…Loud alarm clock sounds…
— Agh… N-Not… not this damn alarm clock again… — I murmured, burying my head under the pillow, trying to muffle that infernal sound.
And just like that, another day began for me at Aeternal Academy.
As always, I had no choice but to surrender to the persistent ringing of the alarm. So, even with my body feeling heavy and my eyes still half-closed, I got up, got ready, and left the room heading for the dorm exit.
On the way, I crossed paths with Karix, who was also leaving his room, apparently heading to the cafeteria.
— Sigh… here we go again… — I muttered, letting out a long and exhausted sigh.
…Sound of the room door closing…
— Hm? Kyrion? Good morning, old friend… — said Karix, noticing me.
— Uh… Karix? Good morning… — I replied, with my voice still drowsy.
— You look… even more worn out than usual, huh? — he commented, noting my condition.
— Sigh… yeah… I'm dealing with some problems that are draining what little energy I have left… — I confessed, as we walked toward the dorm exit.
We then locked the door and continued walking together, with our steps slow as we chatted.
— Problems, huh? What kind of problems? — asked Karix, curious.
— Sigh… how do I explain this… — I began, searching for the right words.
Then, as we walked, I told him everything that had been going on lately — but, of course, without mentioning that the girl I was meeting was Aurëalis, since that could bring unnecessary trouble for both her and me.
— Hmm… so that's what's going on, huh? — commented Karix, thoughtful after listening to me.
— Sigh… yeah… and it's draining me, like only my body is here, doing things on autopilot… — I replied, exhausted.
Karix gave a half-smile.
— Well, if you ask me… I envy you for going through this. You have a female who clearly cares about you, and that's… rare. I wish I had someone like that by my side. — he said, laughing, before changing to a more serious tone.
— Tsk… all I ever get are shallow girls… or those who think they can play me for a fool.
He shrugged, as if to say he'd gotten used to it.
— …But if you'll allow me to give you some advice, from what you've told me, it sounds like you're stressing over something that shouldn't be a burden. — He said, giving me a direct look.
— This girl, from what you described, has only shown how much she likes you. So why complicate things so much? Why not just… let it flow?
He paused for a moment and added:
— You'll see, that way, everything might start feeling lighter. And you, well… might stop looking like a walking corpse every morning. — he finished.
Hearing that advice, I was taken aback, since up until that moment, I had never thought about the situation that way, in such a simple light.
— Ha… if only you knew everything that's happened so far, and how this specific female is… intense… you wouldn't speak so lightly. But… maybe you're right… — I thought, pondering, impressed by that point of view.
Then, I turned to him with a small smile.
— Sigh… yeah… I think you're right, Karix. I'll try to take things more lightly from now on. — I said.
— Ha! Who would've thought… in the end, you actually have a bit of a knack for relationships, huh? — I added.
— You think so? Hahaha… well, I guess you could say that… — replied Karix, proud.
— Anyway… if you're really grateful for the advice, ask your girl if she's got a friend to introduce me to, haha! — he added, with a mischievous smile.
— Hahaha… S-Sure, leave it to me, I'll see what I can do… — I replied, laughing, a bit embarrassed.
— So… Are you also heading to the cafeteria now ? — he asked.
— Not really. I need to take care of some things now, so I'm heading to the exit of the male dorm wing… — I replied.
Although it might seem strange, the cafeterias for the male and female dorms were in opposite directions from the main exits. So that was the point where our paths would split. Besides, Aurëalis was probably already waiting for me — and making her wait even longer was the last thing I wanted.
— Got it… that's a shame. Maybe next time, huh? Well, I'm off then. See you later… — he said, heading toward the cafeteria.
— Yaaawnn… See ya… — I replied with a yawn, heading in the opposite direction.
After a few minutes walking, I finally reached the stairway that led to the exit of the male dorm wing. That place was like a small antechamber: there were sofas, armchairs… and that was where Aurëalis had said she would wait for me.
Before going down, I took a deep breath, trying to mentally prepare myself.
— Sigh… Alright… here we go, Kyrion… — I murmured to myself, descending the stairs slowly.
As I went down, I looked around.
— At least at this time, most people are either having breakfast or getting ready. That makes it harder for them to see us together… — I thought, relieved.
But when I got downstairs… Aurëalis wasn't there, which was, at the very least, strange.
