CHAPTER 23.2
Return Home IITHE SECOND that they arrived at the palace, Selene gulped a mouthful of air when she noticed that they took a secret route. Ilang beses siyang sumilip sa labas para siguruhing walang nakaabang na kahit sino sa kanila at bagamat nasa loob siya ng sasakyan, pinoprotektahan ng mga kawal sa labas, hindi maiwasan ni Selene ang matakot para sa sariling kaligtasan.She used to believe that vampires are immortal just like how fairytales and fantasy stories introduced the race, but apparently; that wasn't really the case. Vampires still die, they just live longer than humans and has no natural prey, that's why they're thriving. But still, their population is lesser than humans since their ancestors practiced how to balance their community and there isn't really much need for growth in number.Anyway, this is just... ack, why was she suddenly thinking about their race in order to distract herself?CHAPTER 23.3 A Risky Request“PLEASE let me participate in the war, King Alexander.”Inboluntaryong nahulog ang hawak-hawak na bolpen ni Haring Alexander kasabay ng pagtigil nito’t pagkahulog ng panga nang marinig ang ‘request’ na tinutukoy niya kagabi. The King blinked in surprise and perhaps, he looked to comical that when Merlin and Duke Louwes took a glimpse of him while they were helping him with the paperworks, both wheezed. Pero hindi ipinahalata ng dalawa ang aliw nang makita si Haring Alexander.Nevertheless, Selene remained standing in front of the King’s desk. She had this determined expression on her face which took him aback and once he has gathered some of his composure, Selene watched King Alexander’s eyes go back and forth from her to Merlin who was giggling mischievously.“I’m sorry Princess Selene, it seems like I didn&r
CHAPTER 23.4 A Toll Ignored SPEEDING THINGS up in terms of training, Selene began to take an intense training procedure under the Chief Knight Lyte’s supervision. The thing is, the knight was not spoiling her anymore, has become stricter, and more outspoken. Her little mistakes wasn’t tolerated and feedbacks are done pre and post-training. Nonetheless, Selene wanted to persevere and strive. Then again, of course she’s exhausted. Simula noong makabalik sila sa kaharian, hindi lang naman ang training ang inaasikaso ni Selene. Of course, her normal routine was returned to her. She has to attend classes. Then, train afterwards. Chief Knight Lyte wasn’t forcing her to train, though. The training regimen passed unto her was difficult and very much of a burden. It’s just that, she wouldn’t allow herself to appear weak when the war is about to begin. “Three days,&rd
CHAPTER 23.5 Something Absurd SELENE was forced to rest during that day. Hinatid siya ni Lucas sa kwarto at bagamat ilang beses niyang sinabi na kaya na niyang maglakad, hindi naniwala sa kanya ang binata. He kept on insisting that it’s impossible for her to regain strength right away when she couldn’t even move her arm. Para raw siyang nalanta. Gawa ng pagpupumilit mag-training at biglaang episode. “Prinsesa Selene, naiibsan ba ng ibang klase ng dugo ang pagkauhaw mo?” the palace psychiatrist asked. Apparently, there are two types of doctors in the palace. One is for the humans while another is for them, vampires. However, this palace psychiatrist in front of her is the royal family’s personal doctor. Si Lucas ang tumawag dito dahil urgent daw ang kaso niya’t gusto nito na may mapagkakatiwalaan ang mga itong titingin sa kanya. For the other doctor, this must be a
CHAPTER 24.1 A Conversation before the War “ANO PO ANG pag-uusapan natin, Mahal na Hari?” kabadong tanong niya. Pagkatapos siyang lapitan kanina ni Haring Alexander, tinanong nito kung pupwede ba silang mag-usap na dalawa na siyang pinaunlakan niya. Isa sa mga bilin nito e ang iwanan silang dalawa ni Selene ngunit ang mga guwardiya nila, nakasunod pa rin sa likuran. Sadyang malayo lamang ang distansya ng mga ito, sapat para mabantayan silang dalawa. “Ah. Let’s beat off the bush for a bit.” Mahinang tumawa ang Hari at iminuwestra sa kanya ang kagandahan ng hardin dito sa palasyo. Selene regarded the flowers too. “Maganda ang sibol ng mga bulaklak sa ganitong panahon, Prinsesa Selene. Lalo na ng mga rosas.” Tumango siya. “Opo. Kaya po kami nandito kanina ni Miss Sephare e dahil nagandahan po ako sa hardin.” “Masaya akong malaman na nagustuhan
