Chapter 97

𝕾𝖔𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖓 𝖙𝖔: 𝕴𝖛𝖞 𝖇𝖞 𝕿𝖆𝖞𝖑𝖔𝖗 𝕾𝖜𝖎𝖋𝖙

***

Yes, Henry was right, while I was already learning from the Academy for straight two days, he wasn't wrong when he said my older brother would always get rude to me whenever he had a hard time finding me.

I chuckled at his statements.

"That's just what a brother does, be rude, angry, and hateful, but at the end of the day, he would never want to lose his family, not when it comes to his little sister," I said while still chuckling and by doing so, Henry followed after.

"I guess I'll be meeting you tomorrow at your dorm again, so we have to go to our class now..." he said grabbing my hands and yanking me towards the door from my room.

I looked at his back and his body never changed.

I remember the time that we parted, it was a rainy day as if something within me was speaking that it wasn't all that, and yet, I can't remember a thing why this heart of mine would be confused by my memories.

Trying to leave something behind, I shook my head and closed my eyes for a moment before the golden rays of the sun shone within my vision.

Mother and Father told me that I suffered from a great illness, that's why when I woke up, a part of my memories seemed to be forgotten but they were crying and hugged me as if they'd just seen me for the first time alive.

When I looked beside me, I remembered that I had a brother, it was my older brother, he was named after my maternal grandfather Lenon Monsiore.

Perhaps, he suited that well, because his appearance spoke of a very handsome young man, an elegant being who couldn't be compared to anyone else.

If we hadn't been siblings, I might have already fallen in love with him, but because we were siblings I knew that he was a bit arrogant, rude, and always had a frown. When he knew that I hurt myself one time at thirteen years of age, he came rushing like a madman, doing everything he could to heal my swollen ankle.

That's when I knew that, he was a kind person on the inside, that I couldn't just judge based on his attitude.

He's just someone I couldn't guess after all.

Perhaps, as my parents would say, he did take up my maternal grandfather as he was strict, based on what my mother would always tell me.

After that event, he would always show me a mix of both that's why I would always sigh and try to understand him.

"By the way, didn't you know about the Greviore's only daughter?" Claudius asked me. We were in the cafeteria after our class began this morning and as usual, the professor was no other than Sir Thomas, Sir Feldin's cousin.

I got to chuckle at the idea, but it seemed that it's what life works.

I get to meet new people, meet new friends, and find a way to annul my engagement with the crown prince.

I knew for a reason that I should be doing what I could, and I didn't even know why I wanted to annul my engagement with him, it's just as if the moment I realized mother and father loved each other, not because they were arranged marriage but their very foundation was love.

I couldn't love someone out of an arranged marriage even if it meant that I would be the future empress of the empire.

I once thought how would it be good to rule the empire, but at the same time, if the crown prince doesn't even like me, then what's the point of having a great family with him?

I don't want to live my life being branded inside a cage, and this is what my heart was telling me even though my mind was confused about some things.

"Vestia, are you all right?"

"Oh, y-yeah, and are you talking about Lady Celna?" I asked my friends, and four of them were only staring right at me with eyes narrowing

"W-What?"

"No, it's nothing."

"We just kind of felt as if we heard that name before"

"But I guess we couldn't recall it, so why did you ask about it, Claudius?"

Every attention went to Claudius' eyes as he sighed.

"Didn't you know that she passed away three years ago?"

"We did," Lexus said

And I nodded though I was only informed of it by my brother who studied me for a reaction but I never thought that it was real, and if it was, what would be my reaction? I haven't even met her before.

"So what's the problem with the late young lady?" Henry asked

"It seemed that her brother, older brother would be also coming to study with us"

"You mean, Theodore?"

"Who else would have that name besides the Greviore family?"

"But that doesn't make sense," Cain spoke

"What doesn't make sense?" I asked

"Because Theodore already graduated, so why would he study again?" Cain explained

Claudius sighed and we both leaned in closer to him. I could see every one of us had this knitted eyebrow that we weren't able to contain and before I knew it, I already grabbed Claudius' collar

"Is it possible?" I asked him and he just sighed once more grabbing my hands gently and claiming them in his hands instead.

"I guess it's possible seeing that you have two degrees that's already stressing you out, Vestia," he said with a sweet smile and it indeed made me sigh like him before.

I did have two majors, first is the knighthood of a lady which I would love to try because I promise that... wait, what did I promise again?

I was trying to understand something when all of the students gasped and stood. We turned our heads and looked to the front door of the cafeteria only to gaze at the crown prince and how handsome he seemed.

His crimson hair swayed by the endless cold breezes from the outside, while his golden eyes got to look everywhere until he met my eyes and narrowed them until he closed them once more and sighed.

He turned to look behind him and I could see that he had the family of the viscounts of the south and east, as well as the daughter of Count Lutherfore, and others. But I couldn't see where my brother was, usually, in those two days, I would see him besides the crown prince and the others since he was also part of the academy's student council.

Shaking my head, I had enough of thinking about the crown prince and was about to return to my previous position when everyone gasped again but this time, I saw that the crown prince was heading my way, and his gaze wasn't that nice.

Even though he was someone like my ideal prince coming out of a fairytale book, I knew from the start that he didn't like me, was it because he and my brother had a tension between them? I don't know.

The moment that everyone gasped again, this time, I didn't look at where since I knew that a warm and yet tight grip was already covering my wrist and my feet followed the silhouette of the young man.

When I knew that we were already far away from the people, he halted and I claimed my hands from him. He turned to look at me, but this time, his gaze was different it was soft and tender but that only lasted a few seconds before I blinked them away.

Right now, I'm even more confused when he was walking near where I was trying to steal the gap in between us, and when I tried stepping backward, my back caught up with the tree and I gasped when I felt his hands cornering my heads as he leaned.

"Lady Vestia, don't you remember a thing?" He asked, and I tried to focus on his words, but I felt like my head was spinning and in a few seconds, I already had this mild migraine that I didn't care about his silhouette hovering over me, his scent overruling my chest and his gaze that came to almost ruin my soul.

Right now, I felt like my world was splitting apart until I felt warmth covering my whole body and in that instance, I saw golden mists like Caliere's eyes overruling my vision

"I guess you're still in that sweet dream, and I wouldn't want to ruin you by making you remember so at least, don't forget that I am here for you, so please... please Vestia... come back..."

Words became vague as he tried to grip his hug to me but when my vision finally returned to that meadow, I couldn't remember what he said after I woke up.

As it was already night, I went to my balcony only to look at Lexus throwing some pebbles from my window and ushering me to come down.

I looked everywhere and the knights seemed to be asleep, so I tried coming down with his help. He handed me a coat and he chuckled.

"Good thing Henry disguising as your distant cousin made me do the same thing as your personal knight, Vestia," I nodded, and yet, it puzzles me again, why is Henry disguising as my distant cousin?

I tried to remember but all that it could lead me to was him running away from his family and perhaps, they wronged him in some ways.

Shaking my head, we headed to the garden and took a night stroll until one word was enough to make me shiver and I don't know why...

"Agnes," he paused

"There was once a mysterious lady named Lady Agnes who kept on helping the commoner people around the market but four years ago she disappeared and the clinic was nowhere to be found again"

"Why? Did anyone find out why she disappeared?"

"To be honest, no one knew, but it seemed that rumors said she lost her memories a disease that no one could cure even the blue rose of the Clamorians..."

"That's a pretty sad story about a young lady named Agnes..." I said but why do I feel a sudden heaviness in my heart? It's as if I could relate to her a lot and I don't even know anything about her.

Not even now, but why?