The Crown and The Rose
Chapter 13: She Knows

Chapter 13: She Knows

The Crown

I hold my finger in front of the keyhole of the locked door. A white light string shoots out of the tip of my finger and fills the keyhole. As I said, I can make things with my magic. So when my magic fills the hole I spin it and unlock the door with a little click.

I may have drunk the magic suppressant potion and it had reduced my magic flows by eighty-five percent but there is some left in my veins. So, I can do a limited amount of magic here and there.

Edward’s jaw falls, "Your Highness, where did you learn this kind of backhanded trick?" He gasps.

"It doesn’t matter now. Just get in first." I swing open the door and walk in. Edward grumbles underneath his breath and follows me in.

It’s all dark here. I can’t even see my own hands here. "Edward, draw the curtains I am lighting the room up."

"The curtains are drawn, Your Highness." He informs and I snap my finger.

Another ball of light ignites at the tip of my forefinger and illuminates the whole room. Just enough to show us what we need to see.

Two bunk beds are occupying two sides of the room and four tables are placed beside them. There are four small closets by the tables. This room is big enough for four people to live without any discomfort.

It’s clear that no one came inside this room and touched anything here as everything is scrambled and lying around the room haphazardly. I have a few questions about the kidnapping incident that transpired here. If the former vice president of the student council was abducted from this room then why did anyone not see him? He sure did have a roommate, didn’t he?

I look around the room as I ask Edward, "Edward, do you know who was this former vice president’s roommate?"

"Yes," Edward answers and my head snaps in his direction.

"Why didn’t you tell me earlier?" I inquiry. "Who is it?"

"Erick." Edward breathes, "He said it himself to me. But it seemed a bit suspicious to me...so, I didn’t tell you earlier." Edward avoids looking me in the eyes and something kicks at my stomach.

"What happened to you?" I raise an eyebrow and a scowl tugs at the corner of my lips. My heart is hammering against my chest and I am praying to all the Gods that what I am suspecting is not true. "Edward, show me your magic," I say abruptly.

And "Edward"’s eyes widen. My leg darts out from beneath me and slams powerfully right on the side of his face. I put a little more strength into my leg and knock his head down to the floorboard with a loud thud. The guy instantly loses consciousness. The door of the room swings open and my head snaps in the direction. I am on high alert right now.

Edward is breathing heavily at the door. It’s evident that he has run here. "Y-Your Highness!" He cries and I grab a pillow from the bed and hurl it at him.

"Hush!" I put my forefinger on my lips and warn.

"Oh, sorry." He shuts up and quietly walks in. he shuts the door behind him and looks down.

I look down too and a frown forms on my forehead. The individual that was lying there unconscious up until now has transformed back to his original form. Erick. Thick dark magic surrounds him. I wonder why I didn’t detect the magic earlier. I knew something was wrong with this demon the moment I laid my eyes on him.

"Why is he here?" I ask Edward, "What’s happening?"

Edward throws the pillow over the bed as he looks down at Erick. His usual perfect form is a bit disheveled and sweaty now. "He locked me up inside the room and came here himself." He briefly explains.

"How did he know that we were about to meet?" I interrogate further, not letting my guard down even for a millisecond.

"Probably overheard us," Edward answers, eyeing Erick warily, "But Your Highness, how did you manage to knock him out in such a short time?"

I press my lips, splay out my hands to my sides, and shrug, "Just like that. But how did you get out of the room?"

"I broke the door," Edward answers nervously.

"Seriously?" My eyes widen and I see Erick string from the corner of my eyes and snap my fingers. A rope made of light appears and binds Erick tightly. I pull a random clothe from the corner of the disheveled room and bind his mouth tightly.

"What are you going to do about him, Your Highness?" Edward asks.

"He is staying here," I state.

"Here?" Edward gasps.

"Why do you have any other place that you know?" I ask though it is not a question. Edward lowers his head and shakes it. "Then? This is a place no one will ever come into and I have tied him with my magic there is no chance he will get away. I can’t let him roam free when there is a potential chance that he is the one behind all the missing and there is no way that I am letting him out now that he knows who we are. We will be screwed if we let him lose." I pause and look around the room and spot a chair lying in the corner of the room, "Get that chair, Edward."

Edward drags the chair to me and I set the unconscious Erick up at the chair. I snap again and the ropes change their formation and bind Erick tightly to the wooden chair. Erick’s face is covered with blackish bruises. It’s making his defined features look ugly.

