Seraphiell
The warm, gentle sunlight shines through the window and kisses my skin. I open my eyes and I'm back to my room, right where I fell asleep. "Time to get up, your highness, you have an audience scheduled with lady Pembroke today." Cindy shakes me gently. This is usually the part where I spend minutes sitting on my bed, asking myself what the point of ever getting up even is. My nights are so short that I wake up tired every morning and have to push through the entire day, only to sleep late again. But right now, I feel like I could go on an expedition to find the heavens. My body is so light, it's strange. "Draw a bath quickly, Cindy. And tell the butlers to arrange for a breakfast for two in the green house." She bows, "Yes, of course, your highness." After bathing and getting ready, I go see father whom I meet reading something. "Up already, father?"
"Yes, I'm going through the newspapers. I must know what has been happening in my empire, must I not?"
"I could always tell you about it."
"You have too much on your mind already, Athy. I plan on returning to office in a month's time, so I must be hasty."
"Are you sure about that, father? You're an old man, holding a funeral is quite a hassle..."
"I am but 42 years old! And don't forget you are speaking to the 'prodigy emperor'." He sips his tea. "I should've said cocky old man." I mumble.
"What was that?"
"Nothing." I glare at my nails. "Anyhow," He continues. "You must start working on proving to the noble faction that you are fit to be the empress. Your excellent work as my proxy speaks for itself, but that is not enough to convince those narrow-minded people." He stares into my eyes. The eyes he gave me. I wish I could steal the fire burning in his. "Atheril, shove it down their throats without even saying a single word. Make it so that they send their objections to hell." "Already on it, father." But not to worry. I already feel fire in my bones. Fire that isn't for me to be burnt. Not this time. Lucas escorts me from the front of father's chambers to the greenhouse at the west end of the castle. "Serene." I sigh in wonder.
It is built almost completely of glass, and even from the outside, the myriads of flowers inside can be seen. I step in and absorb the atmosphere. Bursts of colour everywhere as the gentle scent of flora greets my nose. I used to love it here as a child. In fact, this is where I would braid mother's hair and flowers into the braids. But that stopped when the war ruined everything. "Lucas, please tell the butlers to increase the wages of the gardeners. They have done a wonderful job over the years." Lucas nods. I walk to the centre and gently tap the shoulder of the unsuspecting maroon-haired person fiddling with her fingers. A decision I soon regret.
She moves like the wind, so swift, I don't even catch what she did, and before I know it, the tip of a pure blue sword meets my throat and starts to draw blood. But even faster than that, before the blade moved any closer, Lucas uses his gravity manipulation to suspend her in the air. Her eyes meet mine from above, and she practically melts into butter. "S-Seraphiell!! I- I had absolutely no idea it was you, y-your steps were so silent, and I hadn't even noticed your presence until the moment you touched me, I thought you might be an assassin, please don't sentence me to death for treason!" I take a moment to catch my breath. My life almost started to flash before my eyes. In a single second, I could have been dead by her hand. "Put her down, Lucas." He lowers her to her feet and hurries to me. "Are you hurt anywhere, princess?" His gaze lands on my neck, and his eyes froze. I could've sworn that for a moment, he didn't breathe. The colour drained from his face as his jaw tightened, a storm brewing in his furrowed brow. "You're bleeding." He searches the pockets of his uniform for a handkerchief when Melody rushes and hands him one. He holds it to my neck. Gently. Ever so gently.
"Let me escort you to the imperial doctor, princess." Worry is written all over him. "I am fine, Lucas, it was just a scratch."
"You still need to see a paramedic and a healer."
"I am alright, I promise. It doesn't even hurt any longer." Hold on.
It doesn't hurt any longer.
I slowly pull his hand away from my neck and see the blood on the handkerchief. My fingers find their way to the spot where the wound is, and I realise it is where the wound was. "Don't touch it, Sera, it'll hurt!" Melody scolds. "It's gone." I tell her.
"What? What do you mean by it's gone?"
"The wound is gone. Look." I point at my neck. Both Melody and Lucas scrutinize my neck. "Feel it and see." Melody looks at me like I just summoned a demon. "Putting your hands on the neck of a royal is considered treason, PRINCESS Seraphiell."
"Pointing a sword at one is also considered treason, and if I remember correctly, drawing blood from a royal's neck is a crime punishable by execution." She stutters, "It- it was an accident!" I must admit, seeing a rebellious free spirit like Melody fear for her life is a bit amusing. A rare sight indeed. "It is alright if I ordered it." I reassure her. She sighs and puts her finger on the same spot her blade ran over. "What in the-" She gasps.
"I told you; the wound is gone." Now we are all wearing the same rattled expression. "Now, we must definitely take you to see a doctor to find out what just happened." Lucas continues to nag like a parent. "Wait, Melody and I have quite a few things to discuss, and my schedule is a bit tight today. We've wasted enough time on this fiasco. I will go by the healer's office later."
"Yeah! I knew my bestie was tough!" the puts an arm around my shoulder. Mel is commonly called 'the brazen noble lady' by most nobles because of her untameable, rambunctious nature and disregard for etiquette. She is also the only noble lady with interest in learning swordsmanship. Whereas I am known as 'the mundane princess' as a result of my lack of mana. An impeccable pair, no?