Realm's Secrets│ The Equilibrium࿐

Chapter IV • The Toast Of Misery

Everyone cheered for the Crowned Princess of Ezquiria, but Allura appeared to be shivering in fear. She doesn't know if being Crown Princess will end well after seeing the vision. She took a deep breath and smiled at the guest. She acted as if she were happy about the announcement. However, her father noticed the sudden change in Allura's face.

"Is everything alright, Allura? You seem to be worrying about something. Do you not want to be crowned as a princess?"

"I do desire to be a princess father, and I'm very delighted about the announcement. I'm just tired; this day has been very exhausting."

"I understand. Go on. Take some rest. I can take it from here. After the banquet, I have other business to attend to.", Her father said this while caressing her hair.

"Alright, I'll return to my room. Have a lovely night, Father.", Allura bowed and left the banquet, leaving the King with his guest.

Allura went upstairs to her room. Her mind is full of questions and doubts about herself. She couldn't stop thinking about the vision.

"The vision is not a coincidence; this is leading me to something else."

She kept thinking non-stop while changing her clothes into her sleeping garments. She looked at herself in the mirror while brushing her dark blue hair. She closed her eyes and gave a deep sigh.

"I must go to the library and look for the secret passage to where the crown is hidden".

She stood up, took off her long black cape, and went outside her room. The banquet ended minutes ago, and there is no one outside the hallway. It's a perfect time for her to sneak out of her room. She swiftly went to the library. The library is pretty huge and has a lot of books in each corner. There are so many books to choose from, including philosophy and history. Poems and chants are also available here, and they are located in the right corner of the library near the stained glass window.

She loves going here to read and investigate her unsolved cases as a lawyer, but she couldn't believe that this place has been hiding something precious. She went to each bookshelf containing a lot of books. She checked every corner, but she couldn't find a possible passage to the crown.

"Where could it possibly be?"

She returned to her room out of desperation. She is quite worn out, and it is becoming late. She decided to continue looking tomorrow. She softly closed her eyes and positioned her head on her plush cushion while facing the opposite side, but something wasn't quite right. She had the impression that she was not alone in the room. Her instinct is telling her it's not what she had believed to be the wind. She cautiously shifted to the other side of the bed and noticed someone standing in the corner with a bow and arrow and aiming for her. She swiftly jumped to her feet, but an arrow still struck her. She yelled, jolting out of her deep slumber.

"It was all just a nightmare", she sighs in relief. She was really afraid of what happened to her in her dreams.

She hadn't slept or taken a nap for hours. For tonight, she stayed up. She doesn't mind as long as she has her books to keep her company tonight. Allura was able to read by candlelight. She appears to be highly intrigued by the book by Vincent Quinox about a wanderer in the Kingdom of Diom. She enjoys reading it after a long day.

Her uncle, Vincent Quinox, is skilled at writing poetry, particularly love poems. His affectionate words for his devoted wife are genuine. He did, however, pass away after falling off a cliff. They left the kingdom after her wife married another man. He wrote these poems as a way to express himself to his wife.

"What a sweet yet tragic story they have. However, their love stays alive within these books and poems. Their love for each other remains a history."

She closed the book and returned it to her bookshelf. As she walked back to her table, she noticed in her reflection that she hadn't taken off her sapphire necklace. This necklace is from Queen Mimosa. It's one of her jewelry pieces. This gemstone symbolizes harmony within the walls of Ezquiria. This was given to her on her 18th birthday. Now that she's twenty-five, she still wears it on every occasion.

Allura took off her necklace and was about to put it in the box when she remembered the note she found earlier. She looked for it and found it inside the box. She slowly opened it, but to her surprise, there was nothing; it was just a piece of paper.

"Huh? Who even puts a piece of paper inside without anything on it?"

She burned the paper in the candlelight after being disappointed. The candle's light turned blue once the paper was burned, and the room burst into whispers. Once the wind reached its peak strength, the glass window was shattered. The doors wouldn't open as Allura tried to flee after becoming frightened. Suddenly, symbols started to appear on her room's walls. The symbols are created from blue fire. Allura is frightened, but the symbols are telling her something.

"It all makes sense now. The symbols were the symbols of each kingdom a long time ago, and this can only be seen in the library, but which one?"

A sudden memory burst into her eyes, revealing Queen Mimosa holding a book bearing the same symbol but with blood spattered across one page where her Majesty had cut her hand. After witnessing the past of Queen Mimosa, she became woozy. She lost her ability to control the sensation and collapsed to the ground.

She fell to the floor, and the markings on the wall vanished like ashes. She has broken glass on the floor, disorganized books, and outside leaves in her room. However, a mysterious stranger wearing a long black cape entered her chamber from the balcony of Allura's room. Symbols can also be seen on his cape. As soon as the stranger pulled out his hand, everything resumed as if nothing had happened.

The stranger saw Allura unconscious on the floor, so he picked her up from the floor and laid her on her bed. He pulled out his hand once again and put it on Allura's head. A golden glow from his hand took all of Allura's memories about tonight. Everything Allura discovered will not be remembered. After taking her memory, the mysterious stranger left like dust.

"It's best if you don't remember anything and live a peaceful life."

Meanwhile, King Eric is inside the library, talking with other rulers from different kingdoms. They were all worried about King Eric's decision to make his daughter the Crown Princess.

"King Erickson, this is a big threat to all of us. Once she wears the cursed crown, she'll be invincible!", Queen Euna of Azrin said with a trembling voice.

"Hear us out, King Eric. The outcome of this matter is dangerous to all of us", the King of Diom, King Benedict, complained.

Other rulers agree with the two of them. However, King Eric has his vision for Allura.

As he fiddled with his wine glass, King Eric said, "Your accusations against my decision are just your fear interfering with you. Allura is like a puppet tied to my hands. Once she is crowned princess, we'll deceive her into doing the ritual. The ritual will help us eliminate the Werqons and destroy their kingdom.

Queen Pia of Reina stated, "But in return, your daughter must give her life."

"She is merely an experiment, and once she sacrifices herself, a new heiress will take up her responsibilities, am I right, Pia? Peace is what matters."

Everyone fell silent because they were terrified to interrupt. Everyone is aware of their history and who the second daughter of King Eric is.

"Let's have a toast..for the greatness of our kingdoms!" For peace!"

"For Peace!"

To be continued...