"As the daughter of a traitor, you are now forbidden to step foot within Acreria or any of its owned neighbouring vicinity. These include Ecrin, Ayrith, Hirane and Arcton. If found within any of the mentioned premises, you will be detained," Michael continues with his announcement, reading word for word from the scroll that is practically covering his face.
Daughter of a traitor?
Arcton?
"What do you mean she failed to uphold her duties to protect the Prince? Just because of a father whom she doesn't even associate herself with?" An unexpected voice sounds from behind me.
I did not even feel like turning around to see his face.
All I can look at is Casimir.
I keep looking at him.
The look of betrayal on my face must have been so piercing that he subconsciously glances at me again, only to look away instantly.
"Aren't you going to do something about this, Casimir?" Alaistair continues, walking forward and finally appearing in my sight, as he tries his hardest to defend my position.
Casimir remains silent, causing tension to weigh the room down, an unprecedented heaviness.
"What the hell is wrong with you royals?" Alaistair blurts unintentionally, incapable of holding in the utter disdain he feels, and quickly glances at me before reverting his gaze to Casimir.
"He's right, Caz. What's going on? What does he mean by the daughter of a traitor? There has to be something wrong with this. She risked everything for you," Reece says, her voice quivering in disbelief as she steps away from Silas who tries to hold her back but she continues to emerge from the crowd of palace guards.
Once again, silence.
To say that I am at a loss right now is an understatement beyond measure.
To think that a betrayal only followed up with another betrayal is just insane to me.
They say that once you hit rock bottom, the only way left is up. Who knew that you could go beyond rock bottom?
"Caz, this isn't right," Dominic says gravely, and this is my first time seeing him this serious.
No jokes, no pickup lines. Just pure confusion and disagreement.
"The decision is final and there will be no further discussions. You are all dismissed," Casimir announces, his tone void of any emotions.
With that said, he heads towards me, aiming for the exit as Michael follows closely behind him. My gaze is glued on him, as I watch him draw nearer to me, and I can feel a sickness in the pit of my stomach. However, without even sparing another glance at me, he strides past me and out of the room.
I stand rooted to the floor, staring directly at the empty deep velvet throne before me, where his presence continues to linger, while I remain uncertain of how to react.
"This is just wrong," Alaistair mutters, and looks at me sympathetically.
Dominic glances at me, giving me an apologetic look, "I'll try talking to him, duckling."
I remain silent.
He lets out a sigh of defeat, before wrapping an arm around my shoulders, pulling me gently into a side hug.
"You'll be alright, duckling," he mumbles under his breath.
With that said, he eyes the rest of the group, trying to signal for them to say something.
"Dom's right, everything will be fine, Rissa. We'll see you again in Acreria and everything will be the same," Ezra tries offering reassurance but doubt is undeniably evident in his voice and his seemingly fragile smile.
"I won't let him do this to you, Rissa. Trust me. We'll find a way to convince him," Reece joins in, as she chokes between her sobs.
Silas remains quiet as always, as he tries to brush the tears off her face.
This is also when it dawns on me.
It didn't only hurt because of Casimir's betrayal.
It hurts because of the friends I have made whom I am now about to lose.
It hurts because I grew to enjoy everyone's company.
It hurts because I wasn't alone anymore.
And it hurts because unknowingly, every glance at him has gradually become a second too long.
"We'll go talk to him and when we're back, everything will be alright," Dominic says quietly, giving one last squeeze before letting go.
"Please watch after her while we look for Casimir," Dominic addresses Alaistair and he nods in agreement.
With that, Dominic leaves the room, and everyone else follows, leaving me and Alaistair behind.
It does not take long for the silence to engulf us.
Surprisingly, Alvaro was not around for the dismissal. He is probably with Chad right now. If he had heard about my banishment from visiting Arcton, I wonder what he'd think. After all, to him, I am a mere sacrifice for Rosalia's life.
"Here, follow me," Alaistair says as he offers his hand, waiting for me to grab it.
Hesitation must have crossed my face, seeing how he did not waste a single second and grasped my hand before pulling me out of the throne room.
