"putANGINAA!!", I screeched, slapping my arm for the nth time.
"Can you calm down? My eardrums are THIS close to exploding.", my friend and my closest aide, Flora, who's sitting beside me inside the kalesa, showed me her almost touching index finger and thumb.
My face crumpled into a frown as I gritted my teeth from annoyance. "How can I calm down when I am being DEVOURED by these dirty—aw! fuck!—insects?! Ugh!! Can ANYONE PLEASE REMIND ME OF THE REASON WHY I, THE GREAT PRINCESS, AM SUFFERING LIKE THIS, BEFORE I OBLITERATE THIS PLACE OFF OF MY KINGDOM'S MAP??!!!"
'I mean, who can blame me, really. I've used the whole insect repellant lotion and here I am, still getting bitten by these ingrates! Seems like the bugs in the suburbs are far more stupidly-persistent and stronger than the ones in the capital!'
Flora looked at me with a full smile, covering her beautiful face. "Mahal naming prinsesa, hindi ba't ikaw ang nagsabing kailangan mong mag-'unwind'? Kung hindi dahil sa iyong nakagagalak na suhestyon, ako ngayo'y nagpapahinga kasama ang aking mga pinakamamahal na pamilya. Ngunit ako'y narito, nagtatrabaho pa rin sa labas ng aking working hours."
'...right... It was me who dragged this innocent girl and a whole squadron of the imperial knights for the selfish reason of needing unwinding.', I thought as I slowly straightened my frown into a smile.
"Oh, come on, Floraaaa~ I didn't think you'd think of this vacation with me as part of your work. You're not my aide right now, you're here as my friend, remember?", I clung onto her left arm as I coaxed her.
Aletheia Ilya Simpatya y Magnayon