“Father told me that you were here, and you’re here!”

Seeing the man like this, Alison was wondering what to do…Did she get picked up by some crazy man?

Just at that time, another man came in, an older one, and he stated, “Take him out to play.”

“Yes, Master.”

“But I want to stay with her!” The younger man stated, almost like a little boy on the verge of having a tantrum.

The older man turned his head and Alison saw the servants hasten their efforts on taking the younger man out of the room, “Nuisance!”

Alison immediately knew who the boss was here and waited for everyone to leave before she lowered her head to him.

Right now wasn’t a good time to be foolish, she needed to understand what was going on first! Especially since they had already bested her once, even taking her somewhere where she doesn’t even know yet. No, it was not the time to do anything stupid!

“From now on, that is your father.”

Alison didn’t say anything for a moment but instead nodded. It was clear though, this old man didn’t like his own son.

“Interesting, so you’re not stupid, I see. I thought that you would be like my stupid son, seeing you go into the palace to steal but…Perhaps you aren’t as bad as I thought!”

Alison looked away from him and wanted to escape now. You old coot!

“Don’t be like that, I just complimented you!”

Biting her lip for a moment, Alison nodded. It’s not like she can’t escape at any time…She was a thief after all!

So, take it easy, she told herself.

“Don’t think of escaping either. I can make your life a living hell if I want it to be! Besides, isn’t a street rat like you getting more then what they deserve in the first place?”

Who was this man!?

“Let’s get to business then, shall we?” The old man sat down then, waving for Alison to sit as well. The room was big enough for this table, the bed and some other things and Alison missed her room, her room that was now wrecked…

“I will give you this type of living, for you to do as I tell you. You can have a bed, clean sheets…Food, dresses, make up. You can go for tea parties, if you like…But you must become my person to keep these things.”

Alison didn’t show anything on her face as she continued to stare and listen to this old man badger on like he had gained a huge pawn…

“Your name from now on is Adaline, and you are now seventeen.”

Alison stayed silent as the old, new master told her that she was his foolish son’s only daughter. He let out, whether he meant to or not, that he really did have a granddaughter, but that she had died.

It could be a lie, Alison thought, but what does it matter. What was important was the business agreement and that was very basic.

He wanted her to act the part of his granddaughter and try to obtain the Prince’s heart. He didn’t tell her much beyond that but yes, for now, that was her task…

Stupid!

No way!

The last thing in the world that Alison wanted to do was to gain the Prince’s heart! He was, after all, the son of the man who had killed her family!

The old man was to be known as ‘Master Harrison’ when people weren’t around but ‘Grandfather’ when they were. He gave Alison one day to get used to the idea of her ‘new life’, then a week to learn how to become a lady because, she was to be known of by the Prince before the marriage of the Princess and soon to be Prince consort Cid.

It seemed that this old man had another master or had a time limit, as Alison could see that all this happened rather quickly.

First, she was already out of the capital, but she was to go out another two more towns and make a ‘big entrance’, to help bring her name forward and become known of quickly.

The old coot also stated that he already knew that she knew of the Prince and that her face needed to be covered for when she was to go back into the capital.

He spoke so much, which made Alison dizzy but…He was now gone, and she wouldn’t be seeing him again until she returned to the capital.

Already in a carriage, not long after awakening, Alison sighed to all the new information and how someone could just steal someone away and think that the person would accept it so…Easily!

Of course, they really put out all the stops…The food was great, the dresses were nice to wear after all that time of…Well, let’s just say the dresses were nice. That old coot even went on about some hot spring that she was welcome to use…As long as she did well in her training that is. If she were a thief from the beginning, it may have been harder to say no to, Alison thought, but she had already lived quite a number of years already in luxury.

If the old man knew that the woman was not bought with all that he was gifting to her just to do as she was told, he may have tried to come up with something else…But Alison didn’t give off the impression that she was unsatisfied…

After a couple of hours, Alison thought that perhaps she could take advantage of this, considering the pros and cons.

For a first, the evidence was in the palace and she could potentially find out where that person Noel Price is. Perhaps, with her other identity now, she could even go as far as asking the Prince for help to finding Noel! It would be some sort of justice, wouldn’t it, getting the son of the man who killed her family, to help her! It was almost laughable!

…And secondly, she was getting fed and had a bed, so…She was in comfort!

Milo ran across the window at this time and Alison smiled happily, picking him up.

“Milo!”

