Chapter 36: A Blade and a Promise
{IRIS}
The girls before me . . . they had disappeared, hadn’t they? These weren’t their things, were they? I didn’t want to think about it.
But did I even have the right to complain? I had no money, no belongings, and no options.
Unless I planned on showing up to the academy in rags—or worse, naked—I had no choice.
I swallowed hard. "T-thank you."
"You don’t have to say thanks if you don’t mean it," Sebastian deadpanned.
I stiffened. Of course he could see through me. Sebastian was like that—always watching, always knowing.
". . . I’m sorry," I murmured. "I don’t have any right to complain. I’m weak. The weak don’t get a say." It was Lord Val who said that and it got stuck in my brain.
"Then don’t be weak."
Before I could process his words, he was suddenly right in front of me. My breath hitched.
"Be strong," he said, his voice lower now, more throaty. "And become stronger."
Something shimmered in his hand. A dagger—sleek, black as night, and honed to perfection. The obsidian blade gleamed even in the dim light, small enough to be hidden beneath my sleeve, but deadly all the same.
I stared. "W-what . . . what is that?"
"A gift," he said. "To commemorate the completion of your basic training. Take it."
I reached out, hesitant, as he placed the dagger in my palm. It was light—shockingly so. Balanced. A perfect weapon for someone like me who had no strength to wield a sword.
"A-are you sure?" I asked, barely above a whisper. "I mean . . . I couldn’t even land a single hit on you. I didn’t . . . I didn’t complete anything. I’m not fit to wield this."
"Whether you are fit or not," Sebastian said, his gaze never leaving mine, "is for you to decide in the end. Keep it. It may come in handy."
I swallowed hard, fingers tightening around the cool hilt. I couldn’t argue. I couldn’t say no.
"You and Lord Val . . . ," My voice wavered. "You look at me like I’m something more. You’re the only two who believe in me."
Sebastian’s expression didn’t shift, but his next words struck deep.
"And our trust in you isn’t cheap, my lady." He paused, then softer, "One day, I hope you will learn to trust yourself, too."
I sucked in a sharp breath. My throat tightened, and before I could stop myself, a tear slipped free. I wiped it away quickly, embarrassed.
"Thank you," I whispered. "It means so much to me. I know you and Lord Val don’t like me very much, but . . . I’m grateful for everything you’ve done. I’ll repay you someday. I promise."
Sebastian said nothing at first. Just nodded. Then, as he turned to leave, he stopped at the door.
"This mansion," he said suddenly, his tone calm, "is in another dimension. Lord Val keeps it storming—heavy with winds and thunder—to keep other creatures of the night at bay. But when it’s time for your training, he ensures it doesn’t rain, so you won’t get soaked."
I blinked.
"The chefs have begun preparing meat and eggs for you," he continued, as if reciting a simple fact. "We usually only drink blood here. But Lord Val made an exception because he knows it’s your favorite."
I stared, mouth slightly open.
"And the clothes I packed for you," he added, "were not from the lost girls who became our food. Lord Val bought them specifically for you. He simply didn’t tell you."
My heart stuttered.
"He also had the library restocked with new books. Because you like to read."
I suddenly felt lightheaded.
"Lord Val wouldn’t go through all that effort if he didn’t like you very much."
I opened my mouth, but no words came out. My brain was still catching up, my thoughts colliding into each other in a frantic mess.
Sebastian heard it, of course. My heartbeat must have been loud enough to shake the walls.
I felt my cheeks heat—no, my whole face.
"T-that’s . . ." I had no idea what to say. Now that he had pointed it out . . .
Sebastian simply tilted his head. "And, Lady Iris," he said smoothly, "I don’t give gifts to people . . . ’I don’t like very much.’"
I gaped at him, completely and utterly floored.
"T-then . . . does that mean . . ."
But before I could finish, he was already gone.
I stood there, gripping the dagger, my thoughts a tangled mess.
They didn’t hate me.
They didn’t find me irritating.
They didn’t see me as weak.
. . . Or maybe they did. But even if they did, they still didn’t despise me.
Sure that Lord Val tormented me during lessons, pushing me to my limits with that eerie, unreadable unsettling, scary condescending smile.
Sebastian tossed me around, as if repaying some unseen wrath against me. And yet, despite it all, they didn’t hate me.
And somehow, in this strange, twisted existence, that meant everything.
A slow, small smile curled my lips.
For the first time in a long while, something warm blossomed in my chest as I packed for my year-long stay at the academy.
The feeling was foreign—like a flickering ember in a heart that had long been left in the cold.
It was well past midnight when I finished, yet I still couldn’t believe that by tomorrow, I would no longer be here. That I would no longer wake up in this eerie yet oddly comforting mansion.
Feeling overwhelmed, I stepped out onto the balcony, inhaling the crisp night air. It was raining—thunder cracking in the distance—but curiously, not a single drop touched the mansion. The storm seemed to avoid this place entirely, as if it, too, feared trespassing beyond its gates.
I leaned against the cold railing, letting the silence of the night settle around me. But just as I was beginning to relax, a familiar voice cut through the air, low, deep, and laced with amusement.
"Don’t tell me you’re actually considering jumping to escape school. Go ahead if you want—but all you’ll get is a few broken bones, maybe a cracked skull. You’ll heal, of course . . . just in time to still attend school, but in agony."
Startled, I turned sharply, my breath hitching.
Lord Val stood at the balcony’s entrance, arms crossed, his expression icy as always. The moonlight cast silver hues across his sharp features, making him look almost ethereal.
