Chapter 22: The Lineal Descendant
Lesley
I yawned and I found myself waking up at Fanny's room... as I glanced at the window pain, the sky's wasn't dark as it seems. It's now dawn, after an hour, the sun's about to rise... my eyes roamed around her room.
How the hell did I got here?! Did George carried me back to the palace? I think that's impossible for him to get in since he's no longer a Paxley, and he would be considered as an outsider.
The last thing I knew is that I fell asleep on his shoulder. I heard someone snoring loudly beside me, it was Fanny. She was sleeping peacefully, she must've been tired a while ago, well... she was the most energized one!
I slowly stood up from the bed, as I damp my head with my hand, the hat that my grandmother gave me, was missing. I tried to roam my eyes around and there I saw my hat, on Fanny's small table. I went there immediately and took it, and placed it on my head. And I felt like there's one more missing... damn.
It's my rifle!
Oh no, I left it near the village's square a while ago... what am I gonna do?!
I took my boots beside the door and quickly wear it, I was about to open the door when I squinted my eyes and found out that it was my rifle, that was placed on the small table near the window pane, as I carefully took the rifle, there I saw a small piece of paper attached to it. It's a letter, as I opened the letter, it says:
Miss Vance,
You left your rifle in the woods, I decided to improvise it with a little bit of magic, hopefully, it helps.
Yours Truly,
George
I can feel my eyes getting watery as I saw the name George. Out of the blue, I smiled. I quickly wiped the tears away from my face, took a deep breath, and hid the letter inside my pocket.
I quietly exited her room, and I carefully closed the door. After that, I hastily ran outside the corridor and went down the hallway, there I saw the other chevaliers, Tigreal, Alucard, and Granger.
Base on their looks and expressions, it looks like they're talking about something. Except for Granger who had his usual, stoic face. I was about to camouflage and hide behind the pillar when Alucard noticed my presence and called me. "Hey, Les! We're just talking about the upcoming training today," Said Alucard as he motioned me to come. I then went to their spot, remaining silent.
Huh? There's... training today? Good thing I woke up early.
"Yup, time check, it's now five-thirty in the morning, better wake up everyone, now." Said Tigreal as he glanced at the large clock that was displayed above the main entrance door. Granger caught my attention by faking a cough, "Let's talk later, Miss Vance." He said as he gazed at me with his cold eyes. He's back to his old self, his black jacket with a large collar covering his face, which gave him his usual gloomy vibe. Typical Granger.
"I got to wake them up, stay right here, Miss Vance. I'll be back, and you, Tig... you're coming with me," Said Alucard, Tigreal then nodded at him and they walked away from us. As they disappeared from our sight, Granger stood beside me and gave me a look,
"Miss Vance, I saw you sleeping on the grass near the village's square, so I carried you back to the palace." He said in a deep voice. I then looked down in embarrassment.
"By the way, I saw him earlier after the public feast," I said, which made his eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean, Miss Vance?" He asked.
"I saw George Paxley," I answered and looked at him, "You mean the one who got exiled from the Paxley household?" Said Granger, I then nodded, "Yeah, and I thought that I would never see him again," I pouted.
"Is that so? You should be happy you got the chance then," He nonchalantly said which made me chuckle, "I am happy, he's one of my closest friends before." I said as my eyes roamed around the castle hall.
"That's great. By the way, Miss Vance. Follow me, the training is about to start," Said Granger, I then nodded, being submissive... as I followed him outside the palace, "Where are we going?" I asked... seconds passed, he spoke, "Training grounds," He answered, as we headed to the garden.
As we passed the garden, we passed the large tree that faces the gazebo, we walked through the woods. Then, as we reached to the training grounds, there I saw the prince and the princess having a hand-to-hand combat! The training they had, was really intense!
Punch after punch, kick after kick... the way they fought, it was really deadly! The looks on their faces were really serious, and they're both sweating up which made the training intense!
But not as intense as my training with my legal father at the age of seven, and my mom trained me by using any weapons, especially our signature weapon, the rifle.
