The Red-Eyed Beast (1)

As they exited the cathedral gates, Arielle and William passed Lucas, who brought two new canvases along with the additional paint he ordered earlier.

"Oh, Lucas!" called Arielle and went after him. She ended up leaving William alone.

When she saw that Lucas struggled with all of his luggage, Arielle rushed over to the man to help him.

"No need, Your Highness. Let me carry them all…" Lucas politely refused.

Arielle pulled away from Lucas when he wanted to reach for the canvas she had taken.

"This is for me to use too. I don't want to trouble you any further." Arielle's words made Lucas speechless.

"But, princess… this is my job." He was still trying to refuse.

"And I want to lighten your task," added Arielle stubbornly.

William, who was left behind alone, smiled at the interaction of the two people. The princess was really nice, he thought. If it had been the king and him in their places, William would have to endure carrying the man's belongings alone.

Slowly, William began to see the charisma of the humble princess… Now, he could more or less understand why his king was attracted to that clumsy girl.

William didn't want to be left behind. He grabbed the canvas in Arielle's hand to help the princess.

"Wi-William? I can carry it myself," Arielle said and asked that the canvas be returned to her.

William politely refused. "It's all right, Your Highness. Let me carry this."

"Isn't King Ronan waiting for you?" asked Arielle.

William just laughed, then shook his head slowly.

"If His Majesty the King knows I'm late to meet him because I'm escorting and also helping Princess Arielle back to her room, I would have my salary increased," William answered laughingly. He then turned to Lucas and gave a playful glance, "Isn't that right, Lucas?"

"It's very true what William said, Your Highness," Lucas replied.

Arielle smiled broadly. This was the first time she had been helped by someone other than Tania. She batted her eyes and realized something.

Why was it that at times like this, she always ended up doing this? She was now comparing her situation in Northendell as a prisoner with her life in Nieverdell as a princess. Why did it feel like she had a much better life here?

Arielle was worried that if she continued to be carried away by the goodness of the north, she was going to get used to this. The princess would forget her life back in Nieverdell.

Maybe Arielle would let Lucas and William help her just this once. In the future, she hoped to be able to do everything independently again.

"Thank you, Lucas… and William."

"With pleasure, Your Highness," Lucas and William replied in unison.

***

Not only Priests Elis and Willian warned Arielle not to leave Whitethorn Palace for the next two nights. Now Lucas also told the same thing plus with the additional explanation that it was… one of His Majesty's orders.

Deep down, Arielle was very curious. However, she didn't want to force her will and intrude on the others. She didn't want to bother them by continuing to ask things that might be the secrets of the Northendell courtiers.

In her room, Tania was waiting for Arielle with a basin of warm water.

"Your Highness, did you hear about the order to stay in the room for the next two nights?"

"Yes. Priest Elis, Lucas, to William, King Ronan's personal bodyguard, also said the same thing."

The maid then helped Arielle take off her coat and provided warmer slippers. She brought Arielle to sit on the sofa and then washed the girl's hands with warm water so she wouldn't get cold.

"The butler also warned the same thing. And some of the maids were even allowed to go home. What actually happened?" asked Tania, confused

"Tania, do you remember what the servant at the inn told me at that time?"

"About him meeting a wolf as big as a horse and having red eyes?"

Arielle nodded. She wiped her washed hands to dry then walked to the bedroom window. She opened the balcony door, and the cold air wafted in.

"I think the North has strange things beyond our heads. I mean… Priest Elis also said the same thing, on a night when the moon is in its brightest phase, namely the full moon phase, the gate guarding Mount Birwick will weaken so that there is a possibility that the creatures there will descend the mountain. Maybe the wolf monster is one of them."

"But this is a palace, Your Highness. Is the Northendell palace guard so weak that they can't afford to guard against it?"

Arielle also felt strange. "I also question the same thing, Tania. Palaces filled with trained soldiers actually joined in confining themselves. But, we are just outsiders who don't know anything. We should just follow their orders."

Arielle laughed then closed the balcony door again. "I'm not that stupid, risking my life just to fulfill my curiosity."

***

The rest of the day, Arielle used her time to start drawing sketches on a new canvas. Lunch and dinner were always brought by Lucas alone.

Every time Arielle opened the door, she would find Lucas sitting in one of the chairs near her bedroom door. He read a book from underneath the brightness of a light candle.

When he heard Princess Arielle's door open again, Lucas immediately closed his book and approached Arielle, who now looked at him worriedly.

"Lucas, you're not sleeping in your room?" asked Arielle in concern.

Lucas' personality was not much different from Priest Elis because he just smiled. "I have been assigned to look after Your Highness for the next two nights."

"Um… but it's going to be very cold outside. At least use a bigger candle."

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. This is enough."

"Have you had dinner?" asked Arielle again.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Just as Lucas finished saying that, his stomach growled and made the man's face flush with embarrassment. Arielle chuckled, finding it funny when she saw Lucas blush for the first time. She grabbed Lucas' hand and led him into the room.

"Eh, Your Highness?" Lucas was very surprised to see Arielle's hand pull him just like that.

"Well, don't think about it. You will stay up all night. At least warm yourself up first and fill your stomach."

Arielle grabbed Lucas's book and put it on her bed. Tania helped Arielle to prepare dinner for Lucas.

"Isn't that the princess's dinner that I just brought in?" Lucas asked in surprise.

"Yup, and we'll eat together," Arielle said as she held out a plate to Lucas.

Lucas was a little nervous because he had never dined with a royal princess before. He was just one of the king's guards who was given a task to protect Arielle for these two nights.

"Thanks… m-maybe I'll just eat it outside."

Arielle held Lucas' shoulder and stopped the man who was about to leave. "It's cold outside… at least warm yourself up first. I'm not going anywhere, so you don't have to worry."

Arielle sat back down and received a plate of food from Tania. Lucas waited for Arielle and her maid to eat their food first, after they both ate, then Lucas took the spoon too.

For him, Arielle's kind attention warmed his heart more than the warmth that radiated from the fireplace.

Lucas suddenly noticed that the curtains on Princess Arielle's door and window were wide open so they could see the view from outside. Lucas, who was eating quietly, grabbed a glass of water and put down his plate.

"Lucas?" asked Arielle.

"He's nearby. Tania, help me extinguish all the candles!" Lucas ordered firmly.

Arielle just sat in her place and waited for Lucas' explanation, once he extinguished all of the flames from the candles. The man then closed the curtains so that no more light would enter the room except the moonlight.

"Lucas? What happened?"

AUUUWWW!!!!

Arielle's body stiffened at the wolf's howl. She didn't hear wrong, it was the howling of a wolf. But what made Arielle panic was that the howl sounded very close. It was maybe from the palace grounds itself.