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"Don't forget your honor, son. Bring home your wife as soon as possible"

Adelio sits on a high horse. Not figuratively, but literally. It's a black stallion with a decorative saddle, perfect for a crown prince. This horse was with him in his first battle, the fight between Red Lion and the kingdom of Orthi. The battle which ended in victory for the Red Lion, despite them being attacked first. For their victory the kingdom of Orthi was completely devoured by Red Lion and is now under their rule, as the royal family of Orthi were killed in the battles. That's where the rumors started, actually. Of his cruelty.

They say the crow prince of Red Lion is a cold hearted monster, attractive on the outside but without emotion on the inside. They say he only smiles when murdering the enemy, that he only speaks when commanding his army and has never lost a battle or a fight. That he is heartless, that he treats people around him like they don't exist. There is not a single enemy that he can't kill, and at home nobody dares to go against his word. Everything he says is written in stone, no matter how cruel. His intelligence is so vast that he can read minds and sense the winds of the future, thereby being able to win battles while blindfolded. He is an ace in every art and skill, and could take on any profession he wanted to. At night he never sleeps, he only stays awake and thinks about revenge to those that defy him. Anybody he dares speak up against him is slaughtered on the spot. The tall, handsome, strong and intimidating crown prince is known far and wide because of these rumors, he is both feared and loved in every heart on the continent.

Adelio has no idea where all these rumors have come from. Some of it lies in truth, like her skills, and she is pretty good on the battlefield. But she doesn't lay awake thinking about revenge. People that speak up to her aren't slaughtered on the spot. She definitely can't read minds or see the future, that would be scientifically impossible, and her words don't hold that much power over the government here. Not yet. Not as crown prince. Her father is still much above her. These rumors have spread like wildfire, and when added to her intimidating looks, they are hard to prove wrong. She really does look like everything those rumors say. Heartless, cold, a slaughterer. She could be, and she has slaughtered on the battlefield. She is cold hearted against those she doesn't agree with. But to that extent...? Adelio isn't sure how to feel about the rumors.

She guesses that it's good to be able to scare off potential enemies. Especially when traveling, it's good not to have to deal with road thieves and reckless mean soldiers on the way. If they are too scared to approach her and her soldiers, the trip will be much easier on them as a whole. And the way back with her wife will be safer. Although, Adelio isn't sure how much he wants to protect his fiancé. She is of the enemy after all, daughter of the previous king and sister of Makai, a man which she personally hates. Not just because he is the king of their longest enemy kingdom, but because he's a real evil person. The rumors about her might be extended truths, but they might apply very well to Makai. They do not get along, at all.

Adelio is already raging at the thought. She can't imagine going to the Blue Knight kingdom as a distinguished guest rather than as an enemy. She can't believe is being forced to marry Makai's sister, a literal princess of a nation that has killed millions of people on their side throughout the centuries. The blue Knight empire is a place that Adelio has been taught to hate ever since birth. That's why it's so frustrating that her father is so keen on this marriage. Nobody can be sure which kingdom is more in the benefit of this deal, but whoever it is, Adelio will be the one to suffer the rest of her life with an enemy sleeping in the same bed as she does. This is one of the biggest negatives with being politics itself, you have to suffer through all the decisions others make for your life.

Adelio would much rather have married that other girl, from the smaller kingdom she can't even remember the name of anymore. At least then she would have one negative away from the idea of marriage. At least then she wouldn't have had to marry the enemy. Goodness. Saying it out loud in her mind is making it worse. Adelio looks around herself, knowing that her sour expression must intimidate the others. Around her there are a hundred soldiers ready to travel with her to the other kingdom, her father and some officials are also there to say goodbye. Her sisters are standing there, further away, faces hidden as they wave quietly. Adelio waves back before turning to her father.

"I will be back in three weeks time"

That's how long they'll be away from this beautiful palace. One week of traveling there, one week of festivities at the Blue Knight palace and one week of travel back home. On the way home, he'll already be bound to the enemy, a princess bound to him. Adelio doesn't care about her. She is the enemy. But he can't help but be curious of what the festivities will look like. He can't help but be curious of what the other kingdom looks like. Do they treat their women the same? Their people the same? Does it look the same as her home? Adelio has traveled to many places but never to her longest enemy kingdom. That would just be inappropriate. So this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, an opportunity which Adelio hopes will never happen again.

Upon her father's nod and blessing, Adelio tugs at the saddle strings. She waves goodbye one last time, before turning around and heading towards the palace gates. One hundred soldiers do the same, following her dutifully. The courtyard, filled with servants and higher officials, erupts in a series of well-wishes and cheers. The gates are opened, a big market road rising up in front of them. They ride out into the sun, the horses hooves clopping loudly against the stone pavement below. Adelio doesn't look back.

The gates close behind them with a loud bang. People surround them on the streets, jumping away just in time not to be mauled by the military horses riding their way. Market stands are on every corner, the fancy houses of the Red Lion capital standing proudly as a last goodbye. They zoom past the old and fancy capital, people bowing to them or staring with awe as they pass. Adelio knows that she is the main attraction, being the most talked-about prince throughout history. She can see their intimidated faces as much as she can see their admiring ones. But she lays it all behind her. This is not a moment of appreciation or guilt towards her own people. This is about her, and about her trip towards doom.

The gates of the capital are opened to them just in time, one hundred soldiers rushing past the stone walls like a human stampede. As they enter the sandy streets of the outside, clouds of dust follow behind them. Adelio keeps her gaze locked on the horizon.

Only one week from now, she will meet the greatest challenge of her life.

