The Elderien Chronicles

The Royal Party(2)

As usual and as expected, everyone's eyes fell on her.

She took care and calculated steps as she walked into the Hall. The entire hall was silent for a moment as all got transfixed by her beauty.

She could feel the eyes of some of the men undressing her already, some of the women looked at her with admiration but others, like her dear cousin Bianca, were probably killing her over and over in their heads.

She did not care about that. Her eyes roamed the hall and she could see her older brother, Kevin who was standing with a woman and smiling at her.

Then, she noticed a peering eye from the sides and turned to see her eldest brother Richmond, gazing at her with spite.

He was the heir to the throne as tradition demanded for he was the oldest and he was male.

But he felt strongly intimidated by her.

Well, how could he not, when she managed to steal his party for herself?

As it was customary, Miranda proceeded to pay her respects to her father who looked delighted to see her, but frowned when he noticed she was not holding the fan.

Standing by his side were two mages, powerful ones that protected the king. She didn't know why but she suddenly found herself thinking of Alastair at that exact moment, the bastard who shattered her heart sixteen years ago.

As she rejoined the crowd afterward, she stood on her own, not knowing how or where to join the conversation.

Two men approached to proposition her for a dance. She did not accept them. She just stood there like an apple tree, watching all present in the room.

"You should probably dance, princess. Who knows, that way you might finally have a husband."

A voice said behind her and she smiled while turning. Of course, it was Bianca. Only she could dare taunt her that way.

"Bianca. You look well." She said and Bianca scoffed.

"Of course I do, but I must say that I cannot say the same about you..is that a wrinkle I see in your face? My, age is beginning to tell on you Miranda. Don't you think it is time for you to let go of your foolish pride and finally become a part of your rightful place in society"

"I know where I belong."

"No, you do not. You may think you do, but you have no idea."

Bianca said and smiled. She was enjoying that too much and Miranda needed her to go away.

Kevin had seen the little confrontation and was already dashing to her rescue. But she did not need him to handle an insect-like Bianca.

"So, tell me, Bianca, can your husband get his cock up by himself now or does he still require little boys to do so?"

The words stung Bianca like a scorpion.

How did she know?

Bianca's husband had some unconventional practices and since he was a lord over one of the towns under Elderien's umbrella, no one talked about it and even fewer people knew.

Bianca scoffed and left the scene, realizing she had been silenced.

"How did you manage to make her go away?" Kevin asked as he approached, smiling as he did. She sent him a soft smile.

"Well, I just used what I had at my disposal. You look good tonight Kevin. But can you say the same for the soldiers fighting for all of us right now at the border?"

Miranda asked Kevin and his face turned grim. He was her favorite among the brothers and he was also the reasonable one.

"You know I have no other choice but to attend his birthday party. He is our brother and the heir to the throne." Kevin stated.

"But he isn't the king yet. Someone who does not think of his people cannot make a good king. You know this as I do. We have hundreds of our soldiers defending us right now and instead of us joining them and solving this problem once and for all, we are here drinking."

She said and scoffed.

"Is that why you did not bring the fan? That is in defiance of father, you know."

Kevin said and she looked at the king who, at that time was staring at her.

"I know. But that was the only way I could let him know that he was not doing the right thing."

"The Mintovals will never win. We have mages with us."

"Yes, and they have sorcerers. Powerful ones, Kevin."

Kevin sighed.

"What do you suggest we do then, Miranda? Usurp our brother? Steal the throne from him? You know I have no ambition to be king."

"But you would make a fine king. Think of the people you could better their lives. This war seems tense but I am sure there is a way around it and someone like you can do it."

"I do not think you are talking about me, Miranda. I think you want the throne for yourself."

Miranda scoffed when Kevin said the words.

"Don't be ridiculous Kevin. No one can own the throne. At the end of the day, a leader is only a temporary keeper of the seat. You cannot do much still and you will not live forever."

"But can you tell me that you have never thought of yourself as a better candidate for the throne other than our brother? You are diplomatic Miranda. Everyone sees that and agrees to that. We also know that deep down, within you is the heart of a leader. We know you see it too. But this is a matter of the fate of the kingdom and the royal house cannot be divided among itself."

"I understand Kevin. I know."

Kevin said and smiled.

"Good. Now go get yourself, someone, to dance with. That gentleman over there has been gazing at you since you walked into this hall."

Miranda was curious.

She turned around to see that it was Lord Henry Brooks, the oldest son of the Brooks family which was the largest merchant house for silk.

His father was a good friend of the king, and Miranda might have had an infatuation with him when they were younger but that was a long time ago. She did not want anything to do with him anymore.

She was about to decline when she saw her mage walk into the Hall.

The Mage stood somewhere by the chunk of food that was wasted on a large table and Miranda excused herself to see her.

"Do you have anything for me?" She asked the mage who nodded in agreement.

"Yes, princess. There has been a situation in the keep. Apparently, Alastair is back. The entire mages of the keep are looking for him at this moment." The mage, Hela, said.

Miranda could not believe her ears. After Sixteen years? What made him show up? She was also aware of the death penalty that he would face should he ever return. What was his reason?

"Why did he go to the keep? He knew what awaited him there."

"He had brought a young mage for the keep to train, but the Inyens saw her destiny. They knew she would destroy the world but Alastair took her and fled. It seems like he has become truly evil."

Hela said. Something just didn't add up.

"I need you to find him and bring him to me when you do. I must speak with him."

"Yes, Princess."

Hela said and left.

All of a sudden, Miranda lost the little interest she had had in the party. She dashed outside and headed for her room.

A million questions flooded her mind. She wanted Alastair dead for what he did to her but at the same time, she wanted him alive and safe.

She sighed as she opened the door to her chambers but hesitated for a moment when she discovered it was all dark.

Her chambers were never dark, the candles were never snuffed out.

She took careful steps inside, her hand slowly grabbing a sword she hung by the wall.

She unsheathed the sword but when she took the next step, the door suddenly shut itself. She turned for a moment but no one had touched the door. Then the candles suddenly lit up by themselves.

"Hello, Miranda..."

A voice suddenly said to her and her entire body reacted to the voice which she had not expected to hear. There he was, standing before her with a weak smile on his face.

She was angry, she needed answers! So she unsheathed her sword and pointed it toward him.

"Bastard!" She cursed at him.