Chapter 2: Journey through Making Plans

The carriage driver continues driving through the Opallios Forest with Prince Mathias and Rion, to reach the domain of Margrave Opale. They decided to take the King’s Road to arrive there safely.

Since they had nothing better to do, they were simply enjoying the beauty of the forest and how well it is taken care of.

“I never imagined Opallios Forest being so beautiful. The trees are full of green and the flowers are simply beautiful and magical,” Rion said, amazed to see the beauty of nature.

“Ha-ha, I forgot you do not get out much. Yes, Opallios Forest is one of the few forests that have been well taken care of by the people from this domain. If I remember correctly, they have the most beautiful green leaves shining through winter as the snow falls and white berries shining like bright pearls to die for,” Prince Mathias explains.

“Wow, it truly is amazing. I do hope we get to see more of this place really soon,” Rion said, continuing to view the scenery.

“Yes, it seems many of the noble families each have their own domain to rule and have their own way of caring for their land,” Prince Mathais explains wondering of the idea.

As they continue to view the scenery, Prince Mathias begins realizing how beautiful the empire’s domain and seeing the freedom nature has to offer, he hopes he can protect it once he is ruler. The wind blowing and the sunlight brushing on his face confirms he will do anything to protect it.

“Your highness, you must keep the window closed before anyone notices you are here,” Rino admits.

“It is fine, we are on the king’s road, we will be safe here.”

“I hope so, for your sake, your highness.”

They soon stop talking and Prince Mathias has time to think about his strategy to recruit his first noble for his cause which is Margrave Opale. He will be a key supporter to his cause to gain the throne. He is reviewing the papers he would present to Margrave Opale in hopes he will say yes.

“Right, in order for my plan to work, we have to convince Margrave Opale to join our side before the other factions convince him to join them,” Prince Mathias says to Rion.

“What do you have in mind?” Rion asks, wondering what the prince has in mind.

“I am looking through these papers to see if we can use anything in here to blackmail him.”

“Blackmail? Do you think it is wise?”

“Yes, I have to gain as much support as I can before they begin supporting my brothers, so we have to act fast.”

“Very well, I will support you in any way I can.”

“Yes, thank you, I always knew I could trust you.”

“Of course, your highness.”

As the carriage continues driving through the forest, they are continuing to view the documents they were able to, at last, find something they can use against Margrave Opale. “At last, it seems, I did manage to find something to use. Now we can move this plan into motion.” “That is a relief sir, because it seems we have arrived at the meeting location.

“Good let’s go,” Prince Mathias said, ready to step out of the carriage.

As he is walking towards the entrance to the estate, he is planning his plan in his head hoping it will work. Since margrave Opale cares about his people, he thought he would touch a topic close to his heart, which was the bad harvest. The harvest was so bad this year, so by using this information, he hopes by offering him the help he needs to save the harvest, he will gain an ally as the outcome.

In front of the door of the manor, it seems Margrave Opale is present with his attendants to greet the prince.

“Greetings, your highness. To what do I owe this pleasure of your unexpected visit?” Margrave Opale exhaustingly said after running.

“Thank you Margrave for your greeting. I have come here to discuss important matters that concern the empire, so if you allow me a moment of your time, I would like to discuss these matters with you,” Prince Mathias explains in brief details.

“Yes, of course, please come in, so we can discuss these matters, you mention,” Margrave Opale agrees, as he steps aside allowing the prince to enter inside.

“Thank you. I appreciate it,” Prince Mathias says, as he enters the manor.

“Yes, of course. I will have my staff prepare a light lunch for us to enjoy,” Margrave Opale said, as he entered the manor behind the prince.

Then Margrave Opale escorts the prince through the main foyer of his manor up the stairs to his second floor study, so they can speak privately. Margrave Opale opens the door and leads the prince inside where they are finally able to speak alone. Before the prince takes a seat, he admires how beautiful his study is.

“I must say Margrave, your study is quite unique,” Prince Mathias complimented.

“Yes, thank you, I enjoy collecting artifacts from all over the world,” Margrave Opale answers, enjoying his collection as well.

“It is an excellent collection,” Prince Mathias complimented.

“Yes, it is, so now what is it you wish to discuss?” Margrave asks, as he sips a glass of tea, he pours himself.

“I want your support for my campaign as I enter the running for the succession for the throne,” Prince Mathais blurs out quickly.

