Ever since Riliane Lucifen d'Autriche was born, she'd been cherished. Praised and blessed by the people, given whatever she wanted whenever she wanted it, and told that she was the most important person in the country of Lucifenia. She had very little memories of any time before she was about the age of eight, and from then on, she'd always been treated with the utmost respect and given flocks of servants at her disposal. So there really was no true surprise when Riliane grew up to be spoiled, selfish, and entitled, her act of arrogance following her around wherever she went, leaving her with no sense of bashfulness due to people bending to her every command.
Until her mother's death. It was the year 498 EC, thirteen years after Riliane had been born, and Queen Anne had passed with Riliane being the sole successor of the throne. At such a young age, the girl had been overwhelmed by the responsibility of being a queen, and saddened by the loss of her beloved mother. Although insisting on being addressed as "Princess" until she came of age out of deference to her mother, the ministry of Lucifenia were still deciding on whether or not she should rule due to her being only thirteen.
But one day, she was walking through the palace, searching for her ministers. Although she'd sent multiple servants to fetch them, their whereabouts remained unknown. As Riliane passed through a corridor, she saw that one of the servants' doors were closed, and heard Prime Minister Minis speaking softly inside.
"Now that Anne's gone, we can control the country ourselves," she heard the minister say.
"What about Riliane?" another asked.
"She's easy. She's young, unprepared, and doesn't know anything about running a country. We'll just...advise her. Contort her will to ours. If, of course, we even allow her to take control of the country at all."
Riliane had heard enough. Biting her lip, she quickly padded down the hallway, being careful not to make any noises as to alert someone to her presence. After feeling she'd gotten far enough away to be alone, she relaxed, her mind processing what she'd just heard. Then she screamed when she saw a flash of blonde hair confront her.
"Sorry! I'm sorry," the servant said, bowing before her. "I was going to your chambers to give this to you." The young girl pulled out a hand mirror and held it out to Riliane.
Riliane eyed it cautiously. "Oh. Okay," she said, taking the hand mirror.
"Look, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare-"
"It's fine, Ney," Riliane told her, a hint of annoyance in her voice. "I want to be alone. Can you leave?"
Ney blushed, nodded, and quickly scurried away. Riliane sighed, glad to be alone. It really was a nice mirror...
Then she turned back to her thoughts. The ministers - the people she was supposed to trust were going to manipulate her! A jolt of fear ran through her, making her shiver as she held the mirror close to her chest. A sudden bolt of electricity shot down her spine, turning her blood to fire, and she realized the possibilities. How dare they.
She wouldn't let them manipulate her. She couldn't.
In the Hall of Sounds meeting that was eventually called, Riliane listened with growing fury as the ministers debated over whether she was to inherit the country now, or if she were to wait until she got older and let someone else take over for the time being. Who were they to decide that? She knew what they were doing. She knew they wanted the power to themselves, and would do anything to make that happen.
Well, Riliane wasn't going to stand for it.
"This shouldn't even be an issue," she argued, raising her voice above the others. "Only one of royal blood should take the throne. So, me." She wasn't going to let them cheat her out of what was rightfully hers.
"I don't think that's a very good idea, you are only thirteen and-"
"And?" Riliane asked, taking deep breaths to restrain herself from screaming at the minister. "Why should that matter? Why should someone else that isn't even of the family get to control the country?!"
"We can't declare you as Queen at thirteen years of age," another minister interjected. "That would be irresponsible of us."
Irresponsible, right. More like cutting off their power supply.
"What are you so afraid of?" Riliane taunted. "I'm thirteen, remember? What can I do?"
At this, Riliane noted the ministers' instant relaxation. It infuriated her to watch them think of her so stupid, but she forced herself to remain calm. She couldn't let her emotions thwart her plan.
"I'll remain as 'Princess' out of deference to my mother," Riliane continued, "and I'll put off my coronation until I come of age. But I expect to be the new ruler of Lucifenia in my mother's place. Understood?"
Dejectedly, the ministers nodded as Riliane stood, satisfied with the way she'd handled the situation. She'd gotten what she wanted, hadn't she?
No. As she exited the room, Riliane heard the ministers whispers of what sounded like plots against her. Ways to use her as a figurehead.
"We'll call the shots," one whispered.
"It's just a teenage emotion. She'll get over it," another said under their breath.
