The Redo of a Novel's Villain: Moira - Chapter 32: Chapter 32

Crowds of students streamed in and out the courtyard, trying out the variety of games and activities together with friends. The wafting aroma of delicious snacks, the blare of music, chatter, laughs, shouts, and the quirky noises emitted from some of the game stands made it near impossible to hear anything below a speaking voice. Friends hang out hand in hand, arm in arm lest they lose each other in the throng.
A bit of a distance away, underneath a frost-bitten tree stood the second prince of the Kingdom of Ecrelyn. Kade grasped his script without looking at it. He faced the presence-less space before him and rehearsed his lines.
"Why do you insist on pursuing this—no, not right. I need to put emphasis there.." He muttered frustratedly and clicked his tongue. He's supposed to be a minor key role that will greatly provide the siblings an important clue to help solve the chain of cases at a huge expense, not some random villager extra! Kade grabbed his hair in irritation. "I'm not doing it right..!"
The prince muttered curses before readying himself for another go.
"Kade!!" Someone called out. Kade instantly recognized who: the voice could only belong to one girl.
"Celine? Do you need something?" He turned around to see the approaching figure of the blonde. Her short wavy hair bounced with each step.
"What are you doing moping here alone? Let's go join the festivities!" She cheered before linking her arm with his and forcefully dragging him away.
Kade stumbled behind her. How the village girl had such strength was unknown. He pleaded, "Wait, I need to practice for tonight's play."
Celine slowed down a bit for Kade to catch his footing, but she didn't stop moving. "Your acting is amazing, stop fretting and have fun! It's the last day of the Winter Showcase."
"Can't you ask the others?" he began, but instantly pursed his lips when she saw her deadpan.
"If you mean Sorin and Melissa, neither of them know how to have fun. Plus all of them get surrounded by people the moment they're by themselves and there's practically zero chance for me to find them afterwards. They don't tend to do that to you though," She scoffed exasperatedly. Kade had the inkling suspicion she was speaking from prior experience. Celine's face then turned into a faint rosy hue as the grip she had on him tightened. "And I want to spend the end of my first Winter Showcase with you."
Kade's throat clamped up, not sure how to respond. Incidentally, he felt his own face heating up too (much to his annoyance, everyone in his family had a very obvious blush but he was especially bad). The blue haired youth couldn't help but be relieved that Celine was in front of him as he prayed for the cool air to quickly rid him of his complexion.
But still, how should he respond? He opened his mouth and no coherent strings of words were pushed out. So instead he unlinked their arms. Celine now turned around, still a bit flustered but not nearly as much as him. She was confused, until she felt his hand intertwining with hers and now she was behind him. Kade guided the path for them as he brought them closer to the courtyard, evident by the increasing noise.
Neither of them spoke but that didn't mean Celine failed to stifle her giggles when she saw how red the tip of the prince's ears were. They entered one of many gates leading to the courtyard and immediately Celine took the lead again and brought him to a mini game-shop cart.
The person hosting it beamed at them. "Welcome! Would you like to play our game? Prizes are these headbands!" They showcased a displayed arrangement of plant, animal, or food inspired headbands.
Celine clasped her hands excitedly. "We want to play! What are the rules?"
"The rules are simple, you'll roll two dice and if you can guess the result's added amount you win." They explained which earned a furrowed expression from Kade. The prince scowled.
"Isn't that purely based on luck then?"
"As are most games."
He bristled. Gambling games like this are a waste of money, and yes, even though the games are school sponsored and hosted by students one still has to pay for tickets. The money raised will then be donated to a charity for the slums, so Kade wouldn't say he's surprised there were luck-based games here.
Celine handed over a ticket.
"I feel pretty lucky." She laughed and the third year quickly handed her two dice. She shuffled them in her palms as she blurted out, "EIGHT!" and let them scatter onto the table next to the cart.
The dice landed perfectly on a five and a six.
She turned back to Kade with an awry grin. "It's just the first time, again!"
She gave them a ticket and grabbed the dice, shouting victoriously.
"Five!"
Four, and two.
"Haha.. third time's the charm!" She chortled and paid again. Kade's eye twitched but he knew he could do nothing to convince her. But he supposed it was fine since the tickets were cheap. So long as she doesn't go overboard.