CHAPTER 24.2 Dreadful Battlefield MAAGA pa lamang nang umalis sina Selene sa kaharian ng Vintress. Hindi pa sumisikat ang araw at nasa itaas pa ng kalangitan ang buwan. Tahimik ang buong paligid maging ang pagkilos nila. Tanging huni lamang ng mga ciccada, halinghing ng mga kabayo, at mahinang pag-ugong ng makina ang naririnig nila. Selene, despite being surrounded by guards and Lucas, remained vigilant of her surroundings. Nasabihan kasi sila kanina na posibleng kahit wala pa sila sa pangyayarihan ng giyera, gagawa ng maagang pag-atake ang kaharian ng Izquierdo. Baka raw ma-ambush sila. “Are you worried?” Natigilan si Selene nang marinig ang boses ni Lucas. Nasa loob naman sila noon ng sasakyan at hangga’t maaari, kung gagamitan man sila ng baril, siniguro ni Haring Alexander na bulletproof ang kanila. Isa pa, mayroong ipinatong na protective barrier si Merlin sa buong grupo nila
CHAPTER 24.3 Loyalty Versus Rotten Mindset SELENE noticed that she’s being excluded by the group. Of course, not by Lucas and the people she spent her time with, rather; by the knights who only knew her when they set out on a journey to prepare for war and defend Vintress Kingdom. And of course, to take back Izquierdo Kingdom from the hands of the notorious Demelza family. “But why are they acting so hostile towards me? It’s not like the Demelza family can be trusted either,” she mutters to herself, ranting about the treatment she’s been receiving from strangers. Normally, she would ignore how these knights would roll their eyes or snort whenever she’s around. But recently, they resorted to nudging her or pushing her out of their ways even though she wasn’t exactly standing idle on paths that they’re supposed to take. They probably just... wanted to taunt her. &ld
CHAPTER 24.4 Ambushed IT WASN’T long when the war ensued. Hindi na nagawang tapusin nina Lucas, Selene, Chief Knight Fernandez, at Sir Fernandez ang pag-uusap nang mayroon silang marinig na komosyon mula sa mga kasama nila kasabay ng malakas na pagsabog. Hindi pa lumilipas ang ilang minuto pero marami na kaagad ang namatay at sugatan sa mga kawal nila, lalo na sa mga ordinaryong tao lamang. Noong sumabog ang tila ba bomba na pasikretong itinanim ng mga Demelza’t Heredia sa camp nila, niyakap siya ni Lucas para siguruhin na walang mangyayari sa kanya. And Selene was scared. Things unfolded too quickly, it took them aback. And the fact that she saw how some corpses flew on the air and blood scattered across their camp was a sight she needn’t to see, but she had to. “Maghanda kayo sa giyera!” sigaw ni Chief Knight Lyte. Maging sina Chief Knight Fernandez, mabilis na kumilo
CHAPTER 25.1 Deafening Silence BLOODSHED is everywhere and in spite of her stomach churning, Selene had to accept that the scenario in front of her is what she should normally see during a war. Everyone were battling for their lives, defending their camp from the infiltrators, while some are also bringing the injured and the dead to safe places. It’s just the first day but the casualties are huge. The war hasn’t even formally started but it began without a warning. Should she have expected this to happen, she would be more prepared to accept that every steps they take and seconds they wasted inside the tent, lives were trampled during the infiltration. She won’t be merciful when they found out who are the traitors. As much as it hurts that she tried to put herself in their shoes, it seems like her effort was in vain for they let their closed minds get the good of them. They let the
CelebrationNANG dumating ang araw ng debut ni Selene, marami ang um-attend. Mula kina Reyna Sara at Prinsipe Eustace, sina Haring Alexander at Prinsipe Lucas, pati na rin ang ngayo’y si Haring Zeno.Nagtataka nga si Selene dahil nagkaroon ito ng lakas ng loob na um-attend sa debut ball niya pero ayos lang dahil personal itong humingi ng tawad sa kanya para sa nagawa ng ama nito. The thing was, King Zeno kept mum about his father’s greed until he lost ‘someone’. Palagay niya, si Sir Clyde iyon dahil kalat na kalat ang tsismis.But as long as he apologized, she’s good with it.“Are you good?”Natigilan si Selene nang marinig ang boses ni Merlin. Nang lumingon siya, ‘tsaka niya natagpuan ang mahiko na naglalakad patungo sa kanya. May ngiti sa mga labi nito pero hindi rin naman maikakailang nag-aalala ito.“Nakita mo ba si Lucas?” tanong niya.Ipinilig ng mahiko ang ulo. “Ah... Kailangan mo ba talaga siyang kausapin tungkol doon ngayon?”“Yes. I promised him, remember?”Humigop nang mala
