"Are you sure that you're fine being alone, Hayato?" Aoi asked worriedly.
The others are waiting for Aoi outside of the library to move on to their training. Rahl said I can come but I mentioned that I will not be able to do much since the training will be conducted inside where animals are not present.
"It's okay..." I replied with a wry smile. "Also, I can use this as a chance to gather information about this world."
Given that we only know information that Rahl taught us, I've been itching to learn on my own. Not only as a way to gather information that can help my friends and I once we've become fully fledged Heroes, but also information to confirm whether it's just my gut feeling that I think there is more than meets the eyes about the identity of Rahl and the King.
"That's so you Hayato..." Aoi smiled. "You always find a way to make yourself useful in every situation, then I better not disturb you anymore."
Aoi walked outside of the library leaving me here, before they left Rahl glanced at me. "There's a forbidden section in the library that only the King and his trusted adviser can enter, be sure not to go in." He said before leaving and my friends followed him from behind.
"Forbidden section huh..." A massive smirk appeared on my face, even if Rahl and the King sounded like the villain for hiding an entire section of the library, at this time I am more a villain than them. "You should've never mentioned that."
I paced through every section of the grand library of Aurelis Kingdom, scanning and processing every bit of information I could find. One important piece of information I found quickly is the language. "All of the books are written in a different language..."
It was already suspicious why they spoke English and why the instruction they gave yesterday was written in a language found in our world. I thought I was on the verge of a breakthrough, but it looks like the progress of investigating why English exists here has hindered. "Could I be just overthinking it? They probably just use some sort of magic to make us understand them and for them to also know how to write English..."
This is bad... I made a mistake to not ask Rahl about their language... I want to read some of the books here but it looks like I won't be able to do it today...
As I continued walking all around the library, I was still lost in my thoughts on what else I can investigate. I need to at least get one single useful piece of information. "If I can't find anything else then I have no choice but to find the restricted section of the library—"
I stopped as soon as I heard something. The unmistakable sound of a page turning, not by me but another person.
I froze and looked at my surroundings.
The sound came again— soft, careful, deliberate. I walked slowly, peeking between the shelves. At the far end of the room, beneath a high, arching window where sunlight pooled like melted gold, sat a girl. Slender. Pale. Draped in layers of ivory and lilac silk. A veil of red-pink hair spilled across her shoulders, nearly blending with the lace of her sleeves.
She was curled into a large chair with a thick tome resting on her lap, her head tilted forward as if the words themselves were holding her together.
She noticed me walking toward her, instead of being surprised by my presence she instead stared at me as if her vision was piercing my skin. Her gaze met mine, she was quiet, unreadable, but not cold. One eye shimmered like crimson glass, deep and intense, as if it held every unspoken pain she had endured. The other... a pale blue, almost translucent, like ice just before it melts under sunlight.
I raised my hands gently like a criminal surrendering. "Sorry. I didn't mean to intrude. I thought I was alone."
Silence. Not a single word came out of her mouth... Instead she continued to look at me intently, just from her gaze alone I can see that she neither sees me as a threat nor an ally.
"I am Hayato Shiranami... One of the Heroes summoned here."
Still nothing. I took a careful step forward and she stiffened.
"I promise that I meant no harm..." I said to help ease her up a bit. "I was just curious when I heard someone flipping a page in this abnormally large library."
A long breath passed. She closed her book slowly, her eyes evaluating me, as if trying to see through my words. Finally, she spoke, her voice as soft as paper rustling in the wind but still shows maturity. "You're not like the others aren't you?"
"In a bad way or a good way?"
She didn't answer immediately. She stood, still leaning lightly on the armrest, as though any sudden motion would cause her to collapse.
"In a dangerous way." She said with strong conviction.
I stared at the girl who looked too fragile for the crown she was wearing, yet somehow wore more sadness than royalty ever should. Though her body looks frail and weak it does not match how she presents herself, her mentality and the way she easily read her surroundings is not like anyone I have ever met before.
It was terrifying...
"Who are you?" I asked, not showing a hint of fear to show her that I can battle her in a challenge of wits.
She looked at the window, her voice barely audible. "Unfortunately, I am the Princess of this corrupt Kingdom... Nice to meet you Hayato Shiranami..."
The Princess bowed gently and looked at me with a smile. "I am Celestine Faerwyn Aurelis."
*** *** ***
Outside of the castle is where the arena is located, it is where the Kingdom's strongest knights train and host duels and tournaments. Inside of the arena were the group of Lukas and Mizuki, the five of them stood still like trained veterans readying for war.
