NOVEL FROG Ch.37 – Low of Solipsism
POV: Dyenna
The condition in which she had been placed as a legitimate pretender to the throne of Heliolite had meant being escorted everywhere by a group of guards and not being allowed to move too far from the castle and not leaving the defensive walls of Khalrinda at all. Dyenna had protested that her place was with the people and those who risked their lives for the kingdom, but her parents had been adamant that her safety had to come first at least until the monster that had killed Wilfrod was eliminated... this meant she was stuck there, unable to level up and get a plausible excuse to get the Second Awakening.
Dyenna lay on her bed in her bedroom in near-total darkness; she couldn't help but think that every day spent like that instead of building a reputation on the ground was a wasted day, kingdoms were built on the loyalty of the army and the most influential nobles, and a queen who didn't have a reputation of a resolute and strong sovereign lent herself very well to being ousted from power.
“Dyenna.”
She immediately recognized the voice, so much so that she didn't even bother to get out of bed, it was the entity that was helping her restore the ancient splendor of the Empire. She moved the arm covering her eyes to her abdomen. “It's you, I was just wondering where you were.”
The room was almost completely dark, so much so that the shape of the mysterious entity was almost impossible to discern except as a point of total darkness where it almost seemed as if the very dim light refused to pass through. “It is not possible for me to communicate when I wish without attracting unwanted attention, and I don't think you want it either,” the entity replied, “what's happening? Why are you here wasting time?”
“I'm working on a way to leave, I have something in mind, but if you want to give some advice…” Dyenna murmured as she sat up in bed.
“What I can tell you is that Vallagrad will be trying to talk to you soon, whatever plans you have my advice is to postpone them until after you talk to him.”
“Vallagrad? Why does this old family friend want to talk to me?” Dyenna asked in a subtly surprised tone. She had never met him, but Vallagrad was a guardian spirit who was known within her family, in the far imperial past he became the messenger between the ruling family and the deities, "the books in the royal library say that in the past he supported the birth of the Heliolite Empire.”
“But times have changed,” said the entity, “now the deities do not see the rebirth of the empire in the same favorable way, and therefore neither will he.”
“So he'll come looking for me to find out what my intentions are,” she sighed, “very well, all I have to do is be honest: I have no intention of declaring war on anyone.”
The dark figure seemed to tilt its head towards a shoulder.
“I don't need to fight a war to reform the empire, I just need to find a common cause to unite everyone under,” she shrugged, “Nightmare Tyrant is perfect for this cause, now these lands just need a hero who faces this threat and becomes a guide for all."
“But the lands beyond the Cloudbreakers will never agree to willingly join you, Nightmare Tyrant's prophecy isn't even given much consideration outside of human-majority lands,” the being pointed out, “ you will not be able to count on the support of the local populations to sit on their thrones without drawing your sword.”
“With the Eastern Continent reunited, that won't be a problem,” Dyenna replied with a hint of a smile, “I'll get out of here soon and reunite with my sister: it seems they've found an unusual monster and I need to make sure I'm the one to kill it, not before it has ceased to be useful to my projects."
“You seem to have great ideas, however, you are unable to leave here.”
Dyenna giggled, “don't worry too much about that… I've already started pulling strings for the first try and I have a feeling it's going to be fine.”
“Are you going to kill someone?” He asked with a hint of curiosity – if not mirth – in his tone.
“Not if I don't have to,” Dyenna wrinkled her nose, “frankly, I find killing wasteful. People are like gold mines: you have to extract it all before you can make the mine collapse.” The girl closed the robe with a string and began to approach the window and the heavy curtains that were covering it, "now, if you can't grant me the Second Awakening yet..."
“If you leave this castle I will contact you to let you know what to do to put yourself in a position where the Divine Court interprets your Second Awakening as something that occurred naturally by the system and not as a divine action.”
“I figured so,” Dyenna grabbed the edges of the curtains, “then I guess we're done for now, I need to prepare for my exit from the castle.”
“Very well, I'm curious to see what you will do,” said the dissolving entity, vanishing as if he was an hallucination when the first rays of light hit him.
- - -
POV: Shalotte
The nobility were not numerous enough to keep the commoners out of the castle and their activities, many of the guards and soldiers fighting their wars had commoner classes, Shalotte was no exception: her class was [Farmer], however, she had succeeded to become part of the castle guard. She was one of the few leporans who worked at the castle as guards and fought with a sickle so she could apply the benefits of her class to combat, with very gruesome results.
“I wonder why the princess specifically asked for me,” she wondered as she advanced inside the castle, towards Dyenna's rooms.
