“So it really was her the merchants were talking about. I mean, not that many people with her appearance going about. Who would have thought that we would meet her on the start of her journey. What a coincidence, right Esther?”

  “Huh? You have met her before?” Phila asked.

  “Yeah, in Klippel of all places.”

  “What!” She shouted loud enough for the neighboring heads to turn to us.

  The priest quieted down the class that had gotten far too noisy from seeing a celebrity in the flesh. He then asked us if anyone wanted to help in a demonstration on how healing magic worked. Not to anyone’s surprise, the majority of the students raised their hand, Eric included.

  An almost forgotten voice spoke up. “Father Benedictus, how about that boy with the red hair?”

  “You mean Eric?” He seemed to know the name of every student in here. Then he should also know who I was.

  Eric stood up, taking with him the jealous gazes. One of them in the crowd even looked ready to kill. Pathetic.

  Standing beside Lavenza, Eric looked to be enjoying being the center of attention.

  “Now, since healing magic is hard to visualize without external wounds, I would like to ask if I could draw a bit of blood?” Said Lavenza.

  She gave him a needle to prick his own finger, but not before raising herself on her toes and whispering something in his ear. He nodded at her words, turned to where we sat, and gave us a thumbs up.

  Visible from even where we sat, a drop of blood gathered on the tip of his little finger. “As with all other forms of magic, the first step is to gather the free floating ether and internalize it.” Lavenza then closed her eyes and clasped her hands together.

  “The next step is to construct the spell.” A glowing circle the size of a hand hovered above Eric’s finger. It looked a bit excessive with how bright it was shining.

  “And then you pray to the Goddess that it works!” She said with a jovial voice.

  As if turning back time, the drop of blood went back into Eric’s finger. It was a bizarre sight, even more so when gold particles hovered around the space where the magic circle had vanished into.

  The priest started talking again. “Wasn’t that quite a sight everyone? And how did it feel, Eric?”

  “It felt warm, like laying in a warm bed kind of warm.”

  He guffawed. “What an accurate description. Now, would you call what you just experienced a miracle?”

  “Are you implying that it is not?”

  “That’s right, you’re a sharp one.” The priest turned to us. “No one knows when the first instance of magic, and later, the first instance of healing magic was used. However, as with magic, enough time has passed that we have systemized and experimented countless aspects of it to such a degree, that we can today confidently call it a natural phenomenon.

  “It is no longer a miracle to call forth fire with a snap of the fingers, to light up the once eternal dark night with mere stones, and to transport fish to where no fish has been before.” Some of the students laughed at his dry comment.

  “Who knows, given enough time, maybe even that miracle where the girl came back to life won’t be deemed a miracle anymore?”

  The bell announced the end of the class, but no one seemed to be willing to leave. With the students crowding around the three people at the podium, I was trapped for the foreseeable future. Simmering in my own thoughts.

  ***

  In one of the many gazebos spread across the academy courtyard, we were having a little tea party with Lavenza. She had procured some expensive tea leaves that didn’t taste too bitter.

  Phila didn’t try the tea, opting instead to let her jaw hang slack. And Eric drank it like it was plain water. Lucas didn’t join us as he had other matters to attend to, so he said with a lie.

  The tea’s earthiness touched my tongue with a hint of mint. “I didn’t expect our next meeting to be at the Royal Academy of all places, how did you all end up here?”

  I debated whether her voice or the taste of mint was more refreshing. “My father inherited my grandmother’s title and became a Count. I had to then enroll here while they sort out some things.”

  “And I got sponsored by a noble I met on my travels that liked my trustworthy personality.”

  “Oh, uh. I passed the entrance test?”

  Lavenza raised a hand to her mouth and let out a light chuckle. “So the visit to that grandfather you mentioned was the Duke Nikodemus? I can’t believe I met someone that important by coincidence.”

  I crossed my arms at her. “I could say the same to you, Saint Lavenza.”

  She sighed, letting her shoulders slump slightly. “I don’t even know when and why they began giving me that title…”

  “So said the saintess healing the poor people for free,” said Eric.

  “It wasn’t entirely free, I did it for my own training.”

  “The same thing is it not? Phila would probably agree.”

