Silvanna's POV.
"Well done, Chevaliers," she said, smiling proudly at her warriors. "You did a wonderful job today, and you will be better tomorrow." It was only the second week of trainings and their progress was beyond expectations, but Silvanna didn't complain, nor was she surprised. They were all experienced in their abilities. It would only take a lot of practice to fulfill their maximum potential and be prepared for any signs of abyssal hints. They should be ready.
Alucard never failed her. Day by day, he would always satisfy her with his incredible demon hunter sword techniques, and that, Silvanna assumed, wasn't even all his abilities. She knew he could do so much more with it, but he was not at all cocky. Alucard was practically perfect in combat, and Silvanna knew she could always rely on him when a battle went wrong.
Even though he was secretly good, Granger barely spoke, nor did he ever properly practice with his friends. Silvanna would find him playing his violin in a completely distorted melody in the garden, far from anyone's presence. Reminding him to train was hard, because he thought he was good, that was why he sometimes skip his training.
Since the day they bonded, Harith almost never took anything seriously. Silvanna could brush it off, but Tigreal could be disturbed once in a while. Leonins were never serious, and Harith was a good example. Despite his endless leonin jokes, Harith's magical abilities were exceptional, especially combined with Silvanna's, which made them an amazing pair when it comes to insane damage dealers.
"You are dismissed, my friends," she said. "Not you, Fanny."
Fanny's POV.
The amateur female assassin halted. Ugh. She let out a sigh of disappointment, knowing too well that she would most probably be scolded. She was upset she had never showed any improvements. Apart from the others, she had the worst progress, which made her felt very much undeserving of being a Moniyan ally. Do I even have any abilities? she thought. Fanny decided to come clean.
"Look, I know I've been terrible, but—"
"That's not exactly the word I would use," Silvanna cut in, her face was quite stern for a kind princess like her.
"You're about to kick me out, aren't you?" Fanny snivelled, looking down.
"And why would I do that?" Silvanna walked closer to her, lifting her chin up so Fanny could pay her full attention.
Because I'm a disaster. "I don't know," Fanny ended up saying.
Silvanna breathed. "Let's take a walk, shall we? Bring your cables along."
Fanny prepared them as she joined Silvanna for a stroll outside the castle, still not putting a slight smile on her forlorn face. She still thought it was a foolish dream; flying freely just like the birds, but giving up on her dreams was the last thing Fanny would do. She had always wanted this ever since she was a little until she even made her invention just to fulfill her dreams. There was no way she could give it up so easily, especially now that she was here in the Moniyan Empire, with the princess right by her side.
The two of them were out in the garden. Fanny inhaled crisp air as she closed her eyes, feeling the fresh sensation of nature in the early morning. It was a lovely day today, the cool morning breeze brought chills to her body, but was definitely not a lovely day for training. In fact, she almost never had good training days. Her friends were far ahead of her, and here she was barely even capable of using her own invention.
"You still want to achieve your dream, don't you?" Silvanna asked.
"More than anything," Fanny admitted, staying true to her purposes.
"Alright. You see those trees?" She pointed to the group of tall sycamore trees in a forest, far outside the castle gates. Fanny squinted her eyes, trying to see and decide her target.
"Vividly."
"Throw a cable to the top part of its bark. Left or right, your choice."
Fanny did as she was told, but she could not concentrate. Her brain was filled with negative thoughts about the outcome, which caused her to miss her aim.
"Focus, Fanny!" Silvanna demanded, her voice loud and clear.
She took a breath of determination and tried again, concentrating with all her energy on both her cables and where she had to aim them to. I can do this.
She successfully threw her left cable, attaching its small hook on the tree bark.
"Throw another one quickly!" the princess ordered, as Fanny hurriedly threw her right cable on the next tree, almost perfectly aiming the target. Little did she knew she was starting to fly in a straight direction.
She landed on grass, not believing a single thing that just happened. She was defying gravity.
"I DID IT!" she exclaimed. Her voice was probably too loud, but she didn't care.
"And that's only the beginning," Silvanna said, a proud look on her beautiful face.
"Thank you! Thank you!" Fanny said, hopping in excitement.
"Now, now," Silvanna started. "Don't be too happy just yet. There are a lot of things you can do with these. I don't know much about advanced cable techniques, but you might find out about them, sooner or later. Trust me."
Fanny just smiled, thinking of all the incredible things she could do with her steel cables. "I'll add my sword blades so I'd get used to it," she said.
"That would be wonderful," Silvanna agreed. "But remember to always be careful. Those blades might cut you if you make a single mistake."
"I will." Fanny gave her a huge embrace; beyond grateful for the patience and understanding she had for her. She used to have nobody to train with, which was why she would always train all by herself secretly back at home. Even so, people still noticed her stupid attempts on flying, and they would die of laughter insulting her. Fanny the Fool. She remembered it too clear in her head.
"Well? Shouldn't you go and give another try?" Silvanna said.
"Um... Breakfast?"
