The Regressed Princess - Chapter 74

Chapter 74: Love and Arrows — The Arrow Struck the Fabric and Bounced Off Cleanly; A Pair Of…

The play concluded, and the attendants removed the oil lamps one by one. The light dispersed in arcs into the various “private boxes,” drawing the gaze of the crowd and pushing the banquet into its next phase. The nobles of Belai rose from their seats, converging toward the flickering lamplight.

A gentle, mellow incense wafted through the air, mingled with the scent of the sea. In Belai, seafood was, naturally, the eternal theme of any banquet. The royal chefs had exerted their utmost effort, using various methods to strip away the heavy briny scent of the seafood, leaving only a mouth-watering freshness. Fruit juice glazes, herbal marinades… and a new, finishing touch: spices from Enlin.

Plates were arranged with meticulous care on the long tables by the windows, displaying an array of delicacies in graceful curves. Eleanor took Andra’s arm and walked toward the nearest table.

The tear stains on her face had vanished without a trace. The little Princess seemed to be in a high spirit as she inspected the tableware used by the King of Belai. True to the Belaian reputation for wanting the best and trendiest of everything, aside from a few gold and silver plates that were clearly antiques, most of the tableware had been replaced with glass and ceramic vessels.

She could almost hear the clinking of gold coins as she picked up a small piece of fish with a grateful heart. To make it easier for the nobles to eat, the fish had been deboned. Most of the sea fish had been minced and fried to a golden crisp, served with flatbread and vegetables cut into small squares or circles that could be popped into the mouth and chewed with ease.

Eleanor walked a few steps further, looked up, and suddenly smiled: cream cake. A three-layered cream cake topped with berries. She had hosted the great merchants with cream cake during the festivals in Enlin and had even intentionally leaked part of the recipe. Perhaps because cream cake was so delicious and perfectly fit the Belaian demand for fashionable luxury, the chefs of Belai had relied on manual labor to proudly present it, despite the lack of electric mixers, creating a sudden sense of shifted time.

Eleanor speared a shrimp ball; the delicate, sweet flavor exploded in her mouth.

Pop.

Beneath her mask, her small mouth pursed in happiness.

“Haha.” Andra gave a knowing smile and took a piece of thin bread to wipe the corner of her lover’s mouth. She leaned in as if to say something, but the surrounding chatter suddenly fell silent.

They turned their heads simultaneously. An oil lamp was raised by an attendant, its light shifting to illuminate a person walking toward them.

It was a quite refined youth. Were it not for the royal crown atop her head, she would have looked more like a scholar well-versed in poetry and prose. She was slightly shorter than Andra, but her slender build made her appear very tall, and her gait was swaying and graceful.

As Charlotte, the King of Belai, approached, Eleanor first noticed the strange mask on her face. If the Nolannans liked half-masks that covered the nose and eyes, the Belaians favored the concept of a “masque” rather than actual concealment.

Their masks covered at most one-fifth of the cheek and sat right in the center of the bridge of the nose, looking like those strange starfish stuck to the faces of characters in manga. Even the most beautiful face would struggle against such a mask… fortunately, Charlotte was delicate enough that she could manage to look decent even with a starfish on her nose.

Eleanor bit her tongue hard to suppress a laugh as she walked toward Charlotte.

“Noble King of Belai, thank you for your hospitality. The theater and cuisine of Belai are truly impressive.”

Charlotte nodded elegantly. She did not, as the Nolannans had feared, immediately and impetuously propose to Eleanor. She spread her arms in a virtual embrace in the air, then lowered them and said softly, “Dear Princess of Nolanna, your arrival is like the descent of the Goddess of Spring…”

She seemed to realize she had misspoken and skillfully changed the subject: “As a favored one of the Goddess of Wisdom, any suggestion from you would benefit us greatly.” After speaking, Charlotte blinked pointedly, offering a sincere compliment on the trinkets sold by the Marigold Chamber of Commerce.

The King of Belai’s reaction was very friendly, but unmerited kindness usually hides a hidden motive.

Eleanor played along, saying, “Belai’s performance arts are truly at their peak. My understanding of song and dance doesn’t reach half of theirs.” She paused, politely leaving an opening for the King of Belai to make a request.

Charlotte’s gaze shifted from Eleanor to Andra, remarking naturally, “Oh, what a handsome ‘Yang’. This must be the Royal Daughter from Hetuya? I am glad to meet you here rather than on the battlefield.” Her words carried a hint of sarcasm, but her tone was peaceful enough to sound like a joke between friends.

The three engaged in a brief exchange, and Eleanor could almost sketch a character profile of this person in her mind. Charlotte, the current King of Belai, was the elder sister of the previous King. She was close in age to her sister and had likely received no specialized heir education as a child… and she was not well-known.

Charlotte had successfully inherited the throne in the previous two lives as well, with only slight differences in timing. Even without knowing much about those timelines, Eleanor could infer from small clues that Charlotte’s ability was roughly equal to Ophilia’s simply because she lacked a strong presence. Belai’s system was more decentralized than Nolanna’s; as long as the nobles and merchants didn’t internalize their conflicts, the influence of the King herself wasn’t that great.

