Ignis looked around the Great Hall. Every corner was lit with large candles. The chandeliers were fitted with some kind of magical stones that emitted orange-yellow light.
"Are those fire pearls?" she asked herself.
"So you know about fire pearls? I am impressed" Adrian looked truly surprised.
"Oh! My mother once talked about them" she forgot for a moment that she was walking with the King and felt embarrassed for voicing her thoughts aloud. "But aren't the fire oysters extinct? How were you able to procure such a large quantity?"
"We just asked people here and there" He shrugged. He made no further efforts to explain and Ignis didn't ask. She knew he wouldn't show all his cards in their first meet. Ignis mentally noted to meet the Lumin merchant guild and ask if the Land of Aqua ever queried about the fire oysters. If we are somehow able to mass produce the pearls, the nobles will run to get a hand on it.
Not just the lights in the palace, but curtains, tapestries, crockery, furniture, she was impressed with all the luxury that the palace was adorned with. She remembered how her mother would decorate the castle during any event. Gold, red and brown adorned every corner and the feast was filled with cuisines of various lands. Her chest tightened when she thought about her mother. After she lost her, no one cared to ever decorate the castle. Under her father's rule, the daily cleaning was the most she could ask for. That man wouldn't spend a dime from his treasury on anything, except for himself. Even her step-mother and step-brother were frustrated with his act. But, they never raised their concerns, as angering him would mean losing the chance to get the throne.
After continuously introducing herself to thousands of nobles, Ignis felt hungry. After all, the only break she got today was when they reached the Azure port. Thankfully, Adrian steered her to the dining table.
"Princess, to honor your presence, we have prepared dishes from the Fyre Kingdom. I hope you enjoy it" He pulled out a chair for her and Ignis settled herself.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I am truly honored" She looked at the array of dishes in front of her. Where should I start?
When she was about to take some snacks, Ignis noticed her right hand started shaking. She held her hand with the left one under the table, hoping for the tremor to fade out soon.
"Is nothing to your liking Princess?" Adrian asked her. She looked at his smiling face which quickly frowned when their eyes met.
"N-No, I am just thinking of where to start. Everything looks delicious" she quickly said.
"My Lady, let me get those for you" Domi took her plate and slowly started filling with her favorite food, taking as much time as possible. Ignis smiled at Domi. By the time Domi brought her plate, the tremor faded and she started to eat. She glanced at Adrian who was silently cutting a piece of meat, a frown still on his face.
Did he notice? she sighed. He will know one day or other.
She decided to push these thoughts away for now. I need to know more about his personality.
"Your Majesty, if you do not mind, can I ask you something?" She asked when there was no one around them.
Adrian took a sip of his wine "Of course Princess, you can ask me anything" and added "But I will answer only if I find the questions harmless" he smiled.
She returned her own smile "Fair enough ... I wanted to know if every Royal visitor would get such an exquisite welcome banquet. To be honest, of all the banquets that I have ever attended, this is by far the most luxurious"
"Hmm... We do have a doctrine placed which states the budget for each banquet. But this time, I decided to use my personal treasury along with the budget to welcome you. My intentions were clearly what you just said - to organize the most luxurious banquet you have ever attended."
He lazily put his elbow on the table and rested his chin on the palm "Seeing how fascinated you are, made me extremely happy"
Ignis felt as if he was mocking her by showing his riches. It felt like a message that no matter how much she wants to buy him, he will be quite expensive for her. She liked the challenge.
"Wouldn't you be hurting a few nobles by carelessly emptying your vault" she asked.
"My vault is my property, which I can spend any way I like. I do not touch the budget set for my Kingdom's welfare" he dismissively waved his hand "There is no reason for the Nobles to be upset. Besides, I am the King, who will question me?"
After some more chatting on random topics, the King excused himself to meet other nobles who joined late. She could hear him ask them about the development of their land and the ongoing projects.
The King is as careless as she thought him to be, but certainly, he is not irresponsible. Even though I have already made a really big offer in the letter, I don't think he will trust me to fulfill it. I will need to think and prepare again. She thought to herself.
The banquet concluded with a thanks speech from the King. Later the butler, Albert, and his team escorted the guests to their rooms.
"My Lady, if you don't mind, can I stay in your chamber for tonight?" Domi asked once they entered her chamber. Ignis looked confused "why?"
Domi whispered to her "I don't yet trust the King. I am worried for you".
Ignis glanced at Albert who stiffened. "Very well" then she said to Albert "She will stay in my room for today"
"As you wish My Lady" with that Albert exited out of the room.
Ignis felt her every bone aching as soon as she flopped on the bed. She grimaced.
Domi smiled warmly to the Princess and pulled her hand. "I know you are tired Princess, but you should first bathe and change into something comfortable. After weeks of travelling, I am sure you will sleep like a log" Ignis reluctantly got up and followed Domi to the bathroom.
Sitting in the bath tub, Ignis could feel her muscles loosened. She was dozing off while Domi massaged her hand and feet.
"My Lady?" Domi checked if Ignis was awake. "Hmm?" Ignis opened her eyes.
"Although I don't see any internal beeding, the bruises look bad on the surface. The scars have also not faded much" Ignis turned to see a worried Domi.
"Can you cast more repair magic? I do not want anyone to see these scars" Ignis turned back and hugged her knees.
"I will try my best, but, it will be great if we can meet a healer"
Ignis closed her eyes. I need to quickly convince the King for this alliance before any weird rumor reaches his ears. But to bring him on my side how much can I reveal it to him?