Silvanna chuckled. "Let's go."
Granger's POV.
This place isn't so bad after all, he thought, taking a bite on his toast bread. They were nice to him, but he never really showed his emotions. He didn't trust them just yet, but their kindness seemed genuine enough to make him stay. Heck, it would take a lifetime for him to trust someone.
Despite his dark view of this cursed world, he considered himself fortunate enough that he found them, or else he wouldn't know where else to go. In all honesty, this was, perhaps, the first time ever Granger ever adored a place to stay, with a nice group of people as his company. Better yet, they were here to fight against the abyss, which was what he came for, too.
When he first met Fanny, he thought she was a sweet fool. She was fun, kind and open-minded, which was rare to find here in Moniyan. Although she was stupid enough to think she could actually fly, he still hoped for the best for her silly invention that probably wouldn't last long. If only she was cleverer.
Apart from the serious issue in his temper, he had to admit Alucard was an optimist in most cases. That didn't mean he was a friend. Granger thought he was a tactless prick who assumed he was the only good warrior between everyone else. He didn't know much about the fighter, and he wouldn't want to.
Harith was, well, strange. He had never known about magic, let alone befriending a leonin. History knew leonins were the second biggest population of wizards to exist after the elven species. Harith was unique, but despite his transcendent magical abilities, Granger would always be annoyed by his childish attitude. No wonder, he used to live in the Enchanted Forest, and that place was full of despicable leonins who would do anything to cause trouble.
The captain was the second worst, right after Alucard. His stupidly strict rules totally pissed him off in so many levels. What a prick. Granger thought he didn't deserve his position as the captain of the Imperial Knights for his intolerant manner. He hoped he would change his mind about him, because who would want to live in the same place with a person you hate?
It was breakfast. They were gathered in the dining room, talking and chatting with each other. Harith was clearly the talkative one, joking around with Alucard, which seemed to be enjoying them, too. Granger didn't bother to join in. Stupid jokes about sorcery and other pointless subjects were never his thing. He was trying to finish his dish and return to his room, playing his violin terribly so nobody would dare to barge in and disturb him.
"I hope you guys left some food for me," Fanny said as she closed the doors shut, the princess walking right beside her. She was smiling. They both were.
"Extra trainings, I assume?" Alucard asked, tossing a loaf of bread to her. She immediately caught it, taking a massive bite.
"Well, what can I say?" Fanny answered with her cheeks puffed up, her mouth still chewing. "I have the worst progress."
Alucard chuckled and shook his head. "You better fill that tummy up, then," he said.
"Have you eaten yet, Granger?" the princess joined in, her attention fully on him.
"Yes," he replied shortly, hesitating to look back. She smiled and nodded. That smile was... beautiful. No doubt. Granger didn't dislike her. In fact, she was one of the most generous women he knew, and he hadn't met a lot of women in his life. He had never been with one, to be frank. Apart from all the ladies he knew, she was different. He hated to admit it, but he wouldn't mind spending the rest of his miserable life with her by his side.
"I see you've bonded with your new friends," she said, still locking her eyes with his.
"Will you excuse me," he said ignorantly. Granger left the dining room without another word and up the stairs to his room for the sake to be left alone. He heard them silently talking behind him.
"Let him go," he heard Tigreal said.
"Typical Granger," Harith mumbled. "I sure do hope the best for him. He's a part of us now."
"Unfortunately, he is," Alucard sighed as their conversation went on.
Granger was slightly touched hearing Harith's words, but he wouldn't let them open his heart that easily. No. He was cold-hearted for a reason.
He opened the door to his dorm, collapsed to his bed, his white shirt perfectly unstained from the morning coffee. He opened his violin case for comfort as he grabbed his bow, positioning his fingers in C sharp minor and started playing one of his favorite musical pieces: Moonlight Sonata.
It was a pleasure to be playing a beautiful piece again. It's been a pretty long time already, and to be truthful, he missed it. He loved music, it had played an important role in his life. However, He played well only for his own ears to listen to, never for others. He would always play an awful tune only for others to get away from him, like his second weapon after his gun.
It was the climax of the piece and Granger was ready for it, until he heard a knock on his door. He immediately stopped playing, holding his anger that was boiling inside him. Damn it. He groaned, trying his best to be nice as he opened the door to see Alucard standing in front of him.
"What do you want?" he asked in a coarse tone.
"Calm down," Alucard said. "How many times do I have to remind you we're not rivals?"
"That doesn't mean you're allowed to disturb me."
"You still think I'm a threat."
"No," Granger disagreed. "I just think you're a moron."
"How flattering. Now, would you care to join us and discuss about our battle plans? Or would you rather stay here and enhance your stupidity?"
"Careful," Granger said, raising his voice.
"Come along, then. We have no time to waste."
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[ an; new chapter folks!! just the moniyan warriors trying their best to get along. nothing much to say, i just hope u enjoy this :) peace out <3 ]
xoxo, cel.