The Scarlet Phoenix and the Prince of Winter

Chapter Forty Eight

"I was not proud of how I think about the people of Aure back then," he added. "I don't even think of them as people. I thought more of them as subjects. And looking back at it now, I cringe that I think of them that way. There is a huge difference between thinking of them as people with the same needs and wants, and looking at them as just your subjects in which you can do anything and no matter how it affects them you don't care that much. Back then, I was like that, Rainha."

To be honest, I could not believe what I was hearing from the Crown Prince right now. I might have not known him well back then but I never thought that he was like that. All I know back then was that the Crown Prince was an aloof guy and that no one has really managed to be close with him.

It was widely known back then that Prince Kao was someone who would not talk to you or would not even look at you when he doesn't feel like it. He was what we used to call as 'cold' but because he was good-looking that only made girls swoon for him more, including myself.

"I went on like that, hating my life. My dream back then was to find a way out of Aure so that I can be free from the responsibilities thrown my way. Yes, the main reason that I wanted this eternal winter to stop was that it would open up Aure's borders, and then maybe I can go somewhere I don't have to be someone

that I don't want to."

So that was his dream back then. Of course, it was both selfish and childish but I don't blame him. How could I? If I was also born the way he was born, I think I would feel the same way too. More than that, probably. I think I would have disappeared forever. Being entrusted with such a huge responsibility was something that I think I could not handle.

"That yearning inside of me forced me to research about how this eternal winter started," he added. "I have no idea that it would be the start of a change for me that I would be glad for, later on. From hoping to find a way out Aure, reading the history of our kingdom made me realize how wrong it was for me to leave it. Abandoning Aure was the worst thing that I could have done, and up to this day I regret that I have ever thought that way."

"That's regrettable, alright," I agreed. "Imagined if you actually found a way out of Aure and left. I don't think the kingdom would even last up to this day. Without an heir to the throne, the people would have felt more hopeless more than ever and I tell you, that would have been a big blow to the whole kingdom."

"That is true. Me disappearing would have just made everything worse. It would not only impale the kingdom but it would also have caused political unrest. Without an heir to the throne, my father has to step down, and then it would have been chaotic. Choosing the next Royal Family would have thrown Aure into a mess of despair. And I would have never wanted that, even if I was still a young teen with attitude."

I chuckled at how he described his younger self. "You are too harsh on your younger self, Prince Kao. You might have thought and acted improperly back then, but most people make mistakes like that."

"You are very kind, Rainha," he told me and I had to move back a little because he suddenly turned around to face me. I froze when I saw his exposed chest so near to me, and that he looked too hot right now that he was half-naked. "Thank you for understanding me. But still, I feel bad that I refused to understand everything back then. A lot of people around me were trying to shed light on me on some of those matters but I just put them in my deaf ears. Let me regret those times, Rainha, as I should."

I nodded. "O-Okay."

He was still smiling at me. "The funny and ironic part of that is because I wanted to get out of the kingdom, I started reading books and that became a habit. I have no idea that upon reading those texts I would start to understand why it was important that I would remain here. The people needed someone to turn the things around."

"That's true. We need you, Prince Kao."

"And when I discovered that letter of my mother, I was shaken to the core. I cam to humbly accept that a part of me came from the people I used to hate because my mother came from them. So why would I still hate my people? They were not ont only 'my' people because I was their future king. They are 'my' people because I came from them. So it only felt natural for me to feel remorse about what I did and vow to myself that I will do everything to make living in Aure better. And if I have to find ways on how to stop this eternal winter to make things better for my people, then I will do it if it will be the last thing that I have to do."

I almost cried when he said that. I swear, I would follow him wherever he goes because he needs someone to be on his side and I think that will be my mission in life. I don't think that I got to know him like this by accident. This must have been the work of fate because who would have put me here but only the higher beings? Is there a deity of fate and serendipity? If there is someone like that then I need to thank them for bringing me to the Crown Prince.

"But this mission will not be easy," he told me and then he stood up, his body dripping wet from the warm water he was submerged in. I decided to look away because it was too much. I think if I did not look away I would not be able to sleep for weeks and I don't want that. I have to remain as healthy as possible if I want to be around him for a longer time.

He took the towel that was hung on one of the posts of the bathroom and then went on drying himself. I began fixing his things while my cheeks were still flushed so that we can go out of here as soon as he wants to. Although I did not want this moment to end because it's so hot and intimate, I have to go out to get some fresh air. The tension between the two of us is killing me.

"That man that I saw earlier back at the town square, he came here to get you. He was looking at you the whole time, Rainha."

"That does mean that they still want me? Are they still interested in abducting me?"

Prince Kao nodded and I began to feel scared for some reason. "That's my hunch. He is bold thought. He was not afraid to expose himself in public, and that worries me. I am starting to think that someone powerful is behind him, him and his men."

I have to agree with him on that. "Because it is. No commoner would pay men to hurt me for some random reason. This is the work of someone who was a lot of money."

"And probably someone who knows that your mother was a Snow Gypsy. That is the only thing that I know that could be the reason why they are so interested in you. And I am sure that they took your Aunt Milca for the same reason."

"I'm scared, Prince Kao," I told him honestly. "I don't know what to do about it. I am scared that they will come for me again and again."

"Don't worry, I will protect you," he said. "Right now, some of my trusted Royal Guards are hunting that man. I just hope that they will find him and take him into custody. I have lots of questions for that person."

"Me too," I said because if ever that that man gets caught by Prince Kao's men, I would ask him where is my Aunt Milca right now."

"Let us just wait," he told me. "I know that my men will catch him."

And just as what he said, three hours later while the Crown Prince was mingling with the townspeople, one of the Royal Guards came in wounded. He told the others that he needed help because he just caught the suspicious man.

"I left him in an empty well," he told Prince Kao who immediately stood up while everyone was watching the two of them, including me. "I tied him there so that I can come back here. You have to see him, Your Highness. He says that he wants to talk to you."