The Princess of Wrath

Chapter 8 - Part IV: Omen

With the death of the mercenary hired by the Landauer family at the hands of the Empress, the event in the Crystal Ballroom had ended in a non-positive way, without the ceremonial dance and with many antipathy-laden goodbyes.

Asura did not take offense at the guests' behavior as they left shortly after she returned to the hall looking presentable again and ready to give the closing speech; furthermore, she was grateful that they chose to leave: the last thing she needed was new duels and more unnecessary deaths.

"Where do you want to go, my lady? To the library? Back to your room?" Royce asked the Princess when the two of them, in the company of Tuomas Virtan and the Wraith who followed him as if he were his shadow, left the room through the opposite access from where the guests left, leaving Elfriede and Roland behind to talk in private while the servants started cleaning up the tables and all the blood that was shed in the two fights, especially in the last one.

Asura had not asked why, but she had a slight suspicion that it was the political fallout from the disastrous ceremony.

"No, we're going to find Jul. He, Urza and Jocelyn still mustn't know that the ceremony is over," she replied with encouragement and a contagious smile. "Besides, Frida and Sophie could still be arranging all my new dresses, and by the Gods I'm not going to fall into that death trap."

"I understand you, my lady... Forgive my daring, but you look very happy."

"Is that something so surprising?"

"Of course not, but I thought that after seeing your mother emerge victorious in such a way, you would have a bittersweet taste in your mouth from witnessing such a degree of violence that could have been avoided."

"Oh, don't get me wrong, of course it was a hideous and sad thing to see...," she said, her gaze fixed on the end of the lit hall with serenity. "But I have reasons to be more than happy despite everything that happened, you know?"

Royce took that statement with pleasure, and a smile could be seen drawn behind the veil on the nervously disturbed face of the Nemasian ambassador as he made superhuman efforts not to turn his head and see over his shoulder how close he was to the silent Wraith.

They did not ask for such reasons; the most logical thing was that happiness was the product of the continuity of the marriage commitment regardless of the lords' inquiries. And even if they both had, Asura was not going to tell them about the elixir Roland had given her and Diana's letter.

Just by thinking that by taking a dose of that liquid once a month she would be able to keep the curse under control, and that in a few hours she would be reunited with her beloved in the most complete secrecy and privacy, it made her feel butterflies dancing in her stomach with no end in sight.

As they advanced towards that hall which Asura had in mind as her first destination, the presence of the Imperial Guards became more and more frequent.

Guarding the entrance to the Astral Atrium, two Guards greeted the Princess and opened the doors for her to pass: inside, near the statue of Endrel that supported a large part of the starry ceiling, Jul was sitting on his knees while Urza and Jocelyn watched patiently a couple of feet away.

"What is he doing?" Asura wondered in a low voice. Surprisingly, it was the Nemasian ambassador who replied:

"The young Prince is praying to that goddess you call Endrel, Princess. Last w-week...," Tuomas flinched in fear as he felt threatened by the Wraith, who kept him from getting any closer than necessary to her. "I met him here last week while my diligent watchman escorted me to my room. I-I didn't mean to upset him, but the young Prince looked very excited and asked me to pray with him... Or at least that's what I understood from him."