Don't Leave The Whitethorn Palace On The 14th And 15th

The first day of work was beyond Arielle's expectations. The fact that she needed to tidy up a wet room was not an easy matter, the person who made this mess really was amazing. Sigh.

She collected the sheets and blankets into the basket, and then a Cathedral student came on the orders of Priest Elis and assisted Arielle in drying the room.

On proceeding to the next room, everything went smoothly. Arielle just needed to tidy up, sweep and collect some trash if any. When she returned to the now dry room, Arielle found a lot of papers with pictures of trigrams on them.

When she saw them, it made Arielle jealous. If she was able to read in the future, she also wanted and liked to know more about Trigrams and new sciences. Arielle chose to be patient.

She would work to earn any amount of money. Even if she only collected a little bit, Arielle could at least use it to learn some basic things. As for books… she would find a way to get them after returning to Nieverdell.

Arielle finished her work and then made sure everything was according to what Priest Elis wanted.

Once she was done, Arielle then went to Priest Elis' room to retrieve her coat. She knocked on the door and happened to see William, who just come out of Priest Elis' room.

"Greetings, Princess," said William and bowed his head.

Arielle, who was quite surprised, widened her eyes. She looked at Priest Elis and William alternately.

"Oh, Wi-William? Um…. W-what are you doing here?"

William raised his hand to show some papers. "I was assigned to convey some important things. Have you finished praying?"

"Ah… yes! I just finished praying."

Arielle saw Priest Elis, who smiled wryly. She knew that the man wouldn't be able to lie, so Arielle immediately decided she should be the one who lied. She wouldn't let Priest Elis get into trouble after giving her a hand.

"Then let me escort Princess Arielle back to the Whitethorn palace," William said with a smile.

"Thank you, William. But there's something I'd like to discuss with Priest Elis for a moment."

One of William's eyebrows rose. He then looked back and found Priest Elis smiling at him too. The king's guard became doubtful whether the king needed to know about this or not. He then came out of Priest Elis' room and gave way for Arielle to enter.

"I'll be waiting out here," he said as he walked out.

Arielle didn't really want to bother William to take her back to Whitethorn Palace, but the man seemed steadfast in his desire to escort the princess. Arielle finally nodded, and the door of the room was closed by Priest Elis.

"Does William know about my work? He won't report it to King Ronan, right?"

Priest Elis chuckled, then offered a cup of tea.

"Sit down first, Your Highness."

"But William..."

"He would understand," replied Priest Elise reassuring Arielle.

The girl hesitated to sit down. However, when she saw that Priest Elis had sat down first, Arielle felt it would be rude to continue talking while standing.

"Princess, there is no need to worry. William didn't know about the work you are doing here. However, I have something important to tell you…"

Arielle received a cup of hot tea from Priest Elis. "Thank you, Priest."

"Based on the lunar calendar, tomorrow is the 14th day in the middle of the month. By the middle of the month, the 14th-15th, the guard on Mount Birwick will weaken, making it easier for some of the wild animals from there to descend down the mountain."

He added, "Therefore, during that time of the month, we are not allowed to leave our residences at all. All lighting will also be extinguished at night. So, the next two days will be Your Highness's day off."

Arielle stared at the priest blankly and then she bit down on her lip. She assessed the information he just gave her. What Priest Elis said was the same as what the butler she had met at the inn on her way to the north said.

"So I'm not allowed to leave my room for those two days?"

"Your Highness is allowed to tour the Whitethorn palace, but I hope you don't leave the palace."

"But this is a royal palace compound, right? How can wild beasts enter the palace grounds?"

Priest Elis sighed deeply. 'Precisely on a night like this, the palace was going to be used to confine the beast so as not to attack other residents, Your Highness…'

However, Priest Elis only kept those thoughts to himself. He didn't want to scare Princess Arielle. The King also certainly did not want people outside the palace to know about it.

"I'm just stating the worst case possible," he spoke as a matter of factly.

Arielle was silent. She was an ignorant outsider of Northendell. She only needed to obey Priest Elis' words because Priest Elis had stayed here longer than her. Surely that man understood the conditions in the North better.

Arielle received her coat then put it back on. Priest Elis accompanied Arielle to the front of the room. William still faithfully stood waiting for her, only feeling a bit curious about the conversation inside of the room. When the door opened, he straightened himself and asked Arielle to walk before him.

The two of them walked awkwardly. Arielle herself had never spoken to King Ronan's bodyguard. They only occasionally crossed paths, and like this morning, the man waved his hand through the reflection of the glass when she got caught hiding.

Arielle felt William was too silent while he walked behind her.

"William?" called Arielle.

"Yes, princess?"

"Um… will you walk beside me?" Arielle turned around with an awkward laugh. She added, "I'm not used to walking in front of someone."

"It's an honor for me, Your Highness," replied William, who then matched his steps with the princess. "Did you ask Lucas the same thing, Your Highness? Because I always see Lucas walking beside you."

Arielle nodded. William was happy to meet a royalty like Arielle. Usually, royal princesses were quite difficult to handle.

For someone who had the status of a princess from a kingdom as big as Nieverdell, Arielle was quite friendly and humble, although sometimes she looked awkward. That was the first impression that William got.

"William, may I ask you something?"

"Please do, Your Highness."

"About the 14th and 15th nights of the lunar calendar, has the palace ever been attacked by beasts?"

"Ah, has Priest Elis told you that?" William asked back and Arielle nodded in response. William cleared his throat and just replied, "That's right, the palace has been attacked by wild beasts several times. So I hope you will not leave the Whitethorn Palace for the next two days."