"Among the fifteen of you, I observed that the five of you— Lukas Reinhardt, Elodie Moreau, Riku Santiago, Hinata Fujimoto, and Hikari Takeda have bodies that are well-built." General Draven said as he observed the five of them with a voice that can send a shiver to anyone hearing it.
"That's because the five of us are professional athletes, which is why we train our body regularly back at our own world." Hinata replied, trying his best not to show fear.
"Thank the Goddess Equessia for giving you five fitting classes that matched your stature." General Draven said, still with a cold-chilling voice. "As for the five Heroes with you, what is your opinion on them so far my Prince?"
"Though they are not already trained like yours General, I know that I can build my group to be stronger than yours!" The Prince shouted with pride and strong judgement.
Prince Julius Leonelis Aurelis stood with the poise of someone who had never once faltered under pressure. His voice, steady and commanding, carried through the arena; not by volume but by sheer conviction. There was a quiet confidence in the way he held himself in which every movement was deliberate, every word chosen with purpose. His presence alone commanded attention, not because he demanded it, but he knows he is capable of doing it.
He wasn't just a prince by blood, but he was a leader by nature. Talented in both diplomacy and swordplay, Julius had already led several campaigns to victory, earning the admiration of knights twice his age. His gaze, sharp and unwavering, carried the weight of someone who believed wholly in his cause.
"Heroes I will train! Listen to me clearly!" Julius looked at the five he was training with a dramatic flair. "Follow me closely and I will make you stronger than any foe or rival you face!"
The five Heroes— Mizuki Amamiya, Kuroe Kurobane, Sayaka Moriyama, Renji Aoyama, and Kaito Shimizu were not like the other five other Heroes. They do not pose the same courage that the other five showed.
"I want to stay in bed." Kuroe said as she slumped down on the floor.
Mizuki is sitting beside Kuroe, trying to hide herself behind Kuroe from the scorching sunlight damaging her beautiful tan skin. "If I was told that I was being transported to the dark ages I would've brought my skin care products and make-up..." She sighed.
The quiet Kaito was far from the rest, he was hiding in the shadow near the walls surrounding the arena, trying his best to get away from Prince Julius' loud voice. "My ear hurts..." He muttered.
Renji looked at his friends with eyes full of defeat, he looked at Prince Jullius who was still trying his best to encourage the others to train. The group of Lukas has the same expression as Renji, since they knew already that this is how the group of MIzuki will act, whereas General Draven showed a look of disappointment.
"Hey, can you guys take this seriously?!" Renji shouted in anger. "All of you were excited yesterday, so why are you acting defeated now!?"
"HAHAHA!" Julius laughed as he put his hand on Renji's shoulder. "It looks like it's goin great, isn't that right Hero Renji?"
Renji could only look at the Prince with a defeated gaze, he knew that shouting at the Prince like he wanted to could mean an act of disrespect hence why he remained his composure at what Prince Julius said.
"Are they gonna be okay..?" Lukas worriedly said as he felt pity toward Renji.
*** *** ***
Princess Celestine Faerwyn Aurelis...
One word I can describe her was powerful, I do not mean in the physical sense but more in her attitude. Though her body is sickly and frail that one wrong move could break her, she exudes a valiant and bright aura that made me want to never cross paths with her.
"Hayato Shiranami, to be honest at first glance I think of you as nothing but a self-righteous pleb that can be easily manipulated..." She went closer, her face close to mine as she tiptoed to assert her dominance while staring at me like a predator stalking its prey. "But, you're quite sly... And cautious."
She stepped back and looked at me from behind. "I can read you... Clearly..." She grabbed a book on one of the shelves, looking at it I saw that the cover page of the book was written in English. "Catch."
I grabbed the book she threw and looked at it, seeing it surprised me. "The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Handersen... Translated to Arrius..?"
The Little Mermaid is a fairytale written by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. It is about the love story of a human prince and a mythical creature known as a mermaid, the story is about love without reward. Sacrifice without recognition. She did everything for him… and no one even knew. The original does not possess a happy ending like everyone thought of, in the end the little mermaid died and turned into sea foam for her beloved prince.
This story is a classic back in our own world... The happier and known version shaped the childhood of a lot of people, so what is it doing here? Also why is it translated in a language that I will assume is the language of this world?
"Surprise aren't you..?" She said, her lips curling into a mischievous smile as she closed her eyes.
I leaned against a bookshelf behind me, arms close and a smirk appearing on my face. "So, what kind of deal do you want to propose, Princess—?"
"A deal?" She tilted her head with feigned innocence. "Nowhere in my words did I mention one. Are you in the habit of assuming royalty always bargains for something?"
