SIDEREAE

Chapter 3

Sid opened her eyes at the sound of the bustling street, in an unfamiliar place. The street is full of busy shops and people walking on the sides and carriages passing by.

She can smell the freshly baked pastries coming from the nearby bakery, and the smell of fresh flowers from the stall. She can see the ladies chatting inside a cafe and people coming out from a boutique. This place appears to be something that came out straight from a medieval fantasy novel, which she usually read during her free time.

"Milady, are you alright?" A woman's voice suddenly spoke to her.

"Huh?"

Sid turned her face to her right and saw a woman with short brown hair looking at her worriedly. Then an unknown lady is wearing a nice green colored dress with a small hat shading her from the sun.

"Are you feeling dizzy? The heat must be getting to you, milady. Shall we head back to the state now, so you can rest?"

"Uh, yes?"

"Then, please wait here milady. I shall call the carriage for us. Sir knight, please take care of milady."

The knight who was standing behind them, gave a quick nod to the maid before she left.

"Where the hell am I?" I whispered as my eyes wandered around.

"That's not how a lady should talk Sidereae."

"What?" I turned behind when I heard the knight speak.

"H-how do you know my name?!" My eyes widened in surprise.

"It's me, Oneiroi," The knight took off his helmet, which covered his face.

My wariness began to dissipate as Oneiroi's face come into my view. Purple hair that shines under the sun and it's long enough to cover his ears. His wavy hair seems soft and a bouncy refreshing breeze brushes it. He has an arrogant nose, a good jaw, and thin lips which are enough to seduce women with just a glance. But, what's more, peculiar is his golden irises that embody the word 'mystery'.

Come to think of it, I just realized how good-looking he is. It must be because I was too terrified to notice it when I first saw him. Well, I can't blame myself for not noticing it sooner. Anyone will be horrified and lose their wits when they see a man suddenly appear inside their locked room. Oneiroi smirked at me, noticing that I was staring at him while admiring his looks.

"Oya? Are you falling for my looks now, dreamer?"

Tch. I quickly drew my gaze away from him and looked somewhere else to hide my embarrassment.

"So where I am?" I asked to change the subject, which made him chuckle in amusement.

"This place is called the Kingdom of Alphasta. It's also the first destination that Elknox took when he became a Dreamer."

A faint smile drew on my face as I heard what Oneiroi said. I wonder what dad's reaction was when he first came here. Did he look surprised and pleased? Did he also walk on the same street that I've been standing on? A carriage suddenly appeared in front of them, then the maid who was with her earlier appeared along. She stepped down from the carriage and went directly to Sid's side.

"Milady, the carriage is here! Let's go in, so you can rest. I also bought you a refreshment to cool you off."

"Okay."

She opened the door, and Oneiroi assisted her to climb inside the carriage. As soon as Sid seated comfortably, the maid quickly followed her inside, and Oneiroi sat with the driver outside.

"Let's depart," The maid said when all of them finally settled.

As the carriage moved, Sid watched the view outside the window. She noticed that most of the shops in this district look expensive, even the decorations around the streets have a touch of elegance, especially the huge statue of a beautiful woman, holding a jar with water pouring out of it. that they passed by at the center of the district. All the people that she has seen so far, wear expensive clothing that is made with high-quality textiles, and jewelry that probably costs thousands.

"This district was filled with nobles. So that means, I am one too?"

"Correct!" Oneiroi suddenly replied in my mind.

I flinched when I heard his voice inside my hand. Sweats formed on my forehead, as I held myself from freaking out.

"Milady, are you sure you're alright?"

"Y-yes, I'm fine," I replied and gave her a small smile, "Don't freak me out like that! How are you able to read my thoughts?" 

"Because I can. It's one of my abilities you see," He boastingly responded with a cheeky voice.

"Then who am I right now?"

"You're Este Montague, the youngest daughter of the Duke of Vellore. Aren't you curious how a young lady from a prestigious family lives?"

***

Sid listlessly rode the train on her way to her school. She felt tired and sleepy, as she woke up early to do house chores before leaving for school. The reason why she's tired is because of the fatigue that's been piled up for the last 5 days, since her dad's death.

The train made stopped at the station, and Sid has to walk for 10 mins to get to her school. To be honest, she doesn't have the strength to attend her classes, but she'd rather force herself to go than stay in the house where she can be alone with her mother, Laney.

"Ah, should I just skip class?"

