Promise?

I sat up, gasping for air. Unfamiliar walls surrounded me, and I was sitting in a bed I didn’t recognize. I was still here… A part of me thought it was an extravagant dream or even a hallucination, but I knew the sensations I was feeling were too real. How long would I stay like this? My neck felt quite itchy, and after touching I realized that someone had bandaged me up while I was unconscious.

“You’re awake”, a familiar voice said, sounding relieved, “I was worried you’d sleep through tomorrow.” Victor was standing in the doorway, and I realized I was still in the room he brought me to beforehand.

“So it's still the 30th?” I asked. If I missed the first day of class, it would be a nightmare.

“If you’re worried about school, you could always just miss the first couple of days”, he said.

“No! I’m going to school tomorrow!”

“Okay, okay”, he gestured with his hands for me to calm down, “I’m not going to stop you. But can you do me a favor and give me a little more explanation than you fell out of a window? I don’t think your appearance would change this month by falling out of a window.”

“How do I explain something I don’t even truly understand? I wish I had answers for you. I don’t know why. I’m still working on figuring that out”, I said as honestly as I could. If I were going to live in Veronica’s body, I would need allies. It wouldn’t do me any favors to hide things from Victor. He would be following me to school as he was one year older than Veronica. Victor could help affect my school life there. Not to mention that, for whatever reason, Victor was showing serious love and concern for his sister. I didn’t want to take advantage of that, and it felt wrong considering I wasn’t truly Veronica, but I don't think he would mind if that means that his sister doesn’t die three years from now.

“Tomorrow will be really hard”, he finally says after a long pause, “You still want to go?” I nod in response. A sigh escapes his mouth, and he puts a hand to his forehead, “Can you promise me one thing then? Leave your packing to me, and you stay here in my room for the night. Don’t leave before we head out tomorrow.” This was his room? I tried to hide the surprise from my face as he continued to gaze at me, as if attempting to tell what I was thinking.

“Where will you stay then? I don’t want to take your room for the night”, I respond. At this, he froze and then smirked slightly.

“Don’t worry, I have another place to stay”, he said, his tone shifting to something I couldn’t quite recognize, “But remember, don’t leave for any reason.” I nodded as he stood up and went to exit the room. He didn’t have to tell me twice. It was much easier to speak with no one than to try to be Veronica. I knew that I wasn’t acting like her at all, and I was scared of getting caught. The Veronica I knew would’ve fussed way more and wouldn’t have even spoken more than two words to Victor. Veronica was an avid destructionist as well. At least a vase or two would’ve been sacrificed by now. But I had no intention of living the life Veronica had lived before. Besides, I don’t think I had the nerve to do something like that.

That said, what was I going to do for the rest of the day? My eyes scanned the room, and nothing caught my eye except the line of books along the wall. I threw myself out of bed and began to walk along the wall, looking for a book that caught my interest. Most were about the Kingdom of Linaria’s history, politics, previous rulers, and mathematics. It was a reminder that I didn’t know a thing about this world outside of what I learned from the game. Which was practically nothing except for a few major events that occurred in the future. I decided to pick up a book on the current nobility in society and flipped through the pages. Familiar names stood out to me like Crown Prince Albert Linaria, Grand Duke Noah Lunaria, and Dylan and Diana Snowdrop. All main characters within the game.

“Miss Veronica”, a quiet voice squeaked in the doorway. I look up from my book and meet the eyes of a maid I didn’t recognize.

“Yes?” I answer, trying my best to sound confident.

“Duke Ixia requires your presence upstairs in his office”, she said, her eyes glued to the floor. My heart dropped. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He was supposed to leave Veronica alone until she went off to the academy.

“My brother said to remain in this room until he comes to get me tomorrow morning”, I responded.

“... Duke Ixia has informed me that he will be chatting with your maid until your arrival.” Her voice was so quiet I nearly didn’t hear her. Oh, Veronica, you pitiful soul. You were even more lovable than I thought you were. I see how Ryder was able to pull her into his office so many times. The more I learned about her, the more my affection grew. I truly hoped to meet her someday, if it was possible. I quickly threw the covers off me and my book to the side. I guess I would have to break my promise after all.

“Lead me there”, I said, this time my voice showcased actual confidence. This would be a good time to confirm some things anyway.

The maid quickly led me through the halls and then up a flight of stairs. We passed several workers as we went, each one of them showcasing a look of hatred. I knew that Veronica wasn’t liked within the household, but she was still the Duke’s daughter. I would’ve thought they’d know to hide their dislike better. Eventually, we made it to a door resembling that of the one to Victor’s room, except it was painted gold, and the symbol of a crescent moon holding a group of flowers in the lower scoop of the moon. I knocked on the door twice and waited for a response.

“Come in”, a deep voice reverberated into the hall. It sounded raspy and compressed, as if he was holding back, yet sounded remarkably confident. Like he knew nothing could stop him in any capacity. Shaking, I opened the door to reveal Ryder wiping his hands with a handkerchief while standing next to Selene. Her hands and knees were on the floor, and went she turned her head to look at me, I saw a remarkable bruise covering the right side of her face. Rage fumed within me. How dare he? On what grounds? I marched right through the door and placed myself in front of Selene.

“Hello, Duke Ixia”, I said, as calmly as I could, and then curtsied as well as I could without any training, “What could I do for you?”