Selena was unsure how she reached her bed last night. It was already morning and she was still in a daze. She had never suffered such a shock as she had last night.
Not only was hearing Lance's story so heartbreaking but she realized that there was another prince that existed.
She understood that the sole reason why she approached Lance and felt more comfortable around him was that she assumed he was the sole prince of the empire due to his emperor's eyes.
No one is aware of what's really going on within the imperial family since it's hidden so well but now she knows that there are two princes, which means she has two potential fiancés.
She rubs her head in frustration, her emotions have never been in such turmoil. She thinks back to Lance's story. There were so many confusing and weird points in it but never had the chance to point them out. Most of the questions she had were asking how a proper prince, born of the emperor and empress, could live the type of life Lance did but it turns out the situation is far more complicated than she originally expected.
The more she thought about it, the more she grimaced. Based on her understanding of the very little clues her mother gave her when they were young, there is a decent chance that her fiancé is actually...
She shook her head at the thought. "No, it technically isn't impossible, I should not give up hope" she comforted herself.
After getting along with Lance these days, she had a very good impression of him. She actually didn't mind if they ended up together in the end but after yesterday, things became much more complicated.
She isn't the type of person to completely disregard the arrangements made by her mother, that's why she spoke with Lance in a very friendly and inviting manner in the first place. But if the person her mother wants her to be with is actually Jason, she would have no choice but to at least see if they are compatible. But based on how Lance described him, she holds absolutely no hope for a future together.
She sighs deeply, "if it really is him, hopefully, he is open enough to cancel the engagement without ruining the relationship between our mothers," she says in an exasperated tone.
Selena always wanted to live a simple life and study her magic in peace. After hearing what Lance went through and potentially being engaged to the brother he hates the most, she feels like she is trapped in deeper and deeper in a situation she never wanted to find herself in.
"I don't see any advantage in getting even more involved than I already am, I think I already know too much and things will get even more tricky if I keep getting involved in the fight within the imperial family," Selena says with a sigh.
"I'll just continue to focus on myself and do what I want to do. Let me not stress myself over things I can't control, the most important thing right now is winning this campaign with my class", Selena says with a newfound fire in her eyes.
"Class Rep, are you still sleeping, we are heading to the lake now with the other commanders!" someone says from outside the tent.
"Other commanders? They're here already?" Selena says in surprise.
"Yes, Commander Lance told us not to disturb you since you were tired. We are ready to head out now" The person said.
Selena smiles, "He is still so caring.."
"Alright, I'll be out soon, tell him I said thank you," she says as she gets ready.
After she arrives outside to meet the group, "Selena!!!!" a loud voice yells as she hugs Selena in panic.
"I heard what happened, You didn't get hurt, did you? If only I was there, I would've killed anyone who threatened you!" Ivory says in a cold but caring tone.
"Thank you Ivory and I'm fine, don't worry," Selena says while patting Ivory's back. The feeling of having a friend care for you fills Selena's heart with immense warmth.
"So how are things over there with Commander Zenat?" Selena asks.
"Oh, the commander is great. I can see why he is in charge of most of our military affairs. I am learning so much from him but it's a bit difficult to keep up with his knowledge given that I am almost a fresh graduate" Ivory says in an embarrassed voice.
What about you, how are things with Commander Lance?" Ivory asks.
"Nothing, there's nothing going on!" Selena says quickly in a bit of a shy voice.
"Oh? What do we have here, to think a woman who doesn't like Offensive magic would be into a military commander?" Fiona says teasingly.
"I never said I don't like offensive magic and who says I'm into him? He's just not too bad of a guy, that's all" Selena says defensively.
Ivory smiles at her reaction, "I thought that someone like a military commander would definitely eye a person like Fiona more than you, better be careful my dear Selena, that woman may really be your nemesis" Ivory says while giggling.
"Oh please, if it works out then it works out, if it doesn't then it doesn't. I won't fight other women for a man, especially if that woman is Fiona, I want to live a good life remember" Selena says while rolling her eyes.
After some more small talk, Ivory eventually left Selena's side and headed back toward the direction of Commander Zenat.
"It seems that he has some competition now," Ivory says while giggling, as a woman who loves romantic drama, this is the exact situation she loved to see. She continues to giggle to herself while arriving at where she was originally stationed.
As Selena continues to catch up with her other classmates, she notices an oppressive pressure slowly approaching her. She looks up and sees it's Fiona.
Selena frowns and says "What do you need?"
Fiona doesn't answer but stares coldly at the student Selena is talking to. The student catches the hint and quickly bows and runs away from Fiona.
Selena, a person who has never received a bow from that student before, starts to clench her fist in anger.
"The amount of respect this woman has earned truly is envious," Selena says in her head while waiting for Fiona's words.
"Follow me," Fiona says while walking towards the corner.
Selena starts shaking her clenched fist in anger. So you can just command me now? "Why don't you just tell me here!" Selena says with a bit of anger in her voice.
"Because it's not convenient. Don't give me a hard time or else I will give you a hard time" Fiona says as her hands flash with the color of orange.
"It's always threats with this woman," Selena says as she mutters under her breath but obediently follows her to the corner. No matter what, She still wants to avoid fighting Fiona no matter what.
"And if I get hurt here, how can I continue to lead my group? I'm doing this for the betterment of my team" Selena says to calm herself down as she tries to justify her feelings of cowardice.
