Arrived at the ballroom several minutes, Ryoken took a deep breath then made his way in under the announcement of one of the guards. It wasn't a surprise that all eyes were on him. He even spotted some ladies whispering something to each other from a far. Putting up a smile, he thanked everyone for coming despite their busy schedule and wished them a wonderful time here. After that, the sound of the applauses echoed in the air while music once again, brought joy to their ears.

Wandering around, he started to greet his guests. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by a group of ladies whom wanted to be his first dance. They were all smiling and polite toward one another. However, he could see sparks running back and forth. While he thought of a way to get out of this mess, he noticed something at the corner of his eyes.

"Is that...?"

Quickly apologized to the ladies, he rushed through the crowd and called out a name as he reached center of the room.

"Aki!"

Upon hearing her name called, a lady whose hair was like the waves turned around. As their eyes met, she smiled.

"Long time no see, your highness. You grown since I last saw you."

"And you haven't changed one bit. Is there a fountain of youth somewhere I should know about."

"My lips are sealed." She winked. "I heard about what happened to your father. I'm sorry for your lost."

"Thank you."

"There is one other thing."

"Oh?"

"I appreciate your invitation, your highness, I truly am, but are you sure someone like me should be here? I'm not a noble nor a princess. I'm not even a maid anymore."

"Of course." He took her right hand and kissed it. "You're family."

"Your highness..."

"Looks like the music have changed. May I have this dance, my lady?"

"It wouldn't be polite of me to say "no", would it?" She smiled.

And just like that, they danced away and became the spotlight of the ball.

Once the dance was over, they talked for a little longer before going their separate ways. While continuing to stroll around, he noticed a girl out in the balcony. Out of curiosity, he decided to approach her. Since she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings, she startled the moment she saw him standing next to her and nearly fell off the rail. Luckily, he managed to grab hold of her.

"Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah. Thank you."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"No, it was my fault for not paying attention. Um, about your question..."

"Yes?"

"It just feels so suffocating in there." She gripped her gown.

"I see."

"You aren't going to ask me why?"

"I think I understand for I too, feel the same way." He smiled.

After that, they talked. Surprisingly, they got more in common then ones thought. In his eyes, she was the perfect girl. However, just when he was about to ask her for a dance, the whole ground trembled as an explosion happened on the East side of the castle. Running back inside with the girl following closely behind him, Ryoken asked everyone to remain calm while the guards quickly secured the area. After that, he ran out to check on the situation. Once outside, the first thing he saw was a big pillar of dark smoke raising up toward the sky from where the armory was.

Biting his lower lip, he once again started to run. However, he only managed to take two steps forward before he suddenly heard footsteps coming from behind. It was unusually loud. As he turned around, he saw a mysterious hooded figure several meters away from him.

"Nice weather we're having, don't you think?"

"Were you the one who did this?"

"Yes. I figure it was the best way to get your attention, your highness."

"Well, you're right. Now, who are you?!"

"Me?" That person smiled and a bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, hitting the exact spot the sapphire eyes teen was standing. However, having sensed it before hand, Ryoken managed to dodge just in the nick of time but not without having some minor burnt on of his left arm. "I'm the Grim Reaper."