"Rosalyne, how's your father doing?"
He asked suddenly, changing the subject.
"Father? He's doing alright I guess..."
She was hesitant to speak, Arthur sensed that and didn't pursue the topic.
"Give him my regards."
He waved it off.
"He doesn't like speaking about you."
She admitted.
Arthur turned and faced her directly.
"Why?"
"...Nothing."
She quickly realized her folly and kept quiet.
"Is it because of the things I did?"
"...Yes."
Arthur had expected that much, there was only so much he could expect, and frankly it all fell under his expectations.
With his kind of influence and power despite being a commoner himself, it was no surprise that whatever had possessed him decided to use it for itself.
"If he asks about me, tell him I'm sorry for what I've done."
His words were smooth, flowing out of his mouth almost as water.
"Eh?"
Rosalyne was surprised.
"Tell him I'm sorry, and it won't happen again."
"...Alright, I'll tell him."
Another moment of silence hung over them.
"I heard that you're a professor for the first years."
"Is that so?"
"Yes."
Rosalyne asserted.
"Are you a first year, Rosalyne?"
Arthur questioned, he faced her directly now, both their eyes aligned.
"This is a ceremony for welcoming the new graduates, so, I'll technically be a first year from next week."
She answered.
Arthur nodded slightly.
"So I'll be your teacher."
A slight smirk spread across his face, though it quickly faded.
"You better prepare yourself then."
He stood up, straightening his clothing.
"We'll see each other in class, until then take care."
He walked away, his eyes already scanning the area in search of someone else.
"Aren't you waiting for father' announcement?"
She called after him.
Arthur tilted his head.
"I would have liked to stay, however I have some important things to do."
Then, he added.
"It was nice talking to you, Rosalyne."
His steps were slow and deliberate as he searched for the butler.
Arthur would have liked to stay longer, however he had a lot of things he wanted to do, he would rather not waste his time here.
His eyes were searching for Adrian.
'He's there.'
Finally he saw the man in a corner, he avoided the noble talk and calmly waited at the side.
Arthur moved through the crowd.
"Adrian."
The old man was startled by his sudden arrival.
"Sir!"
He shouted.
"We're leaving."
He said calmly, almost oblivious to the man's fright.
"Sir?!"
Adrian repeated, not sure if he was hearing properly.
"I said we need to go now."
"But sir, the ceremony hasn't even started and the young lady is among those-"
Arthur stopped, his expression softening for a split-second.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, sir. The king is also present in the hall."
The man's words were deliberate, meant to discourage him.
"Then I'll be leaving, take Celestine with you when the ceremony is over."
He took it that it was a special occasion for the soon-to-be first years, that was why he as a professor had to attend. But he had no intention of doing so, he would rather get his body taken over again than spend.
Arthur adjusted his stance.
'Ugoku Raijin.'
For magic to be performed a magic circuit had to be made and completed, the spell nodes had to be aligned for a magic circuit to be completed.
At that moment it wasn't just some dozens of spell nodes aligning at once, it was over a hundred, each clicking into perfect position.
Mana swirled around him, not too much, even the awakeneds present in the hall couldn't detect it.
And then, Arthur was gone.
Almost as if he had teleported.
Not even an afterimage remained.
He was gone.
Arthur reappeared in a different place.
'Looks deserted.'
He mused, his eyes running over every inch of the building he could see. Though, there was no dust clinging onto the place.
He crouched low and run his hand over the ground.
'No dust.'
Something resembling a wheel swirled to life on the floor. Various symbols, each one different, moved in perfect harmony to form a circle.
What he had used was forbidden magic, one that he had made by himself.
It wasn't quite teleportation, teleportation had much more spell nodes in it but a much more limited range. Arthur's magic didn't have a specified range, the range depended on him.
And his naming sense as well, he hadn't picked normal names.
"Strange."
Arthur murmured almost to himself.
"The last time this was used was three years ago."
He stood up, causing the symbols dancing on the ground to disperse.
"So the person or thing that took over my body couldn't use it, huh?"
He walked away, going in the direction of the stairs. As he climbed the stairs, he trailed his hand on the rails.
He stopped in front of the door, his hand on the doorknob, he cou"ld feel the cold metal.
Arthur hesitated for a moment.
Then, he opened it.
….
Celestine was Arthur's sister.
They both shared the same golden hair, stunning blue eyes and dazzling good looks.
"It was nice talking to you."
She said.
However, she simply meant that she was done talking to the man.
The people surrounding her dispersed and she was left alone to gather her thoughts.
'Where the hell is he?'
She wondered.
Her brother was nowhere to be seen.
Celestine frowned as she searched for him.
Arthur had been here earlier – she had caught sight of him speaking to Rosaline – however, he had vanished now.
'Did he leave because he knew what we were planning to do?'
A flicker of unease formed in her stomach.
She changed her sights from her brother, choosing to search for another person.
Her eyes finally landed on him. Adrian, the oldest and loyal butler in their family. He was the one who had taken care of her in her younger years.
"Adrian."
She called out.
The man nearly jumped at her voice.
Slowly, he turned towards her, his expression shifting from discomfort to surprise.
"Ms. Celestine."
"Please, follow me."
Both of them went to an area with less people, the noise from the guests drowning out their footsteps.
"Where is he?"
She finally questioned, her voice a low whisper despite the noise from the other guests.
"He left."
Adrian answered.
"Why did you take him home?"
She asked.
Her tone sounded neutral, however Adrian could detect the slight hint of rage.
The opportunity had finally presented himself, but he was gone.
"I didn't take him."
Celestine paused, even her breathing stopped for a moment.
"He walked? Did he know what we were planning."
She questioned again, this time her voice was laced with fear.
"I don't think he did, he seemed to have been truly busy. And, he has been acting strangely since I picked him up."
The old man's voice did not waver, even as the noise gradually began to increase.
"Strange things?"
He was always doing strange things. Since three years ago.
"He hasn't cursed for some hours now... And, he used one of his forbidden magic, that was how he left."
Celestine paused again, unable to register what she had just heard.
"Not another type of forbidden magic? His forbidden magic?"
"Yes, I-"
Adrian was interrupted by a loud booming voice.
"Now will all those who..."
"Miss, you're being called."
Adrian said.
"But if he somehow managed to use his abilities..."
His voice trailed off, unwilling to continue it.
But Celestine understood what he meant.
'The spirit is close to completely absorbing his soul.'
A knot of unease settled in her chest as she walked away from the butler.
'I don't want to lose my brother.'
Celestine clenched her fists.
"I won't."
She murmured to herself, a silent resolve.
She would have to take things farther. Not only for her sake, but for her brother's as well.