Chapter 13+14: Volume 2???

Grayson:

"I'm sorry Grayson, I like you too, but my mission has no time for love." Eli muttered, picking at her fingernails, "I think… I have a duty I need to fulfil. I have decided to become an adventurer. I will kill monsters and save as many lives as I can, to pay back the debt that was given to me, after Miku decided to sacrifice herself and save me."

I smiled. Eli looked so utterly depressed, as though she was imagining the hardships in front of her.

"Are you inane? We're coming with you, so don't just say 'goodbye' to us yet!" Edward huffed and slung his arm around her shoulder.

"That's right." I laughed, slinging my arm around Eli's shoulder as well.

"Kyaaa!" Eli shrieked, "Get off me! You're too heavy!"

~~~~~~~~~~

A few years later…

"Did you hear!? Miku is coming back to their hometown!"

"I heard that they have two sword masters!"

"Yes! Apparently, they can wield their swords so well, it's a blur and it only takes them a blink for them to have their sword next to their victim's neck!"

"Their sorcerer was trained personally by the ducal house, Leona! According to the rumours, the sorcerer can heal any type of wound; even regrow a lost leg!"

"Was it true they only graduated from the Academy last year?!"

"I feel so special!" Edward swaggered through the streets with an especially proud look expression on his face.

"Careful, your ego's going to explode at aaannny moment now." Eli quipped, brushing her glossy, flowing raven hair over her shoulder, "Besides, if your fiancé heard you right now, she'd think twice about marrying you."

"H-huh?!" Edward stuttered, his crimson eyes widening in horror, "Don't you dare tell her! I'll be so embarrassed!"

Edward jerked his head away, using his hands to cover his flustered face.

"Haha. We should go out with your fiancé occasionally to celebrate how well we've done as adventurers in our group 'Miku'." I chuckled; my long silvery ponytail fluttered in the wind, "I'll meet back with you later, my parents apparently want to see me."

"I salute you to your death." Edward sighed, thumping me on the back.

"Goodluck." Eli grimaced, squeezing my hand with hers.

~~~~~~~~~~

"I demand you to stop frivolous hobby of yours!" Father thundered, "Being an adventurer isn't a suitable activity for such a high-status noble like you!"

"Relax, we use magic to change our hair colour and eyes." I yawned, lounging back into the plushy chair.

"We care for our *ahem* I mean- your reputation, as parents we cannot let this continue." Mother cooed, fanning her face with her lace fan, and added with a mocking tone, "Which is why we arranged for a fiancé for you."

Mother and Father's faces held a smug and vicious sneer as I choked. Fiancé? Eli and I ad just agreed to start dating since our last mission! Suddenly, a realisation dawned over me and I started choking with laughter.

"You? Parents?! I think the last time I saw you was, what? Maybe when I was eleven years old? I'm nineteen now. You didn't even come to see me at graduation" I chuckled sardonically, "Unfortunately, if you decide to disown me, I have enough money from my missions to survive on my own; maybe even better than you. I even have more money than you do! And you know what? Money is a very special item in this world; I could easily ruin you."

"He's rich?" Mother muttered behind her fan towards Father.

"Don't be silly, Grayson, deeear!" Mother chirped, patting me with her fan, "We just caaare about you! We don't want your reputation to suffer with slander! You are our only child, after all!"

"Ah… yes." Father added, wiping his sweaty brow, "About the money, can you be a good child and spare us some money? You know we love you very much!"

I stood up and spared them one disgusted glance over my shoulder.

"Goodbye, strangers."

I walked out.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Heeey Brother!" Edward chirped as soon as he saw me, "The Crown Prince and his fiancé from the neighbouring country want to see us and thank us for solving the mission near their borders!"

"Hurry up!" Eli huffed, sliding her hand into mine, and dragging me along,

"Young love…" Edward sighed dreamily, "It just tortured me to just wait for you to get together. You guys are both wimps when it comes to confessing."

"Want to die?" Eli and I smiled, as I raised my palm with blue electricity crackling and Eli raised her fists.

Poof!

There was only dust left in Edward's wake as he sped off.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Thank you for coming." The Crown Prince smiled politely, "May you take off the enchantment placed on you?"

As the enchantment placed on us, melted away, the Crown Prince's fiancé's blue eyes widened,

"You're Lord Grayson, right?!" Lady Ivory squealed and then paled, suddenly realising everyone was staring at her.

"Um… how did you know about me?" I asked tentatively as Eli stared predatorily at Lady Ivory.

"Oh… uh… I just happened to hear about your accomplishments." Lady Ivory simply stated and muttered under a breath, "…otome game?"

Otome Game?! Did she just say otome game???

"Lady Ivory!" I suddenly bursted out, "Did you by chance… die once?"

It was a gamble, if she wasn't reincarnated like I was, she would assume I was crazy and not right in the head.

"Yes!" Lady Ivory chirped, "I came from Japan, what about you?!"

"Same! What was your name?" I gasped,

"Mine was Sato Rin!" She laughed, covering her face with her hands, "I knew something wasn't right! You didn't act like Grayson from the otome game!"

"Sato Rin…?" I asked, my heart thumping in my chest, "Sis? Did you have a brother called Sato Akira?"

