I wonder, why flowers bloom faster and wither the second.
My eyes couldn't stop staring at the red roses Sonia gave me. When I looked at the vase, I saw water in the middle of the stem.
Touching it, my hands didn't fit the size. I continued to lean on it and found out that roses, aside from being mesmerising to look at, also had their flaws.
They have thorns and if not cared well, they might end up withering too soon.
"Gabriel, could you give me a specific time when this flower will die?" I asked, and the book popped up. The golden glow began.
Before I blink, the pages were already flipping and stopped at the middle
"Three weeks from now, it will wither," are the words written in the book.
"So is there any chance that the flower will remain not to wither?"
"There is…"
"What is it?"
"Drying it would probably take you more time but if you're willing, I know a place..."
"Thank you, and please do; I will appreciate it, Gabriel."
"No worries, and by the way, Gabriel sounds like a man's name, don't you think, Lady Isabela?"
"It's either way; I want to have a friend I could call by name but just by book, Gabriel..." so the book flipped until the glow from earlier faded.
It went down the table.
I chuckled. Sometimes, I think knowing Gabriel as a book felt like knowing a human being.
Shaking my hands, I touched the rose's petals, and they were truly mesmerising.
It's the same colour as the blood. Indeed, it covered the deeper meaning of it.
Not knowing that even perfection stems from imperfections themselves.
Trying to trace the edges of them caught my fingers to cut. As soon as the blood overflowed, the pure blue water became engulfed with crimsonness.
A feeling I wanted to avoid in this lifetime.
"Milady? Oh goodness! Sebastian! Milady is bleeding. Should we call for the physician?"
"Sonia, there's no need to worry, okay? I'm fine."
'But Milady-----"
"Where's the blood, Sonia, and I will call Sir Arthur, immed."
"And even you Sebastian, please don't overreact, okay? I said I'm fine; it's just a normal thing when the thorns of the roses pricked my hands, so you two don't need to worry about me," I said as soon as I reassured them, but the moment I turned to look at the vase where the roses have been lying, it wasn't there.
"Just for your safety reasons, Milady, we would gladly appreciate it if you comply with us and Sir Arthur will come in a second," Sonia said with a smile
"Then, as we may leave, Milady, we will take the vase with the roses since this hurt you," Sebastian said with slightly furrowed eyebrows while looking at the vase.
In the end, no matter what I wanted to say, they wouldn't listen.
I sighed
***
"Milady, it's all done. You're healthy and fine, so don't overstress yourself, okay?"
"Yes, Sir Arthur," I said, following with a sigh.
The man who almost had white hair over the sides of his head, with a few wrinkles on his forehead and under his eyes, lifted the edges of his lips and chuckled as he patted my head with a few words.
"Someday, you'll be able to understand your curiosity right now," he said
His voice brings me to a meadow where the sun would start to set.
I inhaled a few more before asking.
"I'm curious?" I asked
He chuckled before answering.
"Of course, because you got slightly injured by the thorns of the roses, right? You're curious if the thorns of the roses are sharp, right? At a young age, you're already bright. You're testing the waters, as some wise men would say," Sir Arthur chuckled and coughed a bit before I patted his arms.
"Are you okay?" I asked him, and all he did was smile and nod as he patted my head.
Even though I got back in time, I guess some things will always remain. I only hope this warmth never fades even after that unavoidable meeting.
"Sonia, can I ask you a question?" I asked. I looked at Sonia cleaning over my table where I ate sweets and cookies earlier.
"Of course, Milady." Sonia stopped what she was doing and smiled while hiding her cleaning tools behind her.
I shook my head and sighed.
"I guess I asked you at the wrong time; can you come after dinner? I hope you're not busy by then," I said, and without any further ado, I walked towards the library with Gabriel in my hands.
"Yeah, Milady!" I heard Sonia scream. I chuckled as I saw her run towards their quarters.
From my past life, I didn't consider Sonia, or even Sebastian, and the old man, Sir Arthur. I haven't known any of them, even if they might have devoted their lives to me.
Perhaps because all in my mind is to help the man I fell in love with. A person who corrupted my sight and someone who never mistakes to make my heartbeat like a crazy drum.
Remembering him and the things he did to me in the past made a chill run down my spine.
I couldn't breathe for a second.
"Lady Isabela, we should be going now or else I wouldn't be able to show you the way." The book lifted itself from my hold and glowed just as we passed the library.
The book flipped again. This time, a quote appeared as if it wasn't talking to me anymore but a prophecy would arrive.
