Chapter 10
1846 Words
"My Lady, finally I found you."
"Oh good evening, Jacques."
Jacques felt something happened when he didn't see Gerald and Maria coming back to the dormitory for a long time. He rushed himself everywhere to look for them and eventually found Maria sitting at the restaurant.
"Why do you come here Jacques?"
"This question is supposed to be for you. Why haven't you come back to the dormitory yet? And where is Gerald?"
"I.. I don't know." Maria answered "Gerald told me to wait for him at the restaurant until he is back but..."
Jacques hold both Maria's shoulders and eventually recommended her.
"My Lady, it's better if you go to the dormitory now. You need to rest for the classes tomorrow. About Gerald, I have ordered my servants to find him. You don't have to worry at anything."
"...Thank you, Jacques."
Maria wouldn't believe herself that she would show her weak side in front of someone else other than Gerald. Gerald had helped her a lot from the start, but when he was in trouble, Maria couldn't do anything. She felt ashamed for being an useless master... no, a useless friend.
As Jacques have recommended Maria, she went back to the dormitory to do homework. While he tried with his best, join the servants and the academy's workers as well to find where Gerald was.
"Your highness, please take this coat on! You will catch a cold if you stay outside with only pajamas like this!"
"Ignore me!" Jacques yelled. He then asked one of his servant "Have you found him?"
"Your highness, please take my apology... Gerald is still missing."
"Useless!!!" Jacques cursed. In his mind he kept asking himself "You jackass Gerald, within this huge academy.. where the hell are you...??"
Jacques remembered Maria telling that Gerald went the northern tower as he said. He ordered the servants to focus at there. Meanwhile he went to the other areas and searched by himself, with a group of 3 servants more.
"Your highness, please calm down.."
"Damn it! If they still cannot find him within tonight I will..."
On Jacques's walking way, he found someone collapsing from afar at the backyard square.
"Huh? Someone is here?"
But when Jacques came nearer, he went speechless. It was Gerald, but his current position was very bad because the bruises and injuries were everywhere on his body.
"Oh my god Gerald, Gerald! Can you hear me?! What happened to you?!"
Immediately, Jacques order his servants to rescue and bring him to the academy's hospitality. However, he wasn't being treated by the academy's nurses, Jacques shouted his servants to call his personal doctor's team to cure Gerald. Despite it took hours for the doctors to treat all the injuries, Jacques still haven't slept, monitored the doctors to make sure they weren't slacking from their job.
Seeing Gerald being bandaged everywhere, Jacques thanked to the god that Maria was blind. If she saw this, he wouldn't imagine how her reaction would be. However, the angered atmosphere around the prince had become more and more dangerous: He promised to kill anyone attacking Gerald.
***
The next morning, Maria woke up earlier than usual. She tried to call Jacques but couldn't hear his response, so she guessed maybe he was at the hospitality the entire of last night.
Maria still remembered her conversation with Jacques yesterday, when he suddenly rushed to the dormitory to inform her that he had found Gerald and he was currently hospitalized. Maria wanted to go visit him but was stopped by Jacques.
"Why? Jacques?!"
"It's already midnight." Jacques tried to convince her, despite he didn't want to do it as well "My Lady, please think about your health too... I bet Gerald would not seeing you slacking off your study because of him."
"Uhm.. You're right."
"Listen to me please... tomorrow, I will guide you to see him."
Maria thought there might be a reason for Jacques to stay overnight at the hospitality. So she changed her uniforms, took her cane and went to the hospitality by herself. After all, she still had a spare hour until the breakfast time.
On her way, an academic maid who was doing chores outside the dormitory area saw Maria. She bowed to greet her.
"Good morning, Mr.Tranchant. Do you have anything to do at this early morning?"
"Can you guide me to the hospitality?"
"Sure."
When Maria arrived in front of the door of the hospitality, she heard chatting noise of Gerald and Jacques. It somehow gave her a relieved smile.
"Good morning, Gerald, Jacques."
"Ma...Maria?"
"My Lady...?? You wake up sooner than I thought."
Gerald was bandaged on his forehead. His shoulder bone had been broken and many bruises on his chest and abdomen. Luckily, there wasn't any impact on the body's weaknesses so he was completely fine and could went out from the hospitality after one week. It was what Maria heard after Jacques told her. However, Gerald's broken shoulder needed to be bandaged for one month. It was so disadvantage for Maria, because with this injury, Gerald wouldn't be able to write or take a note for her anymore.
"Please don't worry about me, Maria. I'm fine." Gerald embarrassed when Maria kept touching his injured body.
"It's not fine.." Maria said with sadness " Now you cannot attempt the classes with me for one week. At least please be honest with me.. Don't involve into the danger alone..."
"Maria... I'm sorry..."
"Buddy, do you remember who attacked you?"
