However, the mont I took a single step forward, a voice i recognized quite well bood.
"I’m afraid I can’t let you leave, your highness."
"Eh?" I frowned slightly at the familiar voice, and the familiar tone of address.
I craned my head up, and there, up on the deck of the airship with House Darkfell’s insignia, beside Rose stood a handso man with glossy black hair, and striking grey eyes.
"Uncle Devon?" I muttered in disbelief. I recognized the man quite well, after all he was the current emperor’s older brother, and my uncle, Devon Darkfell.
Yeah, Amon wasn’t the first in line to sucession. During the succession of the throne, the current emperor had ultimately defeated all those who had a stake to the throne, including Devon.
After that, all those who had a stake to the throne were given consolation prices, and Devon’s was to be instated as a Duke, the third in command after the emperor, and the empress.
But all that aside, what was he doing here? According to what I knew from the novel, he never showed up to pick up Rose from the institute. So why... wait, he wasn’t here for was he?
Shit! After all he did quite say he couldn’t allow to leave. Fuck! What the hell could warrant him coming to look for ?
Damn it! Its my sudden unexplained surge in power even though I should have been stuck within the realms of the kappa rank. Fuck! How was I supposed to escape soone like him? I was cooked. by
While my head was in turmoil, the man smiled, but while it might have looked like a warm smile an uncle gives his nephew, I assure you it is not.
"Of course, it’s your uncle Devon, your highness. Now, would you be so kind as to co with ?"
He phrased it as a question, or rather phrased it as if I had a choice, but in reality, he was telling to co with him.
Still, "No." I replied flatly. "I refuse.
You see, though I was originally planning to go back to the Darkfell capital, they wanting to co, suddenly made not want to go anymore. I hated being told what to do after all. But make no mistake, I was still going back to the capital, just not with them.
My uncle quirked his brows slightly.
"And why would that be?"
"Well you see, I quite rember being exiled not too long ago with all the grace of a dog, so pray tell what would make want to co with you."
The dark haired man anwhile rely smiled. "You said it yourself, you were exiled, not disowned. Proof is the Darkfell surna hasn’t been revoked from you, and you still carry it." He said as a matter of fact.
My eyes widened, before I gritted my teeth. I hated it, I hated that he was making sense. Yes I was exiled, and I was allowed to keep the surna, but still, I hated the fact that he was right.
"As for why you should co with ," he continued. "His majesty ordered that I bring you back, so I dare not fail to do so."
"So that’s how it is, I see." I nodded genuinely enlightened. It was definitely because of the surge in my strength, if not, that man would never have wanted to see again.
I looked back at the duke, my eyes narrowed. "What if I don’t want to co with you?" I wanted to see how far he was willing to go.
"Pardon if I said anything about you having a choice, your highness?" He chuckled.
So, I was right, I didn’t have any choice. Also, he was beyond certain I would co with him, infact it was a forgone conclusion. And why wouldn’t he be? He was one of the few Beta ranked aetherials in existence after all. A being of unshakable might only surpassed by Alpha ranked beings.
Even in the novel, he was a prominent character, The mad sorcerer, that was what he was known as, and many knew not to cross him. The fact that the emperor had sent him here ant there was no escape for , or was there?
"Uhhh... Bro, I think you should go." Dion whispered next to . I turned to him and waved dismissively, telling him to forget about it.
I turned to my other classmates who had varying degrees of frown on their faces. Not only them, the entire surroundings, had turn deathly quiet, even the entourages sent by various noble houses, including the other three empires, didn’t dare to move. No significant figure would co for sothing as little as picking up kids from school after all.
After taking a good look around, I craned my head back to look at up at my uncle. Things were about to get a little troubleso.
Well, I don’t wish to go with you." I smirked, but my smirk slowly grew strained after a mont, before turning into a look of pure disbelief.
And then suddenly, the Duke was right in front of . It wasn’t like those type of appearance due to absurd speed. Instead, he literally popped into existence before , at least from my perspective.
"...How?" I asked. A mont ago, my ability that had never failed ... failed. I had tried to swap with another reflection that had started to make his way to the Darkfell capital, but sohow, the swap simply refused to work.
"Your sister was telling you could swap in an instant. But an instant to you might as well be an eternity to . I severed the string of causality between you and your so called reflection the mont your aether showed signs of mobilizing. Maybe when you reach the Delta rank and start touching up on your will, you’d understand." He explained with a light smile.
Ah shit, wills. How could I fucking forget about wills. After reaching the realms of the Delta rank, an Aetherial would not only gain access to flight, but also their Will.
Will as stated, enables an Aetherial to bend the world to their Will or desires, to a certain extent. Which was why no Gamma ranked had ever defeated a Delta ranked, not until Alistair would in the future at least.
Delta ranked aetherials could subdue a lower ranked aetherial with sheer will, so it stood without ntion, how powerful wills were.
But fuck, there really was a counter to my seemingly perfect ability. ’I’ll be damned.’ But if there was so consolation price, it was that not every average Joe could stop it. Only those who had reached the Delta rank and above could do so, and even then, I’m guessing it was not every single one of them.
"For now, you’re coming with back to the Darkfell Garden." Uncaring for my inner turmoil, My uncle began floating. As he did, I felt my body uncontrollably lift off the ground.
Before I could even blink, we were standing next to Rose. I threw Rose a betrayed look, but she simply turned her head the other way. It was all her fault for telling him I could swap in an instant, if not, I could have used that lapse in information to escape.
I still hadn’t finished settling our scores and she was already increasing the debt once more. I’d repay her for this.
As Devon’s tall figure towered over , I could only resign myself to fate and lean on the deck. There was no way I was escaping and I knew that, so it was better to relax than to sulk all the way there.
After all, even though it was a state of the art airship, it would still take us five hours to get to the capital. Still, that was ten hours less than if we were to go by comrcial airship.
I had originally planned to go there on my own personal airship, but it looked like it wasn’t ti for its debut yet.
"...All source return to origin..." However, while I was lost in thoughts, a hand was suddenly placed onto my chest. A warm feeling suddenly developed my chest, followed by a soothing feeling.
"What..." I tried to protest.
"That should keep you in check without having to watch over you." the duke said.
’Well shit.’ I cursed as I suddenly felt a constraint on my being. Before, when he had stopped from swapping with his will, I could still see and hear everything from my reflection’s perspective, but now, it was all blurry and chaotic.
I sighed once more, and just before the ship zood into the horizon, I waved one last goodbye to Dion, and even Anastasia.
***********
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