Prince of The Abyss

Finding the Academy without Orion hadn’t been as easy as he expected, but in the end, he had finally arrived.

The Academy rose before him like something that did not belong in the same world as everything else.

Massive gates stood at the threshold, forged from dark iron threaded with white-gold filigree that caught the light in thin, controlled lines. ’They always do the most over-the-top things in this place. Did the Academy really need this? After all, who the heck was going to get inside of it with how much defense this ward had? Plus, a Breaker was close, no one was dumb enough to try something.’

Aether sighed, continuing to inspect the Academy. As much as he thought it was over the top, nothing about them felt ornamental in the usual sense. Everything carried intent. Weight. Meaning. As if even the smallest curve had been approved by generations that never accepted imperfection. ’But of course it has to, it’s an Academy in the most prestigious place...’ He had no idea why he was this rude, maybe because his mood had really been ruined by meeting both Lilith and the King of the Blue Rose.

On either side, guards stood in perfect stillness.

Not the kind of stillness born from discipline alone, but something deeper. Controlled. Refined. Their armor was too clean, too precise, shaped in layered designs that made them look less like soldiers and more like extensions of the Academy itself. ’Wonder how strong they were, after all, if they were the last thing guarding the future of the Blue Rose, they had to be overly strong.’

Beyond them, the Academy spread outward.

Not as a single structure, but as an entire constructed world.

The Academy was one colossal building, not the biggest he had seen, but one that had a very impressive size. He would have expected more, but it was just a bigger building that looked the same as the other ones in this place. Nothing special about it. Though he could see a giant window with the Blue Rose symbol on the highest point of the Academy.

Aether approached the guards, showing them his badge, and waited as they opened the gate. The courtyard was pretty beautiful, filled with cherry trees, and small lakes all over the place, some even with lily pads.

At the door of the school, he saw a familiar place. The same knight who had guided him to the last Ward. Orion.

”I was wondering when you would come. Follow me, I’ll guide you towards your dorm.”

Dorm? Interesting... though was he going to have to share a room with someone else, if so... then that wasn’t going to go so well... they might die in their sleep, who knows, after all, death does come to people who spent time with him. Maybe Orion knows something, that’s why he’s acting so cold, so that death doesn’t think he’s his friend.

The Knight led him to a building near the Academy, one big, but not as big as the Academy.

”You would be sleepy alone, since you joined while the year is still going on. Plus, everyone knew that it wouldn’t be a good idea to pair you up with a Blue Rose noble.” He smiled, for the first time, the knight smiled. But why? What would have happened if he had been paired up with a Blue Rose noble? But he didn’t even have time to ask, as Orion just entered the dorm building. Guiding him towards the fourth floor and towards his room.

”Here are your keys, and your uniform should be in there. From what I heard, you can attend classes today if you want, but you’re not forced to; you can either make your entrance now or tomorrow.” Then the knight waved goodbye before leaving.

Aether shrugged his shoulders as he opened the door with his key, ready to see what was going to be inside. After all, this was a prestigious school; should he expect a very expensive room... well, maybe he should have, since his room was just a bed, without even a blanket, and a small desk, alongside a decent-sized cabinet for his clothes.

’Of course, probably the worst room in this whole building. It’s not like I care that much; it’s better either way from what I had in the Withered.’

Aether walked over to his bed, where his uniform was. The first thing he saw was a white blouse, picking it up, he saw a small design on it, one of a black rose, one that didn’t look pretty good maintained... almost Withered.

...

”Of course... a Withered Rose.” Did they really have to do this, after what he heard from Orion? The people here definitely didn’t like people from the Withered, so did they have to make it so obvious?

Though it kinda a quite good looking design, the person who had done it must have really hated doing it.

The next thing was a black blazer, one with a small badge on it, with, of course, a Withered Rose; it was the same as the one given to him by Avius, but that one had his name written on the back, and was also, of course, not bound to a uniform.

And most obviously, even more than the last, it had a Blue Rose.

There were also some trousers here, but they weren’t anything special.

Outside the main pieces of the uniform, there was a tie, which he was definitely not going to wear, and a belt. And some leather shoes, of course.

...

Aether sighed, looking out the window... was he really going to have to go to class... he had never been to an actual school before, he had private teachers, and still, he hated it, plus, it had been a long time... ”Well, I guess if I want to learn more about the Abyss, and maybe find a way to help the Withered, I will need to get stronger.”

...

Though he really didn’t want to start today... Tomorrow it was. But what he did want to do was to explore the place more...

But he should get into his uniform first.

...

...

...

’It’s not that bad, I guess...’ He really didn’t like wearing a uniform, but he had tried to make it look as good and as free as he could while still wearing it. The most important part was that he had left the blazer out; it was... pretty ugly, and it also just didn’t feel comfortable at all. The blouse was fine, plus it had a cool design. But even then, he wore half of it inside his pants and the other over them. With both inside, it felt awful, and with both out, he would probably get kicked out because it was to unprofesional.

And the tie... he wore it around his elbow, he really didn’t know how they thought he, someone from the Withered, would ever wear a tie, he hadn’t even worn one when he was in his home Kingdom. The belt was also just too tight, so he had let it.

...

Looking at it, he really didn’t look like a good student... but it’s like they expected him to be one... so what was the harm in making their expectation true, it’s not like he wanted or had anything to prove to them.

...

Leaving the dorm, Aether didn’t see anyone around. If he had to guess, most were probably in class already, learning. Which wasn’t that bad, after all, he really didn’t want to talk to some brats at the moment, plus, the quiet was nice. Aether walked until he found a small bench. Sitting on it. He stared at the sky, feeling the wing burst in his face.

”This is nice...”

...

”It is, isn’t it?” Aether quickly turned his head to see a girl resting her arms on the bench.

Her hair was a strangely captivating violet, wrapped in a small ponytail, with a black ribbon keeping it in place, which took most of its length, only slightly reaching her shoulders. It was quite stacked with accessories, if I had to say. The most intersting one’s were the ones with cats on them...

Though they were pretty cute, if he had to say.

Her eyes were pink, yet her pupil, it was quite hard to see, as it wasn’t black, but rather a much darker shade of pink. She had her uniform on, but her blouse was stained pink, and her blazer was filled with small pins.

She also had moles on both sides of her neck, alongside one of her ears.

She was... quite beautiful if he had to say.

Taking the lollipop from her mouth, she smiled. ”I don’t recognize you, you must be new, right?”

Aether tilted his head. ”Is it that obvious?” Of course it was, but he knew that. He was just being sarcastic.

The girl laughed, putting the lollipop back in her mouth. ”My name is Sena Nova.”

...

”Vessel of Fate.”