To Escape of Fight Back

Laif pulled at the reins to slow the horse once they entered the forest and let the horse trotted slowly into the forest. He turned around and breathed a relieved sigh upon finding that no one was following them.

He then looked at the person in his arms. His worry grew as he watched her stayed in silence. At this time, Laif considered asking her about her magic and what she knew of it. However, as he watched her trembling hands, Laif knew that this was not the right time.

"Are you alright?" Laif asked after a brief hesitation.

Amelia snapped out of her trance and opened her eyes.

It was the first time for her to ride a horse. As the wind blew on her face, Amelia had squeezed her eyes shut and her hand gripped on the rein tightly. Her thoughts were filled with the news that Daren had brought back that she did not have time to be frightened.

"Your Highness?"

Upon hearing his voice again, Amelia took a deep breath and nodded. "I-I'm alright."

There was a brief silence between them again before Laif spoke. "Do you have anywhere you would like to go? A place to start searching for your brother?"

This time, she shook her head. She turned her head to him and was surprised upon finding that their face was just inches apart. Quickly, she turned around and stared at her balled fists.

"I didn't even know where my brother disappeared to," she replied. "Daren mentioned that he went to Green Valley, but that place is too far from here. I was not planning to go over there to find my brother. But... I just thought that I need to get out of the palace."

"Alright," Laif answered. He suddenly dismounted the horse, causing the princess to panic for a while.

"What are you doing?" Her grip on the reins tightened.

"Relax," he took the rein to lead the horse and smiled at her. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm giving you some space. Don't worry. I won't let you fall."

Amelia watched him warily.

After a few minutes, the Princess began to lower her guard. As the horse trotted slowly, she began to enjoy the scenery around her. Looking at the trees around her, and feeling the gentle wind touching her skins, Amelia soon was preoccupied with her thoughts.

Laif glanced occasionally at the Princess to check on her. He began to panic as he caught her dabbing at her tears with the sleeves. He noticed that her eyes and nose were red and knew that she must have been crying quietly throughout their ride.

"Can you help me off?" Amelia spoke up as they reached a small stream.

Laif nodded. He offered his hand and helped the princess to dismount the horse. Then, he fed the horse with treats that he found in the sack, and let the horse to the stream for freshwater.

"I'm sorry that you have to see me like this," Amelia spoke as she watched the man look after the horse.

"It's alright," Laif assured her. He took a small flask and walked over to the stream. Once he was convinced that the water is clean, he handed the flask to the princess. "Drink this. You must be thirsty."

"Thank you." She took a sip and realized how thirsty she was when it took her a few seconds to empty the flask. Amelia handed the empty flask to him and watched as he walked over to the stream to refill it. "Why are you doing this?"

Laif looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"You do know that you're going to get into trouble for this," Amelia said. "A lot of people saw us went out. The stable masters, the palace guards..."

Laif pondered for a moment. "I know. But I also know that you need to get away from the palace, or it will drive you crazy. You need a change of air to clear your mind, Your Highness. The palace is a very large place, but it can sometimes suffocate you." He watched her leaned against a tree. "Are you alright now?"

She forced a smile. "No. Not really. But I have to be alright."

"What are you planning to do now?"

"I," Amelia paused and suddenly did not know what she wanted to do.

Right now, she was just too sad with the news of her brother's passing in such a horrific way.

A bold idea appeared on her mind.

Amelia thought about leaving Noa Kingdom, but she knew that once she left, she can never return to the palace.

The thought of leaving everything that her parents, her ancestor had protected up till now sadden her. She loved this Kingdom. It was the place where she was born and grew up.

"I'm not planning to give up, you know. I love it here. I was upset when the nobles wanted me to announce my brother as dead even though they have no proof. But now that they have a body and his crest, it's different, you know." Her gaze darted to the ground under her feet. She took a deep breath and stared back at the man. "I don't think that I can accept it. If I tell you that I wouldn't believe that my brother's death, would you think I'm crazy?"

Laif stiffened for a second and then relaxed. He thought about his visit to the morgue earlier and his suspicions. Suddenly, he wondered what will be the Princess's reaction if he shared his thought.

However, he did not want to give her hope. He did not know what had happened to the King. If the Princess believed that he was alive after listening to his words and soon found that her brother was really dead, then she would be devastated.

Amelia gave him a faint smile when Laif did not reply. "He promised me that he would return. Do you think I'm mad for holding on to his promise although the others are preparing for his funeral?"

His gaze softened as he watched her. Laif wished that he could put his arms around her to comfort her. But with how he was now, with his identity right now, there was no way that he could do that.

"Can I be bold and say something to you?" Laif asked.

Amelia watched him and saw the serious look on his face. She wondered if he was going to tell her to embrace reality and accept the fact that her brother was gone.

Hesitantly, she nodded. "Go on."

"Your Highness, you need to secure your position as the legitimate ruler of Noa Kingdom. With the news of the king passing, your enemy will take advantage of this situation. Even right now, the nobles are having a discussion to appoint the next ruler of Noa Kingdom."

Amelia turned to her guard in surprise.

This was not what she was expected to hear from him.

She knew that with the news of her brother passing, the nobles will hold a meeting to appoint the next ruler, but she hadn't expected it to be this soon.

It hasn't been a day since they learned the news! How can the nobles do this?

The Princess clenched and unclenched her fist. "How? How am I supposed to secure my position? Even though I'm royalty, I am merely a girl. A woman ruling a country is unheard of. It was hard enough for me to rule this kingdom in my brother's stead. The nobles will oppose me."

"Just because you're a woman, it does not mean that you cannot rule the country. Correct me if I'm wrong, but there was no such law in Noa Kingdom, right?"

Amelia stared at him and nodded slowly. "No."

"Just because there is no precedent, it does not mean that you cannot rule the country. There are other countries in the Eastern Continents with women as their rulers. If they can be the ruler, why can't you?" Laif said. "Your Highness, don't forget that there are others who are still around to support you. If you cannot have faith in yourself, then, you have to have faith in them. Trust them that they will help you and protect you."

Amelia pondered for a moment. Then, she shook her head. "It won't be easy."

"I know. Unless if the king decided to rise from dead, this is the only way you can survive and protect this Kingdom. Your Highness, your life will always be in danger if you did not become the ruler. Your enemy will do anything to get rid of you even if you have no power."

Her eyes widened as she continued to listen to him. Somehow, she knew that Laif was right. She would be in danger even if she did not become the ruler. Her enemy would want to get rid of her just because she has become a threat.

"Right now, you have two choices: to escape here or to fight back," Laif said. He took a step forward to her. "I can help you to escape if that is what you choose, but I have to warn you that escaping is not an easy path. But if you decided to fight back, as your knight, I will protect you and help you to fight against your enemy."