Chương 3: Stop crying, Princess

"The butterfly shuddered lying on the sidewalk. The man picked it up to his palms. It was locked in a desperate struggle to free itself from its cocoon..."

"Cough..."

Esme stood up from the shabby bed as she looked at her younger brother, "Are you feeling unwell?"

Arlan opened his mouth to speak but he ended up coughing once again.

Esme hurriedly pressed the back of her hand on his forehead, "It's burning."

Just as she turned around to leave, Arlan grabbed her hand, "W-What happened to the butterfly?"

Esme paused, "Nothing much. After a long period of torment and pain, it freed itself from its cocoon." She wasn't good at storytelling but since he insisted, she told him whatever came to her mind, "Close your eyes. I'll go get some herbs for you."

With that, she stepped out of the small room and glanced around the shabby hut, looking for her Aunt.

Escaping the Castle was not easy for them and especially with her Aunt losing her powers, they could have been caught any moment if not for the help they received in that crucial moment.

Hearing some noises near the front, she walked towards the half-broken window.

Standing on her tiptoes, she put her hands on the windowsill and glanced at both the people standing under a tree outside the hut. The heavy rainfall has stopped by now.

The man standing beside her Aunt was the person who picked them up in his carriage just a moment before the King's men could catch up to them.

She recognized the tall, handsome man as her soon-to-be uncle too.

Unaware of her niece's presence, Marlene tilted her head to look at the man standing in front of her. Her gaze focused on his deep eyes for a moment before she lowered her gaze and bowed, "I don't know how to repay Duke Elias for lending us a helping hand."

"Marlene, do you have to be so formal? You are my fiancee. We are going to get married-"

"It was a political marriage so I shouldn't drop the formalities," Marlene hid her hand inside her layered gown.

"Was?" Elias narrowed his eyes at the young woman who had her hazel eyes shining in determination.

He raised his hand towards her face but she took a step back before he could touch her.

"We should end it here."

The man's fingers curled into a fist, "Is it because of your brother? I'll talk to -"

"You're the duke and I, as the duchess won't bear you any children," Marlene interrupted him.

"What do you mean?" Elias glanced at her, lost for words.

"I have Arlan and Esme to look after. They won't accept a woman who can't give them a heir."

He knew the 'they' she was referring to was his family, "They don't have to. I'll accept Princess Esmeray and Prince Arlan-I'll look after them like they are my own. You are just 21 and I'm 24, we have a long life ahead of us to think of our child."

"I have nothing to do with the King anymore. He is no longer my brother. I don't want to be tied with all this anymore," Marlene's eyes remained indifferent, "I'm leaving the lands of Nevesray."

"Will you bother to elaborate on what exactly happened?" Elias's voice went a pitch higher as he grabbed the woman's shoulder.

But there was no reply.

He nodded, "You've decided about this? What about me?"

"As I said, it was just a political marriage I wasn't willing to be tied in," She took a brief pause as she bowed slightly, "It was once again an honor to be engaged to His Grace Duke Elias for four years."

The man's face turned cold, "Was it nothing more than a political marriage to you?"

"No," It did not take long for her to answer his question.

A mocking smile appeared on his face, "Our Princess is heartless," The man bowed slightly, "I'll send a carriage to this place so that you can go wherever you want to."

Her eyes widened, "You don't need to."

"Take it as compensation for not breaking our engagement earlier," The man's dark eyes flickered as he glanced at her emotionless face under the mild rain, "I'll take my leave, Your Highness."

And just like that, he was gone.

Marlene stood there looking at his retreating back and as soon as he was out of her sight, her legs lost strength as she fell on the ground, the dirty mud splashed on her, soiling her exquisite gown but she buried her face in her knees and soon soft sobs sounded in the vast forest.

The small droplets of rain gradually turned larger and fiercer but the woman did not move from her place.

Tears rolled down Esme's eyes as she looked at the woman. If she hadn't seen her Aunt who disliked needlework making a handkerchief for Duke Elias, then she might have believed her words too.

She clutched her gown in her hand and ran as fast as she could.

"If it was not because of us, then she wouldn't have to suffer like this..." Her innocent whisper was lost in the heavy rain that seemed to be showing no signs of stopping, just like her gradually increasing tears.

