Joshua heaved a heavy sigh as he and the other scouts tried to calm the sea of students.

The rumors about a body found in the library spread like wildfire throughout the school. As a result, almost all of the students were at the library, pushing each other to get a better look.

"Is this a prank?", Joshua heard his batchmate ask.

"Do you think it's an actual body?"

"Knowing Nick he probably is overreacting"

He tuned out their voices and tried to his best to keep his thumping heart calm.

Joshua's fellow scouts were dispersed amongst the crowd, calming them down and reassuring them that everything was a all a big misunderstanding.

He wished he knew more, but as soon as the Headmistress arrived, the rumored "body" was taken to a secret room in the library.

"Do you think it's something serious?", asked a scout, "I mean, the Headmistress is here and---"

"I'm not sure", he cut her off, gritting his teeth. "But this is not the time for us to gossip. If there was any danger the Headmistress would've asked us to stay in our rooms, but she only asked for privacy"

The scout shrinked back, face pale. "Yes, of course"

Joshua couldn't blame her, they were all worried and curious. But as a scout they had to focus on the mission at hand -- calming down the students and getting them out of the area.

"Joshua", Elix said, her voice low. "We need to get them out of here without scaring them. Whoever did... this"

He nodded, understanding.

Could still be around.

His mind whirred, trying to find a solution, a plan to get them away from the library.

An impromptu prank war? No they had  just cleaned the lawn from the last one.

The cafeteria suddenly serving chocolate? The cooks would put pebbles in his pudding for lying.

Declaring free rides from the new dragon?

Not only would that cause Nina to kick him in the... lower region but it would cause a lot of injuries.

"Get out of here before I put ALL of you on dragon dung duty", Mrs. Plum spoke from behind the crowd, eyes flashing dangerously.

Yep that'll do the trick.

The students ran away frantically, practically tripping over each other. The scouts quickly guided them back to the main building, making sure none of them accidentally slipped out from the crowd and into the library.

A handful of scouts stayed and went to patrol the perimeter of the library, making sure to take of note of any valuable evidence.

"Joshua", Mrs. Plum hissed, and he felt his insides go cold.

Mrs. Plum was one of the scariest tecahers in the Academy. She was in her mid-thirties, but looked like she didn't age. The sharp angles of her face made her look sinister and dangerous at the same time. Like some kind of haunted stone statue that yelled more than talked.

Her grey eyes flared and gave Joshua a gaze that was so sharp he felt like a loaf of bread about to be sliced.

"The King of Roselia is coming this afternoon", she said, saying each word slowly and carefully, regarding him with a look that said 'you are too incompetent for this task but I'll give it to you anyway'. "He is going to discuss certain... matters regarding the recent occurances"

He felt his heart drop into his stomach but he tried his best to keep a charming, strained smile on his face.

"Of course", he said through, gritted teeth. "I will alert the scouts and we'll make sure preparations are made--"

"That won't be necessary", she continued, brushing past him. "You're going to attend the meeting. Considering your relations with Stacy and the new girl. The Solaire child"

Anger. Anger flared up inside him. The sound of ringing filled his ears and he felt the tension of the skies before a thunderstorm whir inside him.

"What does this have to do with Stacy?"

Mrs. Plum didn't answer, instead she regarded him with a look that made his heart sink deeper into his stomach.

"We are not sure if the king is aware of that yet, it could be about the ah... New addition to the Academy's
animals", she said, glaring at him.

He highly doubted that. They had only stolen the dragon a few days ago and only Mrs. Plum recognized it. He wasn't sure how valuable the dragon was to the king, but he assumed they wouldn't be searching for it so soon.

So if it wasn't about the stolen dragon.

"It was her wasn't it?", he asked. Ignoring the concerned look from Elix, who was watching them from afar.

Mrs. Plum said nothing.