"Brother…?" Lady Ivory's eyes filled with tears, and she coughed as though she was going to say something dramatic, "Uwagahamaa?"

"HAHA!" I laughed, "That's not something you should say to your brother when you first see him! Why did your throat become clogged up now?!"

"What's going on?!" Edward gasped, dragging Eli back from pounding Sis while the Crown Prince glared daggers at me.

"Uhh…" I muttered switching looks with Sis, "We're childhood friends; we're like siblings."

"Thaaat's right!" Sis cheered, as her fiancé's eyes softened, "And… now, I'm going to test your girlfriend later on, if she's good enough." Sis's eyes narrowed at Eli, as Eli's back stiffened.

"Goodluck!" Edward sighed mockingly at Eli.

Miku may not be here… but we were going to continue living for her. Maybe, Miku was watching over us, laughing at our antics.

~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR:

OK! I'm sorry this went by so quickly! I'm sorry, but I'm cancelling the drawing competition; I've decided to just continue to write the next volume here. I've decided that, Grayson's love life will be revealed in the next (second) volume. For the third volume, I'm thinking of doing Edward's love life.

I would like to say thanks to Gavyn_Mack for suggesting me to not make it so fast. Thank you >-<

The second volume is about Grayson's sister, Sat Rin (A.k.a Lady Ivory.) Thank you for sticking to the end of this volume. Writing about these characters have been like writing about my own children ^^*

Well, have fun.

~~~~~~~~~~

Volume Two:

I remember the day the news that my brother bad died. I was just sixteen, and he was only seventeen. There was an earthquake that day which was powerful enough to shake skyscrapers to their knees. My brother had gone running that day, his body was returned home by the officials, lifeless and mangled so badly, I could barely tell it was him. I recalled the stench of blood being so putrid, my mother vomited onto the ground, while my father just buried his face into his hands, staying very still and silent with tears dripping off his fingers. Me? I just stood there. A few seconds later, I begun to laugh. I doubled over with laughter, hysterical snorts coming out of my mouth. My brother, the gifted, lonely nerd at school was… dead? I regretted that day. If only I smiled more, and I did not tease him that day. Maybe if I hadn't annoyed him, he would've stayed at home and survived.

After laughing for a few minutes, reality stabbed me in the back. I started making unhuman wails and my sloppy tears collided against the floor. My face was a mess after crying for so long.

I remember going to my brother's funeral. Bleakness sat like a rock in my mind. Everyone dressed in black. No one said a word to me. All I received was pitying glances from onlookers.

After half a year, I happened to stumble across a specific otome game. I had finished an otome game which I had happened to be playing the day my brother died, turns out, the creator had made another otome game, in the same world as the last one, but in a different country.

It was called, 'The Lies and Betrayal of The Snakes.' It was truly amazing, it was so in depth, it kept my mind of my brother's death. So, I continued to play it during the night.

It was about the Heroine, Emilia, who went to the academy, the first thing she did was offer some random students; as well as Prince Kyle, some cookies. Ivory, the villainess who was also the Prince's fiancée was insanely jealous.

Ivory was an evil person, she bullied her half-brother mercilessly, and her butler torturously. Ivory was the precious, most favourite child of her duke household. She was a complete brat to her older brother and twin brother, and so, in some routes, they killed her. Let's cut it short- she was a complete brat, an attractive little monster. She had a 'best friend' since childhood, called Sardonna. In all of the endings, Sardonna backstabbed her.

I stayed up all night, playing the otome game, until my alarm warned me it was time to get ready for school. I jumped out of bed, bleary eyed, and groggy. I slapped on my uniform and rushed out of home with a single toast slice in my mouth. I walked on the side pavement with the rest of my friends walking beside me. Suddenly, I felt dizzy and my vision blurred. I felt my body weight tip to one side as I fell… onto the road.

*SCKRRRRRRRRREEEEEE*

A large truck slammed on the brakes but too late… I felt an intense pain hit my whole body.

"CALL AN AMBULANCE!"

"There's so much blood...!"

"DON'T DIE!"

My friend's frantic voices erupted into the air.

"I'm sorry…" I whispered to anyone who heard me.

***

"Rise and shine, Lady Ivory!" A merry voice knocked a door, their footsteps finally fading away.

Huh?

I looked at the room around me, crumpled silk, scarlet curtains, a spacious room, a king size bed draped with jewels and silk. This definitely was too grand to be my room back in Japan, and I doubted this was the hospital. Wasn't I dead? Where was Brother?! Brother… I covered my face with my hands, the wave a pain crashing into me. Wait! Why were my hands so small? I jumped out of the bed and fell on my face. Why was my body so small and weak?! I ran as fast as I could with my stubby legs towards the closest mirror.

A stunning, little girl with chubby cheeks stared back at me. Her short golden curls, drifted above my shoulders and her big, round, vivid blue eyes widened at shock. (To get a visual idea of what she looks like, look at the little girl on the front cover) This little girl was way more pretty than I was in my last life! But why was I such a little girl?

I tentatively stepped out of my room in my nightdress, when a maid stopped me,

"Why are you still dressed in your nightdress, Lady Ivory?" She asked, guiding me back to the room, "You should've called a maid to help you."

Wait… Did she say Lady Ivory?! Was that why this little girl seemed so familiar?! Wasn't Lady Ivory the villainess?