Zylith.

Our mount for today's excursion was an exotic horse breed of pure white, it's coat was a gorgeous silvery-white and it was beautiful from the mane to it's tail. I peered at the majestic steed grazing leisurely in front of me and exclaimed, "Woah! Was a beautiful mare!"

"It is your stallion, Your Highness." Fredurd informed me.

"What! Really?" I whipped my head to look towards him in surprise. I never knew I had an exclusive horse just for me to ride.

"Oh yes. Weren't you aware?" Fredurd spoke, "His Majesty specifically ordered this mare from the Isles of Cianiens, they rear the best breeds of horses in the entire continent."

I raised a brow to that. Wow! What a surprise. I never thought Reuben to be thoughtful enough to get me a personal steed of such high quality, but I was still grateful for the thought, especially when the steed looked as stunning as a fantasy.

I smiled softly as I looked at the flowing mane of my steed that unfurled and whipped as the wind called and asked, "What is its name?" And Fredurd replied, "It doesn't have one yet, Your Highness."

"Oh? It doesn't?" I furrowed my eyebrows, "Then how about I give it one." I smiled as I approached it to pat its mane. But to my shock, it scurried away from my touch and looked at me as though I was something dirty and not worth its notice. We stared at each other as if we were assessing each other up and this horse's ingrained arrogance didn't fail to shock me, but then I realized, it was a steed prepared by 'Reuben the Great'. Of course it would look at us mundane mortals as though we are nothing but mere ants in it's eyes. As such I made my final decision, "Alright! I've decided, it's going to be called 'Mummy'."

"Wha-What?" Fredurd frowned at the unorthodox name I had come up for this beautiful horse, but now, the more I looked at it, the more its eyes seemed to be mocking me, or maybe I was imagining things?

"Yes, Mummy it is." I said with a nod of confirmation and the horse neighed loudly in response. "See? It likes its new name as well." I smiled in delight. The horse, which looked pretty docile up until now neighed even more so as though it was suddenly provoked by an enemy. I smiled even more contentedly as I nodded, "Ah! See how excited it is to have its new adorable name, right Mummy?"

The horse snorted and whinged as though it couldn't contain it's dissatisfaction but at the same time, looked helpless as it didn't have an outlet to vent it's frustrations. I smiled a little more at it's disgruntled face and said, "My precious Mummy, you should learn to not ignore mommy from now on, okay?" The horse puffed it's nostrils and looked away from me, seeming as though it was lamenting it's fate in sheer anguish.

"Well then, shall we go?" I turned around to look at a wide-eyed Fredurd, who stood half a meter away from me, gawking dumbly at the little spectacle that just took place right in front of his eyes.

"Fred?" I called him again, and he seemed to have come to his senses.

"AH! Yes Your Highness, we shall depart now." He garbled, still in a daze.

"Oh and, don't call me Your Highness while we are on the venture." I said.

"Then what should I address you as, My Lady?" He asked in confusion and I sighed at my knight's slow-wittedness.

"My dearest knight Fredurd, do I look like a lady right now?" I asked with a raised brow.

"I... no Your Highness." He mumbled back, quite abashed.

"Right, I don't. So just call me Zeth. No honorifics required." I shrugged, I was after all dressed as a peasant and he as my mate. How would it look if he were to call me lord or master while I looked like a humble country-dweller myself?

Hence, after deciding on our nick names for each other, we mounted on our respected steeds and shoot down the dirt road.

I had never ridden a horse before I came to this world. After coming here, I learnt a little of everything along with horse riding. Still, you cannot say that I was a skilled rider. So when I rode Mummy alone for the very first time, it gave me a big fright. Mummy's stocky limbs were moving faster than I would have thought possible as it whizzed by the line of trees with pounding hooves. The soft spring soil was no match for it's hooves and in its wake, sods were flying in an arcing spray.

I closed my eyes in a scare and as if on cue, Mummy extended its head forward even more with its ears flat back and sped up its pace while flaring its nostrils in a puff. Now I knew, this horse was as vindictive as its true owner.

