Finding Stardust

"I want to know what my mother had to do with your uncle before she ran away with my father," Emma asked. A moment later, she patted his head. "Ah ... but I guess you must be too little to understand anything at that time."

Therius nodded. "You"re right. But I heard stories from other people too. If you want to hear them, I can tell you."

Emma nodded. She still did not want to turn towards Therius. So, the prince decided to sit across from Emma so he could see her face while talking.

"Princess Arreya had been sent to live in Akkadia"s capital as a hostage since she was ten years old. She and my uncle had been friends since childhood, and I think my uncle sincerely loved her. When he was asked to choose his future bride among all the princesses in the palace, Uncle Darius firmly chose Princess Arreya.

"Everyone liked their relations.h.i.+p. Not only because Princess Arreya was very impressively smart and beautiful, but their marriage would also preserve the good relations.h.i.+p between Akkadia and Thaesi," Therius began his story. "She was also once thought as the Princess That Was Promised from old Akkadian"s legend."

"The Princess That Was Promised? What is that?" Emma remembered hearing these words before when her parents talked, but she didn"t know what they meant.

"Uhmm... our country is quite unique. It is where science and magic live side by side. And even though it is modern times and many people no longer believe in G.o.ds, some people still do. One of these oldest faiths believes that one day the G.o.ds will send a special woman who could unite the whole planet.

"In the past, people with magical powers were considered messengers of the G.o.ds to the world, to help rule their respective elements. Now, they are seen as normal people with special abilities, that is all. But, after Princess Arreya was found to have four types of element-bending abilities, people started to revisit the old prophecy and thought she might be the one. She came at a time when people"s faiths were shaken."

"Hmm... that"s interesting," Emma responded. "What about you? What do you believe in?"

Therius stared at Emma deeply. "I don"t believe in the G.o.ds, but the royal family does. So, I have to follow in their tradition."

"Oh... I thought, being the crown prince, you can do whatever you want," Emma chided.

"No, but being THE KING, I can do whatever I want. That"s why I aim for the throne."

Xion suddenly interrupted them. "Wait... Emma actually has all her mother"s powers. Do you think they will also think she is the Princess That Was Promised?"

"That is indeed interesting leverage," Therius said. "We can make it so if needed."

"You... don"t believe in the Princess That Was Promised?" Emma asked Therius curiously.

"No. I told you I don"t believe in those G.o.ds and the prophecy."

Emma breathed a sigh of relief. She was worried that Therius was one of those fanatic wors.h.i.+ppers to a religion that she wasn"t even familiar with. Fortunately, he was not. Therius actually looked like a reasonable guy.

"So.. actually, my mother had a good standing in Akkadia before she eloped with my father?" Emma asked again.

"Yes. As I said, she was loved by the people, and everyone thought their marriage will maintain the good relations.h.i.+p between Akkadia and Thaesi."

"What do you mean by the good relations.h.i.+p? Isn"t Thaesi colonized by Akkadia?" said Emma. "That relations.h.i.+p, however good, will never be equal."

"Akkadia treats Thaesi very well, as long as they follow the Akkadian"s rules," Therius replied. "I think everyone can see that. If a princess from Thaesi married the king of Akkadia and became the queen, it"s just as good as uniting the two countries. That would be the beginning of peace on our entire planet."

"I don"t understand, why doesn"t Akkadia just let go of all its colonies and live in equality with all?" Emma asked.

"Uhm ... it"s not that simple. You will learn about the history of Akkadia and understand that this involves a system that has been going on for tens of generations." said Therius. "But after I become the king, if that"s what you want, I can grant it. We can find a way to make it happen."

Somehow at that moment, Emma"s cheeks turned red. She felt that Therius was coaxing her with sweet words, and it made her uncomfortable.

It was so much easier for her to hate this man if he kept being annoying and overbearing.

"We"re not talking about what I want, okay. I just want to hear the story about my mother," she interrupted him curtly.

Meanwhile, Xion coughed violently in his place. He wanted to laugh when he witnessed this one-sided love affair. He could see Therius was trying to do anything to please Emma, ​​but apparently everything he did always made her angry.

It"s true what people say. The first impression was so important. From the first moment Therius met Emma, they got off on the wrong foot. It seemed like Therius would never be able to restore his image in Emma"s eyes.

"Why are you coughing?" Therius glared at Xion and asked him with telemancy.

The person he stared with a sharp look only shrugged casually. "I am impressed. You are getting good at flirting with her. Unfortunately, she is not impressed. I should say, I am a man, and even I"m touched. Good job, Buddy!"

"Flirting with her? What did I do?" Therius asked, not understanding.

"That one earlier. You said after you become the king, you will grant all her wishes."

"I wasn"t flirting. I really mean what I said."

"Oh ..." Xion sipped his wine until it was finished and pretended to look the other way. Indeed, he would not be able to understand people who are in love.

Meanwhile, Emma, ​​who noticed the two men"s expressions, became suspicious that they were talking behind her back.

"Ahem ... you guys did it again," she grumbled. "Don"t talk behind my back, please. I am here. Say it to my face."

"Ehehe ... sorry, bad habits die hard," Xion said hurried. "We used to do this a lot when we were at the academy."

Emma could imagine that these two people, who had been friends for more than ten years, must have had a really deep connection with each other. Xion and Therius reminded her of herself and Haoran.

Haoran and Emma also often talked secretly between the two of them. Other people would be confused when they saw Emma dan Haoran suddenly laughed when no one was even saying anything. It was as if they had their own inside jokes and secret language.

"Sorry. We didn"t talk about bad things," Therius said. "Hmm ... you said you wanted to know more about your mother? As I recall, Princess Arreya and General Kaos.h.i.+n Stardust met at the academy. They were cla.s.smates and became friends fast. Maybe that"s where their love grew. Our teachers at the academy often talked about them as model students..."

"Hmm ... is that so?" Emma nodded. "Thank you."

"I"ve only met Princess Arreya a few times. I think she is an amazing woman. Her face is quite similar to yours, but her personality is completely different. She is cheerful, relaxed, and always looks happy. I think ... your personality takes after your father"s."

"Yes, I am rigid, sour, and always look mad. So what? You don"t like it?" Emma glared at Therius.

The young man shook his head. "No. I like you just the way you are."

Ugh ... Emma couldn"t stand it anymore. Will she continue to hear sweet words from Therius for the next few months?

Stop being nice to me!! She wanted to scream to his face.

She might not be able to hold back for much longer and beat up the prince with the thickest book in the library. So, he would stop being nice to her!

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