Chapter 1

The laughter of the happy people in the banquet hall could be heard even from the palace gates. The room was crowded with the royal family, courtiers, noble men and women who were celebrating the Kingdom's victory in the recent war.

"And we make a toast" The King said in a loud voice as he rose to his feet and lifted his goblet. Everyone in the hall did the same with happy smiles on their faces. Of course, some were feigned and others malicious, but most were genuine.

"This toast is to my eldest son, Prince Phillip" The King continued. "It was he who led the brave soldiers of Dexteria to victory in the war and now, our Kingdom has no equal in all the southern region. We have taken down the only opposition in these parts and this was possible because of Prince Phillip's bravery!"

"Hear. Hear" the people chorused as they raised their cups of wine higher in the air.

King Baldwin nodded satisfactorily at the people as he looked around proudly. He placed a hand on Prince Phillip's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. The young man always made him proud as he never failed to excellently carry out whatever assignment given to him. He has proven himself as a worthy successor of the throne.

Dexteria was a Kingdom surrounded by high mountains. To those outside the Kingdom, the mountains made it impenetrable and there was a rich forest that surrounded it. It was not the biggest kingdom in the southern region, but it has proved to be the strongest.

When King Baldwin first

became King, he began his conquest. The man was a warrior who began to conquer all the Kingdoms in the South. He managed to conquer and bring all the kingdoms under Dexteria. There had been only one kingdom left - Hagmoth.

Hagmoth was the biggest Kingdom in the south. It had always opposed and resisted every effort to be dominated by Dexteria. The King of Hagmoth had promised himself that his kingdom would not fall like the other southern kingdoms. However, Prince Phillip led the soldiers to war against Hagmoth and he conquered it for his father. Now, King Baldwin of Dexteria was the supreme King of the South.

While those present in the palace made merry and continued to celebrate the Prince's victory, a young woman was alone in the woods, mourning under the rain as she practiced with her sword.

Annalise was dressed in pants and a shirt. She had her hair tied up in a ponytail as she kept slicing through the air with her sword. This was her way of letting out her grief. She felt so lonely, her heart was broken and the heavy downpour of rain washed away her tears as they fell.

She was aware of the celebration going on the palace at that moment and it just angered her. Her father had been one of the men that had gone to fight in the war. Unfortunately, he never made it back and Annalise grieved her irreplaceable loss.

Her father used to be an ordinary fisherman in the village that was faraway from this central town. With the money he earned from catching and selling fish, he was able to provide for his small family.

Annalise remembered that day like it was yesterday. It was about a year ago when soldiers had come to knock on their door and they had presented her father with an order from the King. Her father and several other men had been enlisted in the royal army without their consent. These men were not aware of this but they couldn't refuse to obey the King.

Just like that, Anna's father had to go with the soldiers. He did send letters to them from time to time. Not long after he was made to join the army, he sent a letter informing them that he had been chosen to fight in the war.

Annalise had read the letter with her mother and she could tell that he was scared. He was no soldier. He was an ordinary man who had not trained enough. He was not ready to go to war.

Unfortunately, the man never made it back and because he was a commoner, no one bothered going to inform his family about his demise. Seeing that her husband didn't return like the other men, Anna's mother knew that he wasn't coming back. The woman took the money she had saved over the years and decided to move to the central town. She wanted to give her child a better life.

It had been almost a week since that happened but Annalise was yet to get over her father's death. The fact that she could not see her beloved father for one last time made her heart wrench.

Thoroughly soaked in the rain and having no more strength to cry, she decided to go home. She slowly walked back with her head down, dragging the sword as she went along.

As she was a stone's throw away from home, Annalise lifted her head and saw her mother standing right outside the house. She could tell that the poor woman must have been looking for her. She even had that worried look on her face.

"Annalise!" The woman cried out as soon as she laid eyes on her daughter. She stepped into the rain, not caring that she was going to get wet. She then looked her daughter over. Seeing that she was fine, she pulled her into a tight hug.

"Where did you go dressed like that?" The woman asked as she broke the hug. She looked her daughter over and that's when she spotted the sword. The woman sighed, knowing that this was about her father again. She missed her dear husband too but Anna was really not taking this well. She took the sword from her and pulled her towards the house.

"I was worried for you. Where did you go?" She asked. Annalise didn't respond as she allowed herself get dragged into the house. Her mother made her sit by the fire and she put a towel over her head.

"You will catch a cold if you continue like this" the woman complained. "Annalise?"

"I miss him, Mother" Anna confessed with a broken voice. "I really wish things turned out differently".

The mother could only embrace her child. Anna had been a sobbing mess since they arrived in this town and that was very unlike her. The woman wished she would just get over this and continue living her life like every young woman in the kingdom.

"Everything will be alright" she soothed. "I promise".