9 V 1.1 Chapter 6: Castle of Vladik.

Dullahan, also referred to as the Headless Horseman, is a type of spirit originating from Irish folklore. This sinister being appears as a man or a woman riding upon a black horse, but the rider has no head upon their shoulders. Typically, the Dullahan carries its head under its arm; the head appears dead and rotten with a demonic grin spread across its face.

- http://monster.wikia.com/wiki/Dullahan

***

"We are here," Aria spoke stopping us in front of a huge castle. "The home of the previous Ruler of Veter Kingdom; the Castle of Vladik."

"It's huge." Emily's eyes brightened up while examining the walls.

The castle sat at the top of a cliff with magnificence. Fortified by walls, it was only accessible by a two bridge. Enclosed by a stone wall, a large building was installed at the middle supported by four giant pillars.

"This is so cool." The feeling was like a child going to his first time trip to a park. "This is so amazing."

"Hiiro, is there something wrong?" Emily spoke.

"Nothing. It's just that... my family always takes me to the amusement park when I was a child, but this is the first time I have seen a real castle."

"Hiiro, what's an amusement park?" Emily and Aria asked with puzzled looks in their eyes.

"O-Oh. Sorry, it's..."

After that, I explained to them what an amusement park is.

"Amazing, I want to go to this amusement park you said," Emily replied, happily while holding her scepter with both of her hands...

"W-well... I'll bring you there someday."

We walked towards the castle until we made it to the bridge where Aria then shouted, "I am Aria Silvermoon, daughter of the necromancer named Oliver Silvermoon! The girl beside me is also a necromancer named Emily Scarlet! Beside her is a Skeleton Knight named Hiiro Akira! Our village was attacked, so we fled and came to this castle!"

A few minutes later, the barrier disappeared. We then crossed the drawn bridge towards two massive wooden doors. The air was chilling, my bones felt a bit more brittle. Yet, it wasn't painful, rather, it felt good

Ahh. This is so amazing.

It was like that time I was walking from the chairs to the stage when I graduated middle school.

As we reached the doors, they opened, allowing us to pass through. We then traveled a few more meters until we reached the door of the main castle.

As I stepped inside, I felt the coldness of the marble floor through my bony feet. My excitement came back while looking into the crystalline tiles. Looking around the hall I noticed portraits of a headless knight riding a horse with a flaming head. He was also holding a round object that seemed to be a human head. There were also a lot of sculptures of him, each in a different position and angle.

A man then came to us wearing a white tunic with a sword latched in his waist.

"A pleasant day to you three," the man spoke while bowing. "My name is Satrillo Stradivarius. Please, come with me. The King wants to meet you."

***

The man took us to the throne room. In front, there he was, sitting in some sort of royal throne---the same being we saw in the portraits and statues. The detached head stared down at us from its lap.

"It's a real live Dullahan..!" I shouted in my mind.

Aria bowed gesturing us to do the same. "King Arthur, Your Highness. I am the one called Aria. We came here from the village of the necromancers."

As soon as Aria was done with her introduction, a servant came to King Arthur. It was a woman with gray, long hair tied in a ponytail. Her black, silken corset armor brought forth the glamour of a beautiful fighter. This was magnified by a white cloth for her skirt with one side opened, revealing her smooth legs, combined with a pair of black high-heeled boots. A collar in her neck and a golden bracelet in each of her hands further emphasized that she was not just a woman but also a warrior. She then lifted the detached head and whispered something in its ear.

King Arthur then stood up in a fit of rage. "How dare you?! You may be a daughter of Oliver, but to bring a human in my castle, this is unacceptable!" Everyone was startled, especially the three of us. We knew he was pertaining to Emily. "Guards, surround them!" We were then encircled by demons each armed with a sword and wearing silver armor.

"Emily, stand behind me." Immediately, I steeled myself in front of Emily, protecting her in case they attacked us.

"S-sorry... This was because of me..." Emily apologized.

This is bad. With all these guards, we won't stand a chance if we retaliate. What now?

"Your Highness, please, allow me to explain everything," Aria pleaded.

"I don't want to hear your excuses," King Arthur shouted, pointing his sword at us. "Your insolence will never be forgiven!"

"At least, please read this letter." Aria handed out a wax-sealed letter that came from her pocket. One guard cautiously took the letter from Aria. After ensuring that it wasn't dangerous, they gave it to King Arthur, who began to read its contents.

"I see... So you're the adopted daughter of Marina." He then looked at Emily. "Necromancer, what is your name?"

"E-Emily. Emily Scarlet, Your Highness," Emily stuttered, looking at King Arthur.

"Tell me. Why do you wish to live here?"

"B-Because..." Emily looked down. As I noticed her shaking, I held her hands to ease her anxiety. "Because I am looking for my mother."

"Hoh..." King Arthur smiled. "In that case, you first need to pass the trial."

"Trial?" Emily asked.

"Yes. Three days from now, there will be a three-way battle between you and three of my warriors," King Arthur explained. "To make everything fair, each of you will draw from a box. You will battle the one whose name was written on the ball you draw." King Arthur paused. "However, it seems there's only two of you."

