The flash-learning three months that I was forced to study and memorise it, including the Imperial family's family tree and all the emperors ever in reign; the past and the present. Emperor Aleq has three siblings. He was the second child of the deceased emperor Naklakh with his empress. The first son was his child with the queen. She was the chosen empress who the high ranking nobleman supported.
It all began when the royal couple grew old, and no heir had been born. It worried the emperor. The empress was infertile, and another noblewoman was chosen to bear a child for the emperor. A year later, a boy was born named Kaen. Everyone knew he would be the next emperor until the empress found herself with a child in her old years. But, during her final due month of delivery, she disappeared for almost five years.
She returned in the third year with a boy holding her hand. His name is Aleqa. A name was given by a local village where she stayed for five years.
The current queen and the noblemen were furious at her sudden appearance, and they were protesting against the child claimed to be the emperor's child. Five years later, the empress passed away from a mysterious illness. The protest calmed down for another year until rumours spread that another woman has a child with the old emperor. Due to her royal status as the princess of one of the Seven Kingdoms, she was crowned as the next empress of the Thyel Empire.
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'No doubt about it.' It was definitely Kaen. The deceased of the crown prince!
"Hey, stop daydreaming!" Kirai hissing through my ear. "We have a mission, remember?" I blinked at her, realised where I was, and I turned to the suspicious duo.
'Huh? Where are they?'
They are no more to be seen. I was about to ask her, but I have a better idea. I started to leave to look for them when the auction started with the sound of a pounding Gong. Kirai pulled me down to my seat.
"Welcome to our auction!" The young man came up to the front and introduced himself as the spokesperson for tonight's auction. Behind him was a line of young women with their majestic shine of garments which I presumed only the South Kingdom's royalty wore. My eyes narrowed with curiosity. Why is some south kingdom's royalty present here at the auction? The women were holding up a wooden box, each containing the auction's item. It heated the hall into loud murmuring as they opened the boxes one by one, and the mysterious item will be the showcase for tonight. No one knows what the items were until you see for yourself what it was.
There was something peculiar about those people on the front. But I can make out what it was. My focus was distracted by the incoming flow of the people getting into the hall. In seconds, the huge hall was crowded with newcomers. There are no more seats, but there's no problem for them to stand waiting for the auction to begin.
Surprisingly, so many people turned up to this kind of black market's auction. Kirai, in one of her stories, did mention the artefacts of the goddess of stars and her companion, but some were items from the land of Origin. It was illegal, of course, and shouldn't be known by the Grand Temple.
At the end of the hall, an old and fragile-looking man stood there helplessly at the overwhelming crowd on the front blocking his view. I wondered, with the price of such items, can he afford it.
"I see it!" Kirai excitedly whispered to me as she pointed to the fourth wooden box.
There, on the wooden grassy packed act as a cushion, sat a vial of crimson liquid. But that was not the cause of the spectators sucking in their breath. The sixth wooden box opened up and revealed the contents—a glob-looking size of a baseball. The white light emitted from the sphere flashes out and brightens the whole space. A familiar look-movies projection appeared, showing a happy scene from the point of view of another person. The whole hall fell into deep silence while staring at the short scene movies until it ended, and the lights disappeared, leaving the rest of the attendees blinking with mixed emotions on their faces.
I turned to Kirai, wanting to ask her about it, but she was stunned like most people. But, it was just for a moment before she got back to herself. I frowned at her sudden change. She was nervous, agitated and started to say words that didn't make sense deliriously.
"Kirai!" I gripped her arm hard. "Get the hold of yourself!" shooking her body hard. I turned to the people surrounding us. Their relaxed and composed self changed 180 flips to agitated, nervous and some started deliriously talking to themselves.
The staff of the venues, aware of the situation, looked calm as they started to pull out those overreacting people away through the exit. They seemed to expect such a reaction from their clients.
Suddenly I met eyes with a mysterious figure with a heavily hooded face. His eyes were crimson in the dark. He strides through the side of the hall, unaffected by the ongoing spectating. He exited the hall through another pathway to the back.
