AZALEA

The leaves rustled due the blowing wind as I stood there motionless. My heart thumped against my chest as I rammed my head to desperately think despite how I felt the bear as it approached me, carefully sniffing, stalking in a slow circle around me who was already as stiff as a rock.

I couldn't help but feel fear. I held my breath as I nervously tried to remain calm. I was in grave danger but I could only wait for the bear's next move as my one hand tightened on my bow—uncertain of what was waiting for me. And somehow, I was certain that death could be one of the options.

Blood gushed from my wound which already tainted my hunting clothes. And the wind swift blew, touching my nape cold, which sent shivers down my spine. Everything around me felt cold—even my hands were turning numb.

I suddenly wanted to reminisce about how I lived my life—if I was happy or not—but this was not the right time to be nostalgic so I exerted my remaining strength to focus on the bear.

Its heavy steps came to my attention—as if part of the bear was being dragged just to walk. I could only assume that it was wounded from its last fight and it couldn't swiftly move or attack anymore.

I tightly bit my bottom lip—a little hopeful of this realization. Maybe I still had a chance? Maybe I could still fight back? Maybe I could still survive this impending doom?

I shriveled from its sudden growl. It was a mixture of anger and pain.

I heaved another deep breath as I finally decided to fight for my life even if there was a possibility that this bear could cut me to pieces and end my life. Dying without fighting for my life was not an option.

I was already deeply thinking of how to escape this predicament but I was startled when I heard footsteps approaching us, twigs and leaves crushing behind someone's feet, which interrupted my thoughts. My heart raced on my chest. The bear who also heard those unwelcome noises whipped around and angrily growled.

I knew at that moment that it was my only chance to kill the bear.

My right hand swiftly moved and grabbed an arrow in the quiver on my back. I notched an arrow on my bow as I spun around and targeted the bear's exposed back.

I pulled the bowstring with all my strength but the bear probably realized the bloodlust emanating from my stance. It immediately retaliated and clawed its way to me as it spanned to attack me. I was definitely startled that I released the arrow in haste as I hopped back to avoid its deadly and sharp claws.

The bear growled when the arrow hit right through its chest. Blood gushed from its wounds as it whimpered in excruciating pain. But the wound didn't stop it from attacking.

It only became more aggressive as it tried to beat me into a pulp. I quickly composed myself and ran as its claws slammed on the ground—as if it was betting its whole life on it.

A part of its claw almost sliced through my back—gladly it only managed a scratch on my clothes and skin—as I panicked to draw another arrow from my bow while running. It became faster. Maybe it was the adrenaline rush or maybe it was its wild instinct to survive.

"Fuck!" I screamed my frustrations at the top of my lungs. I also want to fucking survive. I no longer cared how painful all my wounds were.

With a wince, I desperately turned to the bear and released an arrow which directly hit its head but to my surprise, another arrow also landed a hit. The bear stopped moving—motionless as it stared straight to my eyes with its mouth open revealing its sharp teeth. It didn't even blink and I was nervous as I tried to distance myself from it.

I released another arrow to ensure its death. I just realized all the arrows buried in its body and its bloody and sorry state as it slowly fell on the ground with a loud thud. It was already dead.

I almost caught my breath when I heard the hurried steps of someone from afar so I immediately pulled another arrow from my quiver and pointed it on the man. Because I was afraid it was someone who also came for my life.

My eyes focused on the man who stopped running and raised his two hands as if he was surrendering with the corner of his lips pulled into a small smile. Prince Dion stood there but when he realized how messy my appearance was, worry flickered in his blue eyes. He was a little terrified when his gaze focused on the blood on my clothes and his eyes lingered on my wounds.

"Y-Your Royal H-Higness?" I stammered, barely gotten the words out. I was not sure if I was just hallucinating but I wished this wasn't some kind of a dream. It was not like I was already dying. I slowly put down my bow and returned the arrow in my quiver.