But where will she go? Hmm, maybe she can just use her time to look for a part-time job. She didn't know when her money would run out. The only money that she has right now is from her savings, plus the money that her uncle Mario handed to her after the funeral.

Sid was so preoccupied, that he didn't notice the guy who was approaching her from behind.

"Sid!"

The guy's loud voice penetrated her ears as he jumped and hugged him from behind.

"I miss you!"

She almost screamed in shock and almost hit the guy who jumped behind her.

"Mathieu, Don't scare me like that!" I said quite upset.

My heart is still beating like crazy because of the shock. How many times should I experience something like this? I was also terrified and felt like my heart was about to burst when I saw Oneiroi for the first time.

"I'm sorry. I keep calling you from behind, but it looks like you can't hear me. That's why I decided to surprise you."

"Don't do that again, okay?" I sighed and he nodded quickly.

Mathieu put his arm around my shoulders as we walked towards the school. This guy is my childhood friend and a year older than me. I've known him since I was five and he's been, my only playmate. He usually comes and barges into our house as he relentlessly dragged me around to play.

Mathieu is a special person to me, he's the only one who knows me better other than my dad. He's like a family, someone whom I can confide in and someone whom I can trust wholeheartedly.

"How are you, Sid?"

"I'm barely okay," I replied honestly with a weary voice.

I pursed my lips, trying to hold back the tears forming in the corners of my eyes. I really can't help but be truthful with him. It's always been a wonder why I can barely lie or hide anything from him.

"I'm sorry," He softly stroked my hair, "I wasn't there beside you. It must be hard to endure it alone."

"Mn. It's okay..." 

He wasn't able to attend the funeral, because the date coincided with the debate competition that he attended across the city.

"I'm really sorry Sid." He hugged me tightly as he kissed the top of my head.

"Hey, stop that!" I quickly pushed her away, after I noticed our fellow students staring at us, "People are watching, I don't want to be misunderstood."

Mathieu sullenly frowned, but he resigned eventually, after noticing that I'm not comfortable.

"Let's have lunch together! I'll pick you up later okay?" Mathieu said when he dropped me outside my classroom.

"Mn."

As I stepped inside the classroom, all gazes darted toward me. I have no choice but to lower my head as I head towards my seat in the back corner.

Ah, this is why I don't like being seen with Mathieu when we're at school. I supposed they really can't get used to it, seeing the unpopular me being close to the most popular guy in school. I sat at my desk, took out my phone, and listened to some music, as we waited for our teacher to arrive.

I was about to put on my earphones when someone suddenly slammed their hand on my desk. I sighed internally.

Haa, here we go again. I'm already exhausted so why do I need to deal with this shit early in the morning?

"Hey!"

A rude voice suddenly called me. It was Linda, who was glaring at me along with the two more girls, standing behind her.

"Why are you with Mathieu again? Hm? How many times do we need to tell you, not to stick with him?"

I feel like I'm about to have a headache after this. Why can't these girls understand that Mathieu is my childhood friend, and it's impossible to distance myself from him? Why? Because he's the one who keeps sticking his butt around me. I tried to avoid him before but it was futile as Mathieu always find me whenever I tried to hide from him.

"Why does he even hang out with a gloomy bitch like you?"

"Yeah, I'm also wondering why. If you girls found the answer please tell me too," I retorted in my head.

That guy is always been popular since he's a social butterfly and can get along quickly with pretty much everyone. Not to mention he's super handsome.

A silky hair that resembled gold threads, thick eyebrows, and long lashes that flutter whenever he blinks. He has fair and dewy skin, with a proud nose and red thin lips. His most prominent feature is his beautiful vivid eyes, which remind you of a morning star.

Mathieu chose to stick himself with me, saying that he can't leave me alone and I needed someone to look after me because I'm always been misunderstood for having a poker face and a socially awkward personality.

"Stop ignoring us!" Samantha angrily shouted.

She was about to slam my desk when our teacher arrived like a miracle.

"Settle down," Sir Armand said when he noticed the girls standing in front of me.

Linda clicked her tongue and they threw me a sharp look before reluctantly going back to their seats. I thank Sir Armand internally for stopping this little ruckus.

I tried to focus as the class started, but my mind began to wander, and started thinking about the experience that I had last night.

Becoming Este Montague is a wonderful experience. I never imagined that I'd be able to attend such an extravagant ball and experience luxuries, such as wearing an elegant dress along with various expensive jewelry. I ate foods that I can never dream of tasting in real life. I wonder who I will become in my next dream.