章節 32: She Becomes Angry
After the two shook hands, they then wrote and signed a magic binding contract, in which Robin promised to allow Jasmine to accompany her as a companion in return for lessons on magic.
This magic contract would, in future years, be framed and placed in the kingdom's historical museum as an important piece of history.
Business finished, Jasmine called Delia in to witness the contract.
"And, please inform the magicians guild that I shall be out traveling and unavailable starting...in two days?" Jasmine glanced over at Robin to confirm. Robin nodded.
"It seems that the Prince has something important that he needs to take care of, first." Robin added.
"So that slowpoke is the one keeping us back." Jasmine muttered. "Well, let's head to the castle, then! I want to tell my Uncle my decision to accompany you, in person."
"Uncle?" Robin asked, as Delia flew outside to prepare things.
"Didn't I tell you? My uncle is His Highness, King Zephron." Jasmine explained.
Robin's eyes widened. "So that means that you and the Prince are-"
"Yes, we're cousins." Jasmine rubbed her forehead as if she were smoothing invisible wrinkles. "Although we're about as different as cats and dogs, at this point. Just where did the royal bloodline take a wrong turn?"
Delia returned from outside. "Magi Jasmine, your carriage is ready."
"Ah, GOOD! Come and ride in my carriage. We can head straight to the castle this way, without being stopped at every checkpoint."
Jasmine invited, standing up from her chair.
Robin was surprised to see that Jasmine was almost a head smaller than herself. She hadn't seemed that small sitting down.
As they set off for the palace, Delia notified the King that Magi Jasmine was on her way.
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Thus, Prince Christian was finally excused from his writing punishment in lieu of welcoming the approaching guest. He paced back and forth in front of the castle, worried.
"If Jasmine's coming, then it has to be something about me, or about the Hero." He muttered under his breath. Then he jerked a bit.
"That-She didn't turn him into a frog did she!? I know that she was angry, but surely she wouldn't take her anger out on an innocent person, would she?"
The Prince paced back and forth, now worried over the fate of the Hero. As his mood became darker, his face became paler.
Finally, when the carriage pulled up to the steps, Prince Christian looked completely terrified.
And when Jasmine moved to exit the carriage, the whites of his eyes could be seen. He flinched back, and pointed at Jasmine with a panicked squeak.
"Y-you! W-What did you d-do to R-Robin!" he stammered.
Jasmine looked serenely at Christian and her face blossomed into an angelic smile. She had just arrived, and already was having so much fun.
"Robin? Oh yes! I did meet with someone named Robin today. Why, cousin! What's wrong? You look awfully pale! Are you all right?" She teased.
"Whoa! What's going on? Did the demon king declare war already?" Robin asked. She had gotten out of the door on the other side of the carriage and had walked around to where Jasmine and Christian were standing.
"Robin! You're all right! She hasn't done anything to you, has she!?" Christian asked, poking her shoulder to make sure she was really there.
"How rude!" Jasmine huffed, and continued walking into the castle, headed towards the audience hall. She left Christian behind to continue making a spectacle of himself.
"I'm fine." Robin said, surprised at how pale Christian looked.
"There's no way you can be fine!" He denied. "Not after lasting an entire carriage ride with her in there!"
At this point, Robin had enough. "Do you think she does injury to everyone she meets? Face it: the things you experience were a result of your own making!
You were the one to open your mouth. You were the one to anger her. These consequences are yours!
If I were you, I'd think long and hard on how you are going to make things up with her. Why don't you just try and think of this as practice for when you become king? It'll definitely be good experience for you."
At a certain point, Christian began looking at Robin with surprise, then pity, then sadness.
"Robin…" He said, placing his hands on her shoulders. " Who are you and what have you done with Robin!" He shook her shoulders, not believing his own eyes.
"Christian…" A somewhat low voice escaped from her mouth. "If you don't stop this immediately, and remove your hands from me, then I will have no choice but to shoulder throw you. Prince or not, this kind of behaviour is unacceptable!"
"What? What's a shoulder throw?" He asked.
" Three.."
"I'm asking you-"
"Two…"
"What is a shoulder throw?"
"One."
"Wha!"
Robin grabbed Christian's arm and a sharp glint shone in her eyes. Then she quickly spun around and bent over, throwing Christian to the ground in front of the castle guards.
Bending over the now grounded Christian, Robin smirked. "That...is a shoulder throw." She said. The castle guards had their faces turn red from trying to hold back their laughter. Some of the younger ones couldn't help themselves and let out a snicker or two.