After a while, I finally got used to its pace and opened my eyes to see the petal-freckled fields and pastures with clear blue water shining under the warm light of the afternoon sun. I could feel the wind in my ears and the heat of the summer sun beating down on my back. It was all beautiful and divine until the leather reins of Mummy rubbed against my fingers repeatedly and the pain in them told me there were going to be blisters decorated on them not far off in the future. Not to mention my inner thighs that were being viciously rubbed against the saddle, I just hoped I didn't end up walking like a person with Botox injected into their butt.

After about an hour or so, we ultimately reached our said destination, and I could finally sigh in relief.

The central Flavier market of the capital city of Reveldron was the biggest shopping arcade in all of the Nation of Reveldron. I weaved across the throngs, edging through the dense flow of people as I moved towards the market square, where the sea of people was the densest.

I paused for a moment to wait for my dawdling knight who was desperately trying to catch up to me amidst the swarm of people while at the same time, took a minute to survey the flamboyant scene, drinking in the colors, the aromas and the atmosphere of this lively environment like an elixir. I took in the beautiful scenery of the milling throng as vendors of various nationalities screamed out offers on the top of their voices to attract customers whilst housewives hustled and bustled, and haggled over the price of the exotic fruits and other imported merchandise.

The air was perfumed with produce and the lingering sweet smell of flowers coming from the florist's shop. The ground was all gritty stone and not a single empty place could be spotted between the stalls. The shopkeepers seemed as though they were a caricature of bubbly friendliness while they interacted with their customers whereas the sun mercilessly shone down upon the market making beads of sweat glisten over everyone's forehead and turning many faces red due to the sweltering heat. Some held a hand against their forehead to shield themselves from the sun, others used fans made out of paper or dry bamboo sticks. But the heat of the sun was yet not able to dampen the jolly spirits of the people, lovers strolled hand in hand around the square, casually browsing the colourful wares while children ran around shop to shop, looking all excited. The busker with a lovely harp, sat by the florist's shop as he produced euphonious music out of his instrument. All in all, the hubbub mixed in with beautiful music gave the entire panorama an enchanting feel.

This was my first time in Flavier, the capital city of Reveldron. Everything was so novel to me that I had a hard time sucking in all the pretty views in front of me. I felt like I was like an excited five-years-old who was brought out of her home for the very first time since she was born. I almost felt elated beyond control.

I was still engrossed in looking around the vivid scenery when I was taken in by surprise as I felt myself plummeting over the cold hard ground.

No! I was not doing a gravity check, nor did I stumble on the flat ground, it turned out to be a person who bumped into me and toppled onto me like an unstoppable vehement gale. I on the other hand, due to the shock of the event, couldn't keep my balance and hence folks, I found myself falling headfast towards the hard ground.

THUD!!!

The daunting sound of heavy objects falling to the ground echoed in the air as I sucked in a deep arduous breath because my head was hurting like a b*tch. I feared I just had a concussion from the fall since the back of my head was stinging and throbbing as though it had been cracked open. I just felt lucky I didn't die from the head-collision.

On the other hand, the bastard who almost caused my death was still slouched on top of me like a lifeless sack of potatoes. I gritted my teeth and wanted to kick the cretin where the sun never shines when all of a sudden, he sluggishly raised his head in utter confusion, and I came across the face of the century, literally; as such, all violent thoughts left my system like a fart in the wind.

The person, the lady who I thought to be a dude due to the heaviness of her bodyweight, almost turned my eyes inside out. She was a Goddess in precise sense of the word. Her soulful amber eyes seemed to suck me into them as they shone in glossy serenity, her pure burgundy hair, which was hidden underneath her dark grey headscarf fell out due to the fall and softly reflected the light of the sun; as she leaned over me, still looking muddled from the fall, her soft locks fell over my face as though creating an illusion of cascading the both of us from the outer world as her aura seeped into the summer air between us. Her face, as rosy as a rose and doe-like eyes opened wide as she stared back at me. I was deeply enthralled with her spotless fair skin which was so completely flawless that I wanted to grab hold onto her and ask her what kind of face products did she use to make it look so perfect.

And then, she bewitched me even more with her siren-like voice, "I.... I am so sorry. Are you alright?" Her voice was like music under a summer breeze, almost lost against the noise of the animated market. Yet somehow it took hold of me, making me want to listen to it all the more.

My mouth opened wide as I wanted to make some sound in response, but I found myself drooling at the sight of her soft cushion-like lips as they moved, so beautiful as it was like the stars themselves decided to rest behind them. And I knew then, I would be jumping through hoops and loops just to please her.

