Alan emerged from the surface of the bubbling water, the air around him thick with swirling steam, the heat turned his skin a faint, flushed pink, clear of any grime.
Droplets of hot water raced down the lean muscles of his back, pattering against the stone tiles as he stepped out, the heavy smell of lavender spread across the edges of the room.
He grabbed a towel nearby, tousling his shoulder-length hair with it, and soon wrapped the cloth around his waist, walking a bit further, he found a fogged-over mirror reflecting a blurred image of his face and body.
Alan swiped a hand through the glass, his reflection stared back, pale, sharp, with vivid violet eyes that seemed to glow in the dim light, at the dead centre of his iris was the same beast-like vertical pupil he'd grown up seeing.
Raising his fingers, he rubbed his lower eyelids, no one knew the reason as to why he inherited these pupils, the head of the Zevril family had normal, round pupils, and so did his mother.
People always questioned him about his eyes, sometimes in concern, other times in curiosity, but he could never provide a real answer.
However, there was a specific reason as to why he wasn't as disturbed about his eyes as the people around him.
Leon also had them, in his past life his eyes were a bright blue, and in the centre of it all was a vertical pupil, just like Alan's.
Leon never knew the reason behind it, even doctors he went to recorded it as a deformity and abnormal genetic mutation.
Alan's eyes were the same as Leon's, not in colour but in their same inhumane pupils.
Iris was also another case, her golden eyes contained a vertical pupil, unlike that of other humans, a vertical just like Alan's, it was the first time Alan saw anyone besides him with those same eyes.
But Iris had no idea why her eyes were like that.
Rustle
Alan stopped his thoughts from spiralling, he slipped his arms into the holes of a crisp black dress shirt with high, stiff collars that framed his jawline, then he put on his charcoal-black vest, cinching the back until the fabric sat flat against his torso.
Finally, he reached for a long coat, a garment of deep midnight-black with violet threads woven into the hem, sliding his arms into the sleeves, he felt the weight settle on his shoulders.
Alan spent a long while staring into the mirror in front of him, by the time he finished dressing himself, the steam from before had died down, exposing the previously fogged room.
It wasn't anything special, there was a shower, a bathtub, stone flooring and walls, and a sink paired with a fairly large mirror.
He ran a hand through his hair, feeling slightly annoyed with the dampness in the strands, Alan frowned.
Whoosh
And blasted a gentle wave of warm flames, coating his hair in it, before long his hair was revealed, completely dry without a speck of moisture.
His hair fell down to his shoulders in his usual wolf cut, enhancing his features.
Alan checked himself out, dressed in clothes he normally wouldn't wear, he spent the majority of his last six years in the knight order fighting or in the forest hunting, never leaving time to try noble attires, he looked different, he seemed more… appealing?
Alan scoffed, dismissing his thought process, he already knew his looks were amazing, he genetically couldn't be unattractive, call it arrogance if you will.
The patriarch of the Zevril duchy, despite his dislike for the man, Alan had to admit, Alaric was quite handsome, and his mother was beautiful without a question.
Sighing, Alan finally tore his eyes from the mirror, becoming too self-absorbed for a moment there, and approached the door.
Click
Alan stepped out of the room he was previously inside of.
The first sight to greet him was a long expanse of green grass and trees in the distance, gazing upwards to the clouds, he saw the glaring sun brightening the sky.
The location of the room he just stepped out of? Still inside of Julia's garden.
Even after multiple hours, Julia and Iris didn't return from their audience with the emperor.
There were only two hours until the ceremony, and so Alan and Lucian just decided to dress up for the event.
Step Step
They weren't the only ones.
Moving towards Alan was Alden, having used one of the dressing rooms to change into his own garment, his clothing was very similar to Alan's.
"I didn't expect these dressing rooms to be like this..." Alden muttered, still walking to Alan.
"Is that a good or bad thing?" Alan asked.
Alden didn't reply, he stopped in front of Alan, looking at him with a faint frown, but unlike his usual haughty expression, Alden looked a little normal, Alan raised a brow, he wasn't used to seeing such a face from Alden.
Still frowning, Alden raised his hands, his fingers gently clutching over Alan's collar. "Have you never worn formal clothes before?"
"No..." Alan averted his eyes awkwardly.
The two of them were almost the same height, standing at six feet, but Alden was still very slightly taller than Alan, not that big of a difference but enough for his eyes to be looking down at him.
"..." Alden's frown deepened, but other than that he stayed silent, with his fingers he unbuttoned the top of Alan's shirt, rebuttoning it and straightening his collar, and brushed Alan's shoulders, ridding them of the small wrinkles Alden noticed.
A small smile lingered on Alan's face as he allowed Alden to fix up his attire, even though Alden always insulted Alan, acted arrogant and haughty, he didn't hate Alan.
Alden didn't express it properly, but behind his every insult and harsh criticism was also him supporting Alan in his own way.
