Bonding Ties Between Reality and Non-reality
Chapter 3: The Royal Family
In the same era, situated in the middle of Angara was one of the biggest and most influential towns that additionally housed the worldwide-famous and prosperous kingdom of Vale. The town itself was named Vale, and it was an indefinite rumour that the history of the name dated back a few hundred years ago, where Vale was only a small but beautiful valley surrounded with wild, rare flowers and luscious greenery.
Back then, population was very scarce, and it was not until a royal family had decided to dwell on that specific land that more inhabitants began to settle down at that spot. From a small rural village, Vale had slowly but steadily climbed its way up into the world.
The Kings and Queens of Vale were excellent leaders. From generation to generation, the leaders had ruled Vale wisely to the best of their capability, and they were supported and loved by all. Under their trusted leadership and great charisma, Vale had blossomed and prospered.
And now, Vale was at the highest height of its blooming.
One of the things that amazed any visitor who came along on a hearty visit was the majestic castle of Vale. It was, indeed, so vastly gigantic that many rooms could be fitted into it. Every piece, tile and material was purely real and exquisite mosaic. The floors and walls were all made of expensive marble, the glass windows all well-polished and welcoming, lovely thick deep purple curtains drawn across the windows, and even the front door was enormous, made out of pure brown oak. Each and every staircase leading to the next floor was even magnificently designed; it was shaped in a fragile yet slender arc, made out of solid glass. Priceless antiques lined up in every hall, delicate and beautiful.
The castle's splendour was truly magnificent; no other words could describe how beautiful everything was, how indisputably perfect it all were. It was rather simple on the whole (as how the present Queen wished), but yet, it still managed to impress upon an unexplainable lovely touch to any soul who stepped into the castle. The expenses in total were on the costly side, but with Vale's extreme successes in business trading with other countries, they had more than enough to donate to the poor as well.
On the ground floor, the long doorway would split into three paths; the left path led to another corridor which would bring to a good many rooms, among them a treasury (tightly locked and guarded by hefty, robust soldiers) and a mail room where the daily mail were collected and sorted out by the persons concerned. A path would lead to a big, magnificent ballroom that was fully furnished with royal-blood carpets and marvelous decorations.
The right-hand path was identical in structure to the left-hand path, but led to a huge dining room (enough to fit perhaps more than a hundred in a big fiesta occasion) specially for the royal family, nobles and honoured guests. A little ways off the dining room was an enormous kitchen where various professional trained chefs and loyal servants bustled about everyday in preparing succulent and mouth-watering dishes. After that was another dining room for the servants themselves, and a laundry room.
Meanwhile, taking the straight path would bring to another three more paths; upon walking straight, that person would arrive at the throne room, where the King and Queen seated everyday and ruled Vale with the help of their personal trusted advisor. The next room after the throne room would be the meeting chambers, where the royal family would bring forward discussions with the other nobles.
The other two paths would lead to the first floor rooms through glittering posh staircases at the left and right corners of the room. The first floor was just as great as the ground floor, perhaps even better. It contained various rooms, many among them bedrooms. The King and Queen's private chambers was undeniably the best and most special of all. All of those living in the castle (which included nobles, dukes, guests, knights, servants, chambermaids, and a good deal more) were provided with excellent luxurious rooms as well. Clothes rooms were generously added in the list.
Continuing along the pathway would come to another two staircases that led to the second floor of the castle. Amidst those many rooms, there was an orchestra and music room, followed by a comfortable nursery room for the young children. There was a meditation room, and further on was the biggest library rated in the whole world with more than a million knowledgeable books. No one could be bored in the palace with so many books to delve in.
The castle structure was complete with the extensions of two high and magnificent towers that overlooked the town of Vale. The two towers were well-built; solid, secure and very much durable. Anyone who were to look down from the tower would have been stunned, for the view and panorama that he would observe was, simply put, seraphic. One could witness the strikingly beautiful view of Vale and the fabulous greenery of Mother Nature, as one could see for miles and miles from the mighty towers. It was, indeed, a breathtaking sight.
