The Wheel Of Fortune

“Is everything ready?”

“I have informed them. They are ready with the plan, we will start on the 25th.”

I identify two voices, one of a man and the other of a woman. Instinctively, I can feel something is not right and I press my against the wall and peek from the corner. The hallway is dark therefore I can’t make out their faces, all I can see are two figures standing in the corner, with the backdrop of moonlight through the archway.

“Good, keep me updated. I will make my move as soon as we are through with the first part of the plan.”

“Don’t rush. There is plenty of time for everything.” The woman advises but her voice sounds like a command. “You can only move if ‘he’ orders, don’t make dumb mistakes otherwise I would have no choice other than to kill you.”

“How are you going to get out of here?”

“Mind your own business, I will handle it but before that, I have to take care of a hiding rat.”

My eyes widen and all the hairs on my arm and legs stand up in alarm. She is talking about me, right? Did she notice me? I slide a leg back to step away without making a noise when my foot toches something and I halt. And it is then I notice the shift in the air and warmth behind me.

“Found you.”

A shiver runs down my spine. I duck and push myself away from the wall only to see the sword land right where my neck was a second ago. A second late and I would have been... I turn to face the intruder and begin backing away with my heels echoing in the hallway. How did she get here? She was just in front of me a second ago.

“Don’t you know, you shouldn’t eavesdrop on an adult’s conversation?” The woman in the black outfit, black cap, and mask asks as she pulls the sword out of the wall. I dare not run or let her out of my sight since she is carrying a sword. I couldn’t outrun her in my heels anyway.

“You shouldn’t be here, now I can’t let you go alive. I am sorry.” Her voice doesn’t sound sorry at all, in actuality, it sounds like she is very happy. She changes the grip on her sword and comes at me. I step away and the sound of the swish of the sword reaches my ear.

Seeing that I don’t have any weapon, she starts swinging and slashing at me continuously. I step back or dodge her at every attack. After two minutes, she stops and tilts her head while analyzing me, “You are either trained in martial arts or...you are Extander. And I am guessing it’s latter, isn’t it?”

She sighs and shakes her head, “Now I have more reason to not let you go. You can only blame your luck. Let’s end this, I am tired of playing around.” With her wordings, I conclude she is a turned human and a middle or upper level at that. But what is her special ability and why is she not using her power? I can’t use my power due to Ryou’s warning but why can’t she?

She slashes at me faster and with much more power than before. I hardly dodge the slash and kick her in her knee with my heel. The heel does have an impact as it forces her to cower in her place. I quickly move forward and grasp her hand holding the sword. With my back to her chest to cover myself, I try to elbow her face.

The next second, her free hand moves up and stops my elbow from touching her face. She raises her foot and steps on me. I hiss and step away instinctively only to realize what I am doing. I quickly grasp her hand holding the sword again and turn around and punch her in the face. I pull back and once again punch her in the stomach.

As she groans in pain, I try to snatch the sword out of her hand only to meet the air the next second. I look down at my empty hand in disbelief before looking up. Where did she go? She was just here a second ago.

“Are you looking for me?”

My eyes widen and step aside from my previous place. The sword pierced right beside my ear narrowly escapes me. I cup my ear and glance at the blood in my hand. Luckily, it’s a small wound. With some doubts, I turn back and seize the tuhu. How did she get behind me without me noticing again?

Wait...her special ability... it couldn’t be teleportation, could it? No, it could be. Maybe that’s the reason why I can never notice her moving away. But how fast is her teleportation? Can I catch up with her at this speed?

A sudden light makes me blind for a second. I squint my eyes and look at the source to find a sword displayed on the wall reflecting the moonlight. I glance at the tuhu before deciding to pick up the sword. I need a weapon desperately.

Running to the opposite wall, I remove the sword from its scabbard. I press my finger against the edge lightly and it starts bleeding. Good, it is sharp enough.

The moonlight reflects from the sword as I grip the handle firmly. Once I raise my head, I notice the tuhu right in front of me. She swings her sword and I raise Kanata to stop her. As soon as our sword touches, sparks fly and the force almost throws me off. I swiftly dig my heels on the floor.

She tries to push me back but I turn the edge upwards and slide up the sword. Taking the chance, I step on her foot and make a slash at her neck. Instead of meeting her neck, my sword meets a black magic circle with enchantment on it. The barrier stops me from reaching her and running away as well, trapping me between the wall and itself.

Since the barrier is made from her power, she can pierce it without breaking it but the same is not the case for me. I am struck. I can feel her grinning despite her mask covering her face.

I raise my eyebrows before grinning back. Her face turns confused instantly and in return, I slightly loosen my grip and tap a finger on the sword’s surface to transfer some of my power to the sword.

The enchantments appear on the sword before it flares up like glowing lava.

I draw my sword back and slash the barrier, destroying it like sparks of fireworks. For the first time, I can see tuhu’s eyes clearly. And maybe it’s the first time that she can see my face clearly due to the light from my sword.

This might be the only time I am grateful to Ryou for letting me go through such intense training. Because of his training, I had managed to master how to effectively transfer my power to the weapons in three weeks.

The power makes her back away, letting me get away from the wall. Her eyes show thrill and craziness. “This is getting interesting. You are a fire user?”

