Chapter 2

The sun had long since traversed across the sky, the orange hues of dusk reflecting on the light threads of clouds. Pheonix watched the tapestry of the sky unravel towards night in silence, her legs aching from having to sit in the carriage for almost an entire day with the exception of stopping for a lunch meal. Akeldama, despite being as overwhelmed as Pheonix felt, appeared to have boredom overpower any confusion as she was now working at drawing on the sleeping proctor's face. The older girl rolled her eyes at her sister before resuming her window gazing, her strawberry blond hair and pale skin taking on an almost ethereal glow from the sinking sun.

“Hey Akeldama, look. That's Aradian City over there.� Pheonix urged her sister away from her ploy to look upon the lights in the distance. The capital city of Aradia was home to the Aradia Academy, as well as the royal family. They really weren't very creative on names when it came to the Aradian City where almost every restaurant had a special Aradian dish or the major street name being Arad Main. They prided themselves in being named after the country, sometimes claiming that the country had been named after them, though Pheonix usually attributed that to arrogance. For being the capital of the arts and politics and pretty much any genre of interest, Pheonix had always held the opinion of it being a dull city. Never having been there herself, she tried to withhold judgment but couldn't help having a first impression based on the names alone.