Hello, Blanc here! Today as well, I rise as the sun rises. The sun shines brightly, and the birds are chirping happily too - at least they sound happy in my head. It's a fine day even though I'm too lazy to get off the bed. But that's fine! The energy always comes along with time.

Right beside me, one furry leg pokes my cheek. I look to the side and there is Archie, my pet spider which is as big as half my face hanging from his thread. Archie is a demonic spider which I found somewhere called the Bubbling Swamp. It was hatching right beside a dead adult spider - maybe his mother. He has been following me since then. I'm not the one who killed his mother, in case you wonder.

"Morning, Archie!"

Archie responded by poking my cheek again. I hope he won't accidentally poison me again. He has the tendency to do it. Maybe, Archie is just clumsy. I hope so, otherwise the only explanation I have left is that he loves poisoning me on purpose. That is an undesirable explanation. Plain creepy.

"Blanc, are you up?"

A head of curly black hair peers into my room. Long bangs cover the owner's eyes, but if you peek under, you'll see a pair of beautiful green eyes and a delicate face. Noir walks in, carrying a big wooden tub of laundry. She puts it down by my bed, raising her arm and practically throwing me out of my room.

"Cleaning. Get out. Breakfast is on the table."

Her voice sounded stoically from inside the room. I obediently walk to our little table where a piece of bread, a bowl of soup, and a glass of milk are. The grin just comes to my face when I see how carefully things are set up. A small ceramic vase is gleaming from the sunlight, filled with freshly picked little periwinkles; a freshly laundered brown tablecloth sits under all the set up.

Home sweet home.

Archie comes to rest on my shoulder as I have the last of my milk. He must have been bored watching Noir cleaning the room.

"It's too bad you're a spider, Archie. I want to try fighting over food with someone."

"If you lived in the slums, people would kill you for saying that," Noir remarked sarcastically from behind me.

I pout. "It's a joke..."

"I told you to keep some distance from the spider," she paused to look over Archie, "he might poison you again."

I wave away her concern. "Aww... those are accidents."

She seems to snicker before heading out of the house. "We might need to leave now."

And that reminds me of something big. I stand up, accidentally slamming the table. "You're right! Today's the end of the month!"

"I'll go wake up the turtle. You clean up this place."

I nod in a hurry. Then, everything is a flurry of soap bubbles and water as I wash and dry the dishes in haste. When I have stored and locked away all our wares, the whole house starts moving. I cheer and clap, "Alright! Let's run away today as well, Miss Turtle!"

Noir comes back into the house shortly. She locks the door and sits on the chair quietly. Meanwhile, I run to one of our windows, looking out the passing scenery as our whole house, built on top one Miss Turtle, sways along its movement. Yes! We live in a little house built on a giant centuries-old turtle. How cool is that! And do you know Miss Turtle can actually moves fast once in awhile?

Most days we move slowly through villages and towns. Well, we use the civilization free road. But once in awhile, when needed, Miss Turtle can be really fast! She's the best for running away! And that happens every month. "Noir, Noir! This time, I'm sure it will be another month free of pest! A pest called the royalty."

I make a shooing motion towards the open window. Noir just hums, drinking a cup of tea.

"When we stop, go bring in the laundry. I'm sure it'll dry by then."

I agree happily, in good mood. No pest this month too! Another successful escape!

"You shouldn't celebrate so early though. You'll end up jinxing yourself," I heard her mutter.

"That won't happen! Have faith in my good luck!"

"Which is about as much as a drop of water," she bit back flatly.

"That's not true!" I retorted, when she suddenly points at me.

"What?"

"... Look behind you, you fool..."

My face pales.

"You invited him yourself, opening the window like that," she said, finishing her cup of tea and putting it down gently.

I hear the creak of wood as something heavy step on it. The window that has been rattling from the wind becomes eerily quiet as a smooth voice replaces every sound in my ears. "Hello, Blanc."

"Lady Noir," it continued. Two sets of footsteps landed on the floor.

I faintly hear Noir's greeting. She moves her hand slightly and three more cups of tea appear out of thin air. She cast a balancing magic spell before curtsying and leaving. Archie trails behind her, seemingly prancing away - full of joy at my despair.

"Blanc, aren't you going to greet me? As your - "

"Good day to you, Your Royal Highness Prince Alfred," I cut him off, turning around to face the person fully with a tight smile on my face.

"Good day to you as well, Prince Theodore." I finish it with a respectful curtsy.

"Long time no see, Lady Blanc," Theodore bows back. "If you don't mind, I'll excuse myself now."