"Are you alright?" He immediately approached me and checked my wounds which were still bleeding. He immediately pulled his handkerchief and tied it on my right arm. He also checked my back which was scratched by the bear.

"What happened?" His voice was glazed with urgency and continued scolding me. "I know you want to win but you shouldn't have come to this dangerous part of the forest. You shouldn't have put your life in danger."

I almost laughed at how absurd it was. I wished the reason was as shallow as that.

"It's not the bear. I didn't come here on purpose. It's Lady Candice. . . she—wait!" I said as I immediately ran somewhere and picked Lady Candice's cufflink which fell on the ground. I also collected her arrows. I needed these as evidence.

Prince Dion worriedly followed me around. He tried his best to carefully support me as if he was afraid I would collapse any time from now. "What about Lady Candice? Did you run into her? What did she do?"

"She sent an assassin. She wanted me dead," I answered without hesitation. "Let's look for that assassin. I needed him as evidence. And the bear. It can help me to win this hunting competition."

Prince Dion kept up with me as I hurried to the location where the bear and the assassin fought.

And there, I saw a bloody and dead body on the ground. Some of his body parts were torn to pieces and it was a gruesome sight. Claw marks were all around his body. I almost puked by how grim he looked but I pushed myself to kneel down and removed his mask.

I couldn't recognize him.

Prince Dion also knelt down and inspected the dead body with furrowed brows. "He's the assassin?"

I nodded.

He skillfully checked for any special marks from its body. He turned the corpse around and found something on its nape—a skull with a diamond eye mark.

He also checked the assassin's bloody weapons and found the same mark.

"I also ran into Lady Candice. We fought for a while because she really wants me dead. But because of the bear, she decided to leave me here alone to die instead," I explained. "She admitted that their family is secretly raising an army of assassins. They want to rebel against the royal family."

Prince Dion had a dire expression on his face as he stared at the small hunting knife soaked in blood. He didn't seem surprised at all.

He tilted his head and looked at me.

"This is grave. You won't be safe if you return to the camp. Since you are already aware of this big secret, Lady Candice would definitely do anything to kill you before you could even reveal this to the king."

I furrowed my brows. "So what do you want me to do? I have some evidence pointing to Lady Candice."

"But your evidence isn't enough."

"At least, the king can start the investigation once this was known to him."

Prince Dion sighed. "But it can put you in danger."

"So what are your plans?" My eyes intently stared at him. "We can't prolong this grave matter."

He smiled a little. "Will you trust me?"

"I'm already betting my own life on you," I reminded him. "My life and death are already tied to you."

"How about you play dead and hide somewhere? I need to buy some time. And this commotion would make Lady Candice think that she already won the selection. I want her to be lax. I want her to think that you're already dead. She must not suspect that something is amiss for quite some time."

"What are you planning to do?"

"I will prepare something to help you. I know you're wounded but we need to do this. Can you still wait for me? Maybe until tonight? Once you come back to the camp, you can reveal everything to the king. You can show your evidence at hand. I will back you up." Prince Dion stared at me with great resolve. He seemed certain that we could win this.

I swallowed and nodded. Maybe he had a better plan so I would trust him. "I can still survive this. I will wait for you. Just make sure you'll come back and pick me up."

Prince Dion let out a smile. He stood up and supported me. "I know a place where you can hide. Let's head there first."

"And remember to keep the bear. . . it's mine," I warned him.

He cracked up. "Alright. I'll handle it with care." Before living he hid the corpse and the bear's head behind the high bushes.

I frowned and winced in pain as he lifted me to sit on the saddle of his horse. He rode with me and held the reins as the horse galloped into the woods. I was in awe to see such a gigantic waterfalls with amazing rock formations along the way.

I immediately spotted a cave near it. There was a long river with water rushing down somewhere and it seemed it was connected to another small waterfalls.

He helped me down the horse and once again checked my wounds. "Let's clean your wounds first."

"Come on." Beckoning him with a motion of my hand when I didn't move at all.