CHAPTER 43.5Troublesome PreparationsLAST WEEK, inanunsyo ni Merlin sa publiko na dalawang buwan mula ngayon ay magaganap ang debut ni Selene sa High Society at sa parehong araw ay kokoronahan ang dalaga bilang ang Crown Princess ng kaharian ng Izquierdo. Nakakagulat dahil mukhang marami ang naghihintay sa kanya at ang selebrasyong inanunsyo ng mahiko ang nagtulak sa lahat na mag-throw ng festival para sa darating na debut niya’t koronasyon.But announcing an important thing comes with a huge responsibility: she and Merlin will be busy planning her debut out and the entire preparation.Mayroon naman silang mga katulong. Tulad na lamang ng pamilyang Valderas na bukod sa pagtuturo sa kanya ng etiquette ay tinuturuan din siya kung paano ba siya magbi-behave habang nagaganap ang selebrasyon. She was also taught how to dance and after thirty minutes, she realized that that was not her strongest asset. Kaya extra-ng atensyon ang ibinubuhos sa kanya dahil bilang Prinsesa ng kaharian, kailan
CHAPTER 43.4Debut PreparationBAGAMAT HINDI INTERESADO si Selene na magpakilala sa lahat lalo na’t noong una ay wala naman talaga siyang plano na mag-ascend sa trono at pamahalaan ang buong kaharian ng Izquierdo, ngayong nagbago ang desisyon ni Selene sa buhay ay hindi na maiiwasan ang pag-de-debut at pagpapakilala sa publiko.“I don’t like the idea of pleasing the noble faction,” was what she told Merlin while they were busy discussing her debut which will happen within two months. “Kung pupwede lang natin silang i-out ay iyon ang iri-request ko sa ‘yo.”Napailing-iling si Merlin sa sinabi niya ngunit mayroong naglalarong ngiti sa mga labi nito. “Alam kong sasabihin mo ‘yan at pinag-iisipan ko na ring i-filter ang mga imbitasyon pero sinabihan akong ‘di pwede. We’re not persuading them that you’re much worthy than the previous royalties that they wanted to pursue. You just needed to let the entire Kingdom know that you’re no fiction.”“Do they still think that I’m fake?”“Some of th
CHAPTER 43.3BusyIT WAS ONLY a week after when Selene received a letter from Lucas. Ang sabi sa liham na natanggap niya, nakauwi raw ito ng ligtas sa kaharian nito ngunit kasabay naman noon ay ang tambak-tambak na gawain at mga dokumento. Natatawa si Selene dahil kalahati yata ng nilalaman ng sulat nito ay puro rants at reklamo tungkol sa trabaho nitong kailangang tapusin sa lalong madaling panahon, pero naaawa rin siya sa binata dahil ang dami nitong dinanas at hindi man lang nito masulit ang bakasyon nito.Then again... His duties would not be this delayed if Morfran Demelza didn’t interfere with their homecoming and abducted the Prince of Vintress Kingdom.Mabuti na lang talaga at mabilis ding naresolba ang problema at wala ring masamang nangyari kay Lucas dahil kung hindi, patuloy niyang pahihirapan si Morfran Demelza. But then recently, she has been receiving reports that Luan Demelza had frequently visited the front gates of Izquierdo Kingdom and demanded to talk to her. There
CHAPTER 43.2Nonsensical“MERLIN, ALAM MO ba kung anong dahilan kung ba’t nadi-delay ang pagdating ng sulat ko patungo sa kaharian ng Westmount and vice-versa? Natatakot kasi akong baka may bumubukas pa ng liham ko para sa mga kaibigan ko,” tanong ni Selene kay Merlin noong nasa hapagkainan silang dalawa.Parehong ginabi sina Merlin at Selene sa pagtatapos ng mga gawain nila. Merlin had finished his duties and approved some projects to further improve Izquierdo Kingdom’s situation such as budgeting and passing a law beneficial for everyone. Meanwhile, the reason why Selene had finished her duties as soon as the sun had finally set and the nightsky had dominated across the atmosphere was because she enjoyed reading the comparison between the eras of both Demelza family and Griego family. Gumawa pa siya noon ng maiksing summary ng mga nabasa niya.And while it’s true that her parents weren’t perfect as King and Queen, one of the sole reasons was because their deaths didn’t happen until
