Chapter 234 - AFTERSTORY 6: "Obelius Sprucemint And The Runaway Princess-1"

One foggy night, a mysterious huge ship came from the east. On it were foreign people, who dressed very differently, and spoke with a strong accent. They brought with them gemstones which no one had ever seen before, and presented these to King Levi as a friendship offering.

The travelers introduced themselves and said that they came from the Kingdom of Juno. They said that they wished to have a trading relationship with the Kingdom of Destinia.

It has been more than twenty years since the reign of King Levian Silverblade. Because no one used magic anymore, the people focused on enhancing their knowledge and developing their talents. People mastering the arts produced exquisite crafts, like paintings, sculptures, and embroideries. Some of the best products were brought to the other Kingdom.

As time went by, trade flourished. There was an ease of travel between kingdoms. The Kingdom of Juno had far more advanced technology, and their Emperor was kind enough to let Levi's people learn.

Because of the peaceful years, King Levian's and Emperor Renci Huang's friendship grew.

And so, the two kingdom leaders agreed for their children to be married. The Emperor's only son, Prince Weilan, would be tied to King Levian's youngest child and only daughter, Cyrina.

But on the day of the engagement ceremony…

"Guards!!! Princess Cyrina is missing!" one of the maidservants yelled. She only took a quick pass to the bathroom, and when she returned, the princess was nowhere to be found!

The knights and the maidservants panicked. They started searching the castle grounds, but she could not be found.

When they saw Queen Caille rushing towards the princess' chambers, horror struck their faces. For sure they'd be punished by the strict queen!

"It's only thirty minutes before the ceremony will start… Why did you take your eyes away from her?" she balled her fists, trying not to be too mad at them.

Cyrina might look like a demure and quiet girl in public, but Caille knew her daughter too well. She frequently caught her climbing trees and sneaking out to feed the squirrels. She had the adventurer heart that her father Levi had.

The Queen was afraid that one day, her daughter's curiosity about life outside the castle would lead her to running away from her duties as a princess of the Kingdom of Destinia.

Caille went to Levi's chambers to talk to him about it, but he did not react to it and handed over a piece of paper.

"This is…?" Caille glanced at her husband. When she saw him sigh, she opened the folded letter.

It says: "Please don't look for me. Love, Cyrina."

As soon as she read this, Caille instantly crumpled the paper. She was too worried that her only daughter would be out there, exposed to all sorts of danger. Noticing Levi's calm attitude, she lashed out, "How can you be so calm in this situation?!"

"I am not calm, Caille. I am trying to be," King Levian looked straight into Caille's eyes, "A king cannot be too emotional… Don't worry, I will do everything to find her."

Meanwhile, Cyrina had just gotten out of the forest. Her loyal maidservant Ofelia removed the small leaves and twigs on the princess' orange, medium length wig. At a glance, the two seemed to be of the same status because they wore worn out peasant clothes. 

"Fortunately, I have here with me my father's journal. This is where I learned about the secret passage from the Silverblade Castle to Prisma City," the naughty princess said, hugging the old scroll.

"Ah, it is said that Mister Zen Silverblade once used the route to infiltrate the castle during the war," her loyal maidservant said. She then looked at Cyrina worriedly, "Princess, please be well. Please be happy, so that I will have no regrets."

Cyrina patted her shoulder, "You spoke as if you won't ever see me again. I'll just be around… See you when I see you!"

The princess bid goodbye to Ofelia. She walked on the cobblestoned roads of Prisma City, and a big smile came to her face. She was delighted with how colorful it was on foot, compared to when she was on a carriage.

But as her eyes looked around, she did not notice a handsome man with silver-colored, spiky hair in front of her, carrying a large, angel sculpture. Right in front of the Prisma Gallery, Cyrina bumped into him, and the man fell off balance.

Unfortunately, the sculpture flew and it fell in the middle of the road. A horse stomped on it accidentally, creating scratches and marks on its surface.

"What the hell!" the man rushed towards the sculpture. Seeing the damage that it had, he grumpily returned to Cyrina and yelled, "Why aren't you looking at where you were going!? This sculpture was ordered by General Lucius Goldwine! It's a present for the engagement ceremony at the castle… How can you replace this, huh?!"

But Cyrina only stared at the man's striking, crimson red irises. "Such beautiful eyes… Like rubies…" she murmured, not hearing any of his complaints.

Seeing her in a daze, the silverhead raised his brow. "You… I've never seen you here before. Are you a city visitor?"

"I… I am," Cyrina replied. She then took her coin pouch and gave him gold coins, "This is enough compensation, right?"

"Hell no. Your coins won't replace the beauty of my work! Ugh, how would I explain this to uncle Lucius…"

"Obelius, why don't you go back to Greensteid and redo the sculpture?" a middle-aged woman said. Beside her was a black tiger, who looked curiously at them.

"But Madame Martina, it might take a week or two."

"Still, it's better than nothing, right?" the expert sculptor Martina Ginterdame told her apprentice, "You may borrow my carriage… Say hi to your parents for me!"

With the instruction, Obelius left the damaged sculpture in the Prisma Gallery, and rode Martina's carriage. But he did not expect someone to forcefully come inside with him.

"What the heck? Why are you here?" Obelius said, crossing his arms as he leaned on the backrest of the seat.

"You said that my gold coins will never replace your work, right? Then… I shall be your assistant from now on!"

Obelius raised his brow on the energetic orangehead, "You will only cause trouble for me."

"You're underestimating me. You know, I am the great inventor Zen Silverblade's apprentice, so I know many technologies-"

"How will that help me with carving, huh? Unless you know how to cook."

"I… I can cook!"

Obelius did not believe her when he noticed her eyes turning away. "You seem to be someone who does not have any experience in anything."

"Excuse me, I am the great inventor's apprentice! I can even explain to you the whole process of how to assemble a wheeled cannon!"

While the trip proceeded, all that Cyrina did was talk and talk about the inventions of her father's cousin. Obelius listened to her quietly, narrowing his eyes on her. He's not sure if he's going to believe her or not! 

When they were almost at the border, Cyrina widened her eyes when she realized something. "I… I do not have an identification scroll!"

"What?! How can such a person have none?" he became more and more suspicious of her. With that, Obelius slowly took out a knife from his belt. He pointed it towards her, "I never expected I'd use my father's gift today-"

"No, no, I'm not a bad person!" Cyrina pleaded. She crawled towards Obelius's foot and touched it, "I have to get out of the Land of Rosaria! Please, kind sir, I have my reasons!"

Obelius' stone heart still wouldn't budge out of mercy, "And what kind of reason is that?"

"I… I don't want to be married to a man I don't love!"

For Cyrina, it was only a lame excuse. She just wanted to be free from the life of a princess.

But her statement moved the heavy boulder in Obelius' heart which hid his compassion. 

It was because Obelius had been hearing his parents' love story since he was a teenager. His mother Ivory always tells him that marriage should be taken seriously, and that love should not be forced.

"Fine, I'll help you… So go sit down and be quiet when we approach the border guards."

Cyrina nodded at him, and so she stayed quiet as she was told.

When the border guards checked on them, Obelius gave a wide smile, "How are you, sires?"

"Ah, Obelius! My wife loves the rocking chair," the guard said in a happy tone.. His smile slightly faded when he took a peek inside the carriage. "Who is this…?"