Perhaps due to her childhood, this King of Belai was very good at reading faces. Eleanor noticed that Charlotte was skilled at conversation and could effortlessly use her peripheral vision to gauge her and Andra’s reactions. Charlotte’s gaze initially fell on her, but after a period of continuous interaction, the King’s eyes focused on Andra: was it fear? Wariness? She couldn’t tell for sure, but there was certainly some ambition involving self-interest.

Sure enough, amidst the white noise of whispering nobles, the King of Belai nonchalantly took a sip from her wine glass and remarked to them with a sigh, “Seeing you two noble Highnesses, ah… I suddenly thought of my poor niece. She is also a lovely Princess!”

Charlotte lamented, “Little Eliza is beautiful and kind… oh, of course, not as brilliant as you, Princess. Poor little Eliza; she has been crying every day since her mother’s death.”

The King of Belai spread her hands sincerely and said, “The child thinks I am a bad person. Alas, the only thing I can do for her is find a new person for her to rely on.” When she said this, she first looked at Eleanor, but then stared at Andra with a look of deep concern.

Andra was speechless: she naturally understood the King of Belai’s meaning. This person wanted to trade her troublesome niece for profit and was asking them to help play matchmaker to marry Eliza off to Nolanna or Hetuya it seemed she favored Hetuya. Andra didn’t see this as a sign of respect; the King of Belai clearly viewed Hetuya as a “dragon’s den or tiger’s lair” and couldn’t wait to bury her niece in that pit!

Heh, she sneered inwardly. If Eleanor really agreed to introduce the little Princess to Messara, this King of Belai would surely find a way to sabotage it.

Looking at the King of Belai’s hopeful gaze, Andra echoed calmly, “It is truly a pity. She will one day understand your painstaking efforts.” She didn’t mention marriage at all, pretending not to understand.

Charlotte gave a disappointed nod and spoke more plainly. “I wonder if you two have any recommended candidates?”

Eleanor’s reaction was a beat slow. She blinked, a flash of exhaustion and daze passing through her. However, the Princess would not be rude before the King of Belai; she adjusted her state after only a momentary lapse and said tactfully, “My sisters’ marriages are all decided by my Mother. I truly have no say in the matter.”

The King of Belai smiled. After being rejected repeatedly, her expression faltered slightly. However, her composure held; she nodded gently and said, “A marriage of such importance was indeed my presumption. Today is but a gathering of partners; you two must enjoy yourselves to the fullest let the affairs of state be left for tomorrow.”

Having noticed Eleanor’s apparent fatigue, she said considerately, “The Princess seems to enjoy the theater? I will have them move the final short play to the front.” Such an arrangement was incredibly thoughtful, serving as a clear signal that Eleanor didn’t need to attend the ball and could leave early after watching the next play.

Normally, in such a situation, Eleanor would have insisted on staying until the dance was over. But she had a slight headache today, so she accepted with a smile. The King of Belai raised her glass in a toast and returned to her dark private box, surrounded by oil lamps. The nobles who had been standing around to build the atmosphere also dispersed in an orderly fashion, shifting quietly like stage scenery.

Clack, clack-clack.

The center stage resounded with a sound like mechanical gears. Trees made of wooden planks rose layer by layer, piecing together a dense forest. A sturdy woman appeared, dressed in magnificent armor with an emblem of the God of War on her chest. The moment the play began, she leaped onto the stage, drawing a bow and firing an arrow with agile movements whoosh toward the curtain.

Thud.

The arrow struck the fabric and bounced off cleanly. A pair of lily-white hands pulled back the curtain. The actress playing the Love Goddess appeared once more, this time wearing a long gown encrusted with pearls, her arms spread wide to block the way in front of a pair of young girls.

“Enough!”

Lilia, the Love Goddess, straightened her chest and shouted, “Cease hunting this poor pair of lovers. It was not intentional!”

“What difference does intention make?”

Onoa, the God of War, sneered at one of the youths. “She killed my chosen follower; she must pay with her life!”

Eleanor rubbed her brow, trying her best to focus her wandering mind on the play. The theme of this short play was the wager between the God of War and the Love Goddess a story that didn’t involve their divine authorities, and the versions circulating in different countries were quite similar.

A pair of girls from rival families fell in love. They agreed to elope, but unfortunately, the news was leaked by their attendants. Thus, the elder sister of one of them caught up with a sword, only to be pierced through the heart by the other girl. The deceased sister was a chosen elect of the God of War, and the killing happened right outside the God of War’s temple.

The God of War, possessing the authority over vengeance, naturally would not forgive them. She possessed a divine statue and began to hunt the lovers. One of the girls was a follower of the Love Goddess; her necklace glowed in the moment of crisis, manifesting a phantom of the Love Goddess to block the fatal strike.

On stage, the Love Goddess’s skirts fluttered as she pleaded earnestly.

“It was not hatred that caused all this, but fate. They wished to run toward happiness, and they secured victory with their own strength!”

The God of War countered as she swung her sword.

“Their fate stems from hatred and vengeance; how could they ever escape my grasp? If you say they won their happiness through strength, then why block my pursuit?”

The two deities engaged in a battle of words. Their divine powers could not truly harm one another; they could only try their best to obstruct. The Love Goddess’s persistence and the God of War’s pride made their fury rise ever higher. Thus, they both threw down their weapons and clasped their hands together.

In the name of the Gods a sworn wager!

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