Chapter 57: Nesha
A ray of sunlight pierced through the blockade, causing her eyelid to twitch. Evidently, even the extra layer of clothes she had clumsily draped over the curtain wasn’t perfect. But alas, she couldn’t be asked to adjust it. The girl ignored the disturbance, shifting on her pillow. A couple seconds later, she was asleep again.
It was noon the next time she woke up. The intensity of her headache clued her in. Nesha was a bit of an expert in that department. Her body refused to remain asleep any longer, regardless of how hard she pushed. She’d already rested way longer than necessary, but it wasn’t like there was a point to getting up. With a shrug, she remained there, staring at the ceiling for another hour.
Only when her stomach grumbled did she begrudgingly reach for the glasses on the nightstand. Practically dragging her feet along the stone floor, Nesha made her way to the preservation box. She grabbed a couple oranges – the first things she saw – before peeling them with her mana. Tossing a segment into her mouth, she bit down a little too hard, accidentally sending some juice down her chin. It was a bit too sour for her taste, causing her brow to pucker up. She was also getting sick of eating the same five things over and over.
Technically, Nesha knew how to cook. Her father – the patriarch of the Veritas House – had made sure her maids taught her.
‘A lot of good it did me.’ she chuckled. ‘Or him.’
Born with an Orange core, she’d never been destined to succeed Janos as the new leader, nor to become a powerful mage. That said, she did have two gifts that were of value to her family. The first was the bloodline. It didn’t matter how high her grade was, or what affinity she had, the Truthseeker ability worked the same way regardless. That’s why she had been brought up learning about trade and psychology. The second was that she was a woman, and she could have made for a useful chip to be given away in a political marriage.
Sadly for Janos, things hadn’t gone according to plan. Backstabbed by his allies, the man had seen his House crumble before his very eyes. His last – and one of the few – acts of love towards his daughter had been to send her to the Guild to seek asylum.
It took Nesha another half an hour to dress up and reach the door.
‘Why do I even bother?’ she wondered as she headed toward her stand.