Chapter 28

“Thank goodness you came in time!”

“Huh? Uh…”

Vaguely answering, Arkin carefully eyed her as she drew closer. The princess approaching with bright, sparkling eyes chuckled once more. Her reddish-brown hair was neatly tied up in two twin tails, and her flushed cheeks were lightly sprinkled with freckles. A total stranger. Completely unacquainted.

“I was worried sick, you know. Did you change your clothes properly? Honestly, I was wondering if I should go over and help you myself.”

What? Arkin’s eyes widened. Why on earth would she need to help him change clothes?

What is wrong with them? The Kepet princess too—why do they all keep acting like this toward him…?

Just as he was standing there dumbfounded, not knowing what to say, she lightly brushed past Arkin, walked right up to Elio standing behind him, and affectionately grabbed Elio’s arm.

“Elio… I’m so glad to see you here.”

It wasn’t him she wanted. Feeling mortified, Arkin quietly bit his lip. His face burned with embarrassment.

“Y-Yeah, Petra.”

As if quite accustomed to her touch, Elio blushed faintly while beaming a smile.

“Arkin helped me out. Even with tying my sandal straps.”

“No wonder I thought that didn’t look like Elio’s handiwork.”

Petra giggled, gave Elio’s arm a playful tap, and then turned her body toward Arkin.

“Right. You must be Prince Arkin of the Kingdom of Solinar, aren’t you?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I saw you standing up front giving the oath earlier. You looked really cool.”

Princess Petra bravely held out her hand to Arkin. Arkin instinctively shook it. He could feel formidable strength and vigor in her firm grip.

“I’m Princess Petra. I came from Stoneguard, the Rock Kingdom.”

She grinned and introduced herself.

“Since they said all participants are equal, I’m going to drop the formal titles. That’s alright, right?”

Petra continued with an easygoing manner.

“Actually, I’ve heard a lot about you. I studied up and did all sorts of research before coming here.”

“…About me?”

“Of course. I’m someone who’s going to become a reigning monarch, after all. I’ve been waiting eagerly for Arkin Seilir, hoping that the friendly relations between Stoneguard and Solinar will continue strong into the future.”

“Ah.”

Arkin could easily picture her thoroughly prepared self confidently wearing a crown. Of course, it was a relief that her diligent and enthusiastic research hadn’t managed to unearth Solinar’s internal strife.

“Well, same here. Let’s get along.”

Arkin smiled faintly. He looked for a moment to steer the conversation away, half-expecting talk of throne succession to pop up properly, but fortunately, Petra changed the subject first.

“Say, did you happen to hear about my relationship with Elio?”

“Not yet…”

“Goodness, Elio! You didn’t tell Arkin about us?”

“Ah, that’s…”

They had barely just met for the first time, so hearing about what, exactly…? Just how sociable were Nephitia and everyone else here, anyway? Arkin was bewildered, but for now, he kept his mouth shut. It felt like territory he shouldn’t meddle in hastily, so he quietly stayed silent.

“W-Well, Petra. My mind was just all over the place…”

Elio’s pale, slender face flushed a brilliant crimson before dropping down low once more. Long, pale eyelashes fluttered from beneath downcast eyelids.

“How could you do that?”

Petra’s brows arched fiercely, and she scolded Elio as if he had committed an unforgivable sin.

“I’m disappointed. Why can’t you proudly tell people in front of everyone that you’re my betrothed?”

She abruptly grabbed Elio by the shoulders and shook him back and forth. The Fog Prince’s frail body swayed precariously in the Rock Princess’s strong grip. He was already a fragile Fog Prince to begin with—what if he fell over and something happened? Arkin hurriedly stepped in to smooth things over.

“A-Ah, no, Petra. My mind was just blank, so I didn’t get to hear it.”

He hadn’t actually heard a single thing, but he felt he needed to do something to rescue Elio.

“R-Right, betrothed, right? I… heard it earlier.”

“Really?”

The Rock Princess’s rampaging hands instantly stopped. Color returned to her face.