  “Yeah! Lady Saintess, you shouldn’t doubt yourself like that, we call you the Saintess because you truly act like one!”

  She gazed into her teacup. “Act like one, huh?”

  Eric asked her where Noel was, the black-haired bodyguard that was always by her side.

  “Didn’t Esther tell you?”

  “Tell me what?” Asked Eric.

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  Lavenza looked confused. “Noel graduated last year, so he’s not attending the academy anymore.” She turned to me. “Didn’t you tell him about your cousin?”

  Noel Nikodemus, the first-born son of my uncle. Looking back at the first time I saw him, it was obvious that we were related. Both him and my father had the same hair color, same eyes, and he acted a bit weird when they greeted each other.

  It made me wonder if father also knew who he was at the time. He couldn’t have forgotten what his nephew looked like, right? His care-free face popped up in my head… I wouldn’t put it past him really.

  Eric went wide eyed. “He’s your cousin?”

  I put down my cup of tea. “Why do you look even more shocked than me when I first found out.”

  He rubbed his chin. “Now that you mention it, you both do have the same… How to say, air about you?”

  Lavenza laughed. “They do don’t they? I can’t believe I didn’t connect the dots the first time.”

  Phila peeped up. “Uhm… Who’s Noel?”

  We chatted a bit more about small matters over tea. Eric told us about this one time he held enough gold coins that even he couldn’t lift it, and Phila kept asking Lavenza about whatever came to her mind in the moment. I found it impressive that she answered all her silly questions about books, foods, and etcetera while still looking interested.

  The four-person tea party ended when the sun made a dip in the sky and the two others had to take their leave. Phila waved her hand with gusto walking backwards, and of course stumbled when her feet snagged on each other.

  Eric came to her flailing body’s rescue with a quick grab around her waist. She thanked him, but Eric was Eric, and he did not forget to laugh at her clumsy red face.

  With them gone and sitting alone with Lavenza, sipping the lukewarm tea, I felt somehow at ease. An effect of the tea perhaps? It didn’t have my preferred amount of sweetness but it was still fragrant enough for me to sit and enjoy. A shame there weren’t sugar cubes readily available at the academy.

  Lavenza appeared to enjoy smiling. Both the first time I met her and now the second time, she had the same happy appearance. Her smile wasn’t one of those fake smiles Raviel said all noblewomen should learn either. No, it was a genuine smile like the ones my mom showed me. To be honest, looking at Lavenza reminded me of my mom; I was beginning to miss her a bit.

  Perhaps natural as I saw her practically everyday at the estate. We ate together at every breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Then a few times a week, we would have small tea parties in the garden like this one with grandmother.

  We didn’t talk about anything special, mostly how our day had been and the interesting things we heard through the grapevine. It was mostly to hold the Duchess with company, but I enjoyed them nonetheless. Although sometimes, mom would have this flash of sadness across her face when certain topics were mentioned. Especially when the past came up in conversation.

  “Your gloves are pretty,” Lavenza said after I blanked out long enough for her to start a new topic. The cup in my hand had gone cold by this point. “It’s an unique design, did you make it yourself?”

  “A seamstress I know heard my idea and made it for me.” I pulled off one of my gloves for her to examine.

  She flopped it back and forth and began to tug at it. “Wow, it’s so stretchy. So that’s why it doesn’t just fall right off. How novel.” She stared at it quite intensely. “May I try it on?”

  I nodded as I didn’t see why she couldn’t.

  Draping her long dainty fingers through the glove, the dark fabric covered them like paint. It fit them perfectly, showing off clearly the individual pristine joints and bones of the fingers for me to observe.

  “How is it? Does it suit me?” She raised her hand.

  It was weird seeing someone else use my gloves. Not a bad feeling however. In fact, seeing her satisfied expression where her blue eyes crinkled and her white teeth smiled, it felt rather pleasant.

  “It’s pretty,” I blurted.

  She giggled. “Thank you, maybe I should commission a pair from your seamstress. Does the design have a name?”

  I thought for a moment. “No, not really. I just call them half-gloves.”

  The glove flexed as she opened and closed her hand. “Such a literal name won’t sell well?”

  “I didn’t ask for them with the intent to sell.”

