The Crown Prince Thinks I'm a Guy

A Slight Reprieve

"So? You won't really tell your big brother what's been bothering you since you've passed through these doors?" Clement asked in between sips at his appetizer.

I sighed, putting down my fork. "I came here to have a good moment with you, brother, not to give you more problems. And so insignificant are my problems when compared to the issues of our nation. Besides, our breakfast will only get cold if we talk about such dreary things."

His shoulders shook in laughter, although his lips stayed pursed, very stringent about his manners on the table. He then told me, "What bothers the princess bothers the whole Kingdom, dear sister."

I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to correct him that, "No. I'm not the princess anymore." Instead, I took a big bite at my salad. Speaking whilst my mouth was full, I said, "Well, I've heard better lies than that, my liege."

It was his turn to roll his eyes. Leaning forward, and all forgetting his proper manners, he took hold of my hand. "Please, Elle. I'd like to help. I wasn't there to save you when you had to leave, but I'm growing more powerful as time goes by. Once I secure the crown, I promise I'll have you back by my side in no time. But for now, at least let me be of meager help. No matter how silly you think your troubles may be."

Observing his sincerity, my mouth suddenly blurted out, "It hasn't been set in stone, but by tonight, I might just find myself hung for speaking out of place. If my friend really turns out to be the crown prince of the Mond Empire, then I am doomed."

My brother's brows furrowed. "Crown prince? Your fiancée?"

"Correction," I mumbled. "Ex-fiancée. But it doesn't matter. He only knows me as Eleftherion, the rash and impudent commoner boy."

"... What exactly have you done that would warrant a hanging?" he asked, his face deadly calm.

Wringing my hand together, I muttered, "Libel and maybe a tad of lese-majeste. Maybe treason? Well, I'm not a citizen of the Empire, but I do have temporary citizenship for schooling in the Academy, yes? Based on the Empire's laws, I might just be liable for that and at least a dozen more charges. Ah yes... I might have also smacked him once, or twice... and I did also use magic against his body. I, uh... Do you think I'll be able to get away with a simple lashing?"

My brother groaned as he dragged a heavy hand down his face. "No, Elle. Once they know that you're a girl, they'll probably sell you off to slavery instead."

I cringed, knowing that criminals who are to be flogged must be checked up medically before the flogging. I mean, this is the modern era. The government was compassionate enough to ensure a couple lashes or so won't actually turn morbidly into an execution.

Besides, I was still so young... and a scholar in a prestigious institution! Surely, they won't just up and kill me, right? But now that I think of it, the Academy is mainly an institution controlled by the Mond Empire itself...

"Oh, I am doomed!" I shouted in despair, hiding my face against the table. "Brother, please do pray for me when I go up to Sun God Solus' palace?"

"Enough," he commanded, and knocked on the table once. "Sit up straight, Elle. You are a princess, a lady of the highest pedigree. You won't ever be flogged, sold, or hanged in any century."

'But you could only watch as I was sacrificed like a piece of meat in the past,' I chided him darkly inside my mind, but shook my head from all these thoughts. That was different, and I knew it, but... Well, I suppose it still hurt.

"So?" I asked. "What am I to do?"

"For starters, didn't you say that this 'might' happen? It isn't for sure, yes?" my brother started speaking in a princely manner, all serious and all.