But our beautiful little world was rudely smashed down by my imprudent dolt of a knight as he shouted my name and broke the trance that I was caught in.

The beautiful lady abruptly got off me and put her headscarf around her head and quickly covered her face with it. I didn't even get to ask the name of the gorgeous sister when she muttered her apologies in a frenzy and dashed off as the whirlwind of early summer.

I on the other hand, stood standing like I was petrified to my spot and stared at the disappearing back of the beautiful sister.

"Your Hi... I mean Zeth, are you alright?" Fredurd asked in an anxious tone.

"Fred, I think I was just graced by a Goddess." I mumbled, still in a stupor.

"Huh!?" His reaction to my words were as expected, stupid.

"Ah! Nevermind. Don't mind my words, it is only a pity that I didn't get to ask the pretty sister's name or where she lived(sigh)." I shook my head from side to side at the inanity of my subordinate and looked at him with eyes filled with sympathy and thought to myself, 'Was he dropped around a lot by his parents when he was an infant?'

"Anyways," I decided to dismiss this simpleton knight of mine and said in a cheery tone, "Shall we go around and enjoy the day to our fullest?"

Fredurd didn't look very thrilled at the idea but nevertheless, he still nodded in agreement. After all, what choice did he have other than to tag along with me.

"Look look, isn't this pretty Fred?" I picked up a hair ornament from an accessory stall by the roadside and showed it to Fredurd in enthusiasm. The woodblock of a man only hummed in response and I sighed yet again.

"No wonder you were not able to pacify Liana." I mumbled under my breath.

"......... Should I gift a hair accessory to placate the Lady, Si.... I mean Zeth?" Fredurd mumbled back after a long contemplation on his side.

"Oh, I do suggest you do that young man," In came the fervent shopkeeper's voice. "To appease an upset lady, I recommend accessories to be the best bet."

"...Really?..." Fredurd asked in his uptight demeanour.

"Of course. Accessories are the exclamation point of a woman; they are a lady's armour. A gift of an accessory to your lady could never go wrong young man." The seller exclaimed in fanatism.

Fredurd didn't show any extensive reaction to the seller's words, anyone who was not familiar with him would think he was not swayed with the seller's words but the little stars burning in his sparkling eyes definitely did not go unnoticed by me. I wondered, how he was not swindled out of his entire fortune till now. And sighed deeply for the nth time. Oh well, we all eat lies when our hearts are hungry after all.

I raised a hand to stop the seller's passionate speech and said, "You stop right there Shakespeare." And then I looked at this simpleton knight and said, "And you, don't believe jewellery can solve any problem related to women just because an experienced jewellery seller made you think so. It differs depending on the instance. Do you know what Liana will do if you present her with expensive jewellery?" Fredurd shook his head from side to side. "She will smack it into your face like she did her underwear." I said.

Fredurd in turn, knitted his brows and put a hand over his face as though he was reminiscing that sad event all over again.

"Then... what should I ........ Wait! How did you know Lady Liana threw her underwear at my face?" He furrowed his brows even more so, as he enquired.

Oh sh*t! My stupid mouth, busted!

"Huh? Oh! That...... Erm... about that..."

"Yes Zeth, how did you know?" Fredurd became even more serious as he pressed me over the matter.

"I... Haha... Yes! Liana told me." After finding a proper excuse, I became more confident with my lie.

"Really?" He scowled suspiciously at me.

"Of course, why would I lie?" I threw back assertively, his look was still one that of distrust but with Liana in the equation, he was unable to repudiate my excuse.

"Well then, shall we go look around some more? We have sooo much more to see." I changed the topic quite skillfully as I walked on ahead.

"Your Hi...! I mean Zeth, please wait for me." Fredurd hollered as he trailed behind me in a rush.

The vibrant shades of the evening sun shrouded the sky, coloring everything around us in beautiful dyes of auburn.

"Zeth, it's getting late. I think it is time to leave." Fredurd urged in an exigent manner.

"What are you talking about, my dear friend? The night has just begun." I replied in a breezy tone to his appeal.

"Whatever do you mean?" Fredurd frowned in puzzlement.

"It means, it's time for real men to party hard." I showed him a dazzling smile and winked impishly.

To be Continued..........