Underground was a dungeon basement where prisoners received their rightful judgment dealt by justice. Many prisoners had been ushered into the dark, foreboding dungeon through the large, spiked steel gate and been punished accordingly, especially during the worldwide Angaran War. Strong and sturdy armoured soldiers prowled and patrolled around every so often, reliable weapons at their side. But now, the dungeons were abandoned and no longer in use, as peace was more or less steadily kept in the country, and democracy was their trade.
But that was only inside the whole castle building. Outside, on the castle grounds were the stables, where dozens of horses were kept, brushed and cleaned with the utmost care. Not only that, but a huge portion of the land was the castle courtyard, mainly housing a large building as the training grounds for the knights and brave warriors. The basic training gadgets and facilities were provided for the beginners, and it contained a storage room filled with all kinds of destructive weapons, defensive shields and protective armour of the highest quality affordable. For convenience, many comfortable bedrooms with the basic necessities were built inside the same building for the knights and expert trainers.
And above all, the castle was bordered by extremely enchanting, mesmerising gardens. Green bushes grew everywhere. Roses, sunflowers, violets, carnations, lilies, tulips, daisies, irises, they were all there. The gardens were so well taken care of by the dedicated, experienced gardeners and servants that it highly served in heightening the castle's shining splendour even more than ever.
Indeed, living in the castle was such a great privilege at that time.
---o---
"Dora?"
"Yes, dear?"
"It's not because I am eager to have one, you know…"
"Hmm? Oh Kyle, sometimes you do rather tend to jump to the ending straightaway when it comes to telling something. Please start from the beginning, dear. You do look somewhat fidgety." Queen Dora gave a light chuckle.
Kyle and Dora were both the noble King and Queen of the big kingdom of Vale. Years ago, Vale had successfully merged with one of the strong-influential towns named Tolbi, as a symbol of eternal friendship and loyalty between both sides. This action was in honour of Vale's prince, Prince Kyle, who had married Dora Lesitia, a normal but decidedly kind and beautiful woman who hailed from Tolbi. Maintaining its original name, Vale had greatly prospered in popularity and country achievements, as well as economics.
At that very moment, the King and Queen were having a short rest from their daily duties as king and queen. Feeling their limbs stiff to some extent due to the muscles inactive for several hours, they decided to saunter up to the highest tower in their castle for good exercise. This was a normal habit, as they could also witness the intoxicating views of their beloved kingdom and land.
"I'm sorry, my dear," King Kyle apologized with an affectionate smile. "Actually, I was just thinking of our son."
Queen Dora tilted her head to one side quizzically. "Isaac?"
"Yes. He is approaching twenty-four soon… do you not think that it is time?"
"Hmm? What do you mean—oh yes, I understand now. You mean that it is time he found a good suitor, Kyle?"
Kyle cleared his throat. "Well, yes. After all, he is at the right age, according to our traditions. Is that not right, Dora?"
His wife smiled. "Yes, that is so… but it is not so simple. How are we going to do it? After all, Isaac does not venture out of the castle often, but it is definitely much worse to just gift him with a young woman who we think is suitable for him, even though he may not feel the same way. We can't force love."
Kyle smiled back, putting an arm on her shoulder. "I know. That's why I have secured a good proposal."
"A proposal? What is it, dear?" she inquired, her eyebrows raised.
"Well, remember how we first met and later on got married?"
Dora's face lighted. "Oh yes, I do remember… so you plan to do the same for Isaac?"
"Yes, but of course, we will seek for his agreement first. It would do no good if he appears reluctant in that matter. What do you think?"
The Queen thought for a while, then smiled again at him. "Hmm… it does not sound too bad. Let's give it a try, shall we?"
---o---
"Prince Isaac, permit us to enter?"
"Yes, of course, by all means."
Prince Isaac was, simply put, a handsome young man. He had attractive yellow-golden hair (that always spiked up no matter how much he ambitiously tried to flatten it down in a tidy manner, much to his amusement). His eyes were a deep azure, matching well with his hair colour. His clear-cut, sharp features that basically told anyone indirectly that he was not someone to be fooled easily.
