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Victorique de Blois is a Gray Wolf – Part 01

Run along and see you don’t return without the snowdrops.

—Samuil Marshak, The Twelve Months

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Prologue: I am Innocent

Something round, shiny, and golden was glowing in the dark.

In a small, cramped room in the back of a large mansion, wrapped in darkness and a silence so tense it seemed to cut your cheek, Cordelia studied the strange round, shiny, golden object.

What is it? she wondered.

Her curly hair, soft as cotton candy, draped over her cheek. She was a lovely little maid. She was clutching an iron candlestick, which looked out of place in her tiny, plump, childlike hands.

The candle’s weak orange flame provided very little light on the floor of the dark room.

The strange object was lying on the floor.

Cordelia reached out and cautiously picked it up.

It’s beautiful!

It felt smooth. She held it close to her face. It was round and flat, with a human’s face carved onto it. For some reason, there were also numbers on it. She wondered what they meant.

The candle’s flame flickered with Cordelia’s faint breath, and the strange object sparkled in response.

It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen!

Eyes glittering, Cordelia stroked the strange object over and over again with her fingers. The thing sparkled even more as though it was happy to be stroked. She was gazing at it cheerfully, when she suddenly noticed something. She held the candlestick downward.

To the right, to the left. In front and behind. She illuminated the dark floor.

One, two, three. Cordelia’s face filled with wonder. More weird things! There’s so many of them on the floor!

Cordelia crouched down and reached out slowly. Strange objects were strewn all over the floor. The candle’s flame glinted softly on the round and golden objects, coloring Cordelia’s pretty little face golden.

So many treasures! So pretty!

Cordelia happily picked them up, but there were so many that she couldn’t collect them all.

Her small face gradually contorted in fear. Strength left her hands, and the strange objects spilled onto the floor again, rattling.

What are they? Why are they on the floor? Oh, right. There was supposed to be someone here. Where are they?

She looked around carefully.

The room was shrouded in jet-black darkness.

Cordelia called out with a trembling voice, but there was no answer. Her voice became muffled, as though swallowed by the darkness. Her red lips tightened.

Whoosh!

The candle flame rippled.

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Chapter 1: Victorique de Blois is a Gray Wolf

It was a sunny afternoon.

The vines twisting around the wooden houses lining both sides of the street had turned bright green, swaying softly in the gentle breeze. The sky above was a clear blue. Early summer was approaching, the most comfortable days in this region.

A calm afternoon.

The door of a small, vine-covered post office in a corner of the village flung open, and a small oriental boy stepped out. He was dressed in the uniform of St. Marguerite Academy, a prestigious school for nobility located at the foot of a mountain not far from the village. A school cap sat on his head.

As he walked away, lips pursed and his back straightened, the boy—Kazuya Kujou—mumbled to himself, “I asked for books, not money. Why would they send me allowance? Maybe they didn’t receive my letter in time? Hmm…”

In his hand was an envelope sent through international mail.

“What do I do with this? Eh, whatever. Let’s head back to the academy for now.”

While walking, the door of a small general store facing the street opened. A tall girl dressed in the same St. Marguerite Academy uniform came out, carrying a shopping bag.

She had short, blond hair, and long, slender legs. Possessing mature features, she was quite the beauty. When she spotted Kazuya, her face lit up.

“Ah, Kujou!”

Her loud voice made Kazuya yelp and jump. Startled by his reaction, the girl also gave a yelp and shrank back.

“For goodness’ sake!” She glared at him, pouting. “Your screaming scared the living daylights out of me.”

“Oh, Avril. It’s just you.”

Displeased by his reaction, the girl—Avril Bradley—kept her cheeks puffed for a while.

Eventually, her smile returned. “What do you have there? A letter?”

“Yeah… So, uhh… W-Wait!”

Avril snatched the envelope from Kazuya’s hand and peered inside. “Oh, allowance!”

“Yeah. My brother sent it to me.”

“I wish I had some! My parents are so stingy. Girls like me have things to buy.”

“Ahuh…” Kazuya gave a vague reply, nodding along.

Avril held the envelope for a while with an envious look, then reluctantly handed it back to Kazuya.

She smiled again. “So, what are you buying?”

“Huh? I-I don’t know. I’ve got my textbooks, and I brought clothes, daily necessities, and all the other stuff I need from home. Hmm? What is it?” Kazuya panicked. Avril was staring at him intently.

She put her hands on her hips. “There’s a difference between what you need and what you want.”

“Huh?”

“Kujou, you’re such a stick-in-the-mud.”

“What?”

“Let me tell you something. The best part about shopping is looking around and trying to decide what to buy.”

“I don’t get it. Just buy what you need and go home.”

“You’re not getting it. Shopping is a pastime.”

“Really?” Kazuya inclined his head.

Avril was getting irritated. “I know,” she said firmly. “I’ll take you somewhere nice. Come on.”

“I, uhh…”

“Hmm? Why are you planting your feet firmly? If you don’t come, I’ll get mad.”

“…Sorry.”

Kazuya had a bad feeling about this. Avril pulled him in the opposite direction of the academy.

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The year 1924.

The Kingdom of Sauville, a small nation in Europe.

Boasting a long history and tradition, Sauville was a small but powerful kingdom that survived the Great War at the beginning of the century, and was called the little giant of Western Europe. Its territory was long and narrow, reminiscent of a tower. Fertile vineyards sprawled on its border with France. The Gulf of Lyon on the Mediterranean Sea, a summer resort for the aristocracy, separated it from Italy. Rolling plateaus and deep mountains surrounded its border.

If the Gulf of Lyon was the luxurious door to the plentiful kingdom, the Alps were the secret attic located deep inside. In this secret location stood a school.

St. Marguerite Academy.

Situated in a pleasant place surrounded by greenery, the school was a majestic stone building in the shape of a U when viewed from above. The school also boasted a long history and tradition, though not as long as the kingdom itself. A secret place where entry was forbidden to anyone except related personnel, only the children of nobility were allowed admission.

But after the end of the world war, St. Marguerite Academy began accepting promising youth from allied nations as exchange students.

Hailing from an island nation in the Far East, Kazuya Kujou was a well-mannered boy with excellent grades. The youngest of a military family, he had two brilliant older brothers, the eldest a scholar and the second an aspiring politician. Kazuya, brilliant himself and straight-laced, was recommended to be an exchange student.

However, what awaited the thrilled Kazuya was the prejudice of the noble children and the mysterious supernatural stories that were rampant throughout the academy.

He had a hard time adjusting to school, got involved in strange incidents, made strange friends. All in all, it had been a rough six months.