After the two arrive at a corner, Fiona looks around and then looks back at Selena with a complicated expression.
It was silent for a while and before Selena could say something to break the silence, She heard Fiona's voice.
"I heard you cured the lake?"
Selena was confused, why would she drag me out just to say this? She thinks to herself while lost in confusion.
"Yeah, so what?" Selena answers nonchalantly
Fiona continues to stare at her and then quickly turns her head to the side.
"It seems that poor excuse for magic that you practice is not as useless as I originally thought," Fiona says in a voice that's almost a whisper.
Fiona was stunned, "What did she just hear? Did Fiona really just say that?" Her thoughts quickly filled her head.
Fiona's words are still as foul as ever but how could Selena not know exactly what Fiona is trying to say?
A big smile grows on Selena's face. A smile that completely dwarfs all other smiles she had throughout this trip. Even she never expected to feel this happy over such a rude backdoor compliment. As much as she hated the idea, maybe deep down, the person she wanted validation from the most was this rude but powerful woman in front of her.
"Yep, it does seem that way doesn't it" Selena responds with a proud smirk.
Fiona turns around in shock at Selena's answer and realizes that Selena probably understood what she wanted to say.
A bit of shame rose in Fiona's heart and she quickly retorted,
"Don't get ahead of yourself. I plan to become one of the most valuable people in this campaign, I won't let your little accomplishment dwarf the hard work of us soldiers fighting in the front lines!"
Selena smiles at Fiona's defensive answer. Nothing Fiona can say can possibly ruin her current good mood. Selena approaches Fiona and puts her hand on her shoulder.
"Don't Worry Fiona, I believe you can do it as well. Good luck, I'll be rooting for you!" Selena says as she slowly lets go of her hand and slowly skips away with her current happy mood adding a bit of extra pep in her step.
Fiona looks at the disappearing back of Selena, the woman she always looked down on, and slowly starts to clench her fist.
She slowly calms down and reassures herself, "Even losers can have a good day, I should not worry too much" Fiona mutters to herself.
"Well... she's not much of a loser now after all this, right? It seems I have to work even harder to stand out now" Fiona says as a cold glint flashes in her eye.
"The Southern tribe huh? It seems you guys will be my first stepping stone" Fiona says while clasping her fist and slowly walking back to the camp.
After all three groups were settled, they headed towards the lake. The journey was smooth and they didn't meet any of the loose Southern tribe soldiers. Eventually, the three armies arrived at the lake and the commanders were in a daze while looking at the lake.
"I can't believe you were actually serious. The lake is really cured! It looks even better than before" Commander Zenat exclaimed.
He then turns to Selena with a smile of gratitude on his face. "Thank you so much, Miss Selena, you have saved us so much trouble".
"It's no problem, Commander, I am just doing my duty as a mage from the empire" Selena answers while a bit flustered.
Commander Zenat wipes a small tear from his eye and says, "The future of my Kadence empire is really bright".
The classmates under Selena all begin to smile with newfound confidence. "This is our class rep! A woman who makes miracles" they all thought to themselves.
After everyone got settled into camp, they were told that they planned to attack the stronghold together tomorrow.
Selena was about to walk back into her tent when she heard a familiar voice.
"Selena..." The figure said softly.
Selena turns around, "Lance, there you are," She says with a soft smile on her face.
Lance had a complicated expression on his face. "Selena... are you avoiding me?"
Selena quickly froze. The only thing she knows about the identity of Lance's mother is that she gave birth to Lance and was not the empress. That's all. With this alone, it does not rule out that my mother was friends with Lance's mother and thus, engaged me to her son. My mother could also easily be friends with the empress and engaged me to her son instead. I could easily be engaged to either Jason or Lance.
After knowing just how much he despises both the Empress and Jason, how could I have the confidence to talk to him like normal? If he sees me as a threat or a spy, what would I do?
Selena thinks to herself as a wave of sadness hits her. "Why is my life so complicated?" she says in her head as she tries to collect her thoughts.
"Before I know exactly who I am dealing with, it doesn't seem like a good idea to be too close. Lance is a good guy, I'll just keep a little distance just in case and I'll apologize to him later if I got it wrong" she says to herself as her gaze becomes more firm.
"My apologies if I made it seem that way, I just have a lot of things on my mind now and need some time to focus. I'll explain everything to you when the time is right. Please don't rush me" Selena says in a soft and gentle tone.
Lance sighs, "It almost made me regret talking so much yesterday," Lance says with a bit of regret in his tone.
"No. don't say that", Selena says quickly.
No matter what happens, I decided to support your dream. It's just a personal matter that I'm dealing with right now" she says in a panic.
Lance smiles, "Oh, you'll support my dream? That makes me quite happy," he said in a teasing voice. "I'll take your word for it then Miss Selena, You better keep your promise," he says while not bothering to hide his happy expression.
"Of course I won't! Selena says in a firm tone. Lance then waves goodbye and heads back to his tent.
She did not lie, in her heart, she truly does believe that Lance would make a good emperor. She would never consider teaming up with anyone to take him down.
"I'm sure I can find a better solution for everyone involved," Selena says to herself as Lance slowly disappears from view.
She shudders as she thinks back to that parallel future mentioned by Lance earlier, "We have to avoid that future at all costs" She mutters to herself as she slowly drifts to sleep.