"She's not that smart," another voice said, or was that just a hallucination?
Before she would cry out in rage and ruin everything, Riliane quietly closed the door behind her and took a deep breath. This wasn't going to happen. They couldn't do this, not to her.
She wasn't going to let them take what was rightfully hers.
The following day, Riliane was walking through the halls when she noticed Leonhart Avadonia, Captain of the Royal Guard, and a boy who seemed to greatly resemble her. Intrigued by this observation, Riliane approached the two, her interest piquing when she noticed the boy's unusually long hair.
"Your Highness," Leonhart said, addressing her and bowing. "This is Allen Avadonia, a new servant. This is his first day here."
Riliane took a closer look as Allen turned to face her and marveled at their similarities. "We look so much alike," she told him. "Allen, it is?" When the boy nodded, she continued, "I'm hungry. Fetch me a snack."
"I don't think that's such a good idea yet," Leonhart interrupted, turning to Mariam Futapie, head maid. "Mariam should dress him first before he begins to serve you to save appearance."
Riliane frowned, disliking Leonhart's judgment, however as she turned to look back at Allen, she noticed he'd been right. "You're right," she said, sighing. "Dress him first. I'll wait."
Later, Allen was again presented to Riliane, this time dressed in servant's clothing with gold trim along the edges. Riliane smiled as Allen brought her brioche at three o'clock, wondering how he knew exactly what she liked.
When she had finished her brioche, Riliane turned once more to Allen and asked him to play a game with her. "I'll chase you," she said, "and if I catch you, then I get to put a bow in your hair." She held up a hair tie and grinned widely at Allen's expression.
"Now, go!" she cried, Allen sprinting down the halls. Adrenaline pumping through her veins, Riliane chased after him, a smile of sheer glee appearing on her face. When Allen finally reached a dead end and didn't know where to turn, Riliane caught up with him, quickly tying a bow into his shaggy blonde hair.
Allen quickly took off again as soon as she finished, and Riliane laughed and chased after him, expecting to easily win as she did the first time.
But this time, Allen was elusive - skillfully making his way through the palace halls and outsmarting her while Elluka Clockworker and Mariam looked on in amusement. Suddenly infuriated at looking like a stupid little girl in front of the staff, Riliane ordered, "Stop or I'll have you beheaded!"
Allen immediately froze, allowing Riliane to catch up with him. Once again smiling, Riliane tackled him and tied another bow into his hair. There. That'd show them how she had ultimate power.
"Are you okay, Your Highness?" Allen asked as Riliane brushed off her skirts and stood up.
Riliane shrugged. "No," she told him before turning to Elluka and Mariam. "Look, I won twice! And, where's Leonhart? Why isn't he here?"
"Leonhart's busy," Mariam said as she scraped the dust off of Riliane's dress. "And you shouldn't have said that to Allen. It doesn't matter that you were only playing, you should never recklessly threaten to behead someone."
Rage shot through Riliane's entire body. How dare Mariam, a serving maid, chastise her for something she'd said to one of her servants? They really must think her a stupid and naive girl who can easy be controlled.
"Oh, I'm not playing," Riliane assured the maid, pulling away. She had to let them know that she was in control here. "I am the Princess of this country. I have the authority to behead someone, no matter the crime."
After noticing Mariam and Elluka's facial expressions change, Riliane smirked in satisfaction and spun on her heel. "Don't worry," she purred threateningly, a dark smile creeping upon her face, "I would never play games with it."
Then she grabbed Allen and turned away, the fury inside her slowly simpering down to a dull roar. Now they'd see her authority. Now they wouldn't challenge her. Now they wouldn't see her weak. They could never see her weak.
For Riliane knew that if anyone saw her weakness, she was done for.
Six months later, Riliane sat upon her throne, listening to the people's complaints: her taxes were too high, she was committing murder without due cause, etc, etc. Riliane didn't understand why everyone was so upset - taxes were to be expected in any government, she was only disposing those who opposed her, therefore traitors, and everything else? Well, she deserved it! She was the ruler, and the most important person in Lucifenia. People should be glad to serve her.
As she waved away a girl with tangled blonde hair and torn, ragged clothes, another with red shoulder-length red hair and a piercing stare came up to her. The girl bowed before her, lowering her eyes to the floor.
"Ugh, you again?" Riliane asked, recognizing the bright red hair. "What is it with you people?"
