Once upon a time in Ventralli

The Thief of Hearts

Once upon a time there was a Ventrallan boy called Linno. He was a master in the art of deception. He could make to believe any story to whoever crossed his path. That's why he was a good seller. But also a thief. The unique and beautiful items left for sale in his shop, he got them stealing.

Beyond his ability to deceive, he had no artistic talent and hasn't born with many assets, he just had his shop and that was the only way he knew to survive the day. But he wanted more.

One day he met a beautiful girl who completely captivated him. He helped her when she was a little lost in the market and had fallen to the ground. She was wearing a beautiful tight blue dress, with stones that sparkled in the sunlight. She wore white pearls in her hair and in her exquisite mask that covered her beautiful hazel eyes.

They spent all day together and he found her incredibly lovely. But at the end of the day with great disappointment he learned that she was the princess of Ventralli.

When she went to the palace, Linno was left alone again and sorrow was consuming him. He decided he could no longer complying with what he had, and it was time to go after that little something that he had always wanted.

"Are you sure?" the only friend he had asked.

"It's just she's so... and has a smile that..." he sighed enamored without end any snetence and his friend laughed.

"I can't argue with that."

He nodded and went in search of his new destination. He gathered his things and headed for Yakim. There he met a man and made a deal with him. He gave him a device that would allow to enter the palace and in return, he would ought him a favor.

With what looked like a lamp containing thousands of secrets inside, he managed to pretend to be one of the princes of Yakim. The princess recognized him immediately from their encounter on the market. She was happy because she had spent nights on the balcony, watching the stars and sighing for him, thinking on that boy that was so friendly and had helped her when she was lost, accompanying her and taking care of her. After spending more time together, her father arranged a marriage between them.

The boy couldn't be happier, but also he had a weigh on his conscience. He felt guilty for lying to his future wife and knew that someday she would have to find out. If she did after the wedding, she would feel cheated and end up hating him. But how she wouldn't do it now?, he thought. He found no solution, he had gotten into that mess all by himself. The talent that had so appreciated through all his life would cost him his heart.

Then, the mysterious man came from Yakim, seeking to collect the favor. But what he asked was a price too high to pay: he wanted the princess. Without waiting for an answer, he took her without anyone seeing him or any chance of stop him.

Linno had to tell the king of Ventralli the whole truth, and as angry as the man was, he gave him a chance. If he rescued his daughter, he would forgive him.

The young man agreed and began searching, like every Ventrallan soldier. But he knew how to track someone who was like him, who so wisely used deception for their own benefit. He felt a hint of admiration for the man's talent, but was quickly overshadowed by anger and despair to find the princess.

After days of traveling long distances, he found a piece of blue cloth on the ground. It was part of the princess dress. He was angry thinking about the reasons why it had broken. What he didn't know was that she had ripped a piece, hoping someone will find it and use it to track her on the road.

Linno finally found them in the Mountains, the princess was thinking on a plan to escape, but she was tightly tied and couldn't slip away.

The boy waited and waited until the night came and the man started to enjoy a wine he had brought from Summer. After he drunk a lot, Linno used the distraction to hit him in the head and let him unconscious for long enough to rescue the princess.

"You lied," she accused him. He sighed.

"I didn't know how to tell you the truth," he confessed sheepishly.

"But if you had already stolen my heart."

He gave her a lopsided smile.

"My heart tells me that for the first time it was me who have been stolen."

The girl couldn't resist his charm and smiled back, forgiving his lies.

Linno finished untying her and took all the man's devices, not wanting him to use them again in someone else. Then he tied him in the same place where it had been the girl, because otherwise, he would be gone when the guardsfinally arrived to arrest him.

The boy returned to the palace with the princess and the king was so pleased that he couldn't refuse the request of his daughter. Not only forgave Linno, but also consented marriage between them. The girl was so happy because she would finally get her happily ever after with the thief who had stolen her heart.

Note: I write in Spanish. I made my best to translated it but it's not going to be perfect. It's so easy to read another language, but to write... not so much. You can ask anyone lol. But if you want to read the original in Spanish, it's on my profile. Thanks for being awesome and reading my story!