Lady Thorn tossed her head impatiently at the chair beside the table piled high with books. "Sit down," she directed in a cold, impersonal voice.
Without a word, Selene sat down, her mind racing with curiosity and a hint of apprehension. However, instead of immersing herself in the lesson, Lady Thorn crossed her arms over her chest and, as it seemed, started to mutter to herself.
"To think. I've been reduced to lecturing a cursed child," the tutor spat, completely ignorant or indifferent to the hurt in Selene's eyes.
Insulted, Selene's heart sank. She bit her tongue, fighting for composure. Cursed child. That's what they thought of her now.
Lady Thorn lifted a brow, noticing the girl's expression. "Are you upset?" she asked in a completely flat tone; however, a hint of mockery in her voice betrayed her.
Selene didn't say anything. Her lips pressed tightly together, attempting to hold back the frustration rising all too quickly.
She sighed dramatically, her head shaking as if the silence from Selene was some sort of personal attack. "I've taught so many children of nobility, Miss Selene-and you know what happens to those who receive low or cursed classes? They're cast aside. Their very families will toss them out like so much trash. And do you know why? Because they shame and destroy the family name."
Selene's fists, hidden in her lap, began to clench, but her words remained unsaid.
"I avoid teaching children with low classes," Lady Thorn resumed, her voice turning bitter. "Why? Because it means their parents will not give gifts for my effort of teaching. They stop caring about the child, and by extension, they stop caring about me. But when I was hired to teach you and your brother, I thought, ah, here's my golden opportunity! Two children from a powerful house, sure to awaken prestigious classes! Teach them well, and I'd be showered with expensive gifts—enough wealth to retire early."
She slammed a hand on the table; her voice dripped with venom. "But now? Now, thanks to you, all my plans are falling apart!"
Selene blinked in shock. Was this grown woman seriously blaming a 12-year-old for her lack of success?
The bitterness on Lady Thorn's face deepened, her eyes narrowing. "You've wasted my time, Selene, and I demand compensation for it."
The words hung in the air, leaving Selene speechless. Compensation? From a child?
Before Selene could wrap her mind around the audacity of the request, Lady Thorn's gaze fell to the pendant hanging around her neck. A greedy glow rose in her eyes. "That pendant," she said, jabbing her finger. "Hand that over. That'll make up for the time you've cost me.
Her heart had raced in disbelief: first Aldric's stare, and now this woman wanting it for herself? The very thought of another trying to take something so dear from her in only two days since coming into the world was enough to send her into a rage.
She frowned, clenching the pendant tightly in her hand as her body screamed mutiny.
At the sight of Selene's denial, Lady Thorn's eyes clouded. Without warning, her hand lashed out, and with a sharp crack, she slapped Selene across the face. At the force of such a blow, Selene was shocked into silence as her cheek stung from the effect of the blow, wrapped in shock.
From the lips of Lady Thorn, a malicious laugh exploded as she enjoyed the incredulous expression on Selene's face. "What's wrong, dear? Fallen from grace, have you? And don't think that running to your beloved father and mother will save you. They won't care. Why would they? You are no more than a blemish on the family name at this point."
The face of Lady Thorn contorted into a bitter scowl as her anger boiled over. "You think you have it bad, girl? You have no idea!" she spat, pacing in front of Selene, almost reliving every grievance. "I wasn't born into privilege, like you. No. I was born a commoner, the child of a mere servant! My father, the gardener for some viscount, and my mother a maid groveling at the feet of those pampered brats."
She caught her breath then, her eyes dark with resentment. "Day in and day out, I had to watch those daughters of the house get pampered by my mother. They wore pretty clothes, glittering jewels, went to tea parties, gossiped with their friends while I-I-was condemned to wear rags, patches sewn up by my mother. Old torn-out clothes passed down from generation to generation, while I waited upon those two spoiled girls."
The voice of Lady Thorn shook with scarcely contained anger. "I wanted that life! To me, it was due just as much as to them, no, I was cursed to live among pathetic poor; the Goddess must have been punishing me for some cruel reason. But then-then I awakened as a mage! A beam of hope in the darkness of my miserable life."
She laughed bitterly, pacing faster now, her ranting intensifying. "I thought, 'This is my chance!' I could finally rise above my station, join the Ravencroft Academy of Magic and Combat, prove my worth, and maybe-just maybe-earn my way to nobility."
Selene sat there, her face still stinging, staring at Lady Thorn in stunned silence.
