Page 23 of Vicious Princess (The Trials of Death and Honor #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

D aegel only lets me go five minutes before breakfast. I’m starving and exhausted by the time I make it to the dining hall, my fingers full of cuts.

I wish I had the emotion-manipulation lecture with Ezkai Cassandra today. I’m not in the mood to deal with Ezkai Gavriel’s snobbish attitude. And I’m definitely not in the mood to receive the test results that turn out to be even worse than I expected.

“Come talk to me after your lecture,” Ezkai Gavriel says after he hands me the paper back.

“I don’t remember the last time I had a cadet who couldn’t answer a single question right.

” The whole auditorium erupts with laughter.

My ears burn. “Decarios may be the masters of combat and weapons. But they also need a half-functioning brain to know what to do with their weapons in combat.”

My cheeks are flaming hot. I bet I look like a fucking tomato.

“She can’t help it, Ezkai Gavriel,” Kata says. “It’s the limits of a human brain.”

Another wave of mocking laughter. Ezkai Gavriel doesn’t contradict her. I glower at her through my eyelashes. Oh, only if Decarios could manipulate other Decarios’ emotions. I’d send that bitch into a full-on panic attack. Maybe I should try drowning her in the fountain, too.

Roman bumps into my shoulder, “That’s alright, princess. You may not have the brains, but you definitely have the looks.”

I shoot him a glare. “Thanks. That definitely helps. And stop calling me ‘princess.’ I’m not a fucking princess.”

“Whatever you say, princess. By the way, I’d rather be handsome and stupid than ugly and smart.” Roman leans in closer and whispers, “Because when you’re ugly and smart, you turn out like this.” He jerks his chin at Ezkai Gavriel.

I can’t help the smile that spreads on my lips. “He’s not that ugly,” I whisper back.

“Maybe according to human or dwarven standards,” Roman says. “But here in Ekios, he’s not even mediocre.”

“You’re savage.”

Roman shrugs innocently and sends me a playful wink.

After the first part of the lecture is over, everyone heads over to the dining hall for lunch. I, on the other hand, make my way towards Ezkai Gavriel’s desk.

“Sir,” I say.

He lifts his eyes from the open journal he’s been writing in and sighs. “Wildarrow. Your test score is so low, I don’t even know where to begin. You have absolutely no knowledge of Ekios politics, nor history. You don’t know fae heritage, and your Ekiosh language skills need work, too.”

“I know, sir.”

“I suppose it’s good you’re self-aware. But that doesn’t help much, now, does it?”

I lift my chin. “Sir, I’m a hard worker and fast learner. If you give me a chance, I’ll figure this out.”

He regards me in silence for a moment.

“I admire your bravery of coming to Ekios and signing up for Ezkai Academy despite all your shortcomings. However, I must warn you that this is not a game. Many cadets don’t live to see their graduation day. Figuring it out may not be enough. You have to be better than everyone else in your group.”

I give a sharp nod. “I can do that, sir.”

“I can only hope,” he says. From the messy pile of documents, he fishes out a paper and hands it to me.

“This is a reading list of the most important books that cover Ekios history, politics, and fae heritage. I’m afraid six months is not enough to learn everything other cadets learn at school before they enroll in higher education, but if you’re sharp, these should give you enough understanding to help you graduate. ”

“Thank you, sir.” I take the paper and scan it quickly. It has twelve books.

“I checked, and all of them are at the library,” he says. “I asked the librarian to put these aside for you. So, if you go there today after the second lecture, she’ll give them to you.”

“I will, sir. Thank you, again.”

Ezkai Gavriel waves his hand dismissively. “You can pass my next test as a thank-you.”

I was never a big reader before. But I guess I am from now on.

Not only do my muscles and bones ache, but even my brain is fatigued by the end of the day as I make my way from the dining hall to the library after dinner. It’s supposed to be open until late, so I want to spend as much time catching up on the reading Ezkai Gavriel assigned me as I can.

The library is humble and stolid. Just like the rest of the academy. It’s spread out across two floors, and the only fancy things are the spiral staircases on each side of the library.

Many shelves lined with books are stacked on the sides, and in the middle, there are long wood tables with hard wood benches. By the entrance on the right is a desk with a librarian behind it.

The fae wears a pleasant smile and Ezkai leathers. I greet her properly.

“Good evening. I’m here to pick up the books Ezkai Gavriel chose for me,” I say.

She smiles. “Ah, Cadet Wildarrow, right?”

I’m so taken aback by her friendliness, I can’t find words for a moment. I manage a nod, though.

“Come on over. Don’t look at me like that! I don’t bite, I promise,” she says. “I’m Ezkai Captain Horicia Lavin, Scrivener Unit.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I approach the desk, and she pats a tall stack of books on the edge of it.

“These are all the books from Ezkai Gavriel’s list,” she says cheerily. “I’m not sure if you want to take them all at once, or if you’d rather study them one by one. I can keep them here on the side, and you can come pick them up anytime.”

Gods be damned.

That’s a tall-ass stack; every single book is so thick, I can use it as a weapon instead of my bow. Considering how much I struggle to tame it, beating someone with one of these tomes might be more effective in combat.

“Ah, thank you,” I say. “I think I’ll get through them one by one and leave the rest with you, if that’s alright.”

“No problem. You can use any desk on the first or second floor to study,” she says.

“Thank you,” I say and grab the book on the top before pausing. “Actually, maybe you know which book might be the best to begin with? According to Ezkai Gavriel, I’m the worst cadet in the history of Ezkai Academy, with zero knowledge on Ekios.”

Ezkai Horicia’s laugh is like wind chimes. I could listen to it for hours.

“I’m sure he exaggerated. We’ve had hundreds of thousands of cadets over the course of multiple decades. I bet at least one of them must have been worse than you.”

That makes me crack a smile.

Humming, she brushes a finger over the thick spines.

She stops at one, tapping it. “Ah, this one right here. The Roots and History of Ancient Order that Shaped Ekios Culture is a good place to begin, in my opinion. It covers the history of Ekios post the Great Continent Separation and what events influenced the birth of the Order of Ezkai and shaped the Ezkai General’s rule.

You’ll get a little bit of everything—fae history, heritage, the political and social structure—which will make it easier to dive into each topic more in depth with other books on this list.”

I pull the book she pointed out from the stack. “I’m forever grateful, Ezkai Horicia.”

“Anytime, Wildarrow. Let me know if you need anything else.”

I’m about to walk away to find myself a secluded seat where I can study without the chance of running into Kata or others, but I hesitate.

“Actually, there is one more thing,” I say, turning back at the librarian. “I’m looking for a book on Phantom Rangers.”

“We have many books on different affinities, including Phantom Rangers. What about Phantom Rangers are you looking for specifically?”

My cheeks heat. “Ah—everything and anything. A manual for newbies would be great.”

Ezkai Horicia laughs again. “Got it. Let me look at the books we currently have, and I’ll save you a few tomes.”

I smile at her and bow my head in thanks before I whirl on my heel and march through the library to tackle this large tome that weighs as much as a whole-ass toddler with a healthy appetite.