When Nightingale noticed that the Prince had come in, she got up and slowly walked over. Even only after half a day of rest, her face looked better than how most people would ever look. Her pale cheeks were replaced with rosy ones, and her hair didn’t give her a dull appearance. He thought, I have to say, the resilience of a witch is really amazing.
“You worked hard in the past few days.” Roland coughed, breaking the silence and then continued, “Why don’t you rest longer? Lightning has already told me everything.”
Hearing this, Nightingale shook her head, giving a solemn impression. This gave Roland the feeling that something was wrong, and in her eyes he could see an indescribable dedication. Roland realized that she had made her decision and was converging her emotions towards him. This look of determination was difficult to see in many other people, so Roland waited until the other had found the right words.
However, Nightingale didn’t begin to speak immediately. Instead, she took a deep breath, got down on one knee while holding a dagger in her hand, and slightly bowed her head – this was the etiquette for the standard knight ceremony, when someone part of the aristocracy swore allegiance to a superior, they would often do it this way.
“Your Highness Roland Wimbledon, I, Veronica, also known as Nightingale, swear,” she said in a formal tone, “As long as you will be kind to the witches, I will be at your service, whether as a strong shield against the demons, or as your personal sword during the night, without any fear of regret, until the last moment of my life.”
Roland thought, so this is her decision after the Witch Cooperation Association became such a disappointment to her and destroyed her hope of leading the witches into a better future herself. If it went like he wanted, he would refuse her offer, since he was more accustomed to hiring or working together. If there were further ambitions and a common ideal, they could become comrades.
However, he knew that sometimes it was meaningless to emphasize equality and freedom. As long as there was no suitable soil, even the best seeds would decay. As a prince, he wouldn’t be able to depart from his role as a prince until he unified the kingdom..
After a moment of silence, Roland acted accordingly to the court etiquette in the memories of the former prince. He took her dagger and then touched her shoulders three times with his own sword, “I accept your allegiance.”
Nightingale’s shoulders trembled slightly. It seemed she could finally relax.
Then he stretched out his right hand, holding it in front of her.
Nightingale took his fingers and delicately kissed him on the back of his hand. With this the ritual came to an end.
Although the allegiance ceremony exercised by the witches was extremely nondescript, following through the whole set of actions couldn’t be archived with an ordinary background ,. And she also called herself Veronica… “Is Veronica your real name? Don’t you have a last name?” Roland pulled her up and asked.
“Yes, Your Highness. I have no intention to hide anything from you. Five years ago, I had left the house of Gilen. Now the house and I have nothing to do with each other.” Nightingale told him everything, and put down even the last barrier to her heart by telling him of her own past.
She was born in Silver City, the city whose name came naturally from their rewarding silver mines. Her father was a viscount, but her mother was born as a commoner. Such marriages were not common, but the two had hit it off well. In addition, Nightingale also had a brother named Hyde. She had spent her whole childhood in Silver City, and that was the happiest period of her life.