Chapter 19 – Lest our Fates Intertwine

Aside from the identity of the light, Levisia did not know why they were gathering around her, not Lidan and Siaphyl. She looked at them in the hope of help. At that time, Siaphyl reached out to the light crowd with a slightly dazed face.

“Wait.”

It was Lidan who held his arm back. He put his index finger on his lips and whispered, “Let’s see it for now.”

The glow didn’t inflict any pain upon her; however, she couldn’t agree with Lidan’s words. ‘Did he know what this is?’ Could she see the identity of these in the eyes of Lidan and Siaphyl? But neither of them said anything to her. She merely glanced through the light with a careful glimpse. Filled with conflicted thoughts, she raised her hand and extended it toward the lights. Somehow, she felt warm and cozy.

‘Something, should I say it’s a welcome feeling.’ If she had such an idea as she watched the lights circling around me, would she have gone too far? She mustered more courage and tried to move her hand. The crowd of light gathered, following her hand, and moved back and forth. But after a while, the light scattered and disappeared somewhere in the forest, like a dream.

And when all the light disappeared, the eyes of Lidan and Siaphyl looking at her were somewhat different.

Somewhat… dangerous. 

* * *

“You said Lidan and Siaphyl went to the forest together?” The 2nd Princess, Elizabeth, made a sour impression after receiving a report from Suha. “Why did the guys who aren’t compatible be together?”

In particular, Lidan said that there was no one who was unique or matched within Kraiden. It was strange that such a man got along with Siaphyl.

“Yesterday, not only two people had entered the forest.”

“Then?”

“It is said that the 15th Princess was also there.”

“15th… Princess?” A mix of shock and confusion was evident on her face. “Why all of a sudden?” It was a combination that didn’t ring well in her ears. Lidan and Siaphyl, and the nameless princess.

“Although the two guys are unusual, they wouldn’t go along with the nameless one.”

Elizabeth shuffled through her memories and tried to recall the fifteen princesses. ‘Who is it?’ But nothing else came to her mind. It was to the extent that there was no impression left in her head. She must have encountered her  at least once or twice.

“Shall we do some research?”

‘Is there anything special about her that I don’t even remember?’ While she immersed her thoughts on the fifteenth princess, Elizabeth reached out to the table. There was only one invitation left.

“Oh, I have this.”

She could quench her curiosity just by meeting her. Elizabeth decided to invite Levisia White, the 15th princess, one of her unnamed siblings, to her tea party.

* * *

‘What the hell is this?‘

Levisia couldn’t sleep at night because of the work the previous day, and now she clutched a glimmering invitation in her hand. The invitation, flashing golden, came from the 2nd Princess—2nd Princess Elizabeth Seine Kraiden. Embolding apparent elegance from the name, she was one of the next emperor candidates, who were rare even within Kariden.

“Why is such a greeting to me…” ‘No way, was there a rumor about something strange yesterday in the woods? No, I can’t. There were only me, Lidan, and Siaphyl. How could a rumor possibly arise? I haven’t found out the identity of the light yet.’ 

What happened yesterday, in the end, neither she nor Lidan nor Siaphyl knew why. It felt like she was getting more riddles from where she went to search for answers.

‘But now even invitations? What is happening to me living in hiding in the corner of the imperial palace?

Levisia loosened her hair in an empty room with no one to answer her questions. Did Lidan and Siaphyl know about this invitation? Why did the 2nd princess send her an invitation? She must ask when those two come. She thought so, but for some reason, as if both of them had coordinated, their presence were nowhere to be seen. Since they didn’t drop by, she found myself unoccupied and read the invitation dozens of times, wrinkles forming on her forehead as she read the words over and over.

‘The date of the tea party…’

It was tomorrow around this time.

‘Why aren’t you coming today?’

She tried to blame the two people who did not appear, but it was meaningless. She didn’t have the courage to reject the invitation of the 2nd princess, who is considered the next emperor candidate.

‘I’m not the only one invited, so if I just stay quiet and attend?’

As she was pondering over that thought, Lidan and Siaphy’s faces crossed her mind. The two have become intertwined with her life since the day she met them. Both encounters are unhoped for, and now it seems she has to tread carefully lest the strings of fate becomes entirely entangled. Her life may be at stake.

When she asked Pel and Sheila, they merely replied to do whatever she wanted. Pel carefully asked what it would be like to decline the invitation, but… 

‘I knew it wasn’t easy in my situation.’

Pel was contemplating like his own work, and silently brought her a stationery and a pen. Whether it was acceptance or rejection, it meant sending a reply. In the end, she was stuck in her room. She pondered for a while, and then she picked up a pen to write a response.