“As expected, only Elio gets it. I kept thinking the whole time, what would I do if you didn’t mention me here!”

He had barely managed to avert a crisis. With a satisfied expression, Petra beamed and said they would see each other again later. Then, with a light wave, she returned to the table where she had been sitting, leaving Elio and Arkin to claim a table of their own.

“Thanks, Arkin. Petra can be a bit aggressive. She just likes me a lot…”

Elio whispered with a shy blush.

“Seems that way.”

Arkin replied with a wry smile.

The princesses’ table across the room looked lively enough. Princess Serena of Lakelium, keeping her eyes cast down with a haughty expression, kept her lips tightly sealed, but Petra and two other princesses were chatting away and laughing.

Wait… why are there only four of them?

Arkin, who had been watching without much thought at first, narrowed his eyes sharply.

Sitting across from Petra was the pink-haired princess who had been scattering flower petals—Princess Amalfi of Floria, with floral ornaments tucked here and there. Right beside her was…

Relatively quiet, yet her clear, bright eyes drew attention. It was a black-haired princess wearing a purple robe, clutching a turtle shell to her chest. It was striking how she stared fixedly at Petra with pitch-black pupils, hardly blinking at all. Her slender fingertips were busy tracing back and forth over the turtle shell.

“That must be the princess of Astralia.”

Noticing Arkin’s gaze, Elio quietly chimed in.

“I envy the royalty of that country the most. They say they have the ability to predict the future. People who can peer into the movements of the stars floating in the sky.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. I can’t even see an inch ahead.”

“Elio, but the Kepet princess isn’t here.”

Arkin even craned his neck to check the table where Draconis was sitting. He had hoped against hope, but Nephitia wasn’t there either. Only Draconis and Kaichen sat looking sullen, gazing off in opposite directions.

“Come to think of it, the Iivika prince isn’t here, either.”

At Elio’s casual remark, the corners of Arkin’s eyebrows twitched slightly. Four princesses and four princes. Where on earth could they be?

Creak.

At the sound of a wooden door groaning open, Arkin directed his gaze toward the shadowed hallway. He had assumed it was a narrow passage used by servants, but someone was heavily stomping inside.

“Trainees, sorry I’m late.”

A deep, low voice echoed loudly through the darkness, causing the entire room to fall dead silent. The moment the giant man slowly stepped into the light, the silence immediately turned to fear.

“Is everyone here?”

The priest frowned harshly as he looked around the room. If he hadn’t been wearing the robes of a senior priest, it was a face that would have easily mistaken him for a bandit chieftain.

Curly, ash-gray hair, a hooked nose, a shaggy beard covering the lower half of his face, and a long, thick scar beside his eye… Above all, his fierce, piercing glare gave him such a menacing look that it bordered on terrifying.

“My name is Seneca. I am your supervising priest.”

The man introduced himself in a gruff voice. Not a single trace of the dignity expected of a temple priest could be found. If anything, he was rude and blunt.

“As you’ve all likely heard, you are not princes or princesses of a realm here; you are merely my trainees. Do you understand?”

No one dared to speak up first. Making a clicking sound with his tongue, he furrowed his brow and pulled a piece of parchment from his sleeve.

“Well, let’s see. Let’s check if everyone is here.”

The sleeves of his robe, which fluttered loosely on others, struggled to wrap around his thick forearms—as if the seams might burst open with even the slightest bit of tension.

“Hmm, Arkin of the Kingdom of Solinar. Serena of Lakelium…”

Petra of Stoneguard, the Rock Kingdom; Elio of Veilon, the Fog Kingdom; Draconis of Igninov, the Fire Kingdom; Kaichen of Voltrion, the Lightning Kingdom; Amalfi of Floria, the Floral Kingdom; Stella of Astralia, the Star Kingdom. And the missing ones were…

As Seneca checked faces one by one, his expression twisted fiercely.

“Nephitia of the Kepet Kingdom, and… Zafiri of the Vine Kingdom.”