Eirene ( Fantasy series book 1)

Chapter Four - Kaytherin Castle

Chapter Four – Kaytherin Castle

It was almost six when we approached Kaytherin Castle. By now, John had fed me with so much history of Eirene and her royalties that I felt I had grew up here. The sun was setting but the roads were still visible and I could make out the mountains far away. It was unbelievable that the Eirene town covered such a huge mass of land. We passed by the port earlier as well as the fishing villages along the coast. Really, you could everything you needed here in Eirene.

As we approached a bridge that crossed a huge river that ran within Eirene town, John prompted me to look to my left. As the trees started to clear, I began to make out the silhouette of a very old English looking castle. The castle was fortified with walls surrounding the main castle buildings.  It towered on a small hill, built on the edge of a cliff that ran down to the river. It sat there looking majestic and beautiful, yet giving a serene feel.  The bricked walls and large tower windows reminded me very much of the Hogwarts Castle in Harry Potter minus the forbidding feeling. I made a note to write these down in my report later.

We went through a few winding roads uphill. The trees were swaying lightly and I could no longer see any more houses or farms. After a final turn, I saw a huge garden on the front left of the Castle.  "That's the garden of Gemma," John explained. "During big days or New Year, we love to picnic there!"

The garden was blooming with flowers but it was too dark to make out the species. I imagined how it would look like in winter.

"Talking off which, Prince Alex's twenty-seventh birthday is in two weeks' time. It would be celebration for Eirene," John continued excitedly. "It is tradition for the royals to hold a grand ball every time there's a royal birthday. The whole of Eirene gets a holiday! But it is even more special for celebrating the crown prince's birthday especially this year."

"Why so?" I asked curiously.

"Because he will be anointed King when he turns thirty. It is customary for him to choose his queen before he reaches twenty eight. The King will throw a grand ball to invite all the eligible ladies to present themselves and if the crown prince is interested, they are encouraged to continue from there. The King has been throwing grand balls since Prince Alex hit twenty one but so far there's no one he fancies yet."

"Don't they have a list of candidates that are suitable? Such as royalties from neighbouring countries?"

"Oh! The King does send invitations to all over the world for the royal relatives to come but apparently Prince Alex didn't fancy any. So, the list extends to local Eirene girls now. They are not very particular about whether the girl comes from a peasant village family or some fishermen village, as long as she has a honest background and is willing to take up the responsibilities of being the queen. It is not easy to become the queen, you know."

He continued, "Few years back, there was a girl that came close to being selected but apparently she ran away after hearing the list of responsibilities involved." He chuckled.

"The list of responsibilities?"

"Well, before the wedding, the girl will have to go through some familiarisation courses," he chuckled again. "And she will be brief fully what are the responsibilities, legal concerns and all those royalty stuff. This is also where she can still change her mind. After the vows are taken, she will not be able to back out. Of course, she will also be sworn into confidentiality of what she will be instructed upon whether or not she chose to marry the prince."

"Wow, sounds serious enough."

"Of course! She has to be Queen of Eirene, you know!"

"So, there will be a grand ball in a few weeks' time?"

"Ah! That's right!" he grinned. "And this year, my young Ally can attend the ball. She just turned eighteen last month. "

"Is there a minimum age?"

"Yeah, the age gap between the girl and the prince must not be more than ten years."

"I see..."

"How old are you?"

"Me?" I was surprised for a moment. "Twenty three."

He chuckled. "You can go to the ball as well!"

Maybe I should, I thought. I was here for a cultural exchange after all. It would make a good story in the report I was to write.

We drove past the Garden of Gemma, into the grounds of the Castle.

The car stopped in front of a huge iron gate at the Castle tower. There were two guards at the tower guard house, and one came towards the car. After some explanation from John, the gate was drawn allowing our entry. The car went on for a good two kilometres, passing by a beautiful fountain and another garden before finally stopping at a pavement. John rushed to open my door and invited me out before bidding me farewell.

"Well, Miss McGregor," he said. "My errand has been completed. It was nice meeting you. Hope you have a good stay in Eirene." He took my hand to his lips and kissed lightly, gave a slight bow and left. Meanwhile, I saw that my bags were being taken out from the car boot.

A very well-dressed man dressed in black suit, in his fiftyish, walked towards me. He was tall and stout. He looked like a bodyguard, well built and ready to spring into action.

He gave a slight bow and introduced himself.

"Good evening Miss. My name is James Andrews and I will be your personal butler and escort during your stay in the Castle. Can I verify your identification documents please?"

I nodded, and handed over the letter which I received.

He looked it through, gave me a little smile, and said, "Thank you Miss McGregor and welcome to Kaytherin Castle."