Alden would call Alan uneducated while throwing books at him, talk down on Alan's cooking abilities while grilling meat for him, insult Alan as an idiot for getting injured while also patching his wounds.
"A tsundere...?" Alan suddenly mumbled.
"Huh?" Alden tilted his head as he finished fixing Alan's clothes.
"Nah, nothing." Alan waved it off with a smile, of course people of this world wouldn't know what that word meant.
Click
As they were amidst their conversation, another door opened.
Alan turned to look and immediately scowled. "What the fuck are you wearing?"
"What do you mean?" There was Lucian... in a hot pink suit and party glasses.
"Do you even need to ask...?" Alan's eyes were wide in disbelief, beside him, Alden's face was horribly scrunched up as if he saw something he shouldn't have.
"We're going to a party." Lucian raised his arms, holding something within his hands.
POP
He blew confetti into the air before finishing his sentence. "It should be fun."
"Go fucking change."
"What, why? It's perfe—"
"Fucking change."
"But—"
"Change."
"Okay..." Lucian slumped his shoulders, dragging his feet back to the dressing room.
Click
The door closed, leaving behind Alden and Alan standing there in uncomfortable silence.
Alan scratched the side of his face. "So, uh—"
Rumble
The ground beneath their feet trembled.
Alan's face shifted instantly, cooling over and becoming serious, with a hardened gaze, he lowered his hand, softly touching the grass.
"What was that..." He whispered, but his question was left unanswered.
...
The dressing chamber was a place of frantic, silent motion, four royal maids swarmed around Julia, they moved with quick efficiency.
Julia stood on a raised pedestal of white marble, her arms held out to the sides as the maids worked around her, she felt less like a princess, more like some sort of art piece.
"Chin up, my lady." One of the maids said, her voice lacking any real warmth, it was a command disguised as a suggestion.
They cinched her torso into a corset of stiff silk and boning that forced her spine into a rigid, unnatural line.
Gasp
As the laces were tightly pulled, Julia's breath hitched, biting down on her lips to suppress her voice from leaking.
The air in the room suddenly felt thin, as if the room itself was shrinking, every time she took a breath, the fabric bit back on her skin.
Then came layers, they draped her in a chemise, followed by a heavy kirtle, the maids worked in pairs, pinning, tucking and smoothing the fabric until not a single wrinkle remained,
The dress was a beautiful design, utilising gold to match her lustrous blonde hair, with dark red embroidery crawling up her sleeves.
"Heavy..." Julia muttered with a strained voice.
The maids didn't answer, they simply moved to her hair.
They attacked her hair with silver brushes, pulling and twisting until Julia's hair hurt with a dull ache, they attached small gems to parts of her hair until finally placing a small gold crown on top of her head.
One maid knelt before her, cleaning her nail, another applied a dusting of makeup onto her facial features, ending it with a deep, wine tint to her lips, when the four maids stepped back, the silence in the room was deafening.
Julia stared at the floor to ceiling mirror ahead of her and didn't recognise herself.
The girl who laughed at Alan's antics, the one whose eyes gleamed with mischief, was gone, in its place was a young lady trapped behind a mask, she looked regal, beautiful and utterly miserable.
Julia reached up to touch her face, but a maid's hand quickly stopped her before she could.
"The emperor expects perfection." The maid whispered.
Julia's jaws tightened, under her chemise, her heart hammered against her corset in suppressed anger, taking slow, shallow breaths, she calmed herself.
"We take our leave." The four maids bowed in unison and swiftly left the dressing room.
Click
The door shut behind Julia, leaving the room in silence once more, Julia didn't move from her position atop the pedestal, she remained there staring at the mirror.
"I hate this." Julia's lips pressed together, holding her emotions in check.
She looked at the wall on her right, where a clock was plastered on the wall.
"Two hours." There was about two hours until the ceremony, left with nothing to do she stepped down the pedestal and blankly stared at her own reflection.
She despited all the noble laws of the world, it all felt suffocating to her, like a cage where everyone spoke with a mask attached to their faces.
That was a primary reason for her seclusion to the garden, to not have to deal with nobility on a daily basis, she much prefered just being herself and despised not being able to.
Click
The door behind Julia opened without a knock, she didn't even have to turn to see who it was, from the feedback of the mirror she could see everything behind her.
"You look amazing." Iris walked in with a soft smile directed to Julia.
"I should be saying that." Julia smirked, slowly turning her head, there was Iris, dress in a sleek scarlet gown, perfectly pairing with her medium length crimson hair.
"Today's the last day." Iris changed the subject. "How do you feel?"
"Nothing." Julia replied, staring back at the mirror. "I have nothing memorable here."
"What about your garden."
"That's..." Julia tapped her chin. "Well, I could always grow another one?"
"True—"
Rumble
The ground beneath their feet trembled.
And just as quickly as it did, it disappeared.
Staring down at the floor with a tense expression, Julia whispered.
"What was that..."