Some thoughts passed through the leporan's mind: she deeply admired the princess and the way in which she had managed to manage even the tragic loss of her brother had made this respect grow even more; if she had been the one to lose one of her brothers, she would probably have spent no less than three days doing nothing but crying as leporans placed a huge value on family and were a very emotional race.
Along the way to reach her destination, Shalotte fantasized a lot about her imminent meeting with the princess. Although they knew each other, the two did not speak or interact very often given the difference in social class between them, and yet, the leporan just couldn't help but imagine a situation in which the two could have been closer.
Once in front of the door, Shalotte made sure her uniform was in impeccable order, fixed her sandy hair and straightened her shoulders. She knocked a few times, preparing to fold her long hare ears back as a sign of respect and submission even before opening the door.
“Please come in,” Dyenna's voice answered from behind the door.
Shalotte entered the room. Dyenna was close to one of the windows of her room, the others were closed by heavy curtains that almost completely shielded the light from outside, with the result that the abundant light that managed to enter from the only open window hit Dyenna, making her figure shine like gold. The princess almost looked like a goddess, her red colored lips were parted in an angelic smile.
“I am at your command, my lady!” Shalotte exclaimed after recovering from her temporary trance.
“Please, relax… I was just looking for some company other than the usual rough and silent guards assigned to me on my rounds outside the safe rooms of the castle,” the princess said, covering her lips politely, “we don't get to speak that often, but I have great admiration for you and the other leporans.”
"Oh!" She turned her ears forward again, it wasn't often she heard compliments that weren't related to her beauty, “Thank you, my lady! Your words honor me!” She said closing the door behind her. It seemed like a dream to her, had a princess really noticed her? If it weren't for the fact that she might have been misinterpreted, Shalotte would have pinched herself to make sure she wasn't sleeping.
“You know, all this time I've been wondering what made a leporan enter the guard corps. Forgive me, I hope you will not take my words the wrong way, but your people are not known for their propensity for violence,” Dyenna said, beckoning her to the window. “are you here for the safe pay and the warm place?”
“Uh! N-no!” Shalotte exclaimed, approaching as requested, obedient as a puppy, “I am here out of duty and desire to serve your family, princess. Especially, the desire to serve you..."
"Me??" Dyenna fluttered her eyelashes a few times, touching herself at heart level with the palm of her hand, "but until some time ago I wasn't even destined to become queen!"
“Yes, that's true... but you have always been a role model for me, ever since I saw you at the first parade when we were still very little,” Shalotte explained, her cheeks had taken on a slightly reddish tint, “I still remember your delicate expression while the knights dueled, the light that seemed to follow you wherever you went…” she swallowed, “even after the tragedy that struck your family you refused to let fate break you.”
“Sometimes, however, it's harder than it seems,” Dyenna commented, parting her lips to produce a deep sigh, “especially now that my sweet sister is out there and I'm stuck in here, unable to protect her…”
“B-but she's with duke Darren and his knights,” Shalotte retorted, placing her hands on the edge of the window, “he is one of the best men your kingdom has, you have nothing to fear.”
“I know, I know… b-but!” Dyenna suddenly turned towards her, touching Shalotte's hand with the softness of a feather, "I have already lost a brother, I can no longer accept the idea that my sister is out there while I am unable to protect her! You can understand me, right?”
Dyenna's touch gave her goosebumps and her heart skipped a beat. The leporan's brown eyes locked with the princess's, she was so radiant and gorgeous in her eyes, "I can understand you very well, I too couldn't resist the thought of not being able to protect my brothers and sisters," Shalotte admitted , “you are so good and kind, perhaps too good for your own good.”
The princess narrowed her eyes and shook her head a few times, “if I were so good, I would have left this place with my sister without any hesitation! Please, you have to help me fix this mistake,” she said, gathering the others' hands with her own, bringing them closer to her chest.
"I... I d-don't know..." Shalotte stammered, moving her gaze several times from the princess's chest to her eyes, if before her heart had missed a beat, now it was making up for it with the interests.
“You are the only sensitive creature in this castle who can understand how I feel,” Dyenna murmured, “help me escape… escape with me, we can leave this city behind and join my sister, she is in a city in the kingdom of Topaz.”
Confusion and the feeling of having butterflies in her stomach prevented her from thinking correctly, the princess was in front of her with the kindest expression she had ever seen and was asking for help, her help, and Shalotte had a big and very soft heart.
“F-fine, I've the night shift in a few days… we will escape that night.”
“Thank you, Shalotte,” Dyenna whispered, leaning her face closer to press a kiss on the corner of her lips, “I knew you were the best in this castle.”
The leporan blushed violently and bowed her head, unable to say anything and too busy suppressing within herself the inappropriate desire to kiss her.