The Vault
Digu looked at Miya who was still amazed by the world outside the academy walls. The girl looked at her reflection on the lake water.
"What should we do?" Digu turned his gaze to Cyclops who looked very worried. "Where are we supposed to go?" Asked Cyclops again. "If only Kai were with us, he would know what to do." Cyclops said again.
Digu looked back at Miya who had walked back towards them. "How did you get your bow and arrow?" Asked Digu, distracting himself from his anxiety. Miya stared at her bow then rolled her eyes, "You probably don't want to know."
Her head proceeded to walked back to the time when she let herself in into the Weapons Usage History Room. Miya kicked the guard who blocked her way into the the room. She knew it would be very difficult to get in there with those layers of guards.
The history room contained all kinds of weapons used by each student who had taken their final exams. The weapons of five students with the best grades will be displayed in the hall for the whole year, until the top five marks of the following year appear.
She entered the key she had taken from her mother's desk and hoped she picked up the correct one. The girl pushed the door made of lead carefully and was immediately amazed by the contents of the room.
The room was a long corridor leading to one end with a red rug as flooring. She passed the weapons her friends were using in their exams.
She doesn't really know all of her friends, but some of their weapons look amazing. However, Aden's sword never failed to amaze her. The sword has an Aura. Only the Beau's noble family could create a layer of color that would leave a bias in the air when it was moved. The girl touched the sword and felt the beautiful carvings. Aden always shows his artistic soul even in his weapon.
The man is in second place as Miya recalled. Aden is one point short of accuracy. Miya finds a file containing an explanation of the test Aden was facing and finds that the man has the same level of danger as Miya's exam.
Aden Beau - The first child of King and Queen Beau. Weapon: Sword. Exam Room: 012 - Avriosa War. Difficulty level: Maximum - Final result : 99%
Positioning - Leader of the Soldiers of Light
"Has a knack for swordsmanship and leadership. Will be crowned on the eve, taking the oath with Frauser Miya Arine."
Miya frowned when she read that extra note and turned the page of Aden's file. The girl read another meaningless word for word. But there is one initial sentence that made her immediately want to turn her face away from the file. Everything she had been doing had been in vain.
All this time the thing that she knew is that if she had good grades, she would break free from the academy walls and fight on her own accord. She has thought everything through. She can no longer live like this. Confined in a golden cage and got fed with wealth and fame.
The girl decided to run away that night. No one will be able to imprison her again. She will be free after this.
The girl turned to the end of the corridor, with grey walls covered with tapestries and her face plastered large in the middle of it. On the table in front of her face was an engraved bow with a fluorescent blue color and a bag of arrows displayed with a flower crown made out of silver and rubies.
The girl grabbed her file and read lazily.
Frar. Miya Arine - Stepson of Evangeline Arine. Weapons: Arrows. Room: 035 - Terraria War. Difficulty Level: Maximum - Final result : 100
Positioning - Leader of the Soldiers of Light
Miya sighed a little while massaging her nose bone for a while. Then she glanced back at the file she was holding.
"Miya Arine is the most gifted kid of all the Nayra Academy's history. Has a special talent for archery and traditional Beau dance, though brilliant in any field. Will be crowned with Aden Beau on the eve of the oath."
Miya massaged her nose bone once again, her head was about to explode. She does not want to be crowned with anyone. She just wanted to leave the academy and live in her free will, that's all.
The girl grabbed the arrow and bow she created in the exam room. The girl turn her body but landed her sight to the weapon of the third position. The girl caught a glimpse of a two-bladed sword. She frowned but was reluctant to reach for the file that was beside the table. While she walk away Miya wanted to guess who had the idea to create the strange sword. And how that person get the third place with such strange weapon.
"So you stole?" Asked Digu, examining her glowing bow in the dark forest. "I created it, so I don't think I stole it."
Digu nodded his head in understanding then looked back at Cyclops, who looked back at him with his gaze as if he wanted to say, "Go ask her something."
"Uh .. Miya." Miya turned from her stare to her weapon. "Do you have a wish?"
"What is this wish in particular?"
"Yes. Like doing something."
"Oh. There's nothing I want yet. Don't you guys have a plan or something? Your desperate attitude to infiltrate the academy and ask me to leave is like wanting me to do something for you." Miya said while standing up and fixing the bag containing her arrows. "I also have no problem being a hit man."
"Oh no! We are so against people like them!" Said Cyclops, finally speaking up.
