Should I pray at the temple again?

A few months has passed since Aria had woken up from that disheartening dream. Like a dark shadow hovering over her mind, that dream clouded her thoughts daily. Aria rubbed the sides of her temples and slowly closed her eyes. All she remembered was the moment the heavenly being wished her luck on her journey, and before she could even say anything, her soul scattered into a million pieces – and here she was, living. 

Aria could feel her mind growing restless as she kept thinking about it. Honestly, this should be the last worry on her mind. Within the past weeks, her life had changed dramatically, and maybe thinking about this dream was just a distraction from her real-life problems. 

Aria opened her clear blue eyes stared out the window and gazed lovingly over her family garden. If only she could, she would jump out of this window and into the garden and wander aimlessly under the bright morning sun. 

“Does every highborn lady need to get married so soon…?” Aria sighed as her slender finger twirled a strand of her white platinum hair. 

“Yes, it’s tradition that a lady of your lineage marries once you come of age. Especially so in your case, since you are the only daughter to the esteem marquess of the Marcellus house,” Miss Florence said, and then continued. “By next year you’ll be 18, and once you have your coming-of-age ceremony you will be introduced to high society and – .”

“If I marry…” Aria interrupted. “Will that truly make my family and the Marcellus house happy?”

Miss Florence’s eyes softened. “Of course, my lady. How could your parents and Cedric not be happy for your future marriage.” 

Aria took in a breath of the morning breeze, and let out a small, withered smile. Her eyes were still focused on the beauty outside that would bloom soon enough. And soon she will be ready for marriage. Soon ready to take on the responsibility as a daughter. Soon be given to the highest power in the empire. Aria shook her head at the thoughts, but steadied her heart. 

This was her duty, her responsibility. 

“I heard that there are talks of your engagement,” Miss Florence continued, looking over Aria’s slender but perfect posture. “And that your potential fiancé may be the crown prince. If so, that’s a very promising candidate for you, and truly a blessing for the Marcellus house.”

Aria laughed lightly. “That’s probably gossip. My father hasn’t confirmed who or which family my fiancé will be from yet.” Aria replied, turning away from the window. 

Her laugh disappeared. “Although joining the royal family isn’t such a bad idea, right? I mean who wouldn’t want such power, and prestige as the crown princess and soon-to-be empress of the empire.”

“Yes, my lady,” Miss Florence’s voice lowered. 

Aria had taken her time growing into the lady she was today, and she freely did as she wanted. But it was not until that baseless gossip started circulating – the rumor of her impending engagement to the crown prince. Her once quiet and normal life had suddenly started to run rampant, and now she could no longer do as she wanted. 

It was as if the heavens were sending her a warning that she needed to do her duty. And take over her responsibilities. Aria quietly laughed at herself. At least she was worth this much.

***

Aria lazily stretched her arms, and yawned. Miss Florence’s brows raised, and she chuckled at the sight. Although Aria appeared mature, she was still a young girl at heart and was merely forcing herself to meet her parents’ expectations, and for the prosperity of the Marcellus house. This made teaching Aria much easier, but unfortunate for the young lady who could never truly act her age.

Miss Florence was an older-aged, commoner woman. As highborn as Aria was, she still showed Miss Florence respect and considered her well. Miss Florence can thank Aria’s parents for raising her with good values. It was uncommon for those not of nobility to tutor a lady of this status; however, Aria had often expressed that she was an excellent and intelligent tutor, and was worthy of teaching her, despite the whispers.

Miss Florence truly cared of Aria’s well-being and for the Marcellus house.

Ever since the rumors started circulating that Aria was getting engaged to the crown prince, Miss Florence had quickly adjusted Aria’s study sessions to include the imperial empire’s history, and other etiquette lessons in preparation for becoming a crown princess. Miss Florence could sense Aria’s unease about the abrupt changes, but as always, Aria never questioned it.

Aria Marcellus was the only daughter, and a child of three, between the Marquess and Marchioness of the noble Marcellus house – one of the great pillars in the Aruelleia empire.

