I hated travelling by carriage, I’d have much rather walked, but here I was bouncing along in a wooden box, travelling over poorly laid roads, with only an ancient, currently sleeping, lady-in-waiting for company. Oh and I was wearing a dress. I hated wearing dresses, and this one was one of the worst: a corset bodice whose whale bones were impaling my ribs every time we went over any bump in the road which, given the aforementioned poor state of them, was a lot, and a poofy skirt that required about eight petticoats to achieve said poofiness at the expense of my ability to sit comfortably and regulate my body temperature. Plus with my boyish skinny frame said corsets and poofy skirts were doing absolutely nothing to give me a womanly figure - there’s not much of me that needs restraining and well in other departments let’s just say I lack the raw materials. I’m not complaining though, I like my body, it’s a good one and don’t get me wrong I care about how I look as much as the next fourteen year old girl, but I also care about being able to move, and yes that includes being able to run and jump and climb and bend and breathe!
Unfortunately I’m not the next fourteen year old girl. I’m Neesha Astrites Panval Helenides, Princess of the Kingdom of Trieste and third in line to the throne. Oh good deal, you’ve lucked out in the lottery of life you say. Well I can see why you might think that, and genuinely what can I complain about, I’m well fed, I didn’t die in infancy, I can read and write (in five languages), I have a good grounding in mathematics and I’m a good shot with a bow and arrow if someone can string the bow for me (although I’m seldom allowed to practise). Look I get it, I’m privileged I’m just saying there are some downsides.
Especially if you are a clumsy, graceless, excitable, slightly reckless, clever, easily bored girl who likes annoying the castle blacksmiths and masons more than dancing, singing (tone deaf) and urgh - embroidery. So basically if you’re me. Let’s just say my mother and father (you know the King and Queen) are definitely glad I’m not first in line to the throne and I’m not exactly popular at court; well I tend to avoid going to court as it’s really boring. Although that might have been a mistake, but more on that later. Anyway it's not that I wanted to be first in line to the throne. Upstanding and noble Frederick is more than welcome to it, and he’ll probably do an ok job - I mean he’s fairly clever, he cares about Trieste, he’s accomplished in all the right ways (hunting, boring speech giving, wearing a suit of armour), he seems to know right from wrong and really would have been a great older brother if he didn’t have a tendency to be a condescending know it all in private. Still I do love him even if he’s annoying.
Anyway, at least he’s not as annoying as Estelle. Estelle is my 16 year old sister who I think was born to basically show how unsuitable I am to be royalty by how perfect she is. I mean look at her, or imagine her, she has beautiful long golden locks, she manages somehow to be both womanly and statuesque, her face is unblemished and adorned with deep blue eyes and dainty features. Then to top it off she’s intelligent, graceful, diplomatic and absolutely ruthless. I swear Freddy might be going to be King one day but Estelle will be the one making all the real decisions; she’s already practically the Chief Minister at court despite still being a teenager. I love her too, I mean she’s my sister and I always will support her but she also makes me feel terrible about myself whenever I think about how we compare.
Which is ridiculous, as I don’t even want to be anything like her. I want to be me - Neesha, the girl with un-princess-like shoulder length wavy brown hair and unremarkable grey eyes and a chin that is a little too square for my liking but at least gives my face some character. The girl who likes running and jumping and climbing, the girl who wants to go on the hunts and actually being allowed to use a bow rather than just coo admiringly at whatever brother and father bring back. The girl who wants to learn how to make a sword or carve a gargoyle. In fact there's just one thing I wish I wasn't, I wish I wasn't the girl who is being sent halfway across the continent to marry a man I’ve never met.
Yep the carriage, my terrible mood, my headache (did I mention the headache - well I have a major stress headache) are all because good old mother and father put their crowns on and made a diplomatic decision that we needed an alliance with the Parasian Empire, who in fairness are one of those empires who see small, rural, poor kingdoms like Trieste and think that would make a good province for mentally challenged cousin doofus to run why don’t we conquer it. So yep I can see why an alliance is a good idea even if there are still a few other backwater kingdoms between us and them at the moment. However, it all gets a bit annoying for me in that they have a crown prince, Lancel I think his name is, who is unmarried and looking. Somehow a few letters, a banquet for the ambassador and an exchange of unrealistic portraits (at least on my part) later and I’m engaged. Now you think someone might have told me about this before I was engaged. Well of course they didn’t - I found out about it a week ago when mother dearest asked me if there was anything in particular I would like served at the farewell feast.