Patting him gently, Alison looked back out the window and thought to who she had looked like in the mirror before they left.

“See me now Milo…This is me when I’m all clean and with a nice dress!”

Wearing a noble lady’s dress, a color that made her skin look beautiful, Alison found that she really was still quite pretty.

Rolling her eyes, Alison remembered the time that she had stated that she was prettier than the Prince all those years ago…She had laughed in his face to her own joke and the Prince got so mad that he left angrily.

“It’s still true…I’m still prettier than you!” Alison stated outside the window.

***

As Alison made her way to some small house that she had ‘been all this time’ and learnt how to become a lady, to which she already knew, the Prince was getting more and more worried as the time went on.

Did he see the wrong body and it was her instead?

So, he had checked a second time to make sure that he had seen the right body.

Did she just sneak past his guards, that were guarding both Lupis and her home?

So, not only did he check Lupis, standing there for a couple of hours, he also went inside her wrecked home, only to find that nothing seemed warm. There weren’t any fire ambers in the fireplace, the water was cold, the tea pot was cold, and the tattered blankets were cold…

“Where is she?” The Prince asked, showing the start of real concern.

He sort of wished for the thief that had broken out of the prison to find out for him and return to him with news but…There was no way that was happening!

The thief getting away did not become a big problem, simply because Prince Elton made it that way. He didn’t want the thieves to stand out right now and, and perhaps he could use this action, of protecting them, as some kind of way to lure them in to accept him and become his spies…

No, the person that the Prince made a big deal about, was that of Steven Otter, who had been the other person that had broken out of the palace dungeon. Putting all the attention upon Steven had helped the Prince lower the attention on the thieves and so, the matter blew up dramatically…

Steven regretted leaving the prison upon seeing his wanted ad and how many people were talking about his cowardice. It was like the world turned into hell for him as his own father didn’t end up paying Chad for getting him out of the prison. No, his own father disowned him, disowned him and embarrassed him in front of a thief…

He had endured the whip and starvation, waiting for his father to get him out but he had no intention of it! That shocked Steven to his core, so much that it took a while to understand that the thief still wanted to get paid but Steven had nothing to give him…

In the end, Steven had desperately hit the thief and ran! Then, the thief just stole from the father with or without permission, but Steven ran, thinking a thief was after him for quite some time…

He was now at a point in his life that he didn’t know what to do. He was a wanted man, an abandoned son and had no idea on how to survive being on his own without food or a home…And this…Was only the start of his bitter experience…

Much like Steven, who was starting to understand that he was not the only one in the world and that others had feelings just like him, Prince Elton was also questioning things that he had never questioned before.

Alison used to be his fiancé, so…Didn’t he have all right to make sure that she was alive and safe?

Then, the Prince asked himself that shouldn’t he have known that she was his fiancé when she had disappeared all those years ago and became a thief?

It was a conflicting time for the Prince because as much as he felt like he had all right to know exactly what she was doing, he also felt like, at the same time, that he had let her down the most. It was…Really…Strange…

As a Prince, he had never really thought much upon the duty of a fiancé. He had just…Accepted the girl had the title and that was it…But…

Now that he has grown up, to be the man he is today, he was suddenly aware of the fact that he should look after the woman he was supposed to marry. He should have been there for her in her time of need. Isn’t that how it goes?

Why didn’t anyone question it? Was it because…

Right, her family had supposedly done something wrong and he too was like everyone else and just…Did nothing…

For a whole day, after searching both places of her wrecked home and Lupis, and thinking this through, Prince Elton was lost. He felt terrible but didn’t know what to do about it!

After a week of no news, Prince Elton snapped out of his troubles, only because the King slapped him across the face.

“What is the matter with you, you stupid boy!?”

Elton looked his father in the eye and stood straight. What was he doing, losing himself like this!?

He was going to be King of this country and he had lost a week just worrying about one person!

“I apologize father.” The Prince really meant it, he was sorry that he gotten so caught up in himself…

Quickly trying to get back to his senses, Prince Elton firmly took control and watched as the King shook his head before leaving.

It seemed that they had been discussing something and the King had yanked him into a side room to slap him.

“Since we weren’t paying attention, please advisor speak your last.” The King stated.

The Prince looked at the advisor, knowing straight away that something about this was going to be some sort of ploy.

“Oh…Your Majesty, it is nothing much it is just my granddaughter returning to my residence here near the capital. I must have spoken it too loud.”

I see, thought the Prince, just another woman.