"But do you know what happened when I got to the Academy? I was suppressed! "Lady Thorn spat, her voice dripping with venom. "The noble brats there were even worse than the ones I'd grown up with! The teachers were all hypocrites-favoring those born with money and power, while people like me were treated like dirt!
No matter how hard I tried, no matter how much effort I put in, I just could not raise my level high enough to be a battle mage or even a castle mage!
"
The fists closed, and nails dug into her palms. "If I could've just become a castle mage, I could've earned achievements, gotten recognition, maybe even a title! But no. no matter what I did, it was never enough. I've been stuck teaching spoiled noble brats ever since!"
Lady Thorn's voice dropped to a venomous whisper as she stared at Selene with eyes full of resentment. "And now, I'm stuck with you, a child cursed, ruining my last chance for any sort of future. You think I'll let that go without compensation?"
Selene, rubbing her swollen cheek, was speechless at this woman's tirade. In the game, Lady was composed, polite, and well-mannered, especially in front of Eri and Damion, but now the Thorn in front of her looks like a woman of her meds, which she definitely or desperately needs.
This woman is insane. I need to find a way out of this. Selene thought as she looked around the room for any clues for an escape.
Lady Thorn's voice rose shrill as she ranted on, her bitterness spilling into the room like a poison of sorts. "Do you know how it feels, Selene? To watch children like you, born into nobility, handed everything on a silver platter? I worked so hard, tried everything over the years to become a noble myself. But no, no matter how much effort I put in, no matter how much I debased myself, I couldn't climb high enough.".
Something now darker, a twisted admixture of envy and self-loathing, flashed across her eyes. "I even attempted to degrade myself in the hopes that some nobleman would show me pity. I offered myself as a wife, as a mistress, but they used me, discarded me as trash, and now that I am old, there's no hope left. No more chance to seduce a noble, no more shortcuts.".
Selene, on the other hand, watched in horror as, with every word, Lady Thorn spiraled deeper into despair; her voice became louder and wilder.
"Buying a noble title costs an arm and a leg," Lady Thorn burst out, pacing like a caged animal. "The only title I could ever hope to afford was that of a baron. A pathetic, lowly baron! But I wanted more-I deserved more! I planned to get your favor, have you fund my life, and in return, I would get myself a countess or even a marchioness title, and run my little fiefdom. But you, you had to ruin it all!"
She whirled on Selene, her eyes burning with hatred. "I had the chance to tutor the crown prince-can you imagine that? But I turned it down, thinking I'd get more from the Ravencroft family! I thought I could milk you for all you were worth, but no! You're a cursed child, and you destroyed my future. You owe me for that!
Selene took her swollen cheek between her fingers and let the overflowing anger get the best of her. "Why should I compensate you for your poor life choices?" she snapped, her voice shaking with rage.
Anger contorted Lady Thorn's face now; her hand flashed once more and slapped Selene again. The force of the blow sent her crashing to the floor, a sharp sting spreading across her face, and a small trickle of blood falling from her lip. Dazed, she looked up at Lady Thorn; her head was spinning with disbelief, and anger welled inside.
I've had enough of this!" she then hissed, with a harsh, cruel laugh. "Any time that I meet children like you—abandoned and pathetic—I use them as a means of venting my frustrations, and especially seeing as how your fathers rejected me!"
In one swift, violent motion, Lady Thorn jerked the pendant off Selene's neck; the force of it made Selene jump. "You don't deserve this!" she spat, reaching for the hairpins at Selene's head, yanking them out with no regard for Selene's pain. Fingers tangled painfully in her hair as she tore at the pins, ripping strands from her scalp.
"Stop it!" Selene screamed, her face streaming with tears as she struggled with her head between her hands to pry the woman's hands loose. But Lady Thorn did not stop, and with each passing second her anger seemed to mount; her grip on Selene's hair tightened, tugging harder and harder with a growing viciousness.
"You little brat!" ranted Lady Thorn, the moment every shred of composure left her. "You ruined everything for me!" She lifted her hand and gave a fire spell with a menacing tone. "I'll burn your pretty little face to teach you a lesson."
Tears welling up in her eyes, Selene quivered from head to foot, clutching Lady Thorn's wrist in sheer terror as her heart hammered against her ribs. She shut her eyes and shrieked in desperation, her voice hoarse. "Unholy Flames!
In an instant, the woman's hand flared to life in brilliant purple flames.