Crowned Prince | hendery

1: Gathering of the Lands

Cunning, charming and the center of the night.

That was how they would describe Moon Taeha's bright red ball gown, in the middle of plainly colored clothing. She was the embodiment of elegance and grace, not one hair or lace out of place. There was no one better to be put center stage, but her. Just as it was when she entered the room, alone, strong and independent. There was no better place than walking through that door with her bright red dress and unlike all of her peers, greeting the people alone in one of the biggest events of the year.

The gathering of the lands was an annual ball hosted by the 5 royal families of the continent. These families rarely held balls, rarely threw parties and rarely had this amount of people roaming around their grounds, that was why this was such a prestigious ball. At this time of year, everyone who rarely walked these halls would take out their best dresses and flaunt it. Flaunting of wealth and fortune, that was all these balls were now. Long gone was its initial initiative to unite the kingdoms that sat beside one another.

There was no one else who was enjoying this night of extravagance more than the lady at the center of attention. This was her forte, her battle grounds, she walked up to potential suitors, ladies from various lands to hear of rumors and stories that went around in their side of the kingdom.

"Rumor has been going around, your highness," Duchess Jung of the kingdom of Feliz lowers her voice and leans towards the princess. The duchess was merely 20, yet was carrying the child of the Duke, she was a few years younger than the still unwed princess. "Of how count Dong has been looking for a wife," she talks of the famous good looking count from the kingdom of Hwei.

"Is he?" Even the princess's ears perk at the news. There weren't a lot of good looking guys in the marriage market, thus it was an interesting thing to hear when men like them were set to look for a wife. Though, marriage was still off her plate.

"The count of Hwei and my husband have long been friends, since they were in the academy of Maha'ali."

"There is no source more trusted than your husband when it comes to that private count." She nods her head as she turns to the side in order to call over a server to offer her some drinks.

Taeha, as she was the epitome of elegance and grace, turns her head ever so slowly. Her head looks over, but stops as she spots a man quietly standing in the corner.

If rarity in good looks were a thing among nobles, there was a group of siblings that do not fall under this category. Aside from the royal siblings in Feliz, Hwei was known to be a hub for young handsome eligible bachelors. All born from pure noble bloods, there was no denying how powerful and important each of the men in Hwei was. The man she was looking at directly was the crowned prince of Hwei, born from the king and queen himself, he was royalty down to the tip of his toes. The crowned prince was known to be rather quiet, nearly out of the social life, rarely attending balls and showing himself to the noble crowd. Just as his striking white and blue attire stood in the corner, it was nearly impossible for heads not to turn towards him due to being such a rare sight in these events.

"One glass of champagne," she tells one of the servers, who was standing a few tables away from her.

Just as her head turned towards the direction of the server. Talking among noble men were two more bachelors from the kingdom of Hwei. Standing tall among the crowd was the eldest of the bunch, who arrived late into the royal family. His was a face most popular with lines of women asking to be wed to him, it was a rather interesting sight to see that he was being pursued rather than the other way around. Standing right beside him was a man much softer in looks, but was a beauty nonetheless in comparison to his brother. He was known to have much more gentle features than the two of his brothers, as others would note that this may come from his mother rather than his father. Just as the eldest was a late addition to the royal family and so was the youngest, born into a different kingdom and raised in one, his birth and addition to the royal family in Hwei was still a political topic that the leaders of Hwei and Feliz avoided.