"Even if you're not stupid, you should still be able to recognise this, right?" She showed Christian the Hero's Sword strapped to her side.
She sniffed. "I think you should take some time to calm the heck down so that we can have a rational conversation. I have no patience for grown up hysterics." She added cooly.
Then Robin left the bewildered Christian behind on the ground and walked towards the audience hall after Jasmine.
Christian picked himself up off the ground, very confused.
"If that was the real Robin, then how…" His expression lit up. That's it! Jasmine has got to have placed her under a hypnotic spell! That's got to be it!" He took off into the castle, headed for the court magician's office.
The palace guards no longer muffled their laughter as they chuckled amongst themselves.
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Robin walked into the audience hall just as King Zephron and Magi Jasmine were finished speaking.
"Ah, Robin. I heard you're taking my niece with you on your trip?" King Zephron asked.
Robin nodded. "If I want to learn magic properly, I still need to take some time. Since we're in for a long carriage ride, It's a good opportunity to have lessons as we ride. It's much better than a paltry two days of cramming."
"Ahem! I see. I also heard that you had an interesting appendix to the contract you and Jasmine signed. Something about not doing anything that would kill my son?" King Zephron added, an odd expression on his face.
"Ah, that." Robin sighed. "That was something I added to convince Christian to stop being neurotically biased against his cousin. Or at least, to allow for civil conversation between them."
"Biased? How so?" King Zephron asked.
"He can't seem to fathom me arriving in a carriage with Maagi Jasmine unscathed." Robin raised an eyebrow in mild amusement, and shook her head. "He needs to learn how to clean up the messes that he makes. Either that, or find someone who can...where I come from, that sort of person is known as a Public Relations Specialist."
"What kind of specialist is that?" Jasmine asked.
"It's a person who excels in maintaining good relations between his client and the general public, or to specific people-depending on what's necessary." Robin explained. "They're hired to tell the truth, albeit in a way which isn't going to cause scandalous misconceptions like histerical hearsays."
"So you don't hire them to cover up any crimes you may commit?" Jasmine asked.
"No way." Robin smiled. "At least, when employed correctly, they're not supposed to."
At that point, Christian burst into the hallway, panting.
"Christian? What in the world are you doing?" King Zephron asked.
"Rest assured, father. I will save everyone today!" Christian said. Then he pointed at Jasmine and announced.
"I'll reveal your evil schemes before everyone today! You planned to capture the Hero and have him under your hypnotic spell! But that won't work because I have THIS!" Christian splashed the contents of the bottle that he had in his hands all over Robin.
"Hahah! Now your schemes won't work anymore! That was a holy restoration potion. It counteracts all kinds of evil mind magic that could possibly be working on the Hero! Now, Hero, reveal this woman's evil schemes!" Christian smiled triumphantly.
Robin stood there, silently, watching the potion drip down from her hair. She had just taken a bath that day. Annoyance blossomed into frustration. Frustration grew into fury. Robin was like a volcano just waiting to erupt.
"H-hero?" Christian asked, beginning to feel that something was off.
"You know, I honestly tried. I really did." Robin began slowly. "I thought that maybe...just maybe, you could see past the imaginings of your immature self and become someone worthy of my admiration..." She took a step towards Christian. Christian took a step back, feeling somewhat intimidated.
"I convinced Jasmine to try and put the past behind her and to give you another chance..." She took another step. Christian felt frozen in place, shivering under what seemed like an ocean of bloodlust.
"Heck, I even added a clause in the Magic Contract so that she wouldn't threaten to beat you within an inch of your life!" Robin took another step, drawing level with Christian. She looked at him, flames smouldering in her eyes for a moment...then she sighed, and the anger slid away like rain off of glass. She was quiet for a moment, which seemed like an eternity, then finally opened her mouth.
"But...it appears....I was very much mistaken." She then walked quietly out of the room.
"Huh? He wasn't under a spell?" Christian asked. Both King Zephron and Magi Jasmine sighed in exasperation at watching Prince Christian get into even deeper trouble.
"Son, this time, not even I can help you." King Zephron shook his head.
"I wasn't even going to start helping him. He can get into trouble well enough on his own." Jasmine huffed. "No need to drag me into it." Then both King Zephron and Jasmine left the hall to prepare for when the Hero would leave.
"Perhaps it's better if Christian didn't come along?" Jasmine asked Zephron as they left.
Christian stood there in the middle of the hall, an expression of utmost confusion on his face.
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