6 The Isle of Infinity (1/2)
Just jump in? Did I just hear her say that? I've never heard someone tell another person to just jump into an abyss so casually. She said it with a straight face, too, as if it was a simple task...
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Do conquerors no longer fear death? Have they all become so numb that nothing fazes them anymore? Will of the world this, endless sinkhole there, why even bother, am I right?
The calm expression on Reed betrayed what he was really feeling at the moment. His instincts had kicked in subconsciously as he stared at the sinkhole indifferently, even though he actually panicking inside. His bluffing skill was superb, or so he thought; after all, it was a skill he had been practicing since childhood.
Acting tough was a necessary skill back in the slums; the strong oppressed the weak. So that's what I did - I made a rough outer shell that would deter people from messing with me.
Of course, my act only worked on weak-willed people. Gangsters, on the other hand, would call your bluff as I painfully learned one day. They broke my nose that day for looking at them the 'wrong' way, as they put it. I learned that day that an act would only be believed as much as the most skeptical person in the audience.
In any case, my faked calmness was just a reflex out of fear, something I had ingrained into muscle memory. Most of the students had nervous looks on their faces as they stared down into the depths of the sinkhole. Many of them stood at the edge of the sinkhole and tried to jump in but couldn't; fear choked them into submission as they indecisively meandered around the edge...
I couldn't blame them for hesitating because I felt the same way. Why was this lady making life difficult for us? Wasn't this difficulty too damn high for the first day?
Reed's indifferent face continued to betray his innermost feelings...
”Unexpectedly, you're a tough cookie, aren't ya, Reed? I honestly expected we'd have to egg you into jumping, but you don't even seem fazed. Good on you,” said Astor.
He slung his arm around Reed and said, ”Real men have no need for the word 'fear' in their lives, unlike these whelps. Have you ever heard of a cowardly god? That's why these losers will never make it top...,” he murmured as he slowly walked towards the sinkhole with Reed in tow. Horatio and Ophelia looked at each and shook their heads as they followed along.
As soon as Astor saw both of them, he snorted disdainfully and said, ”I never thought we'd be blessed enough to see this happen today. Look, we've found a cowardly dragon and phoenix, first of their kind!” He laughed coldly as he slowly walked towards the edge of the sinkhole were they both where.
The crimson-haired boy looked back at Astor and sighed. He finally spoke up and said, ”Has the royal family not taught their kin how to behave maturely? You come off as immature and bitter, starting a conversation off with a barbed insult, Kingscrown. It would greatly benefit you in the long run if you learned how to properly respect others...” It sounded like a sincere piece of advice but held an inflammatory implication that sent Astor into a rage.
These two were incompatible with one another, like fire and water in motion. Astor would rage at the crimson-haired boy's provocations and soon enough both of them had entered their own little verbal joust. Horatio sighed deeply and Ophelia laughed they watched the sparks fly off of the pair. They tried their best as they both worked in getting Astor to calm down and ignore the boy, to no avail...
The black-haired girl ignored the conversation and kept silent as Astor and the crimson-haired boy exchanged insults back and forth. Reed thought that she was likely the more serious one of the duo, an aloof type that lived inside her head. She had been staring so intently at the sinkhole that Reed ended up becoming curious about where she had been looking at.
He quietly walked over beside her and looked down, but saw nothing out of the ordinary no matter how hard he looked. But he assumed that something must have caught her eye, given she had been so focused on her task, so he continued to stare at the sinkhole intently under his eyes started to dry up from the strain of not blinking.
Eventually, he finally saw something out the ordinary that shocked him. A faint blue light that blinked faintly deep inside the sinkhole. It was an incredibly small point of light that flickered back and forth like the flame of a candle within the darkness. Given how faint the light was, Reed assumed that the light was thousands of meters down there.
”Is that flickering candlelight the Will of the World that the instructor spoke about?” Reed asked the girl. He had been somewhat curious about her ever since he saw withstand the instructor's attack and he looked at her ice-cold gaze. Now that he had an opportunity, he took it whether not it would result in anything of note.
The girl continued to stare at the speck of light for a while longer and finally looked at Reed. It was the first time he'd gotten a proper look at this since the day everyone had gotten their ass beat by Intrsructor Axtorius. She was even more beautiful up close than he previously imagined. Her aloof aura complemented her elegant face in a twisted way that only made her charming to the eyes.
A lonely, gorgeous ice queen that looked at everything with indifference. Reed couldn't deny that she had the bearing of someone who appeared naturally superior to others. A superwoman with an air of royalty, no doubt the culmination of her family's painstaking efforts.
She stared at him and quietly said, ”No, it isn't. That's the gate to the Soul of the World, the area where the Will resides. I'm honestly surprised you found it so quickly. You have sharper eyes than my dimwitted cousin, Sebastian, over there.” She pointed at the crimson-haired boy appeared to be enjoying him in Astor's fury.
Reed bitterly smiled and said, ”It seems you have your fair share of misfortune too, miss. By the way, this little one still hasn't had the honor of learning her Royal Highness's name yet. This humble one's name is Reed.” He half-heartedly bowed extended his hand towards the girl in jest.
It appeared that the girl wasn't completely devoid of emotion because Reed saw a slight smile form on the girl's face when he finished his act. This aloof princess wasn't entirely immune to teasing, it seemed. She extended her hand and said, ”My name is Astrid Dragoncrest, daughter of Frode Dragoncrest, my humble servant. Do your best in your duties from now on, or I'll have you sent to dungeons.” She put on a brilliant smile as shook hands with Reed.
”.....”
He choked up when he heard her words, he didn't expect that she'd get him back for his joke. There was more to her than she initially let on, Reed mused.
She was at least open enough to not be offended by stupid jokes and even knew how to dish them back. He should have expected that this ice queen would possess a sharp tongue. One only had to look at her cousin's ability of provocation to have put the pieces together. These two were well experienced when it came to their oratory skills. Perhaps in preparation for the future? Reed could only speculate...
”Milady, please have mercy on this humble servant, I meant no disrespect,” he said as he lifted his hands in the air jokingly. ”So, are you going to jump in first? Looks like a long fall from here, you know. My little heart can't handle large heights too well, so I was hoping you'd show me how it's done.”
”You're scared of heights? How old are you really, Reed? Just close your eyes and jump if you can't handle the sight of the sinkhole. Or would you rather I pushed you off the edge instead,” she teased as she got closer to him. She suddenly moved with blinding speed caught one of Reed's wrists in a flash.
A-Ah, she's got me now. I thought that she was just an indifferent, aloof girl because of the cold face she had initially, but maybe that was just a public facade that masked how she felt. I might have shit the bed this time. This she-devil might have had me under her thumb since I walked up to her...