[Vol. 7] Chapter 24: The Princess and the Queen
By the time Nitila Mingjiao came to her senses, she realized that she was no longer in her clean and tidy bedroom. Instead, she had appeared in an environment that was completely opposite, so drastically different that it could only be described as unsettling.
She found herself deep within the ruins of an ancient structure, surrounded by crumbling walls worn down by the sea. Under the dim, yellowish sky, the saltwater-eroded stone looked like it would collapse at the slightest touch.
The ground beneath her feet was cracked and dry, resembling a parched riverbed. Yet, despite this eerie sight, the faint scent of salt and the ocean carried through the air, proving that she was still somewhere above the sea.
This was definitely an island.
But… it wasn’t part of the Eastern Sea Pearl’s archipelago. At the very least, she had never seen such strange, almost eerie ruins near her homeland.
“…What is going on here?”
A sharp pain pulsed through her head in waves, similar to the time she had been captured by poachers. Back then, they had injected her with heavy sedatives to keep her and the other magical beings from resisting, leaving her unconscious for days.
But this time… Nitila was certain it wasn’t that simple.
The biggest proof? She was alone.
The silence around her was unnerving, almost oppressively quiet.
Her head still throbbed, but she could clearly recall that just before this, she had been in her bedroom within the Eastern Sea’s royal palace. The palace was heavily guarded, filled with powerful warriors. There was no way something could have easily snuck in and taken her away.
Then… what exactly happened?
For some reason, her memories of that moment were blurry.
She could vaguely recall that after Violet left, she had picked up a random book from her storage items to pass the time while waiting for her return. And then… somehow, she lost consciousness.
And by the time she came to. She was already here.
Wait, a book?!
Nitila’s brows twitched, and her groggy mind suddenly snapped awake as if she had been splashed with cold water!
Earlier that day, while investigating her father’s disappearance, Miss Violet had used some special magic to observe that her father had been holding an unknown book before he vanished.
But… that couldn’t be right. The book belonged to her father, and it had disappeared with him. How could it possibly end up in her hands now?
Come to think of it, the book she had picked up randomly to pass the time, what was it about?
“Uh...”
She tried to remember the content, but suddenly, a sharp pain surged through her head, almost as if it was going to tear something inside her apart. The agony was so intense that she nearly collapsed to her knees, letting out a muffled groan.
No, I can’t remember.
The contents, the name, the appearance, and even how she had gotten the book. Every time she tried to think about it, waves of unbearable pain washed over her.
This is so strange… What’s going on?
After kneeling on the ground and breathing heavily for a while, the tearing pain in her mind finally began to fade. Nitila supported herself against a nearby stone and slowly stood up. She looked around once more.
Since it was pointless to force herself to remember, she decided to focus on understanding where she was and figure out a way to get back to the Eastern Sea Pearl.
As the most talented among her siblings, and having once been kidnapped by poachers and suffered greatly, Nitila was surprisingly composed for her age. She wasn’t about to be helpless just because she had ended up on a deserted island.
Her sudden disappearance from the royal palace was bound to cause problems. Based on how things had developed so far, Miss Violet and her companions might be in a difficult situation, and in the worst case, there was even the possibility of a military conflict with the Mingjiao Tribe.
Nitila had personally felt Miss Violet’s true strength. She knew very well that no one, not herself nor her people, would want to see such a situation unfold.
"I need to figure something out... Hm?"
Just as the thought crossed her mind, something caught Nitila's eye not far from where she was lying. It was a thickly bound object, and as she looked at it more closely, her pupils instantly contracted.
"This... this is...!"
…………………………………
"Ahem, anyway, that's the situation. Believe it or not, we truly have no knowledge of the reason or events surrounding the princess's disappearance. Our relationship with her is purely one of cooperation, and I believe Queen Anies is already aware of that."
"Not related?"
In the audience hall, a woman dressed in a gorgeous gown adorned with ocean elements like pearls, coral, and other things Violet couldn't quite name, nodded. Her long blue and white hair, held in place by a crown, shifted slightly as she pondered, resembling a delicate dance.
She was Queen Anies, the highest leader of the Mingjiao Tribe, and the mother of the missing princess, something that was obvious just by looking at her.
She was basically the older and more mature version of Nitila, though the two of them looked more like sisters than mother and daughter. Despite her regal and elegant appearance, Queen Anies looked no older than thirty, but it was said that she was actually over a hundred years old.
In the audience hall, the queen sat at the head of the table, with Sea Priestess Silisa and another unfamiliar Mingjiao Tribe priestess standing on either side of her. The latter priestess, much like Queen Anies and Nitila, had three pairs of tear-shaped patterns by the corners of her eyes, making her likely another royal family member, possibly a princess.
The queen didn’t seem to pay much attention to the black-haired girl among the three humans below who was tasked with speaking, whose tone was far from respectful. Queen Anies rested her chin in her hand, gazing at Violet, her eyes sparkling with a soft light like the reflection of water.
"I heard that you and Nitila found a secret room in the ruins of Willipol?"
"That's correct. It was pretty well hidden, but luckily we have some experts in that area."
Violet casually pointed to the thief girl beside her, causing the latter to stiffen from the sudden attention. She quickly shook her head and raised her hands to defend herself loudly.
"Ahahaha... well, we only did it with the princess's permission! As a thief with morals, I definitely didn't cause any damage, and I certainly didn't steal anything!"
"Hey, don't make it so obvious..."
"What’s with that weird expression, boss? I don’t understand! And why suddenly turn the conversation to me?"
The girls’ private conversation didn’t cause Queen Anies to show any displeasure. Instead, she shook her head helplessly and smiled lightly.
"Heh~ Looks like that child really has good judgment. Being able to solve the secret room and then chat so casually with the Queen, you do indeed deserve to be Nitila's friends."
With a casual wave of her hand, a smart servant immediately brought chairs for the three of them.
"No need for pleasantries, please sit. The reason I rushed to find you isn’t to lecture you. You clearly aren’t fools. If you really wanted to harm my child, you wouldn’t have chosen such a sensitive time to act, nor would you be foolish enough to stick around on the island waiting to be caught after the deed was done."
"Although I'm not some great figure, I like to think I have some ability to distinguish right from wrong. I’ve gone through the materials your merchant guild provided, and they’re quite impressive... Spirit Veil Merchant Guild, right? I've heard a lot about you."
Queen Anies smiled slightly.
"If possible, I hope our two sides can deepen our cooperation, starting officially with this incident. Miss Violet, what do you think?"