Let’s just say - the carriage I am in is locked and bolted on the outside. I mean would you be happy to be married off at fourteen. Fourteen I’m still a bloody child, I don’t like admitting that but it’s true, and let’s face it I suck at being a princess so I’m going to suck even worse at being an empress. Not to mention I doubt I’m what the court there is expecting in a wife, from what little I know Paras is a very conservative, pious nation and gods know I’m neither (although I have a passing affection for Mearaid the Huntress) and more importantly an uncomfortable pattern of mysterious illnesses claiming the lives of unpopular foreign spouses. Now, I know, I know, it’s for the good of the people right and I’ve had a life of luxury in exchange for this little inconvenience. Well no, screw that, yeah I’ve had a lot going for me that doesn’t mean I deserve to be taken against my will to be a baby factory for a load of stuck up arseholes miles away from home where I’ll know no-one.
So what was I going to do about it? Well I’d tried negotiating, I’d tried physical violence, I’d tried threatening, guilt tripping and well I’m still locked in this carriage. The only thing I hadn’t tried is outright running away but I mean look at my stats - they don’t scream survivor in the wild or on the streets of some town do they? And my skills aren't the most practical ones out there although I'd gladly have traded embroidery for fishing any day of the week.
Name:
Age:
Gender:
Race
Class:
Neesha Astrites Panval Helenides
14
Female
Human
Minor Royalty
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Title:
Attributes:
Condition:
Character:
Alignments:
Princess of Trieste
160cm
55kg
Shoe Size 5
Blood: Type O
[Perfect Health]
+ boosts apply
Dominant traits:
Fair minded
Stubborn
Ethics: 76/100
Order: 40/100
Selflessness: 60/100
Level:
HP:
Mana:
Stamina:
Regen Rates
8 (400 XP to LvUP)
80/80
12/12
30/30
HP: 1pt/hour
Mana: 1pt/hour
Stamina: 1pt/min
Strength:
Dexterity:
Intelligence:
Wisdom:
Luck:
6
9
11
7
15
An un-princess-like princess…perhaps you’ll grow into it. There are worse things to be
Skills (9 max)
Skill LV
Rarity
Description
Requirements
Literacy
10
Uncommon
You can read and write, that’s not as common as we’d like
Reading checks: +10
Intelligence >10
Numeracy
15
Rare
You have been taught actual mathematics rather than adding plus you’re a bit of a whizz at it
Mathematics Checks: + 15
Intelligence >10
Diplomacy
0
Uncommon
Look - it’s probably best to just not say anything
Diplomacy Checks: -20
Wisdom >10
(inactive - reqs not met)
Archery
7
Common
You can shoot straight, on a calm day
Equip: Short Bows, Composite Bows, Small Crossbows, Quiver
Accuracy Checks: +3
Damage: + 2
Strength > 5
Stamina 1/shot
Must have weapon and ammunition in inventory
Embroidery
1
Common
Watch your thumbs
Craft [cloth]: 2% success rate
Dexterity > 7
Linguist
12
Rare
You can argue with even more people you meet
Language Checks: + 12
Intelligence > 9
Luck > 10
Royal Aura
4
Epic
People hold you in awe…at least until they meet you
Intimidation Checks: + 1
Class: Noble
Enchant
1
Common
People certainly remember meeting you...
Charm Person: 5% Success Rate
1 Mana to cast, then 2 Mana/Min
Success Rate = Skill Level x Luck/3
Yep so not anything useful there apart from Literacy and Archery. I would need some skills like [Fishing], [Woodcraft], [Cooking], [Hunting], [Trading], [Plant Cultivation] to make it on my own, and some sort of ability to defend myself at close range. Not to mention my current inventory looked like this:
Neesha’s Inventory
Capacity: 5
Item
Type
Description
Court Dress (Equipped)
Clothing
A dress fit for a princess, just maybe not this one
Resist Physical Damage: +1
Low Heels
(Equipped)
Shoes
Dainty but they pinch a bit in the toes
Dexterity: -1
Stamina Cost Modifier [Running]: 3 stamina/30 secs
Stamina Costs Modifier [Melee Combat]: 5 stamina/30 secs
Potion of Minor Healing
Consumable (Health)
It cures what ails you, well it might…
HP + 40, single use
Yep like all people, at least all the people on this continent, I’d been blessed with a system at birth to help me develop into the best person I could be by giving me quantifiable insights into my character and abilities based on my assigned class. Well that was the theory - I didn’t think my system was doing me much good at developing into the best person I could be. It also seemed to be sarcastic, I was pretty sure systems weren't meant to be lippy but mine was. Perhaps systems got bored, gods know I am, and I've got weeks in this carriage to look forward to.
Welcome to my life!