Chương 76: Chapter 75 Edited

Ellara By the time Gran and I reached the house, the sky had shifted into that deep violet that makes Valecis Isle look taller than it is. The towers always seem closer to the stars at that hour. I had barely spoken on the ride back from Arclight. Gran didn't press, because she never does. She watches instead, and she waits. Usually I fill silence. Today I let it sit. We turned into our driveway, and I saw the vehicle before we stopped.

A high-grade Mage Vehicle hovered along the curb, suspended above the street by a levitation array that hummed with restrained power. It was the kind of expensive that did not need a crest to announce itself. Around it stood men and women in fitted black suits, positioned in a loose perimeter. Their posture wasn't decorative. It was operational.

"Gran," I said quietly, "are we expecting someone?"

"No." She said it evenly, and her eyes had already begun measuring distances. We stepped out of the transport. I shifted the grocery bags against my hip and watched the nearest guard track our movement without turning his head.

"Gran," I said, lowering my voice, "do you think they're dangerous?" She studied them for another second.

"Absolutely," she said, calm enough to be convincing.

"Not to us. I know who they are, so don't you worry." She moved forward without hesitation. I caught her wrist.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Gran patted my hand.

"Yes, dear. You let Gran handle it." Then she raised her voice.

"You. The one with the green hair. And you, the one with the neck tattoo." Two of the guards exchanged startled looks, then straightened and approached. The one with the green hair wore a dark covering that shielded his eyes, and the rest of his expression remained attentive.

"Yes, Miss Arcanus."

"If your employer has stationed you in front of my house," Gran said, handing him two bags, "you may assist while you're here." There was a fraction of hesitation, no more than a breath, before he took them. Two others stepped forward automatically and relieved me of the rest. I almost smiled. ⁂ Inside, the atmosphere changed. Cale sat at the table as though this were a normal afternoon. Sitting across from him was a man I recognized from Dominion broadcasts.

He was a Vanta, the Duke's eldest son, though his first name slipped my mind at the worst possible moment. Up close, he looked less polished and more deliberate. He had pale blond hair and green eyes that assessed without seeming to. His posture carried the ease of someone raised under observation. Behind him stood a woman in a tailored Technica suit, black pinstripes aligned with exact precision. The fabric held power quietly. In her right hand rested a compact baton that did not look ceremonial. Private security.

The Vanta heir rose when Gran entered. He bowed.

"Grandma Arcanus," he said.

"An absolute pleasure as always."

"Young Master Vanta," Gran replied with a small incline of her head.

"My kitchen is rarely scheduled for nobility."

"I apologize for the lack of notice."

"Apology accepted, Captain," I said before I could reconsider.

"I assume you don't visit kitchens without purpose." His eyes shifted to me, assessing.

"Miss Ellara Arcanus." Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing that requires alarm," he replied.

"Your brother is required for an exercise connected to the tournament." The word required carried weight.

"What kind of exercise?" I asked.

"Preparatory," he said.

"Do not worry. It is nothing dangerous." He chose each word carefully, placing them where they would reveal nothing. Gran set her purse down and folded her hands.

"What exactly do you need him for?" she asked mildly.

"Like I said, a training exercise," Aiden answered.

"A couple of foreign diplomats have taken an interest in the Elementa Arcanum and Aura combination Cale uses. He will be on Caelvaris for a few days. He will be paid for his work and will stay at one of the finer hotels." I studied him. Cale didn't get required for structured exercises. Cale volunteered, or he disappeared. Those were the two modes I knew.

"This has to do with the Grand Gala," I said. Aiden inclined his head.

"Not the Gala specifically. The demonstrations prior."

"For students?" I asked.

"For participants," he corrected. That answer held the faint edge of omission.

"And there isn't anyone else who could do this?" I pressed.

"Not a single person who can use that combination?" Aiden offered a warm smile, and I hated that my pulse reacted to it before my brain did.

"No, Ellara," he said.

"There isn't anyone as capable as your brother in this area. He is needed, and this is for someone very important." The phrasing was too clean. I watched his posture. It hadn't shifted once. No tightening in his shoulders. No change in breath. He had practiced this explanation.

"You're leaving something out," I said.

"I am," he replied calmly.

