Chapter 49: Chapter 46: Briarwick
[Luminare Academy]
In the fleeting mont of waning dusk,
A young lad awaits in verdant stillness,
Beneath nature’s gentle ebon canopy,
Clad in whispers of a soft zephyr’s caress.
His hazel eyes, alight with curiosity,
Fixate on the ethereal scene taking shape,
A stirring revelation before his very gaze,
Where shadows dance and secrets awake.
There, beneath the love-kissed moon’s tender might,
Stands she, the muse of an enigmatic tale,
Bound by a captivating, fair facade,
A celestial portrait of allure does not fail.
Her cascading tresses, spun of lustrous gleam,
Draped in milky strands of delicate white,
Like moonbeams delicately cast upon earth,
Emanate purity, adorned in lunar light.
Her crimson orbs, portals to an unknown world,
Reflect on the depths of so forbidden realm,
Enchanting, swirling, unfathomable mysteries,
Arousing the boy’s curiosity overwhelms him.
A porcelain visage, kissed by moonlit dew,
Adorned with a pallor as pale as untouched snow,
The delicate canvas of a celestial deity,
Whose profound essence he yearns to know.
Silent footfalls, an ethereal dance upon petals,
Through moonbathed gardens, she gracefully glides.
The air trembles with a secret lody,
Tears of stardust gather in the boy’s eyes.
Her every movent, a fluid waltz with grace,
Her gestures an enchantnt born of dreams,
Her touch, an ethereal whisper in the wind,
Invoking a tempest of thoughts unforeseen.
Beneath a sky adorned with celestial constellations,
The boy remains transfixed, a re mortal soul.
Entranced by this otherworldly apparition,
Transcending boundaries, traversing dinsions untold.
How does one encapsulate such resplendent beauty?
A fla of artistry within the boy’s chest does rise,
Without words to grasp the essence of her being,
He is lost, entrapped in emotion’s labyrinthine guise.
For she, the girl with white hair, red eyes, and pale skin,
Is an enigma that defies tangible description,
A tapestry spun from the silk of celestial secrets,
Breathing life into the boy’s fervent transcription.
Thus, as the moon’s tender glow begins to wane,
And the morning’s golden veil delicately unfurls,
The boy clings to the mory, a phantom embraced,
Of the girl whose beauty transcended earthly bounds.
Hazel eyes studied the poem with a smirk.
"So of my best work," the hazel-eyed boy murmured with a hum as he moved through the hallways of Luminare Academy. Though for so reason, he was receiving looks of distaste from his fellow students. Yet he paid them no mind.
("Now I wonder, how did this co to be in your possession, Mikoto?") He internally mused. ("This was ant for dear Lucinda, I even used an attachnt spell.") He humd so more as he tried to co to a conclusion.
The boy continued humming as he folded the piece of paper before tucking it inside his pocket. ("Well, William was the one who retrieved it for , so I suppose I can ask him.") Those thoughts passed through his mind as he moved through the hallway, but he stopped when he felt soone poke him on his shoulder. He imdiately took note of the familiar aqua-colored hair.
"Ah, Ruby." The boy gave a smile that did not quite reach his eyes. Turning to the girl, he continued. "Sorry I was not there for training today, I just had a bout of inspiration." The boy inford.
"That is quite alright, Adrian," Ruby spoke, not seeming to pay it much mind. "William was hoping you would join us at the dining hall." Adrian humd as he mulled it over for a second before quickly coming to a decision.
"Hmm, why not? Lead the way." The girl nodded as she started to move with him following suit. They were not far from the Academy’s dining hall, so they reached it relatively quickly.
As always, the dining hall was as bustling. With various students swarming around and enjoying their als. Adrian followed after Ruby as she led him to a table in the far right of the dining hall. Reaching it, he took note of both Juliana and William conversing, the latter as always had a bright smile while the forr looked as shy as ever.
William was quick to take note of him and Ruby.
"Adrian, I am glad you could make it," William greeted with a smile as Ruby took a seat next to him.
"Well, I am glad for the invitation," he shot back with an empty smile taking a seat next to Juliana, giving her a smile the girl just gave a sheepish one. "So how was Professor Fergus’s training today?" The raven-haired boy asked. William heaved a slightly exasperated sigh.
"Well, you know, as difficult and over the top as usual," William explained, Ruby rapidly shook her head in agreent. "Professor Fergus is not as lenient as Professor Eudora when it cos to training."
"Professor Eudora is still too cranky though," Ruby murmured.
"R-really?" Surprisingly, Juliana spoke up. "I-I thought she was nice..." She mumbled lowly.
"True, but I much prefer Professor lisande," Ruby muttered.
"Because she’s too ek to criticize you if you slack off?" William asked with a wry smile.
"Yep," the girl shalessly answered. William opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by a rather pompous voice and three sets of footsteps.