Princess Silvanna quickly slid her right foot across him, which made the prince lost his balance and fell on the ground. She then tackled Prince Aurelius on the ground, "Sis, I give up," Said Prince Aurelius, then he chuckled. The princess chuckled too as she stood up from the grass, she reached out for the prince's hand and dragged him upwards, "Nice match," Said the princess.
Her gaze went to us, "Oh, hi, Lesley! You're here for the training with Chevalier Granger, huh." Said the princess as she took a towel from her pocket and wiped her sweat on her forehead and her neck.
I then chuckled, "Yes, Silvanna. The other's will come too," I said as I beamed at her, the prince went to our spot and flashed his bright smile, "I cannot wait to train with you, Miss Vance and Chevalier Granger." Said the prince.
Granger nodded, "Me too," He said in a monotonous voice as he gave him his usual look. The prince chuckled, and shoved his blonde locks.
"GUYS, WE'RE HERE!"
As we turned around, it was Fanny who called out, behind her, there was Tigreal and Alucard. Fanny was in her hyper mode, she had some dark eye bags, while Alucard, he raised his large sword in the air, wielding it. Tigreal stood erect, and stretched his arms out in the air.
"Yo, Les! Ready for your first training? Hehe." Fanny held my shoulders and let out a smile, I smiled back at her and answered, "Yes, Fanny." I giggled and Fanny giggled along with me.
"Before we start, Lesley... you need to train your skills, to enhance it is a must," Said Princess Silvanna, as she took her lance from the grass. I feel excited since it was my first time to train with them, especially with Princess Silvanna and Prince Aurelius.
"Right now, you need to practice with your speed," She added as she beamed at me.
Speed? This one's easy.
I nodded and smiled back at her, "Okay, Chevalier Granger will be coaching you. He's the best when it comes to speed," Said the princess as she glanced at Granger. He then, looked back at her and nodded.
Him?! That guy? I didn't expect this. For all I know, he's just an emotionless man who shows up everywhere and shoots with his gun if he wants to!
"Bring her somewhere," She ordered. He then nodded and motioned me to come, hmmm... I wonder where are we going. I followed him as we went deeper in the woods, I saw Fanny grinning at me from the distance like an idiot, like she was thinking something inappropriate. I furrowed my eyebrows and pouted at her.
As we stopped in a spacious area where trees surround us, Granger took a deep breath and gazed at me...
"Show me what you've got, Miss Vance." Said Granger as he walked backwards, while he was still facing me. He took his red scarf from his neck and he used it to blindfold himself. I looked at him with confusion...
What the Gord is he doing?
"Punch me," He said, my eyes widen as his eyes were blindfolded. Is he... sure about that?
"Are you sure about that?" I asked with a hint of worry in my eyes, he then nodded, "Yes I am, Miss Vance. I'll try to block and avoid your punches," He said as he motioned me to punch him.
I tried to punch him on his face lightly as he normally blocked my clenched fist with his hand. "Again, try harder." He said, I tried to punch him on his stomach when he blocked it with his arm!
Damn... he can't see anything, but he can feel it! His sense was darn strong! "Again, is that what you got, Miss Vance?" He mocked me, that made me gritted my teeth, the way he mocked me was really annoying AF!
It's like he was testing my patience, I need to move silently and carefully or he'll find out what my next move will be. I started to punch him everywhere real fast, he then kept blocking my punches or avoiding it, which made it really hard for me!
"Too slow, Miss Vance." Granger mocked me which made me clenched my fists... and now, I'm losing my patience. Hmph, I won't go easy on you.
I began to jab him on his stomach, and it seems he's not aware of that. As my fist landed on his stomach, he stepped backward and it seemed taken aback, "That was quick, try harder."
"You told me I'm slow, wanna make it faster, then... as you wish," I tried mocking him, but it was useless since his expression stays the same!
I then began to jab him everywhere but he began to avoid and block my punches really fast! It took me half an hour by punching him aggressively, still he managed to avoid and block my punches, I kept punching him fast and we're moving forward!
I quickly jabbed his face and his gut which made him stopped, I was about to punch him again when he caught my wrists and held it tightly, "Okay, that's enough," Said Granger as he took his blindfold from his eyes.