Makai is never wrong.

Sitting on her small, velvet chair, Maud stares at herself in the mirror. Behind her stands a blonde haired maid, with kind brown eyes and a round nose and face. She hums a happy tune, her habit, while slowly and gracefully brushing through Maud's soft brown hair. The princess herself is in a white linen nightdress, with embroidered leaves and flowers on the collar and sleeves. Her brown eyes stare back at her in the mirror. While the maid is happy, she frowns.

The words from earlier keep haunting her ears. Crown prince Adelio. The truth hasn't really settled in yet. Crown prince Adelio is going to marry her. That would make her crown princess, and eventually queen. Queen of their longest enemy kingdom, the Red Lion. A kingdom which only a few years ago was at war with theirs. Maud thinks back to all the stories she heard of the war. All the horrors that her old family faced because of it. And now she's getting married to that country's future king? Maud feels like she is betraying her old family. Betraying her people. Betraying herself.

But she just can't stop thinking about it. Now marriage seems like a complicated, political nightmare. She overheard them talking through the door, after Makai had told her to wait outside. It's only a few days until the engagement ball after his arrival, and the wedding is on the fifth day. Wedding. She's going to get married in a week and five days. With a white dress, veil and crown, she's going to walk down the aisle and marry the enemy in less than two weeks' time. Maud just can't focus on her lessons anymore, she can't focus on anything. As she stares into the mirror, looks at herself, Maud wonders if she can really do it.

Can she really marry the enemy? Is she strong enough? Maud looks up at her maid through the mirror. She can't help but ask. Just like Makai thought she would.

"Do you know anything about crown prince Adelio?"

The maid stops brushing her hair in the middle of the act. She makes eye contact with the princess through the mirror, an unreadable expression on her face. Maud is looking at her desperately, which is quite uncommon for the otherwise quiet and unemotional new princess. The maid doesn't know what to say. What is appropriate to say, what the princess wants to hear. That is why she stays silent for a bit too long and accidentally makes Maud elaborate on her question.

"It's who I'm getting married to"

This time however, the maid definitely finds the appropriate reaction. The wooden brush that she was holding in her hand falls to the floor and clutters against the stone ground. The maid paced two hands over her mouth in shock staring with horrified eyes at the princess she is supposed to serve and support. Maud doesn't know what to make of that reaction. She has already heard that Adelio isn't the ideal husband from her brothers, but is he really that bad? Judging from the maid's panicked reaction, Maud grows understandably anxious.

But the blonde haired maid quickly gathers herself, picking up the hairbrush from the floor and carefully continuing to brush the princesses hair like nothing ever happened. Although now, her hands are shaking, and her expression is grim. She no longer hums a happy tune. She is no longer happy. Dread fills in her stomach, and looking at that, Maud feels the same way. The maid clears her throat.

"I'm sure he will be a very agreeable husba-"

Maud cuts her off immediately. With a reaction as big as that, she can't just ignore what happened. That maid knows something that she doesn't, and as princess Maud demands to know. She is going to marry the guy. The least they could do is tell her who he is. Tell her why they look so horrified when she mentions his name. That's not the ideal reaction one would want when talking about their future husband, is it?

"No, tell me the truth. What do you know about him? I don't want sugar coated lies"

The maid looks troubled. She continues to brush through Maud's hair with an absentminded look on her face. Maud doesn't want to tell her that her hair is already perfect, since she wants to hear her answer. The brush easily glides through her locks. Maud focuses on the maid's face as she waits for her answer. The woman seems to think for a while before eventually coming to a fearful conclusion. This time when she speaks, her voice is much quieter.

"He is our king's greatest enemy. I've never seen him in person, but I hear he is somewhat similar to his majesty. Tall, black hair and eyes, intimidating and strong. But there are some key differences"

Maud nods. She doesn't like the fact that her husband is similar to her brother. Not because it's weird, but because she doesn't like her brother. If he's anything like Makai, Maud knows that her life will be miserable for all eternity. Maud truly pities the woman that will eventually have to marry her brother, but then she remembers that it's not her place to pity his future wife. She is in much more trouble. Maud doesn't dare to say a thing as she waits for the maid to elaborate.

"He is silent, not many have heard him speak. But when it comes to the battlefield he is like a monster, slaughtering opponents like bugs. There are so many rumors of him. People say he doesn't speak, that he can see the future and read people's minds. According to inside sources, he is extremely powerful at court, his word weighing more than the king's, and his actions set in stone. If anybody goes against him, he kills them without mercy"

Maud finds her heart deep to her stomach, deeper and deeper at every word. She had no idea it could get this bad. She had no idea he was this evil. A man killer? A monster on the battlefield? Quiet but dangerous? She doesn't want a husband like that! She doesn't want to meet him at all! If he treats his own people like that, his own members of court in such a tyrannical way, how will he treat his wife then? His wife who is his literal enemy?! Maud feels herself tremble. So the words of her brothers weren't false then, they had every right to call him terrifying.

"I've heard that he is surrounded by women but none of them are good enough for him. He lacks basic empathy and could kill anybody that stands in his way. At foreign parties, our king and prince Adelio are seen as two extreme ends of the same spectrum, one dangerous but smiling and the other dangerous but without emotion. It is said that there is no other person in the world king Makai hates as much as Adelio"

Maud snaps her head up to look at her maid.

"And he would still let me marry him?!"

The maid smiles pitifully.

"I'm sure- I'm sure he'll make a good husband, your Highness. You two will spend many great years together. There is... nothing to worry about"

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