The girl sighed. "Please," she begged, "please just one hundred more coins. My family and I are starving, and we need the money!"
Riliane scoffed in disgust. "You're already five hundred coins in debt. Why would I want to give you more?"
"Please!" she cried, tears forming in her eyes.
"No," Riliane said simply.
"But-"
"Take her away!" Riliane ordered. As two guards dressed in Lucifenian uniform grabbed her by the arms and dragged her out, the girl glared at Riliane, her eyes burning holes into her skin. If looks could kill, she'd be dead.
"I will get you for this, Your Highness!" the red-haired girl shrieked as she was pulled out of the room.
Riliane yawned, and looked away. "That's all for today," she said. "I'm too tired. Allen, will you bring me a snack?"
The blonde-haired servant by her side nodded, and briskly walked away to bring her her three o'clock snack. Brioche, she liked. She was sure Allen would remember.
The day before Riliane's fourteenth birthday, she was annoyed. The people annoyed her. The palace annoyed her. The world annoyed her.
Suddenly, a knock sounded on her door. "What?" she called, her voice bitter.
"Captain Leonhart Avadonia is here to meet with you," her servant reminded. Riliane sighed.
"Send him in," she said, rolling her eyes.
The door opened, and Leonhart strolled in, bowing when he met eye contact with her.
"What is it?" Riliane asked.
"Princess, the townspeople are starving," Leonhart started, watching Riliane's expression. "As you know, we are currently experiencing a famine. As Princess of Lucifenia, it is your duty to assist them."
"So what do you suppose we do?" Riliane asked flatly, obviously uninterested in the conversation.
"To compensate for the lack of food, we should distribute the palace's food reserves to the country," Leonhart explained. "It'll only be temporary."
Riliane was annoyed. No, worse than that, she was angered. How dare he tell her she should give away her food?! It was hers. "Or," she said, coming up with an alternate solution, "if they can't eat bread, let them eat brioche!"
Leonhart stared at her. "With all due respect, Your Highness, I don't believe that is reasonable advice to give."
"And who are you to be reprimanding me?" Riliane demanded, enraged at Leonhart's audacity.
"Well, as one of the Three Heroes, it is my job to-"
"Enough!" Riliane interrupted, bored of the conversation already. "I am the ruler here, and I get to say what goes. So, no, we will not be distributing the palace's food stores. Dismissed."
"Princess, I-"
"Dismissed!" Riliane yelled, waving him away. Leonhart ground his teeth, then stalked out of the room, clearly angry at her decision.
As she stared at his retreating form, Riliane felt a twinge of fear shoot through her. She'd almost been cheated, manipulated out of her food! People were starting to challenge her authority. They didn't respect her. They didn't listen to her. They'd overrule her.
Riliane was going to make them listen.
The next morning, Riliane awoke, refreshed and alert for today's celebration. Today was the day she turned fourteen, and suddenly, an idea popped into her mind. A cake! She needed a cake! Why hadn't she thought of it sooner?
Getting dressed, Riliane called for the patisserie to make her a birthday cake. It would have to be amazing; after all, it was to be the centerpiece at her birthday gala.
"This is such short notice," the patisserie said indignantly. "If you'd only asked sooner-"
Riliane was tired of never getting the respect she deserved. "Well, you know what? That's too bad," she said coldly. "I expect it done by tonight. And it'd be better be stunning or heads will roll, and believe me: you do not want that to happen."
The patisserie nodded quickly and bowed low. Riliane smirked in satisfaction. This was how you got things done. If you wanted people to listen to you, you'd have to play dirty. It was the only way to gain respect.
Riliane then came up with another idea - a genius one, in fact. Smiling slightly to herself, she turned to her left wall and unlocked the secret passage that had been built in her room years ago. Slipping out, she raced down the dark halls and mounted her horse, Josephine. Then she took off through the Forest of Bewilderment to her secret place she went when she wanted to be alone. Riliane settled down by the coastline, feeling the slight throb in her palm from where a thorn had cut it during her journey. She smiled again. She was certain no one would find her here in time for her birthday celebration.
It seemed as if she sat on the beach with Josephine for hours. When she finally saw the sun begin to set, Riliane watched it closely, noting the beautiful red-orange glare it cast upon the waves and the pink streaks along the sky. Riliane mused restlessly as she surveyed it, finally admitting the thoughts she'd been afraid to admit even to herself. "It's alone," she remarked to the empty shore. "It's me."
