Chapter Three
PRINCESS YANA AND I HAD GOTTEN CLOSE ENOUGH to call each other friends after what happened at the coliseum.
On this day, she’d again stopped by the Bataar Palace with Alfred in tow. He stayed behind to take some archery lessons from Lucas, while Yana and I busied ourselves picking out dresses for the upcoming party.
And honestly, I’m having so much fun!
“Since your eyes are bright green, this shade looks amazing on you, Princess Cecilia. Between the teal from earlier and this dark forest green, I think the one you’re wearing now matches your husband’s eye color better, don’t you think? And if we add this little ornament here…” She clipped a charm onto my waist and then turned me toward the mirror, so I could see my full reflection.
Majaarian dresses were made from a single piece of thin, flowing fabric that draped over one’s body. They were then adorned with golden charms to give them a more glamorous look. And because dance held such a prominent place in their culture, the dresses were designed around how they’d look in motion. Often, they had high slits to allow for better movement, which also meant they showed a lot of skin. But the point wasn’t to be revealing. What was more important was how gracefully you carried yourself.
I twirled around in the feather-light fabric, and the dangling golden ornaments sparkled and jingled like chimes.
“Ooh, it’s gorgeous. Now, how about this necklace and these earrings?” I suggested.
“Well, the earrings are perfect. But if the necklace connects under the bust, it’ll hide your cleavage. Although maybe that’s a good thing. We wouldn’t want to upset that jealous husband of yours.”
Yana sorted through the other accessories spread out across the table, casually honing in on the exact thing that might set off a possessive man. I almost teared up. She really understands my struggle!
“You’re incredible, Princess Yana!” Anna gushed. “Please teach me how to do my makeup, too!”
“I can’t believe you’ve won the favor of our goddess herself!” Kate said. “And how do you think we should style this shoulder drape?”
“Hey,” Elsa chimed in, “where exactly in the bazaar did you find that spicy roasted goose you brought yesterday?”
Putting Anna and Kate’s chaotic comments aside for now, Yana was definitely a woman of strategy if she’d won Elsa over with food.
Even Anna and Kate had begun to rely on her, which proved she was dependable and trustworthy.
When I’d asked my maids for advice on this new friend of mine, who I could talk to about romance, they answered gravely.
“Most women who fall for scumbags are good people. They’re driven by their instincts to nurture and care for them.”
“Yeah, women like that are lucky if they find someone who tugs at those instincts but still treats them like an equal. Then they realize the other guy they’d fallen for was trash all along! If she’s really lucky, though, he might even turn his life around.”
“If she’s lucky…”
They said it twice… That means the odds of things not going well are pretty high.
I gave a solemn nod and reminded myself not to get my hopes up. Just then, Team Divine Beast started clasping their hands and squealing with excitement.
“Operation Rescue Princess Yana from Trash Man and Make Her Fall for Princess Cecilia is a go!” Elsa declared.
“Nice name, Elsa! Although I don’t think Princess Cecilia will want to leave her sadistic scumbag anytime soon,” Barnabash quipped.
“L-Lukie is not a scumbag!” I snapped back at his awful comment, then an ominous black chain shot up from my ring, snaking around him at terrifying speed.
“What the hell is this?! Wait, no… Damn you, Master! Damn you! E-Elsa, don’t touch it!”
I recognized that magic. It was far too heavy and familiar. And the fact that it came from my ring made it obvious who was responsible. Elsa shakily reached out to help Barnabash, but Anna and Kate yanked her back, both of them looking as pale as ghosts.
“Don’t, Elsa! If the ring thinks you’re defying Princess Cecilia too, it’ll swallow you up next!”
“Th-this is that forbidden torture spell Lord Dirk and Lord Alphonse worked on together! They gave up on it because it was too complicated and led to some brutal deaths. But now Prince Lucas is using it?! He’s too cruel!”
Barnabash struggled to return to his dragon form while everyone panicked around him. But even when he forced his right arm to transform, the chains just twisted tighter around him. Thick, red blood oozed out where the chains dug mercilessly into his skin, seeping into their black links while his bones groaned audibly under the strain.
Is the chain giving off heat? As soon as the blood touched it, it immediately evaporated into shimmering smoke, leaving me stunned.
Barnabash cried out in agony. “P-Princess Cecilia! Just tell the ring, ‘I forgive him!’”
“Huh?! U-um, I forgive him!” I shouted into the ring, and then the chains vanished with a flash.
Barnabash collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud, but amazingly, there wasn’t a single wound on him. It was like his ordeal had never happened, like we’d imagined the whole thing.