“Pppffftt….. cough cough cough cough! Why this sudden change all of a sudden? If I remember correctly, you never once cared for the politics that goes on in this kingdom,” Margrave Opale says, as he catches his breath.

“Yes, you are right about me not being concerned or motivated with the affairs of the kingdom, but now I am concerned, once my father decides who will inherit the throne, I want to be part of it. I don't exactly trust my brother’s in handling the empire’s affair,” Prince Mathais explains.

“I want to ask you, if you are willing to support me for the running of the throne, I will help you with anything, only if you support my cause,” Prince Mathias begins.

“Your highness, I would be honored to support you in your cause, but I am not at all convinced you are the right candidate for the throne. As a member of the Neutral Faction, I do not know what to get involved in something I don’t believe you are suited for quite yet,” Margrave Opale explains.

“Very well, what if I tell you I can help you with your harvest problem?”

“How do you know about that?”

“I have my sources. Here are the papers as proof.”

Margrave Opale takes the papers out of the prince’s hands and quickly reads them. He is shocked to find out the prince knew all of this before ever arriving at his estate.

“Very well, I will listen.”

“I will have by staff help gather the resources needed in order to help you with your harvest and you will have a full harvest in a few months,” Prince Mathais purposes.

“Very well. What will you get in return?”

“I would like your full support in my case for the throne and I would like you to convince three more nobles to join my cause. As a matter of fact, I am already in the process of having Arch-duke Diamant to join my cause and if we have the rest of the Neutral class to join this cause, I promise once I am king, each leader of the Neutral Class will be part of my council.”

“Hum, very well, if you put it that way, you will gladly have my support and I will speak to the other noble families and see if I can gather more support for your cause,” Margrave agrees to the prince’s condition.

“Very well, I am glad to have your support. Once I return to the palace, I will get to work on the resources you will need to begin the process to repair your harvest,” Prince Mathais agrees.

“Thank you Margrave. I am looking forward to working with you closely.”

“As am I. Your highness, may I offer you some advice?”

“I am listening.”

“Try not to use blackmail in order to gain allies or you will never gain the power you will need.”

“I will hold your word to that.”

“Sure you will.”

“Yes, of course. I better be off. I have a lot of important matters to take care of.”

“Of course, we will be in touch,” Margrave Opale said, as he stood up ready to escort the prince downstairs.

“Yes, thank you for having me. I can see my way out, thank you again for your time,” Prince Mathais said, as he was walking out of the study.

Prince Mathias and Rion head out of the manor and back into the carriage ready to call it a day.

Entering the carriage once more, they head back to the palace with a success for the day.

“Your highness, congratulations on getting Margrave Opale on your side. Now that you have him on your side as well, almost finalizing your deal with Arch-duke Diamant, it is only a matter of time that the rest of the Neutral Faction will join you in your cause,” Rion says, putting the pieces together.

“Yes, it is only a matter of time the rest of my plan will come into place and my brothers will not see any of this coming.”

“Of course, your highness.”

“Yes, now let’s continue on as planned.”

Word spread around days later that Margrave Opale joined Prince Mathias' cause in being in the running for the throne. It seems now word has spread that other nobles wish to join his cause, especially what he has to offer.

Prince Mathias had no time to waste, so it was time to get to work. His next target for the alliance is none other than Marchioness Perle. She has a reputation of being humble hosting guests and enjoys her love for pearls. The prince has to be extra convincing to get her on his side.

As they are still on their way to her domain, it seems that other nobles of the Neutral Faction heard the news of Margrave Opale joining the prince’s cause and they decided to have a meeting to discuss this latest news.

“Have you heard the news about Margrave Opale joining Prince Mathias’s cause in the running for the throne,” Countess Jade says to Count Mondstein.

“Yes, I have heard. I also heard the prince is almost close to cutting a deal with Arch-Duke Diamant to secure his spot in the running,” Count Mondstein answers, thinking of the idea. “I also heard, the prince is heading over to Marchioness Perle domain to convince her to join his cause.”

“We should head over to her estate as soon as possible before the prince arrives. Maybe we can convince her to join and if that does not work, then we might as well appeal to the prince’s cause as well,” Countess Jade answers in a hurry.

“Very well, we can take my carriage. I have the fastest horses that will get us there in a few hours,” Count Mondstein said, standing up ready to leave.