"In the sun's place, two foetuses were born, one to rule and one to destroy. One to be the nation's leader and one to absorb that throne. If wisely asked, do make the second-in-line; look at the cold water to see its ripples," The book flipped again
"Seek the inner soul rather than thy form from the outside; what natural as a smile could be perceived as deception from a rabbit's eyes."
Mind-chilling prophecy again. The book lost its glow and went ahead to my hands.
I wanted to ask Gabriel what it meant, but even it doesn't know when and where the prophecy would happen. Gabriel doesn't even know the meanings behind them.
It's just a vessel, and that's what I'm still figuring out.
But for the greater good of today, I might as well have to save someone, a person who was destined to become the strongest knight of the empire, the right-hand dog of Charles Delavoix, Adviel Crest.
I knew him well because he was one of the reasons I hated the imperial family except Charles and his brother.
Shaking my head, I sighed and covered my figure with a coat.
I head to the secret passage, I manage to find the past, and thoughts continue to run through my mind.
Words that continued to become a part of my nightmare.
"Gabriel, we're finally outside, so tell me what to do and where should we go?" I whispered, leaning to the book.
Before I even got a proper response, I felt the surroundings move, and the next thing I knew, the book fell to the ground, a hurrying carriage passed over my side, and I was on top of a person who was already groaning in pain.
"I-I'm s-sorry, I-I was, I-I don't know why I-I sudden---"
"It's okay, Miss, and if you're fine then please stand before I do," The tone was a man's; it was warm and carefree, but I wasn't able to see his face due to his hat, scarf, and coat covering all over his figure.
My chuckles waved, and before I knew it, he already stood before I even fixed some dust all over my cloak. Then he handed me the book with a few words.
"Next time, be careful most of all for the pickpockets and thieves around the place. A young girl like you should be alert and cautious all the time," he said and walked away before I could bow.
His voice was warm. I felt a sudden familiarity but at the same time, my chest hurt. For some unknown reason, I couldn't help but face his back and look at his traces, even fading through the people within the market.
"Lady Isabel, the way to the auction was the underground park of the roses. It's where I said I would show you some roses that felt like they had been frozen in time."
The book flipped and notified me of the plan for today.
Shaking my head, I set aside the help of the young man and went to the designated place, the place I knew well.
The underground roses.
A black market for selling slaves from other nations. It so happened that at this time of the season, Adviel had already come to be auctioned.
I hope he's still there because, like a rose, without giving such necessary supplies to bloom, his aura will be corrupted. He will be like a puppet ready to kill whom its master demands from him.
And speaking of the devil, right before my eyes was already the stage where people spout huge amounts of money.
Right in front of the stage lays a red-haired young man with eyes that spoke of the sun. Having flawless skin with dirty, rotten clothes laying with some chains over its neck, hands, and feet.
People continued to bid for him, but before the host fell the hammer, I raised my hand to bid the highest amount I could ever have.
"100000 gold coins!"
For the first time, I felt like I'd won when no one spoke and the hammer fell on my bid.
As Adviel Crest came from the ruined Elviona Empire, the empire where a magical beast with an affinity for swordsmanship spoke, I knew I would learn so much from him and he too would learn much more from me.
As soon as I had Adviel in my custody, he managed to bite me since his eyes were glaring. It's a symptom I knew well.
So to bind a magical user with a contract, I kissed his forehead and said words like a spell. The words I managed to know in my previous life.
"…..advenicus…"
After my last word, Adviel fell on my shoulders like a sleeping boy, and so, the moment I brought him to the Duchy, everyone questioned where I came from and what someone did, and just like a small white lie, I told them he saved me from those people who were trying to kidnap me.
It worked, and from there on, Adviel became my servant and soon to be a knight; however, only on the first day, I never thought my family would receive a letter from the imperial family.
It was much earlier than expected.
"I, Edvon Delavoix, the emperor of the Delavoix empire, hereby put my second son Charles Delavoix in the Delmier custody for as long as he can stay until I revoke my statement that he will stay there for a very long time, two weeks after the imperial family celebration at my palace."
Father announced and the glass that Adviel gave me earlier fell to the floor yet it only floated inches above it.
Father, mother, and the whole people at the duchy were still surprised about me finding a mage, but that didn't matter anymore right now since the letter that we received was supposed to be received a year later.
It's still 999 AD, and next year it will be 1000 AD, so why did it all change?
***
"You said that behind every person's smile lies their suffering, but could you even guess what's mine,Isabela?"