I followed him to the river and sat on the smooth and round rock. He removed the handkerchief and washed it in the river. He cleaned my wounds and bandaged it with a piece of white cloth. I winced due to the stinging pain and I also tried my best to suppress my whimpers.

He also cleaned the wounds on the back and he couldn't see how much I tried not to scream. I just realized how painful my wounds were after the adrenaline rush died down.

When he was done, my bandaged wound throbbed. My body and back were aching. I suddenly lost all the remaining strengths I had and I just wanted to have a good sleep.

"Are you going to be okay here? Alone?" he asked with concern. His blue eyes were worriedly gazing at me as if he was suddenly having second thoughts about leaving me.

I smiled a bit to ease his worries. "You don't have to worry. I can handle this on my own. You said I can explain everything to the king and queen. I wish this could end my dispute with Lady Candice."

Prince Dion heaved a deep sigh and nodded without his eyes leaving my face. "I believe you can do this. I'll return now. Remember, you have me. You have my back. I will always support you. You should rest inside the cave." His fingers brushed the red curls and dirt sticking on my face before he stood up. He offered a hand and he walked me inside the cave.

He grabbed something from his small bag which was attached to his horse earlier. He gave me some food and water. "Don't wander around and take care while I'm away. I will be leaving now, my lady."

I nodded. "Thank you."

I watched him leave with his horse until his figure vanished from my sight.

I sat on the ground and put down the bow and quiver. I just noticed how messy and muddy my clothes were. I sighed as the exhaustion finally took over me. I never thought I would be fighting for my life this hard. Really, being involved with royalties was never easy. I closed my eyes to rest but it wasn't long before I totally succumbed to sleep.

~~~

When I woke up, it was already dark and the moonlight was illuminating outside of the cave.

To replenish my strength, I ate the food given by Prince Dion and drank some water to ease my already dry throat.

When I was already full, I grabbed my bow and quiver. I stood up and walked outside.

When my eyes turned to the river, the gleaming reflection of the full moon greeted me. The silvery moon was beautiful and mesmerizing. I also noticed the fireflies flying around the place. The sound of the rushing water from the waterfalls rushed over my ears. My body was still aching but the beauty in front of me somehow eased the pain.

It was kind of peaceful but I wondered why Prince Dion hadn't searched for me yet.

Or maybe they were already searching for me? I just had to wait.

I sat on the smooth rock. I gaped at the sight of my bow glittering under the moonlight too. As if it was surrounded with some sort of magic. It seemed like it was gathering energy from the nature around it.

Though its light didn't have an effect on me at all. Maybe because I was not someone who was capable of wielding magic. But it was entrancing. I wondered what it was capable of. Prince Dion mentioned that it was made from the branch of the elves' Tree of Life.

I just realized there was so much to see—a lot of amazing and magnificent things— in this world. How I wished I was free from this curse so I could wander around this world without worries at all.

After quite some time, I returned inside the cave when I realized that the moon was already high. I was a little worried because Prince Dion wasn't here yet. But maybe they will come to me tomorrow. He said he needed some time and I put my trust in him.

~~~

It was already almost morning when I was awakened by the footsteps approaching the place.

I instinctively tightly grabbed my bow and arrow because I was actually afraid that it might be someone else—or worse, another assassin who was after my life.

As the footsteps drew closer, I noticed that several people were calling my name. I also heard one familiar voice that could immediately make my heart ache. It was Prince Dion. He finally came for me.

I assumed he was with the royal guards.

I hurried to my feet and rushed outside the cave. The guards carried torches of fire as they called my name, searching for me.

With a weak voice, I announced. "I-I'm here." My voice was already hoarse and dry.

Prince Dion immediately spotted me and rushed to my side. The guards followed but kept their distance.

"I'm sorry, I'm late," he whispered.

I weakly smiled. "It's alright. As long as you come back for me."

He carefully carried me. "Let's return to the camp now," Prince Dion said. He walked to his horse and saddled me on its back. He carefully hugged me with one hand because he was afraid I might fall.