As I stared at him in disbelief, he lifted his head and muttered an apology through gritted teeth.
“Damn it… It reacts to her emotions. It sucks out mana and blood, then heals you once she forgives you…all just to crush your soul. That sadistic bastard really went all out. I’m sorry for badmouthing your sweetheart, okay?”
Barnabash was the strongest black dragon on the continent, but now he was sobbing on all fours in front of me. Everyone present averted their eyes in sympathy.
I’m sorry, too… For getting so defensive when you called Lucas a scumbag.
I was reeling in terror from my ring’s brand-new feature, but I still had to prepare for the party in a few days with my new friend Princess Yana.
“All right, I think that’s everything. So are we doing it again today?” she asked.
“Yes. Since I finally have the dress, I thought I should try dancing in it. Would you mind watching?” I asked. I gave the bells on my bracelets and anklets a quick shake to check the sound, then stretched out to get ready.
The maids cleared a spot in the middle of the room with astonishing efficiency, and I moved into position. Princess Yana looked out toward the garden, where Lucas and Alfred were practicing archery.
“You didn’t tell him, did you? This could turn out bad,” she said with a tense expression on her face. She was worried about me hiding this from Lucas. Her kindness touched my heart.
“I think this is the most peaceful way to resolve things,” I replied with a smile. But she was frowning so hard that I couldn’t help but let out a nervous laugh.
“I know I’m not one to talk, but if it’s some delusional girl behind this whole mess, that’s her problem. You don’t have to get involved, Princess Cecilia.”
Anna nodded and handed me a dull sword, which had its edges filed down so it couldn’t cut skin. Yana furrowed her brow.
“I completely agree,” Anna said.
“No matter how many warnings people hear,” Kate said, “they never really understand until it actually happens to them.” Both she and Elsa had smug grins on their faces that made Princess Yana blush.
“And when they do mess up,” Elsa added, “Princess Cecilia is always very kind, and before you know it, they’re hers forever!”
“Ugh, you’re all so noisy!” Anna scolded.
I couldn’t help but quirk a smile as I listened to them bickering. Peaceful, playful scenes like this warmed my heart. And that was exactly why I couldn’t back down.
“I don’t have the luxury of letting this go. Most of the noble houses have stopped making moves on Lucas thanks to Princess Yana, so this is the perfect moment for me to take over and keep them in check. He’s a knight, and I want him to only raise his sword against monsters. So if there’s a chance to shut down the humans who’d disturb the peace he’s finally found, I can’t let it slip through my fingers,” I said.
Lucas had continued hunting monsters even here in Majaar. It might’ve started with exterminating the terrifying beastmen, but he’d saved countless lives along the way. And some of those people, including Majaarian nobles, were now scheming to offer him concubines. Even if Lucas didn’t flinch at the idea of hurting people, I’d rather keep him from having to. It was better that way.
I wasn’t going to let anyone call him a monster ever again. His sacred power didn’t exist to crush ignorant people who refused to understand it. That was the one thing I could never allow.
With that decision burning in my chest, I gently drew my blade from its sheath.
As the Hero’s sheath, I didn’t have the power to defeat anyone myself. But still, a sheath had its own kind of strength. It existed to protect the sword as its steadfast ally. I had to prove that I was the Hero’s one true partner.
Even if I was weak, I didn’t want to be someone who just stood idly by, in constant need of his protection. I wanted to be someone who could protect him and heal him.
As I looked down at the sword and sheath, which were made to fit perfectly together, Princess Yana slumped onto the desk with a look of resignation.
“You look so well-behaved, but you’re terrifyingly devoted to him, aren’t you? I can’t believe you’re actually going to perform the Sword Dance. It’s the hardest one in the Majaarian repertoire. No one ever dances it. You really could be the top of the harem,” she said.
“Ha ha. Well, I was a princess candidate for years. I have no intention of letting anyone else be with Lucas,” I said.
I spun around, letting the sash at my waist flutter, and as I lowered myself into a curtsy, it dropped into a perfect circle around me. Then I tipped my head upward, pressing the tip of my sword in my hands against my chest. Anna and Kate rang bells while I closed my eyes and began to move.
The Sword Dance portrayed the story of a maiden who was bewitched by the moonbow spirit, who appeared on moonlit nights.
One night, beneath a full moon, the maiden saw a dreamlike vision in the desert. A rainbow had arched across the dunes, and at its base stood a spirit of otherworldly beauty. The maiden fell in love with the spirit at first sight and begged it to be her lover.