Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

Desmond woke in his temporary room at the dorms of the Arcadios Royal Academy. Glancing to the table at his bedside, he once again saw a letter that had been addressed to him.

After the banquet at the castle, he returned with his sister to the Arcadios Royal Academy. He had hoped to speak with Titan, or rather, Lucius Kane, before returning to his quarters, but he disappeared from the party with his new wife before Desmond could catch up to him.

When Desmond did return to his room, he found the letter sitting in the center of his bed. On it was his name and a stamp of a shattered sphere of some kind. As mysterious as the presentation of the letter was, the stranger part was its contents:

~ Desmond Adler,

We observed your performance at today's Exhibition Tournament and appreciated what we saw. You made your desires known to the world, yet you lost your best chance of achieving them.

Hope is not lost for you. There is another chance for you and your sister, Jade Adler. The paperwork has already been filed; all you need to do is sign the final documents at the registration offices, and you will become a student at the Arcadios Royal Academy.

If you do this and await further instruction, then we will ensure your sister has a happy, normal life the way you want it to be. Should you accept, the first thing we wish for you to do is to approach 'Titan' also known as Lord Lucius Kane. Befriend him and support him.

More instructions will come. Wait for them and know that we are always watching. ~

The document did not have a name; the only identifier was the broken sphere on the outside of the envelope. The entire thing was suspicious. However, when he went to registration earlier today, he found that the paperwork for his and his sister's transfer had been completed.

It had taken him no time at all to sign the documents with Jade and accept the transfer fully. Since they had only just become students, they were allowed to wait until tomorrow to start classes. He had returned to his dorm and fell back asleep to take advantage of the extra time.

Now that he was awake, he focused more on the implications of what he had done. Without so much as consulting his sister or any of his teachers, he unilaterally decided to accept a mysterious offer from a letter that someone had snuck into his room. Perhaps it was the shock of losing his only other clear chance at achieving his goals, but he felt like he had certainly jumped the gun.

"I suppose it is easier to be wise after the event…" He mumbled.

There was a light knock on the door, so he called out to let the person know they could enter. His sister, Jade Adler, stepped inside and greeted him with a kind smile.

"I figured you would be awake and questioning your life's decisions." Jade teased. Find adventures at m_v l|e'm-p| y r

"Yeah, well…"

"You know you are going to give yourself an ulcer for always questioning yourself. Desmond, you have come so far doing things the way you have been. Why question it now?" She asked pointedly.

"I question everything, always… well, almost everything. Saving you from our family is one thing I will never question," Desmond expressed.

"So you always say, but…"

"Jade." He stood up and cut her off. "As my younger twin sister, the way they treated you affected me as well. We are the same, and after all you have endured, you deserve happiness. You deserve a normal life after the childhood you suffered. I will make it happen."

Jade simply grinned and gestured for him to continue getting ready. She then excused herself and left the room. Her room was the one next to his for now, but now that they were students, she would be reassigned to the female dormitory for a permanent room.

Desmond continued to get ready again, putting on replacement academy clothes to match the Arcadios Royal Academy rather than his old ones from Keinydd. While doing so, he was occupied with thoughts of how in the world he was supposed to get close to Lord Kane.

While the man maintained a positive demeanor at the party, it was clear he was putting on a face. Desmond had the sneaking suspicion that the way he was acting as Titan in the tournament was his true personality, rather than the noble face at the party.

A hint of that true personality leaked out when he reintroduced himself to the leaders of the Union and King Verdayl. Something else he had noticed was the shift in confidence from the Union leaders after he announced his house. Something was going on with House Kane that worried them for some reason.

Not only that, but even Rena's father, who held a clear distaste for the young man, changed his demeanor. In the beginning, he looked ready to rip Lord Kane to shreds, but after his announcement… that anger turned into frustration as if something held him back… but what?

"You." A rough, feminine voice called out to him as he exited his dorms. He was about to walk up to his sister, who had been waiting outside, but someone seemed to want his attention.

"Yes?" He answered while turning to face the person. She was a beastman woman with wolf ears on her head and blonde hair with gray eyes. Her expression was that of curiosity, and she was clearly sizing him up.

"You fought against Rena and Thomas in the tournament, right?" She asked.

"I did."

"Would you say they were strong?"

"Well, I lost to Thomas, so…"

"I don't think that was reflective of his strength but rather your inability to resist his taunting." The woman said. "Anyway, I came to fetch your sister. The professor who leads the classes she's assigned to is having a gathering of transfer students, and they are all required to be in attendance. That includes her."

"What professor is that?"

"Professor Carmichael. I am his assistant, Kalliope." The girl almost seemed like she spat the word assistant out as if it left a bad taste in her mouth.

Desmond wondered if it was because she didn't like the Professor. It really didn't matter either way since he requested Jade's presence; she had to go. Desmond was still free all day, so he elected to follow. Kalliope did not seem to mind him following, so he allowed the woman to lead them through the academy to wherever the professor was gathering the students.

When they got to the classroom, the very person he was supposed to meet with was there as well. Lord Kane stood at the edge of the room, away from the other students. Kalliope's mood seemed to flip around completely when she saw him, and she practically skipped to his side.

All the students in the classroom intrigued him because they all shared one thing. Every student was a Marked One, including Lord Kane. He had forgotten that he was a Marked One from all the excitement of the day yesterday, but the reminder served to calm Desmond's nerves a little. Since he was a Marked One, it was likely he was more down-to-earth and approachable than other nobles.

"This will be much easier to get along with him. Thank the gods…" Desmond said under his breath.