For his age, Isaac was considered tall, sturdy, muscular and fully matured. His muscles were well-toned and developed marvelously, for he had taken various physical trainings, which he insisted to undertake like normal soldiers and knights. He was more than capable in terms of responsibility and leadership.
As a noble prince, he wore suitable royal and mighty clothes with a piece of armour on top of his chest as protection. The symbol of Vale was proudly adorned on it, together with an imperious long golden cloak that hung down proudly. Being an extremely popular attraction among the opposite sex, he was like a dream person to almost every girl who saw him. There was not a single doubt that many of Vale thought highly of the young prince.
The door leading to his personal chambers opened slowly. As Prince Isaac transferred his gaze from the book that he was concentrating upon, he saw three familiar faces. His face lit up in an inviting smile.
"Come on in," said he, gesturing them to be seated on his bed.
Three people stepped into his room and bowed simultaneously. Two were male, the other one female. One of the males had long dark brown hair, tied in a ponytail at the end. His brown eyes were always calm and collected, bearing almost no revealing expression whatsoever. Felix Segrave, Vale's head of the communication management inside and outside the country borders, was a responsible, trustworthy and wholly reliable man now in his late twenties.
The other two people were rather similar in appearances; one could have easily taken them as twins. Both having short blonde hair nicely cropped to the sides and roughly of the same mediocre height, the only difference that separated the two genders was that the male had deep wine-coloured eyes, whereas the female had sharp emerald eyes. They could almost be taken as part of the royal family.
Ivan Ferrier, the prince's personal advisor-to-be, and Sheba Raos, head of the library center management, were on very good terms with Felix and the prince, even though they were both younger in age. They were precious friends, companions, comrades and allies, giving useful advice and valuable second opinions.
The blonde named Sheba stepped forward. "But Prince Isaac, this is your own chambers! It is quite a preposterous thing to do, that!" she exclaimed, slightly horrified at the idea.
Ivan sighed. "I know I will not change Your Highness' mind even if I say this, but as your future personal advisor, it is still my responsibility to remind Your Highness that such an idea is against our customs," he quoted with a half-smile. His voice was boyish as it had yet to fully break.
The handsome prince just shrugged it off with a wave of his hand. "I know that, Ivan. It is one of the polite rules between the prince and the lower ranks. But… I do no really care much for that. Truth be told, I do not think it is of any considerable importance."
"Are you sure, Prince?" asked Felix, his voice ringing out very deep.
"Yes… you all must be thinking that I am not behaving as a proper prince should be," he explained, getting rather flustered. "What I mean is that I do not act very formal in front of you all sometimes, my conversational skills are sometimes not perfect, and I stoop down acting like what other normal people do—" (he never did say 'commoners', for he thought it was an extremely offending term)
"And?" Ivan prompted.
"… But somehow, I do not really think that it is wrong," he finished simply. "I merely think that we should not restrict ourselves just because we are of the higher class and that certain actions which are perfectly normal would prove wrongly unnatural."
"In that case, perhaps Your Highness is just acting more normal than the other princes," Sheba concluded.
"… I beg your pardon, Sheba? Am I not the one that is unusual?" he queried.
Sheba Raos smiled pleasantly in return and curtsied. "No, my lord. You are an open-minded prince that has no prejudice views with the actions of the normal people, and that is why you do not feel that it is an abnormal thing to do what they do. Is that not right, Ivan?" She turned to her friend for support.
Ivan nodded slowly in agreement. "Yes, it is true, Prince. We would never lie in such matters," said he. "I have never heard of a kinder and nobler prince than Your Highness," he added.
"Well, well…" Prince Isaac had his eyebrow cocked, amused to a certain extent. "And what, may I ask, puts me on a different level of kindness from the other princes?"
Felix spoke up. "My dear prince, pray think, have any other princes helped and brought back two helpless orphans in deserted streets to the castle?"
Before the prince could think of a suitable reply, Sheba said:
"Yes, Prince. Do you not remember, my lord, how touched your dear mother, the honourable Queen, was when she heard that you had decided to take care of Ivan and I, two unimportant adolescents that were worth almost nothing, in the castle? She was so proud of you, my dear prince, that she could not help but shed a few tears of joy and happiness!"