  “Really? But they’re so well made...” She appeared to have fun playing with the glove. Giving the fabric a pull, she let it snap against the top of her hand, making her wince. “What about stretchy-gloves?”

  I pouted. “That doesn’t sound any better than half-gloves.”

  “Hmm, you’re right. Then what about fingerless gloves? But the glove only covers the fingers…” Her eyebrows met together to discuss another name.

  I would rather sit here and debate more silly names with Lavenza, it felt like talking to an old friend somehow. Sadly, it had gotten late and there was one more thing I wanted to see to before the day was over. With a farewell and a promise to have another tea party, I left for the headmaster’s office for the second time today.

  He served me the same chamomile tea from this morning. As if he already knew what I came her for, the priest was also here, sitting in silence beside me in a separate chair.

  “I want to lodge a complaint,” I declared.

  An old desk separated the headmaster and I. “Really now? On the first day?”

  “Yes, that’s correct.”

  “Would this happen to have something to do with you not attending class today?”

  “No, that’s a separate matter.” I pointed to the priest. “The book that he uses, I want you to remove a section from it.”

  He ruffled his long beard. “And why should I listen to this demand instead of letting him do as he will?”

  I scrunched my eyebrows. “Because it contains privileged information about my past.”

  “Your past?” He turned to the priest who was still silent. “That’s the first I’ve heard of this.”

  He plucked a book from the bookshelf behind him and began to read it. “Dead on all accounts, dead as the night and dead as the cries from the mother. The little girl was dead. Then, when all hope was lost, and when the mother prayed her last prayer to the Goddess, she opened her eyes again. It was a miracle.”

  He looked at me. “So this passage of doom and dread is about you?”

  “That’s correct, and he didn’t ask my parents nor I for permission to use my story in that book.”

  “And what say you, Father Benedictus?”

  “Be that as it may, I did change the details enough for her to not be recognized.”

  The nerve on that man.

  “Changing my hair and eyes to brown is all you did. Look, you even drew my room to the smallest detail.” I stabbed a finger at the illustration. “Here is even my plant that died a year ago.”

  He didn’t look to where I pointed, and somehow it made me incredibly irritated.

  “It is difficult to find hope these days, and this book I wrote has filled countless people with said hope. Hope for a brighter future when they see no other way. Removing that essential part will be an act equal to thievery.”

  I hid my trembling hands back into my lap. “I don’t care, make something up. My parents did not pull their coins together for you to use us like this.”

  He softened his gaze like an idiot. “Won’t you reconsider? I won’t care about the royalties, what if I gave them to your house instead? I only want to spread that miraculous story.”

  I spat at him, “You’re pushing your luck. Priest.”

  “Now, now. How about we all calm down a notch.” The headmaster intervened. ”Esther, let me ask you, who would know besides you that this is a retelling of your past?”

  I glared at him. “Why is that relevant? What are you trying to say.”

  “That removing a widely spread book from circulation is a vast and expensive task.”

  “Are you joking? What ridiculous— My father is the son of Duke Nikodemus. One of the only three Dukes in the whole kingdom.”

  “And this girl here, isn’t she but some commoner in some outskirts town?”

  His words made me scoff. “So you won’t do it in other words. Funny, I thought you had the student’s best interests in mind. But I see now that it was only a farce to maintain your image of a benevolent person.” This was why status and power was so essential to a good life.

  “And you would be correct.” His confession surprised me. But what he said next surprised me even more.

  “Now tell me, what seems to be the actual problem you have with this book?”

  The words came out immediately. “They dare to call me and my mother a witch!”

  My anger did not abate one bit when I left, because nothing had been decided in that room. He needed to deliberate further with the other professors to come to a conclusion, he said. As if. He could send out the order right there and then if he so wished and it would be done by nightfall.

  To hide behind the curtains of bureaucracy, my opinion of him plummeted. And don’t even get me started on that so-called priest of the Goddess. Selfish to their core the lot of them.

  The day was already done when I finally found my way back to my room.

  “Good night, Esther.” Phila fell asleep immediately. Lucky her, for all I did the whole night was stare at her snoring body with my fists clenched.

  I was too exhausted to shut her up.