The Crown
"Why do I have to wear these heavy clothes?" I whine, "They are suffocating me." I complain as I rustle with my heavy blue cloak.
"Your Highness mind your demeanor." Edward chides, "We will be entering the royal ballroom now. Everyone is waiting for your arrival."
"How many people are in there?" I ask randomly since I couldn't care less about the information but the answer has got my brows jumping up to my forehead and my heart giving a loud thud.
"Around three thousand," Edward says blandly.
"You are freaking serious?!" I exclaim.
"Your Royal Highness!" Edward rebukes, "Where did you learn to curse from?!" His eyes widen in horror.
I bite my tongue lightly, "Sorry, sorry it slipped."
"Your Highness, The great emperor will not be happy to see this development," Edward informs grimly.
"Who is gonna give him my updates?" I cheekily grin.
He sighs, "Your Highness, so do you know that I cannot always go along with these bad habits of yours."
"I don't care." I shrug, "Who wants to be the ruler anyway? I don't. Just thinking of sitting on the throne wearing that heavy crown scares me."
Edward's eyes widened once again in shock, "Your Royal Highness!" He exclaims and then whips his head around to spot any soul hoovering in the hallway. He breathes in relief when he spots not a single bug, "Your Highness, please mind what you say. Even the walls have ears. It will be a great problem if anyone hears us."
"There is no one you are just being paranoid." Just then a loud thud echoes through the entire hallway, and then there is an ear-piercing glass-shattering noise.
We jump and snap around. A broken vase lies there water splattered all over the place. It's a total mess there. But this is not what that is concerning me. The thing is, "Someone was there." Edward takes in a sharp breath, he is on high alert right now.
"Someone infiltrated the palace?" I wonder out loud.
"There is a slim chance of that but not entirely impossible." Edward concludes, "Your Royal Highness, please go on ahead to the party. I am afraid I might need to double-check the security formation. I will join you shortly."
"Okay." I shake my head in acknowledgment then spin around on my boots and march gracefully toward the large double door of the ballroom.
The guards standing in front of the door bow to me and open the door without lifting their heads. Sometimes I really enjoy the gesture and sometimes I don't. Just like now. I am trying my best not to let my lips form a scowl as I step into the room where tonight my long-awaited fate will showcase itself.
The room is huge. Three huge chandeliers adore the high celling. The one in the middle is the largest and the other two are a bit smaller. At the end of the room, there sits two thrones, one for the empress and the other for the king. People are scattered all over the room and foods are arranged in large tables in the corner of the room. The smell of alcohol, perfume, and food is making my stomach scrunch.
Everyone. Every single people's attention is now turned to me. As I said I have the most handsome fuck-me place in the entire continent or as my friend says. And I would be lying if I said I didn't buy it.
-"Oh look at him! Isn't he the royal crown prince?!"
-"My, my, look at him! How can a person be this beautiful?!"
I know that I am beautiful. Thank you.
I mock internally because there is no denying that fact. My long white-blond hair, crystal blue eyes, and cherry red lips with milky white skin tone, not to mention the masculine build that every man desires. A mixture made in heaven. Just one of them is enough to make anyone go crazy over you. Let alone all of them in one. Guess I got lucky.
I don't slow or speed up at their commentary and keep my steps steady as I make my way to the thrones.
"Your Majesty." I bow in courtesy before them.
"You may raise your head." My father a.k.a. The emperor orders and I raise my head and straighten up.
"Congratulations, my son." The emperor regards me with a smiling face.
People say that I am the carbon copy of my father but my mother says that I am way more gorgeous than him. And I don't really see the otherwise.
"Happy birthday, Lush." My mother exclaims happily, "Come here, let your mother give her blessings."
I smile and approach her. She strokes my cheek and kisses my forehead. "Are you going to keep my son all to yourself, Ariana?" My father grumbles.
"Let me give my son some affection first." My mother retorts.