Suddenly, a noise sounded behind her, and she jumped, startled by the broken silence.
"Ah, my lady," Allen Avadonia said, coming up beside her. He gazed towards the setting sun as he spoke.
"Allen! How-how did you find me here?" Riliane said, quickly composing herself. She wouldn't let this...this servant see her flustered.
Allen didn't answer her. "Leonhart is worried about you," he told her. "He's been scouring the palace for hours."
Riliane snorted, glad her plan had worked to at least some degree. "Good," she said triumphantly. "If he hadn't found me by the time of the ball, I could have had him executed."
As Allen looked at her disdainfully, thoughts of how she could've killed Leonhart crept into her mind. She knew how protected he was since he was Captain of the Royal Guard and one of the Three Heroes, and realized that she wouldn't have been allowed to execute him. A wave of fury overtook her at his status, and how he could get away with doing whatever he wanted to her.
"He just...pisses me off!" Riliane shouted. "He just really pisses me off!"
Suddenly embarrassed by her outburst, Riliane grabbed hold of her emotions and turned to Allen. "It's just - you ruined my plan!" she complained. "I could've had him gone, out of my life forever; no longer having to listen to his stupid suggestions that force me to limit my food!"
"I'm sorry," Allen apologized, lowering his head. "I truly am; I'm sorry."
Riliane sighed, knowing the plan would've been foiled anyway. "It's fine," she said grudgingly. "It couldn't be helped. We should return home before it gets dark, anyway."
The pair stood up, and Allen grabbed Riliane's hand. Riliane was shocked. How dare he, a lowly servant, touch her like that?
"You insolent fool!" Riliane cried, yanking her hand away and slapping him across the face. "How dare you-"
"Your hand is injured," Allen explained patiently, pulling out a bottle of ointment. "I only wished to heal it."
Realizing his intent, Riliane blushed a little. "Oh," she said, looking down slightly. A dark thought crossed her mind. Maybe she could use the scratch as an excuse to execute Leonhart.
"Allen, release my hand," she ordered, noticing he was still holding it after healing her wound. Allen blushed and quickly pulled away as Riliane laughed, finding it amusing that he became flustered not after she'd slapped him, but after she'd realized he was touching her intimately.
"We should head back," Riliane said, preparing to make the journey back to the palace.
"Your Highness, you should follow the path towards the port instead. It's much less timely than the one through the woods," Allen suggested to her.
Riliane, slightly embarrassed that the servant had more knowledge of the route instead, took off towards the port, not stopping to wait for him.
"Wait!" Allen called from behind her.
When Riliane turned around, he continued, "What about Josephine?"
"Oh. Signal a beacon for the royal guard at the port city," she told him, beginning to walk again. When she heard no movement behind her, Riliane rolled her eyes and gestured to the horse. "Well? You coming?"
Allen shifted his weight uncomfortably. "I don't know how to ride horses," he admitted. "I'll just follow you on foot."
Riliane sighed as she retreated back to where Allen stood and mounted Josephine. "We'll go together," she said as he walked beside her, marking their slow trek back to the castle. As they turned away from the coast, Riliane glanced back once at the setting sun.
"The sun really is always alone," she murmured, her voice taking on a strange undertone. "Just like...me."
Then she turned away and stared straight ahead, riding away from the sunset.
When the pair finally reached the palace, Allen alerted the royal guard and waited for him to arrive. Riliane dismounted and stood with her arms crossed as she frowned impatiently in boredom.
Eventually she saw Leonhart approaching, his eyes ablaze with fire when they rested on her. "What were you thinking?!" he demanded as he reached her. "You could've been killed! You can't just go running off like that!"
Riliane rolled her eyes in annoyance, convinced Leonhart was only worried about his title. "Would you relax?" she said tiredly. "I'm fine. No thanks to you."
"Yes, but that's not the point!" Leonhart sighed in frustration. "You endangered yourself and sent the entire palace into turmoil, you didn't tell anyone where you were going, and you certainly didn't think of this kingdom! As princess, you need to be more responsible!"
Now Riliane was infuriated. Leonhart, a high-standing socialite who intended to cheat her out of her own will, dared to lecture her? He had no right to tell her what she could and couldn't do! She couldn't let him control her. She couldn't.