When we arrived at our camp, Lady Candice stared at me with wide eyes. Her both hands held the side of her dress as she bit her lower lip. She was eyeing me with contempt but was scared at the same time. I noticed how she heaved a deep breath to calm and composed herself after a few minutes when we already got down the horse.

"Let's head to the king's tent so you can explain your disappearance. Can you still handle this?" Prince Dion asked. He leaned closer. "I don't want to give her time to breathe. I don't want to give her a chance to escape this predicament," he whispered, referring to Lady Candice.

I nodded. "I can still handle this."

He supported me as we walked inside the King's tent. I also could feel the heated gaze coming from Lady Candice—as if she badly wanted to stop me but she couldn't do anything. She was anxious and helpless.

When we arrived inside the tent, the king and queen were already waiting for me. We greeted the king and queen with a low bow and a curtsy. I was still a mess but it was not important.

"At ease." King Arthur eyed me with concern. "Lady Azalea, we're glad you are safe. But what happened? You're wounded. . ."

I stared at the king and answered in a weak voice. "I don't want to worry you, Your Majesty, but someone tried to assassinate me. Someone sent an assassin to kill me."

King Arthur gaped. His brows moved and furrowed in confusion. "An assassin? Someone dared to send an assassin to this hunting ground?"

I cleared my throat. I turned to Prince Dion and he gave me a short nod. I turned to the king. "I'm afraid I know the mastermind—the one behind this attempt, Your Majesty."

King Arthur eyed me with seriousness. "Who?"

"Lady Candice, Your Majesty."

King Arthur cleared his throat upon hearing the name.

Queen Adriana narrowed her eyes on me. "That's a grave accusation, Lady Azalea. You can be punished for that if that's not true. Do you have proof? Where is this assassin? We should invite Lady Candice inside and hear her out. She must be present here. I'm afraid this is not that simple."

King Arthur nodded and agreed. "I agree with the queen. Summon Lady Candice inside this tent."

A guard bowed before heading outside the tent.

After a few minutes of silence, Lady Candice was sent inside. She was composed. She looked relaxed unlike before. She seemed to know what to do now. I was afraid this won't be easy anymore.

"Greetings to the sun of this kingdom, His Majesty, King Arthur. Greetings to the moon of this kingdom, Her Majesty, Queen Adriana," Lady Candice said in a calm voice as she curtsied elegantly—as if she was not bothered at all.

"At ease. Lady Candice, we summoned you to clear some things," King Arthur explained. "Let's hear Lady Azalea's statement first on what happened today."

Lady Candice nodded. "I understand, Your Majesty. I'm glad Lady Azalea returned safely. I will hear her out."

Lady Candice was too good at keeping her mask.

I heaved a deep sigh. There was no turning back now. "Your Majesty, this morning, I was out hunting a fox but someone shot me with an arrow. He was wearing black clothes and his face was covered. I figure he was after my life so I ran and escaped and managed to shoot back an arrow on that assassin. Fortunately, we ran into a bear and because of the assassin's threatening stance, the bear attacked him. I managed to survive but Lady Candice arrived. She admitted that she sent that assassin to kill me. She also attacked and wounded me. Some time passed and the bear returned after killing the assassin. Lady Candice decided to leave me in that bear's hands, thinking that it would definitely kill me—that I could no longer escape death. She left me alone in the forest with the intention of killing me. I just managed to survive."

I turned my stern gaze at Lady Candice. She seemed unaffected by my statement.

"What do you say, Lady Candice. Is that true?" Queen Adriana asked. She definitely wished this accusation wasn't true. Because if this was true, her son would have no choice but to choose me as the Crown Princess and Lady Candice would be punished.

Lady Candice looked at me with teary eyes. "Why are you trying to frame me? Do you have any evidence to support your statements, Lady Azalea?"

She turned to the king and queen. "I'm afraid Lady Azalea is just trying to frame me so that she won't have to compete with me in this hunting competition and so that she would no doubt become the Crown Princess. This is just cruel. Lady Azalea seems willing to do anything just to become the Crown Princess. Please investigate this matter, Your Majesty. This is a grave matter, Your Majesty," she pleaded with tears in her eyes.

