Chapter 2: Princess Seri

Princess Seri felt a little icky straight away when she woke up at exactly eight in the morning. She sighed loudly once she realized that she was late. She remembered how excited she was the night before, thinking how she would help out milking the cows in the morning. After that, she'd be happily churning butter with her friends by the fields.A really peaceful and quiet Saturday morning.

Even though she rushed and showered within literally five minutes, she came too late. With a sad pout on her face, she waved at Anita, her lady-in-waiting and best friend. Anita chuckled, seeing the Princess sad while she presented her two mason jars of butter.

"You did everything without me," Seri whined. "You know, I really wanted to help. Why didn't you wake me up? You are so mean!"

"I tried, Princess Seri," Anita replied. "But I couldn't. And also, I was informed by the king that you two were going to be leaving. So, I figured that you needed more sleep anyway.

Princess Seri was clueless. She was never informed of this. It made her forehead itchy.

"Wait, where are we going? I haven't heard anything about this."

"Oh, Princess Seri," her maid silently whispered, before bowing her head a bit. "The King of Riovas has passed away."

"What? When?"

"It was reported this morning, but I believe that he passed a couple of days ago."

Princess Seri gasped. "Goodness," she said while shaking her head. "Now I feel so guilty, being sad over the butter I failed to churn. Could you help me out? I need to pick an appropriate attire."

"I already prepared that for you," Anita proudly stated. "I also packed your luggage."

"Excuse me, my what?"

"Your luggage, Princess."

Before Princess Seri could ask for more information, a farmer in his tractor called their attention with a loud, joyful yell.

"Princess Seri!" he called. "The King was looking for you!"

Without hesitation, the Princess rushed towards the vehicle. She rode on it, and the old farmer happily sent her back to the old palace.

It was loud. As soon as she stepped foot inside the main hall, her jaw almost dropped. How could she not have realized this earlier? Her luggage was lined up by the front, all ready to go. It seemed like she was about to get kicked out, but she was still unaware of it all.

"Dad!" she exclaimed. "What is happening? Why is all my luggage out? "

The king, wearing a locally made suit and tie, sighed at the sight of his daughter's muddy feet.

"Please, Seri, be more mindful of your image."

"What?" The princess' eyes widened. "Since when are we conscious of that, dad? It's not like the media would waste their time trying to write about us."

"Well, since today." The king tapped her on the shoulder. "You should do yourself a favor and don't embarrass yourself while you stay in Riovas."

"Me?" She laughed, almost unsure whether the man was joking or being serious. "Why would I stay there?"

"Since their king passed, the future prince would take the throne."

"And? What does that have to do with me?"

"The prince needs to be married to a princess first before he can take his spot. And all the princesses from the different kingdoms are required to participate in the search."

"I wont be-"

"Just participate, Seri, please." Through the years, she could always tell what her father meant just by looking into his eyes. And right now, she could see how desperate the king was.

"Fine," she finally agreed. "I will do whatever you want me to do."

Princess Seri spent the entire day confused and worried. She never heard a proper explanation or detailed instruction of what she was supposed to be doing in a foreign country. She sat beside the king on a plane to the kingdom next to theirs. The total opposite of what Gebi is. They arrived in Riovas, the kingdom known to be rich, vibrant, and colorful. While still at the airport, they could already feel the whole country mourning. She was respectful enough to not ask and bug her father while they traveled to the palace.

She managed to contain her curiosity up until they finally reached the huge home of the royal family. She could tell it would be at least three times bigger than theirs, and it amazed her. After five hours of traveling, she ended up being alone in a huge hallway. Her father, King Jeremy, was invited to a private room together with his men. Seri was never told where to go, and she was not sure whether she should move, with the fear of being lost in this place.

"Princess Seri?" Her heart almost jumped out of her body when an older woman called her attention.

"Ah-present?" She awkwardly responded with her hand raised.

She was very familiar with that same eye squint with a fake smile. She almost wanted to go home immediately.

"Please head to the dining hall."

Because of how small she felt just with a simple stare, Princess Seri did not even bother to ask for directions. All of a sudden, she was ready to get lost and circle around the same hall for hours rather than ask a maid who looked disgusted to call her a princess.

She could almost smell gold in the air with every step she took. Every single detail in this palace was made of gold. Even the candle holders looked like they were made with genuine gold. It was making her lose her mind. She can tell that each piece of decor in there could easily fund the building of a nice home back in Gebi.

"This is insane," she whispered to herself. "A real palace."

Her feet had led her to a tall door. It's at least two times her height and was carved beautifully. Everything about this place just made her realize how different their kingdoms were. No wonder the world laughs at Gebi for being considered as a kingdom.