"In case you haven't noticed," she responded coldly, "I seem to be the one in charge here. And you are supposed to be the guard, so you should have been looking out for these stunts. You shouldn't be reprimanding me; you should be overjoyed that I'm unharmed." Riliane turned to her subjects. "I am the Kingdom of Lucifenia's princess: Riliane Lucifen d'Autriche! You have no right to tell me what I can and can't do. Understood?"
When no one responded, Riliane grew even more angry. They didn't take her seriously.
"Understood?!" she screamed.
Heads nodded like bobble-heads, and Riliane was satisfied. This is what it took, she reminded herself. Strong. Firm. Aggressive. That's what made a good ruler, one that was respected and listened to.
"Now, kneel to me!" she commanded. Let them know she was their ruler, and they'd treat her as such. They had to.
The mob of people all kneeled in front of her. Riliane smiled as Leonhart stormed off angrily. There. Now he couldn't control her.
That night, as Riliane attended her birthday ball, she only had her eye on one thing. She scanned the room, only giving it a cursory search before spotting the unmistakable mark of bright blue hair. Unable to hold back her excitement at having him so close to her again, she instantly made her way towards him.
"Kyle!" she cried, breaking out into a wide smile as he noticed her.
"Happy Birthday, Princess Riliane," Kyle replied, smiling as well. "How does it feel to no longer be thirteen?"
"One more year until our marriage," Riliane reminded him. "It is not so far away."
Kyle looked deep in thought as he replied, "Yes, you're right. It is soon." Then he met her eyes again and smiled. "I look forward to it, Princess Riliane." He kissed her hand lightly, and handed her a beautiful shell necklace. "To remind you."
Riliane blushed. "Thank you," she said softly. "That green rose you have is nice."
Kyle looked down. "Oh, this?" he asked, picking at the rose. "I-I have to go. I could only be here for a short amount of time before I have to return to Elphegort. You know I've been there for business."
Riliane nodded. "It was nice seeing you," she said, trying to hide the dismay in her voice.
He smiled at her before walking away. Riliane turned back to her party, sighing, silently reprimanding herself for being so unapproachable to Kyle. He'd been her fiancée for a number of years now after his mother, Queen Prim, and her mother had arranged for them to be married when Riliane turned fifteen. They'd been in love since they were kids, simply infatuated with each other until their parents had insisted they become engaged.
And now there was only a short period of time left before they were to be formally married. Riliane couldn't wait.
For the rest of the party, Riliane socialized little and played with the necklace Kyle had given her. After the servants had brought out her gargantuan birthday cake, she'd retired to bed, spending the rest of the night dreaming about Kyle, and what they'd do after they were married. After all, there was only one year left of engagement.
A few days after her fourteenth birthday, Riliane had gone back to being irritated with the world. Some insolent politician had spoken out against her at her ball, and now she and her ministers were holding a trial against him in the Hall of Sounds.
He seemed to blabber on and on for hours. Riliane was tired of it; she was the princess, after all, so why should she have to listen to such nonsense? Her word was law.
"Guilty," she said, yawning. She knew what he said - why did there have to be a trial?
"But, Your Highness, I haven't even-"
"Guilty," she said again, her voice firmer. The politician looked defeated, and Riliane smirked. "The only fair punishment for treasonous acts is death. Your execution date is today at three o'clock. Now, are we done here?"
"Treasonous acts!?" the politician exclaimed. "I committed no such thing! I've been loyal to this country my entire life, I would never-"
"Are you challenging me?" Riliane asked in disbelief. People had such nerve. Just because she was young didn't mean they didn't have to listen to her! "It is final! Finished! Now, leave!"
The politician glared at her, fury raging in his eyes at the smug princess. Riliane gave him a glare just as harsh. Who did he think he was, challenging her authority like that? He was trying to usurp her, too, wasn't he?!
Riliane grunted in disgust, then left to go eat in the dining hall. As steaming hot plates of food were presented to her, she noticed something was horribly amiss. The food quality was much worse than usual, and...hadn't she demanded five knives while eating?
Only one conclusion seemed correct to her. This was the ministers' doing. They were sure they wouldn't notice; that she would brush it off and leave herself completely exposed. This was how they were going to do it, right? First they'd start by removing a knife or lowering food quality, then they'd start managing executions, and eventually they'd steal the entire country from her! They were trying to deceive her!