The training was too fast, but I'm enjoying it. "The way you jabbed me on my stomach, was real rough, Miss Vance." He said in a monotonous voice, as he dusted himself.
I pouted as I averted my gaze from him the time he laid his eyes on me, "Why? Do you still want more training, Miss Vance?" Granger asked, which made me snort, as he tied the red scarf on his neck. "No, it's fine." I stuttered while my gaze was roaming around the trees.
"Okay," That was all he could say, he walked ahead of me without saying a word, "W-Where are you going?" I asked, he then kept walking and answered,
"Going back,"
My eyes widen as I started to catch up with him, "H-Hey! Wait up!" I yelled as I hastily ran and followed him. This guy was literally the weirdest! His actions were usual and sometimes, unexpected! I can't even read his expressions since he was always emotionless and his face always stays blank! Oh, Gord.
-
Third Person
"Hmmm, what to read...?" Prince Aurelius asked himself as his eyes roamed around the palace library, "I need to study more magic for future purposes," He mumbled as he went to the bookshelf and scanned every book in it.
He was about to head to the next bookshelf when he stumbled upon something! Good thing his reflexes were real quick as he fell down on the floor, he twisted his torso sideward and used his arms for support.
"Ow, what was that?"
As he slowly stood up from the ground, there he saw a large book. The book cover piqued his curiosity, since the book cover was covered in old leather with some unidentified symbols. He then cocked his head to the right, "I never saw this book before," He mumbled to himself as he took the book from the floor.
He took a deep breath, "That book was quite heavy!" He placed the book on the table, as he opened the book, he found out that it was the list and histories of the strongest royal families in the Land of Dawn. "A history book, huh," He muttered as he started to read it aloud.
"Few decades ago, the Aurelius royal family rose to fame as they defeated the Abyssal Demons and the peace has brought back, but the peace only lasted for years," He mumbled as he read the information that was written on the book.
As he flipped the next page, it made him surprised, as the blank page slowly changed, and an image appeared...
The picture of him, and his sister, Princess Silvanna... appeared on the blank page, then a description appeared below. 'This book was not just an ordinary book,' The prince thought to himself as he proceed to read the next description.
"As the King and the Queen got old, the two royal children were chosen to rule the Moniyan Empire," Then, he looked at the next page, and there it appeared the picture of a man and woman, and it seemed familiar to him... seconds passed, he was tearing up, mindlessly.
"Mother, Father... I'm sorry," He said as he stared at nothingness. Few minutes later, he took a deep breath and wiped the tears from his face.
He then flipped the next page, and continued to read it, curiosity filling his mind...
As the blank page, slowly filled with descriptions of the next royal family, it was the Ascheberg. "Ascheberg? Never heard of that before," He muttered at he proceed to read the description.
"The Ascheberg royal family of marksmen and assassins, this is where Leonidas von Ascheberg was known as the deadliest marksman in the Land of Dawn. His wife, Lilienne von Ascheberg, was one of the best assassins in the Moniyan Empire. And the infamous legendary assassin, Lorelei von Ascheberg, was said to be Leonidas' mother. The Ascheberg family was said to be the ruthless, and deadliest hunters in the Land of Dawn." He mumbled as he read the description loud and clear.
"And the blood of Ascheberg was known as the demon's dream blood or the demon's magnet. The blood of Ascheberg was the rarest of them all, one of the Ascheberg member died in the hands of the demon, as the leader of the demons, Alice... she gained mysterious powers after sucking its... blood." The prince squinted his eyes as he kept reading, as he flipped the next page, there he saw a woman... his eyes widen as he saw magenta locks, she had heterochromia, one is brown, and one is blue. There he saw a name below, and it was Lorelei von Ascheberg.
"She's familiar..." The prince mumbled to himself, seconds passed, he realized something. The beautiful woman in the picture, was familiar to her. He couldn't help but to think of one person, a person who he truly admires...
Lesley Vance.
"She literally looks like her, perhaps, she's Lorelei? No, no... This woman was known for decades, perhaps..." He paused for a moment.