"Alright." She shrugged and tapped her own shoulder. Getting ready to open the door, she whispered, "No matter what happens, just smile and nod, for Dad and for the people of Gebi."

In all her twenty years of existence, Seri never felt this obligated to act as a princess. Earlier on the plane, she read the rules of how a royal should act, the same book she uses only as a coaster at home.

With her heart pounding extra fast, she opened the amazing door. Nothing else welcomed her but the peaceful smell of old books. She was not in the same room that she thought it was. However, she was way more pleased. The walls of the huge room were covered by shelves and shelves of books. She started to calm down as she walked through the little maze in the middle of the room.

"Wow, they have a library here?" she excitedly stated. Nothing can stop her from roaming around. "I could stay here all day."

After a few minutes of wondering, she reached the very end of the maze. It was a golden bookshelf. The sight of gold made her roll her eyes. She really hopes that all these are fake gold, or else she might lose her mind or use her little hair clip to chip the back of this bookcase a bit and bring the shavings back home.

"Even a book?" She chuckled when a golden book caught her attention. Sure, it was black. But who would title their book, "Golden Goldie Gold"?

Out of curiosity, she picked the book up. All she wanted was to read what was on the back or something, but what she got was the whole shelf slowly moving. It was silent, but she witnessed how it popped inwards and slid over to the left like it was a sliding door. Who would have thought that a room like this would have a secret room? Well, on second thought, she realized that it was more than fitting.

Seeing the dark room, she honestly should have left and ran away. However, Seri couldn't stop herself from diving in. She just had to know what was inside the secret room.

As soon as she stepped closer, the door frame lit up in a blinding white light that forced her to shut her eyes. In order to escape, she ran forward until she bumped into something and was forced to stop.

Once her eyes opened, she almost yelled at the top of her lungs. She was beside a couch. And on it, a really big man stared at her in confusion. His feet dangled at the edge of the couch as he raised his brow at her.

"How did you get here?" His voice was deep and very authoritative.

"Oh my God! I am so sorry. I was lost and I came here accidentally. " She started to yell while explaining, and she stopped as soon as she realized that she was looking more and more strange. The man in front of her should be scared of her. He might even think that this woman has lost all her marbles.

Seri took a deep breath before calmly explaining, "Sir, I didn't mean to intrude. I am so sorry. I-"

"Sir?" She was interrupted by the stranger. He studied her face and looked at her black dress. "Who are you? Why are you here? "

"I am-" Seri stopped. She knows that she would get into more trouble if she revealed her real identity. "A new maid," she said.

"A new maid?" He said with a smirk.

The man stood up. And Seri immediately stepped back as soon as his bare chest greeted her eyes. She really wished that his buttons were being used at that moment. And at that moment, I shouldn't really be blushing. She'll look even more like a weird intruder now.

"Look me in the eyes and say that again."

"I would if your boobies weren't out," she whispered to herself. But, hearing how loud the man laughed, she figured that he heard her as well.

"Funny," he commented. He lowered himself to look at Seri closer. "I advise you to leave this room and look for the dining hall. Also, delete the very existence of this little spot in your brain. If you are able to do that, we won't have any problem."

Seri was stunned. Maybe a bit too stunned, because she was stuck there, watching the man button up his shirt.

"Hey, do you understand?" He snapped to get her attention.

"Oh-yeah! "No problem, sir."

The beautiful man nodded and continued to fix himself while examining Seri's face. A slight smile curved on his lips. Seri was wearing a beautiful black dress that was not too fancy, not too attention-seeking, and very conservative. She also did not have any pieces of jewelry other than her diamond stud earrings. But he knew that she was someone special. Her face is too pretty. Her skin was fair, and her doe eyes revealed that she was a genuine person. He has a feeling that she is a princess.

"Let's go," the man said.

"Yes, sir!"

Seri followed him to the library. She watched him wear a suit. She was so tempted to go in front of him just to see how handsome he'd look in it, but she chose to throw that idea away.

"Go left and straight. You will see a huge double door at the end. That's where you should be."

"Oh gosh, I don't know if I should be there. Could you please tell me how to get out instead? Maybe I still have a chance to escape."

"Escape, huh?" he scoffed. "Forget about it and just follow me to the hall."

Just as she was about to answer, the door opened and an old butler came in to bow in front of them.

"Prince Hazan," he called the man. "The visitors are waiting for you."

"I'll be there, Will."

"Prince Hazan?" Seri turned pale. She gulped and blinked to try and process it all. "The freaking Prince?"