Whoever Aria marries in the future will lay claim to one third of her family’s fortune, noble lineage, and all the vast lands in the South that she will soon inherit. So, her marriage was truly an important, and desirable fact. Even if Aria had no control over who her father chooses as her fiancé, she will still be well off. Her father will, without doubt, seek a potential fiancé who will have equal if not more power than them, and who will only benefit the Marcellus house in the future. 

Miss Florence smiled as Aria’s innocent, clear face turned to her. The young lady had readily accepted this reality. 

“Will the next lesson be on history?” Aria asked, her eyes now looking down at her books.

“Yes, it is,” Miss Florence continued. “Let’s briefly go over last week’s lesson.”

“Yes.” Aria immediately replied and open her notebook. Inside, pages of light paper fluttered with neat and clean handwriting. And scribbles of sketches lined the sides of the pages. Aria smiled as she saw her creations. She loved reading as much as she loved doodling and sketching. 

“Do you remember where we left off?” Miss Florence asked, as she fumbled with her notes and books that were mixed with Aria’s etiquette lessons.

“We were on the topic of the four founding Houses of the Aruelleia empire. The Augustus, Carina, Delphina, and Marcellus houses.” Aria replied as she eyed the sketches of small crests on the side of her notes. “But only one house was without a holy stone and power.”

Aria slightly crumpled the edge of a page in her notebook, and her family’s crest distorted. 

***

More than a thousand years ago, a long and bloody war raged between mortals and diabolicals from the netherworld. They fought viciously for 400 years, and many died on both sides as the land burned from within and out. The war lasted so long that it almost wiped-out humanity.

The heavens sympathized with the mortals who possessed no holy or magical power, but only grit and willpower.  To create peace and prosperity below, the heavens gifted the three great heroes with three holy stones – the Rue (Rubies), Daia (Diamonds), and Alsu (Amethysts). The three heroes came from the Augustus, Carina, and Delphina houses. Each stone possessed magical powers that helped end the war against the diabolicals.

The Augustus house, now the royal family of the Aruelleia Empire, was gifted with the most dangerous stone, the Rue. This red holy stone enabled the Augustus house to attack and burn the diabolicals with powerful fire spells. The Carina house was gifted with the toughest silver stone, the Daia. This holy stone enabled the Carina house to create durable and strong armors and weapons that could diffuse and deflect the dark powers of the diabolicals in the war. And the Delphina house was gifted with the powerful purple stone, the Alsu. This holy stone enabled the Delphina house to control and ward off monsters and diabolical entities. 

“Why was the Marcellus house the only family without a holy stone?” Aria asked curiously as she swung her sword at Cedric who barely missed the tip.

Cedric’s sky-blue eyes narrowed, and wondered how Aria grew up to be such a strong tomboy. Although he had a tall build, his muscles and leg strength were pretty average. Cedric was definitely not planning to join the imperial military after the academy, but he still enjoyed sparring with Aria during his free time. 

“Why are you asking that right now?” he asked, his breath harsh from the attack. “Shouldn’t you be preparing for your needlework courses?” 

Aria clenched her sword, and swung with all her might, but immediately realized she put too much weight on her right arm, and her body toppled over. Cedric dodged the messy attack, and his sword landed behind Aria’s neck.

Tap

“Sorry, I win this time.” He grinned and wiped the sweat off his forehead, brushing away strands of similar white platinum hair. 

“You didn’t win,” Aria retorted. She pushed his sword away and glared at him. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” 

“About the needlework?” he sarcastically asked.

“No, you didn’t answer my question,” Aria threw down her sword and walked over to the nearby bench. Cedric followed, grabbing his towel off the ground.

“Nothing in history recorded why the Marcellus house didn’t receive a holy stone.” Cedric finally answered and continue to wipe his sweat. “However, it’s been discussed at the academy that rather than receiving a physical holy stone, our house actually received enlightenment.” 

“Enlightenment?” she asked and snatched the towel away from her brother. 

“Yes. Without the guidance of our house, the Aruelleia empire wouldn’t be what it is today. That’s why members of our households have always oversee the administration functions of this empire and have been close advisors to the emperor,” he answered, finally looking at Aria now.