But that spike volumes to him.

~~~

The rest of the morning went past in a blur. The excited murmurs from the students about the 'body' in the library didn't die down and it went to the point they were already creating ghost stories from the body. The story was getting more and more far from the truth that it scared him.

Some claim to have seen the ghost of the 'body' roaming around stealing candies from the dormitories. Others claim the ghost had possessed Mrs. Plum when the students caught her smiling in the potions lab (Although Joshua had reason to believe the smile was due to a side effect of the potion she was brewing). One even claimed to have seen the ghost make out with the ghost of the armory classroom.

"Our schoolmates are stupid", Elix muttered, playing with a dagger on the seat beside the bed. "But you're even more stupid for picking a fight with a Cariol"

He winced, remembering the pain from injuring his leg. Thankfully the infirmary crew was able to fix it up quickly so he could continue with his scout duties.

"And you had to be saved by the new kid", Elix continued, tucking the dagger into it's sheath as she stood up from her chair. Her dark clothes a stark contrast from the white walls of the infirmary. "Back in my tribe that would normally bring an incredible amount of shame to your family"

"I have no family", he rolled his eyes. Getting up from the bed, he let out a sigh of relief. "That feels so much better"

He kicked with his healed leg and let out a yelp when he almost collapsed on the floor. Nurse Bloom gave him a cold look from her desk and he smiled at her sheepishly.

"Sorry Nurse Bloom. I promise no more unnecessary movements"

She snorted at his response but said nothing.

"Come one we need to go see that his Majesty has a warm welcome to school", Elix said, mockingly. Before walking out of the room, the sound of her boots on the wooden floor echoing around the large room.

Joshua could understand where the bitterness came from. Elix's tribe is one of the last remaining tribes that inhabit the kingdom.

The kingdom of Roselia used to be a prosperous land created by one of the founding mages. People born with magic affinity were brought into the magic world from all kinds of places and cultures. In the portion of Roselia, most of them came from tribes or what the other world would refer to as 'Indigenous groups'.

The founding mage that ruled over Roselia encouraged his people to continue the customs they had in the other world. But upon his death, the northern lands seized Roselia and created it into one kingdom. Many tribes were forced to pledge allegiance to the throne and give up their customs, while those who fought the colonizers were erased from history.

But not Elix's history.

The sound of obnoxious trumpets broke him out his reverie. Cursing, he joined Elix outside of the infirmary (being careful of his recently healed leg) and together they made their way to the front to the school where a handful of professors gathered.

"Authority figures of Jinxel Academy", a man with a ridiculously oversized feathered hat declared, smiling so wide it looked like his smile was carved onto his gace "Presenting, King Harold of Roselia!"

The door to a heavily decorated golden carriage pulled by four majestic grey horses opened and out came the man that made Joshua throw uneasy glances at Elix.

Please don't murder him on the spot. Please don't murder him on the spot.

King Harold wasn't exactly the best king, he was often known to care more about beautifying the kingdom instead of dealing with important matters, like the high unemployment rate and the lack of education for students who possessed no magic.

He was a noticeably large man with aurburn hair that reminded Joshua of the cafeteria's sad excuse for spaghetti. The king paired his tight white breeches with black boots and a black top. The golden epaulets on his shoulder perfectly matching his golden cuffs and golden chocolate bar.

Joshua couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"I wish he could atleast take stuff appearance seriously", Elix hissed, fists clenched at her sides. "Not only did he destroy the eastern forest near my tribe to create a chocolate factory. But he's taking credit for his queen's effort. Who is actually doing all the work"

"King Harold it's an honor for you to visit", Headmistress Phillian stated, bowing slightly. The look on her face made Joshua think that her thoughts were a million miles away. "Despite how... suprising it was"

The king let out a hearty laugh as his servant (the one who announced him) frantically started unloading boxes from the carriage.

"I just wished to be of assistance for the welcoming ceremony", he said, a confident smile on his face. "After all it's not everyday you get welcomed to school by a king"

The tightness on the Headnistress' face made Joshua uneasy. The smile on her face didn't seem to reach her eyes.

"Yes. The students would be honored"

"Oh please we all know you're here", Mrs. Plum said, coldly and Joshua choked on his spit. "So let's skip the pleasantries and let's get this over with"

He half expected the king to blast Mrs. Plum into a million pieces with his kingly powers (whatever they may be) but he only laughed good heartedly and nodded.

"Oh Alma", he said, grinning as he took another bite of his chocolate. He started towards them, striding with confidence. "If you think I'm here because of the recent ah.. incidents regarding your student stealing one of my prized dragons you are wrong"

Elix burned bright red and Joshua could tell both of them were barely holding back their laughter.

Headmistress' face paled and she gave Mrs. Plum a questioning look that said 'That purple dragon was stolen from the royal menagerie?'.

The king brushed passed the sputtering teachers and made his way to Joshua, a glint in his eyes.

"Ah Stormbringer", he said, dryly. He glanced back at the teachers, who were already in a hushed and heated discussion. "I assume this small guardian is coming to the meeting?"

The teachers nodded and the look on Elix's face darkened.

"What is the meeting about?", Joshua asked, his mouth suddenly feeling dry. An uneasy feeling nestled itself into his stomach.

The king looked at him with a look he could not describe. His eyes darkened with an emotion he couldn't identify and the smile on his face made Joshua clench his fists.

"If you must know"

The king brushed past him, his voice low so that only Joshua could hear.

"Christina Solaire has caused a declaration of War"

*******
A/N:

So I've been having a very busy life (I HAVE A BABY BROTHER NOW YOOOOO) and I haven't been able to work on my novels anymore.

I can't promise anything but I'm doing my best to continue to update this book and hopefully you enjoyed the story.

Don't forget to vote and comment your thoughts ☺️

Thank you for reading!