After nearly a full month, here's the next chapter. Sorry to make you wait. ^^

Thanks already for the five favourites and the ten followers, I'm happy to see such a number already. :) But to be honest, I would be happy if I could read some Reviews - I won't bite and I'm always into critic so that I know if I'm doing it wrong or good etc. Review me, I want to hear your opinion. ^^

I can already warn you that this is only Tension building and introduction, in the upcoming chapters, the Story will really start. :D

Thanks again for shad0w0w0lf for beta reading. ^^

I wish you a nice valentine's (although it is nearly 8pm in Germany... oops :D).

Enjoy the chapter. ^^


"It seems like you are very fond of lilies, Anjuli. Or am I mistaken?" The blonde haired young woman looked to the high priestess, sitting next to her, when a smile appeared on her face. Scratching the back of her head, she looked to the flowers in front of them. "That's right, Lady Scheherazade. I love lilies, no matter which color."

"That sounds very nice," she smiled, warmness and comfort streaming from her face. Anjuli smiled as well and crossed her legs. A little wind came up from the south, blowing through the blonde hair of the two women. "But, may I ask, Lady Scheherazade, do you have any favorite flowers?"

"Not really." She opened her eyes and looked to her new king vessel. "I love every kind of flower. But there is no flower which is particular for me the most beautiful." Her eyes glittered in the sunlight. "But lilies suit you, Anjuli."

A blush climbed on her face, as she scratched her neck. "You think so?"

"Yes. Lilies are known for purity and true love: something that happens very rarely in our time." All her wisdom and power was like a light on her, drowning her in admiration and strength. "But tell me, you like lilies, no matter which color. But is there anyone that you love over every other?"

"Well," Anjuli said and the blush deepened, "I didn't see that kind of flower very often; maybe one or two times in my life. But every time I saw a scarlet red lily, I was the happiest woman in Reim." She chuckled out of embarrassment. "That must sound stupid to you, but I love the color red. Especially scarlet red. Somehow, to me, it resembles power, strength, but also something very kind. Just like the dawn, when the sun is slowly rising." She couldn't stop the flow of her words and she didn't want to stop. Memories flashed through her thoughts. "The color has its own, special meaning to me and I think I would kiss the man, who would ever bring me a bunch of scarlet red lilies."

Suddenly, the high priestess began to chuckle as response and Anjuli felt really childish. "Oh, I'm sorry, maybe I've gone a little too far."

"Oh no, no, don't worry. It's just that red is so different from the color of your soul."

The blonde woman titled her head. "The color of my soul? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, the eyes are usually called 'the mirror of the soul'. The first man I ever chose told me, that he would never choose a woman whose eyes didn't look refreshing. Most of the time, he could read the emotions of his people's eyes." A smile appeared on her face and her grip on her staff tightened. "He married a young woman, whose eyes resemble yours very much, Anjuli. She had eyes, as beautiful as the sky could ever be. She was a great woman and I liked her really much."

"That sounds very nice." She closed her eyes and relished the feeling of the wind brushing over her naked arms and legs. The tip of her white dress reached her knees and was without sleeves. A ribbon wrapped around her waist, which was in a deep and decent gold. "I really hope I can be a help to Reim."

"You don't have to hope, you will," Scheherazade responded, giving her a warm feeling of acceptance. But suddenly her face turned more serious. "I decided to let Muu and Myron accompany you."

"Lord Muu and Lady Myron?" she asked, a little surprised. But she thought about the red hair, about their heritage, so she could only agree. "I guess it will be a great help."

"Don't worry, I will come with you as well."

Now the only thing Anjuli could do was raising her head in shock. "You too, Lady Scheherazade?!"

"Yes," she nodded slowly. "I raised that dungeon and as the person who chose you to be a king's candidate, it is my duty to guide you through the dungeon."

A nervous laugh escaped her lips. "Well, if I have you, Lord Muu and Lady Myron with me, then I don't have anything to worry about."

"I'm happy that you are so optimistic," she responded, when she stood up on her toes. "I will go back now, Anjuli. I hope we see each other during dinner time."

The blonde woman bowed her head deeply, a loud shout coming from her lips. "I would be honoured, my Lady."

She could hear her smile and left with small, quiet steps. Anjuli lifted her head, looked at her back, then she collapsed and sat on the bench in the middle of the garden. She sighed. "Oh man..."

"Hey, aren't you the new king vessel captain Muu was talking about?" Anjuli glanced in the direction that the voice came from. A young girl stood in front of her, maybe eleven or twelve years old. Long, red hair was in a high ponytail, a scar across her face. "Aren't you Anjuli?"

"I am," she nodded slowly. "And you are?"

"I am from the Fanalis corps. My name is Razol." A smirk appeared on her lips and she tilted her head to the right. "Nice to meet you."

"Eh…" she mumbled, a little bit taken a back from the offensive side of the Fanalis, "Nice to meet you too, I guess?"

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" She pouted, but it disappeared in a second. "What were you doing here, Anjuli?"