Alfred readily lets him. "I'll call you when we're ready to go back, Theo."

"So, shall we have a lovely talk about your escapades so far?" Theodore's smile of doom directed at me, I flinch. I look at the table, only now noticing the extra two chairs there.

Noir's right. I have good luck as much as a drop of water. I shouldn't have counted on it.

Noir loves her alone time. As Blanc and her friends tend to go rowdy, she really appreciates quietness whenever it comes. Therefore, when the two princes come for their monthly visit - she almost giggles here, an extra thought of what ladies have to go through every month passes her mind - she always retreats. Whether to her room or to their yard doesn't matter as long as she can go about her business.

And her business is better carried alone considering it's poison.

Having left Blanc and her guests, Noir has locked herself up in her garden. She only has one purpose in mind: to study a new plant. A bunch of it was growing curiously around a dragon's corpse and contaminating its surrounding with poison. They assisted the affected villages and solved the heart of the problem, of course. But Noir managed to snuck a few of them back to their home, soil and all and potted them carefully.

And now, she has one more to add to her collection. This is why even Blanc doesn't carelessly visits her room.

"Lady Noir," a familiar voice called her from the other side of the door, followed by several knocks.

Well, except for these two boys. Just because they follow a long-time tradition of consuming poisons since young, Theodore seems to believe he'll be fine in her space and often hovers around during their visit. She worries that accidental poisoning towards a member of the royal family might happen one day. Hopefully it never will. 'How troublesome that would be,' she thought.

"Archie," she called. The spider perks up from one leafy plant at her call. "Archie, help me open the door."

The little beast swings towards the door and unlatches the lock easily. Theodore stands there with his unreadable face. "May I come in?" he asked.

"Then you may excuse yourself out now if you wish," she replied mindlessly, one hand reaching out to a pair of goggles and some masks "This one might spray poison so don't get too close."

"I understand." He obediently walks to a corner. There are some books stacked on a wooden desk, pages worn and yellowed. Archie comes swinging with a mask on one of its furry leg. Theodore accepts it with a small thank you. Quietly, he wears the mask then spends his time just standing there reading by himself.

"Why did you miss your visit last month?" Noir asked after some time.

"Oh, we didn't," he replied. "Some things came up but with how obse- concerned," he coughed a little here, "... with how concerned brother is over Lady Blanc, there's no way he'll ever miss a chance to see her."

"So?"

"He disappeared in the middle of a meeting for 5 minutes and came back... energised."

Noir gives a small laugh. "What a crown prince."

"I visited as well in the evening..." he mumbled.

"You did?" she asked with some surprise.

"But you guys weren't home."

"Ah, we were probably in town for dinner."

"I see," he said. The conversation gets cut off there, ending in a seemingly cold tone for both parties who are simply bad at carrying conversations. Feeling awkward, Noir decides to finish her work later. She clears away her desk, storing the poison she has extracted and locking the tubes away with magic. Once done, she takes off her equipment and looks at Theodore who is doing the same.

"Let's... have some more tea?" she asked hesitantly.

"I'd like to."

They sit down at her bedroom, the only space left apart from her garden.

"Sorry, it's a small house after all."

"Don't worry about it."

A minute of awkward silence passes over as they worry over what to say.

"Ah," Noir started in an epiphany. "You should send a letter if you can't visit next time."

"Should I?" he replied before realizing it didn't sound right. "No, I mean. Wouldn't it trouble you? But well, it's just a letter. Then I'll do it next time if something comes up again."

Noir nods. "Since you're, in a way, also my benefactor, it'd be good to get some news from you, especially since you're a prince... I mean, you know, the politics and all. Just... the dangers. You might die suddenly and we won't know anything at all. That's bad... Wait! I'm not saying you would die in the future! Well, you would but in the far future! But.. anyway, a letter would be good! Just in case!"

When she has finished talking, another silence happens to which Noir could only sigh hopelessly. "I'm sorry. Since I started travelling - even though it has only been five months, the only person I've been regularly talking to is Miss Blanc whom... you know, doesn't mind my sarcastic and morbid speech. The others are just a spider and a turtle."

And so her nonexistent social skills has been skydiving during this period, and will probably continue to do so.

Theodore chuckles in amusement. "You don't have to worry. I much prefer such manner of speaking."

"You do? We're not even close though," she asked, baffled.

"Yes, I do. It sounds more honest to me. So truly, you may speak as you wish with me," he reassured.

"If you say so..."