"And ever since that fateful day until now, Your Highness, Sheba and I are forever in debt with you, all for your supreme kindness. Who knows what hazards would have befallen us if we were left starving on the lonely, abandoned and dangerous streets?" Ivan added. "You were a life miracle, a godsend to us."
Isaac's eyes softened as the end of his lips curled into a smile. "Yes… and I am extremely glad that I had done so. I have no regrets whatsoever. With all of your faithful companionship, the three of you, life had a greater meaning to me since then."
"Therefore, Prince, you must not feel confused and sad. In my opinion, formalities are not everything to a prince. Your kindness, courage and determined spirit make up for it, and even more at that. Please believe me when I say this, my lord." Felix once again bowed deeply.
The prince of Vale was deeply touched. "Thank you everyone… you all have always cheered me up to no end. No friend can be better than you three. For that, I am eternally grateful."
The trio smiled. "As we have always assured Your Highness, we, too, are happy to serve such a honourable and noble prince like you. We are glad to be of service always, now and forever."
"Well then, may our friendship bond never be severed!"
"Yes, sir!"
Isaac laughed, his pleasant voice filling the air. Moments later, he sobered up as a thought struck him. "Oh yes, what was it that you three wished to speak to me about? I do not think that you three would knock on my door for no particular reason?"
"Ah yes. I beg your pardon, Prince Isaac," Felix quickly apologised. "His Majesty King Kyle and Her Highness Queen Dora requested to see Your Highness as soon as possible."
Intrigued, the prince knit his eyebrows together. "As soon as possible? Is there any urgency?" he asked sharply.
"They said that it was an urgent matter, concerning you, my lord," replied Sheba.
"Hmm… concerning myself… No matter, I will find out what exactly soon enough. Thank you, Felix, Ivan and Sheba. I will go now." He then rose from his bed, leaving the book behind him and walked to the door. "I assume Father and Mother are in the throne room?"
"Yes, Prince."
"Thank you, Ivan. You three may remain in my room if you wish, just… try not to start some kind of pillow fight or anything, all right?" Isaac's humorous side surfaced, winking at them before he departed for the throne room.
Once he was gone, Ivan shook his head half-regretfully. "My dear prince… how could we ever dream of having a pillow fight in such surroundings like your personal chambers?"
Felix chuckled lightly. "Anyway, I've got to get going myself. There are a few minor problems with the communication center, so I have to straighten it out. I will probably be back just in time for dinner."
"In that case, we would not mind helping you sort those matters out," Sheba offered. On a compulsive note, she added, "Well, at least, I do not mind. How about you, Ivan?"
"I will help out too, if there aren't too many hands already," the blond boy joked with a boyish grin.
Felix nodded a silent word of thanks in assent. "Right, let's go."
As they started walking away from the prince's chambers, something caught Ivan's eye. Curiosity drew him close to it.
The book that Isaac was reading.
Letting his curiosity get the better of him, he walked over to the bed and picked it up. "What is this book?"
"Hmm?" Retracing her steps, Sheba poked her head out over his shoulder and looked at the book cover. "'… Lost'?"
Ivan shrugged his shoulders carelessly. "Sounds like a romantic story to me. What do you think, Sheba?"
"Yes, it does sound rather like it. But why on earth would Prince Isaac want to read something like this?"
Young Segrave must have been listening to the conversation, for he thoughtfully answered, "… Perhaps Prince Isaac is in love."
Ivan lay down the book back on the bed and crossed his arms thoughtfully. "It might be true… but it never crossed my thoughts that our prince is the romantic type who hunts down romance books…" he muttered.
"… I don't think that's the case, Ivan. Perhaps our prince wants to know how does love feels like," Sheba suggested.
"Hmm… perhaps. That does sound likely. After all, he is at the age where such things are normal… though I deeply wonder how such books could have ended up in the big library." He then turned to Sheba, as the head of the library center management, for affirmation. "I thought all of the books in the library were factual, non-fiction ones?"
