THAT DAY I BECAME A STAR

Frankher releases his aura like never before. The table even flies off to a wall as he does, almost hitting Cordel who was sitting in front of him.

"Since you did made some researches about me, you should know whether or not I am a spy."

"I do know but still, since my intel and even those coming from the church are incomplete. The only thing that made me trust you was Sir Dilt. But right now, this isn't something I can let slide like nothing happened."

"Then just understand I heard it somewhere as well."

"Would accept it just like that if you were in my place?"

"Considering the current circumstances, yes, I would."

"Is that so…" Frankher stands up and goes to the door.. The tension in the room diminishes as he does. Then he stops at the door and turns his head back.

"Did you perhaps meet him?" Did I encounter Kevin Koersombre? I wonder if I did. I really wonder if at one point something changes so much that you wouldn't recognize him when you have been with him for so long.

"Maybe, I did."

"I see." He leaves the dining room and the others all look at me for a moment. Then one by one, starting by Peter, they all stand up and leave. Only Keltia remains, surely for one reason.

***

"You know I won't tell you anything, right?"

"I know. I just want to stare at you." Keltia stays put with me on the table and the awkward atmosphere which has been created by people leaving intensifies.

"I am not Peter."

"I know. I can see that. They may not look like it but my eyes are working properly."

"Is that so…"

"And so does my ears. So…" She stands up and comes to me then stands up straight with the same smile, "let me just tell you one thing. Whoever you are, and I am sure father will find out soon enough, if you were involved somehow in his death, then I will-"

"You guys are still here?" The heroes have arrived back without us noticing and Farner cuts off Keltia like she didn't even notice the atmosphere which was filling the room.

"Yes, we just finished actually."

She leaves like the wind and passes by the heroes who open the way for her. This is a little weird. Have they ever talked with Lanuvel about me? I should ask her.

"What were you talking about for her to be so mad? What have you done again?" Excia asks me while I stand up.

"Why do you already assume that I am at fault?"

"When have you not?"

"…"

"See?"

"Anyways, I will see you guys later, I need to speak with Lanuvel."

"Tch! This is boring. I wanted to play a game but nobody is here."

"Just go and sleep, Farner. Weren't you sleepy through the whole prayer session?"

"I was just bored. I don't know how you manage to hold on, Excia."

Just like me, the heroes head upstairs and goes to their room while I enter Lanuvel's room after knocking.

"Hey."

"Hey." Her answer is a bit off.

"What is it? you look weird."

"No, it's nothing."

"There is obviously something if you look like that." Just tell me, I don't want to read your mind right now.

"It's just…When you spoke earlier, about Keltia's nephew. I knew the guy actually."

"Is that so? Does Keltia and the headmaster know about it?"

"Yes, they do. I told them the whole story when I arrive at the eternal academy and find out he was her nephew. The headmaster even went to Floras after that to seek informations from my father at the time but he obtained nothing and my father even reprimanded me for telling them."

"And what did you tell them?"

"That Kevin Koersombre was a knight-in-training for the Flolerl, that he offended the prince Demether and tried to run away then got killed. At least that's what they told everyone in Floras."

"And you don't believe it?"

"I know he was a knight-in-training, but he never offended the prince. He got pushed into a duel and won it but apparently, winning that duel made him an enemy of the king because the one he fought and kill was a close friend to that bastard."

Hm-mhm. So, they know I survived after Tatradum. Or at least, they hope so because Mark refused to confirm what Lanuvel told them. Which is obvious because it would have been a political problem.

"And so, he got killed after that."

"Yeah, he tried to run away but got killed in the forest behind our…the Grandcross mansion." It seems that just like me, you cannot say your name any longer without feeling disgusted.

"From the way you speak, it seems you feel pity for the guy."

"Who wouldn't?! I wish you had seen him. He was my age but already fighting for his life, his face always showing that sorrowful kind of aura as if he did something extremely wrong. He was-"

"Well, you were certainly watching him."

"W-what?! No, I wasn't!"

"Then how did you notice all that?"

"We spent two years in the same town, and he came to our house to train with my parents often, of course, I would notice things like that."

"I see. So in the beginning, when you said I reminded you of somebody, I suppose you were talking about him."

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"Well, I know he was a titanie like me and I guess we kind of had the same features so…"

"Hm… nah, I don't think so."

"EH?" What is this girl saying?! You have the guy right in front of you! "What do you mean?"

"I wouldn't really say you guys have the same features. Or maybe overall only. Because you have way more scars in your body than him."

"That's just because you have seen it once or twice, it doesn't justify anything."

"Also, your face is more mature, more meaner…I don't know how to say it but something about you completely looks different from him. I mean, even if I try to put the red eyes and silver hair he had, it doesn't really add up."

How is that fucking possible when we are the same person?!!! I mean, it's ME!

"If you say so, though I don't understand what you are trying to say."

"Yeah, it's just that I don't know how to say it. But If I have to put it simply, it would be your aura, I guess."

"My aura?"

"Yeah, you look like somebody who should be hated. It's like you naturally have to be hated. If I didn't love you, I would probably be trying to hurt you. In fact, when you arrived at the academy, I got that urge to just make you-"

"Okay, okay, I got the feeling properly. No need to demonstrate." Let's stop before her hands' gesture of strangling somebody becomes real.

So people don't recognize me because of the hatred effect? That weird. I would have thought it was something else. Though I can't say my face has changed much except for the little scar I got on my eye from that time with Mark.

"Emotions can cloud anybody's eyes and affect their judgment and perception of things. You should be fully aware of it."

"I know, Cissa, I know." You haven't spoken with me for so long and that's the first thing you have to say. I was really right to give you that name.