The emperor and the empress really like to dote on me and they are not even hesitant to show it in front of the world. What an irony that my other siblings need to think twice before they approach the royal couple.
I almost feel guilty for that. Everyone has too many expectations of me but here I am, too insecure to even touch the crown.
When my parents are done doting on me, I climb down the stage. And wonder where my fiancé has gone off to. She tends to be so clingy that I can barely breathe around here. And now she is nowhere to be seen. It doesn't really ring the bell. Something about this party is fishy.
"What a pleasant evening it is, isn't it brother?" Ash approaches me. "And many many returns of the day dear brother."
"Oh, why thank you." I smile widely.
Ash Von Blade, is the second prince of the Blade empire and the second to the throne. We brothers are particularly the same but a bit different. He has my mother's eyes. Brown. And his build is not as masculine as me. His hair is rather shorter than mine. But I like him. My brother. Just two years younger than me.
My eyes fall over the glass in his hand. Some sort of red substance is flowing on that crystal-clearer glass. "Ash...are you drinking?"
He glances down at his glass and sputters a laugh, "Oh brother, how can I drink? This is just a fruit juice. "
"Oh." I sigh in relief.
In this empire, there is a rule. Anyone under twenty-one years old cannot drink or get married. But so do you know I broke the first rule many days ago. And I feel shame to admit that I don't even regret it. I like alcohol.
"Aren't you gonna drink today?" Ash gestures, "It's your day after all. By the way, where is Lillian? Isn't she supposed to be with you?"
"I suppose so but I can't find her." I glance around. "Where is Lance, Mai, and Heena? Did they not come?"
"What are you talking about brother?" Lance pipes in with a wide grin plastered on his pretty face, "We are here. Sorry for the delay."
"Oh Lance, I really thought you were gonna miss out." I pat his shoulder as he and the other two younger girls approach me.
"How are you, princesses?" I tilt my head a little to match their gaze. Both of them are really pretty but their hair shade is one shade darker than mine and they have my mother's eyes. While Lance has particularly everything from my mother. Her light brown hair and just his eyes are like mine.
I love my siblings. All of them.
"Your Royal Highness!" Edward rushes to me while trying his best not to run, "Your Royal Highness, so this is where you are! I thought I lost you!" Then he notices the other royal siblings and bows to them in courtesy. "Your Highnesses."
"Brother," Heena, the youngest among us, who is only thirteen this year tugs at my vibrant blue cloak, "Are you really getting married?"
"Seem so." I pinch her nose, "Why? Aren't you happy about it?"
"Umm, I_" She gets cut off as a blond head approaches, no, pouches on me.
"Lush!" Lilian giggles and I smile back.
Her smile isn't reaching her eyes. They are not focused on me.
My childhood sweetheart. Lilian Blackwood. Everyone in the kingdom knows that me and Lilian are getting married. It was decided even before we were born. Because there is another rule in this empire that the crown will never accept an unmarried monarch. So to inherit the throne I need to marry this golden head. And I don't actually mind it since this is how I was trained and I have grown attached to her throughout the year. Not that I love her. It's just that I fancy her. There is a difference and I know that there shouldn't be even so I can at least sacrifice this little for the crown even if I don't have any intention to.
This is how it works after all. At least among the royals.
Suddenly the entire hall falls silent as my father rises from the throne, his hands splayed to his sides, "Today is my first son, the future monarch of the throne of the empire of Blade, the crown prince Lush Von Blade's twenty-first birthday. I wish him to have a long and healthy life." Everyone in the room cheers. "And now as I presume everyone in this room already knows that marriage is essential to sit on the throne, I hereby announce his marriage with the daughter of Blackwood, Lillian Blackwood!" The room once again cheers. This time louder.
"May I say something?" Lilian pipes in and I flinch at the abruptness of her entry, her face is void of any emotion and her jaw is clenched, "I don't want to marry Lush."