"Ava, tell me, how would you handle fear?"
[Oh... fear? If ever that were to plague me, I would hide you away and keep you safe in secret.]
"Huh? But I was asking..."
[Hehehe... right. You were asking what I would do if I feared something. However, the only thing I am afraid of in this world is to lose you, my dear Isla.]
"Ugh, I was talking about managing my fear of crowds... why are you entrusting me with your public affairs?"
[Oh, I understand now. You fear speaking in front of an audience, do you not?]
"I do."
[Well then, I shall impart you with a valuable tip.]
"A tip?"
[What, were you under the impression that I would refrain from assigning you similar tasks? Young Lady, brace yourself, for you shall appear in public as me, even more so in the future.]
"Ava, I detest it..."
[Hehehe, but enough of that. Here is my advice.]
[Visualize them as mirrors. Look through their eyes and perceive their perspectives as your own. This way, you will feel less fear and better comprehend their viewpoint. Essentially, you will see yourself reflected in them.]
***
CREAK...!
Sebastian saw her walking out of the hall with her chin up, but her eyelids were cast down in natural grace.
No amount of training would let someone reach this level of refined air, and recognizing that quality had been his second nature.
He felt the same thing when he met the fake one. However, her graceful serenity was too perfect; it unnerved him. The woman who was now inside the coffin might be incredibly noble, and her charm matched her countenance, but this person in front of him, the real Ava Cassia, was more human. More flawed yet believable.
Or maybe it was just him reading too much into the gait of a sorrowful young lady who had just lost her beloved sister.
The man offered his hand, but the woman just walked past him. She did not even acknowledge his presence, forcing him to hold his intrigued sneer.
He noticed the blue diamond necklace on her neck. Its shine was exceptional; he thought it was an artificially colored diamond. Maybe it was an object with lots of meanings between them.
Not that it was important for him.
They walked side by side in that corridor until they could hear the crowds in front of the castle courtyard.
The black coffin was carried past them. And only at that moment, the woman stopped walking. It was to honor her sister. After the coffin was brought out of their vision down the corridor, the woman spoke.
"How did she die?"
Sebastian coldly observed the woman in front of him. Her eyes were unwavering, standing still like a clear, calm sea.
"She took the poison," Sebastian answered as if it was not his doing.
"That's the only way to keep her body intact. Or would you prefer her to go a quicker and more painless death, such as decapitation?" he asked coldly.
That was when he saw the pain in her eyes, subtle like a tumultuous storm brewing beneath the surface of dark clouds. She closed her eyes to shut them down.
"Watch your mouth, Sebastian Leodegrance."
He found joy in triggering her wrath.
"Tell me with honesty," the blonde-haired woman said, "The reason you didn't kill my people... was it because of her?"
Sebastian's tilting lips immediately dipped down.
The moment he found out the real Ava Cassia had escaped, he was so furious he almost ordered the Kingdom of Cassiopeia to be burned to dust.
However, that woman... that dead woman offered to quench his thirst for blood.
[You just want to see blood, right? Then let it be mine.]
[I was the one who offered myself to replace the Princess. The people had nothing to do with my plan.]
[The Princess herself almost clawed my hand to order me to run, for she was determined to stay. But I...]
[...I decided to save everyone.]
"That arrogant wench deserved to die," Sebastian said. "Only a delusional woman would be conceited enough to try to pose as someone she wasn't."
This time, Isla would be the one who held her sneer. This man's eyes were so clouded that he couldn't see the light in front of him, for the one he killed was the real one.
Fine by her. It could justify her quest for revenge.
Ava placed her in such comfortable position. Ava planned everything and would be the cause of his demise, with Isla as the tool.
[You are my revenge, Isla. One day, he shall lay bare his blackened heart before you, and at that moment, we shall attain the freedom we seek...]
"Was she executed in front of everyone?" Isla asked then.
"She put on quite a show," Sebastian answered.
Everyone screamed for the Princess' name on the day she died. They didn't even blame 'Ava' for leaving them. They worshipped the Princess even more.
That day, that dead woman screamed to everyone that she offered herself to save the princess from Sebastian. She screamed at how terrible he was, that it was cruel to let the princess marry a monster like him.
And everyone agreed to protect the real princess from him. Thus her action was justified.
"She was quite a crowd whisperer."
Isla glanced at the man, seeing how much of a problem her sister put him in. Even though he was an evil, genocidal tyrant, seeing the people rebel against him because of the words of her sister must be insulting to him.
Then, Isla just needed to continue what her sister had set in stone. Today, she must face the crowd, the game she hated the most.
As the front door of the castle opened, the people fell silent. Seeing her person approaching from the shadow into the morning light instantly gave them hope.
Isla remembered what her sister had said.
[See yourself in them.]
She walked before the altar, up near the coffin, and then in front of her people. Her first public appearance after her escape.
Before everyone could say anything, she slowly, purposefully... kneeled.
Isla, as Ava Cassia... kneeled in front of her people for the very first time in their life.
She put her face up, seeing their horrified face. Her people started sobbing, and more and more started to kneel toward her. Until she opened her mouth.
"I've failed you."
Silence once more.
"I've... saved no one."
In front of her sister's coffin, she kneeled to the people, apologizing for her failure to protect them. But more so, inside her deepest regret was her truth of letting the Princess they all loved so much die silently to save the world.
"This is my fault... to let my people pay for my failure...!"
NO!
PRINCESS AVA!
DON'T CRY!
WE'RE SORRY...!
LET US DIE FOR YOU!
LET'S GO TO WAR!
LONG LIVE AVA CASSIA!
DAMN MONSTER!
YOU WRETCHED DEMON!
LET GO OF OUR PRINCESS!
[Through the artful practice, Isla... harness the power of our people to amplify the resounding echoes of your heart's desires.]
[Keep them steadfastly by your side, and let not their allegiance waver.]
[Empower them to thrive under your rule and elevate their spirits to new heights.]
Basking in her success to rile them into a deeper hatred than what had been planted by her sister, Isla put on another show as she sobbed in front of them.
"My sister... my dear Isla, and I was a fool..." she cried. "For us to be saved, we... we almost..."
DON'T CRY, PRINCESS!
RUN FROM HERE!
WE WILL PROTECT YOU!
Chaos escalated. The Leonis' Army dispatched to the scene started to block the crowd from pushing forward. In anger, they tried to save their Princess, even though they came without weapons and could be beheaded on the spot.
But this wasn't the main purpose Isla was trying to attain.
GRASP!
Someone pulled her arm up, forcing her to stand. Even more, he pulled her until her foot left the ground.
Yes, he was her objective.
Sebastian Leodegrance glared at her in vexation. His jaw clenched, a vein protruding from his temple. His cold and demeaning eyes noticed a triumph in hers.
"You do this on purpose?" he asked. "Like your sister, you possess an innate ability to cause commotions, huh?"
Isla stared back, fearlessly sneering, "Ava Cassia was one to teach her sister how to bite back."
Just like he enjoyed getting on her nerves, she, too, shall enjoy getting on his.