[Original] The Alchemist of Rozarre [Novel-Length] [Complete!]

Chapter 4

Cerise paced outside the treasury room. Roselle hid herself within the castle or possibly out of its great scaling walls. The Queen noted Cerise grasping onto the wand, tapping it against the palm of her hand. Cerise wondered if she could use the wand to summon Roselle, though that seemed silly, didn't it? Magic wasn't there for convenience; it was something that was unearthed and discovered and had its own rules and layers to the system. Cerise felt her stomach twist at her previous words; she blamed Roselle for having the privileged life that Cerise herself did not, but it turned out Roselle couldn't use magic at all and she was sensitive about it. She never thought she would witness the normally noble and dignified Princess in tears, though she saw a more human side to Roselle than she initially gave credit for.

Still, what was Cerise to do? They didn't exactly kiss and make up, really; and now Cerise was left with her stomach plummeting lower and lower until she was sure it reached her bowels. Maybe she shouldn't have scolded Roselle like that. On the one hand, some part of her insisted that Roselle needed to hear those words, that someone needed to put her in place, though Cerise knew that she was in the wrong this time, as much as she was loath to admit it. She tried to think of ways to approach the Princess and ask for her forgiveness, before stopping herself.

She would rather die than beg for the Princess's forgiveness. Even if she was wrong, Cerise still had her pride. She couldn't let herself soften towards the Princess. She was her enemy, after all; the one that she was forced to marry by the Queen. Actually, shouldn't the Queen be the real enemy here? But Cerise dare not express her ill feelings towards the Queen; doing so would be treason. Cerise shook her head. No, she mustn't think such thoughts of the Queen! Who happened to be Roselle's mother; and Roselle was...

Cerise groaned in frustration.

"If she's going to sulk like a child I'm not coming to her!" Cerise declared.

"I don't know what happened between you two in the treasury vault," The Queen said softly. "But my dear Roselle has been wounded deeply. Her pride is injured, and she tries her hardest at everything to make up for her weakness. You may find her to be haughty and prickly and all sorts of unpleasantness, but Roselle is my daughter and I do truly want her to be happy. I know that this is an arranged marriage, but I believe it's in the best interests of all."

"And why is that?" Cerise asked.

"Well, you see, Cerise, Roselle only has one saving grace to keep the Grand Duelist title," The Queen said. "It puts you under a lot of pressure, but with you being married to Roselle, she can keep the title and save face. You, on the other hand, marry into a powerful family with all the riches and treasures and whatnot that you could ever want."

Cerise remained silent and bowed her head. She, like Roselle, wanted to marry for love. Sure, she always fantasized from her storybooks at bedtime that she would one day marry a handsome prince that swept her off of her feet and carried her on his noble steed. Roselle was far from being the handsome prince that she imagined, though she was very beautiful and she wielded the rapier better than any prince or Knight that she has ever seen.

I can't fall in love with her, Cerise told herself. She is my enemy. The Queen may say that I'm marrying into riches and splendor, but love is greater than the weight of gold or any other treasure. It's priceless.

The Queen rose, before saying. "I've witnessed your magical ability firsthand. I think it's best that you go to the Soreno Kingdom to learn magic. It seems like it's something that you can't command on and off yet, but eventually with practice and great teachers, you can do it."

"But I thought this was a quest for the Philosopher's Stone?" Cerise protested.

"Since you're marrying into this family, you need to learn how to hold the Grand Duelist title alongside Roselle," The Queen said patiently. "We need to make a champion out of you."