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2024-10-29 19:42:56Kiran looked out the window of the crystal-powered carriage she rode to the Merchant's District with Saia, her attendant named Rueinna, and Paulienne.
The vehicle, which reminded her more of Cinderella's carriage without the horses, had a driver at an external seat in front while two guards in casual noble clothes perched on external seats at the back. They drove toward one side of the citadel and crossed a bridge that led to the small island where the Merchant's District was located. The bridge gave Kiran a view of the village across the lake that surrounded the citadel: brick houses and buildings where common folk lived.
There were two official routes to the Merchant's District. First was by land, which crossed the citadel. Common folk were generally prohibited from entering the citadel, unless they received special passes from its authorities that allowed them to do so. The passes were often granted to common folk who were under the employment of nobles as attendant
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"This is Kiran, a new attendant-in-training under my care," Saia said, introducing Kiran to the owner of an accessory shop they visited in the Merchants' District. "She's from the West and she's not well-acquainted with the District yet so I'm giving her a tour during a much needed break from her lessons.""Nice to meet you, young lady," the woman who Paulienne whispered was an acclaimed artisan in Lahnthea said, with a warm smile on her lips. "You're lucky to join the palace with the Lahnthean Aria in our midst.""So I heard," Kiran said, trying to smile at the comment. She was the Lahnthean Aria after all, but she wouldn't admit it to the kind woman. Saia suggested they visit the District as ordinary people - or as ordinary as Saia's public identity could allow.Despite how much a spectacle Kiran's arrival in the palace was, not many were able to remember her face especially when she was half-running to catch up with Noorh the entire time. Even when informatio
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Kiran couldn't help but sigh wistfully as she watched Alessa Dia prance into the campus with a spring on her step like she hadn't been stressed with the research papers and upcoming mid-term exams. Alessa's dark wavy hair, which was held up in a simple ponytail, bounced cheerfully in the humid rainy season breeze. Her bright eyes captivated anyone she walked passed on the hallway, and the smile on her rosy chestnut lips made the hearts of students around her flutter. She was a refreshing lady of spring lighting up the gray; her glowing skin standing out against the gloomy haze of the cloudy day. Alessa was one of the most popular girls in the university because of her stunning features, tall height, and flawless skin. She could easily make a lucrative career in the entertainment industry as an attractive model or a beautiful actress, but she was studiously taking a degree in Biology with her sights set on becoming a medical professional. The fact that she rivaled the smartest students
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Kiran anxiously raised her trembling hands in front of her, thinking it was a universal sign for "I surrender" or "I'm not a threat" since the gesture had been used several times in movies and shows she had watched growing up. "I…I come in peace!"The young man's glowing silvery blue eyes narrowed.Kiran gasped. He clearly looked more displeased than he did moments ago. He was speaking a different language so she wasn't sure how to tell him that her throat wasn't worthy of being slit. "Friend!" she exclaimed, praying to everything that was holy that the term wasn't a curse word in the young man's language. She gingerly pointed at her chest and tried to smile. "Me…Friend," she said, gesturing her left and right pointing fingers to meet side-by-side in front of her.The young man then threw what seemed like a small, silver flask toward her. "Dirokhom," he ordered as the flask landed on her lap.Kiran blinked confused at him for a moment before gingerly picking up the flask. "Y-you want
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Kiran had two choices.First, she could stay in the meadow, count to a hundred like a good girl, and wait for Mr. Kidnapper to return. That would require her to trust that Mr. Kidnapper hadn't abandoned her: that he simply stepped away for a much needed time alone to think things over, and that he would return once she reached a hundred. Did she trust Mr. Kidnapper? Despite how reluctantly handsome he was in the dark, she could not trust him - not completely, at least. After all, he held a blade to her throat and had the audacity to leave her alone in a place she was in no way familiar with instead of quietly meditating in a corner where she could still see him.Second, she could shove her fear of heights somewhere in the deepest corners of her mind so that she could hike down the mountain alone. She would also need to devise a safe way to walk down the steps. Clearly, she couldn't just prance down each step like she would with a normal set of stairs. The wind was strong at the edge o
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"If it were that easy, it wouldn't have been treated as a rite of passage."His teacher's words echoed in his head like a scolding as he effortlessly skipped from one stone step to another on his way down the mountain. The old man was right yet again and he hated it. He hated how he was wrong yet again, and how all his preparations had been for nothing.Noorh planned the kidnapping of Alessa Dia for years since he learned of her existence. He had been so close to achieving his goal until a weak-looking stranger meddled and ended up being summoned into his world instead."Mr. Kidnapper!"The memory of her accusing voice made him flinch. Yes, the "great and respectable" Noorh was a kidnapper and he cruelly victimized an innocent girl after failing to accomplish his mission. He paused after softly landing his feet on the thirty-fifth stone step protruding from the cliff wall.He was furious and frustrated. That was why he ran away. I
