Chapter 2

Two days on the road and they had finally arrived.

From the smell in the air to the beauty of the plants everything was different.

Looking outside the window he could see a magnificent castle it's size made his uncles castle look like a displaced hut.

From the magnificent gold coated doors to the silver walls everything looked exquisite, as the carriage got closer he could feel ancient magic all around him, probably the protection circle that was said to be beneath every castle, place there by the first mages of the empire.

When the horses stopped his so called servants woke up and immediately sat straight, they both looked at him and Ruda spoke.

"Lets get off,"

The carriage door was opened and a small stair case placed on the ground. The servants got out then they helped him out.

"This is the castle of the duke of Carpathia,"

Cerrise cautiously stepped out of the carriage, his eyes scanning the unfamiliar surroundings. They had arrived at a grand estate, surrounded by lush gardens and towering trees. The air was filled with a faint scent of flowers and the distant sound of birdsong.

Ruda, the older servant, gestured for Cerrise to follow him. They walked across a cobblestone path, passing ornate statues and meticulously trimmed hedges. The opulence of the place struck Cerrise, and he couldn't help but feel out of place. This beauty that they didn't was probably one of the reasons they were called savages.

As they entered the grand entrance of the estate, Cerrise's senses were overwhelmed by the sight of marble pillars, intricate tapestries, and chandeliers that sparkled with a thousand crystals. It was a world far removed from his humble origins.

Inside, a tall figure awaited them. He was dressed in elegant attire, a blindfold on his eyes, his presence commanding attention. The aura around him was suffocating. It made him instinctively want to run away, he literally had to dig his nails into his hand to clear his head and ignore the impulse, the last time he felt such cohesion was when Eliphas released it on him accidentaly while training him, the person infront of him was just excluding such aura by standing there he was dangerous.

The man, whom Cerrise had already assumed was the Duke, greeted them with a slight nod.

"Your highness," Circe greeted.

"Welcome," the Duke said in a deep, resonant voice. "I trust you had a comfortable journey."

He then turned to a servant who was at the door.

"You know your roles. He should be versed with the palace rules before leaving.

At that time another servant rushed in and said something to the duke in a low tone, noticing this Cerrise looked behind and noticed a carriage that's when he remembered the duke of Rafion whom he had come with.

"I can't entertain you for long I have something to attend to, show him where he will stay,"

"Yes your highness," the servant bowed.

"Please follow me Master Circe," he then took his hand and lead him to another carriage.

He walked with the servant they passed through several hallways.

"I am Azar the head servant of the Carpathia house hold," the servant starts to speak, "You will be staying here at the Duke's castle while studying.

"Once you settle down, I'll give you a two hours to acquaint yourself with the important parts of the castle before preparing for the evening meal, you will have it with his highness the Duke," he says, the he turned towards Ananke and Ruda, "The two of you will teach him the basics of this palace, what to touch and what not to and where to go and where not to."

And with that he bowed down to Cerrise.

The sound of a beast growling made him stop and curiously look out of the window, he then noticed that on one of the castle walls there were some small beasts feeding and playing and judging by the fact that he couldn't understand them it meant they were high level beasts despite their size.

They walked for a while then a door was opened the air was different, it was quite, not that the other parts of the castle were noisy but the the quite in this area was peacefully quite. The environment around was beautiful and the plants excluded an aura that made him feel calm, but along with that there was an almost invisible source of dangerous aura around, it felt like there was a beast lurking in the dark waiting for a chance to attack him. The same aura the duke had but it was not attacking but defending.

"Well master Cerrise I'll get going, make sure not to be late for the dinner, the duke disdains unpunctuality," Azar says to him.

"Well it was nice meeting you," he says as he strides away. Leaving him wondering why he came if he was going to leave after showing him the room.

"We'll show you your room first," Ruda says as he pulls Ananke and walks forward leaving him behind. He almost laughs at that.

He follows the to a flight of stair that was near the entrance, as he went up a feeling of familiarity hit him, it's obvious that he had spent his whole life in the village, but as he walked up the stairs he had a subtle feeling of nostalgia it was fleeting but he felt it, it was like he had been there before.

They walked down the hallway as he admired the beautiful design of the castle. After a while they arrived at a certain door Ananke took out a bunch of keys and opened the door. The room was huge. It had gold coated chandeliers, bright, white curtains and black, a huge bed at the center of the room and what seemed to be a wardrobe on the left side of the room and another room at the right of the ward robe which he assumed to be the bath area.

"This will be your key, I'll keep an extra with me, make sure to remember the direction," Ananka says to him.