The Small Tales

The damsel

Once upon a time, there was a girl from a wealthy family. They are no Royal family but their family is known for their prestige and wealth. She is beautiful, hair hair is like a silk, fair skin and gorgeous blue eyes. Her appearance caught the many hearts of men. Many called her a living doll because of her face being emotionless.

Her father wanted the girl to have a husband despite of her age 17.

Hearing the news, all wealthy men in their country gathered inside their house, they were all rich and some of them are the soon-to-be heir of a certain family.

One by one, every men trying to convince the girl and proposed them with such sugarcoated words. However, they were never attractive.

The girl rejected them through giving out impossible tasks such as searching fora fish in the moon, a winged wart, a water inside the volcano, a shark that swims in the land and many
more.

Until one night, she strolls alone in her garden. She noticed a man, sitting under the shade of the tree. The man's face was unfamiliar for the girl and she asked "who are you?"

The man told her that he's just a wanderer taking a small rest. The expressionless girl sat on the opposite side of the tree.

The girl asked him more questions on how did he infiltrated the mansion while it was heavily guarded. The man told her that it wasn't hard to break through the castle.

The girl silenced and silently loathed her father. The man read through her but never asked because he was in no place to give any advices for the girl.

The girl, suddenly asked the man that was he one of the guys trying to propose his love to her. The man declined and claimed that be was never interested in any arranger or forced marriages.

"Where... did you live?" Asked the girl.

"I live in nowhere, I was born and raised on the mountains too inside the temple." The man replied.

"Was it outside in this country? What does the outside world look like?" The curious girl asked the man. The man saw right through her that she was never freed from her prison. Like a little bird inside the cage.

"It was beautiful." The man said. "Abundant of wonders where people have not yet discovered." Then the man stood up from the ground and his book fell from his pocket.

"What is this...?"

The girl picked up the man's book, she opened it. The man fidgeted when the girl found out his journal. The man found out that the girl cannot read nor write so he decided to teach her every night.

The man also included giving him lessons about the survival in the outside world and gave her pictures on the beautiful sights. The girl shows the expression of amazement and the man was relieved.

The girl's father found out about the man and siezed him. The man was about to flee away and the girl grabbed his hand and she asked him to bring her. As the guards were closing in, the man promised the girl that he will claim her.

The girl's father told her to stay away from that man, the girl did not reacted. The father, later changed the topic and he found a prince in the other country that wants to meet her. The girl opposed it but was overwhelmed by her father's anger.

The next day, the girl's clothes was dazzling and made her appeal more to the public. The man, watched afar at the top of the tower with his hood and mask on.

The carriage where the girl was in finally moved onwards to the neighboring country. The man have to chase the carriage on horseback. However, he was caught by the soldiers and faced five years in prison.

In the neighboring country, the girl met the prince and kissed her right hand as a greetings. After a year, the two married in the girl's hometown. However, after the wedding, the prince showed his ugly personality to the girl by continuously abusing her. Forced to eat her raw food. She was imprisoned inside the prince's room.

Four years later, the man escaped when the guards are alerted because of the riot outside, it seems like a civil war occurred. The man ran his way to the mansion despite of the crowd.

The girl, in the mansion was married but she didnt bear the prince's child yet. The girl's faced was bruised, full of scratches and wounds. She cried and loathed, she whispered and prayed for that man's help.

The man appeared on the window infront of the girl as the moonlight illuminated upon him. He reached his right arm to the poor girl's face and decided to free her from her imprisonment.

"Will you... Come with me?" The man asked him.

The girl lift up her head looking at the man. She smiled with joy and answered.

"Yes!"

The two escaped from the town, the prince searched for the girl in the town alone. However, he was killed by the angry mob by impaling him with a pitchfork.

The mansion where the girl lived was burned down and aswell as her father.

Under the moonlight, the man and the girl fled from the city on horseback.

"Hey... I never asked for your name... Yet a stranger like you taught me a lot of things..." The girl asked.

"My name is Eros. What about you?"

"... My name is rather long.. But I'd you to call me 'Lily'."

".... Lily huh... That name suits you."

Lily felt a strange feeling inside her, a feeling that she is never familiar of, a feeling of being with Eros alone.

"Eros, What is this... Inside of me... It feels like my heart is racjng when I'm with you."

"That is what we call feelings. Its a feeling of love."

"I see... So that's what love is... Can you, teach me about love too?"

"Haha... I will... However it is a foreign thing to me either!" Eros laughed.

Lily hugged Eros tightly on his back and whispered. "I love you."