Quickly, as they can, they both rush out of the manor and head to the count’s carriage and they head out.

Continuing their drive to Marchioness Perle’s domain, the prince reads over the documents about Marchioness Perle, Countess Jade, and Count Mondstein, so he can be prepared for the meetings he might have in a later time.

“Rion, thank you for gathering all of this information on the rest of the nobles I need to recruit.”

“It was no problem at all. I am here to serve you, your highness.”

“Yes, thank you. Now that I think about it, what if the other nobles appear in Marchioness Perle estate?”

“Well, then your highness, then you will be prepared to deal with them,” Rion explains, giving the prince his support.

“Yes, that will be ideal, like killing two birds with one stone.”

“Indeed.”

As the carriage continues its journey to their next destination, it seems the atmosphere begins to change. It seems it is becoming a bit humid and the breeze seems to be so calming. It seems at last they have arrived at Marchioness Perle’s domain located in the Gretel River. This river is famous for travelling towards the ocean with clear blue waters and having an endless amount of oysters that create an unlimited supply of pearls.

This scene surprises the prince and Rion as it is a sight they never witnessed before.

“Look, your highness. We finally reached the famous Gretel river,” Rion announces as he is surprised.

“Yes, I heard of this place. I do believe it is the main water source for the empire and trading, so to continue to have this domain serving our kingdom, we must work hard in keeping this alliance,” Prince Mathias explains, as he views the scenery.

“Yes, your highness, I agree,” Rion said, ending the scene.

A few hours later, they finally arrive at Marchioness Perle’s estate and notice she is outside waiting to greet them. Prince Mathias and Rion both came out of the carriage and stood in front of their hostess.

“Welcome your highness, to my humble home, please come in,” Marchioness Perle said, escorting them inside.

“Thank you for having us here today, Marchioness,” the prince thanked her kindly.

“Of course, your highness. Oh, before I forget, I will say you are not the only guest here today,” Marchioness Perle explains to the prince.

“What do you mean?”

“Yes, apparently Countess Jade and Count Mondstein caught wind you will be arriving here, so they arrived just before you to join us in this meeting,” Marchioness Perle explains.

“I see, this should be interesting.”

“They are waiting for us in the study, so please make your way in,” Marchioness Perle said, opening the door to the study.

The prince enters the room and sees the count and countess sitting there waiting for the prince and Marchioness.

“Your highness, it is a pleasure to meet you.”

“Yes, it is a pleasure,” the count greets the prince.

“Yes, enough pleasantries, let’s get this meeting started.”

“Of course, let's begin.”

“Thank you for coming here today. The reason you are all here today, is that I need your support for my cause in my running for the throne. I have already began the process of convincing Arch-Duke Diamant, leader of your faction, to join me in my cause to claim the throne, but to really convince him, I need all of you to join me as well, so he is assured that I am the rightful heir to the throne,” Prince Mathias explains.

“What?! You mean you want to have Arch-Duke Diamant as a political ally?” Countess Jade asks.

“Yes, we have spoken only a few days ago and he will agree so long as I can get the entire Neutral Faction on my side,” Prince Mathias explains.

“Very well, you will have my support,” Count Mondstein, being the first to agree.

“I will have to agree as well. I have seen your brothers taking action in political affairs and I discover they are lacking the leadership to protect our empire. I believe you will be the rightful heir to the throne, but why this sudden change?” Countess Jade replies.

“Let’s just say, I have been having a change of heart,” Prince Mathias answers.

“And what do we get from supporting you?” Count Mondstein asks.

“A seat on my private council as soon as I am king.”

“Very well, we will begin to spread the word with the other nobles in the Neutral Faction and you will have your allies,” Count Mondstein agrees.

“Thank you, count. I am looking forward to working with you.”

“Yes, of course,” the count replies.

“Now that it is settled how about we enjoy a lovely meal before all of you return home?” Marchioness Perle offers.

“Yes, that will be lovely,” Countess Jade agreed.

“Not so fast, Marchioness Perle. I would like to know if I have your support,” Prince Mathias asks.

“Of course, your highness, you do have my support, but not fully. You may be a prince, you are a little bit of a green around the ages and I don’t believe you are right for the throne. You will have my support once I know you have secured the Arch-Duke to your side,” she replies to the prince.

“Very well, I agree with what you have to say, but I will get you on my side somehow,” Prince Mathais said, determined to win her as an ally.

