Prince Orius Aventine.
He was quite a mystery. He seemed indifferent but in reality, he noticed everything.
What was he really like?
Cold but at times, warm. Sometimes, his cold gaze made you felt like you're his nemesis but at other times, he seemed to care about you and your safety.
He was another puzzle.
With many things crossing the Commander's mind, she didn't even know that she was staring at the second Prince for a while now.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong?"
When she was aroused by his questions, there was a subtle smile on Iria's lips. "No, Your Highness. I'm just surprised."
"Surprised?" the Prince asked with a slightly raised brow.
Iria Alewine nodded. "I never expect you to pay attention to such things. In Jerivia, you were indifferent all the time."
"Aren't you the Masked Commander? Everyone knows that the whole kingdom watches you," Orius Aventine simply said and glanced around. "Besides, this is not Jerivia. As we are far away from home, I think it's only natural that we look out for each other. We can survive that way."
Iria narrowed her eyes and thought of what the Prince just said. "You're right," she muttered.
When the Commander's gaze was fixated on the ground, Prince Orius turned to her. He quietly stared at her before he asked, "What does it feel like to be the Commander of the Alewine Army?"
Iria glanced at the second Prince with a confused face. It was unlike the Prince to be interested in other's lives and she was quite taken aback to hear such a question. However, she soon turned away and thought of how to answer him.
"Everything has an advantage and disadvantage. For the former, I gained a family," she replied. "As I don't have any family left, my soldiers are like my family for me."
At her response, Prince Orius secretly squeezed the corner of the bench despite maintaining a calm face. He was always good at keeping himself in check. He might even be the most patient person in this world but... sometimes, it's hard.
pαпᵈα-noνɐ1·сoМ "For the disadvantage, I used to feel the pressure a lot. The high expectations of the people and the King; I'm afraid to let them down. Masked Commander or not, I'm still a human too," Iria Alewine added.
"You followed in your father's footsteps. Is it what you really want?" Prince Orius asked her.
For the third time in the night, Iria was stunned again. Never once did she thought there would come a day when the indifferent second Prince would ask her such a question!
"Apart from my father, no one has ever asked me that question, Your Highness," she muttered.
Everyone thought that it was natural for an only child to follow in her father's footsteps and continue the family legacy. What she really wanted never crossed their minds. She only wished for a quiet and normal life. That's all.
"If I'm to think about just myself... " Iria paused and glanced at her palms after removing the gloves. "These hands will never wield a sword."
Prince Orius brows were slightly raised as he didn't expect such a response. "Are you saying that your father... "
"That's not the case," Iria quickly brushed off what the Prince was trying to say. "My father never forced me in anything. I'm the one who lied to him and say that I wanted to walk down this path."
"Do you regret now?" Orius asked. Sacrificing everything... he didn't think it's worth it. Even if he was blamed for his belief, he had his own reasons and secrets.
"No," Iria Alewine uttered. "Sometimes, I used to wonder what would my life be like if I don't make such a choice. However, whenever I saw the people living in peace with a carefree smile on their faces, I always realized that it's worth the sacrifice."
She paused before she said, "Even if I have to choose again now, my decision will still be the same."
Her response put the Prince in a daze. One question instantly crossed his mind.
Will she feel that way forever?
"It's getting late," he finally said after a while. "We should return to the tent now."
* * *
The fourth day of the annual tournament arrived and thousands of people gathered in the camp again. All the seats around the ground were occupied while jousting took place. As the stage advanced higher and higher, the participants were also filtrated and only a few elites remained now.
Despite the interesting and mind-blowing competition that took place on the ground, the people noticed that the Crown Princess wasn't watching. Her seat on the platform was empty for the whole day. She was always present in the past three days and they wondered why she wasn't here today.
Meanwhile, the woman in question was sitting inside the tent all alone. She had no will to be in a public place for now as the debate on her mind couldn't stop.
Her feelings which she realized last night... scared her. Though she knew that it couldn't change anything and she had no right to change it either, she was scared by how she easily lost control these days.
She finds herself unpredictable.
"Your Highness."
She darted her eyes to the entrance of the tent when she heard Rion's voice. The latter was making his way to her and bowed.
"Prince Orius wants to meet you. He said it's important and he wants you to meet him at the place where you met last night," Rion informed the Commander.
"Alright," Iria Alewine replied and left the tent right away with Rion.
In no time, the two reached the quiet place where the second Prince was waiting for them. When Rion tried to leave...
"You should stay," Prince Orius promptly said. "This is something which the three of us should know."
Rion nodded and waited for the news which the second Prince was talking about. The Commander was curious too.
After maintaining his silence for a while, Prince Orius take out a letter from his pocket and offered it to Iria. "I received this in the morning."
Iria took the letter from the Prince's hands and just from one glimpse, she knew that it was from the King. When she read the contents of the letter, her face turned pale. "No. This can't be true," she murmured.
The letter contained two pieces of news. One was the death of Princess Iria, but the second news was also beyond their expectations.....
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