The moon shone brightly, and the gentle wind blew the flowers and plants. It was just past dinner time. In a large garden, two figures were seated on a large resting stool. From afar, one could not see them as they have put great effort into hiding their presence.
"I am so happy to see you, my princess," the man said in a low and sweet voice. The lady smiled hearing the words of the man. She could not explain it, but every word from this fellow seated close to her always managed to make her happy no matter how sad she was.
" I am happy to see you too; I heard you return from the border at noon," the Princess said. One could tell from her statement that she had been waiting for his presence since noon.
The young man also knew this; a little guilt flashed through his eyes, but he smiled. "my Princess, I wanted to see you the minute I arrived at the royal city, but I had things to take care of. If I will ever become worthy of you, I would have to work hard," he said.
The smile on the Princess's lips vanished when she heard those words. The man was taken aback by her reaction. He broke into a cold sweat; he feared the Princess had seen through him this time. Usually, whenever he mentions working hard in order to be worthy of her, the Princess will become excited. Although she would advise him not to work so much, saying she was willing to wait. He could tell that it made her happy.
"My Princess... What is the matter?" the young man asked. He was already making up different excuses and explanations for his behaviour should the Princess be aware of his secret.
Even after hearing the concern in his voice, the Princess did not dare look at him. She felt guilty about what she was about to do. When the young man saw she was not looking at him and her eyes remained downcast, he panicked. "did I do something wrong?" he had no choice but to ask the question.
When she heard this, she felt sad and shook her head. "you did nothing wrong," she whispered. Her voice was so low that he would not have heard her if the place had not been absolutely quiet. The young man breathed in relief when he heard this.
"then tell me, what is the matter? You know you can share your problems with me, dear Princess," his voice was sweet as ever, but it only stabbed the Princess in her heart. The young man took hold of her hands and tried to reduce the space between them. He would do this any time she was sad to comfort her, but to his surprise, the Princess withdrew her hands and moved away.
"I am sorry to disappoint you, General Ramsey, but there can not be a future for us; you don't need to work so hard," she said in a single breath. She was afraid to lose the courage to say those words if she dared breathe or pause.
After her argument with her father at noon, she had thought things through. She knew that her father loved her and would never force her into doing anything if he had a choice. But, as a princess who has been training as the King's successor, she knew the meaning of responsibility.
It was her duty to make the sacrifice for the people; while going to war may satisfy her selfishness, she knew that many people would die during the war, even if she managed to win the war. If marrying the second prince will bring peace, so be it.
"What do you mean?" Ramsey, who was confident in himself, felt the alarm bells on his head go off. He reached to retake the Princess's hands, but Jessica moved away.
"I thought you said I did not do something wrong; why are you saying this? You promised to wait for me until I was worthy of you," Ramsey appeared like a lamb that had been beaten. He looked at the Princess, aggrieved. His gaze was questioning and hurt.
Jessica could not stand seeing him like that," No, no, you did nothing wrong; I am just too weak to wait for you. This is my fault for being a princess and making things difficult for you," Jessica explained. she was not saying this to comfort him; that was how she felt at that moment.
"no, what do you mean? Did you stop loving me? I thought our love was strong enough to withstand any storm," A tear dropped down Ramsey's cheek as he said this. He pretended not to understand the meaning of the Princess's words. He knew that only by using her emotions would he be able to make her dance to his tone.
" of course, I love you, but what can I do? The royal family of Gousho has asked for a marriage between the two families. As a princess, it is my duty to protect the people. Unfortunately, Dumbi is not strong enough to go against Gousho, and even if we dare, the losses will outweigh the gains, " Jessica explained.
Ramsey took in a deep breath when he heard her explanation. For a moment, he did not know how to react. His family was small, so his father was not present at the King's court earlier, but Ramsey had already heard the rumour about the marriage. What he did not expect was that the King would have told the Princess.
He came that night to get a promise from the Princess not to marry another no matter what. Who knew he would be late. Ramsey got up from his seat suddenly, which startled the Princess.
"it's my fault that you must endure all this pain and suffering. If only I were born into a more noble family. If only I had worked harder and become worthy of you before now, I would already have the King's blessing. But, unfortunately, I am too useless; what is the point of living? " Ramsey paused, looking at the empty space before him.
His last statement scared Jessica; she looked at him and wondered what he meant. "I should just die; there is no point in living," Ramsey seems to have muttered this statement to himself, but he ensured Jessica heard him.
"What nonsense are you saying?" she was frightened that the man would do something stupid.
Ramsey did not answer but started walking away. Jessica unconsciously rose to her feet and ran after him.
"Wait," she said, but Ramsey increased his pace; from how he walked, the Princess could tell he was feeling despair.
"I ask you in the name of the princess to stop," Jessica was scared that the man would dare take his life, so she wanted to ensure that he did not entertain sure thoughts.