Now that things are settled and more allies join his cause, Prince Mathias, pleased with himself in what he has achieved, can enjoy the lovely meal he is about to share with his new partners.

The last place to visit is the Arch-Duke’s domain to settle on the marriage contracts and gaining his support, so all the Neutral Faction will come to his side.

Duke Rubis Manor

Meanwhile at the Duke Rubis manor, Lady Sirena Rubis is enjoying her cup of tea in her bedroom simply enjoying the day. At the same time, she is awaiting word to see if she is engaged to Prince Mathias since her father has not returned from the palace with news.

Then a moment later a servant comes into her room to present something to her. “My lady, there is a letter for you from Prince Mathias, shall I read it for you,” the servant asks.

“Now, I can read it for myself,” Lady Sirena answers.

The servant walks over to hand over the letter and walks away. Lady Sirena soon opens the letter which she reads through it, but at the end all it says is, “I reject you.” She then crumbles up the letter and begins throwing her chair at the wall trashing her bedroom and shouting too.

“How can he refuse me? I trained my whole life to be the perfect princess and all he can say is that I am not his type.” “What is the meaning of this?” Lady Sirena asks, as she continues throwing things.

“My lady, please, you have to calm down, your father will be here any moment,” the servant girl said, trying to calm down.

“I don't care if my father sees me like this. I want to know why he rejected me. That is it, Prince Mathias is going to pay dearly for what he did to me. The next time we meet, I will have my revenge,” Lady Sierna said as she tried to calm down.

Diamant Arch-duchy Domain

Arch-duke Diamant Manor- Aurora’s bedroom

After a few days learning to adjust to her new life, Aurora begins to relax in her bedroom while enjoying her time drinking tea while thinking about what she is going to do here in the meantime. She has all of this freetime, but she doesn’t know what to do with it. She knows at the end of the novel the empire collapses, so she has to figure out a way to stop this from happening and in order to do so, she has to stop relaxing.

“It is nice to finally be able to relax in this new life, but I have to figure out a way to stop this empire from falling into the wrong hands and to protect my new loving family. The only question is, where do I begin,” Lady Aurora thinks to herself.

As she continues to think, there was a knock on the door. “My lady, may I come in, there is a letter for you from your father, may I come in,” the maid shouts on the other side of the door.

“Um, yes please come in,” Lady Aurora said, giving her maid permission to enter.

The maid soon comes in, walking over to her lady and hands over the letter to her. She soon leaves the room to resume her chores for the day.

“Thank you.”

“Of course my lady.”

Lady Aurora being alone, she opens the letter and begins to read it.

Dear Daughter,

As you know this year you have come of age to be married. I understand you have grown to be a strong and independent young lady and I am proud of you for that. I wanted to inform you that I have received many potential marriage proposals, I wish you can look through. I should also mention, I have received word that the third prince, Prince Mathias is also considering you as a potential bride. I want you to look through this list I provided, but ultimately I will make the final decision. I do not want you to feel pressured into choosing one right away based on title alone. We will support you in any way we can and remember we always love you.

Love

Your Father,

Having read her father’s letter, tears begin falling down her cheeks with joy as she now knows she has a family who loves and supports her rather than her previous family. Knowing this now, she is determined to live this new life to the fullest.

After reading the letter, she runs out of her room and continues running through her room until at last she finds her family in the sitting room ready to declare her intentions in what she wants to do in life.

“Father, mother, brothers, thank you for caring and loving me for this long. Father, thank you for letting me choose my husband. I promise you I will live up to your expectations you have for me as your daughter. And I think I know how to do it,” Aurora says to her family.

“Ha-ha, my darling daughter, you are already special to us and you are the most amazing daughter we could ever ask for,” her mother mentions.

“Yes, but I want to do more for our home, so we can make our domain greater and more wealthy than before,” Lady Aurora begins.

“And what do you purpose, my daughter,” he asks, wondering about this idea.

“I am thinking we should use the plants we have around the domain and create medicines that can help others and prevent serious illness,” Lady Aurora explains.

“Hum, it is an interesting idea, do you think you can do it my dear,” her father asks.

“Yes, father, I believe so,” she said, reassuring her father.

“Then who am I to stop you,” her father agrees. “I will make sure you have the best helpers at your disposal.”

“Thank you father.”