"Oh, I'm sorry. But that might be a fun job, thoguh."
"But are you all right?" Asked Cyclops.
"Why are you asking me that?"
"Well, you've always been behind the academy walls. Did you feel anything different?"
Miya thought about the question and frowned, "besides my empty stomach maybe another feeling that matters is the feeling of wanting to eat." She said with a smile.
Digu chuckled, "Yeah. I think I know where we're going now."
Digu thought of taking his party to a restaurant run by his best friend since they were little. "My friend owns a casino. There's a restaurant there that serves the best food I've ever tried." Said Digu.
"Are we going to Ale's place?"
"Yes. As far as I know it's the safest place." He said while summoning the portal for teleportation. "Yes. And he squeezed that place in two dimensions." Cyclops said with a ticklish feeling in his belly thinking of how a place is 'squeezed in' into a gap.
"What?" Miya also stepped into the portal, towards a beautiful corridor of time.
"His casino is squeezed in two dimensions."
Before they got out of the time room, Miya didn't know who Ale, her friend Digu, owned a casino. But Miya's eyes couldn't fool hers when she saw the six-story building at the end of the corridor, "The Vault."
"Oh you know this place too, Miya?"
"We're going to Mr. Harley's?" Miya asked with rounded eyes.
"Oh you already know him?" Asked Cyclops. Miya nodded. "That man is dangerous." Miya said.
"Ah, not really. The Beau family just don't want to admit they're doing business with Mr. Harley and the Myran Family. So they don't seem to be on anyone's side."
"Mr. Harley is nice. But he doesn't like to be influenced by the division of the land that is happening. The Myran family is only doing business, no diplomatic relations." Cyclops said.
"You must have got your assumption from Aden. That boy does not mean to make Mr. Harley hated by you. But Aden's household taught him this since he was a child. You know, to not let people know that Beau is doing business with such family like Myran."
They opened the very large casino front door. As the door opened, all the gambling machines were loud and heard shouting to one another. One of the men in his black coat approached Digu and bowed respectfully to him, showing that he recognize Digu as soon as he showed himself entering.
"We want to meet Ale." Said Digu as he pulled out a gold card engraved with the letter H in the middle.
"Who are you bringing?" Asked the man while examining the card that was given to him.
"My protégé, Cyclops and our new friend, Miya." Said Digu.
"Is this Miya could be trusted?" Asked the man, Digu nodded immediately. "This girl would be a blessing for this place."
The man nodded and then motioned his two friends to escort Digu, Cyclops and Miya to a door at the end of the large room.
Miya jumped in surprise when all the machines she passed made a loud ringing sound and hundreds of coins immediately popped out of the hole. The girl looked around her and jumped in surprise when all the employees at the gambling table she passed suddenly shouted the number seven.
Many of the casino guards immediately appeared out of nowhere and secured the increasingly chaotic situation. "Are they all right here?" Miya whispered to Digu when he saw someone standing while dancing on the gambling table being attacked by a bodyguard nearby. "Yes, things like this are normal." Digu said, creating a golden shield on his left side when suddenly a chair slammed into them from that direction.
"I think Mr. Harley should increase the safety of the casino." Said Cyclops while creating a shield around them as they all walked pass the chaotic casino.
The man who had been dressed in a suit opened the door to a room with a very large window at the end. There was a sofa, a table and a television that Miya often heard about but never saw.
"Mr. Harley will be here soon." The man said as he went back out to help his friends secure the wild people out there.
"Who really is this Mr. Harley?" Miya asked, "And who exactly are you?" Miya raised her bow and arrow and took turns aiming at Digu and Cyclops. "Why are you taking me to this chaotic place?" Cyclops raised his hand in surrender, while Digu rolled his eyes at Cyclops innocent behavior, as if the creature had not been chosen because of its skill in magical arts that can destroy anyone with its power.
"We are a Wizardian Council like what we explained to you."
"Then?"
"We just want to help you." Said Digu as he pulled out a letter he took from Madam Evangeline's desk at the academy. Letter of approval of the girl's marriage to Aden. Madam Evangeline had signed it and even stamped the letter with the official mark of her family. Miya snorted in annoyance.
"I'm just a stepdaughter. Why does that woman want to always manage me?" Miya said as she tore up the letter.
"We're sure you have a brighter future without a wedding planned like this."
"I'm sure so too."
"Mr. Harley can help you with that." Said a voice from the other end of the room.
***