The Crown and The Rose
Chapter 22: How Can I Hate Him?

Chapter 22: How Can I Hate Him?

The Crown

As Vermilion’s touch lingers and his warmth slowly starts to fade, my mind races over the thousand reasons why Vermilion is telling me to be the president of the council then it dawns on me. All of the people who have disappeared were from the council! The only one who is still with us is Seraphina. The kidnapper must have considered her with grave intensity this is why he didn’t take her.

But this is not the same for me. I am a mere human. And even if the culprit doesn’t know that, they would think I pose no threat to them. So if they take me then I will be able to bring a showdown of this. But for all that I need to get into the council first. So this is what Vermilion is trying to say.

A grin spreads across my face, "My lord, I will be the next president of the student council!" I exclaim. I know that the job poses more threats than I could ever imagine but if this is the only thing that can get me out of this hell, then so be it. I want to get out of here even if I have to rush things.

Vermilion’s eyes widen ever so slightly and then he turns around, "Your Highness, the mock battle festival starts in three days, try to polish yourself within that time."

"Yes, my lord." I get on my feet and bow to him deeply, the grin on my face isn’t showing any sign of dissipating. The towering man before me doesn’t move.

I know that a few moments ago this man made me go through a hell of agony. He made me wish for death but the next moment, he saved me from falling down the spiral stairs to embrace a painful death and carried me into his room. He made it look all so easy as if I weighed nothing. As if even a feather weighs more than me. His warmth was embracing me. In spite of the coldness that surrounded him, his arms were warm. They were making me forget what he did to me just a moment ago. And they were successful in doing so.

They made me forget that I am supposed to hate the lord. I am supposed to loathe him and hold him accountable for the agony he caused me. But it seems like I can’t hate my lord. No matter what he does. I can’t seem to hate him. No matter what I tell myself, my mind clings to resentment, but my heart—it refuses. It’s like it’s betraying me, whispering something I don’t want to hear. Something dangerous. Like I was not made to loathe the lord but to...

"How are you feeling now?" Vermilion abruptly asks and it catches me completely off-guard.

"Y-Yes my lord?" My spine straightens up and I tilt my head slightly, dumbfounded.

Vermilion turns his face ever so slightly and then says, "Never mind." Vermilion walks to his desk. "I have something for you. Come here."

I blink and then approach him. I don’t ask questions as it seems that Vermilion doesn’t like the question-and-answer thing. Vermilion pulls out a dazzling silver badge from his drawer. Then he pins it on my chest.

"You beat the best fighter of the Syx." Vermilion stares at the badge on my chest for a brief minute and then averts his gaze, "This badge is for you."

I look down at the badge, dazzling brightly on my chest. I am currently wearing pajamas and my hair is mushily tied in a loose braid. Some of the silvery strands have dangled free. The badge seems too unsuitable for my current attire but It’s my first badge. And Vermilion... he’s the one who gave it to me.

A sudden something that I can’t put my finger on shoots across my chest. I relish the feeling in my chest. It’s calm and soothing almost like...contentment. But why do I feel there is more to it? Some thing more...dangerous?

Am I content that the lord is acknowledging me?

I am looking at the badge on my chest like a kid who has gotten a trophy made of paper for winning a marathon but he is still happy. Not only just happy but very happy.

I look at Vermilion’s face and then smile brightly, "I appreciate it very much, my lord."

Vermilion’s eyes narrow at my smile for a brief second and then he spins around once again. "You may leave now, Your Highness. And please remember that I want a satisfying result."

"Yes, my lord." I bow to him once more. I then start to trudge toward the staircase, occasionally looking back at the red silhouette standing on the other side of the huge room that can almost be registered as a hallway. And a sudden thought crosses my mind.

Does Vermilion feel lonely?

The thought nags at me. His strength, his aloofness—they seem like armor, but what is he hiding underneath? I stall abruptly, my eyes fixed on the back of the strong yet beautiful figure standing at the other side of the room. I want to ask him but I can’t. My lips quiver and part slightly as if trying to form words. I catch myself doing so and immediately bite my lower lip to prevent any word from slipping out. I clench my fist and then spin around once more. I stride down the stairs without looking back.

Vermilion is my master and I am his slave. I have no right to ask him about any of this thing. They all seem to be so personal. And none of them is my business. Vermilion and I have never been close nor will ever be close.

But he saved you, didn’t he?

A voice whispers in my ears. I gulp down a mouthful of anxiety and try to clear my mind. Vermilion saved me... because I’m his servant, right? It has to be that. But the more I repeat it, the less I believe it. There’s something else at play. I just don’t know what.

No, no, the reason he saved me was If die just like that who will have completed the mission? Yeah that’s it. This is the reason.

I reassure my heart that there is nothing personal between us and for some reason, it seems rather disappointed at the assurance. It almost feels like my heart wants something more than just a master-servant relationship.

I try to shake off the feeling and try to concentrate. Where should I go now? To the boys’ dormitory or to the Girls’ where I have locked up Seraphina. I have zero desire to face her now but I need to go back there soon. The morning sun is about to rise and as the mock battle festival will be announced this morning, everything will be very busy. My chances of getting caught during this time are very high so it will be wise for me to go back and deal with Seraphina.

This battle festival usually lasts for five days. Various events change every year so that no one can predict what kind of deathly trap is lurking in the dark to hunt us. But one this is for sure it will taste our academics, and martial skills, and the most important thing is our strategic potential. While demons are very impulsive, Vermilion is very calculative this is why he arranges every event to polish and furnish his students even more.

I slip into the dormitory, the air thick with the scent of damp stone and burnt candles. Shadows cling to the walls like whispers, and I blend into them, hoping they’ll keep me hidden. I click the door of my and Seraphina’s room open. Seraphina’s whole body is bound with a white light string. She is drenched in sweat and she has started to doze off but the moment I open the door she jolts awake. On high alert, her red pupils shrink and dart across the room.

Her pupils shrink dangerously as they fall over my form standing at the door. "So you have come back motherfucker." She grits out, rage and fury are evident in those eyes.

I take in breath, preparing myself for whatever comes next, and close the door behind me. I snap my fingers and the white string that was binding her disappears and she instantly jumps off the ground. She grabs my collar, her teeth gritted and jaw clenched so tightly that I am afraid that she is gonna break the bones there.

"How dare you?" She spits and my eyes narrow.

"Come on Seraphina. You are being such a pest." I say, dismay clear in my voice. "I am here for a mission and as if I will obey every fucking single thing you say. I am not your slave. And do not forget that I am far more superior than you. Now that we are in a locked room, I could easily kill you and no one would say a shit to me."

Though Seraphina’s deathly glare doesn’t falter, a contemplating look crosses her face. She knows that everything I said was true. I didn’t fabricate a single thing that I said. Just an ounce of my light in her veins and she will die right here and now.

Seraphina’s gaze falls over the badge pinned to my chest. "Who gave you this?" She asks not taking her eyes off the silvery object.

"The lord gave it to me," I say stoically. "I am now the best fighter the academy has."

Wrath flickers in Seraphina’s eyes and her fists clenches around my shirt before letting them go. "I will surpass you and take back what is mine, Your Highness." Cold rage drips from her words as she walks to her bed and slips under the sheets.

And this is the moment I realize, why Seraphina loathes me. Because I am a threat to her supremacy. I am a threat to her potential, and to her abilities. And the only thing she wants now is: what belonged to her. The student council and the ’best fighter’ title.