“My, Aurora, I never thought you would be so interested in plants and herbs,” her mother said, kindly hugging her daughter in support.

“Yes, I am very interested.”

“Congradulations sister” both of her brothers said at the same time.

“Thank you, family. Now there is no time to waste, there is a lot to get done, so please excuse me.”

“Of course dear.”

With the blessing of her family, Lady Aurora leaves the room and is ready to get started with her project. She will use all her medical knowledge she acquired from her past life to improve with the medical field of this world and hopefully make new discoveries in this world to pass down to the doctors of this world. At the same time, she wishes to create a merchant guild, so she can transport her goods around the world and also gain different knowledge from the other nations as well. All she knows, she wants to make a difference and she will be honored if she can save one life in this world.

Lady Aurora returns to her room and begins her tasks. She rings the bell in her room and her ladies, maids, and servants to help her with a few things. About five minutes later, they arrived inside her room to listen to her request.

“My lady, we came as quickly as we could, what is it that you need?” one of the servants asked.

“Yes, thank you for coming in such short notice, there is a list of tasks I wish all of you to complete in a timely fashion.”

“What is it my lady?” the other servant asks.

“Yes, I would like all of you to find the best herbalists this kingdom has to offer and bring them to our home. I would like to hire them. Next I would need as much paper as you can acquire, ink, feathers, anything that can be made into tools, and I will need someone to make a list of herbs we have here at our home,” Lady Aurora orders her workers to do.

“Yes, my lady,” they all said, and they quickly left to work on the task.

Quickly they left the room to get to work on her requests. Lady Aurora begins to work on her room to make space to get to work on her projects. She will be needing the space until she finds a better place to do her work.

Two to three hours later, it seems some of the servants managed to return with some good news. “Lady Aurora, we got all the items that you needed,” the maid and servant said.

“Thank you, very much,” Aurora said. “And what about the herbalists?"

“It seems we might have a lead on one who is willing to come to the manor to work with you,” the other lady in waiting explains.

“Well, that is a good start.”

“Thank you, my lady,” the lady in waiting said.

“Right, anything else?” Lady Aurora asks.

“Yes, there is, I found this as I was taking a list of the herbs we have in the manor and I came across this,” the servant said, holding it up.

“What is this?” lady Aurora asks.

“I believe I heard it to be called “The Crystal Blossom.” I heard it contains special properties that can cure incurable diseases. I heard there are not many of these flowers left, but it can be reproduced in the right environment,” the servant explains.

“This is an amazing find, thank you so much. Start by taking care of this blossom and make sure we have the proper environment to reproduce it before we experiment on it,” Lady Aurora orders.

“Yes, my lady right away,” the servant said, taking the blossom and heading out the door.

Now that everything is falling into place, now she will have to get started on the other projects she needs to complete before everything else needs to be completed.

While she waits for the herbalists to come to the manor, she thinks she will work with the family doctor in the meantime. She is glad he showed up, so she thought to get him up to speed in what she wants to do. At first he wasn't agreeing to her methods, but seeing them working, he goes along in whatever she is doing. It seems even the doctor was learning new methods as well.

A few days later, progress was being made and three of the herbalists she requested finally arrived at her home and it was time to get things in full swing. Lady Aurora walked over to the herbalists greeting them, but it seems they were not budging.

“Thank you for coming here upon my request. As you know I wanted to hire you three as my assistants in order to improve the medical discoveries here.”

“That is great in all, but we only came here to tell you in person that we will not be working for you unless you can prove yourself by having the knowledge in the medical field, then maybe we will reconsider," one of the herbalists said.

“Very well, if it will help convince you, then I accept your challenge."

Lady Aurora begins the challenge by walking over to her desk and begins mixing and boiling some herbs to create a potion of some kind. She struggles a little bit to get the proportions right, but she will not give up no matter what. She might be tired and have physical pain on her arms, but she is not giving in to this pain and she will prove herself once and for all.

In about an hour or so, she finally manages to create three different potions which will cure fevers, insomnia, and a common cough.

“Aah…. There, I did it. I created potions that will cure common fevers, insomnia, and cough. Take a taste if you are brave enough,” Lady Aurora challenges.

The first herbalist who went to smell them is a lady who comes from the far end of the empire. She smells them and she was surprised this is exactly the position used for common illnesses. “My word, you did an excellent job, my lady, it is exactly one that I produce in my shop,” the lady herbalist said.

