A Week of Rituals
1029 Words
There was a soft knock on the door, causing me to stir, before the creaking sound came telling me someone has entered my room. Within moments, sunlight fills the space, blinding my eyes.
" Good morning, My lady"
"Enoch... just five more minutes"
"You must get up now my lady, you have a very busy day ahead."
It's been three days since I arrived at Evermoon Academy... and each day was crazier than the one before. I just want to remain in peaceful slumber a bit longer.
"I don't wanna" I grouan
"Must I resort to using the Ice Chasm again, My lady?"
My entire body went cold and I jolted up as he glared at me from across the room.
"N-No need. I'm up! i'm up!"
He lookers his hand which had already started to form a crystal of frozen water upon it, a smile on his face.
"Wonderful." He says "i'm glad we're on the same page. you should get dressed, my lady, would you like me to assist you in-"
"No. I can do it myself"
" Your highn-"
"I said I can do it myself"
Noticing i wasn't about to give in, he sighes.
"very well, your highness."
And with that, he headed for the door.
"Be sure to be out here in the next 5 minutes" he adds " or I will have no choice but to enter this chamber."
"understood."
Sometimes I wonder if he realizes that I'm a person and not some superhuman being ... I'm shocked I'm even alive after the last time he used that wretched spell on me. My body was frozen solid!
" Is everything alright in there, your Highness?"
Shit, I better hurry up and change or that maniac will come in here, Ice guns blazing, and I don't know how many times my body can take being thawed out from a block of Ice.
"I-I'm fine!"
I hurry into the bathroom, pulling my nightgown over my head, and step into the shower. In only 5 minutes, most would think it's crazy to take a shower, however i refuse to smell. After quickly washing my body and rinsing away the soap, I step out, warping myself in a towel. 2 minutes left. I rush over to my closet, removing my uniform from its place on the dresser, and proceeded to pull on my undergarments. I barely managed to get into my Underwear when Enoch enters the room.
"My Lady, you've been in here to lo-"
"Ahh!"
I screamed. Enoch stood there, seemingly annoyed by my sudden outburst, a blank look on his face as he just stands there unpahsed. How can he be so calm right now? I'm practically naked!
"Y-You s-saw..."
As if sensing my embarrassment, Enoch offers a gentle smile... but he shows no signs of intrigue. He closes the door, walking towards me.
"Your highness." He says "You need not fret over such a trivial matter."
Trivial?! I'm practically naked!
"Your beauty is that of an ethereal beauty" he says " sculpted by the gods. No mere mortal would dare consider touching such a thing indecently."
"W-what?"
" You need not fear me, for I hold no desire to offend you." He says " nor intention towards you other than to serve my purpose as your servant."
"Enoch?"
He picks up my skirt, lowering it for me to step in. my face is flushed but his is clear, as if he see's right through me... and that when I realized, he does. Enoch does not see me as his equal, but rather as someone far superior to him, and thus is not phased by my appearance. For him, helping me dress is simply an unsaid expectation... and looking at me as if I were human was less than a footnote in his mind... because, to him, I was not Human.
" It is my duty to assist you in every way, Your highness," he says, "that is my only purpose in this life. There has never been and will never be another. So please, allow me to fulfill my duty."
I'm nothing more than a charge he's obligated to oversee... so of course, he holds no interest in me. I stepped into the skirt, allowing him to dress me as I let my mind wander... what does it mean exactly, to be a member of the royal Family?
As we walked through the halls, Enoch once again close behind me, I noticed that the place was a lot more lively today. The halls were full of decorations and people dressed in faculty uniforms were conversing with students and demonstrating various things.
"Enoch, what is this?"
"Today marks the first day of the festival, Your highness."
"The... festival?"
"The festival of Rituals, my lady," he says.
He gestures towards a demonstration being made nearby, a man standing over a magic circle and chanting. soon, a beast appears within the circle... another was demonstrating potions... and another doing combat magic...
"Mages have the capacity for various kinds of magic". He says "some even excel in more than one particular area of magic... this is why we have the Festival of Rituals."
"go on."
"for one whole week, our faculty will give demonstrations, lectures, presentations and trials," he says, "so that students may find where their interests lie upon the magic spectrum and decide for themselves which road they wish to embark upon."
" I see." I say " So this will basically decide my entire future?"
"In a way, yes," he says, "no matter which specializations you end up with, however, your case is a bit different from everyone else."
"Different? How so?"
"Well, because you're royalty, of course."
Of course.
"No matter which specialization you decide" he continues, "your duty as a member of the royal family will always take precedence."
That makes sense, since royals carry the hopes and dreams of nations on their shoulders, but I never imagined those same rules would ever apply to me... yet, here we are.
"Shall we begin our search, My lady?"
"y-yes."
And before I knew it, i was lost in a sea of demonstrations and discovery.
- Writer
