The Danger

The Barsalon Kingdom had three princes. The king hadn't decided who was the crown prince yet. In Barsalon tradition, if a king had more than one prince, he needed to wait until all the princes got twenty years old and then the ritual would decide who was the true king. The youngest prince was now nineteen years old. Next year, the ritual would be held to choose the crown prince.

How about the princess? A princess had no chance to take the challenge. Even the princesses were given a chance to attend the ritual, just like the princes, they will never get chosen by the decision maker. There was no way a woman could rule the Barsalon Kingdom.

Anna closed 'The Barsalon Daily Report' newspaper she read in the small public library and inhaled lightly. She found that the task was so difficult. Who was the prince behind her family's murder? She had no clue at all. She needed to do further investigation.

"God, what do I have to do right now?" she murmured, laying her back against the wall.

She stared blankly at the ceiling. It was all white. Just like her mind. She had no idea what she needed to do from now on.

Before long, she heard footsteps coming closer in her direction, behind the wooden bookshelf on her right side. The library was so empty that she could hear anything due to her sharp ears.

"I already tried to register for the maid selection at the prince's palace. But, you know that it was no use. No commoner will be allowed to be the candidate since this time they need a nanny for Princess Vanessa," a woman whispered in a very low voice as if she was talking about a secret important thing that nobody should know.

"Oh, that's bad," a man's voice replied. "But we need to get close to the princess so we had a chance to bring her out of the palace."

"True," the woman agreed. "Why don't we ask a low-rank noblewoman to do that and offer her some money? Maybe a hundred Barsalon gold? It sounds like a huge amount, right?"

"Considering the risk, I think no noblewoman dares to do that," the man opposed his partner's idea. "Who would dare wronged Prince Aleric and still want a chance to live comfortably in Barsalon? You need more to tempt a Barsalonian to commit treason."

"Then, do we have another choice? A hundred Barsalon gold is all we can afford."

"Ah, I have a good idea!" said the man, almost whining. Almost.

After that, Anna could no longer hear the secret and dangerous conversation. However, it was clear that a dangerous plan after Princess Vanessa would be executed in no time.

"We have two more days. Let's find one!" said the man again.

Anna heard their footsteps going away from their original spot. She gulped, knowing a danger came closer to the palace.

***

Two days later ….

Anna walked around the city. She was lost in thought. Should she warn the palace about the danger? What if they rejected her report and accused her as a liar? I would be considered treason and she would go to jail as a punishment. She was nobody, now. Her parents' name had nothing to do with her since she was Anna Delamere—not Eleanor Rutherford anymore.

But, she would feel guilty for life if something bad happened to the innocent little princess. She knew it.

Princess Vanessa was the only daughter of Prince Aleric—the youngest prince of Barsalon Kingdom. Despite his young age, the prince was already married to four ladies. From the marriages, he had a four years old princess. The rumor said that if one of the ladies could conceive a prince, she would become the queen if the prince happened to be the selected king.

But, Prince Aleric was known as an iron-fisted and evil ruler. No one wanted to deal with him at all. He was very ambitious and would do anything to get closer to the throne. His marriages at such a young age were also solid proof that he wanted to beat the other princes in getting a son. If he had a son, it would increase the possibility of him being chosen as a king. His greed was so blatant that an innocent person could see it. Since he was the son of the king's mistress, he had to work harder to gain more power and win the top.

Did Barsalonian ever want him to rule the kingdom?

Some of them who believed that a ruler should be the strongest one, preferred Prince Aleric since he was indeed portrayed as strong yet ruthless and cold. But, the other citizens who loved a kind ruler, of course, would choose Prince Kayden—the eldest prince. He was very kind and charismatic. He came with his good looks as a plus.

How about the second prince, Prince Kayden's younger brother? Although both of them had the same mother, Prince Jayden didn't have the greed for the position at all, unlike his brother. He preferred building his military career and led the army on the Warfield. He also had no intention to build a family since he was always occupied with his workload. In short, he didn't care about the throne—at all.

It was natural if Prince Jayden wanted to support his brother, Kayden, and help him to win the throne. But, he never showed his support openly. He preferred to stay away from the cold war between his brothers. However, as a prince—as well as the son of the queen—he still had an obligation to attend the ritual. He couldn't help, he had no choice.

Before Anna knew it, she was already standing in front of the palace. She gulped, knowing that her energy drained to the lowest level, she almost could no longer walk anymore. She stared blankly at the guards in front of her.

One of the guards then asked, "What do you want, miss?"