“Yes, because I used this book to create it,” Lady Aurora explains.

“Well, then I am impressed. I will be honored working with you my lady,” the lady herbalist agrees.

“Yes, same with us,” the other two agree.

“Thank you so much. With the four of us we can achieve anything and maybe others will join our cause,” Lady Aurora said to her new colleagues.

“And we will be with you every step of the way,” the lady herbalist said.

“Thank you,”Aurora said. “Now let’s get to work.”

In the following days, it seems the fruits of their labors have paid off since many of the noble families have been buying her potions and increasing her family’s wealth thanks to her hard work.

It seems the word of her success has spread all the way to the palace and it seems someone there has caught interest.

In the Palace

Prince Leonidas (a.k.a. The second prince) was walking down the halls of the palace to the library when he overheard two noblemen talking about this and decided to join in.

“Ah, your highness, have you heard the news? It seems the Arch-Duke Diamant has been slowly gaining a steady income making them even richer in the Neutral faction thanks to his daughter Lady Aurora.”

“Lady Aurora? I never heard of a lady in her station, let alone her, would make something using her hands,” Prince Leonidas says out of curiosity.

“Well, that is the rumor. She decided to get out of her shell and contribute to the medical research for the empire. I even heard rumors that she might even create a hospital that rivals the palace physicians,” Count Grant explains in great detail.

“Perhaps, I should pay them a visit and offer myself as a potential husband for her,” Prince Leonidas said to the count.

“As you wish, your highness, but you must hurry, because I heard your brother, the third prince is planning to visit the estate of the arch-duke tomorrow evening,” Count Grenat informs the prince.

“Then I must take leave before my brother takes wind of this and marries her,” Prince Leonidas said, ready to leave as quickly as he can.

“Good luck, your highness,” Count Grenat says, wishing him luck.

Prince Leonidas not wanting to waste time, he quickly heads to his room to change out of his common clothing and into something more formal.

“Omar!” Prince Leonidas shouts, getting his valet’s attention.

The door bursts open seeing his servant coming in.

“You called me, your highness.”

“Yes, prepare some clothing and the carriage as quickly as possible, we are heading to the Arch-Duke’s family home. Make sure you alert the driver to take the fastest route over there.”

“Yes, your highness, but what is all of this about?”

“It seems Lady Aurora got more interesting and I am going to ask her hand in marriage.”

“This is unusual for you, your highness. I don't think you were ever interested in her.”

“Well, now I am. Now let;s go before my brother beats me to this marriage proposal. If I get there first, then he will lose his reputation and his chances of ever getting married.”

“I understand, your highness.”

“By the way, Omar, where is my brother Prince Mathias?”

“The last I heard, he has been travelling a while gathering allies to his side, so he has not been back to the palace for at least two weeks.”

“That means he is one step ahead of me. Let’s go quickly.”

“Of course.”

Prince Leonidas and Omar quickly run to the carriage and they are off to the Arch-Duke territory.

In the Arch-duke Domain

Meanwhile, Prince Mathias and Rion have been staying in an inn in the Arch-Duke’s domain for a few days to rest before returning back to the manor to finalize the marriage contract with Lady Aurora. He also heard of the family’s growth in wealth, they must have developed something to gain this unexpected wealth.

“Well, Rion, we might be traveling for days now, but it will all pay off once I speak to the arch-duke,” Prince Mathias says.

“And with most of the Neutral faction leaders on your side, this will truly help you seal the deal with the arch-duke allowing you to marry his daughter.”

“Yes, I hope so too.”

“Oh, your highness, I heard a rumor at the shop today that his daughter, Lady Aurora, has been making and selling new medicines making them richer than before,” Rion explains.

“Really? I guess she isn't useless after all. Well, I will not believe in rumors until I see it. We will go over there tomorrow and find out.

“Yes, Prince Mathias,” Rion said.

Early next morning, it appears Prince Mathias was the first to wake up and starts getting ready for the day. Since he has not been back to the palace for a long while, he sent Rion to a local shop to find some formal attire to wear when he visits the Arch- Duke in one hour.

Then suddenly Rion wakes up and is surprised to see the prince even awake this early.

“Oh, my apologies, your highness for not waking up to attend to you,” Rion apologized.

“It is fine. Travelling can take its toll on the body, I am glad you are well rested,” Prince Mathias said, reassuring Rion.