"Well, well. What a motley few." William and the rest turned to see a rather familiar face. He had neat black hair and erald eyes, Isaac. He had his goons behind him, two specifically. A bald fat boy and a more lanky one with slick back brown hair, nothing really stood out about them. Nonetheless, Isaac’s grating and annoying voice continued speaking.
"The Gregory failure," he said, directing his gaze towards William, the latter just held a blank face. "A nobody," he looked at Ruby who, like William, did not seem to care much at all about the boy’s words. "The filthy demon spawn," Juliana could just avert her gaze in sha as the words left his mouth. "And the demon tar," he all but spat as he looked at Adrian with contempt, the boy, however, just kept a smile.
"Be gone, peasants, I want this table," Isaac proclaid.
"Nah," Ruby rely uttered out. It took a few monts for the single word to register in Isaac’s mind before he glared at the aqua-haired girl.
"What did you just say?" He no doubt heard it but he was trying to be intimidating, which did not work.
"I believe Ruby said ’nah,’ which if I rember correctly ans ’no,’" Adrian explained as if talking to an idiot. This, of course, irritated the pompous boy.
"Who do you think you’re talking to, cur!?" He demanded, all felt his mana pulsating and flaring. aning he was ready to use magic, to attack no doubt.
"Now, now. If you want to battle, let us not do this in the dining hall," Adrian gave a closed-eyed smile as he stood up from his seat. Behind him, cracks ford in the air as if sothing were tearing through reality to get to this plane of existence. The cracks broke apart and beca a large gap where a malevolent eye peered Isaac’s way.
"Let us take this outside," Adrian spoke, jabbing his thumb at the exit. Isaac could not help but give an involuntary gulp.
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[Verdantis]
[Briarwick]
There was a crisp winter air that cut through the large town, thick blankets of snow lay over every rooftop and cobblestone street. The wooden buildings bend under the weight of the snow, the town square had an array of market stalls now buried under mounds of snow, the colorful awnings barely visible through the frosty layers.
The streets were devoid of any usual hustle and bustle you’d find in towns, as townsfolk opted to stay indoors by the warmth of fires. Yet, the glow of lanterns illuminated the snowy scene.
It had only taken two weeks tops, but they had eventually reached Verdantis. This ship had docked by a small town called Briarwick. He could now see why Professor Eugene saw it prudent that they have spells to keep themselves warm.
"This place is full of snow," Mikoto muttered as he looked around. "Guess it makes sense, Verdantis is all the way north."
He humd as he approached a small snow-covered building, pushing past the door he was greeted with a warr atmosphere. It was an inn, rather large at that. The ground floor had a wooden floor with various wooden tables and chairs all around. Lanterns hung in corners to give the space a much warr glow, it was relatively empty as it was late and most were asleep.
His group included, he had stayed up to explore the snow-covered town so more.
"Ah, you’re back," he directed his gaze at the voice. It was a woman, long dark brown hair styled neatly and erald eyes with rather defined and beautiful features. She was dressed in a simple dress adorned in white with an apron thrown on her. She was the owner of the inn, quite a nice lady. "Your friends already retired for the night, a sha little Lily and Zavier would’ve liked to talk to them so more."
"Kids will always be curious, I guess," Mikoto murmured. "But why are you up so late, Miss Lucy?"
"Just so late cleaning as you can see," Lucy stated as she swept the floors. "I was always a night owl. Can’t ever sleep unless I completely tire myself out." She said with a chuckle.
"Hmm, I can relate to that, I guess," Mikoto took a seat at a table.
"So why is it you can’t sleep?" Lucy asked.
"Too many dreams of ho," he spoke with a distant look in his eyes that Lucy could not see. "Guess I just feel a sense of longing."
"I suppose that makes sense," Lucy spoke in understanding. "I also ca from Galadriel, ca to Verdantis with my husband to ’make it big’. There was not a day that gone by where I did not think of my parents."
"Leaving family behind is rough, huh." She nodded her head at his words.
"True, but we still keep in contact with letters. Just a sha they can’t co and see their grandchildren. The ocean is too dangerous to travel, and I am not all that proficient in magic."
"A sha," Mikoto murmured. "But how is life in this town?"
"It’s fine, with this inn I make a decent load of money. You’d be surprised with how many travelers we get. But then again, this inn also acts as a tavern, so I get a lot of drunks," she finished with a chuckle.
"Hmm, but I heard up north here there were a lot of Astrothians. Do they stay clear of this town?" He asked.
"We only get smaller ones that are taken care of by our guards," she explained. "The larger ones are in more secluded places like caves. But we do have other problems."
"I see, well don’t worry they’ll be redied soon," Mikoto spoke much to her confusion as he stood up from his seat, tucking the chair back in he threw the woman a hidden smile. "Thanks for the chat, Miss Lucy. I’ll be turning in for now," he spoke as he approached the stairs and ascended them.
"What a strange kid."
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