Without responding, I rotate my shoulders and wrists. The slit of the dress helps me put my leg back to get a better stance as I loosen my body, letting the tension-free. I remove the enchantment from the sword for time being to not waste my power. She gets the hints and takes the stance.

Our swords clash for the second time and the sparks fly, the sound of swords rings in my ear for a second. As we start continuously clashing the swords, the sparks fly in succession that one could spot from kilometers away. With time, I speed up my movement till I am panting hard. Only I know how difficult it is to fight in heels.

All of a sudden, there is a blast of ringing from her pocket. She tries to glance at her phone but I don’t give her a break and keep pushing her back. After one minute, she finds an opening and creates some distance between us. I pant and put my weight on one leg.

“I would love to continue, but I have to go. We will meet again later, till next time.” She tells between pants before disappearing right before my eyes.

Clank

I let the sword fall on the floor and put my hands on my knees while panting. After composing myself, I push back the hair from my face and pick up my fallen clutch and blazer. As soon as I try to take a step, my wrist and feet protest with pain.

Soon, I drop the idea of going to Ryou, instead, I take out my phone to call him over. My eyes zoom at the notification of three missed calls from Ryou. Why didn’t I hear it ringing? I swipe at his number.

Five minutes later, multiple footsteps surround me.

Ten guards surround the hallway while Ryou and a man in spectacles follow one step behind him. Judging by the serious expression on his face, he must have rushed over. “What happened? How did you end up here?”

“I got lost...the then she ran away, she used to teleport and the man she was talking to...I am not sure, he must have run away while I was fighting with her.”

“Did you see both of them?” Ryou asks while picking up the sword and putting it back in its place.

“None, it was too dark and the woman was wearing a mask.”

Hearing my answer, I can see he is thinking about what to do. He turns silent for two minutes before opening his mouth, “Juan,”

The man behind him steps forward, “Yes, Your Grace?”

“Secure the palace, place guard at every corner, and check the CCTV cameras. I need a report of every person who left the hall in the last half an hour in 20 minutes, male or female. And cross-check the attendee of the banquet. Do it discreetly, don’t alert the media or the attendees, pull them aside only if you find them suspicious.”

“Yes, Your Grace, I will make the arrangements immediately....but how did a tuhu get inside without anyone noticing..., especially with the barrier around the palace?”

“I don’t know and we don’t have the time to find out... Ask someone to check out the barrier ones you are clear with the cross checking. Don’t let what happened today get out.” He keeps looking out of the archway with crossed arms.

“Your Grace, please come back soon. If you stay away for long, it might cause a stir among the guests.” Ryou doesn’t respond. Juan gives him a bow behind his back before retreating with the soldiers, leaving us alone.

Silence regains for a few minutes and it is broken again, “Did you use your power?”

“Yes, not directly but I transferred it to the sword,” I say while trying to make out his emotion. Is he angry?

When he faces me I can’t find any anger on his face, “Since you managed to transfer the power, I can consider your training successful but don’t try to overdo it...Do you want to go back or do you want to stay for a while?”

I let out a sigh, he is not angry. “I think I would go back. You will come back after the banquet, right?”

“If we find nothing suspicious till the end of the party. I will be back before 11.”

“By the way, is there something on the 25th? They both were talking about some plans on the 25th. And does barrier work when she can use teleport?”

"It does, once she is inside the palace, it should work but I don't know why it didn't work this time." He pauses and continues, "25th? I don’t think so... I will try to find out if I can find anything."

RYOUHEI DE VAL FRANSICH’S POV

I release a tired sigh and take off my blazer before draping it on my arm. After punching in the password, I close the door behind me and put the car keys on the table with the help motion sensor light. The lights of the living room are turned off, they must have gone to sleep.

But it is only 11:30 pm, doesn't she always sleep at 12 or 1 am?

Keeping the sound of the door minimum and footsteps light, I enter the living room while trying to take out my phone. As I am trying to turn on the flashlight, the lights of the living room turn on, on their own. All my movement ceases.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY.”

I blankly stare at the balloons covering the whole floor before moving my eyes to the confetti in Finlay and Nadya’s hands. When did they...Nadya jumps down from her spot on the sofa and skips towards me. She hasn’t changed from the party dress, on the other hand, she had taken a shower and retouched her makeup. I can smell the shower gel she always uses.

She stands in front of me with a smile and interlocks her hands behind her back. I glance at her face before looking at Finlay’s grin behind her, I look back and forth between them for a few seconds. I bite my lip and turn my face away to stop the smile trying to rise on my face.

For the first time in the whole day, no, maybe for the first time in the last 15 years, I actually feel like I am celebrating my birthday. At last, I can’t control my emotions, and a laugh leaks from my mouth. Not a second later, it turns to full-blown laughter. I drop the blazer and pull Nadya in my arms.

I can feel her body stiffening but I ignore it and wrap my arms around her waist and shoulder. I take in a shaky breath and press my face between her neck and shoulder. “Thank you, thank you, Nadya.” She shivers but doesn’t move to push me away.

Soon, I pull away but keep one arm around her. I turn to Finlay, “Why are you still standing there, Finlay? Come here.” I wave him over. He points at himself. “Who else is Finlay here?” He hesitates for a second before coming over with a smile.

“Aren’t I too big for a hug?” He says as I drape my arms around both of their shoulders.

“No.”

“No, you are not.”

Nadya and I answer at the same time.