"You should also, if you don't mind, comb back your bangs. Or cut them?" he suggested.

"No," she replied curtly, a direct rejection to his idea. "It's easier this way. I don't have to deal with unwanted attention."

Theodore shrugs. "Well, it's just an idea."

They enjoy their tea and the silent company, the atmosphere much lighter hereafter. Well, it is mostly quiet except for the occasional screams and bangs from outside.

"I wonder what the old couples are doing outside," Noir spoke suddenly.

"Old?"

"Aren't they? A wife who runs away from house and a husband who humors his wife, ...to an extent."

He laughs. "I'm sure my brother will grant you a favor if he hears that. He's strange."

"That might be useful. The favor of a crown prince."

It is common knowledge that members of a royal families and nobles usually have more than one spouse. Actually, even the commoners - man or women - can have however many spouses they want as long as they have the power to do so. Or as long as they can stand the judgement of people. This is also the case for the Empire of Roland.

Alfred Maximilian Roland is the eldest son of the current emperor and late empress, as well as the heir apparent. Meanwhile, Theodore Dwight Roland is the third son to the emperor and queen who has - to Her Highness' displeasure - relinquished all rights to the throne.

The two brothers are the closest amongst the royal siblings. It is a miracle that any of the emperor's children could grow so close to each other like they do. Politics tend to make even blood siblings enemies of each other. Well, this right now is none of his concern. The politics may bring troubles in the future, but if Alfred could be honest, his brothers and sisters could shove it for all he cares.

The crown is heavy, dear.

In Alfred's mind right now, the most important thing is the sulking Lady Blanc. The young prince sits quietly, listening to the soft voice of the lady opposite to him. Despite the fact that she is displeased with his visit, he finds it adorable that her displeasure stems more from her awkwardness toward him, more than anything else. Well, they have a remarkable but short history together - a story for another time.

"Anyway, the most recent one is a dragon happened," she said. Alfred perks up at the mention of a dragon. It's a mythical creature impossible to be sighted. With how detestable they find humans to be, the last sighting of a dragon occured centuries ago.

"He's dead, sadly ," Blanc said. She could feel the chill climbing up her spine whenever she recalls the experience. Alfred feels his excitement dissipates at the suddenly solemn atmosphere. "Noir is currently studying the plants that grow around there. We told people that a new species of poisonous plants caused the miasma plaguing the village, but it's actually an effect of multitude curses," the lady continued.

Alfred stiffens. "The dragon's death is unnatural?"

"He's still young, and you know the legend, don't you? If a dragon's life ends as destined, it brings blessings. But this one..." she trailed off.

Alfred puts a hand under his chin in a thinking gesture. "If they die untimely, their deaths brings forth curses. And that's exactly what happened right?" Blanc nods absent-mindedly. "We procured the purest flame we could and burnt the affected area, then cremate the dragon."

"Then did you happen upon the dragon's core?"

Blanc nods. This earns Alfred's concern. "Are you fine?"

"No, I'm sorry," he took back his words. Then, as if berating himself harshly, he continues "That's a particularly foolish question to ask."

"Yes," the lady agreed. "Unusually stupid of you."

"How have you been recovering?" At his question, Blanc shrugs. "I have been recovering well. But you ruined it, Your Highness. Thank you for your concern, however." She adds a flat laugh at the end of her sentence.

Alfred frowns in concern, bypassing her sarcasm. "Do I need to invite the imperial healers?"

Blanc sticks out her tongue at the mention of the imperial healers. "Phonies, the lot of them. I do better. Not to mention, I was once under the high priestess."

"If you said so," the young prince sighed.

Then, a heavy silence envelopes them. Blanc fidgets on her seat while Alfred just watches her. As usual, he has a separate storage of patience meant for her. Finally, Blanc takes a few gulps of air. "It was horrible, Alfred. I feel nauseous everytime I think about it, seriously."

"The dragon -" she brought herself to continue.

"It's fine," Alfred cut in. "Don't talk about it if you're not ready. You're pushing yourself too much," he said. The young prince stands up and walks to her side. His hand gently pats her back. "I could look into this myself."

Blanc shivers. "No. The more information you have, the better. I just couldn't fathom how someone could kill a dragon that way. It's impossible that they don't know of the consequences. It could be intentional and this brings much unease, so just..." she heaves a sigh. "Give me a few minutes. I'll be fine to talk again."

"Are you sure?"

