Chapter 5

Hatred!

Loathe!

Sorrow!

Emotions Ian felt strongly wafting off Princess Luxuria in strong waves. These were emotions he no longer felt alien to, instead he felt one with these feelings. First, he had always cursed and bore deep hatred towards the fates and the goddess for bringing him into the world in this shape. It has been a ticket for scorn, mockery, and wicked jokes from the people towards him. Then, he loathed the kingdom of Byra in its entirety because no matter how well he tried to relate with the people, none wanted to associate with him, talk more of holding any conversation with him. Lastly, the unmistakable feeling of sorrow was from deep within because he felt deprived of love, affection and friendship. All he got from people was either from the recess of human sympathy or the sycophantic need for his creative abilities. Though his physique depicted him as deformed, his talents in cobbling preceded him. He was known far and wide as one of the best hands in cobbling around the entire kingdoms of the goddess and beyond.

Staring at the raven-haired beauty standing before him whose face had a fake smile plastered on her ivory face and a large volume of unshed tears trapped within her almond-shaped eyes that bore untold stories. Ian felt bad being one of the reasons she felt this way. He was certain it was his deformed physique that made her feel this way about him. He was still confused himself, about how he ended up as princess Luxuria's betrothed to be, it still eluded him. However, one thing he was certain about was the fact that King Vladimir was not the kind of king to be toyed with. Cruelty. Wickedness. Two qualities that described his personality.

"So, what are we waiting for?" the king startled Ian from his thoughts. "Let's begin!"

The little crowd gathered started clapping their hands in mock anticipation of the engagement. Stepping forward, the king signaled the two maidens who brought forward a gold-plated tray containing a weird-shaped knife stripped in silver. The tray was placed on a stool between Ian and Luxuria.

Clears his throat "Now, according to the tradition of the kingdom of Byra, a royal marriage ceremony must have present an enchanted treasure of the goddess, 'the blade of oaths', which will be used to cement the betrothal rights."

Surprisingly, Luxuria started hearing a strange humming sound as soon as the gold-plated tray that bore the blade of oaths was placed before her. Feeling a strange pull towards the weird object before her, she gasped in shock and stepped back suddenly. This attracted the attention of everyone to her, who began murmuring and making side comments that she could hear.

Ian could only nod his head in sadness because he felt that the princess could not stand the fact that she was getting married to someone like him who was besieged with a hideous appearance and a deformed physique. However, he would not blame the princess Luxuria who had known nothing but grief, agony, and tears since she was born into this kingdom as a princess with cruelty in the guise of King Vladimir as a father. Who would fault her for rejection of him when she was being forced to be betrothed with him? He understood clearly her rejection of him. Moreover, nobody ever wanted to really associate with him, so he got the message.

"What is the meaning of this?" Roared King Vladimir. "What's wrong with you, Princess Luxuria? Did you see a ghost?" he asked princess Luxuria.

"Enough of all these, let's get to the crux of the purpose why we are gathered here today. Now, according to the law of the goddess, a marriage is considered valid when the blade of oaths is used by the couple about to get married when they use the blade to create a slash upon their palms, then their bloodied palms are merged together as one. Yes, it's a blood oath the couple must undergo, the blade of oaths represents the goddess's presence, blessings, and approval. However, there is an exception today, you all must have noticed this is an engagement, not a marriage ceremony, you must be pondering why the blade of oaths should be used for today's ceremony," The king clears his throat, "well, to make my daughter's engagement sacred, I decided to ensure that one of the goddess' treasured symbols will stand in to represent the goddess today."

King Vladimir laughed heartily "On a second thought, I think we should make use of the blade."

Princess Luxuria gaped at her father in shock "Your Highness! Do you know what that means?"

King Vladimir approached her, stroked her chin, and sipped his wine, "Of course, I know what it means, moreover, there's no need to delay the inevitable, is there?" he continued sipping his wine.

As soon as the king implied this, she felt doomed to agony and claustrophobic; then the urgent need for air made her claw at her chest and neck mentally.

"Now," King Vladimir announced, "Let's begin".

Uneasy at the king's proclamation, Ian could not stomach being pushed around by the King anymore, moreover, the look from the princess made him feel guilty to the core. "I have to stop this," he thought to himself.

