A Mole Inside The Pot

[Author's POV]

The sound of footsteps approached the palace corridor when a girl inside her moss dress and flat shoes of similar colour stepped up her pace to go back to the room after embarrassing herself in front of a man that she loathed so much. Portia walked while covering her mouth using the back side of her palm. She felt so ashamed until the point where she wanted to dig a hole somewhere hidden and hide in there forever.

"It's unfair to put a calm face like that when I flushed like a fool." Portia stomped to the floor and puffed her cheeks. She did not understand the reason for that man's sudden change in behaviour; she remembered Kazech as a stiff asshole that was so strict with the law.

Portia turned to the cross-section and entered the southeast palace building—the guests' palace, which adjoins the prince's palace that stood across the open wide grass area.

She then remembered about Nathaniel and his childish acts.

"Ugh, both of them surely mastering art about how to piss someone off," hissed Portia while kicking one of the huge pots beside her.

"WAAAAA!"

"WAAAAA!"

Portia flew aback with a startled face when a loud scream came from the pot.

She did not know that a pot could scream like that!

But then she blinked and realized that a pot could not scream unless someone hid in there. Wasting no time, Portia marched and looked inside the pot.

"What the—Your Highness, what are you doing there?"

She found Nathaniel there, crawling like a mole with puffy eyes and a sulky face. Nath looks dumbfounded.

"You cried?" asked Portia in a blunt tone.

"No! I didn't!" He jumped up and shouted at Portia.

'Why her out of all persons? Why? Why? Why? Why?'

Not only did Portia find him hiding inside the pot, she also saw him cry. There was a loud crack sound inside Nath's mind. Ah, his pride was shattered into pieces now. He felt like the trashiest trash out of all the trash in this trash world.

The pot was tottering when Nath tried to get out from there. His legs are too short and make him stuck in the middle.

Looking at how hard Nathaniel struggled to get out of the pot, Portia felt the urge to approach him. "Ugh, need a hand?"

"Don't come near me!" yelled Nath with glaring eyes.

She then stopped and looked at him with an exhausted expression.

Frankly speaking, she could not even guess what was inside that bratty prince's mind. From all the places in this palace, why must he choose to hide inside a pot? Did he try to play a role as a lemon tree after nagging and throwing a tantrum at his own mother?

On the other hand, Nathaniel did not expect to meet her … from all the people.

He was pissed because he had always getting compared with Kazech since last week's incident, but now he met with the main culprit who made him through all this shame instead. Nath's face reddened from anger, and he clenched his hand. 'If it's not her … I'll not receive all this unfair treatment. If only she didn't come and save me, I'd not be seen as a useless prince who is caught and can't do anything!'

"Stop acting innocent, can you? Are you enjoying playing as a hero so much? Why are you always standing in my way? You're pissing me off!"

"Huh?" Portia raised one of her eyebrows to ensure she was not mishearing that scoundrel's words right now.

'Did he truly lost his mind?'

Portia was asking nicely to help him get out of there, yet she received this kind of treatment. His brazen act made the back of Portia's head throb in pain. Aaah, she wanted to punch him hard on the face, put him back inside the pot, close it with dirt, and leave him there.

But, she did not want to attempt murder and became the enemy of the Imperial Family because burying a prince alive due to temporary anger. She also did not want to pick another fight after being tired from today's incidents. She heaved a sigh and massaged her temples. "Huft … your mother and brother are looking for you now. Just go back to your room and stop acting childish."

"You too?" Nath raised his voice, then roared, "You're also the same as them! Always talking about brother, brother, and brother! What's good about him, either? No one talks or cares about me! That's settled! I'll not go back and run from the castle forev—awwwww!"

"Stop nagging, can you?" With one hard pull, Portia tweaked Nathaniel's earlobe and made him scream loudly in pain. He tried to escape from Portia's hand, but he could not resist Portia's unbelievable grip strength. "You want to nag and throw tantrums like a five-year-old child because you are upset people talk more about your brother than you? You spoiled and ungrateful brat! Try to stop thinking only about yourself, you centered-self little scoundrel!"

When hearing all the cusses from her mouth, Nathaniel could hear a loud thunder strike right to his heart.

Meanwhile, Portia felt a huge relief after cursing Nathaniel with sacred words that came from her heart.

