Chapter 8: Why was I so extra?!
So apparently, Spiritual energy reads as holy power in this world which means that what I know to be holy power is probably closer to Devine power... Since Spiritual energy is seen as holy power and I have been circulating Spiritual energy through my body as well as compressing it to make Spirit stones... They now think I have immense holy power and believe I'm the child of some Prophecy that I knew nothing about... In short, I'm totally screwed. "There must be some misunderstanding... I don't even know of this Prophecy that you're talking about and I've never used holy power (in this life) before... I just got lucky and the heavens gave me a second chance..."
The priest turned back to me with a smile and nodded. 'I understand that this all must be quite confusing for you... Perhaps it would be easier to understand if I tell you what the Prophecy states..." She looked at the Empress, as if to ask for permission. The Empress sighed deeply before waving for the priest to go ahead with her explanation. She then turned back to me. "The Prophecy is quite old but has been passed down through the temple for many generations... The Prophecy states, A Phoenix will fall to ashes, then rise again through the holy flames of God. The Phoenix will possess both the wrath and benevolence of heaven and their rule will be absolute... I am certain that your highness must be the Phoenix from the Prophecy! You fell fatally ill, then you were brought back from the brink of death by the Devine power of God! THEN, when you awoke, you possessed immense holy power! Power, the likes of which I have never seen!"
That sounds suuuuuuper inconvenient... How am I going to get myself out of this?! If I had known about the Prophecy, I wouldn't have woken up so dramatically! And now I find out that Spiritual power is the same as holy power?! Does that mean there are no cultivators here? Is that why there's so much Spiritual energy here?! Because there is no one here to use it?! I can't believe this crap! This is all because I have a flare for the dramatic... I look at the priest again and sigh. "So what does this mean? If, by chance, I really am the person in that Prophecy... What am I supposed to do?" When I asked if I was going to the temple, she said this was more important than that. That one comment realy has me worried. The priest gathered herself a bit then continued. "It is the temple's belief that, once the Phoenix from the Prophecy arrives, that person will unite the continent and bring about a new Era of peace and unity." I really don't like anything that comes out of this lady's mouth... "Would it be possible to hold off on making the announcement for a bit? At least untilit is confirmed..." (I realy don't want to deal with all that drama...) The priest's face becomes stern. "I have already confirmed it with my own hands. As High priest, it is my responsibility to announce the fulfillment of the Prophecy as soon as I return to the central temple." Yeah, I was afraid of that...
The priest explained everything she knew about the Prophecy, then left. She was in quite a hurry to get back to the temple... Now I sat in silence, in the reception room, with mother... Her expression is dark and incredibly conflicted. I can totally relate. I'm not happy about this either. Once this becomes public knowledge, rats will start swarming the palace. They will do everything in their power to gain my favor because, according to the Prophecy, I am the Empress chosen by God... Whatever strained relationship I had with my sisters is about to get ten times worse. Especially with the first and second princesses. They were both candidates to become Empress but with this Prophecy crap, I will become the top pick for the position. Anyone who isn't trying to kill me, will be trying to cozy up to me. Life is about to get very complicated...
After a long silence, the Empress looks up and clears her throat. "Ahem... Kaimera... I understand this is a lot to take in. It's a lot for me as well... I'm sure you realize what this means... Once this information becomes public knowledge, You will be seen as first in line for the throne. The people will expect you to be named crown princess..." I sigh and look back down, resting my elbows on my knees and the Empress continues taking. "Many noble families and high ranking officials will likely come to you with talks of marriage... As you don't have a first or second consort, many families will compete to put their son's in those positions... You must be discerning about who you choose and from which family." I didn't even think of that! I wasn't too worried about leaving because I don't even have so much as a concubine but now, I'll probably have to take in several... This is giving off major Main Character energy and I don't like it! I wanna be the bad guy! Good guys and main characters always have a tougher time than anyone else!
The Empress had a lot to say... She explained that I would need to take on concubines and consorts, Start forming my own personal guard, Establish connections to gain power, start taking kingship lessons, hire more staff and purchase new slaves (cuz that's a thing here...) and buy new jewelry and cloths, more fitting of a crown princess. This is exactly why I didn't want anything to do with power and responsibility. It's super annoying and I will have no time to do anything fun... I just HAD to be dramatic... I couldn't just wake up normally. Uhg, I did this to myself...
After getting my to-do list from the Empress, I head back out into the hallway where Lynn was waiting for me. It must be obvious how drained I am because he looks concerned. "Your highness? Are you Allright? What happened in there? The priest left a while ago... I started getting worried when you didn't come out." I start walking to the front door and wave for Lynn to follow me. "I'll explain on the way back. There are too many ears here." Lynn nodded and followed behind me and I recounted the entire visit with the Empress and the High Priest as we walked back to my Palace. He had a wide array of emotions throughout the entire explanation. Finally, once I was done, the emotions that remained were pride and anxiety. I guess that's pretty fitting for a princesse's personal attendant. "So you will become the crown princess.... Thats incredible! I remember hearing about the Prophecy when I was little. It was a common story that most young children loved. I never though I would live to see it fulfilled, let alone be serving the Phoenix from the Prophecy!" Well, I'm glad he's excited... That makes one of us...
We finally arrived back at my Palace and I am spent. The day is only half over, I'm late for lunch and I have been walking for hours! I NEED to invest in a carrage and a couple of decent horses... I guess the one up side to all this is that I no longer need to hide my spiritual energy or my cultivation. That will make things a little easier for me. It still sucks that I have to become Empress though. I suppose I could always pass the job off on someone else later. If people see me as some all powerful figure, no one would question me if I put someone else that I deem worthy in charge...
As we get closer to the central building (My Palace) I can see there are some people standing in front of my door. It looks like a tall woman in gold armor as well as a few of the Phoenix guard. I look over at Lynn as we walk closer. He seems to be quite nervous. "Hay, do you know who they are?" He looked back at me, confused but then remembered that I don't remember anyone here. "The woman in gold is her highness, The second princess... and the woman to her right is the guard that you sent away... I don't realy know the other two." Ah, that's one of my sisters. She is the daughter of the current Emperor and leader of the Phoenix guard. From what I understand, she is hot tempered, impulsive and very good with a sword. I've heard people say that she took after mother the most. I can see what they mean too. It's not just her excellent swordsmanship. She is very tall, toned and has black hair and red eyes, just like the Empress.
As Lynn and I approach my house, my sister turned to face me with a clear look of irritation on her face. "Sister Min? What brings you here on such short notice?" (Translation: What do you want?!) Princess Min looked me up and down then strode up to me. She's a lot taller than she looks from a distance! Looking up at her, she must be a good foot taller than me! Am I just short, for a woman in this world? "Don't play dumb! You know exactly why I'm here! Who gave you permission to order my guards around?!" Oh? I guess that guard really DID run off and tell on me. "Sister Min, I'm not sure what you mean." I was quick to plaster a sweet, innocent smile on my face. If she knew about the conversation I just had with mother and the high priest, I'm sure she wouldn't be acting this way. I don't really care though... Now that I know I can't avoid being Empress, there's no point in holding back.