"Your highness!" Ian stared at the king, interrupting his laughter and surprising everyone that was present at the engagement because they never thought he could speak out loud. Everyone knew Ian as the deformed royal cobbler who only replied in whispers and never spoke at all.

..." I cannot continue with this engagement. I refuse to be a part of it." staring into Princess Luxuria's eyes, he wiped the tears that fell out of his eyes and sighed.

"Even without a word, I can read the pain and despair your eyes reflects. The scorn and mockery you would have to face will be unimaginable if we continue with this farce. All my life, I have only known rejection, pain, scorn, mockery, loathing, and hatred from everyone including my birth parents because of my nature. I have never been happy. However, everyone tends to forget I was born this way and I never chose the body to be born with before I was born. However, misfortune happens and I was born this way. You know one thing I just realized, is the fact that I will also be inhumane like the rest of you if I decide to wed the fair princess Luxuria into this unhappiness I was cursed with. For this cause and with the blade of oaths as a witness, I, Ian Estragon the noble and royal cobbler of the Kingdom of Byra, refused to continue the engagement ceremony with the royal princess Luxuria, firstborn daughter of king Vladimir of the kingdom of Byra."

Princess Luxuria gasped in shock, the whole hall suddenly became quiet and still as a graveyard then, the only noise heard was the king's goblet which the king unconsciously let go of and it fell. The sound of the goblet hitting the floor was heard and echoed through the silent hall. For never in the history of the kingdom of Byra has anyone ever refused the king, nor openly rejected his opinions.

She shook her head in disbelief because she never expected things to go the way they did. Though she was secretly happy, she could not stop the tears that flowed from her eyes because though she has chewed nothing but suffering since she became a princess, Ian has worn it like a cloak permanently since birth, moreover, she could not help but imagine the severity of the pain he would now be made to endure because her dad, the king was one who would never stomach any slight to his name, orders and the kingdom.

Ian picked up the blade of oaths and slashed it across his left palm. Blood. Thick, red, and warm trickled down from his palm to his lean wrist. Drip! Drop! It fell to the floor, staining the white marbled floor with drops of his blood which formed tiny circles beneath his palanquin.

"With the blade as a witness and my blood as an oath, to the goddess, I thee swear." Ian looked at the king, defiant and daring.

The crowd gasped and shifted further away from him, shocked at his audacity. Meanwhile, princess Luxuria was looking at the blade still held by Ian transfixed, without being conscious of her motions she moved slowly towards the blade, oblivious of the people around staring at her and Ian strangely.

King Vladimir, irate at the turn of events, ran towards Ian who smirked as he saw the king coming toward him as though he knew his intentions. With a roar, king Vladimir pierced the sword through his left breast, "you should have never challenged my will!"

Looking up at the king with pain evident in his eyes and a gentle smile on his lips "Thanks for relieving my pain with death." With blood gushing out from his heart in large spurts, Ian forcefully pierced the blade of oaths through his stomach further making the whole place bloody, eliciting gasps from the crowd, a deep grunt from him, princess Luxuria's shouts, and a burst of throaty laughter from the king who was elated to see Ian fall off the palanquin. Dead. Lifeless.

"No! This cannot be happening," Luxuria ran towards Ian's body, she fell due to the slippery texture of blood on the marble floor. Crawling towards his body, weeping profusely, she felt for his pulse to check his heartbeat, but princess Luxuria could not believe what her eyes beheld, Ian's body was cold and lifeless, unable to stomach the gruesome sight before her, she shouted in agony and rage. Despair ate deep into her like a second skin when she reminisced on Ian's words, the realization that the happiness from within the world was never his lot. Likewise, the sorrow his eyes reflected, deep and heartbreaking, and the cruelty of her father, king Vladimir was so uncalled for.

She ran towards king Vladimir with purpose in her strides and anger in her eyes. "Why did you do it?" Why? You are so bad that I'm not surprised that wickedness has already eaten deep into the recess of your heart. I hate you so much with everything in me. You are callous and wicked!"

Laughing so hard with reckless abandon "Self-righteous Luxuria dear. Tell me, a daughter of a wicked man is also called what? Wicked! Now get out of my face and stop being pitiless. Guards! Clean up that bloody mess and you can feed that corpse to the hounds." He walked away from the room without sparing a glance at the princess.