"Ahh..." She tripped on her long nightgown and her hand grazed past the thorny bushes as she fell to the ground.

The big droplets hit her face as sat there holding her hand.

Blood oozed from her soft palm as her tears flowed down her cheeks landing on the blood that was washed away by the heavy rain.

A soft glow encased her as those teardrops rolling down her cheeks turned into small pearls as they landed on her red gown.

Her sobs gradually diminished as she picked one pearl from her lap and looked it curiously, left with astonishment.

The rain curtailed as she sat on the ground holding a few pearls in her palm.

"You should not cry, Princess."

That soft low voice had the hair on the back of her neck stand.

Did the King send someone to catch her?

Despite anything, she got to her feet first, her grip loosened and the small pearls slipped off her palm. She tried to act calm but her trembling fingers betrayed her facade.

Esme slowly turned around, "You are....?" Her voice remained cautious as she looked at the copper-skinned woman who was standing there wearing a strange silver attire donned on her body that revealed her small waist.

The young woman walked closer to her and Esme took a step back causing her to pause in her tracks, "I am Ruby."

"Ruby?" Esme tilted her head to the side, "Do I know you?"

"You don't but I have been there with you since I was five and you were just born," The woman answered looking at the girl eyeing her doubtfully, "I am your protector."

"Pr-Protector?" Esme's eyes widened. Why would she have one? She didn't remember anything like that, "Did you get the wrong person? I have never seen you before."

"I have never shown myself," Ruby walked towards the girl who did not retreat this time, "The day you fell in the pond two six months ago, I had saved you."

She remembered. Just the moment when she felt like she couldn't breathe, she was out of the water but when she looked around, there was no one. "Are you there with me all this time?"

"No, but I'll be there when you call for me or when you're dying," The woman's long black hair swept past her slithering body, "So, you should stop crying, Princess. Lest you cause a flood."

"C-Cause a flood? Who are you? How can you come and go as you wish?" Esme has never once seen someone so mystifying.

The woman's eyes narrowed slightly, "That's too much for me to answer. I'll be there when you call for me. Just don't cry," And in the next moment, she disappeared in thin air, leaving Esme standing there in disbelief.

'Am I dreaming?' The little girl couldn't help but wonder. Everything that happened today seemed so surreal.

Blinking, she looked at the place she was standing in. It was the middle of nowhere in the vast forest.

Why did she run away in the first place? Her Aunt must be worried. The realization came a little late.

She could hear the sound of a waterfall nearby as the downpour reduced.

"Aunt Ruby, can you show me the way?" Left with no choice, Esme could only try that.

"Sister," The eerily soft voice swept past her ears making the hair on her whole body stand.

She rubbed her hands only to realize that the blood from her hand has disappeared.

Just as she opened her mouth to ask something, she heard some rustling sounds behind the trees.

Holding her damp gown that clung to her body, she tiptoed towards the tree.

It was a big forest and she wondered if there were hunters nearby. If they saw her, will they slaughter her? She gulped and hid behind the tree before peeking her head out.

And the sight that she witnessed made her gasp. More than twenty large men were standing near the cliff with their weapons drawn at a young boy whose back was facing towards her.

All she could see was his ebony short hair and his ordinary clothes as he stood straight right in front of the men without flinching.

'He is brave,' She thought to herself. If it had been her, she would have run away the moment she faced something like this.

Just like what she is going to do right now before they see her here.

She turned around to leave.

"A weak boy like you shouldn't look at us like that."

Esme stopped in her tracks as she heard the gruff voice.

She turned around once again only to find the tip of the sword pointed at the boy's neck.

Her fingers trembled. Weren't they all alone like this with no one there to stand up for them some time ago? But, her Aunt did not give up till the last moment. Despite all the risks, Duke Elias helped them.

Won't she be a coward if she ran away?

"Count the seconds as you die. We will try to make it less painful..."

Esme gulped as she stepped out of her hiding place. She held the trunk of the tree for a moment but as she took another step, her hand fell to her side.

"Y-You are calling him weak, but there are so many of you out to kill him," More she spoke, more the timidness in her voice disappeared, "Aren't you afraid of being laughed at?"

Her beautifully clear voice had a hint of softness penetrating the heavy atmosphere around the cliff, getting everyone's attention.

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