Ring and Necklace Chain

"Done," mumbled the woman as she moved the brush away from her grasp. The woman she was applying makeup to then opened both of her eyes, gazing at her own face through the mirror's reflection. She fell silent and wordless. She just realized how beautiful she looked with makeup like this.

"You look absolutely beautiful, my lady. I'm confident today you'll shine the brightest, and everyone will be captivated by your beauty," said the woman who had just finished applying makeup. The woman smiled while looking in a mirror, observing Quinn, whom she had just finished adorning. She appeared proud to have been chosen to beautify an emperor's princess on such an important day.

"That's how it should be, as my lady is the star of the day," replied the brown-haired woman who had been standing behind them. She seemed proud to see her always-served employer shining so brightly. Her beauty radiated even more.

The main star, huh? Quinn thought to herself. Quinn Everleigh Serenity—that's her name. She is the only daughter born to the empress of the Lyntopian empire.

Quinn lowered her head, staring blankly at the vanity table, adorned with various makeup tools used to enhance her beauty. She pondered, realizing that today's event was making her nervous. Quinn never imagined she would experience a day like this.

In a little while, she would be marrying a prince from the neighboring kingdom of Courtopia, situated to the south of the Lyntopian empire.

Knock! Knock!

Their attention instantly shifted upon hearing the knocking sound. Everyone in the room turned towards the source of the sound. "Your Highness, the Emperor has arrived. He wishes to meet with you," informed a guard standing at the door.

Shortly after, the door was pushed open, revealing a middle-aged, sturdy man in a black tuxedo. He appeared imposing, especially as he entered the room where Quinn was getting ready.

"Your Majesty." The two women who were chatting earlier promptly bowed, showing respect as they noticed his arrival.

"You may leave," he said, dismissing the two women. Nash only wanted to have a private conversation with his daughter. Without protest, the two women who were assisting Quinn in getting ready quickly stepped out, leaving Quinn and Nash alone in the room.

The door closed slowly and tightly. They wanted to provide privacy for the two to speak freely. Now, inside, it was just Quinn and Nash, who appeared well-groomed. The man approached slowly, closing the gap between himself and his daughter.

"Look at how beautiful you are, my dear. Prince Ezekiel is incredibly fortunate to have a life partner like you. Besides being beautiful, you are also very intelligent. And most importantly, soon you will be the empress who rules this empire." Nash gazed at his daughter through the mirror. A smile appeared on his face, filled with wrinkles that indicated he was no longer young.

Upon hearing her father's words, Quinn raised her head, locking eyes with Nash through the mirror in front of her. While Nash looked delighted, Quinn displayed a different reaction. She didn't seem pleased at all with all of this.

"Can't you give me any other conditions?" Quinn said it softly. The look in the woman's eyes made her feelings very clear. Quinn did not agree with this marriage; that was the point. She did all this, and got married, not of her own free will. Rather, it's because of her father's requirement for her eligibility as the next empress consort. That is, Nash gave a condition that, in order for Quinn to ascend the throne as the next empress, and rule the kingdom, then she must marry a prince from another kingdom.

The prince chosen by Nash as her life partner is Prince Ezekiel from the kingdom of Courtopia. A kingdom that has maintained a good relationship with their empire.

"No! Stop negotiating. My decision is final. So, don't keep trying to negotiate!" Nash pressed his words. His facial expression changed upon hearing his daughter's words. He was slightly annoyed that Quinn kept bringing this up, even though he had already decided everything.

Quinn could only let out a quiet sigh. Her efforts to negotiate had once again failed. Whether she liked it or not, it seemed she had to go through with this marriage and be bound to Ezekiel in a husband-wife relationship. A marriage is based on an arranged union without love.

The woman clenched her fists tightly. She truly despised that her father faced such challenging conditions. It felt harder than devising war strategies, more difficult than learning to wield a sword for the first time, and tougher than finding solutions to the problems afflicting the empire.

"What's this?" Nash shifted his focus to his daughter's fingers. He noticed something peculiar there. There was a ring encircling her ring finger. A silver ring with a small sapphire gem. Nash's expression changed instantly as he realized the object on Quinn's finger. That ring shouldn't be there on such an important day as this.

Quinn, who was aware that her father noticed the ring she was wearing, hurriedly tried to pull her hand away, attempting to hide the presence of the ring from Nash's view. However, he was quicker, with Nash grabbing Quinn's hand and gripping it tightly with an angry expression. "There shouldn't be any other ring on your finger today, except your wedding ring. Remove this ring right now!"

"But—" Panic crossed Quinn's face as she heard her father's demand. As she was about to try to come up with an explanation, her words were abruptly cut off when the sound of knocking on the door once again diverted their attention.

"I apologize, Your Majesty, but I really need to come in. There's something important I must convey to Your Highness, the princess," said a woman from behind the door. Quinn and Nash fell silent upon hearing her voice outside.

Quinn, aware of the woman's voice, instantly breathed a sigh of relief. It was as if she had found a way to avoid her father's demand.

You came at the right time! Quinn smiled.

"Come in!" Nash said. It didn't take long for the woman to enter, accompanied by the brown-haired woman who had been with Quinn during her makeup session.

As the door opened, Quinn could see a middle-aged woman who always appeared at the right time for her. She bowed, showing respect to Nash, before speaking with her head lowered.

"I sincerely apologize for disturbing Your Majesty and the princess. However, this is indeed an urgent matter," the woman said. Her name was Yara, and she was one of Quinn's trusted confidantes who always assisted her in critical moments.

