Astoria scanned the man in front of her. He had short silver, straight hair pulled back to reveal a handsome, worried face. Dark brown eyes watched her. What looked like a wound caused by a sword stretched on the left side of his neck, leaving a painful reminder of a war fought long ago.
This was the face of King Aqilus, a true ruler who stood for and protected his people. Something was enchanting about him. Perhaps it was his powerful aura. Nonetheless, he looked like someone who people tended to stay on his good side while wishing they were more like him.
"I was told that you have temporary amnesia," he said, snapping her out of her observation.
She nodded, and he sighed, caressing the side of her face. His warm touch somehow made her feel safe and protected. It was too bad that these feelings were those of Princess Nexi and not hers.
"Do not worry. You will get your memories back very soon. Just focus on resting for now."
"Actually," she said, her hands fidgeting out of nervousness at her upcoming request, "If it's okay with you, I would like to tour this place."
"This place?" the king asked.
She nodded. Maybe this could help her remember something that could be useful to her.
"Please, it might help jog my memories."
Astoria sensed that the king was hesitant.
"Fine, but make sure that Keya accompanies you. As soon as you start feeling unwell, come back to your room and rest," he said, getting up to leave.
With utter relief, her lips curled into a smile, and she nodded.
"Make sure you watch her closely," he instructed the elf who had entered the room.
"Yes, your highness," she bowed.
He left, and Astoria let out a loud sigh. She began to sum up her predicament with the information she found out.
'So my soul is stuck in this woman's body. This woman is Princess Nexi of the Kingdom of Ashen. Her father is King Aqilus, who happens to be a descendant of the Water Folk. She has the power of the Silver Ocean, whatever that's supposed to mean, and this elf in front of me is Keya, my personal maid?'
"Wait a minute," she said aloud, coming to a realisation.
'If my soul is stuck in this body, then what about this woman's soul? Also, what happened to my body? Does that mean I can never go back to my body, seeing as I have no clue what's happened to my body and this woman's soul? I read novels on soul swaps and the sort, but I never thought it would actually happen to me! I pray that my body was found by someone and that I'm currently at the hospital. However, would my body be safe from Cosmo X even if that were true?'
She softly sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.
"What is it, Princess Nexi?" Keya asked, worried that she was beginning to feel unwell again.
"Oh, um," she snapped back to her new reality.
"We can leave now. I believe that a tour of this place is really needed."
She attempted to get up without the help of Keya and stood beside her. The elf nodded, opened the door, and looked at her.
"Where do you want to go to first?"
Astoria shrugged. Anywhere was fine with her. She just needed to get out of this unfamiliar room.
"How about the throne hall first? It's one of your favourite areas within the palace."
Astoria nodded, and they took about five minutes to get to the throne room. She was not prepared for the sight in front of her.
'I mean, I know that the rooms in palaces are beautiful and well renovated, but this is beyond any throne room I have ever seen. No wonder Keya said it was one of Princess Nexi's favorite areas.'
She scanned the hall, her mouth agape at the structure and beauty, utterly mesmerised. Bulky braziers attached to each of the twelve sandstone columns lit up every part of the throne hall. This radiated a warmth across the hall. There were illustrations of a legendary victory on the domed ceiling, which danced in the flickering light.
One of the men in the illustrations looked like the king. Marble icons looked down upon the wooden floor of the radiant hall. A burgundy rug ran from the throne, down the center, and looped back from the left and right while beautiful winged banners needlework the walls.
Between each banner, there stood several tapers of various sizes, all but a few had been lit and in turn illuminated the wall paintings of powerful creatures and family portraits. She was further mesmerised when she caught sight of an impressive throne carved from what seemed like silver and gold. The throne sat in front of a giant painting of what appeared to be the previous ruler and was adjoined by four impressive seats set for those close to the royal highness.
"Who's the man in the giant painting?"
She pointed to the giant painting which sat behind the throne.
The elf turned in the direction she was pointing at and smiled.
"That was the previous ruler. Your grandfather, Sir Heimdal."
The elf looked proud as she spoke. Astoria placed her hands on her hips as she looked at the throne, covered in symmetrical emblems. Fixed on each of the front legs was a silver flame. The bulky pillows placed on the seats were light silver, and they too had been adorned with emblazoned tuffs.
It was safe to say that in such a throne room, those listening to the king could do so on the plethora of both luxurious and comfortable wooden benches, all of which were diagonally facing the throne. Those who were of higher standing could instead take their seats in the extravagant mezzanines overlooking the throne.
"This place is truly lovely. I can't imagine what this must have cost. I could never afford such luxury," she told Keya.
"Of course you can afford this, Princess Nexi. This kingdom also belongs to you since you are one of the princesses of this kingdom," Keya stated.
"Oh right, you told me I have a sister and brother. Where are they?" she asked her.
"They left for Leararts, the Academy of Sorcery. They have classes to attend today."
"Academy of Sorcery?"
"Yes, you are enrolled there as students. There you all practice magic. You and your siblings are in your final year at the academy, although you three are at different levels."
Astoria twirled a strand of her hair and bit her lip.
'Great. I'm a student, which means I have to learn magic, right? I have to attend this Leararts Academy. This kinda ruffles my feathers a tiny bit. Why is this happening to me?'