She rubbed her chin thoughtfully, saying so slowly:
"Hmm… that is true… by the classification of books that we have, there is nothing that this book is categorised under." She nodded her head and shrugged. "It is puzzling. The existence of a fiction book amongst the whole lot of non-fiction is merely impossible, especially since we never produce, catalogue or order any fiction ones."
"Perhaps this book was accidentally packed with the rest in one of the catalogues we ordered," said the other man in the room, offering a suggestion.
"Maybe."
"We should ask the prince himself later," said Felix. "Let's go now."
"All right," the other two agreed.
And with that, the trio left silently, closing the oak door as they left.
A thought struck Ivan as he turned across a passageway. Come to think of it, we did not see Flint…
---o---
I wonder what is behind this sudden call… As Prince Isaac briskly walked at a steady pace towards the throne room, his thoughts were locked on the summons for him. His curiosity and intrigue were deeply roused. Ah well, time will tell.While a good deal of the population in Angara summarized Prince Isaac as a potential ruler confident in his decisions, his own heart reminded him of the stark truth. The long cloak that fluttered mightily with the sound of wind seemed to radiate his power, position and glory; but to the young prince, it was nothing else but a parody (funnily enough, he thought), a façade.
His honesty forbore him to deny the fact that he would tend to waffle when it came to making decisions, especially tough ones. He never believed fully that he was always right in the choices that he made. The undying concern he often had slanted to his subjects-to-be than his own welfare, despite his role as the one and only prince of Vale (and therefore he was, as his kind mother would have said in good humour, indispensable). He would never allow himself to be overconfident and proud, but he found it troublesome at times.
Oh, what would he give to be strong in his decisions! How he wished that he would not explore every choice so deeply until he found a contradiction, be it even a small one, which would make him unsure! What would he give just to own that feeling of 'Yes, this is right, I'm sure of it'; to be so sure that no other thing could shake his opinion on the matter!
"Isaac?" A soft squeaky voice whispered.
Caught unawares as he was lost in thought, Isaac jumped out of his skin. Immediately recognizing the voice, he calmed down and walked to the corner of the long hallway where he faced a big antique vase placed on a burgundy-coloured ledge, smiling as he spoke. "You can come out, Flint. There is no one else here."
Seconds later, a small unusual creature crept out from behind the enormous vase. It had round crystal blue eyes which could hold an appealing look, like how a faithful dog begs its master to take it on a walk with its pleading eyes. Its small body was coloured a medium shade of brown homogeneously, except for his stomach which was a light tan. It was slightly on the plump side, and as Isaac had appraised it with a shrewd eye on their first meeting, young children would have appreciated Flint as an object that held the attraction of 'cuteness'.
Isaac and Flint were very close friends. Their great difference in body-size did not affect that at all. Similarly like how Isaac found Ivan and Sheba, he too found Flint wandering around in the lonely and abandoned streets of Vale. Flint was a very amusing companion to have, being cheerful and dead obstinate. Many a time Isaac delighted in Flint's company. Together with Felix, Sheba, Ivan and Flint, Isaac was usually happy living in his ancestral home.
No one in the castle knew of Flint's existence except for Isaac's parents and Isaac's three friends. That, even then, was at first difficult to hide from them. He remembered how he had tried to 'smuggle' food back into his chambers to feed his unusual friend with unsuccessful attempts. The fact that his good but firm mother insisted that no food were to be brought into any bedroom chambers (as their family code, though Isaac could not fathom how did it come about in the first place) did not help either.
"It was good luck catching you. I was just looking for you and hey presto, what a coincidence!" Flint exclaimed, beaming.
Isaac grinned. "You do realise that you run the risk of making your identity known to others by running about in the castle, don't you?"
"Yeah, I know, but you can't just expect me to sit and sleep there in your bed every day and night, right? I've got to have exercise and adventure too!"
The prince laughed. "Well put, Flint."
"So you wanna play?" Flint asked.
Patting the djinn on the head fondly, the young prince replied. "No, Flint. I'm honestly sorry, but I cannot. My parents have summoned me to the throne room, which was where I was headed to until just now."
