When the Crown Falls

Chapter 7 - My Name

EMI AINU

The streets were bustling with activity as merchants hawked their wares and locals went about their day.

It had been a week since the meal with the commander and Tenji. For several nights, the thought of the commander haunted me, the warmth of his lips pressed against my knuckles still lingered and thus, I resulted to avoiding him as much as I could.

I was outside the palace walls, roaming the capital dressed in the usual dusty clothes I wore whenever I had to take a breather from the imperial duties or if I wanted to secretly inspect my people’s state.

The sun shone down upon the cobblestone streets and casted a warm glow over the stalls and shops.

A loud voice called out to me out of nowhere and I looked to see it came from an old man. He waved at me to come over to his small stall and I noticed the glistening sweets displayed. His space varied in color, it was as if to make the customers feel the warmth of childhood.

I swept my gaze across the mouth-watering display and noticed a stack of fruits like grapes, a slice of apple, and oranges stuck through a thin wooden stick. I have never seen anything like it. Eating fruits from a stick, it must have been a foreign delicacy. “Pardon me, sir. What is--?” I pointed.

“Ah, you haven’t seen a tanghulu before? You must be a traveller then, lady!” The merchant laughed and handed me a stick. “Tanghulu is a traditional sweet here in Aurelia, it is made by coating fresh fruits in melted sugar. Although barely known, it is delicious!” I stared at the glistening candy in my hand, its shine tempted me to bite it whole, rooting curiosity on how the fruits would taste altogether. “Uhm…how much?”

“That will be five coppers please.”
The sugar is must be what made it surprisingly pricey. Sugar could barely be affordable within the commoners, unlike the palace where it is used in nearly every snacks the nobles eat.

I reached into my pocket and tipped a gold coin on the merchant’s palm.

His eyes widened at me as he nervously complained. “I am very sorry, madam but I do not have any change for a payment this big.”

I stared at him in confusion before smiling upon his remark. “Do not fret, the rest is yours to keep.”

He lowered his head—nearly leveled with the table— and still reached out his hand with the coin rested on his calloused palm. “No, no ma’am. I cannot accept this. You’ve paid me far too much…”

I turned and pointed to another stick instead. “Say, I’ll take one more tanghulu in exchange for you keeping the money.”
His eyes lit up and finally, letting go of the stubbornness, he tucked away the gold coin to give me another stick of the sweetened fruits.

I turned to leave the stall with each tanghulus in my hands, when suddenly, my balance wavers at the impact of colliding with a seemingly tall wall. I stumbled back, almost dropping the sweets. Thankfully, I was steadied again for some fortunate reason. I looked up, ready to apologize to whatever or whoever it was I bumped into.

However, when I took in the sight before me, my breath hitched and a lump formed in my throat. “Careful now. Pardon me for bumping into you.” A man’s voice reached out to grab the words stuck in my throat and say it to me. It was deep, smooth, and apologetic. But also familiar. Commander Seimu…

We froze upon recognizing each other, until the confusion in his eyes eventually led to amusement at the sudden discovery of  my hobby.

“Fancy meeting you here. Don’t you think it’s dangerous to come out here disguised as a commoner, Your Majesty?”