AN: Next chapter! Looks like school might drag me down a little but that's all right! I'll be sure to update as soon as I can.
Chapter 4: Meanwhile…
The king was stressed. He was very stressed indeed.
Who knew that the disappearance of Warlord Andrienne could cause such chaos? Since her brother was doing a favor for a neighboring kingdom, Immorta mostly relied on Andie. It's been a day since her disappearance and most of the people were panicking.
It's also been a day since a maid had informed him of the letter she found.
The king ordered the guards to keep this new discovery a secret for now. What he was mostly worried about though, was his daughter, Princess Lily. She had been miserable for the whole day, and showed no signs of cheering up.
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Lily poked at her food, sighing in misery yet another time. Her father sent her a concerned glance. "You can't act like this all day, dear," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. Lily chewed on her lip.
"Father…"
"Yes, dear?"
"Why didn't Andie tell us she was leaving?" she asked, leaning back on her chair. The king pondered this, also wondering why she would just leave. "I mean, she didn't even tell me!" Lily exclaimed.
"Now, Lily, maybe she didn't want you to worry," the king said. Lily stared at him, confused.
"Why would she think that I would worry?" she asked. Her father sighed. "Well, would you just let her go to a tournament the whole country hasn't even heard of?" he asked. Lily found herself agreeing.
Lily stayed silent as she started to eat.
Was she really that much of a worry wart? Would she really prevent her friend and personal guard from having a good time? Questions flew around her head making her slightly dizzy.
She left the dining hall when she finished eating, heading towards Andie's room. She held a small box wrapped in purple and a red ribbon was tied around it. She reluctantly pushed the door open. Huh, it wasn't locked.
She put the gift on the warlord's desk and sat on the bed. She sent a curious glance to a chest sitting on the foot of the bed. She slipped her necklace off her neck and contemplated about whether she should do it or not.
Her necklace was actually a small key, rumored to be blessed by the gods. It could open any lock in the kingdom. It was a beautiful gold key with spots of silver and glittered like the ocean.
She opened the chest with a sigh and was surprised to find all of Andie's things neatly tucked inside. She inspected a painting the warlord received on one of her adventures in the kingdom of The Golden Seas. She suddenly wondered about what the kingdom looked like in person, not just paintings.
After a few minutes of shuffling through her friend's things, she found a small, white jewelry box. It was adorned with gems of all shapes and sizes, and a small plaque on top that, surprisingly, had her name carved into it.
The writing wasn't Andie's, that's for sure. It was a neat, cursive handwriting that was probably done with great care. Could she have asked the blacksmith to do this?
"What's this?" she mumbled as she spotted a note on the side of the box. It said, "Give to Princess Lily on her birthday."
Her birthday? Her birthday was in two weeks! She then realized that she had basically ruined the warlord's surprise. Feeling guilt bubble up in her chest, she tucked the jewelry box safely in the chest and walked away, hoping that whenever Andie comes back, she would receive her present.
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Princess Lily woke up with a rather loud yawn. She took a bath, got dressed, and prepared to head out to town. It was still dawn when she exited the castle.
"Hey, princess, ready to head out again?"
Princess Lily regarded her escort with a friendly smile. Hailey stood there, spear in one hand and her shield in another. She wore a silly smile on her face. "I'm ready, Hailey," she said. "But first, you have to look like a regular person."
Hailey laughed. She was well respected in the army, known for her bravery and being Andie's best friend and partner in battle. Hailey retreated to her room to get changed.
Princess Lily stared off into the horizon with a tranquil expression. She hummed a lullaby her mother taught her before passing away as she waited for Hailey to return.
"Ready," Hailey called. Lily almost jumped. She shook her head and took Hailey's offered arm.
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Even in the early hours of morning, the town bustled with life. Princess Lily quite liked this town. Unlike the castle's sleepy and quiet mornings, this town was buzzing with energy. The two strolled through the town, occasionally stopping at a store.
"Hailey, look at this bracelet!" Lily called. Hailey chucked and poked her on her stomach.
"Yes, I'm here, your majesty. That bracelet looks pretty nice, though." She said. Lily pouted but averted her attention back to the bracelet. Indeed the bracelet is pretty, she thought.
It was a silver bracelet, small hearts hanging from it by chains. It had a peridot embedded in the middle.
"Hey, highness, your hood is sliding off."
Lily jumped in alarm, swiftly pulling her hood up. She could hear Hailey snicker. "It's not funny," she muttered. Hailey only snickered louder. Lily rolled her eyes.
"Wonder what it is though," she said. She didn't notice the seller who stood in front of her.
"Well, it's a friendship bracelet. A very pretty one at that," the seller giggled. Lily jumped in surprise, looking up at the seller with a blush.
The seller was a young lady with pale skin, short, black hair, and mysterious orange eyes. She wore a red dress with flowers adorning her waist and brown boots. She cast a short glance over to Hailey, who was looking at other products. "A friendship bracelet?" Lily asked. The seller nodded.
"I have its partner right here," she said, holding up a similar bracelet but gold with a turquoise gem embedded in the middle instead. Strange, that bracelet has Andie's birthstone on it while this one has mine, Lily thought.
"Excuse me, but are these reserved for anyone?" she asked curiously. The seller shook her head. Lily was slightly disappointed.
"Ah, but don't worry, I was actually giving this out for free," the seller said, as if reading the princess's thoughts. Lily jerked her head up and stared at her, stunned.
"Free? But you could earn some serious amount of gold with those!" she exclaimed. The seller laughed softly to herself.
"You could afford it any time you wanted though, right, princess?" she asked. Lily swore she just saw her eyes flash gold.
"Wha? How- but I, I thought-"
Lily was cut off when the seller shoved both the bracelets her way, winking. "It's a secret," she said. Lily nodded dumbly.
"What do they do?" she asked. The seller looked deep in thought for several moments. "Well," she began.
"They symbolize your bond with another person. It helps give strength when you're not with your friend. It also reminds you that your friend will always be there for you. It's a promise that you will see the other again, no matter what. It's a treasure worth keeping, trust me, dear. That's why it's priceless," was the seller's reply.
Lily did feel better when she looked at the bracelets, she realized. "I'll buy it."
"But as I said, it's fr-"
A pouch of money was pushed her way. The seller looked up to see a very insistent princess. She smiled warmly then nodded her acceptance. "By the way, what's your name?" Lily asked.
The seller's smile widened. "It's Author."
"Well, goodbye, Author!" Lily said as she dragged Hailey with her back to the castle. Author watched them with amusement.
"It's not goodbye, princess. We'll be meeting each other again sooner than you think," were Author's last words as she disappeared in a flash of light, the other folk staying blissfully unaware of what she did.
AN: Aaaaaaand, cut! That's all for today folks and that story had a lot of line breaks. I hated that I could only use "the seller", seriously, it was annoying. See you guys soon.