Long self-realization struck Vince that made him forget the presence of the naughty princess in front of him for a while.
"Brave warrior, eat this, the most delicious part of the roasted wild boar." The young princess handed Vince a piece of roasted meat.
"Thank you." Vince, who was lost in his thoughts, took the roasted meat and thanked the princess politely, with a sincere smile. Without thinking much of the possible consequences, he focused on his food again and was estimating the possible pros and cons of his feelings.
The mentally struggling Vince wasn't aware of the princess' silly laugh after receiving his smile. She sat straight and proudly looked at her brother with a naughty and confident smile. Prince Lontoc chuckled and shook his head to his sister's silliness. Prince Aiji who saw this was quiet. Too quiet!
The old man was quiet too but his eyes were restless.
After dinner, the warriors went back to their positions. Prince Lontoc led Vince and the still perfectly quiet Prince Aiji to their hut.
"Our huts are quite distant from each other to confuse our attackers. We have twelve huts built around here to house our soldiers. Two were built for our family and one for our guests."
"Your tribe is quite accommodating." Vince praised the host prince while Prince Aiji was quietly listening.
The prince's unusual silence worried Vince. He was eager to talk to Prince Aiji, but the hospitable host, Prince Lontoc was still there. Vince was planning to confess the feelings that troubled his heart and mind.
"Will the prince accept my feelings?"
Vince was nervous. The time he spent with Prince Aiji was less than a month. Though the prince was good to him, he was not confident. What if the prince condemned this kind of love?
"We are here."
They stopped in front of a finely-built but. Prince Lontoc invited them in.
A stone hearth filled with dry woods was lit that illuminated the entire hut. Vince's eyes wandered inside. The wall and the floor were built with well-cut woods. It was pleasant to the eyes. There was a red cloth divider that separates the bedroom. There were also mats and cotton sheets that were neatly placed in the corner.
"Friends, please take a good rest. I will take my leave now."
"Good prince, thank you for your kindness." Vince expressed his gratitude while Prince Aiji nodded to Prince Lontoc.
"No, you don't have to. You are my sister's savior, so you are very welcome here. The two of you have a good rest."
Prince Lontoc turned to leave but stopped at the door.
"By the way, I sent a warrior to the tribe to pick some wine. I will send him here if he comes back."
Vince thanked Prince Lontoc again. He was too eager to be alone with Prince Aiji to settle things, so he immediately shut the wooden door and leaned on it while gathering his courage.
Prince Aiji was leaning at the window, looking at the glowing fireflies that surrounded a tree. The sight was very enchanting.
"Prince Aiji, can we talk?"
Vince waited for a few seconds, no one heard him.
"Please don't get mad at me."
Vince was pleading, but there was only a long silence.
Vince was at a loss of what to do. The prince wasn't responding, how can he confess? Not to mention his heart was jumping on his chest.
In the deafening silence between them, Vince decided to take a bold move. He stepped forward and closed the wooden window.
A pair of innocent, stunned eyes stared at him. Vince's heart was beating wildly. He gathered all his courage and slowly faced Prince Aiji.
Facing too close to Prince Aiji, Vince's wild heart turned chaotic. It was banging on his chest. It was so close that he could feel the prince's hot breath!
Vince was getting crazy. He looked down since he was a bit taller than the prince. When he did, his eyes met a pure and innocent gaze. The prince was handsome, but up close, Vince's crooked eyes saw a beautiful face. Those thick and curly eyelashes...a beautiful nose... and thin red lips… The face that turned him crazy. The face that bent his path. He must confess before he loses his mind!
"Prince Aiji... I...
"Esteemed guests, Prince Lontoc ordered me to deliver this wine. Please open the door." A voice called outside.
The perfect mood was interrupted, Vince had never been this annoyed in his previous life! He had spent all his courage to make the daring move, he really wanted to hit someone.
"I don't want wine!!!"
His thoughts protested, but he still walked to the door. No matter how unwilling he was, he cannot let the man outside leave without receiving the wine. It would be disrespectful to Prince Lontoc.
Vince's footsteps were heavy. He opened the door, but before it was fully opened, someone rushed in.
"Brave warrior, my brother wants to give you the best wine our tribe produced. It is collected from the tallest buli trees in our tribe."
The naughty princess giggled as she handed a bamboo container to Vince.
Vince didn't expect this young princess to come over. He was trying his best to make things out with Prince Aiji, but the princess might ruin his effort.
Vince breathed out his irritation.
"Little princess, please send my sincere thanks to your brother."
"Stop calling me little princess! I turned fifteen a few days ago." The young princess protested. "Tomorrow, I will ask my father's consent to marry!"
Vince was startled. "Who are you going...to marry?"
"You of course! I like you! I want to marry you!" The bold princess' eyes twinkled.
Vince was stupefied. He wanted to cover Prince Aiji's ears but the words were already spoken. He was facing off the prince, but he knew how rigid his gentle face was.
"Little princess, thank you for liking me. I appreciate it, but I am already committed to someone else, so I cannot marry you..."
Vince spoke slowly to instill these words in the young princess' senses.
The naughty princess pouted her lips. "Really?"
"Yes." Vince was relieved, but then...
"Well, it doesn't matter! Capable men can have another wife! I'll talk to my father about it, he will come here tomorrow, so get ready to meet him, okay?"
"This young woman is too aggressive! I have never met a modern woman like her! Where are the modest, restrained and timid ancient women? If I'm going back to my world, I'm gonna correct this deception!"
Vince's thoughts turned crazy.
"Brave warrior, we are leaving now, I am very excited for tomorrow!"
The princess left without waiting for his reply.
Princess Lyka was gone, but Vince was standing still for a while. He carefully constructed in his thought the words he's going to say to the prince. Later, he closed the door and slowly turned back to the unmoving prince.
"Prince Aiji, I'm sorry... I promise it won't happen!"
A pair of innocent eyes with a piercing gaze looked at Vince.
"What's there to say sorry, you didn't even remember a thing!"
It was the first time the timid prince yelled. His eyes and face turned red.
Vince was anxious. He stepped forward, reducing the distance between them.
"It's because... I injured my head... But it doesn't matter, right? You can remind me of everything!"
"That was what I thought before, but I was wrong! Dari... do you even remember why we ran away?"
The prince's soft voice was broken.
"Isn't it because we killed someone?"
The prince was staring at him with sorrowful eyes.
"It...isn't?!"
The prince broke into tears.
Vince was startled. He realized that there might be a deeper and worse reason for them fleeing and the tribe chasing them.
"Prince Aiji... tell me! Why are we running away!?
Vince grabbed Prince Aiji's arm with his right hand. His left hand was still holding the wine the princess brought. He was looking straight to the pair of innocent, teary eyes.
"Prince Aiji, tell me!"
"Dari... us running away, makes no sense now!"