"I was sitting here with Lady Scheherazade.", she mumbled and stood up. "I was on my way back to my room."

"How boring." In return, she pouted. She was like a little child; in the first second she smiled and grinned, one second after that she pouted and was depressed, and then she grinned again.

Like a pregnant woman.

"How about you come with me? Everyone is talking about you."

"Everyone?" She raised her eyebrows, surprised about that fact. "But I am no one important."

"What are you talking about, of course you are important! I mean, you are next to Mister Ignatius and Captain Muu the next king vessel of Reim. This is totally awesome!" Her eyes glittered from excitement and she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Well, our Captain told us about you and everyone is speculating and guessing about you and because of Myron, he didn't tell us very much."

"I…I see." She tucked a strand of her long blonde hair behind her ear and looked into Razol's beautiful red eyes. "But why should I come with you?"

"So that everyone is able to see you at least once." She moved her finger from left to right, as if she would be her tutor. "Come on, it will be fun. Don't worry, none of us will lay a finger on you, I promise. We might have some strange idiots with us, but there is no one really serious about doing some serious crap."

That offensive attitude scared Anjuli most, "Uh…okay?"

The Fanalis girl immediately grabbed her wrist and put her behind her. "Great, I'll show you the way." She pulled her out of the garden into the west of the palace. Anjuli looked around her and suddenly had the feeling of coming here very often in the future.

Strange… where did that come from?


"Come on, most of us are behind that door." The girl beamed at her. "Man, but I really envy you. If this continues, then I will be able to become one of Captain Muu's Household vessel. But right now, only Myron and Lo'lo are capable of handling this."

Well, that didn't surprise her; Lady Myron looked very strong and her knowledge of human nature disappointed her only very rarely. "But Myron and Lo'lo are the strongest of us. While Myron is intelligent, Lo'lo is stronger than her. But I think Captain Muu is very happy with them being his household members."

"I see…"

The girl couldn't stop talking and suddenly she stopped in front a wooden door. Anjuli heard loud voices behind it. "Come on."

She gulped and when Razol opened the door, the voices died down with nearly fifteen pairs of eyes locked on her figure. She slowly looked around, cautious and ready to jump if anyone was going to say something. But it was fascinating to see so many Fanalis in one place. Everyone had red hair and red eyes. They were known as beasts; the strongest warrior tribe on earth.

It was a terrifying sight.

"Hey, Razol, who did you bring here?" A man stood up, looking rather confused at the sight of Anjuli. Grinning, she pulled her forward, stumbling slowly. A deep red came upon her cheeks and she knew why she didn't want to go here in the first place: she hated being in the spotlight.

"That's Anjuli, Lady Scheherazade's new king vessel." Mumbling erupted, and the man stepped forward and he stretched his hand out to her. "So you are Anjuli?"

She nodded slowly, taking his hand. "Yes, I am. It seems like you know me."

"Yeah, Captain Muu mentioned you. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I'm Yaqut." He smiled at her. Screams and shouting suddenly erupted behind him.

"Watch out, little one, or he will drag you into depths you don't want to see!"

"Don't take his formal style too serious, that's one of his tricks!"

"Stop your talking, it makes my ears bleed!"

"Oh, shut the fuck up!" Myron yelled between the comments, stepping through the rows of the Fanalis and appearing in front of her. "It seems like they were very eager to meet you, Anjuli."

"It seems so…"

"Come on, I'll take you behind. You won't be bothered by their voices there." Her beautiful red eyes looked around and locked on the playboy's appearance. "And don't even try to seduce her, you pervert. She is very important to brother so don't you dare!" she snapped and dragged the blonde woman through all the red heads, Razol following her.

"Oh come one, Myron, don't be a spoilsport," Anjuli could feel a large hand on her shoulder and the breath, smelling a little bit like wine and meat. "We just want to see her, what's the problem?"

"Lo'lo, you're dragging the dignity of my brother into dirt if you do something that could hurt her!" the captain's sister hissed, a dangerous gleam flashing in her eyes. She stepped in front of Anjuli, finding herself next to the young girl, who stepped on her tip-toes and whispered something into her ear. "Don't worry, that is normal between them."

"Normal? It looks like she wants to rip his head off… and in a very bloody way at that."

"Well, this time it really could happen. After all, Captain Muu isn't here and he is always the one who helps to avoid a war."

Anjuli looked at her skeptically. "You seem very calm for this kind of situation."

"I'm used to it. This is very strange to newcomers, but I'm used to it. I've been here since I was ten years old. Lo'lo has been here since he was twenty and they've kept the bickering up for six whole years." She shrugged. "We just have to wait until this is finished."

"Since he was twenty? How old are they then?"

"Myron and Lo'lo?" She calculated, mumbled something and snapped her fingers. "I think Myron is seventeen and Lo'lo is twenty-six. Just like Captain."

"Seventeen? I am six years older than her?", she asked quietly. Why did she think Myron was older than she really was?

"If you are twenty-three then you are six years older." Razol didn't seem to care; she nodded her way just like a mother or an older woman.