“Yes, I would have to agree, but it seems you are not affected by it,” Rion points out.

“Well, when you have a lot of free time, you tend to travel a lot. Now let’s get ready to go before it gets too late,” Prince Mathias said, as he ended the conversation.

Rion soon was dressed in his formal attire as well as quickly as he can before they are late for their meeting with the Arch-Duke. They left the inn from the back door before anyone recognized the prince and went inside the carriage.

The carriage drove off away from the inn and is on the road again .The inn was a short distance from the estate, so they would be there in twenty minutes.

During the ride to the manor, Prince Mathias begins to wonder how Lady Aurora looks like or even has the intelligence rivaling his, so she can be an assist to his plan. He realizes he never really met her before, so hopefully she will accept him or even if the Arch-Duke will allow this marriage to happen.

“Your highness, are you alright?” Rion asks.

“Yes, I was only thinking about how Lady Aurora looks and if she is even fit to be my princess,” Prince Mathias admits.

“Have you ever seen her before?” Rion asks.

“No, not really. I only know she attended social events with her father, but I never saw her in person. All I know is that she has long silver hair and turquoise eyes and features shining like diamonds. ”

“Well, I hope she will be someone you see a future with.”

“Let’s not take it that far. This is only to gain a foothold in the Neutral Faction, so this marriage is strictly political,” Prince Mathais, clarifies.

“As you say, your highness,” Rion says kindly, sounding disappointed.

“Rion, this is all going to plan, so don't worry about anything.”

“Yes, your highness.”

Their carriage ride continues on as they enter closer to the Arch-Duke manor, but they come upon a different area they have never seen before. It is called “The Adamantine Mirror Lake” which is a large lake which sparkles like diamonds since the water does come from an underwater mining cave it is a sight to behold. It was an amazing view to witness once in a lifetime. Prince Mathias and Rion step out briefly to view the sight and it really was a spectacular view.

“Wow, who knew this lake would ever exist in the arch-duke’s domain. It really is something,” Prince Mathias compliments.

“Yes, if we did not take this route, we would never know it is here. It is good that we took a slight shortcut through here then, huh, your highness,” Rion compliments.

“I would have to agree, now let's move before we are late,” Prince Mathais said, heading back inside the carriage.

“Of course, your highness.”

The driver continues driving on and they are almost there. As they get closer to the Diamant estate, Prince Mathias thought that the first thing he should do is get Lady Aurora’s trust, hoping this deal will work for both their sakes. He might be new to this whole soon to be engaged thing, but he would do anything he can to make sure the person he is going to share his life with is taken proper care and respected.

The carriage is reaching the final stretch of their journey to the estate, so a bit more time will take to arrive, so in the meantime they have to hold on for a bit longer.

As the prince is on his way, meanwhile at the Diamant estate, Lady Aurora descends down from the stairs walking over to the dining room to enjoy some breakfast with her family before resuming her work with the new medicines she is beginning to create. She enters the dining room and greets her family.

“Good morning family. I trust you all slept well,” Lady Aurora greeted her family.

“Good morning Aurora . Please have a seat,” her mother greeted her.

“Yes, let’s eat,” Lady Aurora said ready to eat.

The family soon follow her example and begin to eat.

Not long after she eats her meal, she stands up quickly from her chair and is ready to leave as she has other things to do. “Excuse me family, but I must be going now,” Lady Aurora said in a hurry. “Is that all you are eating dear?” her mother asks concern.

“Yes, mother. I have a meeting to get to town about a merchant who can ship out my products to different parts of the world, so I have to go,” Lady Aurora said.

“Oh, can I come,” her brother Runolf asks.

“Yes, you may,” Lady Aurora agrees.

“I am not sure it is wise, if you go into town alone along with your brother,” her mother said with concern.

“I believe it will be fine if the two of them go together and they can wear disguises,” her father agrees.

“Thank you father.”

“Yes, but remember we are expecting Prince Mathais here soon, so I expect you to be present when he arrives.”

“Do not worry father, I will make it. See you all later.”

Lady Aurora and her brother quickly went to their rooms to change into some commoners clothes. She has chosen a plain white shirt with ruffles and black slacks with a black sack to carry her things. She leaves her room and heads over to her brother’s room to see if he is ready, but it seems he was already before her.