Well, she wouldn't let them.
"Minis!" Riliane roared, storming back into the Hall of Sounds. "What the hell?!"
She noticed the prime minister trembling before her, and smirked. She must've known she'd been caught. Riliane got some sick pleasure in knowing she could outsmart a minister. She'd caught onto them. It was over.
"Did you really think you could get away with it?! Did you?!" Riliane demanded, screaming at Minis. "Well, I'll tell you something! You couldn't! You-"
Suddenly, a servant from the corner of the room cried, "You!" and charged at Riliane, the missing knife in his hand.
Riliane froze, unable to move, to breathe. This couldn't be happening. She recognized the servant - his name was Asan, and he was the politician's son. The ministers were in liege with the politician! How could she have been so stupid?!
She could only watch as Allen attacked Asan and grabbed his wrist, forcing him to relinquish the knife.
"Guards!" Riliane cried, quickly regaining composure after seeing Asan disarmed. "Seize him!"
Two guards came up and grabbed Asan, dragging him away from the shaken princess.
"He'll be executed tomorrow," Riliane said, her voice trembling just a bit. "I'm leaving. I'm not hungry anymore, anyway."
Three days passed, and Riliane had never felt more alone. She'd dismissed anyone who had tried to see her, save for Allen, Ney, Chartette Langley, and Mariam Futapie. Of these, Allen was the only one she permitted to speak to her in her room. She'd closed herself off to the rest of the world, refusing to socialize, and rarely came out of her room unless it were for meals. And she hated it.
But Riliane couldn't risk another assassination attempt. She'd almost been killed; outsmarted by the ministers. It was so clever, she thought, how they'd managed to turn her against the politician, and it would make perfect sense that his son would try to kill her.
She still felt she should've known. Why hadn't she been suspicious when the ministers had wanted a "fair trial"? Why had she permitted Asan to be in the room with her? Why had she underestimated the ministers so horribly?
There was only one thing left to do - one way to protect herself. Purge anyone whose loyalties seemed even the slightest bit shaky, and never let the ministers know that she was on to them. Riliane couldn't be around anyone she didn't know and trust.
That limited her to Allen, Chartette, Ney, and Mariam. Which meant that she would have to get her sources of information from other people's gossip when they didn't know she was listening. She couldn't trust anyone besides those four who gave her information directly, as she didn't know who was secretly working with the ministry.
Riliane had learned from rumours circling amongst the chefs that the ingredients in her food were "unnatural". Realizing she'd never figured out why the quality of her food had gone downhill, she grew furious. By focusing so much on the ministry, she'd let herself slip. Now even the servants would consider her weak and naïve.
I can't let that happen, Riliane thought, fidgeting at the prospect of the servants rising against her. Angrily, she stormed into the kitchen, ready to unleash her wrath on anyone in range.
"Where's Mariam?" she roared, halting the servants' preparation.
"We don't know," Ney told her apologetically. "She's been absent all morning."
Riliane was infuriated. How incompetent were these people? Or, for a better question, just how incompetent did they think her?
"Did you know?" she suddenly demanded, turning to Ney.
Ney looked confused. "Know what?"
"About the rumours!" Riliane clarified, her voice rising even higher. "Are the servants stealing food from the palace?"
"No, no one's been stealing food," Ney said, shrugging her shoulders. She seemed unnerved by Riliane's outbursts, and this just made Riliane angrier.
She couldn't take being lied to. "Well, if anyone dares to do so, you will pay!" Riliane cried. They had to know she was serious. They had to take her seriously. "If I or anyone else ever catches you stealing, you will be beheaded! Am I clear!?"
The chefs nodded their heads simultaneously in fear as Riliane looked on, relieved they'd listened to her. Then she turned on Ney.
"Ney, I know you love to gossip," she said, noting Ney's inability to keep her mouth shut. "How do you know all this?"
At that moment, another chef approached the princess and said, "I've seen someone stealing from the palace barns before. I didn't see who they were, but I know they're too tall to be a servant."
"I know who it is," Ney admitted softly, mumbling the words.
"Tell me!" Riliane demanded.
"Well, I-"
"Tell me, or I swear to God, I will cut your pretty little head off," Riliane said, her voice low and menacing. She had to know; she couldn't just let the servants keep secrets from her!