The two Fanalis kept bickering, discussing about Lord Muu's dignity and reputation in Reim. Somehow it scared her, how loyal they both were. But Anjuli kept her sky blue eyes on them both, understanding the fact of them being the household members of him.

They would die for him; something that triggered a very uncomfortable emotion in her stomach. Her chest hurt at the memory, before she shook her head, as if to shake away the thoughts.

That was the past and now she didn't need to think about it.

In one strike the door opened suddenly and now the two brawlers silenced, when they saw the handsome red haired king vessel entering the room.

"Brother!"

"Captain Muu!"

A smile appeared on his lips, his eyes darting to them both. Sighing, he walked over to them and lay his arms around their necks. "How many times have I told you to stop your fights?"

"But Brother, he wanted to dirty your dignity."

"Because you are panicking too much!" he replied. Muu stopped them, bringing his hands to rest on their heads. "Stop it you two."

Their glares were furious but they replied with a yes. Muu sighed deeply and put his arms back, surprised when he saw the beautiful looking blonde woman with puzzled sky blue eyes locked onto him. "Lady Anjuli?" he asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Excuse me for disturbing you," she stared, hesitation swinging in her voice, "but Razol offered me to go with her." She bowed her head, flustering by him. "I'm sorry if I'm a hindrance right now."

"Oh, don't worry, you're not at all." He smiled calmly. "It's good to see you actually. I'll tell you now, then. We're going to the dungeon the day after tomorrow."

A drop of sweat showed itself on her forehead as she gulped down the lump in her throat. "I understand." She raised her hand, red clashing on blue. "I'll be ready."

"Don't be so formal." He laid his hand on her shoulder, flustering her instead. "Come on, let's go drinking."

"What?"

"Yeah, why not? So I get to know you better."

"I'm not su-" Anjuli was interrupted, dragged by Muu with his hands on her back to the back part of the room. "Come on, don't worry so much."

"Well-"

"Don't say anything anymore and I will finish."

"But-"

"No words."

"What-"

She could feel his hand on her mouth, her eyes widening and her heart skipped a beat. But instead of a serious expression, he grinned at her and took her wrist. "Don't be so formal and stop struggling. It will only become worse if you do so."

A deep sigh escaped her lips and suddenly she felt the warmness of his hand on her wrist. It flooded from her arms to her body.

That's odd. Why do I seem like I missed that feeling?


"Tell me, Lord Muu; is the Fanalis corps always so…"

"…so what?"

"So…lively?"

Her gaze was sobered, the cup of wine in both of her hands, holding it with a tight grip. The sky blue eyes were locked on his red, the blonde hair falling down in soft and beautiful waves. She held her legs together, not daring to cross them like she would normally do.

"Don't worry, they are always like that. But I think it's good that way."

"You don't like quiet places, right?"

"No; I think it's better if it's livelier, so you know the place isn't dead or completely left alone." His voice was honest, the tone smoothing and chilling. It sent chills down her spine.

Anjuli didn't know if it was out of curiosity or if his voice was always so comfortable.

"But how about you, Anjuli? Tell me something about your training under Marcus order."

She took a sip out of her cup, cautious about her tolerance of alcohol.

"Well, I've trained under my master for seventeen years. I was only six when I got there and until today, the only thing I wanted to do was being a help to Reim. When my master told me of getting the chance to become one of Lady Scheherazade's King vessels… you can't imagine how happy and relieved I was."

His eyes were locked on her lowered face, whilst her eyes focused on the red liquid. "It's been my dream for a long time to serve Reim; and when I heard the rumors of the dungeon, it became my dream to conquer one. So both dreams were fulfilled when I won that fight in the Colosseum. I knew that I was now a king's candidate before the conquering of my own dungeon."

"I see." He looked at her in curiosity, before taking his sip from his own cup. "But now I've told you about me, now I'll beg you to tell me about yourself."

"What do you want to know?" He crossed his arms in front of his armored chest, a glittering in his eyes. "Ask me."

"How were you able to create a group like the Fanalis corps?" He looked at her, puzzlement appearing in his gaze. "Why do you ask something like that?"

"Since the Fanalis are all hunted down from the Dark Continent, they are very rarely seen free. And yet here, you have at least fifteen of them, completely happy and without any worries. It seems at least so."

"How do you know about the Fanalis?"

Her eyes hardened, a grin appearing on her lips. "That's a secret." She cocked her head, looking with an expression completely different to before. "So do I get my answer?"

He sighed quietly; this woman was a difficult person. "I decided to help the Fanalis and got the help of the emperor and Lady Scheherazade. I tried to find them, travelled many countries to search for them. I've found some of them but I'm aware that there are still many waiting for freedom fromslavery."

"Freedom is something special. Especially for a race, that has been enslaved since many years."

"You look like you know about the Fanalis." Their eyes met, sky blue clashing with scarlet red and in that moment, no one could be sure to say who was stronger.

"I've already told you, haven't I? This is a s-e-c-r-e-t!"

She winked at him.

And Muu could only grin.