CHAPTER 43.1NOONG MALAMAN NI Selene na nakatanggap siya ng sulat mula sa kaharian ng Westmount, na siyang lugar na kinalakhan niya’t mayroon siyang koneksyon, hindi naiwasan ni Selene ang mapangiti. She remembered that she had just recently sent a letter to one of her friends – kaso hindi siya kaagad na nakatanggap ng sagot mula sa mga ito. The thought that she was waiting and a lot has already happened since then makes her feel relieved.Siguro matagal lang talagang dumating ang sulat dahil malayo ang ibiniyahe ng inutusan niyang magdala noon o mayroon ding naging conflict sa kaharian ng Westmount. That’s just her estimation, honestly. Ayaw mag-isip ni Selene nang kung anu-ano.After she thought of how long it took to receive a letter from her friends, Selene opened it. She was extra careful because the letter had a dried rose inside it, and she assumed that her friends sent her this to use as a bookmark, perhaps? And that’s what she’ll do if she ever starts reading another book.As
CHAPTER 42.5FamilyAFTER DISCUSSING MERLIN’S relationship with her parents and understanding that they had such a complicated and rough time hiding their romantic feelings toward each other, Selene remembered that one thing that Count Valderas told her about her mother’s roots.“Merlin, nabanggit pala sa ‘kin ni Konde Valderas na tagakaharian ng Vintress pala si Mama?” pag-uusisa niya habang nasa kalagitnaan sila ng paghahapunan.Matapos nilang mag-usap ni Merlin, nagpahinga sandali si Selene para balikan ang mga dokumentong iniwanan niya. Nawala na sa isipan niya si Lucas at ang pag-alis nito pero sa tuwing mababakante ang isip niya, ito ang una niyang hinahanap kaya minabuti ni Selene na abalahin ang sarili. Mahirap na, baka hindi pa niya maituon ang atensyon sa mga dapat niyang inaasikaso.Susulat din naman si Lucas. Magkakaroon din sila ng contact sa isa’t isa.Anyway, pagkatapos ng isang oras ay tinawag si Selene ng isa sa mga personal maids niya para maghapunan. Naghihintay na
CHAPTER 42.4Not An Ordinary RelationshipFROM THE WINDOW, Selene could witness the sun set and of how the beautiful orange hue was slowly turning into a dark bluish nightsky. Hindi alam ni Selene kung anong oras nang natapos ang klase niya pero base sa kalangitan ay mukhang late na niyang na-settle lahat. It must be because she enjoyed her previous classes or maybe... She was scared to find out the truth about Merlin’s relationship with her parents.Hindi napansin ni Selene na matamang pinagmamasdan pala siya ni Merlin. Napangiti ito noong mapansing parang kabado siya bagamat wala pa naman itong sinasabing katotohanan. But then again, she can’t help it! Anong mararamdaman niya sa oras na marinig niyang niloloko pala ng mahiko ang isa sa mga bayolohikal niyang magulang?“Did you seriously think that I’d have the courage to hurt King Arthur or Queen Erina?” naaaliw nitong tanong. Even amusement danced on his purple eyes which made Selene flinch and pause.Selene pressed her lips togeth
CHAPTER 42.3RelationshipDAHIL KAY MERLIN, maraming nalaman si Selene tungkol sa mga magulang niya na hindi nakalagay sa mga libro at dyaryo noon. Nalaman niya kung anong ugali ng mga magulang niya at kung anu-anong kaugalian ba iyong namana niya mula rito.It turned out that Selene looks like her father but mostly behaves like his mother. But the way she deals with things is very much like her father. So, baga sa percentage, mas dominant ang naiwan sa kanya ng tatay niya kaysa sa nanay niya. Bukod kasi sa mata at ugali, mas malapit daw siya sa tatay niya. Parang resulta raw si Selene ng halos perpektong scan pero nagkaiba raw sa kasarian.“Anong relasyon mo kina Mama?” pagtatanong niya sa mahiko kalaunan at para linawin ang tinutukoy ay itinuro niya ang litrato ng bayolohikal niyang ina, si Reyna Erina.Natigilan si Merlin noong marinig ang tanong niya at tila ba naubusan ito bigla ng mga salitang dapat isasagot sa kanya. But she’s curious. Gusto niyang malaman kung ano ba ang relas