Not far from the hallway, I saw Lady Maia and her companion. Lady Maia was already on her feet, reacting the same as the other people in the huge hall. Her companion whispered to her, and she turned into a trance. She sat back and looked straight ahead. 'What just happened?' It gave me a goosebump all over my back.
I look around nervously. I was searching for anyone who can help us, but everyone seemed to be occupied. I turned to the spokesperson, only to realise what I missed out on. The young man and the rest of the women were all BLIND!
I was freaking out at the realisation that I almost had my heart attack there and died.
I pulled Kirai roughly on the arm and exited the hall in a hurry. I can't stand to stay there any second longer. Perspiration ran down my back, and the bits of it formed thinly on my upper lip as I nervously maneuvered our way out of the place. I felt suffocated and started to hyperventilate in panic. My view turns blurry. No. I can't faint here.
Finally, we were able to exit the place without much trouble, but I am relieved that my breathing turned shallow, and as a result, wheezing of laughter was heard instead. I turned to Kirai, and she let out a relieved laugh and gave me more relief to watch her return to herself.
'What was that?' Too many questions start plaguing me.
"Are you alright?" I checked on her. She nodded, glanced at my way and smiled. She was a bit pale inside there. Her lips still quiver, and her body shivering.
I had so many questions to ask, but looking at Kirai's poor expression and exhaustion, I dare not.
We stayed out there in silence. Not sure for how long, but when the first ray of the dawn starts to appear, we know we have to return. Empty-handed. All thanks to the mega surprise they had.
As we're about to leave the area, a coughing noise echoed at the back made us turn. The building before has disappeared, and standing there was the blinded young man.
"Hello, there," he said. I was unsure how to communicate with a blind man before, so we just stood there staring at him curiously. I wasn't sure if I should stare at him or not while talking.
"Who are you?" Kirai started cautiously. Her tone was serious and no sign of quivering. "Where did you get that stone? You're with that scavenger, aren't you?"
He did not even answer any of her questions. Instead, "I think you lost this." he strode up toward us and stopped in front of me. A little vial of the crimson liquid that we were supposed to purchase at the auction last night was in his open palm.
"Oh!" I exclaimed without noticing my voice coming rather pinching than usual. My excitement appeared obvious that it felt wrong, and I recalled I never paid for the artefact. I grabbed a little pouch inside my deep pocket that I personally sewed and handed it to him, but he refuses to take it.
"Someone already paid for it."
I was surprised at that. "Who? Do I know him?" He shook his head and took another step closer with his rigid arm pushing the vial forward to me. He looked persistent with his story and didn't want to share anything regarding the purchaser. "Are you sure? Or you can make a double for that?" I wave the token pouch in front of his face. But I forgot that he was blind. I turned away awkwardly. He smiled as he sensed my mistake.
"Please." He urged.
I don't want to owe someone, but Ara needs it more than I am. I hesitated taking it from him. "Your Highness! You can't." Kirai dehorted.
My opened palm halted in the air. Not by Kirai's protest. "But, before that, help me arrange a meeting with your leader."
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that," The blind man spoke calmly. I glanced at his profile. He seemed confident for such a young age. But, I have been in this world for quite some time, so I learned something important. This world of wishing has made the world into a place of wonders. I can't expect people to be what I see on the surface. Each wish that they made has transformed the people into someone they want to be. I need to observe what they are to figure it out.
"Your Highness, we need to go...." I waved at Kirai's unwanted interruption. I stare hard at the young man's eyes. He might not see me, but I know he was aware of what I was doing. What happened last night inside that now-disappear-building is not something normal.
"I'll take that and leave if I were you." a deep masculine voice cuts into our conversation. I turned to the source of the voice. But he was hiding under the shadow of the toyshop.
"I demand you to let me meet him, whoever you are." I stride towards him slowly, wanting to confront him.
"Your Highness, we need to go back to the palace." Kirai's urgent voice made the mystery man hide further into the shadows.
"You should listen to your companion," he said, moving away.
"Wait," I stopped. I was afraid he was intimidated and would leave. I can't risk that. "I have a proposition to offer."
"Come back tonight to this same location." And he disappeared through the back.