Ch. 4: Beautiful Encounter

A pair of footsteps appeared from out of the shadows, and Luna felt her entire face flush red. Now, Luna had seen numerous handsome men, a majority being young aristocrats trying to court Mika, yet the man standing before her was incredibly beautiful and attractive. Luna was shocked that such a man could even exist in this plane of reality.

A man of his caliber belonged only in myths and legends, yet here he was standing right before her very eyes. A regal black suit covered his sleek figure, which towered over Luna like a mountain, who had to tilt her head back to get a glimpse at his face. But the longer she looked at his face, the crazier her heart got.

Long silverish-white hair, which shimmered like moonlight, poured straight down the man's broad back and slender waist. Each strand was slicked, and not a portion was falling out of place, but the small section that alluringly fell over his left shoulder blade. The complexion of his skin was a rich and faultless olive color. Thin lips cocked into a smirk; icy-blue eyes, framed by thick black eyelashes, twinkled with amusement as he stared down at her.

"Umm, who are you?" Luna had to fight to get her heart under control, forcing herself not to be charmed by the man's divine attractiveness. But it seemed Luna's question only amplified the man's amusement.

"Isn't this a first, a woman who does not know of me? My second biggest surprise of the day." Walking towards her, the man crossed the distance that separated them. Luna wanted to take a step back, only to almost trip over her heels as a strong, firm arm reached out and caught her.

"Little one, are you trying to charm me--" A strong tug pulled her towards the man's muscular chest. The musky scent of his cologne invaded Luna's nose, who found the smell relaxing and not too overly strong. 

Only to have her attention pulled away when a large hand reached out, slender fingers gently gripped her chin. Luna found herself staring up into his eyes, gaze so piercing that it felt like he could stare inside her soul.

"... Or are you extremely clumsy? Hmm, I'm very invested to hear what you have to say for yourself." There was a sweet glow of warmth in the man's eyes as he stared down at Luna. He simply wanted to tease the girl who dared to awake his other side and cause him to react so strongly.

'I only came out here to get a breath of fresh air! How did I stumble into a cliché romance scene that I only read about in novels? What to expect next? That the jealous rival of the female lead will soon appear to start trouble?'

Luna sarcastically said to herself as she was a huge fan of romance novels, but she never wanted to be in the female lead's place. Being the female lead was a troublesome task that did not fit Luna's character.

Luna was okay with just being a side-character, watching things play out from a distance, but here she was, standing out on the balcony with the world's most beautiful stranger, caught up in his arms as they stared dreamily into each other's eyes. 

Butterflies erupted in Luna's stomach, praying that her earlier statement didn't jinx herself, and felt that her hopes were answered when the lights in the ballroom dimmed. The guests inside panicked but quickly turned confused when the sound of music began to play.

On cue, from the second floor of the ballroom, a beacon of light shined down on the female figure stationed at the top of the terrace. There stood a girl on top of a sparkling white miniature stage that hovered in the air. "To honor the celebration of Lunaris' Great Star Divinus-Serenity, I, Lunaris' beloved star, have decided to put on a concert. So sit back and enjoy the show~!"

Drawing every person's attention in the room, who, once they recognized her, immediately got excited, stood a girl with flawless bronze skin. Her silky strands of dark lavender hair were styled in loosely-curled pigtails that reached past her waist.

A tiny mole rested under her right eye. Those who rested their eyes upon her were immediately charmed by the girl's impeccable looks. The beat soon dropped and instantly transformed the once elegant and poised ballroom into a pop concert.

A roar of excitement broke out amongst the young noble maidens and gentlemen, as Luna could do nothing but sweatdrop at the girl's dramatic entrance, who, by the way, was her second cousin on her father's side. "Flashy as always I see..." Luna murmured to herself, unaware that she was overheard by the mysterious gentleman still holding onto her in his arms.

The girl who made the announcement, dolled in a flashy, pop-star outfit, was named, CeCe. Lunaris' beloved rising pop-star claimed to have a voice that could rival the mermaids and muses. But there was one problem, and that was that Luna did not like CeCe, and the same went vice versa. CeCe was a bully who always craved the spotlight. Not afraid to use any tactic possible to get rid of those who threatened her glory.

The upbeat music instantly got people to their feet. Gripping the diamond-studded mic in her hand, CeCe began to sing. Despite the bad blood between the two, Luna had to admit that CeCe's voice was something out of this world. Her rich voice floated outside, causing the young generation of aristocrats to fall under the spell of her music as they tried to rush inside the ballroom.

From the spiral staircase that branched out from the terrace, colorful holographams of CeCe danced and matched her choreography. When the stage floated into the air and down from the terrace. CeCe's performance continued as stars danced around her.

CeCe hit a high note for the song's climax, and the swirl of stars circled her. She exchanged her flashy pop-star outfit for a beautiful short sparkling dress. A radiant pair of fairy wings grew out of her back as her spectacular solo performance came to an end.

The crowd threw a loud sound of applause and praise towards CeCe, who basked in the glory. "Thank you! Thank you! And to show my love, I'll be donating a large fund of money to the Lil Dreamers charity! I love you, all-" In the middle of basking in her glory, CeCe paused and shot her eagle eyes across the ballroom and out on the balcony where she saw the faint shadow of a man.

His shadow was remarkably familiar to her due to her obsession with only one man in the Starry Galaxy. Squinting her eyes over the heads of thousands, CeCe was able to get a better outline of the gentleman standing next to someone out on the balcony.