Even though the Marcellus house was as prestigious and noble as the other houses, the lack of a holy stone limited their ability to further their careers and wealth. Because of this, throughout history, the Marcellus house has always been humble and maintained neutrality. They mostly held high positions in administration – unlike the other houses who held more powerful positions in Imperial Military and Holy Temple.

Aria looked unconvinced. 

“Really?” she said and tossed Cedric’s towel back. “So why is father pursuing an imperial engagement with the royal family? Is our House finally considering wealth and power now?”

Cedric laughed. “Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about an imperial engagement.” He said, and then paused. “But regardless, father will ensure whoever you marry in the future is a loving husband towards you.” Cedric reassured. 

“Exchanging me for power is definitely a smart move though.” Aria pouted, annoyed that even Cedric would not confirm who her potential husband was. As the heir to the Marcellus house, she knew her brother would be privy to such important information. 

She held his sleeve tightly, determined to convince her brother…

I’m valuable enough to know important information.

“If my marriage can be somewhat helpful to the Marcellus House...” Aria paused. “I-I would be happy to do it.” 

“Aria…” Cedric’s gaze sullen. “You know father loves and cares for you. He will only make decisions with the best intentions for you and would never give you away like some object. Please don’t act like this.”

She looked away from Cedric’s stern gaze.

“I’ve put you in a difficult situation.” Aria responded regretfully. “I know that you all love me, it’s just that I –.” 

Cedric softly patted her head and gave her the warmest smile. 

“You can act spoil in front of me, but that won’t stop me from scolding you when necessary.” He laughed and pushed her head back with one finger. Aria's eyes trembled in anger at the provocation, and she quickly ran back to the field to grab her sword. 

“Another round!” she shouted and lifted her sword.

“Now?” Cedric complained but refused the call for another duel. 

Aria understood Cedric had no say in their father’s decision, and she unknowingly made him feel guilty for something he had no control over. Aria quickly disregarded her previous frustrations and focus on giving her brother a hard beating. 

The more she thought about getting engaged, getting married, and leaving her family – it made her sad. And she just wanted to vent her frustrations – like a little girl who was too young to be married off so soon.

***

Marquess Ermis took slow, steady steps towards his large window, overlooking his estate. His eyes furrowed at the thought of the previous discussion with the aristocratic members of their House.

“Is the Marcellus house really just going to sit back and do nothing? Knowing full well that the Delphina’s has successfully secured and monopolized the Daia mines that magically appeared in the North?” Count Marion questioned. His dark-blue eyes looked desperate, and black hair appeared darker under the dim light in the meeting room. 

“Since the beginning of time, only holy stones belonging to the House could appear and be cultivated on each House’s land. So tell me!” Count Marion slammed his hand on the meeting table. “How is it possible that the Delphina’s, whose holy stone is the Alsu, now has Daia mines?” he questioned furthered. 

“We have already requested the Holy Temple to look into that, Count Marion.” Marquess Ermis carefully answered. “Currently there is no law forbidding the Delphina house from selling Daia holy stones.” 

“Of course, there’s no law.” Count Marion continued, as the other aristocratic members nodded and voiced similar frustrations in unison. “Never in a thousand years did we expect this to happen. The Delphina’s power within the empire is already as large as the royal family, and now with their growing wealth, they will soon gobble us up.”

After the death of the previous empress and the second prince, the holy powers within the empire had changed significantly. And now that Daia mines had started appearing in the North, it added even more pressure to the marquess. Especially because the Marcellus's held no holy stone, it would be easy for another House to attack and absorb them. 

“There are also numerous reports of the Delphina’s bribing and conducting underhanded criminal transactions to bypass the Marcellus’s oversight in the trade and business.” another concerned aristocrat added. “I have already lost several highly intelligent administrators and knights who were overseeing the investigations on the Delphina’s.”

Marquess Ermis clenched his hands and nodded to acknowledge everyone’s concern. 

“I have spoken to the Carina’s, and we are in an ongoing discussion about forming an alliance. Rest assure that this will be dealt with soon. We can no longer allow the Delphina’s to do as they wish.” The Marquess finally said and dismissed the council.