana had seen. Its leaves and stem weren't green. In fact, looking closely, it was gold. It bore a great resemblance to a specific flower from back home called the violet Columbine.

“You just reminded me of something, Valeriana.” Kyrell said as he bent down beside her as well. “That flower you're looking at . . .”

“It's beautiful.” She muttered. “I wonder what it's called.”

“Valeriana.” Kyrell said.

Hearing her name called, she looked at the boy beside her. “Huh?”

“Valeriana.” He repeated. “The flower you're looking at is called Valeriana.”

Her eyes widened from his statement. “Really? Then it has the same name as me! Or maybe it's the other way around. But, whatever, it's the same anyway.”

“This flower is my favorite of all.” Kyrell told her. “My mother took special care for these flowers. She liked them the most. Aside from being beautiful, they're strong. They can stand through the heat of summer and the cold of winter. They bloom best during spring.”

“There's a similar flower from back home.” She stated. “It's called a Columbine. The violet one.” She leaned down and sniffed it. “But this one smells even lovelier.”

“I think your name fits you very well.” Kyrell reached towards the flower and plucked it off, handing it to Valeriana. “Here, take this.”

The girl took the flower in her hands happily. “It's mine? Really? Thank you.” She twirled it between her thumb and forefinger.

“The name
Valeriana
means
to be strong and have hope
.”

“Then, what about Kyrell?”

“It depends.” He answered. “It refers to a holy, sacred place. But . . . looking deeper, it means
dark
and
tainted
.”

“Isn't that contradicting the first meaning?” Her brows knitted on her forehead.

“It's a mystery.”

“Thank you for this, by the way.” She referred to the flower she now admired. “But won't the king be angry? I mean, picking flowers like this in his back garden without his permission is kinda . . . I don't know. Illegal.”

“Don't worry. I can assure you that you won't get in trouble.” Kyrell smiled at her. “Taking one of these hundreds of thousands of flowers will hardly make a difference.”

“But . . . I gotta put this somewhere.” She said. “I don't want it to lose its petals or anything.”

“Try it here.” He took the flower and placed it on her ear. “Now, you look even prettier.”

She laughed. “You're a genius, Kyrell! Why haven't I thought of that?”

He joined her in her laughter and shook his head. Valeriana examined him for a moment, noticing the gleam of uneasiness and worry in his eyes. For some reason, Valeriana couldn't help but feel the same way he was feeling currently. She looked at the direction he was looking and saw a waning moon across the skies.

“I'm hoping that I can have the answer to my problem.” He mumbled. “Hoping it'll be over soon so I can go back to my old life.”

“You mean . . . you didn't always wear a cloak?”

He chuckled. “No . . . well, I guess that's a part of it. Being hidden in this cloak means that I'm restrained from freely showing myself.”

“What's wrong with your appearance?” She inquired. “You look adorable!” She grabbed his face and pinched his cheeks.

“Ouch!” He swatted her hand away. “Don't do that.”

They found themselves staring up towards the star-studded sky. The atmosphere turned from suddenly being playful to that of a relaxed and cool one.

“I don't want you to end up hating me, Valeriana.” Kyrell suddenly stated. “Ever since I became like this . . .”

Valeriana questioningly eyed his slouched form and followed his actions shortly. “What do you mean?”

“You're a human, so you don't realize.” Sadness flashed within those black-flecked golden depths. “If I tell you, I fear you'll end up like them, too.”

“End up like who? Kyrell, what exactly are you talking about?”

“You'll realize sooner or later. Maybe you’ll become like them too. It's been a while since someone laid their eyes on me and thought that I wasn't a monster.”

“A monster? Really? That's ridiculous!”

“Please, not now. I'm trying to be serious.” He openly pouted, making the girl laugh.

“Yup. Very adorable.” She giggled. “You remind me of Jareth when he was way younger! Now, he's so not adorable anymore.” She sighed.

“Valeriana!” He practically whined.

“Alright. Alright.” She held her hands up. “I'm serious. I can't help but feel like you're going to tell me something really dramatic, and a few moments from now, I'll have my jaw dropping.” She muttered.

He looked at her with scrutinizing eyes. She mirrored his gaze with a sincere one and nodded. Ever so slightly, Kyrell smiled.

“Do you know that having black hair and eyes indicate that you're a demon?”

“What?” She scrunched her brow. “Oh yeah, I do remember reading that in one of the books about demons.”

“Well,” he started. “Valemnians have something in their blood that prevents them from having black hair and eyes. It's the order of things. Unless they become a demon . . .”

“That's weird.” She said. “They all have sorts of hair and eye color but why black?”

“Before, having black hair used to be normal . . . until demons came.” He started. “In order to distinguish demons from Valemnians, the gods turned those who possessed dark hearts into having black hair and eyes, and those who remained normal got the color which represented them the most.”