1 Cold, Cynical Princess

"The angle of your head is making me feel uncomfortable," the princess remarked in a low voice. Her stare was empty as she slowly turned her head to her right. The palace maid, who kept on bowing her head at a certain degree made the princess feel irked. She furrowed her brow and said, "I always told you that I don't like seeing things that are asymmetrical."

"Yes, you did, Princess Hena!" the palace maid hurriedly answered. She immediately corrected herself and bowed her upper body at a fifteen-degree angle. "I'm so sorry!"

The princess's stare went back to the front. The long, rectangular table was once full of laughter and happiness, was now nothing else but a blank space.

The way how every word entered her ears, the way how her mind was blocked, and how her heart was filled with sadness were all very familiar. They were all a part of the life she had already experienced.

She was going to face the same problems, the same emotions, the same pain once again.

The princess who was once kind and bubbly was now replaced. It was as if she had turned into someone else. Well, she was still the same, but her personality was gone.

Hena realized how the royalties' world revolved around their image as status as nobles. Her stare went on the plate she was eating. It was a healthy combination of toast, peanut butter jam, and small pieces of fruit.

All of a sudden, Hena didn't feel like eating. She only ate a few bites of the food served to her.

"I'm done."

"Princess, are you not going to finish those?" asked the palace maid as she straightened her back. "You have to eat a lot. Later on, we will have to send off your parents' funeral---"

Turning her head to the right, Hena glared at the palace maid. The palace maid immediately lowered her gaze to the ground.

"Are you telling me what I should do?" Hena raised her right brow. "I don't feel like finishing this meal, so who are you to force me to continue eating it?"

"But, crown princess..." the palace maid trailed off, "Prince Mil ordered us to make sure that you're eating your meals. I would be scolded if I defy his orders."

"But I am the princess, the future queen, and the ruler of this kingdom." Hena replied, "This kingdom is ruled by women. His position is just nothing but a show. Why would you be scared to defy him and defy me instead?"

The whole place became quiet.

Nobody dared to talk back to the princess. It was because everyone knew it too well. The princess may seem prickly and cold outside, but she's warm and kind to her subjects.

he prince was a proud man. Prince Mil was the son of a rich merchant of the kingdom of North. He was a man with a good background, and was well-educated. In other words, he was the type of man who would have a great future. Unfortunately, his personality was like that of a child.

All he cared was for his status and image. He was also very arrogant and cruel to his subjects. He was also very controlling and would always force the women under him to be submissive. Even if they were obedient, they wouldn't have any say in their lives.

Princess Hena exhaled. "For the sake of you, my loyal subject, Arya, I will finish this meal."

The palace maid, who was named Arya, bowed at a ninety-degree angle and said, "Your grace is irreversible, Queen Hena!"

"I told you not to call me the queen," scolded Hena in a stern voice. "I am and will never be the queen regardless of my status."

"I'm sorry, Princess Hena."

Hena stood up as she grabbed the toasted bread with peanut butter jam with her hands and bite it. She never cared about her image as a princess in front of her loyal subjects.

Her long white flowy dress was her outfit for later's funeral procession of her dead parents. She knew she had to cover herself with a white veil later on.

The king and queen's death was something they had already predicted. Nothing new, nothing less.

The palace guards stood behind Hena, not meeting her gaze. Their stares were at the ground as she took a bite of her food and chewed it silently.

She felt like doing all of these to disobey the former king and queen. They had always wanted her to act elegantly as a noble lady, and she always did.

But this time, she didn't feel like doing it at all.

"Princess Hena, you must be feeling sad and angry, but..." Arya, the princess's closest palace maid trailed off. "But.."

"Who said that I'm feeling sad and angry?" Hena turned around and asked the maid. "Why would I? The death of the queen and king was something I could do nothing of! Having those emotions is just a waste of my time and energy!"

"No, it isn't." Arya gently shook her head as a response. "Being sad and angry is a normal response. The South Kingdom had plotted for our kingdom to be overthrown!"

"That's right," replied Hena with a faint smile. "And I feel too tired to do any revenge. Anytime, later on, they might do and assassinate me as they wanted to replace the family leading the throne." She took several steps closer to Arya and held her hand. "I'm too tired to do something. I'll just let them handle it."

The whole dining hall fell silent.

Her loyal subjects already knew the aftermath of the South Kingdom's conspiracy. They would probably just replace the throne with a puppet leader and exploit the kingdom's gold and natural resources.

Tears flooded Hena's eyes as she turned herself away from her loyal subjects. She looked at her crown. The crown once symbolized a great kingdom.

She was strong and bold, but she couldn't do anything for herself, for her dead parents, and for the kingdom that was left in her hands.

Was it really because she couldn't really do something to save everyone?

Or was it because of her emotions taking her the most out of it?

Whatever it was, she knew she had to grab herself and strengthen her mental state. It was not the time for her to be moping around. She had to review her options and figure out the possibilities she could acquire with those.

Letting her emotions control her will do nothing to her and everyone. She wiped the tears escaping from her eyes as she took a deep breath. As the ruler of the kingdom, she had to stay strong and think of the future. She knew that the future of the kingdom and her family depended on her next actions.

"The fall of the North Kingdom is something inevitable," a familiar voice came out from the door of the dining hall. The palace maids and guards bowed their heads with their hands to the side as the man approached the princess. "But we can still escape the assassination of the princess later on."

The Grand Prince, her father's older brother was right.

A small hint of hope flashed through the princess's eyes. She was not alone in this battle.

This battle is fought by the kingdom of the North.