However, even now, my mind refuses to let me speak.
I merely follow behind him as he leads us along the hallways and out of the palace through the back, into the massive courtyard.
He does not stop at the courtyard but instead, continues by turning left, bringing us to a magnificent greenhouse that has been hidden in plain sight by the palace's massive structure.
Leading me into the greenhouse, he finally stops at a far corner by a pond within the building, resembling a serene oasis. The water shimmers with crystalline clarity under the dappled sunlight filtering through the glass roof.
If not for earlier on, I probably would feel dreamy right now.
Yet, all I can feel is a void within me that has been carved repetitively over the years by betrayal.
"What are we doing here?" I ask as I take a seat by the edge of the pond, staring deeply beyond the water's surface.
"Look, you finally spoke," Alaistair says as the ends of his lips tug upwards into an enigmatic smile.
I give him a blank stare.
He has successfully confused me.
"Have you forgotten that I'm not Rosalia? I don't have a mask on anymore," I respond dully.
"Even with the mask on, you don't resemble her one bit," he comments, as he rolls his sleeves up before stretching an arm into the pond.
"What are you doing?" I question, perplexed by his actions.
He does not respond but instead pulls out a coin from the bottom of the pond and shakes off the excess water dripping from his arm.
"Here," Alaistair says nonchalantly as he flicks the coin to me.
Confused, I catch the unexpected coin hastily with both hands.
"What's this for?" I ask whilst examining the coin.
Is there something about this coin that makes it so special for this man to commit to digging it up from a pond?
"Whenever things don't go my way, I always come here. That's the only coin in this pond because it's more special when it can only grant one wish. Every time the coin is removed from the pond, the wish you made disappears and you can make a new one. Now that I no longer need my wish, I'm giving it to you. Go on, make a wish," Alaistair explains while his stare is fixated on the pond.
"How old are you? Do you really believe in things like that?" I question in disbelief, amused by his childlike habit.
"Well, it never hurts to hope. After all, wishes can only come true when you don't have everything and as of this moment, we both have nothing," Alaistair answers, chuckling softly as he points to me and then himself.
We both have nothing?
"Go on, make a wish before I change my mind and use it for myself," Alaistair urges me, as he grabs my shoulders and turns me around to face the pond.
"Don't say it out loud. Toss it in whenever," he says, standing behind me as he continues to hold me firmly by my shoulders.
Instinctively, I try looking up at him since he is literally a head taller than I am, but he releases his grasp on one of my shoulders and gently presses the top of my head downwards, forcing me to look at the pond before us.
This is probably useless.
There is just no way that it'll work.
But maybe, some part of me wanted it to work.
I close my eyes, holding the coin tightly between my palms.
I just want to live again.
I toss the coin into the pond, and it bounces off the water's surface for a second before submerging beneath.
Seeing the coin in the pond, Alaistair releases his grip on me and steps away, his smile remains unwavering.
"What do you keep smiling at?" I ask, still as confused as ever by his gimmicks.
"You," he says coolly, tilting his head sideways and his grin getting slightly wider.
My eyes widen at how direct he is.
Of course, I am taken aback but I regain my composure almost immediately when I remember the rumours about him.
He truly is a flirt.
I can see why so many girls are head over heels for him.
Brushing his comment off, I recall the previous statement he had made and decide to ask him about it.
"Also, what did you mean earlier on?" I question, looking back at the pond where I last saw the coin.
It feels so surreal.
I have just been fired and banished from my hometown, yet here I am, feeling so disconnected from the rest of the world.
Like nothing mattered anymore.
"Oh, you mean when I talked about the mask?" He clarifies, his smile finally fading a little.
I nod my head.
"I already knew you weren't Rosalia since the ball," he answers with a shrug.
"How?" I blurt, perplexed by his revelation.
"Well, allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Alaistair Mavis, but for you, I am Corey's best friend," Alaistair reveals and his smile returns.
Corey?
Does he mean Corey as in my brother, Corey?
"I've had my eyes on you for a long time now, Riri."
Riri?
What on earth is a Riri?