"The lineal descendant of Lorelei Ascheberg...?" He asked himself, as he grew restless as time goes by.
He shook his head, 'Maybe it was Miss Vance's look-a-like. She's a Vance, not an Ascheberg.' He thought to himself.
As he flipped the next page, there he saw the description, which made him froze... he then took a deep breath and started to read, "The Ascheberg, was said to be extinct due to an assassination by the rival family... except for the last living Ascheberg who survived from the assassination." Then an image of a woman appeared on the old, blank page.
He couldn't believe what he saw, his hunch... was right, after all. One thing struck in his mind, she's in danger.
"Miss Vance,"
He mumbled, as he saw the picture of Lesley with her usual navy blue pea coat and black trousers, with her boots. And her rifle that she always carries. "It can't be..."
He froze as someone spoke behind him,
"Continue. I'm starting to enjoy the info that you're reading aloud."
As he turned around to see who it was...
It's the Demon Queen, Alice.
Prince Aurelius gave her a glare with daggers, as he clenched his fist, "You, stay away from her!" He exclaimed as he pointed his fingers at her.
The demon chuckled at him, "Relax, I was just... gonna retrieve you and bring you back to your real home," Said Alice as she let out an evil laugh.
"No, I don't want to go! My people's lives, were almost ruined because of you!" He angrily said as he raised his glowing fists.
"Don't you want that? The more people suffer from us, the more it'll make us stronger and satisfied? It was your dream before to rule the Abyss, and to take over Land of Dawn by us." Alice gave him a mischievous smile and flickered to his spot.
The she-demon held his chin which made him shook his head in disgust and flipped backward away from her.
"Huh, never knew that the woman you wanted to marry before, had the blood of an Ascheberg. Your future wife could be my tasty treat," Alice mocked him, which made Prince Aurelius gritted his teeth.
"Don't you dare touch her! Or I won't hesitate to kill you," The prince threatened the demon but Alice only laughed as reply.
"Says the man who almost took her dignity away," She mockingly said, and winked at him, which made the prince scowl at her.
"Says the woman who kidnapped and brainwashed me. Leave her alone, she's out of this!" Said the prince as he tried to punch her with his glowing fists. But Alice kept flickering just to avoid his punches.
The prince casted a spell and threw it to her over and over again, but unfortunately, she quickly avoided it. He can feel his sweat was rolling down on his forehead, and he felt rage as he saw the Demon Queen, toying around with him.
Alice appeared behind him, she then casted a magic spell which made Prince Aurelius immobilized. No matter how hard he tried to move, he can't. Then the Demon Queen unleashed her powers and entered in a blood-sucking state which made the prince groaned in pain.
"Ever since you teamed up with them, you became weaker than before. Kill me? You're not even an inch to overpower me... come back to us, Dyrroth." Said Alice while giving him a bitch look.
"N-No, I don't. And I'll n-never come back!" He stuttered as he felt himself losing his strength, his knees were trembling, and he felt the demon was sucking his soul.
"It's your decision to make, don't you ever regret if we killed everyone around you. The townspeople, the chevaliers, your family... and your beloved, Lesley." Said the she-demon, then she evilly chuckled, which turned into a laugh that made the prince's blood boiled in anger.
"D-Don't be too complacent, you demon... who knows, you might be the one dying instead of us." The prince said in a weak voice, as he glared at Alice as she slowly disappeared from his sight.
Prince Aurelius was now lying on the cold floor, he looked like a lifeless person, with his rosy skin turned really pale. His lips went dark and his body grew weak. He whispered a magic spell which enabled him to have a telepathy with his sister, Princess Silvanna. Then, he left few words,
"S-Sister, h-help."
A few moments later, his vision started to get blurry, he passed out.
-
Hello! I'm sorry for the late update, I ran out of ideas and I think this chapter was kinda boring since Grangey and Ley had a training and the prince who read the info and had a short fight with Alice. I am really sorry if this chapter was kinda boring. :3
By the way, how's quarantine? Keep safe always, and stay healthy, everyone!
Lots of love! (｡'▽'｡)♡
-Rhealyne