An Audience with the Princess

Once the ceremony ended, a soldier came to find Laif and whispered a few words. As soon as Laif had heard that the Princess had summoned him to her office, Laif suddenly hesitated.

Now that he knew of Amelia's identity as the Princess, Laif knew that he would have to act carefully towards her. Back in Hase, Laif had worked hard to escape the Palace life until he was allowed to abdicate from the Crown Prince position. He was not willing to return to that constrained life.

However, knowing that there was a possibility that the Princess might be someone from the Healer Tribe, Laif knew that he did not want to avoid her. He was aware that Amelia was someone who was with magic but was never trained. If he did not try to get close to her and teach her how to control her power, Laif was afraid that something bad might happen.

Laif was leaving the Knights' quarter to find the Princess when he heard someone called out his name. When he turned around, Mori stood behind him with a frown.

"Where are you going?" Mori asked. "Aren't you going to join in the festivity now that we are officially elected as the Princess's Royal Knight?"

"I'd like to stay and join the celebration. But the Commander told me to meet me at his office once the ceremony ended." Laif said. "I guess he was about to give me another round of warning now that I am an official Knight."

Mori shrugged. "Well… it's your loss. The princess was kind enough to prepare this royal feast to congratulate us. I guess that when you returned, we have finished all the good food and drink."

Laif shook his head when he noticed Mori's playful smile. He didn't mind about the royal feast. He had enough of good food and wine when he was still the Crown Prince of Hase.

"I'm joking," Mori chuckled. "You go and meet the Commander before he gets angry. Don't worry about food. I'll save something good for you."

"Thank you," Laif nodded. Then, he turned around to head over to the Princess's quarters.

When he arrived, a soldier under the commander was waiting for him. He led Laif into the palace until they arrived at a large, spacious hall. The soldier spoke a few words to a maidservant and Laif was instructed to follow the maidservant to the Princess's office.

His eyes could not stop to wander and memorize the area as he walked along the path. Different than the King's place, the Princess quarters had better light sources.

The maidservant paused as they reached to a room. She knocked at the door and turned to look at Laif for one last time before she retreated.

Seconds after the maidservant left, the door creaked open. Another soldier under the Commander appeared at the door before he ushered Laif to enter the office.

Laif looked up when he noticed that he was being watched. A hint of surprise appeared on his face when he found the Princess stood before him. Swiftly, he lowered his gaze to avoid hers. Then he went down on one knee and placed his right hand on his chest. "Greetings to Your Highness, Princess Amelia. All glory to Noa Kingdom."

The Princess took a step forward to him. She reached her hand to help him up and paused to stop herself. Amelia clenched her hand into a fist as she spoke, "Don't do that. Please. Stand up."

"Thank you for your grace, Your Highness," Laif stood up slowly but he still did not dare to meet her gaze.

"I," Amelia found her words she wanted to say stuck at her throat. She pursed her lips and lowered her gaze. Her fingers were clenching at with her dress. Suddenly, Amelia found that the silence between them was deafening as both of them choose not to speak.

"I," Amelia tried again as she was no longer able to bear the silence and awkwardness. She took a deep breath to calm down and finally spoke. "Congratulation on your appointment as the official Royal Knight."

Laif bowed down his head. "Thank you, Your Highness. I wouldn't be in this position if it weren't for your generosity."

Amelia grimaced at his tone. Suddenly she found that the way he spoke and behave formally towards her was uncomfortable. "Please, Laif. You don't need to be so formal when there are only two of us. You may speak freely as you always did."

"I did not dare to be so impudent and speak to you informally, Your Highness."

"But you always spoke casually to me before."

"Forgive me, Your Highness. Back then, I was not aware of your identity as the Princess." Laif bowed his head lower. "I deserve to be punished for my rude behavior.

"Stop it," Amelia spoke. "Don't apologize. That was not your fault. You didn't know."

"How is this not my fault? It was stupid of me to mistake you as a maidservant when you have clarified your identity as a Princess. Your Highness, I apologize if I have offended you in any way."

"You did not offend me."

"Please Your Highness," Laif continued. "I deserve to be punished for my impudence. I have committed a crime that deserves death. And I—I dared to bring you into the pub and a gambling house."

"Stop. Stop it," Amelia began to shout. Her gaze lingered at him before she looked away with a sigh. "This is not the reason why I asked the Commander to arrange this meeting for me. Laif, I did not summon you to see me so that I can punish you."

Laif lifted his head just for a couple of seconds before he went back to his bowing position. If Kain saw him in this position, Laif was very sure that he would give him an earful for bowing his head. Although he was no longer a Crown Prince, Laif was still a prince of the powerful Hase. It was inappropriate for him to bow his head down to someone else.

But right now, he was not royalty. He was merely a Knight. Before he could accomplish what he came to do, Laif had to protect his identity.

"I should be the one who apologizes," Amelia said. "I did not tell you the truth."

Laif swallowed. "You have spoken to me of your identity when you caught me in your garden, but I chose not to believe in your words."

"How can you believe me at that time? I was dressed in a maidservant's outfit." Her lips suddenly curved into a small smile at the memory. Amelia took a deep breath and spoke again. "Look. Can we both forget about this and accept that we were both at fault? You, for not believing my words, and I, for leading you to believe that I am a maidservant and continuing to deceive you."

Laif's mouth parted as he was about to protest.

"Please," Amelia said before he got the chance to say anything. "I want us to stop apologizing to each other. Can we do that?"

Laif hesitated, then, nodded.

"Good. Now can you please stop bowing down at me? This is making me very uncomfortable," Amelia said. "Please. Raise your head so I can take a good look at you."

Hearing her words, Laif slowly raised his head to meet her gaze.