"Seven!"
Six, and six.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Celine punched the air before letting out a prolonged exhale. The silence between them sent warning signals in Kade's mind. He's known her for a few months but he could already grasp she was the stubborn kind. And the face Celine had right now?
Determined.
Uh oh.
He acted quickly. "Celine I think--"
"AGAIN!"
"Celine!"
"SIX!"
"Celine no!"
✦ ✧
"A..after.." She inhaled sharply. "After thirty two times... I FINALLY DID IT!" She exclaimed triumphantly with her fists in the air. Kade thanked Eelia in the heavens above. Even the game host, albeit happy reeled in so much at once, felt pity for the girl.
They cleared their throat. "Usually winning one only lets you take one prize, but since it's the last day I'll let you take two. Which one do you want?"
She snapped her attention onto the display in glee as she quickly pointed at two headbands. It was one with a mainly strawberry theme with felted strawberries and its flowers decorating the sides. In the middle was a felted flower bopper. The second one was similar to the fragarian headband but with a blueberry theme instead.
The host fetched the prizes and handed it to the giddy Celine who swerved around, walked up to Kade, and placed the strawberry one on top before donning the blueberry one herself. She twinkled at him. "Now we match!"
Kade's heart skipped a beat and he could feel his face heating up again. Quickly he hid his face by tuning his head in a different direction, exclaiming a thanks before pointing at a different stall as a random distraction.
"Look, they're selling hats!" He said.
"Where?!" Celine looked around frantically. "Oh! There's a bunny one!" She screamed and once again pulled Kade behind her at shocking speed as she maneuvered them through the crowd.
That afternoon was gonna be a long one, he surmised. But as he trailed behind her a smile inched itself on his face. But it was gonna be fun for sure.
He opened his mouth, "Celine?"
"Yeah?" She yelled, not stopping.
"I... I think I'd like to spend next year's Winter Showcase with you too." He flushed, why are words so embarrassing?
Abruptly Celine stopped running, breathing heavily. Kade tried to peer at her expression but she didn't let him. It didn't help that they were nearly the same height too. However, what he could see was Celine placing a hand over her chest and grasping her shirt tightly till they were scrunched up beneath her fingers.
"..Are you okay?" He asked with concern which he felt was very warranted as her head turned around and her ditzy blue eyes met his. He could feel worry spread through him as he saw her florid complexion and her heaving chest and the way her voice trembled as she spoke.
"Me?? I'm perfectly fine we're all perfectly fine anyways that sounds amazing I'd love to too and—" She inhaled. "Yes."
He stared at her. "...Yes?'
"Yes." She stared back.
As a weird, but not-uncomfortable silence stretched between them the prince swept a quick look at the clocktower. Time was escaping them and they spent a while on that damn dice game already. Poor Celine probably spent most of her tickets on it. Feeling the pressure of the headband, Kade thought to treat the girl to the rest of the courtyard delights... as thanks.
He looked back. "We still have an hour and a half, what do you want to do next?"
"Everything if I could." Her chuckle was interrupted when a hand held hers and began pulling her to the shop she set her eyes on prior.
"Then we better hurry." Kade pulled her forwards.
And as the brief limited time passed the two forgot all about their place in the world. Neither of the students, be it aristocracy or commons, thought of their role in the kingdom. They were just students having fun enjoying the atmosphere. And even as the clock ticked by and the festivities began to come to an end, girl and boy, not prince and peasant ran to the stage with laughs.
The boy turned back to the courtyard with a bit of melancholy. His golden eyes stared at the glowing embers of gold and warmth. He briefly realized the girl had stopped next to him, but he didn't pay much mind.
And as one leaves the courtyard away from the bustle, a peaceful loneliness befalls. The lingering remnants of everyone's collective joy, energy, even sound remains albeit fading the further one goes. It is like a spell, attracting one to jump back into the festive embrace. But all things must come to an end. All things.
Once his head hits his pillow and he awakes from half day slumber the illusion would've melted away no matter how beautiful. Just like the snowflakes drifting methodically through the sky, they melt with simple contact.
But before that, Kade looked back at Celine.
He thinks he'll like to drift a little longer.
✦ ✧
"Can someone bring the cloth—the old ones in a box—to the style room? Thanks."