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Noorh stepped back, his boots sliding across the stone step's surface. It wasn't until he reached the edge that he realized the young woman he swooped in to save was no longer behind him. He turned around and found her plummeting into the ocean of clouds, her hands outstretched in a last ditch attempt at seeking help.His breath hitched and his heart raced in panic. He didn't even notice that the giant serpent furiously pounced toward him. Noorh instead sheathed his sword and dived into the clouds, keeping his arms and legs as close to his body as possible so that he could fall faster than the young woman, and catch up to her.Noorh soon found her staring blankly at him, resignedly falling towards her doom. He stretched out his arms to grab her and pulled her tightly against his chest. He then twisted his body so that they could fall to the ground feet-first, and muttered a spell under his breath until their descent slowed down to a halt in mid-air.He took a deep breath to calm his n
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"Blue," Kiran breathed. Noorh's hair was a midnight blue under the morning light. It seemed pure black in the dark, but it had a bluish sheen whenever light brushed its soft strands at an angle. It was the first time that a male stranger around her age carried Kiran like a bride. She wasn't sure how to react when he effortlessly lifted her up from the ground, let alone when he started leaping into the air. The awkwardness and embarrassment she felt at being held made her rigid and stiff, but the queasiness that filled her senses with their every rise and fall against the cliff eventually left her too nauseous to care about it. At one point, she found herself desperately wrapping her arms around his neck for dear life - a gesture that he didn't seem to mind. As if the whole ordeal wasn't enough of a torment, her body started reminding her that she hadn't eaten anything for dinner in the previous day or breakfast that morning. Seeing Noorh proceed with their journey wi
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Noorh heard Kiran's gasp before he felt the movement from his right. He quickly crouched, dodging the attack of the black serpent. He then leaped into the air to jump to the next nest. As luck would have it, he found himself staring over a nest filled with wriggling newly hatched snakes greedily fighting each other for mangled corpses splayed on the ground.Noorh cursed under his breath as his feet landed on one of the snake hatchlings' slippery back. A round of angry hisses erupted around him, their burning amber eyes turning their hungry sights toward him. Just as the snake hatchlings pounced their gaping mouths toward him, he casted a spell under his feet that could propel him upward. It pushed him high enough to reach a stone step above them. Before he could properly land on the step, however, he felt a wave of energy drain away from his body making the world spin around him.The poisonous miasma emanating from the decaying debris and the toxic wood from which the winged serpents'
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"This is Kiran, a new attendant-in-training under my care," Saia said, introducing Kiran to the owner of an accessory shop they visited in the Merchants' District. "She's from the West and she's not well-acquainted with the District yet so I'm giving her a tour during a much needed break from her lessons.""Nice to meet you, young lady," the woman who Paulienne whispered was an acclaimed artisan in Lahnthea said, with a warm smile on her lips. "You're lucky to join the palace with the Lahnthean Aria in our midst.""So I heard," Kiran said, trying to smile at the comment. She was the Lahnthean Aria after all, but she wouldn't admit it to the kind woman. Saia suggested they visit the District as ordinary people - or as ordinary as Saia's public identity could allow.Despite how much a spectacle Kiran's arrival in the palace was, not many were able to remember her face especially when she was half-running to catch up with Noorh the entire time. Even when informatio
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Kiran looked out the window of the crystal-powered carriage she rode to the Merchant's District with Saia, her attendant named Rueinna, and Paulienne.The vehicle, which reminded her more of Cinderella's carriage without the horses, had a driver at an external seat in front while two guards in casual noble clothes perched on external seats at the back. They drove toward one side of the citadel and crossed a bridge that led to the small island where the Merchant's District was located. The bridge gave Kiran a view of the village across the lake that surrounded the citadel: brick houses and buildings where common folk lived.There were two official routes to the Merchant's District. First was by land, which crossed the citadel. Common folk were generally prohibited from entering the citadel, unless they received special passes from its authorities that allowed them to do so. The passes were often granted to common folk who were under the employment of nobles as attendant
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Khas was an excellent communicator. That was the only wholesome explanation that Kiran could think of when she realized how long she had been talking to him.Kiran wasn't particularly talkative unless she was with close friends, which were a handful of people at most who she had known long enough to act as herself around them. Khas was someone she had known for a short while so he couldn't be part of that group, but she was still able to behave in a carefree manner around him.After exchanging the usual pleasantries, Khas guided her out of the building and began their conversation by asking about the food she ate for dinner.Dinners in the palace were different from what Kiran saw on TV shows that featured royalty. Residents didn't always have their meals in the dining hall. In fact, Khas explained that the dining hall was mostly a place where formal banquets were held. Residents of the palace rarely dined there. They instead had their meals in the confines of t