I flop down on the bed before Erick as I fold my arms over my chest and cross my legs. I may have put too much strength in that kick because Erick isn’t still waking up.

"Umm, Your Highness did you hurt him too hard?" Edward asks as he checks Erick out with his eyes, "He seems thoroughly unconscious."

"Why don’t you use your healing on him?" I suggest matter-of-factly. I can use my healing power on him since I am a light magic user. And I may kill him in the process. "But the question is how does he know who we are? He acted like you so naturally that I was almost deceived."

"I don’t have any idea, Your Highness." Edward shakes his head as he holds his palms up in front of Erick. A warm green light shoots out from his palms, enveloping Erick in it.

"Did you know that Erick was the former vice president’s roommate?" I interrogate, my tone serious and sharp, there is no usual sign of playfulness in my tone.

I will be lying if I say that I am not being wary of Edward. But can you blame me? I trusted ’Edward’ at first but it turned out that it was an imposter. So I am on high alert right now and I can sense that Edward understands this too. This is why he is not asking me about anything and is not talking much.

Other than that, how did Erick know that we were supposed to meet at that time and like that? And is Erick capable of taking any form he wants? How does he know that Edward addresses me as ’Your Highness’? And how does he know how Edward acts with me? Did he was the one who abducted every missing student here? There are so many questions and we can only get the answers when Erick wakes up.

Edward heals Erick just enough to regain his consciousness and answers my questions. Erick stirs a little and blinks a few times. His eyes go bloodshot as the previous events come crashing back to him.

"Good morning." I smile, my smile is latched with poison and a hint of looming danger. "Did you sleep well, Edward? Oops, not Edward but Ercick. My mistake."

Erick screams which is muffled by the cloth tucked in his mouth and thrashes to slip free from the binding but the more he struggles the more the binding tightens and bites into his skin. Not just biting but burning the spot viciously. It’s my light magic after all. It burns the trace of dark magic to nothing. Erick soon wraps his head around the unspoken rule and stops his futile struggle. He glares at me murderously.

"Woah I am so scared." I say dramatically, "Now then"-My eyes narrow in slits and my voice drops dangerously- "I will ask you a few questions and you will answer them like a good boy. Nor you don’t have any idea what I will do to you."

Edward shudders at my transformation but I pay him no mind. Erick however refuses to keep his glare in check. I reach out and pull down the clothes that were concealing his mouth. A small blade made of light appears in my hand out of nowhere and I hold it at Erick’s throat. The sharp tip grazing his flesh and a bead of blood runs down from there.

"Try to scream and I will slit your throat," I warn. "Now tell me how do you know who I am.?"

"I will not_" He doesn’t get to finish as a lightning-fast blade grazes past his cheek landing on the wall just behind him then disappears.

"Yes? What were you saying?" I blink and smile.

Fresh blood profusely trails down his cheek from where my blade grazed his cheek.

Erick and Edward both shudder. "I-I will not tell." Erick bites out with some difficulty.

"Very well." I get on my feet, "You are as good as dead for me then. But I will not kill you just yet. I will come back tomorrow and ask you a few questions again. And then will decide what to do with you for now"-I tie his mouth once again- "have a good time here vice president."

I walk out of the room after exhausting the light that was illuminating the room. Edward follows me outside.

"Your Highness, are you sure that we should just let him be like this?" Edward asks as he stands by me.

"We can’t do anything other than that. I can only hope that he behaves." I sigh, feeling worn from all the events. I thought that I was here to investigate the reason behind students going missing but didn’t think that I would actually end up abducting one. "I should go back to my dorm now or Seraphina will find out that I was out at night."

Edward nods and I wind out of the boys’ dorms and start to walk, keeping my footing as light as a feather but suddenly something catches my eye, and I stall. The giant clock at the top of the tallest castle. Someone is standing there. Their white hair is flowing in the night breeze. I feel them staring right at me. I blink and everything is gone. I wonder if I was hallucinating everything.

I get into my room soundlessly and cast a glance at Seraphina’s bed to find her sleeping there soundly. I sigh in relief then slip under the covers of my bed and try to sleep. And as always sleep doesn’t come.

The next morning when I am getting ready for my first day here. Seraphina stands behind me, her arms crossed over her chest and the look on her face is unreadable.

"Where were you last night?" She asks and my heart sinks.