"Hm... I know him, but don't know his name." Gerald answered "I think he said he is at second year. There were also other four students following him as well, look like the one who lying over there...."
Jacques looked at the direction of Gerald's finger. As he said, there were a student who was treated with his broken knee....
"Wait! Is that him?" Gerald was surprised.
But without letting Gerald confirming, Jacques and Maria already stood beside that student. Jacques's feet stepped on the bed's side. Meanwhile Maria stood with the cane on her hand, ready for the murder if the prince allowed her. They both spread an extreme dangerous aura, in front of the student who was feared that the entire of his body trembling.
"You and your friends must have a very big liver to touch my friend."
"YOUR... YOUR HIGHNESS!!! MY SINCERE APOLOGY!!!!"
"Hey..." Gerald had to intervene Maria and Jacques "Please calm down you two, we are in hospitality."
"I'm currently very, very, very calming down right now."
Gerald got shivered and cold sweated. He could feel the accelerated danger in each of Maria's "very" word. It was his first time seeing her being so angry like this.
"Now stop your freaking cry, filthy pig!" Jacques nagged him "Tell me, who is your leader?"
"Your highness please please... Please have mercy for this lowlife... I... But if I tell his name... he will..."
"So he is more scary than the prince eh? You'd rather lose your head for your leader?" Maria interrogated him.
"No!!! I don't want! I don't want!!"
"Then shut up and tell us who your leader is."
"He... he... he is.... Jean Noreau."
"Good." Jacques pushed him back to the hospital bed. Then he called Maria. "Let's go Richard, we got the information we need."
"Wait!"
Gerald was worried that they both were going to have a m******e. With Jacques's title Crown Prince. There would be very high possibility he would do that.
"Where are you two going??"
"Breakfast."
Maria and Jacques together left the hospitality, leaving poor Gerald who currently felt bad for the guy named Jean Noreau.
***
"My Lady.. So what are you gonna do without Gerald?"
"I don't know..."
Jacques and Maria were taking breakfast but they couldn't taste it. Because they both were currently worried how Maria could study without Gerald supporting her.
Suddenly, a familiar voice appeared behind them.
"Richard, is it ok if I can help you?"
Maria happily smile when she immediately knew who that person was, thanks to the smell of cheese cake on his body.
"Good morning Louis!!!"
"Oh? You don't greet me? Mr. De Lacarte?"
"My apology your highness!" Louis kneeled in front of Jacques with frightened face "It's my honor to see you here!"
"Hahaha! Stand up please, I was just joking! You're Richard's friend right? So you're my friend too."
"Your highness... How do you know..?"
"My buddy Gerald told me about you guys." Jacques then whispered beside Maria's ear "I'm happy that you have many friends now, My Lady."
"Thank you very much, Jacques~"
And so, Maria's class went unexpectedly smoothly thanks to Louis's help even without Gerald. They were at the same first year class so he could note all the lessons. There was just one problem that Louis was so bad at directing.
"Next class is mathematics...." Louis walked next to Maria after their breakfast "How to get to the mathematics classroom..?"
"Good morning my students."
"Professor~!"
Luckily, the prince William saved their life. He was on his way to the first year class as well so he helped both of them.
"It's so lucky to have you helping us, professor." Maria thanked him.
"It was nothing. The rumor about Gerald's accident got spread everywhere in the academy now. I know it's inconvenient to you without Gerald so I can help you whatever I can."
"Professor, how do you know the rumor too?"
"Because my little brother is rampaging at the second year building now." William laughed.
"What?" Maria got angry "He acted alone without telling me??"
Meanwhile, Jacques skipped his classes again to go to the building for second year students.
"JEAN NOREAU!!!!"
Jacques kicked the door on each of the classroom of second year students in front of the crowd of feared servants. On his hand there was his personal royal sword.
"GET YOUR a*s OVER HERE!!! I HAVE TO BEHEAD YOU!!!"
"Your highness! Please! Control your anger!!"
"GET OUT OF MY WAY!!" Jacques ignored his servants "IF I CAN'T CAPTURE YOU TODAY, I SWEAR I WON'T BECOME A PRINCE!!"
The other students saw the prince being extremely angry. They couldn't do anything except praying for that guy named Jean Noreau to secure his head for his life.
However, Jacques had searched the one attacked Gerald for the entire of that morning, he couldn't find him. Eventually, Jacques ended up being punished back, in detention at the Academic Council for whole that today. Of course Gerald's accident was reported to the council as well so they decided to expel him, as the suggestion of the prince.
"Still, where is that guy?" Jacques wondered, while being punished.
Meanwhile, Jean - the troublemaker already fled from the academy. He wore a black coat, desperately running through the alleys of the capital. If the prince Jacques saw him, he would die. That's why he had to run away.
Jean was sitting in the shadow to not let people see him. Suddenly, there was someone coming in front of him.
"Hello dear, do you need help?"
- Writer