“I haven’t seen your granddaughter since she was but a small child, how is she since I last asked!” The King asked, showing his obvious curiosity.

It seems that he wanted everyone to know that this ‘granddaughter’ of the advisor had the King’s consent to woo the Prince.

Prince Elton did not think that the King would go too far with this particular ‘strategy’ but…He was wrong!

Having not cared enough for the idea of another woman being forced upon him, the Prince had been busy preparing for his beloved sister’s marriage to Cid, since it was only just one more month away now. It was a rare moment that he and his mother were working together but as usual there wasn’t much of a conversation between them. No, if he wanted conversation within his family, the Prince had to rely completely upon his sister!

The last time that he saw his little sister, it was about something personal and they hadn’t spoken since but that didn’t mean that he didn’t want her to have a grand wedding.

Actually, he had talked briefly to Cid, which had given him the idea upon getting Cid to help make a new Queen’s crown for when he himself was to marry and become King but decided against it. He decided not to worry about a Queen’s crown until the current King was gone and he’d have no one to say anything about it! Also, Cid was nervous, it wasn’t like the man would admit it, but Prince Elton saw how nervous he was. Whether he wanted to talk to Cid about a crown or not, it would have to wait until after the man has finally married!

All this had kept the Prince’s mind from going to a particular woman, especially when the ‘granddaughter’ was making her voyage into the capital!

Advisor Rick had asked the King to bring her in with joy, and the King seemed happy to agree, so…There was a special play in one part of the capital, a festival outside of the capital and even pretty decorations upon a particular route that went to the capital gates from all the way out to…Two towns away…

What a waste of money, the Prince thought.

They wanted this female to look good by buying the happiness of the people. Sadly though…It was working…

The woman seemed to be well looked upon already…

With clenched hands, the Prince waited for the already annoying woman to come to the hall where they were all waiting for her.

Apparently, the King requested the woman to come and meet him upon her return to the capital and so…It became another well-known event, bringing only more attention to the girl!

He just couldn’t wait to leave!

“Oh, there she is! Oh dear, this King has finally seen you once again, how fortunate!”

Please help me! Prince Elton sighed to his father’s obvious flattery. They couldn’t see anything, she was wearing a veil over her face, so she’s probably ugly! She probably has a wart, or freckles, he thought, nearly making a face to the idea of what she could look like.

“Are you not pleased, Advisor? Her return is really such a blessing for you.”

The advisor smiled happily at the King, “Of course, Your Majesty, it brings me great pleasure!”

When will the acting stop!?

After the King kissed her hand, the Queen silently stepped forward and the woman curtsied in front of her. The Queen nodded and just sat back down again, showing that she was not displeased. The Queen would much prefer to see this Lady Adaline in her own chambers, where she felt like she could actually use her power…Otherwise, she really was just a title and a mother…Luckily for the King, she was materialistic and was happy having the best of everything, that is why she never really complained…

The Prince tried not to show a face of disgust as the King took the woman’s hand and brought her before him. “My son, this is Lady Adaline, granddaughter of Advisor Rick.”

It’ll be over soon, the Prince thought as he took her hand and kissed it, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Looking up to see the perfect curtsy, the Prince let go of her hand and stood there.

“Likewise, Your Highness.”

For the slightest moment, the voice suddenly familiar…

Quickly nodding once, the Prince then looked at the King, “I will now go tend to business.”

“Actually, Your Highness, I have gifts for both you and the King, please stay a moment longer.” The advisor stated, then clapped his hands.

The King smiled happily and sat down, this was indeed not acting as he loved free gifts!

“My granddaughter came from a town that perhaps sold different jewellery, so I have brought some to you, Your Majesty!”

Hearing a laugh, after the jewellery was handing to the King, they all turned to the Princess, who was standing next to Cid.

“What is so funny, are you…”

Princess Bethany interrupted her father and took the jewellery out of his hands, “This is Cid’s work.”

Prince Elton almost laughed, he had to hold it in by covering his mouth and clearing his throat. Funny thing was, the woman in front of him did the exact same thing…

Alison then stopped suddenly and looked more closer to the man known as ‘Cid’ and nearly pointed out in hysterics. That man…She knew that man!

He…He was the one that was trapped in that blacksmith shop! Why was he here?

Hang on…Did…He’s the future son in law to the King!?

Alison swallowed…It really was a small world!

…A gift that his own son in law made…

“Let’s move on…Shall we.”

The advisor was indeed very embarrassed!