Chapter 2: The charming prince

As the sun rose over the neighboring kingdom , Arondale . Prince Alexander stood on the balcony of his chamber, gazing out at the countryside below. He loved the early morning quiet, the way the dew sparkled on the grass, and the birds sang sweet melodies.

But his peaceful moment was interrupted by his father's booming voice. "Alexander! Get ready for the council meeting. We have important matters to discuss."

The prince sighed, knowing that he couldn't delay anymore, he was supposed to go hunting that day with a group of noble men and he was already getting late to join them.

As Prince Alexander rode through the countryside back to the palace after the hunting, on his magnificent stallion, he couldn't help but feel a sense of restlessness. He had always known that his destiny was to become king one day, but the thought of marrying Princess Victoria, a woman he had never met, made him feel uneasy.

Their marriage was agreed on twelve years ago ,by both kings, in other to solidify their union together and make their kingdoms united. Victoria had been groomed to be his wife ever since then. Although they had never met each other , but it was already time for them to have their first meeting.

Alexander had thought that the upcoming council meeting ,was going to be with the Kingdom of Maxoria , of which King Edward , Princess Victoria's father would be present to discuss the final marriage rites between them.

He had heard rumors about her, of course. Some said she was beautiful, others said she was cruel and manipulative. But Alexander knew better than to listen to gossip. He had learned long ago that things were not always as they seemed.

Aside that, he never felt the urge to be with Victoria, even with all the good qualities he heard that she possessed. There was something he always felt ,which was odd about everything.

As he approached the border between his kingdom and Ardenia, Alexander caught sight of a group of soldiers marching in the distance with a cart. He reined in his horse and watched as they drew closer, their armor shining in the sun.

"Who goes there?" he called out.

One of the soldiers stepped forward, saluting him. "Your Highness, we are soldiers of Ardenia, on a mission to deliver a message to your father, the King."

Alexander's eyebrows shot up in uncertainty. Ardenia was his kingdom's neighbor, and they had lately been on some unfriendly terms. He wondered what could have prompted them to send a message to his father.

"Very well," he said, gesturing for them to follow him. "I will escort you to the castle."

As they rode towards the castle, Alexander couldn't help but feel a sense of curiosity about the message. He knew that the political situation between their two kingdoms had been tense in recent years, with disputes over trade and borders , but he was sure that the two Kings had tried their best in maintaining peace and order between the two kingdoms . But he had never expected Ardenia to send a message of such importance.

When they arrived at the castle, Alexander led the soldiers to the throne room, where his father, King Maximilian, was waiting for them.

"Your Highness," the Ardenian commander said, bowing before the king. "We come bearing a message from King Fredrick of Ardenia."

King Maximilian motioned for him to continue.

"The message is a proposal for an alliance between our kingdoms, to strengthen our defenses against our common enemy, the Barbarian tribes to the north."

Alexander's heart skipped a beat at the mention of an alliance. He had always believed that diplomacy was the key to maintaining peace between their kingdoms, and an alliance with Ardenia would be a significant step towards achieving that goal.

As the meeting went on, Alexander listened intently, his mind racing with thoughts of what this alliance could mean for the future of their kingdoms. But his attention was soon drawn to something else entirely.

In the corner of the room, he caught a glimpse of a young woman sitting quietly, her eyes fixed on the ground. He didn't notice her presence with the men when he led them into the palace initially.

He could tell that she was one of the royal family's attendants from her dressing and Alexander had never seen her before. But there was something about her that drew him in - her long, dark hair, her delicate features, and her quiet grace. He wondered why she had come with the men ,but couldn't find the right answers.

She was calm all through the meeting ,with her faced fixed to the ground. Alexander couldn't tell if his father actually took not of her , but he felt the urge within him that something wasn't right.

After the meeting was over, Alexander couldn't resist the urge to approach her. As he made his way to where she was ,he was called upon by his father the King , who needed him to go with him to his Chambers immediately.

He felt a bit disappointed and when he turned to take another look at the lady to catch a better view of her face, but noticed that she was already gone.

He didn't get to see her properly , but could only notice the little shiny pendent she wore on her neck. He knew he could recognise it whenever he saw it.

Meanwhile, Princess Isabella had just returned to the Adernia palace with the guards. It was her first time going out to the world and experiencing the bustling streets and the people. The experience left her feeling exhilarated, and she couldn't help but feel grateful for the opportunity.

As she made her way back to her chambers, her thoughts were consumed by the charming prince she had seen at the council meeting. There was something about him that had caught her attention, and she couldn't shake the feeling that they were meant to meet.

Her chambermaid came in and helped her pulling off her dress, while she prepared the bathtub for her. Isabella careful took off the pendent she wore , the same one gifted to her by her father on her eighteenth birthday.

" You were very useful today", she said to herself, imaging the all the voices she couldn't have been able to control while at Arondale.

She had noticed that the Prince of Arondale had his eyes fixed on her all through the time there, but she couldn't get herself to look him in the eye and get to know what it was he thought of her. She felt this strange electrifying feeling, when she saw him from the cart, but couldn't place what it was.

Unbeknownst to her, Alexander was also thinking about her that night. He couldn't get her out of his mind, and the more he thought about her, the more he felt drawn to her.

" Who could she be? how do I get to see her again?" ,he kept asking himself.

Isabella was called back from her thoughts when her maid called.Her father was asking after her , so she quickly dressed up. she walked into his chambers to give him a break down on how her experience had been. King Fredrick had purposely sent Isabella to go with the soldiers, so she could read the mind of king Maximilian while they solicit for their alliance.

King Fredrick had always gotten reports that King Maximilian was against him, but he got a quite different energy from King Maximilian whenever they were together at any gathering. He thought it wise to send Isabella to read the king's thoughts while the discussion took place.

Isabella had discovered that King Maximilian thoughts were not clean, but she couldn't figure out what exactly he was up to . As the discussion took place ,she could read from his thoughts that every word he said about accepting the alliance was totally false .

King Fredrick was happy that his daughter was very useful in discovering this , and he thought of ways to trade carefully around the king, as he knew that his intentions were not mutual as his.

She thanked her father for letting her out to explore the town and also asked that he let her out more often,the king was happy that she was grateful but objected to her leaving the palace often, although he told her that she wouldn't be completely restricted as before.

He hinted her on an annual ball celebration which took place between the seven Kingdoms of the east. Adernia would be hosting the next one in few day and told her that she would be attending. Isabella was so glad to hear this, it was going to be her first time in the mist of a big crowd , filled with lots of royal personels and she couldn't wait to experience the feeling of meeting new people.

" You must remember Isabella, Make no friends at the ball, only observe how things are done", her father cautioned.