The Venus djinn looked down sadly. "Aww… I guess that can't be helped, then."
"Sorry, old boy."
"Nah, it's okay. Maybe I should have a nice nap now… rather tired after all this walking, hopping and hiding from your guards. This is gonna be some big hide-and-seek game now, every time I go adventuring!"
Prince Isaac grinned again. His little pal was certainly adventurous. "Well, you can have your beauty sleep in my room, Flint. I'll see you there."
"Okay, see ya!" The cute djinn then bounded off happily.
Isaac chuckled to himself, shaking his head in good spirits. Remembering his original destination, he resumed his walk to the throne room, hastening his steps as he did so. His parents would wonder what was delaying him if he was late, and he himself appreciated punctuality.
---o---
The two guards blocking the entrance of the throne room immediately bowed and stepped aside as they saw the prince approaching. "Prince Isaac, please proceed on to the throne room. His Honourable Majesty King Kyle and Her Greatest Highness Queen Dora have been expecting Your Highness."
Isaac nodded curtly. "Thank you."
The mighty doors were opened and the prince stepped through into the room, bowing down to his knees before his parents, the King and the Queen. He noticed something amiss vaguely at the back of his mind, and he only realised later on that his father's personal advisor, Kraden, was surprisingly not there. He half-wondered why.
"Father, Mother."
King Kyle and Queen Dora, sitting on the throne beside each other, smiled. "Pray rise to your feet, Isaac," said his mother.
"Thank you, Father, Mother." He rose accordingly, gazing at both his parents with deep reverence. If he had anyone to worship after, the two people before his eyes were his subjects of worship and veneration.
Queen Dora chuckled. "You need not act so formal in front of us, Isaac. You are our son after all, and I know that you do not prefer formalities much."
"I apologise, Mother."
"It is all right, Isaac. When I was young, I, too, did not think much of formalities." King Kyle hastened to relieve his son with a humorous smile.
"Well then, let's not keep you waiting, Isaac. Your father has something important to tell you."
Much as Isaac thought that it was not probable, he did not resist the attempt to say: "Is it concerning our diplomatic friendship with other countries?" His overly-imaginative mind even led him to the chance that a war was perhaps arising, but he reproached himself inwardly immediately after.
"Heavens, no." King Kyle shook his head good-humouredly. "It is a very different matter altogether." Looking at his wife beside him, he prompted, "Perhaps you would explain to him, dear? I think you are better in this kind of matters."
"Very well, if you think that is so," agreed Dora. Smiling at her son, she started, "Well… it's perhaps an awkward subject for you, my dear, but your father and I were just thinking of your…" she stopped for a moment, but went on rather hesitatingly, "your future."
Isaac tilted his head to one side, puzzled. "My future?" he echoed.
"In other words, marriage," his father explained.
He got a start. "M… marriage?" Isaac could hardly believe his ears. Why the sudden unusual topic?
His mother now plunged into the conversation with renewed resolve. "Yes, Isaac. You are now at the right age to start thinking at the prospects of your own marriage. You are now incoming twenty-four, and by our tradition standards…" she left the sentence trailing unfinished.
Before Isaac could open his mouth in a light protest, Dora continued firmly, "Now, listen to me first, Isaac. As your parents, we are not forcing you to do this. We care for your future happiness, your future family. Don't think for one moment that we just want you to get married to ensure a new generation for our throne, because we do not believe in that."
"Of… of course, Mother, but…" he half-stammered.
"Pray tell me, Isaac, honestly, have you ever thought of this?" Kyle inquired.
The prince was at an utter loss. W… what on Venus can I say? "I…"
Dora nodded her head consolingly. "It's perfectly all right to be at a loss, Isaac. Just think carefully," she advised.
Prince Isaac finally managed to summon his courage. "Father, Mother, I have not… thought of… uh, marrying. I do not know… whom and what is it that I seek for," he began haltingly. "I… uh, don't know what to say…"
Oh, great… I'm now making a big mess out of myself, he thought. Like what Flint would say, kudos to Isaac.