I chuckled lightly, raising a brow. "Not always... But back in my world if a royalty or what is known in our world as politicians came out of nowhere and spoke in riddles, it usually led to one of two things: an offer or a trap."
"My... What a corrupt world you live in... Well, I guess it's the same in both worlds." She exclaimed, her ruby and silver eyes gleaming with a challenge. "Then what makes you entertain either possibility?"
My gaze sharpened and I went closer to her, this time I assert dominance over her in this conversation. "Because you're not the type to waste words without purpose, every sentence you say is a move on the board and I am just making mine."
I stepped back, my eyes pierced at her making her sweat a little. I was like a viper and she is the prey. "In other words, you're just like me."
For a moment, silence sat between us like a held breath. Then, she smiled again, this time not mischievous, but genuinely intrigued. "Congrats Hayato Shiranami, you are the only one to have defeated me." She sat back in her fancy chair and crossed hands as she lay there.
"I want you to work for me, Hero Hayato Shiranami, in exchange I can provide you with any information you want." She said, her smile gone and her face was more serious than ever.
"What makes you think I would agree to work for you?"
"There's a type of demon in this world that lives in the sea, it looks like a human in the upper top of its body but on the lower in the other hand is that of a fish." She took out a booklet out of her pockets and read through it. "In this world it is called a demon, but in your world it's called a mermaid."
"What are you proving? You only knew the name because of the Little Mermaid." I stated, still suspicious of her.
"The fact is I have information that can help my father and that corrupt mage but I never told them, let me tell you this Hayato Shiranami... You would've become a target for assassination if you weren't lucky."
"Assassination? Lucky? What are you talking about?"
"When you showed your intelligence in front of my father and the corrupt wizard yesterday they deemed you as a threat, luckily for you that wizard discovered you have the weakest class there is and your Scaleforge is faulty."
Deeming me as a threat huh? I guess it was that time I talked with the others about not sharing any information about our world.
"Still, that does not imply that I can trust you."
I had a hunch that the King and the wizard are hiding something from us and she, the daughter of the King, basically confirmed my suspicion, but still... The fact that she is stating that his own father is corrupt in some form makes me more cautious of her. Not only is she cunning and smart enough that I consider her a threat but it does not make sense why she's trying to say that her father and the wizard are planning something.
"Scaleforge!" She shouted, but nothing happened.
I curled a brow. "Yours is not activated?"
"Yes... I made sure to not activate mine to escape from my father's grasp.." She answered with a tense look on her face. "When you activated it you got a message from the wizard right? Don't you find that strange?"
"I don't really know about arts, hence why I didn't raise a question when he appeared as a hologram." Does that mean he has been watching me all this time?
"The entire castle is embedded with arts" She said with a hush voice. "Everyone with a Scaleforge can be seen or heard by the one who set it, which is that corrupt wizard— Rahl Magnus."
My eyes widened from shock. "Then he's listening to us right now?!"
"No." Her voice dropped even lower, serious and calm. "This part of the library is sealed from his surveillance. A friend helped me cloak this area, so that Rahl won't know what I've been planning."
She glanced at me with a spark in her mismatched eyes. "And now, Hayato, you're part of the plan."
I crossed my arms, eyes narrowing at her. "Help with what, exactly?"
The princess didn't answer immediately. Instead, she stepped closer to me and handed me the booklet she was reading. "Planning the salvation of this kingdom… from the very ones who claim to protect it."
"That's a bold proclamation coming from royalty."
She met my gaze, her expression unreadable. "My title doesn't blind me. I see what my father has become… And I see how Rahl manipulates him, how the nobles twist everything for their own gain. You're cautious of them aren't you? From the very beginning you were summoned here, you knew to not trust them and instead dig deep through their intentions."
I didn't answer her since I was surprised by how much she had read through me, my silence was all she needed to put her trust in me more.
"You question everything. You stay quiet, observe. That's why I chose you." She continued, taking the book of the Little Mermaid out of my hand. "I need someone who hasn't been blinded by titles and power. Someone who can think."
"What do you want me to do?"
"Your class, they may think it's weak because it cannot help in battling with the demons but it can help us." She said as she looked around her table and picked up what appeared to be an ant. "Please... Help me save my kingdom from the true demons, Hero Hayato Shiranami."
This time her voice wasn't that of someone challenging me in a battle and does not show a hint of thoughts, this time she asked not with her brain but with her heart.
I grabbed the ant from her and looked at it, a smile came out of my face the moment I realized what she wanted me to do with the ant. "I can understand them..."
A small and resilient creature, no matter what species it is. To gather information, this could work. "So, is this your deal— Princess Celestine?"
"No." She replied, eyes glinting like ruby and gold as she met my gaze. "This is your invitation."