Читать книгу MODERN MAGICS - Tianyu (Tony) Zhu - Страница 13

Sapphire rolled her eyes for the fifth time that day as she watched Damian’s mouth drop at the sight of the Royal House’s grandiose foyer.

She had to admit -- if she had never been to the Royal House before, her reaction would probably have been the same. Countless shining jewels were embedded into the columns and pillars holding the high ceiling up. Flashing chandeliers dangled above them, casting diamond-shaped shadows onto the ground and onto their skin. Intricate mosaics and tapestries depicted past Royal ancestors and stories with bright, contrasting colors.

The constant chattering of nobles donned in expensive suits and robes passed along Damian in the foyer, which furthermore fed to his feeling of intimidation and inferiority. Damian had never witnessed such finesse and panache in his entire life, as he glanced down at the matching watches, emblems, and rings on their pulp fingers. His only context was centered around the Bierner Shelter, which only served as a stark contrast to the Royal House.

“Come on, let’s go,” She said and grabbed Damian’s arm, realising that the other people had started to notice a boy in an oversized hospital patient uniform who was just standing in the middle of the foyer, spinning in a circle and staring into space. Shaking from his daze, Damian silently followed Sapphire and Owen.

As they walked through the lobby, Damian saw something peculiar. The people in the lobby would glance and see Sapphire’s or Owen’s face, their expressions would transform into one of anxiety and slight fear, then they would begin to back away from the two Anaroths. These reactions happened with almost every single mage they were close to. As they walked up the stairs, Damian looked over his shoulder and saw the path they made slowly disappearing as the crowd filled in once more.

“Do they not like you guys?” Damian asked Owen as they reached a hall of elevators.

“With our job, we’re not exactly…” Owen said as he contemplated what to say.

He didn’t have to answer. With a high-pitched ring, the elevator door in front of them opened. The people inside looked up, saw the two Anaroths, and hurriedly began to vacate the elevator with startled eyes.

“Well thought-of here.” Owen finished, mimicking Damian’s own thoughts as the three stepped into the elevator.

“What’s your family like?” Damian asked Sapphire as the elevator went up. He looked at her for a moment before staring down at the ground in awkward silence, noticing that Sapphire wasn’t paying attention at all. From the moment she has entered the Royal House, she has been chewing on her fingernails, thinking furiously about how she will deal with her untrustworthy cousin and conniving uncle.

A few moments later, the elevator doors opened and they entered into a room that was not at all similar to the bright, palace-like lobby. They stood in the middle of what seemed to be a narrow, medieval hallway. The walls were made of distinct, gray, stone bricks, seemingly held together by clay. Stone arches were built into the walls, leading into other rooms. Natural sunlight seemed to be filling the room through the windows built high above them, though he clearly remembered this being in the middle of a giant manor.

“Distortion magic.” Owen explained, spotting the curiosity on Damian’s face. “High Illusionist magic that can change your surroundings no matter what kind of space you’re in. Every royal family has a distinct room like this.”

“You must be Mister Asher, yes?”

Damian’s head quickly snapped around to the sudden presence of a middle-aged servant standing before him, who quietly emerged through one of the rooms to the right. He nodded his head yes, and the servant gestured at him to proceed into the other room, “Come with me, please.”

He was about to respond, then he felt a sudden grasp on his arm. “Come on. Let’s just get this over with,” Sapphire muttered as she yanked him into the room with a seemingly angry stride.

They passed by a grand common area, much bigger than the corridor they were just in. A bustling kitchen with a set of wooden chairs and a long mahogany dining table was positioned on the far side of the room. Servants and cooks scurried around, preparing food for the family’s lunch meal. The aroma of beef wellington and candied, caramelized carrots lingered in the corridor.