"I'll do it." Huey replied and pushed the rack of costumes to the designated corner. He looked around and quickly spotted the box. Swiping a hand across the flimsy surface he hefted it into his arms and left, a tenseness to his steps.
Shifting the weight he knocked on the door of the style room before nudging it open with his leg. He set the box down on an old leather couch as he turned back to see a couple of the actors touching up on makeup and last minute practicing their lines. Amongst those was also Nicholas who waved him over.
"Nervous?" He asked and gave his friend a pat on the shoulder.
The blonde groaned loudly. "Don't ask."
Huey laughed quietly when the click of the door opened and in came Kayson.
"Ten minutes till opening stage." He broadcasted much to the stress of others. He walked towards the two of them with a brief hey.
Red eyes scanned him up and down. "You look... fun."
Kayson sported a black cloak with an equally dark fitness-suit-like outfit beneath. He wore plenty of accessories such as hidden weapons tucked away in his belts too. The heel of his boots clicked when he stepped away with a scoff.
"Shut up, at least I don't have to wear a stupid mask."
"Mhm." Huey replied absentmindedly. Casting a quick glance at Nicholas who had gone back to fixing his hair he moved closer to Kayson and whispered, "Did you do it?"
The youth nodded and delivered a series of hand motions which through much difficulty Huey translated it as 'they don't know it's me.'
He had Kayson in charge of tipping to either Sorin or company about a possible leakage. They thought of telling the teachers and staff sure, but there's still a high possibility with antagonist Huey out of the mix in order for the plot—or fate—to push forward; someone amongst the staff team is a spy. So the only certainty they have currently is that Sorin and co are on the good side.
He gave Kayson a thumbs up and after exchanging a couple more words, was shooed out to not distract his friends before performance. He grumbled but obediently left the room, walking down the hallway behind the stage idly. That was until he saw the protagonist's silhouette in the distance.
The youth wore a brown windbreaker and dress pants and shirt with a vest. Huey bet there was a hat to go with the outfit too, but it was nowhere to be found at the moment. If he remembered correctly, he was a side role (all main roles were given to first years) that acted as a rival-colleague of the twins. He doesn't exactly know the specifics except for the fact the guy dies sometime near the end. Sorin turned around and spotted him right as he was about to approach as well. Huey returned the other boy's wave as they met up.
"Nervous?" He gave the platinum-haired youth the same question he gave Kayson.
He half-grimaced which earned an amused huff. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't."
He caught silver in red. "Don't be so uptight, I'm sure you'll do great." The boy stretched out the 'tight' casually. "I didn't attend rehearsals often but from the times I saw your acting I can confidently say practice paid off... Also, your tie's crooked."
Sorin 'oh'ed and gloved hands quickly went up to the little bowtie sitting sideways on his shirt collar. The patterned bow of flimsy but passable material. Huey could tell the male had trouble fixing it with the sightless handicap as well as the restriction of his gloves. So out of pure goodwill and definitely not OCD, he stretched out his hands.
"Here let me." His fingers gently took the bow and Sorin's own hands left it, albeit lingering in the air besides his for a moment before dropping them by his side. Silver eyes stared at the space between them while oddly distrait. He could feel a vague, thin temperature radiation of the other's skin against his—or mayhaps it was a psychological effect?—and he became all too aware of his surroundings yet stripped of his senses at the same time. Neither of them spoke in the close proximity and before long Huey had secured the bow tie properly. The shorter male retreated, pulling the butterflies in Sorin's guts away with the motion.
"..Thanks." The protagonist blinked a couple times, unsure where to look for he feared making eye contact then would cause his face to flush an embarrassing shade.
Huey muttered a your welcome when someone else's words rang out to alert all actors to get in position. Sorin sucked in a breath but his attention was quickly brought back to the person in front of him by the physical contact on his shoulders.
"Relax, you can do this." He encouraged, although the words were brief and hardly motivating, Sorin thought the slightest tremor on his fingers had stilled. He nodded briskly.
"Yeah," he exhaled. "Thanks, I'll do my best."
Huey grinned small. "You better, now go quickly!"
Ushering the protagonist away, Huey watched with a certain confliction as he viewed Sorin's figure move further away. He frowned and quickly ran in the opposite direction.
