Eldegarde

Chapter 5

     I stood alone on my balcony and looked out into the town below lost in my ocean of thoughts. Was it okay for me to say that? Did I terrify them too much? My train of thoughts are broken when I hear my bedroom doors open and close. I turned around to see Mila there. I gave her a small smile before asking, "Did you think I scared them?"

     Mila looked at me confused.

     "If anything Eldegarde, you piqued Lady Cheyenne's interest. She wondered how you knew anything about these mysterious occurrences. But you did scare the life out of the Staftors. Especially Richard."

     The last part made me laugh. If I know something, or anything about Richard, is the fact that he lacks brains, strength, and bravery. The idiot couldn't even hold a bow without peeing himself first. I looked down in thought and turned to the town below. Mila appeared by my side and spoke.

     "How did you come by her journal entry?"

     Silence filled the air before I responded, "It was at the library. In the section of old beasts and new."

     "I see. Maybe what has been thought to be destroyed is ascending again. This time, we will have to do everything to destroy this once and for all."

     "Did Lady Cheyenne ever mention where it all began?"

     "Not even she knows where it came from I'm afraid. But for now, we must rest and prepare for any sort of news tomorrow."

     "Very well. Good night, Mila."

     "Good night, El," Mila said as she turned and left, closing the door as she went.

     I sighed as I continued to watch the town. Those who dwell in shadows. Great. I guess this might just be the path of a fool's game.

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     I sat on a chair in the garden with my mother talking about the current reports. My maid was going to pour me another cup of tea to only be cut off by frantic screaming of my mother's name and the quick beating of footsteps in our direction. We both turned to see a guard panting before quickly saying, "There were weird incidents this morning regarding the citizens."

     "What is it?" asked Mother.

     "Two thirds of the citizens were normal for one second, then they were in pain, and now, they suddenly have magic! A-and they are panicking! We tried all we could to calm them down but nothing is working out!"

     Mother opened her mouth to speak but I cut her off, "I have an idea. I'll handle it."

     She looked at me wearily before telling me, "Okay. But be careful. Who knows what can happen in this situation."

     I nodded as I headed inside the castled and to the balcony where we deliver the people our messages and news. I walked to the railing of the balcony and soon, the crowd began to quiet down.

     "Dear citizens of Udrolnia. I know you all are panicking, I know you all are frightened, but fret not. I will help you. We will help you. We can get through this together. But I must ask you all this. Do you wish to have temporary laws set in place to protect one another? Do you require help? Please, do not be afraid to reach out or call out to us. If anything out of the ordinary strikes you. If anything from the shadows tries to drag you in. You have my permission to keep yourself safe. Use your powers if you must, but I vow that we will get through this together."

     The crowd broke into an ocean of cheers as I smiled and walked back into the castle. No longer, a knight stalked towards me and told me that my mother wishes to see me in the tactics room. I gave him my thanks and headed in the direction of the tactics room. Once there, I opened the door to see my mother looming over a map and papers of ideas and skills scattered around her.

     "Mother?" I called out.

     She stopped what she was doing and turned to me.

     "Eldegarde! Come here. I want you to help me plan training and tutoring. We also need to know what kinds of magic each person has. But that will be done tomorrow."

     "Alright."

     We spent two to three hours on planning on what possible jobs and education could possibly help the people. Suddenly, mother stopped and the room fell into silence. I looked up to see mother looking down at the map with furrowed eyebrows. Sensing something off, I asked her, "Mother? Is there something wrong?"

     She stayed silent for a bit before saying, "When and how are we going to tell the citizens that you have magic?"

     I looked down. That is a good question though. When and how are we going to tell them? After a bit of thinking, I responded with, "We will know when the time comes. But for now, let us go with the flow of nature."

     Mother smiled at me, "Sometimes, you think and speak far older than others despite how young you are."