A middle-aged man sat on a gray sofa laid next to Damian’s right. Behind him stood a boy around his age, most likely the man’s son, with their matching white hair and expressions that seem to pressure him, as if they were blatantly looking down at him. The father, presumably Sapphire’s uncle, wore a black robe decorated with streaked patterns of bright yellow. An ornamented pin was stuck to the robe where his heart should be, a pitch black symbol in the shape of what seemed to be a throwing star. His face was filled with creases from old age, despite that, his eyes were nothing but astute and attentive, as if nothing could escape his sight.

The son was much different than his elder: he wore a casual T-shirt and jeans, a stark contrast from the formal attire of his father. He radiated an aura of flagrant superiority and cold indifference, fittingly accompanied by a crooked smirk and a hostile glare, which made it very clear to Damian that this individual would be no ally or friend. A formidable antagonist at that -- his muscular build and towering height was perfectly juxtaposed to Damian’s scrawny frame. Moreover, the polar contrast between Damian’s unkempt, jet black hair and Ethan’s glossy white hair made their physical appearances even more distinct.

He felt Sapphire tap his back. Damian suddenly remembered what she and Owen had told him on the streets of Caphis, “ Greet the Anaroth’s formally, if you don’t make a good introduction, you’re not going to get anywhere.”

“What do you mean?” Damian asked.

“Trust me, personal experiences,” Owen, at that moment, seemed very somber and gloomy, so Damian did not pursue that matter anymore.

Damian returned to the present moment as he felt the stares of the two people before him. He cleared his throat and spoke.

“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Anaroth.” He bowed down, “I’m Damian Ash-”

“-- this is it?” a voice interrupted him, and Damian looked up. It was the son who had spoken up, he had walked up to Damian and started examining him, “The hell can we expect from this bundle of bones, Father?”

Sapphire stepped up and spoke to her cousin, “Ethan, we’re not talking to you right now, please let-”

“Did I give you permission to speak?” Ethan’s father said in a low voice, his grave tone resonated through the room. Sapphire seemed to hesitate for a moment, but backed down without saying a word. He turned towards Ethan and said, “Go on.”

At that moment, the relation between the three family members around Damian became very obvious. It was clear that Sapphire’s uncle was extremely harsh to Sapphire for some reason, and yet, he was very lenient towards his own son. The fear that was shining in her eyes made it clear to Damian why she was so tense and preoccupied beforehand.

“Can’t believe this maggot is gonna join us,” Ethan sneered.

“I have a reason for bringing him in, Ethan,” The elder spoke calmly. His next words brought Damian to full attention, “If it weren’t for his familial lineage, he would still be rotting in the shelters.”

“What do you mean?” Damian veered up, “What lineage?” His suddenly loud voice echoed through the hallways.

He heard a sudden intake of air from Owen behind him and saw a visible flinch on the uncle’s face, which had been as still as a stone mask up until Damian’s outburst.

At that moment, he knew something had gone off the rails. The room became silent, a bead of sweat rolled down the side of Damian’s face as he looked towards Sapphire and Owen, waiting to see how they would react. Ethan, for some unknown reason, had let out a strange smile, his eyes full of anticipation as he too, looked towards his father.

A few moments later, the father let out a huge sigh, “We will pursue this issue later, now is not that time.” He stood up and walked towards Damian, brushing past his shoulder as he exited through the hallway, “Owen, help him get settled.” The echoes of his footsteps drew out as he walked further and further away.

A second of silence later. Owen and Sapphire simultaneously let out a breath of relief, sensing that the uncle had finally walked out of hearing range. “Thank god you’re okay.” Sapphire said, “You have no idea how he could be like sometimes.”

“Tch,” Ethan spat as he withdrew his anticipation from his face and turned it into an expression of disappointment and disdain, showing just how eager he was to see Damian fall. He quietly strode out of the room towards the direction of his father.

“Don’t mind him, he’s always like this. He’s a real piece of work.” Owen said, “Now, let me show you your room, it’s gonna take some time to get acclimated here -- you know, after staying in the Shelter.”