"I assure you it isn't essential." Gran did not react to the admission. She only asked, "Is he in danger?"

"No." The answer came too quickly to be casual.

"He will be observed," Aiden added.

"That is unavoidable." Observed. My jaw tightened.

"By whom?"

"By people whose opinions matter." That wasn't reassurance. It was confirmation.

"And he agreed to this?" I asked.

"Yes," Aiden said.

"Your brother's sense of duty is overwhelming, and this is important." That answer I believed, because Cale would never be compelled. ⁂ Before I could press further, movement outside caught my attention. Another vehicle eased into view beyond the window, and the crest on the door made my stomach drop. I moved toward it without thinking, my breath shortening as I tried to understand what I was seeing. The Vanta security detail adjusted before the carriage fully aligned with the curb.

One guard stepped back half a pace to clear space. Another shifted his stance toward the new arrivals. Aiden noticed. He didn't move, and his attention narrowed. Three silver cranes against deep indigo. A family crest, now clearly visible. The Yamato family. Aiden exhaled once through his nose.

"That," he said evenly, "was not on my schedule." The carriage settled. The driver remained seated. The door opened. Two young women stepped out first. Their robes were layered silk, structured without excess ornament. Their posture carried formal training, backs straight, hands controlled at their sides. They assessed once and positioned themselves. Then Yamato Kaoru stepped down. He was dressed with restraint today, foreign in the distinctive eastern style and expensive in a way that favored quality over display.

The tailoring emphasized structure over flash. A dark coat fitted at the shoulders, and the rest of the outfit remained clean and absent of decorative insignia. He was slightly shorter than many boys his age, and still taller than me. His pink hair was tied neatly at the nape. He scanned the perimeter once, not anxiously, simply confirming what he had already been told. I felt my brother's attention sharpen across the room.

Cale didn't rise, and his posture shifted, and that small change told me he was no longer treating this as a polite visit. The knock followed, even and deliberate. Gran, who had been standing closer to Young Master Vanta, turned and walked to the door without hurry.

"Miss Arcanus," Kaoru said with a proper bow. It was formal without being theatrical. The two young women behind him mirrored the motion. Their discipline was exact.

"It is good manners, young man, to announce yourself before arriving at someone's home," Gran observed.

"Yes, ma'am. It is," he replied.

"I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience." He straightened and gestured once, subtly. One of the women stepped forward. She carried a lacquered case no larger than a book, deep indigo with silver edging that matched the Yamato crest. The second retainer held a smaller velvet pouch, tied with a thin silk cord. Kaoru accepted both items before speaking again.

"Please allow me to offer formal courtesy for the inconvenience and the insult," he said evenly.

"I assure you I mean no offense." He presented the lacquered case first.

"This tea was harvested from the eastern terraces of our highlands," he said.

"The blend is not available through market channels." Gran accepted the case without opening it.

"Thoughtful," she said.

"Thank you, young man." He then offered the velvet pouch.

"For your household," he said.

"Refined mana-threaded silks, appropriate for formal attire." Gran weighed the pouch in her palm, testing more than the fabric.

"These are expensive gestures," she said calmly.

"They are proportional," Kaoru replied.

"To the inconvenience I have caused, and to the request I am about to make." Proportional to what, he didn't say. Cale's gaze moved from the gifts to Kaoru's face. He said nothing, and his fingers rested lightly against the table edge, steady in a way that made me alert. Kaoru's retainers remained silent. That silence was trained, not uncertain.

"Your house does not arrive casually," Gran said.

"No, ma'am."

"And you do not give casually either."

"No." He met her gaze directly.

"These tokens are not a purchase," he added.

"They are acknowledgment." Gran held his stare long enough to establish that she understood the distinction.

"You may enter," she said. Kaoru inclined his head once more and stepped inside. I watched the exchange carefully. The gifts were apology on the surface, and something else beneath it. He stepped forward only after Gran shifted aside. His gaze found mine without hesitation.

"Ellara Arcanus," he said, voice steady, "I would be honored if you would attend the Grand Gala with me." I stared at him, caught between surprise and the sudden awareness of what that invitation would do to my name. One of his sisters stepped forward, hands folded. At the table, Cale's stillness sharpened into something colder, and I could feel the room tightening around it.