Soon after, they headed over to the carriage and were off to the town. She had to leave quickly from her home because she heard rumors of a merchant who only passes here once a month and if she misses him, then her starting her merchant guild will have to be postponed again.

Not long after, they reached the nearby town of Hyperiton. They told the driver to wait for them outside of town. The driver agreed and they were off. They begin searching for the merchant who goes by the name of Nigel and all she hears about him is that he is extremely talented in many kinds of skills.

“Sister, I don’t think we will be able to find him with only his name alone.”

“I know, but I am not going to quit.”

With all hope almost lost, they see a man coming out of a store and someone calls out to him by saying, “Hi Nigel.” Her brother hears this and tells his sister. “Sister, I think that man going to the tavern is Nigal. I heard someone calling out his name.”

“Then let’s hurry before we lose him.”

And so, Lady Aurora and Runolf head over to the tavern to speak to him.

Runolf was right about Nigel, he was indeed in the tavern, They only know this as a waitress called him by his name. He was at the other end of the tavern sipping his beer.

Lady Aurora was summoning all her courage to walk over to talk to Nigel. She walks over to him and takes a seat next to him and begins speaking.

“You must be Nigel. The one I heard so much about. I have been searching for you,” Lady Aurora said, getting to the point.

“Yes, that is me, and who are you to ask me that?”

“That is not important right now.”

“Whoa, little missy. I do not go into business with someone who doesn’t tell me their name.”

“Fine, you can call me Crystal, if that makes you feel comfortable.”

“See, that I can work with, so what do you need?”

“I need someone who can manage a new guild. I will be starting up soon. I want you to be its vice-master. I am calling it “The Titania Guild.”

“Hm, interesting, go on.”

“As you are running this guild, I want you to explore the world to find rare and unique goods no one this part of the world so we can sell or create with them and in the meantime, I would also like you to transport a certain amount of goods I will be creating to the other parts of the world as well.”

“Ok, but what am I going to get from this?”

“You will receive half of the profits for every good that is being sold in our guild only.”

“Very well, I am in. Where do I have to sign?”

“Here is the paper work. Remember this is a business contract, so there will be no strange relationships between us and if I find out you break the contract, then I will have no choice but to get rid of you. Do we have a deal?” Lady Aurora (Crystal) warns.

“Whatever you say. When do I get to see these goods of yours?” Nigel asked.

“Soon, I believe.”

“Ok, I understand.”

Nigel signs the papers and they are now officially partners.

“Thank you so much. I am looking forward to working with you.”

“Same with me. But where should we meet?” he asks.

“How about we meet at this little cabin. I recently bought it, here are the directions to get there and don't worry it is easy to get to. You may also want to move there if you like. I will also contact you when we are meeting so take care.”

“Well, do, take care now,” Nigel said, taking the paper with the directions and heading off to get to work.

Lady Aurora soon rejoins her brother, finally able to breathe. When they were returning to the carriage, her brother could not stop smiling and knowing how proud he is of his sister working and making sure she has a way to survive.

The carriage soon arrived back to the manor without delay and it gave Lady Aurora a chance to relax or so she thought. When the carriage pulled over, she recognized there was another carriage that had arrived earlier than she and it belonged to the prince.

In order not to be caught by her family, she snuck into the manor using the servants passage ways to get to her room where no one would see her. Her brother took a different route to get to her chambers and he is also glad no one sees him entering since everyone is too busy dealing with the prince.

In fact, that is what is happening right now.

“Greetings your highness, I believe your travel here was fine,” the arch-duke said, greeting the prince.

“Yes, it was pleasant, thank you for asking. By the way, is your daughter around, so we can begin this meeting.”

“I believe she is. She had to run a quick errand in town, so it is taking her quite the longest time to get ready.”

“Very well, I can wait.”

As the prince waits for his soon to be princess, Lady Aurora quickly changes into a more formal dress to be presented to the prince. She chose a sky blue floor length dress with matching gloves and black heels to match. The maids quickly work their magic on her by designing her hair into curls framing her face and very little make-up to hide her tiredness from the day.

Once she is done getting dressed, her maids begin escorting her to the sitting room where everyone is waiting for her. She takes a deep breath and walks inside the room to present herself.

“Ah, yes, your highness, please let me introduce you to my daughter, Lady Aurora Diamant.”

“It is a pleasure and an honor to meet you, your highness,” Lady Aurora greeted the prince in a kindly fashion as she bows to him.