So this was how she wanted to play her cards, huh?

I sighed heavily and stared at the king and queen with a determined look in my eyes. "I want to present some evidence, Your Majesty."

King Arthur and Queen Adriana seemed conflicted but they nodded. I offered an arrow covered with my blood and a sapphire cufflink. "Please inspect these items. They all belong to Lady Candice. The arrow scratched me on the arm and the sapphire cufflink was from her hunting outfit. I also managed to cut a small part on her wrist. Please inspect her."

King Arthur asked a guard to inspect the items. After a few minutes, the guard spoke. "These items truly belonged to Lady Candice."

But Lady Candice immediately pleaded for her innocence. "These items really belonged to me but how does this prove that the blood really came from Lady Azalea, Your Majesty? I'm afraid this was from one of the animals I hunted. Lady Azalea really cut through a part of my wrist and I lost the cufflink because she seemed angry and desperate. But I had already forgiven her. It seemed like Lady Azalea was really trying to frame me, Your Majesty. She doesn't even have a witness and she wanted to blame me for this incident. What if she's just trying to create a ruckus so she could eliminate me from this selection? Your Majesty, please uphold justice for me."

I heaved a deep breath. I could only play and reveal my remaining cards. She was really good at twisting the truth. The lies sounded so real and it was kind of scary. "I have some witnesses to prove that Lady Candice is trying to harm me. Please summon my maids. And I have the assassin's body," I interjected.

King Arthur stared at me with doubt but he nodded. "Let us see and hear them."

I turned to Prince Dion and nodded at him. He nodded back and he seemed calm despite how the facts were being distorted by Lady Candice. He didn't seem bothered at all.

Some guards left to get my maid.

Sabrina, Yumi and Cherry were brought inside the tent.

"These are my maids, Your Majesty. Yumi and Sabrina were with me when we went to Woodcrest. When we returned here, I was delayed by a day and had to wait for Prince Dion's arrival at Duke Ross' castle. Assassins also chased after me and it seems connected to this incident. Duke Ross inspected the corpse of the assassin but he couldn't confirm the assassin's master yet. And here's Cherry, she was tasked to hide some witchcraft related items in my room. She had no choice but to follow the person behind this scheme because her family was held captive. The person behind this failed because we managed to rescue her family."

Sabrina, Yumi and Cherry kept their heads low as they spoke. "Lady Azalea is telling the truth, Your Majesty."

Lady Candice subtly smirked at me. "Do you have evidence that I was the one who ordered these assassins and your maid? And how can we allow Lady Azalea's maids to be witnesses? Of course, they will follow their master no matter what. How can we say that they are actually telling the truth?"

I hated how eloquent Lady Candice was with her schemes. She knew how to get out of this situation unscathed and I hated how helpless I suddenly became. I couldn't even counter what she just said. It seemed I didn't prepare enough.

I sternly turned to the king. "Please investigate this matter thoroughly, Your Majesty. I'm not lying and I did hear from Lady Candice's mouth that her family was planning for a rebe—"

I was interrupted when Prince Dion lightly squeezed my shoulder. I turned to him and he smiled a little and nodded at me.

"I'll take it from here, Lady Azalea," he said with a coy smile. "You have my back."

Prince Dion turned to his father. "The corpse of the assassin is outside the tent, Your Majesty. Kindly inspect him."

King Arthur nodded. "Alright." The king and queen walked out of the tent. We followed behind them.

King Arthur carefully checked the corpse.

"I already investigated this matter earlier, Your Majesty. I found this corpse in the forest and found an intriguing crest on his weapon." Prince Dion presented the weapon to the king.

There was a crest of a skull with one diamond eye there. "It was from a secret organization. An organization raising assassins."

King Arthur had a grave look upon his face. "An organization of assassins? Without our knowledge? How did this happen? And what's their motives? And how's this connected to Lady Candice? Explain."