Getting swayed by his rage, Nathaniel pushed Portia hard until her grip loosened from Nath's earlobe, and she fell back to the ground. He got out of the pot and looked at Portia with a wrath-filled expression.

"I'm not a spoiled kid! You dunce! You … you … you yellow-headed ugly and stinky kid!" He screamed loudly and high-pitched, making some soldiers and maids who passed see them. Portia, who still sat on the floor, made a dumbfounded look as if make sure the person in front of her was stupid.

'He really didn't know how to curse someone, didn't he?'

Not long after, Nathaniel realized that he was being too far rude and looked at her with a flustered face. He saw that both Portia's arms and knees were injured from falling. He felt a huge amount of guilt, and his thoughts overflowed with bad thoughts. He did not mean to push her that hard! It was just an accident!

Nathaniel was so scared of being scolded and humiliated again for this incident. Furthermore, Kazech was so strict, which made him more afraid now.

"No, no, it isn't my fault. I just push her a little, and she falls by herself."

His negative emotions build up and compress into a black mana orb consisting of anger, fear, suspicion, and other negative emotions. If someone had a high control of mana, he would see the black orb behind Nathaniel's back right now.

Portia did not reach that level, for now, so she could not see the orb, but she was certain that Nathaniel acted strange, as if under someone or something's control. She knew that Nathaniel was a rude scoundrel with childish behaviour, but she never knew that Nath could make a dark and evil aura like that. He even grinned wide and gave Portia huge chills.

She felt like she needed to stop him right now. "Nathaniel? You alright?"

"This isn't my fault. I'm innocent. Yes, that's right. This isn't my fault. I'm innocent." He repeated some sentences with pale lips and both of his palms holding his head as he retreated back.

The aura around them started to be colder and quieter, which made Portia feel that something was off there. Before bad things could happen, Portia needed to take action. She then approached Nath with a concerned look.

"Nath! Hear me out! You're not wrong here. I'm the one who falls! Got it?"

"DON'T COME NEAR ME!"

Swoooosh! A strong wind blew toward Portia's body, making that girl pound hard into the wall again. She hissed in pain when she fell to the ground, and her back ached so bad.

Shit, she forgot the fact that Nathaniel was also a descendant of imperial sorcerer blood, just like Kazech. Different from Kazech's mana type, Nath was a wind sorcerer. He was known as the Tempest Knight of Tamerlaine back then. That was why he was respected even though he was just the second prince of this empire.

"Uhhh …." Portia crawled a little. She breathed hard because her ribs felt so sore. Her mutters made Nathaniel slowly come back to his sense. He opened wide his eyes when knowing what he had done just now.

"Y-You alright? I didn't mean to—" He tried to help Portia before someone suddenly pushed him back.

"What—"

Kazech came from nowhere and now stood between Nathaniel and Portia. That girl was also surprised, looking at his sudden appearance. She thought that he did not follow her after their conversation.

"Could you get up?"

"Uh, yes."

Kazech offered his hand, but Portia ignored it and tried to get up by herself, even though the throbbing pain in her chest remained and made her face wrinkle.

"Ka-Kazech … I didn't mean to push her. It was just a coincidence—"

"You still trying to make excuses after looking at her condition?"

Nathaniel's heart throbbed when hearing the cold tone of his brother's words. He then turned his face toward Portia and saw her condition was far from being called fine.

Portia could see the trembling in Nathaniel's eyes. It was good for him to learn, knowing that not all things were being made for him and that he needed to be more mature than before. "Huft … I'm alright. There's no need to feel—"

"Yes, there's a need. Please go back to your room, Lady Palmerston."

Portia stopped and glanced between the tension of that sibling. She was glad to leave this place instantly, but she also felt hesitant to leave them alone. There would be no fight between siblings, right?

She darted her eyes to Nathaniel, where that boy suddenly startled and turned his face to the other side. "Just go if you're alright! Don't come near me again, you ugly yellow-headed!"

'Ah … I really wanted to punch him in the face.'

"Alright, alright! I'll leave now!" She turned from them and left that place with a stomping step. But after a little while, she turned again to see the princes from afar. She was afraid that both of them would start a war inside the palace.

"Hm?" muttered Portia as she saw a strange crystal gleam fade in the back of Nathaniel's clothes as if it resonated with his manaheart. Portia furrowed her eyebrows while thinking about it hard. "What's that?"