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Diel's lessons thankfully ended without leaving Kiran another life-threatening homework. He even retracted the assignment he gave her in the morning after she showed him the book that Noorh gave her at lunch. Diel also cancelled their lessons for the next day, which would have been something she would have celebrated if it wasn't given after a slightly tensed conversation she had with him when they wrapped up the day.Kiran walked down the garden path to her quarters with a frown on her face. Her mind kept repeating the incident in the classroom."That ends today's session," Diel announced, closing the book on his desk as he stood in front of Kiran. "Questions?"Kiran's conversation with Saia made her realize that she had to know exactly why Diel wasn't teaching her magic. Saia's explanation made sense, but it left her wondering why Diel didn't just outright explain it to her. She knew she wouldn't be able to sleep that night if she just brooded over it so she threw all caution to the
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Noorh stood frozen under the arch that served as the entrance to Diel's outdoor garden; his eyes wide at the sight of the two women who plagued his thoughts that morning. Noorh was sure that there wasn't anything particularly wrong with his visit. He even received Diel's permission. But he couldn't help feel uneasy at being there with Saia after hearing Arha's and Ethyal's explanation about Kiran's behavior in the library.Why was Saia even there? Did she hear about the incident in the library from someone? Did it upset her? Did she meet Kiran to confront her about it?"Your highness," Saia greeted, before Noorh could decide on whether he should immediately explain what happened or wait for her to ask him questions.Kiran anxiously studied the calm expression on Saia's face. Was she suspicious about Noorh's sudden appearance? Why was Noorh even there to begin with?! She turned her sights back to Noorh and noticed the book he held in one hand. "Oh! Are you here t
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Lady Saia was just as elegant and beautiful as Kiran remembered from the banquet, if not more. Every movement she made as done with an air of sophistication and grace, complimenting her stunning features. Kiran couldn't help but think that Saia undoubtedly deserved to be crowned as queen."I'm sorry," Saia began. "I didn't mean to rudely interrupt your lunch. I've always wanted to meet you personally after the banquet, but I heard that this is the only time you were available.""Oh no, please, it's alright," Kiran quickly said, rising to her seat. "I'm happy to meet you here. I've also been looking forward to talking with you more. You can take this seat if you like," she said, offering the chair across from her. "Diel-I mean totem Siit won't be joining me for lunch today.""Thank you, that's very kind of you, your grace," Saia said before gracefully taking the seat."Please call me 'Kiran,'" Kiran replied, taking a seat herself. "I’m not really into being addressed like that."Saia s
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Kiran's face twisted into a frown as she drank the brew that Paulienne offered her to drink after waking up early in the morning. It drew a sharp line down her throat, almost setting her insides into flames. The drink reminded her of the potion that Noorh gave her the first time they met.Come to think of it, the drink might actually be a version of the potion."You drank a potion when you arrived, yes? And it allowed you to understand our language," Diel said. The potion's effects is due to end tomorrow. You'll have to drink another dose to understand us by then. I'll remind Paulienne to prepare the dose for you."It might explain why Paulienne wordlessly handed it to her the minute Kiran showed signs of waking up.Kiran erupted into a series of coughs after one swig of the drink. She glanced at the glass and found two-thirds of the clear liquid still waiting to be consumed."Is this the potion that lets me understand and speak your langu
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Kiran gaped at Noorh, unsure about how to answer his question since there was a chance that Khas had been a figment of her imagination. But if her doubts had truth, then how did she end up in the sofa? Khas had to be real!"K-Khas…the other t-totem like D-Diel?" she shyly said, hoping that Noorh would recognize the description."The other totem?" Noorh muttered. "Oh!" he exclaimed, remembering something. "You mean Masielle!""Right!" Kiran agreed, remembering Khas' lengthy full name. "He told me to call him 'Khas.'""Of course," Noorh said, nodding. "The relationship between the Lahnthean Aria and the totems are special. I should have realized it sooner.""So you know him?" Kiran curiously asked, relieved that Khas was real.Noorh smiled at her. "Everyone knows the totems," he said. "And yes, I have spoken to him a few times. He keeps to himself a lot and he usually only speaks with the elders of the citadel."Kiran slowly nodd
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Don't turn around. That was what Kiran thought as she stood frozen in the middle of the cold and dimly-lit hallway. The hair at the back of her neck were standing on end as an ominous chill seemed to patiently hover behind her. In horror movies, this was the part where characters turned around despite all the glaring red flags. They immediately regretted doing so because it revealed the ghost or monster that they were hoping not to come across. Kiran stood in the exact spot she didn't dream of being in. Her mind was screaming profanities inside her head, debating on whether she should just break into a run or walk calmly away. But something within her had already frozen her limbs in place; her knees trembling as the stench of something rotten slowly spread in the air. She crouched and gagged as the scent assaulted her senses. She winced as it intensified and dug threw her insides, clawing at its contents so that she would hurl her guts out. Then a thought hit