"Tell me what could be so important that you dare interrupt our conversation." Nash stared at Yara and Marinka unfriendly. He didn't like his conversations being disrupted by others.

"Once again, I apologize, Your Majesty. I interrupted your conversation because there's something I need to inform the princess about. It concerns the wedding gown she's wearing. There's a part that hasn't been completed, and I forgot to convey this to the attendants helping her get ready," Yara said calmly.

"What? Hasn't it been clear that today is an extremely important day? How can there be an unfinished part of the gown?!" Nash glared at her with an irritated expression. This was a crucial day, and he was furious that a mistake like this had been made.

"It's just a small part, Your Majesty, and I only need a short time to fix it. So, if I may, I would like to ask for a brief moment to get everything quickly sorted," Yara explained. She glanced at Quinn, who had been sitting there since earlier. From the look in her eyes, Quinn could immediately understand the signal Yara was trying to convey. The woman was asking for her help to ensure Nash didn't complicate this situation further.

"Fine! Then, get it done now," Quinn quickly said. Nash immediately shifted his focus to his daughter. He had initially planned to reprimand her for not appearing angry about Yara's careless actions on such an important day. However, he abandoned his intention upon seeing Quinn, who seemed completely unbothered by the situation.

"Father, can you step out for a moment? I don't want the dress to look messy," Quinn said with a smile. "After all, this is the most important day of my life."

Nash took a long sigh. He felt the urge to be angry, but he truly couldn't. "Fine," he said, then proceeded to leave them alone in the room.

Once Nash stepped out, Marinka hurriedly approached the door and locked it to ensure that no one could enter. They had to make sure the situation was entirely secure, preventing anyone from finding out what was happening inside.

"Sigh, that was close," Quinn murmured, sighing in relief. Now that everything seemed safe, she felt truly relieved, especially with Yara and Marinka by her side—two individuals who had always been her trusted confidantes and helpers.

"Luckily, I came at the right time. If not, everything would have been a mess," Yara muttered, also relieved.

"You both truly are my saviors," Quinn said, looking at Yara and Marinka alternately with a broad smile on her face.

"Fortunately, Madam Yara always thinks quickly. She always has ideas and ways to solve every situation. It's no wonder we've always relied on Madam," Marinka chimed in, smiling at the woman who had successfully rescued them from that unexpected situation.

"Marinka is right. So, how is it? Have you figured it out?" Quinn asked, refocusing on Yara. She had been anxiously waiting for good news since earlier. Honestly, she felt quite nervous when she realized Yara hadn't come with positive news for her.

"I have found a way." Yara reached into the pocket behind her dress and pulled out something. She then revealed a small black velvet box that looked exquisite. She opened the box for Quinn and Marinka to see a gold-colored necklace chain inside.

"A necklace chain?" Marinka wore a puzzled expression, just like Quinn at the moment. Meanwhile, Yara took the item out of the box.

"This is a necklace chain made of sacred gold guarded by the dragon on the Western mountain. In order to obtain one small nugget of this gold, I had to sail across oceans, down valleys, and through forests of death. Only after obtaining it did I have to mix the gold with Phoenix bird feathers, and shape it with the ancient sacred spells of the Southern sacred tribe. This is a special necklace chain that can protect you from any harm, and help perfect the power of the ring I gave you. You just need to put the ring on this chain and use it as a necklace. That way, you don't have to worry. Moreover, this necklace will turn transparent once you wear it with the ring."

Quinn fell silent, gazing at the necklace chain Yara had just presented. She truly did not expect that the solution to her problem would be a simple necklace chain like this. Quinn smiled. "Thank you. You've truly helped me."

"Now, remove your ring and put it in here immediately." Yara unfastened the clasp of her gold necklace.

Quinn hesitated for a moment, staring at the ring encircling her finger. She was somewhat reluctant to take it off, especially after Quinn looked at her reflection in the mirror. Once the ring was removed, Quinn might not dare to see herself like this again.

The ring held significant value for Quinn, as it had been a crucial tool for hiding a secret she desperately wanted to keep from everyone.

Quinn swallowed hard. With closed eyes, she then carefully removed the ring. Just as she took off the ring, a bright light emanated from the gem in the ring, causing everyone in the room to squint their eyes due to the dazzling light. It was so intense that they had to close their eyes.

After a moment, the light disappeared as the ring was completely off. Quinn then handed the ring in her grasp to Yara, who proceeded to place it within the necklace chain she held.

"Let me help you put on the necklace," Marinka offered. Yara then handed the item to Marinka, and she promptly placed it around Quinn's neck. The necklace with the ring seamlessly blended in once it rested on her neck, turning transparent along with the ring.

The same light briefly radiated again, and Quinn opened her eyes, looking at herself in the mirror. She smiled, pleased with how the necklace worked exactly as she wanted.

"Perfect," Quinn murmured.

"Now, there's nothing more for you to worry about," Marinka said with a wide smile.

Quinn held onto the ring, now encircling her necklace. She could still feel its presence, even though she couldn't see it. Quinn could finally breathe a sigh of relief, grateful that Yara always provided solutions to every problem she faced.

"Alright, it's almost time. We better head out because the ceremony will start soon."

"Oh, right!" Yara quickly placed the velvet-wrapped box on the table, grabbed the white gloves on it, and assisted Quinn in putting them on.

"Don't forget this," she said with a smile. Quinn remained silent, gazing at Yara. The woman was truly attentive to her, just like Marinka.

After getting ready, they escorted Quinn out of her dressing room to meet Nash, who had been waiting in the hallway leading to the hall.

***