King Kyle quickly came to his rescue. "Yes, we understand your dilemma, Isaac. It is not easy to find that special someone in your life."
"Then…" For all I know, I may not even find that certain person! There are thousands and millions of people all over Angara… it's like a needle in a haystack!
"Do not worry, Isaac; I'm positively sure that you will find your special someone one day." Then, with a wink, Queen Dora added, "But instead of waiting for that one fine day to arrive, we were just thinking to help you by speeding it up. What say you, Isaac?"
… Uh… what should I say? … Or rather, what do I feel? I've never actually thought about this… thing, but… I do quite see the point, being my age now, and all that. I guess Father and Mother just want to look out for me, and I guess I should myself…
Still, he doubted very much as to the process of 'speeding it up'. "… Even if I agree, I still do not understand how I can find that certain person… there are so many young women all over the world!"
"That is true, son. That's why your mother and I have a plan," said Kyle.
"A… plan? What exactly is it, Father?" asked a bewildered Isaac. … They even have a 'plan'?
Seeing his son's confused expression, Kyle laughed. "We will do the same as what my late father did to get me married."
Isaac frowned. "The same as what my late grandfather did…?" As he puzzled over that fact, a faint recollection clicked. "Oh, Father, you don't mean… a ball? At the palace?"
"You got it, son. After all, don't forget, that was how your mother and I first met," Kyle reminded.
"That is right, Isaac. Personally, I rather think it is an excellent idea. Since we will send invitations to all the population in every single country there is, you need not worry over discovering your 'dream person'." The queen then shot her son a motherly-knowing look. "And even if you attempt to argue over the possibility that that special someone might not attend the ball after all, do not forget that the chances are very slim, and such things are already decided by fate beforehand, so do not entertain that thought even for a moment." she finished with a smile.
"…" Her son closed his gaping, half-opened mouth slowly. How did she know what he was just going to say? At that psychological moment, Prince Isaac could almost swear an oath that his mother was quite cunningly capable of being a mind reader periodically, his especially.
King Kyle shifted in his chair. "Honestly, I never did believe wholly in these 'love at first sight' incidents, but—" he paused to glance at Dora affectionately, "it was mandatory to change my principles after my turn came."
The prince hid a smirk. He knew their story must have been romantic in the least, but he knew that a man with his duties hardly pestered an equally busy father about his love life, so he had (with a touch of regret) withdrawn tactfully. And now it is my turn… He reflected hard. If he agreed to this event, it would not be a light joke to be treated of… he, Prince Isaac of Vale, would be expected to choose his bride after the ball (and to make the biggest decision ever in his life, too!).
Comprehending his perplexity, Queen Dora again endeavoured to soothe his agitated psyche. "I know it takes a while to sink it all in, Isaac. We both know that it is perchance too impulsive for you, but I assure you, this… event will only be executed with the agreement of your own will and accord. No one, not even us, can ever possibly force you into this. Love is, what people say, fragile and wild."
"Take your time and consider, son. We will not rush you in naming your decision."
Moments passed. The whole throne room was silent. The King and Queen were as if mute, respecting their son's deep contemplation. He in return seemed to welcome the peace that reigned over the room, folding his arms over his chest as he employed his sharp wits.
Finally, King Kyle opted to tell his son that he was free to give an answer anytime he wished, that it needed not be now, there and then. But before he could form any words, Isaac himself spoke aloud.
"So… I am to choose?"
The silence broken, Queen Dora cocked her head inquiringly. "I beg your pardon, Isaac?"
Prince Isaac looked directly at his parents with a cheerful yet solemn and self-composed expression engraved on his attractive features. "I am to choose the woman that I will fall for, is that not right, Mother?"
"Why yes, of course, Isaac. It is all up to you."
He smiled; a simple, austere and down-to-earth smile.
"Then let it be done."
Author's Note: A note of thank you goes to Daidairo for her helpful suggestions and ideas about the castle! I would have never thought of a nursery room, the treasury and the stables (how shameful) myself, oddly. Comments, suggestions, criticism and advice are appreciated!