Maybe King Arthur thinks I'm a familiar. Well, he's not technically wrong.

"I will fight for the position of the third person, Your Highness," I shouted.

"Hiiro?" Emily and Aria stammered. Everyone around us whispered.

"You? A skeleton?" King Arthur paused for a bit. "Hahaha, you amuse me, bony lad," he laughed "Very well, I approve you as one of the fighters."

"Hiiro, are you sure?" Aria grabbed my hand and whispered, "I thought you only know basic elemental spells?"

"Yes, I'm sure," I whispered back. "Don't worry about me."

"Very well. Emily, will you accept the trial?" King Arthur asked.

"I-I accept the trial," Emily replied, softly.

We each drew a ball, and each had a name engraved on it: I got "Lucie Dreizehn", Emily got "Satrillo Stradivarius" and Aria got "Robyn Accalia".

So Emily will fight that butler we met earlier. Based on the reaction of that girl who came to Dullahan, Aria will fight her. As for me, I don't have a clue who my opponent is.

Looking around, I saw a girl winking at me. It was a girl who looked like a princess with blonde hair curling from the tips of the hairs beside her eyes. Her pink dress and doll shoes surrounded her with an aura of innocence as a pink rose headpiece further magnified it.

My instinct is telling me that there's a big probability it's her... Wait a minute, it's a Hime-kei!

"Now it's decided, I look forward to your battles," King Arthur announced.

***

King Arthur then instructed his guards to show us to our room. However, there were only two beds in it.

Wait a minute, something's definitely wrong with this...

Before the guards could walk away, I ran up to them. "Wait, wait, wait... At least give me a separate room, I'm a guy you know!"

"It doesn't matter since you're a skeleton. Don't worry," the guard said winking at me and shoved away my hand.

Don't give me that "if you know what I mean" look! Really guys? Really?

"H-Hiiro, what are you doing there?" Emily asked, softly. 'We need to rest since we traveled quite far. We also need to plan our strategy tomorrow."

"Coming," I replied stepping inside the room.

"Hiiro, you can sleep in the other one. Since the bed is big enough, I will sleep beside Emily," Aria requested with a poker face.

As I lay down, I glanced at Aria, who shot an emotionless look towards me. "If you do anything perverted, I'll make sure to grind your bones." She was not letting a sound but I could read her lips.

Even if I want to do something, I can't. Not with this body of mine.

***

After we woke up, the guards came to our room and instructed us to follow them. They then took us to a large hall. Estimating its size, it was capable of holding at least two hundred people. A number of monsters: goblins, demons and much more filled the room; it was like a gathering of them. The guards then instructed us to sit beside one of the tables and wait for further instructions. Moments later, King Arthur came in front and had a speech.

"Good morning, my dear servants..." After his wonderful speech, we ate the meals served to us by King Arthur's maids.

This is sad. Eating is impossible for me since I have no stomach.

"What's wrong, Hiiro?" Emily asked.

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, come to think of it, yesterday, they were just trying to kill us but now it seems everything turned around completely."

"Y-you're right," Emily replied, softly.

"I don't know what father wrote in that letter but it seemed to have calmed the King yesterday," Aria added.

"Now, I'm curious." My eyes turned to King Arthur.

***

After eating, we then went back and talked about our strategy.

"Ok, so based on our lineup, Hiiro will go first, I will go second and Emily will go last. Hiiro, how many spells do you know so far?" Aria asked.

"So far, I know six spells. I can use Fireball, Water Mine, Water Whip, Earth Wall, Air Slash and Loop Magic."

"This is a bit of a problem... Are you sure you can fight with only those spells?" Aria held her chin.

"Yes, don't worry about me. I have a plan."

"By the way, what is this Loop Magic you were saying earlier?" Aria asked looking at me. "This is the first time I've heard of it."

I explained to her how the Loop Magic works.

"I see, I see. That's quite a peculiar spell you've invented," Aria nodded. "But have you mastered it now? You told me that you only perfected casting it once."

"I'll... try to master it before the match."

"I-it's okay," Emily spoke, softly while looking at Aria. "I know that Hiiro... that Hiiro can do it. I believe in him. Also, learning all those in just two and a half months is already an achievement."

"Then, I will also believe in him," Aria added.

After three hours of strategizing, the three of us trained; I created combos so I could use my spells effectively in battle, while I kept on practicing casting Loop Magic.

This continued on for three days.

***

Three days were all over, and the day of the trial came. The guards went to our room and instructed us to follow them to the arena. We then sat in chairs provided for us at the side of the ring. King Arthur then made his opening speech.

Looking at Emily, I noticed her shaking hands.

"What should I do?" Emily murmured, continuously.

"It's okay Emily." Holding her hands, I assured her. "We can do this. I believe in you."

"Hiiro." The shaking of her hands slowly disappeared. "Thank you."

"To start with the trial, at Round One, we have Hiiro Akira against Lucie Dreizehn!"

And thus, I stepped towards the arena to begin my fight.