Ney looked back and forth from the chef to the princess, before finally sighing and pursing her lips. "Leonhart," she confessed, watching as Riliane's face grew from red to purple. "He also...he wanted to rise up against you, and you know he's a war criminal, right?"
Riliane knew she should've seen this coming; from the way Leonhart looked at her with disdain and contempt, she should have known he wouldn't have listened to her. That he would have tried to steal from her. It was obvious he didn't think she was a serious ruler, as he so blatantly committed a federal offense right under Riliane's nose. He'd tried to outsmart her, get her thrown out of her position - why, he was a traitor! A war criminal! An insurgent!
Riliane let out a loud groan of frustration, and stomped back to her room, sketching out her next plan of attack. And soon, she'd come up with something.
That night, after dinner, Riliane ordered Allen to her room, at first commending him on his able fencing skills, and asking him where he got his ability from. After learning his father had taught him, she complimented his form, saying, "Even in my opinion, your sword is powerful."
"Thank you, Your Highness," Allen said platonically, as if having rehearsed that statement.
"I also learned fencing when I was little," Riliane continued. "The soldiers made several attempts to beat me, but I never lost. I'm so powerful, aren't I?"
When Allen nodded and bowed his head, she knew it was time to let him know what she really wanted him to do.
When Riliane was young, someone had told her that if she wrote a wish down on a piece of paper and put it in a bottle, that it would come true. Believing in the old tradition, she quickly wrote down her request, placed it in the little glass bottle, and handed it to Allen.
He looked utterly shocked when he opened it and read the message: Kill Leonhart.
"Why?" he asked her, his eyes wide in indignity.
"I want you to do it because no other palace guards would have the nerve to," Riliane explained, "and I can't just get rid of him by my word. You know how honoured he is around here - the others would never stand for it."
Allen nodded his head slowly. "Why did you ask me like this?"
Riliane shrugged. "Someone told me about this method a long time ago, that if you put a message in a bottle, it's bound to come true. I can't remember who, though."
"Why do you want Leonhart killed, anyway?" Allen then asked, his voice taking on a hint of scornfulness. "Why is it so important to you?"
Rolling her eyes, Riliane groaned. Why was this servant questioning her, anyway? "Because he wears on my patience!" she snapped, turning away from Allen. "He continually lectures me on how 'I'm not doing my job as leader of Lucifenia', when he has no right to judge me on that, anyway! And he always goes around acting like he is above everyone else, and he's all self-righteous and everything, but he's not! He's no better than the rest of us!"
When she saw Allen's blank stare, she sighed and clarified, "Apparently, he's a war criminal, has been stealing food from the palace reserves, and is a traitor."
"And who told you this?" Allen asked a bit defensively.
Noting Allen's dark undertone, Riliane raised her eyebrows at him, and he apologized profusely before she continued. "It was Ney," she finally admitted.
"Ney?" Allen couldn't help the skepticism in his voice. "You're believing Ney?"
Riliane hated the servant's judgment, but she couldn't find it in her to yell at him. "Ney may love gossip," she said, "but she wouldn't lie. Anyway, you know I can't just order him executed for no reason, so I have a plan. I'm going to invite him over for drinks, and give him a glass of poisoned alcohol; later, after he's completely stoned, you will come up and defeat him in a fencing duel. Easy, right?"
"I-"
"Great," Riliane said. "Don't tell anyone, it's only our secret. Dismissed."
Allen looked away, and quietly left Riliane's chambers, clearly deep in thought. He couldn't do it - he couldn't kill his foster father. But for Riliane, he might have to.
The next night, Riliane decided to launch her plan, even going so far as to request Leonhart in her room. After his arrival, she told him to relax and sit down, despite the swordsman's tensions.
"It's a bit uncomfortable - the two of us so isolated together at night," Leonhart remarked, nervously tapping his fingertips on his knees.
"Well, this is a private conversation," Riliane said, forcing her voice to be as light and airy as possible. "Why, are you having urges to rape me?"
After noticing Leonhart's obvious discomfort, Riliane laughed at her own joke and brushed it aside with, "It's okay, I know you like women with bigger breasts, anyway. Like my mother, for example."
"Sure, because I'd always taken notice of your mother's chest size," Leonhart said, relaxing at her sudden jovial nature.
