Chapter Fifteen

I sit with my back against a rough stone wall. Shackles are around my ankles, wrists, and even my neck. My white staff lies at my feet, but I am far too tired to reach for it. Every time I feel myself drifting off to sleep, an electric shock runs through my body, and I am jolted awake.

There is a minor pain on the right side of my neck. I remember being grabbed and dragged backward after following Adan and emerging into the clearing where Edgar was held, and then a prick in the right side of my neck. Afterward, I woke up in a dark space, with these shackles around my body.

Keiju came into my space and snatched my staff, only for it to appear back at my feet minutes after it was taken away. I learned from the conversations above where I am being held that I am in the Rosenrough bloodline camp, and everyone is quite happy that "Edgar has returned to where he belongs", whatever that means.

A cough causes my body to tremble, and my throat burns and stings to the point where more tears well up into my eyes and leave continuous streaks down the sides of my face. I do not have the voice to call out, nor make a single sound without pain and a tremendous amount of effort.

My stomach growls, aching for any type of food. At this point, I would take raw Gho berries. At least I knew I could eat them. Would it worsen my sickness? Probably. Would I die if I ate them? It would be better than staying here, like this, for who knew how much longer?

I pray Ludwig is doing alright. I hope he isn't worried about me and putting himself in danger just for my sake. He does not deserve to see me in this state. I'm such a burden to him; it would be best if he left me to die here. I was already so close to the grave, but I hadn't gained the courage to accept diving into that six-foot-deep hole until just recently.

Why am I even here, in this dark, small, underground space? It's stuffy, smelling, and overall sickening. The Keiju who used to come in here to grab my staff stared at me with narrowed eyes and hostile expressions. But no one has come in here for a while now. I can't even begin to guess how long I have been in here, being so deprived of sleep lately.

Could someone just come in here and give me the mercy of death?

I hear footsteps from in front of me. Is my wish being granted? Did Aviva think killing me would allow her to examine the staff Aziel gave me? Well, I wasn't sure if she really wanted that; it was what those who came here and grabbed the staff grumbled before finding out it ended up at my feet minutes later once they exited the underground chamber.

The shadow of a dark figure looms on the left side of the chamber wall, appearing with the light of a lantern that also comes from the entrance. Soon, a Rosenrough Keiju, with long blonde black hair and piercing amber eyes comes into view, and I am unable to recall his face from those who came to take my staff countless times. Though, it was probably my extreme lack of sleep that was causing my poor recall.

The young man sets the lantern down and kneels down a few feet in front of me, his eyes switching between me and the staff. He puts his left hand on a wooden stick that I only notice when he grabs it and brings it right next to the staff.

"Do you own this staff?"

The young man's voice does not hold any hostility or ill will. He examines my eyes for an answer before waiting for a verbal confirmation of what he may have glimpsed from my eyes.

"No."

He nods and waves his hand over the white staff. I expect he is trying to make it react to the Surgai within his body, which I also heard from the conversations above me. I know it won't react to Surgai; I'm an Amite, so I didn't have any Surgai, or whatever in the world Mirene was (which I remembered Ludwig mentioning) in my body.

"Do you know who owns this staff?"

The man looks up at me, and I manage to say the owner's name, but nothing more, as another fit of coughing renders me unable to do so.

"Aziel Kane-"

I break out coughing, and I am able to see the Keiju's eyes close briefly and mouth display a smile before he quickly reverts back to his original calm expression once I become silent.

"Thank you. Can you hold your hands out for me, please?"

Without questioning him, I do as I am told. The Keiju picks up the white staff, and puts it in between my hands. I grip the smooth wood, and the dim crystal begins to shine its soft white light again, offering me a sense of comfort.

The young man picks up the wooden stick and holds it like I do my staff. Before my eyes, the wooden stick grows in length, becomes covered in the white color of my staff's wood, and even forms the shining crystal and golden replica of Ki with his red jeweled eyes in a matter of seconds.

"That should make Aviva happy. Would you like to sleep for a while?"

I try to nod, but the shackle around my neck prevents me from doing so, only causing the chain attaching it to the wall to rattle.

The Keiju lets out a short laugh and waves his hand over my neck, wrists, and ankles. The shackles disintegrate, and I try my best to stand up and offer the Keiju a proper thank you once he stands up, grabs the lantern, and turns away from me to head towards the exit of the chamber.

But, my legs, trembling and aching, give out from under me, and I fall to the ground, tightening my grip on my staff as though it will save me. The young man looks over his shoulder and another small smile graces his lips for a moment.

"Do get some rest, Crown Prince Veles. Mister Casimir is quite worried about you."

My eyes widen and I reach out with my right hand to catch the Keiju's attention for a while longer.

"Wait. How do you know my name? Who are you?"

"I can not answer your first question at the moment, but I can answer your second."

The man twirls the replica of my white staff in his hand, and small blossoms erupt from the crystal, landing right by my feet.

"My name is Fredrick Silorn. I do hope we meet again."

With those words, the Keiju disappears, and without an electric shock running throughout my body, I close my eyes and finally fall into a sweet, peaceful rest.