"Kyaa~!" CeCe squealed and flew over to the balcony where Luna stood, jumping down from her stage. She rudely pushed Luna to the side, loosening her from Zain's arms.

"Oh my, what brings the second prince of Militum here to Lunaris? Perhaps you came to see me?" CeCe fluttered her eyelashes and smiled prettily, trying to appear flirtatious.

Rolling her eyes, knowing where this was heading, Luna decided to escape before CeCe noticed her presence. Luna did not know why, but for some reason, the other girl always had it out for her and wasted no time making Luna into a fool in front of others.

"Sorry, but I do not know you," Zain politely apologized. Luna walked around CeCe, escaping before the other could recognize her. Only to have a hand seize her wrist as it seemed the other person didn't want Luna to sneak away from him.

"Well, you can get to know me! Come, let's chat and dance!" CeCe launched herself onto Zain's strong arm, freeing Luna's wrist who made a dash out of there. Zain found CeCe's action displeasing, but masked it with a look of indifference. The second prince of Militum searched for the girl who caught his attention and was disappointed to see that she had managed to escape him.

'Wonder when I'll see her again,' he wondered to himself, recalling how the girl's innocent eyes held no recollection of him, which was a first. As far as he knew, every girl in the Starry Galaxy knew of him, and if that wasn't all...

'Can't believe that foolish superstition held up to the truth.' Zain referred to the side of himself that reacted strongly to the girl's presence as CeCe dragged him onto the ballroom floor. Images of Luna filled his head as part of him found the girl both charming and cute.

Luna rushed outside into the imperial garden where she found a place void of any people. She sat at the edge of the water fountain, wanting to escape and cool down her heart. Luna brushed her hand against the surface, causing ripples to form as she retracted her hand from the water and stared up at the starry midnight blue sky that covered all of Lunaris.

"Will I ever dare to grow out of my shell?" she asked to no one in particular, not expecting a voice to answer her back.

"Of course you will, sweetie." Hearing a voice appear out of nowhere and answer her plea, Luna jolted but immediately calmed down when her father took a seat next to her.

"Dad, what are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be talking to the dignitaries and allies?"

"Yes, but once I was unable to spot you anywhere, I got worried and came to look for you. Now, why are you out here moping?" Sensing her father's concern, Luna blurted the question that had been on her mind.

"Dad, do you personally believe that I'm holding myself back?" Swinging her legs back and forth, Luna stared down at her glass heeled shoes.

"Yes, I believe that! Sweetie, though you may not see it, you have potential inside of you! So much of it, but your fears of the outside world. Not to mention your duties as heir to the throne are why you lock yourself inside the palace. Now yes, I may have indulged you a bit too much, but never will I hold you back if you set your mind on something. Because, sweetie, I will always have your back, you understand me?"

Luna's father reassured his daughter, pulling her into a tight hug as those words planted a seed of hope inside her. His encouraging words empowered Luna that maybe it was time for her to stop fearing the world and the duties her position held.

"Thanks, Dad, you're the best!" smiled Luna, thankful for having such a wonderful father who deeply cared for her.

"I'll always be here when you need me, sweetie." The Ruler of Lunaris planted a kiss on his daughter's forehead.

Breaking apart from each other, Luna was ready to head back inside the ballroom escorted by her father when something in the sky caused all the color to drain from her face as she pointed and shouted, "Dad! Look at the sky! What is that?!" She cried in alarm as her father turned to look in the direction where she pointed.

Eyes glued to the sky, the ruler of Lunaris saw a massive pitch-black cloud surfacing, getting closer to the castle. A young man, sporting the all-white uniform that marked him as a knight of Lunaris, rushed to her father's side and delivered an urgent message.

"My liege, an ominous black cloud is covering the capital of Lunaris! The Great Seer says the cloud bears danger to Lunaris!" The Great Seer hears the voice of the Holy Mother, creator of all life in the Starry Galaxy.

"If she has spoken, then we must quickly gather the troops and get the people to safety! Here, take my daughter to the shelter room!" commanded not Luna's father but the ruler of Lunaris, voice laced with urgency. Luna found everything happening at a speed that left her unable to comprehend the situation around her.

"Dad! What's happening!?" Not thinking straight, heart filled with panic, Luna latched onto her father's arm. Knights spread all over the palace and began guiding people inside. Seeing the fright in her eyes, Luna's father tried to reassure his daughter with a few kind words.

"Honey, everything will be okay! It's probably just bad weather!" joked her father.

"Dad, I'm standing right here! The Great Seer says danger is coming and that means, whatever it is, you'll have to go out there and fight it!" Tears clouded Luna's eyes, making her vision blurry, but she couldn't rub them thanks to the pair of contacts Madame Dia forced her to wear.

"My Lil star, listen to me! Daddy will be fine! I'm a warrior, but more than that, I'm the ruler of Lunaris. So I must stay and defend my people. Understand? So go! Nothing will happen to Dad!" Luna's father pushed her towards the knights' direction, finding it hard to look into his daughter's hopeful pair of eyes.

"Do you promise?" softly pleaded Luna. Her father paused, unable to meet his daughter's eyes as he forced himself to say,

"Yes, I promise, now go! Get the princess to safety now!" Her father hastily ordered the knight to take her away. Reaching for her hand, the knight began to escort Luna to a safe room located deep within the palace. Throughout the whole way, Luna's eyes stayed on her father's figure.

'Dad, please come back safe!' she prayed to the Holy Mother for her dad to come back safe just as lightning ripped through the sky.