Blanc nods determinedly. Her hands are unconsciously clutching at the sides of her chair, as if to ground and separate herself from the horrible memory pertaining to the dragon. Alfred lets her be, just standing still beside her and occasionally patting her back. When Blanc has gathered herself, she speaks again

"The core 'exploded' in a sense. When we forcefully purified the area, the dragon's core erupted with all these emotions. And perhaps since I was the closest, it pulls me into this weird space."

Alfred has once read about a book detailing a priest's experience with the corpse of an old dragon. In it, is a similar event. To sum it up, when the priest was purifying the affected area, he finds foreign emotions forcefully insert themselves into his brain. Later, he wakes up to find that he has fainted. Having been rescued by a villager, the priest has actually been unconscious for 2 whole days.

Then, when he returns, he finds the dragon's core has crumbled into a pile of ash.

"What sort of space?"

"... A dark space filled with black waves. Then there were so many emotions, just raging and drowning me. I even felt like I would actually die from it," Blanc uttered in a hushed voice.

Alfred flinches at her words.

"Don't get involved with a dragon ever again," he said through gritted teeth.

"That's unreasonable in many ways, Alfred," Blanc scoffed. "And let me say it again, you don't get to point where my life goes. We're only good acquaintances at best, Your Highness."

Alfred smiled benignly. Seeing this, Blanc immediately covers her ears. "No! Don't say the words! Please, please don't!"

The young prince easily pulls away her hand despite her struggle. Then chuckling, and with amusement in his eyes, he said, "We're not merely acquaintances, Lady Blanc. We're engaged. As I'm your fiance, you are my fiancee."

She screams. "That's not formalized yet! And never will!"

"Are you saying that the words of a priestess-in-training can never be trusted? It's an engagement that took place in the church, with the high priestess and Theodore as witnesses, and you - formerly an apprentice priestess - the directly involved party," he explained teasingly.

"I didn't know you are a prince!" she refuted, trying to stomp on one of his feet while struggling to escape his grasp of her arms. "I'm engaged to the Alfred who is a commoner!"

"Are you saying your love for me couldn't surpass status, Dear?" he asked with a theatrically sad expression.

Blanc feels goosebumps rising all over skin. "Don't call me that! It's - eww - disgusting! I'm not your 'Dear'! Alfred, you liar!"

"Yes, yes, but I have apologized very sincerely, with all my heart and -"

She finally stomps on his foot. "Stop that!"

Keeling over in pain, Alfred whines as he holds his boot-clad foot. "Ouch, dear. That hurts!"

"Serves you right!" and she proceeds to hurl her teacup at him.

Alfred almost yelps, moving away in a hurry to avoid her wrath. "Dear - no, I mean Lady Blanc, I'm sorry. I won't tease you again!"

After another round of screaming and hurling one more teacup, Blanc finally settles down. Huffing and puffing from anger and embarrassment, she sits down on the floor with flushed face. Alfred crouches down in front of her, rather close despite the danger earlier.

Carefully, he tucks in a strand of silver hair behind her ear.

"Stop smiling like that!" she groans.

"I am always under the impression that you find my smile endearing though."He chuckles. 'She once said she loved seeing my smile,' he thought fondly.

"That's in the past!"

"Yes, yes. I won't smile like that in front of you," he went along with her in words only; the boy is still smiling. How is he to believe in her words when she blushes rather heavily whenever he smiles like this? He still makes her heart skip a beat. Alfred feels relieved at the thought. 'I still have a chance to make her accept me again.'

Noir and Theodore join the scene not long later. Hearing no more ruckus outside, they deem it safe to come out. "Have you settled down?" Noir asked them. Theodore goes to stand behind his brother obediently. "We have," replied Alfred. "We're talking about the dragon prior to this. I'd like to listen to your point of view as well, Lady Noir."

Noir pulls Blanc up from the floor. Theodore casts a fixing magic to the two broken teacups and send them back on the table. "Take a seat, again, your Highnesses," Noir said, gesturing to the four chairs around their dining table.

Alfred casts one more glance at the blushing Blanc who hides behind her friend. When Blanc notices his gaze, she glares at him and harrumphs. Alfred feels the corner of his lips unconsciously tucked up again into a smile. His brother's patting his shoulder brings him back to the present situation. Alfred begrudgingly returns to deal with yet another problem.

Indeed, the crown is heavy. He hasn't even been made the Emperor, but the young prince is already thinking of early retirement. Fleetingly, he gazes at Theodore, subtly frowning. Why did the only sibling whose ability he recognizes have to relinquish his right to the throne? It's such a pity he can't work to turn Theodore into the crown prince in his stead.