— Aurëalis… isn't here? That's… strange… — I said, looking around.
That's when I noticed someone sitting in one of the nearby armchairs — someone with a very familiar face.
— Lyrielle? — I murmured, surprised to recognize her.
Seeing her sitting there, I grew curious and began walking toward her, and as I got closer, I realized something was off. She looked uneasy. Her legs were nervously swinging, and her hands were tightly clasped together, showing just how anxious she was.
As soon as she heard my voice, she quickly turned toward me.
— Lyrielle? Good morning! — I said as I approached her.
— K-Kyrion? Good morning! — she replied, standing up abruptly and coming toward me.
— Is… everything okay? — I asked, finding her behavior even stranger.
She smiled, but her smile was forced — almost trembling.
— What? Haha… of course it is! Why wouldn't it be? — she answered, trying to seem carefree.
I paused, looking into her eyes.
— Well… you seem really anxious and… — I began to say, when she cut me off.
— Kyrion, you don't have to worry, I'm fine, really. Ahem… Besides, I didn't come here to stay long anyway. I still have lots of things to do… — she said.
— Uh… Ok? — I said, not really understanding what was going on.
— Sigh… You came here expecting to find Aurëalis, didn't you? — she asked.
In that moment, my heart skipped a beat, and I felt a cold sweat trickle down my forehead.
— Ugh… W-What? Find… Aurëalis? Of course not… What would the princess of the Light Dragons want with someone like me, haha… — I replied, trying to cover it up, afraid of what could happen if any other Light Dragon member discovered our secret.
But to my surprise, she already knew.
— Sigh… Kyrion, let's be realistic, okay?… It was a huge shock even for me when I found out you and Aurëalis had that kind of relationship… After all, she's always been very private about that. No one could have predicted that the princess would ever fall for someone like that. I mean, she always had the best, most handsome, and successful males at her feet — and she always rejected them. The truth is, the King had begun to believe she would be alone forever, and she herself said she'd never marry, as the right male for her didn't exist… — Lyrielle said.
— But then you came along and shattered all of that, huh? And you're not even that good-looking, or famous, or… — she added, until this time, I interrupted her.
— Agh… L-Lyrielle… could you just tell me what you're doing here, then? Since you already know everything? — I said, feeling like each word she spoke about me was a stab to the chest.
— And also… how do you know about our secret? — I asked next, becoming more serious and cautious, since knowing that secret meant something serious could have happened, and with Aurëalis not being there, this could very well be a trap.
Lyrielle, on the other hand, upon hearing those questions, simply closed her eyes, let out a long sigh, and sat back down on the nearby couch.
— Kyrion… sit here. I'll explain why I'm here today, and not Aurëalis — and everything that's happened… and what's likely still going to happen… — she said, now with a serious look.
Sensing how much her expression and the weight of her voice had suddenly changed, I simply sat beside her.
— Alright, speak… — I said.
— Sigh… From the way you tensed up after I mentioned knowing your secret with Aurëalis, I can assume you're worried that this information might have reached Keltherion, aren't you? — she asked, as if reading my mind.
— And also, from how you suddenly became more alert to your surroundings, I can deduce that you're afraid something might happen to you now that I know… am I wrong? — she added.
Upon hearing that, I just nodded, unable to respond properly. It was impressive how she had picked up on everything so easily, even in such a delicate situation.
— Exactly… — I replied, serious.
— Sigh… Alright. So, to start with, yes, I know about your secret, and Aurëalis herself was the one who told me. And no, I have no intention of telling Keltherion. I'm just here to deliver a message she asked me to give you. And after that, I don't want to get involved in this anymore, as this could get me in a lot of trouble, understood? — she said.
Even though my doubts were now even bigger, I just nodded, deciding to let her finish speaking before bombarding her with all the questions racing through my mind.
— Well… I believe you know that yesterday Aurëalis was summoned by her father for a private meeting through the divine projector in her room, right? — she began.
— Yes, I know about that… — I replied directly.
— Alright. The meeting lasted a few hours, and as soon as it ended, Aurëalis ordered a few of her maids to summon me urgently to her room. — she continued.
— When I got there, I saw a scene… well, at the very least, strange. There were suitcases on her bed, and the maids were running around gathering clothes and personal items. It looked like Aurëalis was getting ready to leave. — Lyrielle said, with a growing distant gaze.