"I knew my suspicions were right!" Riliane joked, laughing along with Leonhart. Now was the time to act.
"Anyway, what did you call me here for?" Leonhart asked, his expression suddenly becoming somber.
"Well...I've noticed that there's been a shortage of food in the palace," Riliane started, making sure to tread carefully. "And...I just wanted to tell you that I know it's you who took the food. But - I'm not mad. In fact, I'm actually...impressed that you did it. It was a very heroic thing to do."
Leonhart seemed pleasantly surprised, and pleased with Riliane's reaction. Finally, maybe the princess was coming to her senses, and realized what an asset she could be to her country.
"I agree with your cause," Riliane continued, "I think it's important that we make sure the townspeople are always well-fed, and don't have to worry about starvation. So, with this, I give you permission to freely transport food from the palace to the masses. No need to steal anymore.
"I also want to improve our relationship. I know things have been kind of shaky between us, but I want to make that better. It's no good if the princess and the Royal Guard have a faulty relationship, right?" Riliane chuckled softly. "So, I wanted to give you this - sort of like a toast. It's Blood Grave, the favourite wine of Vampiress Vanika Conchita, but don't worry: there isn't any blood in it as the fairytale states."
Leonhart's eyes were wide - this was better than he'd ever expected! Riliane was acting like a responsible adult, the type of ruler her mother had been, and he now had full permission to transport food without having to steal when the princess wasn't looking. Unable to conceal the wide smile on his face, Leonhart accepted the glass of wine Riliane had offered, but noticed when she didn't pour any for herself.
"Don't you want some?" he asked her, motioning to her glass.
"Oh, I don't like alcohol," Riliane replied smoothly, pouring herself a glass of ice water. "I've just never understood struggling with it, you know? But water will do just fine for the toast. To new beginnings!"
"To new beginnings."
The two clinked their glasses and drank, continuing to talk long into the night.
The next morning, Captain Leonhart Avadonia was dead.
Three months later, Riliane sat in the Hall of Sounds, listening uninterested to the conference about the aids the Freesis Firm in Elphegort and the Kingdom of Marlon were offering. Allen was the first to speak, addressing her directly.
"I spoke with Keel Freesis, Your Highness," he told her. "He's quite interested in the state of affairs within Lucifenia, and would like to help out."
Riliane shrugged, not particularly interested in what Keel had to say. "I doubt he's doing anything of majour concern," she said, bordering a yawn and attempting to listen to the other merchants discuss the pressing issue.
As the day dragged on, Riliane grew more and more tired, and was reduced to nodding her head as each merchant gave their point of view. "Allen?" she finally asked.
"Yes, Your Highness?"
"What is today's snack?"
"It is brioche," he replied simply, stepping down and allowing for Minis to take the stage.
Riliane listened with increasing disinterest until the end of Minis' report, noting that the Marlon family had given a baby octopus to her court mage, Elluka Clockworker. Seeing no problem, despite it being such an odd present, Riliane allowed Elluka to keep the octopus, as she had more pressing issues on her mind.
"The wedding," Riliane said, suddenly.
"Excuse me, Your Highness?" Minis asked, clearly confused.
Riliane sighed impatiently. "Did Kyle speak about the wedding? We'll be getting married in less than a year now, he had to have made some mention of it!"
Minis pulled out a letter and handed it to Riliane. "I'm supposed to give you this."
Riliane's eyes lit up. This had to be Kyle making plans for the wedding - they'd been waiting for this all of their lives, and now it was finally happening. Riliane was unable to restrain her excitement as she tore open the letter, but her ecstatic demeanor quickly faded as her eyes scanned the page.
Noticing Riliane's expression, Minis quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, Princess Riliane. His Highness did speak of falling in love with a girl of green."
Riliane took several deep breaths, swallowing hard before she felt calm enough to speak. "Okay. Okay. Who is she?" she asked, her voice eerily monotonous.
When no one answered, Riliane became enraged. "Who is she?!" she demanded. "Who is that little whore who seduced my fiancé?! How could he have left me for that slut?! Mariam! Get in here!"
Mariam hurried into the room, bowing quickly. "Yes, Your Highness?"
"Find out who that green-haired girl is. Find her, and report back to me immediately!"
"Yes, Princess," Mariam replied, bowing her head in regret.
0-0
That night, for the first time in months, Riliane cried.