'I have to do my best too.'
✦ ✧
By the time Huey reached the first spot of the bomb implant: The band room—the intermission had ended and the show had begun. Judging by how utterly empty and quiet the space was, everyone was watching the play, no wonder it was so easy to station the traps but that's besides the point. The main thing was that he was out of sight.
Huey felt his mana core, sensing the familiar thrum of energy as it spread throughout his body at his command. It enveloped him as he dragged it out to coat over himself like a blanket and he sparked the spell. As though a wave of gas or smoke descended unto him a murky veil covered his senses, swirled in its incomprehensible iridescence, before seeping into his skin.
It took a while the first few times, but he finally grasped the spell he had learned in his last life. Illusionary magic. By combining a molecule of magic he's able to trick the perceptions of others, including himself.
Although auditory illusions are still out of reach.
He touched his hair and caught his reflection in the giant mirror at the front of the room. From there he could see his appearance in full. Huey let out a breath and neared the mirror.
Up close, although both shades are black, he could clearly tell the illusion made his hair a lighter—warmer shade rather than the raven dark color he actually has. He bet if the sun hit just right it would even seem brown. His cheeks were a bit more full and had a healthier complexion than the paleness his actual body sported. Three beauty marks could be seen as well, one at the corner of his left eye, a second beneath his lips, and a third on his neck. And begrudgingly, he was a bit shorter too. However, the biggest change would definitely be his eye color. The crimson pupils were nowhere to be found. There was not a single trace of that ruddy hue in the deep matte brown pupils, dark enough to appear black but under the right lighting such as the sun its true color would come to show.
He smiled wryly. "Long time no see."
The reflection staring back at him belonged to Elijah, specifically what he looked like the day he died (and if that meant he was currently wearing his old uniform, it was a benefit in and of itself).
Done poking his features around and re-familiarizing himself with a body he thought he'd never miss, ̶H̶u̶e̶y̶ Elijah got to work.
The bomb should be located somewhere in the room the question was where. Fortunately the demons hadn't used something gunpowder-filled but rather used something much more destructive: demonic magic. That meant he could sense the rough location of it.
Elijah closed his eyes and connected with his mana core once again. Commanding it to achieve a higher connection between him and the world's inherent mana. The start and end of all magic was everywhere, overlaying to form complex structures and arrays. What he needed to do was to find what he was looking for amongst it.
He focused, carefully inspecting the overlap. But the area was too big, if he didn't find it soon he wouldn't have enough time! Elijah clicked his tongue and expanded the field of his search, ignoring the strain on his core.
The swirl of colors he saw but couldn't grasp behind closed lids danced in a hypnotically migraine-inducing way. He tried to navigate amongst the imperceptible and abstract blobs of colour. But wherever he went or whatever lead he got quickly eluded him amongst the space. As irritation and impatience quickly ate at him, so did his desperation.
'Come on.. where is it...!'
He carped, disliking the way the layers of mana enveloped over his control like resistors. Elijah gasped and returned to his senses, blinking rapidly to disperse the disorientation dotting his vision and filling his thoughts.
"Fuck." He blurted aloud and slumped forwards onto the conductor stand. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment until it throbbed in protest before he allowed himself to slowly breathe in a loud gulp of air. His features relaxed and Elijah tried again.
'I was doing it wrong,' he concluded. 'I'm not supposed to blindly search for it, I'm supposed to let it guide me. Sense the anomaly, me, find it.'
Closing his eyes Elijah reattempted the search, however rather than manually trying to look through the waves of mana, he allowed himself to sink. Moving with the motion, his own mana grafted into the whole and surely, he was moving. Lower and lower he went, denser and denser the mana became until Elijah was so sure if he just stretched out a hand it would become tangible.
His senses expanded seeking for something out of the ordinary. What was different amongst this amalgamation of primal stardust? The map in his head like a dark sea filled with hallucinatory threads of colour. Like elemental energy, magical orbs, or a rainbow of polar lights twinkling in the eldritch ocean.
Elijah opened his eyes. He had found it.
Straightening his body he swiftly moved towards the corner of the room with the floor blocked by large instruments. Casting wind magic, he leapt upwards and with some difficulty, displaced a tile from the cieling.
A grin broke out on his face.