What happened?

Before you can process how you’re here, you take several deep breaths to calm down. You are alone on some train tracks that span far beyond your sight. There are endless green plains stretching beyond the horizon in every direction. A small breeze passes by to rustle each blade of grass as you spin around to survey your surroundings. You are in the middle of nowhere.

How did you get here? You rub your forehead as you try to remember. Your mind gets flooded with too many memories: a jail cell, a throne room, the edge of a pier watching the fireworks in the distance, and so much more. Yet, in each of them, a single girl with two-toned white and black hair and bright topaz eyes stands out far more than anything else. Her name is Shi—

“You seem a little lost out here,” says a girl’s voice.

Hearing that comment makes you jump and turn to face the voice. The same girl from your memories meets your eyes as you’re trying to figure out your timeline of events. She raises a hand to salute you while carrying a suitcase in the other arm.

“Hiya! You sure look like you don’t belong here,” she continues.

Before you can get a word out, she starts walking on one of the wooden beams on the track, balancing herself with her outstretched arms. She stops and turns her head to look back at you.

“So, are you coming along then?”

----------------------------------------

Before responding to her question, a huge amount of information and memories surge back into your head, because each and every time Shiori makes one of these, somehow, for some reason, you always don’t know who you are, who she is or whatever the heck is going on.

“Coming along? I don’t wanna hear that from the Princess who just dragged me out of prison willy-nilly just because she wants to ‘see the world’.”

You then picked up your army coat from the grass and dusted it off. You may no longer be an officer of the army, but you still know the true meaning of being a soldier and being there for the soldiers who follow you and the people that you care about.

“Oh, come on now. Is that the attitude you’re supposed to have towards the person who saved your life? Busting you out of prison because of that—stinking, disgusting, just a son of some noble pig?!

“That ‘pig’ was supposed to be your Fiancé, Your Royal Highness. Although he did want me dead because he’s been my rival in the Military for years. And guess what, when he saw the opportunity to implicate me to be having an affair with you, he took it. Worse thing is, your father, His Majesty the King who picked him for you actually believed him and immediately sentenced me. I mean would you believe how he’s so thick like some Princess I know?”

“I know right?”

You stared at Shiori for a moment with a very disappointed look on your face.

“You don’t even feel responsible for all of this, do you?”

“Hmm?”

She looked at you as if she genuinely doesn’t know what you were talking about, and it annoyed you quite a bit too. But it was a reaction from her that was as familiar for you as being shot at in combat. Because she has been like this ever since your days at the academy, where you remember how you always beat up the arrogant nobles that always picked on commoners like you and your friends, and she was the shameless Princess who was chanting in the background “BAR FIGHT! BAR FIGHT! BAR FIGHT!” even though it was ridiculous and the other students were weirded out by her.

“Now that you’re done with your pretend games Your Royal Highness, I’m assuming you’re quite bored already because I said we should just wait here for a bit.”

“I told you, you don’t have to be so formal with me when we’re alone.”

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Hm, very well. It's not like they can execute me a second time if I didn’t address a member of the Royal Family properly.”

After reaching out for her Suitcase, she gladly handed it over to you. You led her to the edge of the plains where it met with the forest and went further in.

“So, did you at least love the fireworks last night?”

“OH IT WAS AMAZING.”

She held her hands together as you walked.

“I’ve never seen such a sight before! And how their reflections looked on the water? Being on a boat made it ten times more beautiful! And how do they even make that much fireworks? Or-or even make them go off like that at the same time?”

Seeing how happy she was, you let out a sigh of relief.

“Good. At least all that sneaking from the local MP’s wasn’t for nothing. What else did you love seeing?”

“Oh yeah, there were also those farmers who got drunk and went butt naked and then wrestled on that ring! I’ve never seen anything quite like it!”

“Okay, you were paying attention to the wrong things Shiori.”

You both laughed as you both remembered that such a ridiculous thing did happen.

“So you’ve finally seen what a festival could be like at the countryside. Well, granted it was my suggestion since your ‘see the world’ request is too vague, and you’re having too much trouble deciding what you want again.”

After turning your head for a moment to look at her, you noticed that she looked quite worried again. It took her a few more steps to finally respond.

“All my life, my parents have made all the decisions for me. Be it who I am, how I talk to them, what I’m supposed to do as future Queen… Even the person I’m supposed to love. I was so used to people not caring about how I feel or what I think and making the decisions for me… And now, all of a sudden, because of the decision I made to save you as well—it feels like I’m finally in a position to control my life… To be able to get things I want for myself.”

She then abruptly stopped walking with you which also made you halt.

“But I just don’t know what I want for myself.”

The face Shiori was making wasn’t the kind of expression you would ever want her to make ever again, and somehow, some way, something inside of you felt the same pain. Regardless, you still mustered the courage to respond to what she said.

“Well, you can take your time to decide about those things. What you’re not good at for now you can always learn. Even knowing how to want things for yourself and deciding to go get them takes courage. And don’t we have quite the time on our hands to spare for that… An officer who’s to be executed for abducting a Princess and said Princess who’s to be married to a noble who’s as good-looking as a squirrel from the Ice age. Surely enough, neither of us are going home any time soon.”

She giggled quite a bit after the last part you said.

“ ‘Squirrel from the Ice age?’ come on, even I wouldn’t go that far with how bad he actually looks!”

“That bastard almost had me executed, so I think I deserve the right to have a go at how he looks however the hell I want.”

From far in the distance, something caught your attention.

“Speaking of not going home, I think our friends are finally here.”

Running just outside to the plains, you used the flare gun you had to pop a red smoke up into the air.

“What is it?”

The Princess Shiori asked after she caught up with you.

“You’ll see.”

Moments later, a roar overhead could be heard and flying past above you from the forest behind was a light transport plane, releasing some yellow colored smoke on it’s trail while it made some flashy maneuvers. Looking up the sky, Shiori was so fascinated by what she was seeing, she’s never actually ridden a plane before and was very eager to see one up close.

The plane made its careful landing on the very wide and open plains, and running towards it was Shiori. It came to a full stop with the plane’s door opening as soon as Shiori got close enough.

“By God he wasn’t joking! It’s the Princess!”

A man exclaimed after seeing Shiori standing in awe by the door.

“That’s ‘Your Royal Highness’ to you, my good sir.”

The man took the Princess’ Suitcase as you handed it to him.

“Oh, my apologies Your Royal Highness!”

“Who are they?”

“Friends I made during the war. ‘So Your Highness, are you coming along then?’ ”

“Oh you… I see what you did there.”

She was smiling after realizing it and you had a cheeky grin plastered on your face to show her for it.

“But where are we going?”

“Well, you love reading books, but you quickly finished the last five books we bought days ago, so what do you say about visiting the largest library in the continent?”

She was about to react joyfully, but before she could say anything she stopped herself and simply smiled while looking at you.

“I would absolutely love that.”

And you gladly took her hand.

—End—