One Of A Kind

King Malon was in the dining hall with Queen Helen. The young King was quite eager to see his sister after hearing out his wife. As such, he ended up staring at the door once in a while.

What suddenly lifted his sister's mood? He was more than curious.

"You doubt me when I told you that she appeared different but look at you. You can't wait to see it," Queen Helen remarked after staring at her husband for a while.

There was an amusing smile on the Queen's face. Her husband won't change. King or not, he was always like a different person whenever his younger sister was concerned but... she finds that as one of his biggest charms. He was like that ever since he was young.

"You told me to see it for myself during dinner," King Malon replied with a slight frown. Then he sat straight before he bends towards his wife. "What do you think make her change? What did she do today?" he asked with curiosity written all over her face.

"I don't know much," Queen Helen replied and added, "I only know that she met someone in the forest."

"In the forest?" Malon Amiel asked with a confused face. "She went there again?"

Queen Helen nodded. "But she looked fine even before she left. She said that she had a business there."

"What business -"

Queen Helen placed her finger on her lips to shut her husband and pointed her chin at the door. "Shh! She's here."

King Malon fell silent and quickly shifted his gaze to the door where his sister appeared. Soon, the Princess took a seat on his left.

The King glanced at his sister for a while and though she didn't say anything, he could sense the easiness aura around her.

When Yara Amiel sensed her brother's gaze on her, she finally shifted her gaze to him. "Do you have something to say, brother?" she simply asked.

"You seems to be in a great mood, Yara," King Malon remarked with a little smile. "Did something happen?"

"There's no such thing," Yara Amiel replied without much thought.

"Whom did you meet today?" King Malon asked. Though he wasn't supposed to ask her, curiosity got the best of the Avarian King.

"I think I have the right to not answer that," the Princess said to her brother with a menacing smile on her face.

King Malon let out a sigh and briefly glanced at his wife who laughed at him. "I think I should take back that promise. Each time when you used that right, the curiosity inside me always threatens to kill me."

"You can't do that," the Princess argued with a pretty stern voice.

"Why? I'm the King."

Princess Yara's lips curved into a playful smile when she heard her brother. "That's why you can't. Don't you remember what Father always taught you? A King should be firm in his words and he shouldn't make an empty promise." She emphasized the last sentence as she glanced at her brother with a victorious smile.

"You should just give up," Queen Helen said to her husband as she shook her head. "You won't be able to win against her." Her words were soon followed by a laughter while the Princess nodded in approval.

Finally, the young King sighed in defeat. "Fine. I won't ask you anymore," he bluntly said.

The Princess smiled sweetly at her brother before she continued with her dinner. Little did she know her brother was still staring at her.

His sister seemed to be getting better and... he was more than happy because of that. For him, her happiness was always his happiness.

The little smile on the King's face slowly faded when one thing crossed his mind.

If only he could take her out from the dark world where she was living...

The wish was not new for the young King. It was the same old wish which he buried deep inside him for years. However, he didn't know what to do to make it happen.

* * *

Prince Karium was standing alone near the Saron Gate where he was supposed to wait for the Lady whose name he didn't even know. He was still wearing the cloak and hid his hair all the time.

He might be known as the God of War but he always live his life with caution ever since he was young and he had already gotten used to it.

When he saw Yara Amiel appearing at a distance, he stared at her with many things crossing his mind.

That woman appeared kind and gentle but... she was the complete opposite. As the Prince of Welahan, many beautiful and elegant ladies had their eyes on him. He never ran out of beautiful ladies vying for his attention and most of them were kind and well-mannered.

That woman whom he met in the Muric Forest was too different. Putting aside her top-notch beauty, she was one of a kind. On the exterior, she appeared kind but she was cruel, she appeared fragile but she was quite tough, she seemed to be elegant and well-mannered but she was the opposite - bold and sharp-tongued.

Somehow, she intrigued him and it made him want to know her more. Asking her to accompany him for a day was never a part of his plan but... it happened.

"You are quite early than I expected," the woman said to her the moment she reached where he was standing. She too was wearing a cloak which covered all her body and her hair. She would glance around once in a while.

Was she afraid of being spotted?

"I came early not to make you wait," Karium quickly replied.

People said that the Prince of Welahan rarely smiled yet here he was, smiling at the mere presence of the woman whom he didn't even know her identity.

"At least you know some manners after making me your tour guide," the Avarian Princess simply said.

Tour guide? If her family and her subordinates knew this, they won't believe it even if she told them a hundred times!

"Don't worry, My Lady. I won't be as shameless as you thought," Karium Maselli said with a subtle smile on his lips. "Shall we go then?"