Beyond The Veil Of The Night

The unexpected encounter

"I went to my training ground and started training with the sword. Midway, I heard footsteps approaching. I quickly headed, trying to see who it was and ambush them.

"Playing hide and seek?" a man's voice teased.

I just had to jump out and began attacking the stranger. It was a man wearing all black attire who had covered his face with a mask. He skillfully countered my attacks. I bombarded him with strikes, but he countered them all. He suddenly gained the upper hand as I struggled to counter his attacks. After a long, relentless battle, he disarmed me, and I fell hard onto my butt.

"Ouch, ouch!" I moaned in pain. He had his sword to my throat as I questioned who he was and what he was planning to do. He drew his sword and helped me onto my feet. My back still ached from the hard fall. I pressed him with my question again, but he said nothing. After a while, he said he could not reveal his identity, but his purpose was to affirm his decision. He left in the blink of an eye, saying we would meet again. I was confused by his words as I made my way to my room.

"Princess, what happened to you? I've been looking all over for you!" a worried Emma said, about to cry.

"Nothing's wrong," I said, putting on a strong face.

I made my way to my room, where I took a warm, relaxing bath to soothe my pain. After a nice, long bath, I got dressed for dinner. I set out and accidentally bumped into someone on the way. I apologized and looked up to find Lucian, one of our people. I quickly apologized again, but he just brushed it off and asked where I was going. I told him I was going to the dining room. He chuckled and asked if he could join me.

"Are you also going there?" I said calmly.

"Of course, your majesty." he said in a playful tone and I chuckled. We walked together in silence until he spoke up.

"I've heard about the history of Verdia, but I want to hear it from a member of the the royal family to confirm," he said.

I began to talk about the history and explaining it in great detail, displaying my great knowledge. I apologized for being too chatty, but he just chuckled softly and said he didn't mind. We talked and we finally made our way to the door. We entered the hall to the shocked gazes of my father and three sisters. I didn't understand why until I realized how close I was standing to the prince. I quickly created some distance between us. This made Lucian chuckle softly.i then took my seat on my father's farthest left, next to Amy, my third older sister, while Lucian sat across the king.

"Your Majesty, if I may, I would like to relay your mission to my daughters," my father said, a bit nervous. The whole room fell into a deafening silence until Lucian placed his cutlery on the table."