A galloping horse was suddenly heard from a far. We saw Duke Ross. His black hair glittered in sweats as if he rushed in haste to this location. He stopped the horse and hopped down. He respectfully bowed down before the king and queen.

"Greetings to the ruler of this empire. I have a report to make related to this incident, Your Majesty," Duke Ross announced.

I furrowed my brows. Did Prince Dion take care of this ahead of time? Was this the reason he was late to find me?

"Duke Ross will make this report. I'm afraid you won't believe me if this comes from my mouth. I'm afraid Lady Candice will say that I am only siding with Lady Azalea because I am in love and her downfall will benefit me as well. Duke Ross was in charge of investigating this matter," Prince Dion cleared.

Lady Candice caught her breath. She seemed nervous about this report.

"Please stand and deliver your report, young duke," King Arthur ordered.

Duke Ross stood and handed a rolled paper to the king. "When Lady Azalea was travelling from Woodcrest heading to the capital, she passed by my state and she was chased by an assassin. I inspected and kept the corpse for further investigation because I couldn't still discern who it was affiliated to. And then, I received a letter from the Prince Crown that Lady Candice was sending assassins to kill Lady Azalea. I investigated the matter further and I discovered that these assassins were raised by their family. I'm afraid their family is planning for a rebellion. All the details are stated in my report, Your Majesty. Everything is up to your decision now, Your Majesty."

Queen Adriana gasped.

King Arthur read the details and then turned a stern and unhappy gaze on Lady Candice. Lady Candice immediately went down to her feet and knelt.

"Your Majesty, please spare me."

"How will you explain this?"

"It's . . ."

"Are you still going to deny this?" King Arthur asked in an angry voice. His breath halted and he clasped on his chest as if he was in pain.

"Your Majesty! Please calm down!" Queen Adriana immediately supported the king. This was the first time I saw her worried face. So she still knew how to care?

"Bring her back to the palace. Keep her in jail. Send people to the Duke Admiral's house. If they refuse to surrender, we will have no choice but to resort to violence," King Arthur ordered as he was trying to calm himself. "You are all dismissed."

"Please have mercy, Your Majesty!" Lady Candice pleaded in a hoarse voice but the king and queen turned their backs on her and entered the tent without looking back. The guards grabbed her and she was dragged to the horse, back to the palace.

Duke Ross approached us. "Sorry, I'm a little late," he apologized.

"I'm grateful that you made it in time," Prince Dion smiled. "Please accompany Lady Azalea back to her tent. I will check on my father first. And please see to it that she was treated by a physician."

Duke Ross nodded. "Alright. Let me accompany you to your tent, Lady Azalea."

I nodded. I still had some questions but maybe Duke Ross could answer them.

We walked to my tent. My maids followed me from behind. They seemed concerned but they couldn't just approach me because of the duke. "So, how did this happen? I mean, you really investigated everything?"

Duke Ross nodded. "Well, Prince Dion did help me. And all the assassins sent to you carry the same crest. And we already learned about their plans, days before the hunting competition. I just received a message from him this morning that I have to make this report because you are in grave danger so I rushed here," Duke Ross chortled. "This wasn't the original plan though. He is really worried about your safety."

I tightly bit my bottom lip—a little embarrassed. "Apologies that we have to take your precious time. You're probably exhausted, Your Grace."

He shrugged his shoulders. "It's fine. No need for formalities. You don't have to feel sorry about it. It's actually thanks to you that we discovered their secret and dark schemes."

We arrived in front of my tent. "You should rest now. It seems you've been through a lot. You don't have to worry about the selection anymore, Lady Azalea. I will return with the physician. Just wait inside."

I smiled a little. "I'll be forever grateful for your help, Your Grace. I hope I can repay your kindness."

He shook his head and smiled. "No need for that. Just be happy and stay with Dion and support him. He really loves you. I know you're both in this risky position but I hope, one day, you will both be able to lift this curse."

***