— Amidst all the chaos, I saw Aurëalis standing by the window — already dressed as if she were about to depart — tightly clutching a necklace. I didn't get a good look, but it seemed to have a black, metallic-looking scale hanging from it… — she continued.
At that moment, I remembered the scale that Aurëalis had taken from my neck.Unconsciously, I reached for the spot where it had been, while remaining silent and listening to everything Lyrielle said.
— So, I approached her, and we started talking. From what I understood, all that movement was due to a mission given by her father — something she, as a princess, couldn't refuse. Even Lycandor had already authorized her indefinite leave from school… — said Lyrielle.
— But what really caught my attention was the way she was acting. Throughout the whole conversation, she didn't let go of her necklace for a single moment. It was clear she was worried. She seemed restless, like she was carrying a burden. Then, before I could ask what was bothering her, she started talking.
— Aurëalis told me everything. She told me about you two. About how much she loved you. How much she wanted you. And in the end, she asked me to deliver a message: that you forgive her for not being able to see you today — even though she really wanted to — and that she hoped to see you again soon. — Lyrielle concluded.
— So… that's why she couldn't come here today, huh? — I said, letting out a relieved sigh, since that didn't necessarily mean something bad… or at least that's what I wanted to believe.
— But… I still don't get why she would reveal such an important secret just to ask you to deliver such a simple message. I mean, that didn't require such a… personal revelation. — I added, still confused and a bit suspicious.
— Something… that simple, huh? Sigh... You males really have an absurdly hard time with love, don't you? — she replied, with a slightly disapproving look.
At that moment, my serious expression collapsed into a visible embarrassment, even though I didn't fully understand why.
— Look, Kyrion… to you, that message might seem silly, simple… but to Aurëalis, it was important. Very important. Something she needed to say. If you had seen the way she was yesterday, just knowing she couldn't be here in person… you wouldn't be speaking like that. Hmph… — said Lyrielle, clearly annoyed by my response.
— Agh… T-That's not what I meant… I'm not saying it wasn't important, just that… she didn't need to tell you our secret just to ask that. — I tried to explain, stumbling over my words.
Lyrielle gave me a sideways glance, sighed, and though still a bit irritated, continued:
— Sigh... Yeah. The truth is, I was confused too. When she finished telling me everything, the first thing I asked was exactly what you asked me: why tell me something so serious? And… why me, of all people?
— And what did she say? — I asked right away, curious.
— She… laughed. A sincere little laugh, you know? One of those that seem to come from the heart. And then she told me there were reasons, many of them, but that she couldn't explain them there, not at that moment. But the main one… was because, according to her, I'm one of the few of our kind who can deal with all races without prejudice. And more than that… she trusted me. She said that, besides knowing I would never spread something so delicate, she also knew I'd never try to get close to you with other intentions.
— I see… So… that's why, huh? — I replied, running my hand through my hair, feeling the weight of the information trying to settle in my mind.
— Sigh... Well, I can't say I'm comfortable with other people knowing about us, but… if Aurëalis trusts you… then I trust you too, Lyrielle. — I said.
— But… let me ask you some more things — I said, locking my eyes on hers.
— Was she really as okay as you're telling me? And you… Really didn't notice anything strange when you met with her? — I asked, feeling that something was off with everything Lyrielle had just told me.
I knew that story didn't quite fit. Something had been bothering me from the start, and knowing how Aurëalis's family operated, all of it felt too simple… too calm… and that, in itself, was strange.At that moment, Lyrielle's gaze faltered. She looked at me, surprised — and that was enough. That said more than words ever could. It confirmed what I already suspected: something was wrong. Very wrong with all of this.
I let out a heavy sigh, closed my eyes for a moment, and leaned back on the couch, feeling the tension growing in my chest.
— We still have a little time before the other males start coming down and might overhear our conversation here… so, tell me, Lyrielle. What's really bothering you? What did you see there that caught your attention?
She bit her lower lip, hesitant. Her body seemed more tense by the second, as if she were fighting an internal battle between the fear of saying too much… and the guilt of saying nothing.
After a few moments in silence, she finally took a deep breath and began.
— Kyrion… what Aurëalis told me… Tsk… that was probably just the tip of the iceberg. Just the surface of what's really going on. — She said.
Title of the next chapter:
"The Disappearance of Aurëalis (Final)" - So, we're getting to the good part, huh ?